VISTA — The City Council unanimously approved a 34-unit infill residential project during its June 27 meeting.
The Vista Melrose Development project will be built on the southeast corner of a 5.5-acre parcel at the intersection of Melrose Drive, Matagual Drive and Breeze Hill Road. The developer, True Life Companies, will demolish a church and residential unit to make way for nearly three dozen single-family homes.
The architecture includes a mix of contemporary, ranch and farmhouse-style homes, according to Raffi Mangassarian, associate planner for Vista. The dwelling units will be between two commercial offices with a cul-de-sac and other amenities.
“The community open space includes a tot-lot, dog park, recreation lawn, heritage garden and a picnic area,” Mangassarian said. “There will be sidewalks and landscaped parkways on both sides, along with on-street parking.”
Brent Little, who represented the developers during the meeting, said the Vista Melrose Development project began two years ago. Since then, little and his team have collaborated with residents along Matagual Drive to design the project.
Little said when the final designs were finished, True Life asked the residents to vote on whether to support the project. The results were 45-1 in favor.
“This turned out to be a critical path for us,” Little said. “It allowed us to collaborate with the community … and initiate the General Plan process and use it to the fullest extent.”
Little said there are some challenges with the topography, but the property remains a good site for housing. The development will have a homeowners association and two open-space areas. The all-electric, solar-ready homes will be located near schools, shopping and county offices.
Mayor John Franklin said the project adds much-needed single-family units to the city’s inventory. Councilmember Joe Green, who owns his own real estate company, and Councilmember Dan O’Donnell agreed with the mayor.
Council members Corinna Contreras and Katie Melendez preferred a multi-family project to fit under the city’s inclusionary housing ordinance. But single-family projects do not apply to the law, according to City Planner Patsy Chow.
Contreras said the homes would not be affordable to residents, and the city should revisit its inclusionary housing ordinance to address the gap between single-family and multi-family units.
Melendez said she was pleased the homes were al-electric but suggested the city inquire about an ordinance reducing natural gas appliances.
However, every city in the state is pausing those efforts until the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals finishes a case pitting the California Restaurant Association against the city of Berkeley over a natural gas ban ordinance. The Ninth Circuit ruled in favor of the restaurant association several months ago, but the ruling was appealed to an en banc panel, and a new order is currently pending.
