21-0316_JAMBOREE HOUSING CORPORATION_Correspondence_E6March 16, 2020
Mayor John Taylor and Councilmembers
City of San Juan Capistrano
32400 Paseo Adelanto
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
RE: Letter of Support - Item E. 6. Amended Exclusive Negotiation Agreement Between the City
of San Juan Capistrano and Jamboree Housing Corporation for Potential Development of an
Affordable Housing and City Hall Project at the City-owned Property Located at 32400 Paseo
Adelanto (Portion of Assessor Parcel Number 668 -101-23) (600.30)
Dear Honorable Mayor Taylor and Members of the Council:
The Kennedy Commission (the Commission) is a broad-based coalition of residents and community
organizations that advocates for the production of homes affordable for families earning less than
$27,000 annually in Orange County. Formed in 2001, the Commission has been successful in
partnering and working with Orange County jurisdictions to create effective housing and land-use
policies that has led to the new construction of homes affordable to lower income working families.
The Commission would like to commend the City for its leadership and partnership with Jamboree
Housing Corporation to provide a potential affordable housing project. While this development will
provide much needed affordable housing, it is important the City review its current progress towards
meeting its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA).
For the 2014-2021 Housing Element planning period, the City has a RHNA of 147 very low - and 104
low-income units. Per the City of San Juan Capistrano’s 2019 Housing Element Progress Report
submitted to CA HCD in April 2020, the City has built 0 of the 147 very low-income units and 2 of the
102 low-income units. However, for the above moderate-income units, the City outperformed and
exceeded the RHNA by constructing 517 or 194% of the 267 above moderate-income units. The City
has a remaining RHNA need of 249 lower income units.
With one year left in the current planning period it is imperative that the City prioritize the
development of new affordable homes for lower income families to address this housing imbalance
and deficiency. Additionally, at this stage of the planning period it is important that the City be able to
identify appropriate sites for lower income housing capacity in its site inventory. Additional sites may
need to be identified or rezoned to meet this remaining need.
San Juan Capistrano will need a total of 1,054 new housing units for the 6th RHNA cycle. Of those
units, 270 are at the very low-income level and 173 at low income. If the City continues to prioritize
the development of above moderate housing at the expense of housing for low-income families, it will
have a difficult time finding sites to meet its current and its new RHNA requirements.
The Commission looks forward to partnering with th e City to increase affordable home opportunities
for lower income households. Please keep us informed of any updates and meetings regarding
strategies to increase affordable homes for lower income households in San Juan Capistrano. If you
have any questions, please feel free to contact me at (949) 250-0909 or
cesarc@kennedycommission.org.
www.kennedycommission.org
17701 Cowan Ave., Suite 200
Irvine, CA 92614
949 250 0909
3/16/2021
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Sincerely,
Cesar Covarrubias
Executive Director
Working for systemic change resulting in the production of homes affordable to Orange County’s extremely low-income households