Whenever the following terms are used in this chapter, they shall have the meaning established by this section. To the extent these terms are defined in California Government Code Section 65915, the definitions provided therein shall govern and the following definitions are provided for convenience only:
(a) “Affordable rent” means monthly rent, including a reasonable allowance for utilities and all fees for housing services, for rental restricted affordable units reserved for very low or lower income households, as further defined in the California Health and Safety Code Section 50053.
(b) “Affordable sales price” means the maximum sales price at which very low, lower and moderate income households can qualify for the purchase of restricted affordable units as set forth in the City of Palo Alto’s Below Market Rate Housing Program. The sales price shall be considered affordable only if it is based on a reasonable down payment, and monthly housing payments (including interest, principal, mortgage insurance, property taxes and assessments, fire and casualty insurance, homeowners association fees, property maintenance and repairs, and a reasonable allowance for utilities), all as determined by the city, that are equal to or less than the monthly housing costs provided in Health and Safety Code Section 50052.5.
(c) “Applicant” means any person, firm, partnership, association, joint venture, corporation, or any entity or combination of entities who seeks development permits or approvals from the City of Palo Alto.
(d) “Approval authority” means the person or body that is authorized to approve a development as specified in the City of Palo Alto Municipal Code.
(e) “Below market rate housing program” means Chapter 16.65 of the Palo Alto Municipal Code and the Administrative Guidelines adopted thereunder.
(f) “Child care facility” means a child day care facility other than a family day care home, including, but not limited to, infant centers, preschools, extended day care facilities, and school age child care centers.
(g) “Concession or incentive” as used interchangeably means such regulatory concessions as specified in Government Code Section 65915(k) to include:
(1) A reduction of site development standards or architectural design requirements which exceed the minimum applicable building standards approved by the State Building Standards Commission pursuant to Part 2.5 (commencing with Section 18901) of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code, including, but not limited to, a reduction in setback, coverage, and/or parking requirements which result in identifiable and actual cost reductions;
(2) Allowing mixed use development in conjunction with the proposed residential development, if nonresidential land uses will reduce the cost of the residential project and the nonresidential land uses are compatible with the residential project and existing or planned development in the area where the development will be located; and
(3) Other regulatory concessions proposed by the applicant or the city which result in identifiable and actual cost reductions.
(h) “Density bonus” means a density increase, granted pursuant to Government Code Section 65915 and this ordinance, over the otherwise maximum allowable gross residential density as of the date of application, or, if elected by the applicant, a lesser percentage of density increase, including, but not limited to, no increase in density.
(i) “Density bonus units” means those dwelling units granted pursuant to the provisions of this chapter which exceed the otherwise maximum allowable gross residential density for the development site.
(j) “Development” means all developments pursuant to a single application to construct or place five (5) or more dwelling units on a lot or contiguous lots including, without limitation, a planned unit development, site plan, subdivision, conversion of a non-residential building to dwelling units, or substantial rehabilitation of an existing multifamily building where the result of the rehabilitation would be a net increase in available residential units.
(k) “Development standard” means a site or construction condition, other than a control on maximum density, such as a height limitation, a setback, a floor-area ratio, an onsite open-space requirement, a minimum lot area per unit requirement, or a parking ratio that applies to a development pursuant to any ordinance, general plan element, specific plan, charter, or other city condition, law, policy, resolution, or regulation, including regulations enacted by the electorate exercising the local initiative or referendum power. In zones lacking a dwelling-units-per-acre standard, Floor Area Ratio or FAR acts as a limitation on density and is therefore not considered a development standard subject to waiver, incentive, or concession.
(l) “Discretionary permit” means any permit issued for the development which requires the exercise of judgment or deliberation from the Approval Authority, including but not limited to conditional use permits, variances, site plans, design review, planned development permits, general and specific plan approvals and amendments, zoning amendments, and tentative and parcel maps.
(m) “Lower, very low, or moderate income” means annual income of a household that does not exceed the maximum income limits for the income category, as adjusted for household size, applicable to Santa Clara County, as published and periodically updated by the State Department of Housing and Community Development pursuant to Sections 50079.5, 50105, or 50093 of the California Health and Safety Code.
(n) "Lower income student" means a student who has a household income and asset level that does not exceed the level for Cal Grant A or Cal Grant B award recipients as set forth in Section 69432.7(k) of the Education Code. The eligibility of a unit for lower income students under this section shall be verified by an affidavit, award letter, or letter of eligibility provided by the institution of higher education in which the student is enrolled or by the California Student Aid Commission that the student receives or is eligible for financial aid, including an institutional grant or fee waiver from the college or university, the California Student Aid Commission, or the federal government.
(o) "Major transit stop" has the same meaning as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 21155 of the California Public Resources Code.
(1) "Located within one-half mile of a major transit stop" means that any point on a proposed development is within one-half mile of any point on the property on which a major transit stop is located, including any parking lot owned by the transit authority or other local agency operating the major transit stop.
(p) “Maximum allowable residential density” or “base density” means the greatest number of dwelling units permitted in the development by the city’s Comprehensive Plan Land Use Element, a specific plan, an area plan, or Zoning Ordinance at the time of application, excluding the provisions of this chapter. If a range of density is permitted, the greatest number of units allowed by the specific zoning range, specific plan, or Comprehensive Plan Land Use Element shall apply. However, if the applicable zoning ordinance, specific plan, or land use element does not provide a dwelling-units-per- acre standard for density, then the maximum allowable residential density shall be calculated by:
(1) Estimating the realistic development capacity of the site based on the objective development standards applicable to the project, including, but not limited to, floor area ratio, site coverage, maximum building height and number of stories, building setbacks and stepbacks, public and private open-space requirements, minimum percentage or square footage of any nonresidential component, and parking requirements, unless not required for the base project. Parking requirements shall include considerations regarding number of spaces, location, design, type, and circulation. A developer may provide a base density study and the local agency shall accept it, provided that it includes all applicable objective development standards.
(2) Maintaining the same average unit size and other project details relevant to the base density study, excepting those that may be modified by waiver or concession to accommodate the bonus units, in the proposed project as in the study.
(q) “Non-restricted unit” means all dwelling units within a development excluding the restricted affordable units.
(r) “Qualifying mobilehome park” means a mobilehome park that limits residency based on age requirements for housing older persons pursuant to Section 798.76 and 799.5 of the Civil Code.
(s) “Qualifying resident” means senior citizens or other persons eligible to reside in a senior citizen housing development or qualifying mobilehome park.
(t) “Regulatory agreement” means a recorded and legally binding agreement between an applicant and the city to ensure that the requirements of this chapter are satisfied. The regulatory agreement, among other things, shall establish: the number of restricted affordable units, their size, location, terms and conditions of affordability, and production schedule.
(u) “Replace” means either of the following:
(1) If any dwelling units described in Section 18.15.030(i) are occupied on the date that the application is submitted to the City, the proposed housing development shall provide at least the same number of units of equivalent size to be made available at affordable rent or affordable housing cost to, and occupied by, persons and families in the same or lower income category as those households in occupancy. For unoccupied dwelling units described in Section 18.15.030(i) in a development with occupied units, the proposed housing development shall provide units of equivalent size or type, or both, to be made available at affordable rent or affordable housing cost to, and occupied by, persons and families in the same or lower income category as the last household in occupancy. If the income category of the (last) household in occupancy is not known, it shall be rebuttably presumed that lower income renter households occupied these units in the same proportion of lower income renter households to all renter households within the jurisdiction, as determined by the most recently available data from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy database. All replacement calculations resulting in fractional units shall be rounded up to the next whole number. If the replacement units will be rental dwelling units, these units shall be subject to a recorded affordability restriction for at least 55 years. If the proposed development is for-sale units, the units replaced shall be subject to California Government Code Section 65915(c)(2). For purposes of this subsection (u) of Section 18.15.020, “equivalent size” means that the replacement units contain at least the same total number of bedrooms as the units being replaced.
(2) If all dwelling units described in Section 18.15.030(i) have been vacated or demolished within the five-year period preceding the application, the proposed housing development shall provide at least the same number of units of equivalent size, as existed at the highpoint of those units in the five-year period preceding the application to be made available at affordable rent or affordable housing cost to, and occupied by, persons and families in the same or lower income category as those persons and families in occupancy at that time, if known. If the incomes of the persons and families in occupancy at the highpoint is not known, it shall be rebuttably presumed that low-income and very low income renter households occupied these units in the same proportion of low-income and very low income renter households to all renter households within the jurisdiction, as determined by the most recently available data from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy database. All replacement calculations resulting in fractional units shall be rounded up to the next whole number. If the replacement units will be rental dwelling units, these units shall be subject to a recorded affordability restriction for at least 55 years. If the proposed development is for-sale units, the units replaced shall be subject to California Government Code Section 65915(c)(2).
(v) “Restricted affordable unit” means a dwelling unit within a development which will be available at an affordable rent or affordable sales price for sale or rent to very low, lower or moderate income households.
(w) “Senior citizen housing development” means a Development consistent with the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (Government Code Section 12900 et. seq., including 12955.9 in particular), which has been “designed to meet the physical and social needs of senior citizens,” and which otherwise qualifies as “housing for older persons” as that phrase is used in the federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (P.L. 100-430) and implementing regulations (24 CFR, part 100, subpart E), and as these phrases are used in California Civil Code Sections 51.2, 51.3, and 51.12.
(x "Shared housing building" means a residential or mixed-use structure, with five or more shared housing units and one or more common kitchens and dining areas designed for permanent residence of more than 30 days by its tenants. The kitchens and dining areas within the shared housing building shall be able to adequately accommodate all residents. If a local ordinance further restricts the attributes of a shared housing building beyond the requirements established in this section, the local definition shall apply to the extent that it does not conflict with the requirements of this section.
(y) "Total units" or "total dwelling units" means a calculation of the number of units that:
(1) Excludes a unit added by a density bonus awarded pursuant to this section or any local law granting a greater density bonus.
(2) Includes a unit designated to satisfy an inclusionary zoning requirement of a city, county, or city and county.
For purposes of calculating a density bonus granted pursuant to this section for a shared housing building, "unit" means one shared housing unit and its pro rata share of associated common area facilities.
(z) "Very low vehicle travel area" means an urbanized area, as designated by the United States Census Bureau, where the existing residential development generates vehicle miles traveled per capita that is below 85 percent of either regional vehicle miles traveled per capita or city vehicle miles traveled per capita. For purposes of this paragraph, "area" may include a travel analysis zone, hexagon, or grid. For the purposes of determining "regional vehicle miles traveled per capita" pursuant to this paragraph, a "region" is the entirety of incorporated and unincorporated areas governed by a multi- county or single-county metropolitan planning organization, or the entirety of the incorporated and unincorporated areas of an individual county that is not part of a metropolitan planning organization.
(Ord. 5623 § 2 (part), 2024: Ord. 5523 § 2 (part), 2021: Ord. 5432 § 7 (part), 2018: Ord. 5373 § 12, 2016; Ord. 5231 § 2 (part), 2014)