San José planning staff proposes higher residential densities, pauses new growth areas pending SB 79 guidance

Planning staff told the San José General Plan working group that the city must expand residential growth capacity for the seventh review cycle while preserving critical community land uses and addressing equity concerns.

"La capacidad actual de crecimiento de viviendas del plan Envision San José 2040 había sido consumida," said Sanhita Kaushal, supervising planner for the General Plan and Analysis team, as staff opened a multi‑part presentation on proposed strategies. Staff outlined four strategies to increase capacity, including directing growth to corridors near high‑frequency bus service and reassessing neighborhood residential densities.

The staff recommendation includes increasing the neighborhood residential density to a level that would permit medium‑density multifamily housing (staff described scenarios that raise the neighborhood residential designation to 32 units per acre and to evaluate densities up to 40 units per acre). Staff also proposed adjusting mixed‑use designation bands so that the highest mixed‑use upper bound would remain above the residential maximum to retain a logical density progression between designations.

Staff warned that recent state housing laws could materially affect the city’s inventory. "El proyecto de ley SB 79 crea una cantidad sustancial de nueva capacidad teórica de vivienda en San José," staff said, but cautioned the working group that much of that theoretical capacity would be constrained by parcel size, site access, existing uses and statutory exclusions such as rent‑controlled properties and mobile home parks.

Because SB 79 could convert a large amount of acreage in theory, staff recommended not proceeding with adopting new level‑one or level‑two growth areas at this time. "No se debe proceder con las áreas de crecimiento de nivel uno ni de nivel dos," staff said, recommending instead that the city perform targeted, parcel‑level evaluations for corridors such as Winchester Boulevard and Alameda before expanding growth area boundaries.

Staff supplied a citywide inventory and feasibility screening: about 728 sites (roughly 1,041 parcels, ~6,700 acres) were in the review area; after removing government‑restricted and institutional parcels, staff identified a subset of 124 sites (~678 acres) with realistic redevelopment potential and an SB 79 theoretical capacity estimate of roughly 20,300 units, while noting most of the larger acreage remains institutionally constrained.

The working group pressed staff for additional methodological detail and for further analysis of how HCD (Department of Housing and Community Development) guidance will influence acceptable capacity counts. Staff said it will return with more detailed parcel‑level findings and a recommendation package at the working group meeting on June 3, 2026, with preliminary council consideration anticipated in August and a final vote expected in December 2027.

What’s next: staff will refine methodology, complete parcel‑level reviews for selected corridors (Winchester and Alameda were named), and return to the working group on June 3 with recommended site selections and detailed analysis.