Council Approves 27 Single-Family Homes on 2.6-Acre Site

A plan to put 27 homes on a 2.6-acre parcel of land near Birch Street and Poplar Avenue has won City Council approval after the developer agreed to scale back the project.

Olson Co. of Seal Beach had proposed to put 28 single-family homes on small lots. But council members delayed voting on the plan last month because of concerns over limited street parking and open space.

The council approved the project unanimously, however, after Olson Co. officials agreed to delete one home and add parking. The development will include five units for low-income residents.

“I think we’re getting a special kind of housing,” Councilwoman Bev Perry said. “Single-family units in what would normally be a dense area.”

The housing-to-land ratio will be only 10.7 units per acre, officials said, though the property’s zoning would have allowed as many as 64 dwelling units to be built there.

The city’s Redevelopment Agency bought the property about five years ago and demolished the deteriorating housing on it. The agency resold the parcel to the developer for $950,000.

In response to concerns by Councilman Glenn G. Parker, the developer agreed to post a $25,000 bond toward street repair or other costs that might be incurred by the future homeowner association.

Because the streets in the development do not meet the city’s minimum width requirements, they have been designated as private, so any repairs would be paid from homeowner association fees.

Parker said he was concerned that those fees, at least for the first few years, would not be adequate to cover a major repair.

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New Development

City oKd plans to put 27 homes on 2.6 acres.