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San Benito County is moving closer to adopting a policy aimed at protecting residents from being displaced by rising housing costs.
On Aug. 20, the San Benito County Planning Commission approved a new code chapter that would give local residents priority for affordable housing, favoring those who already live, work or study in the county.
The new policy, called Local Tenant Preference, lets applicants earn points when looking for housing for each category they qualify in—such as being a senior, a farmworker, a person with a disability or an employee in the county or at a local school. The applicants will be required to provide documentation.
Of those who meet a project’s standard rental requirements, the ones with more points will be ranked higher when competing for an affordable housing unit.
The proposed resolution, which now heads to the San Benito County Board of Supervisors for final approval, is intended “to remedy or mitigate potential displacement and gentrification impacts of development and other displacement activities, and to provide an opportunity for existing San Benito County residents to afford the housing provided in the county.”
The idea of prioritizing local residents over newcomers originated with the Board of Supervisors, which in February created a Housing Policy Reform Ad Hoc Committee. The board assigned Supervisors Dom Zanger and Ignacio Velázquez to work with staff on several housing reforms, including the development of a local tenant preference.
The Planning Commission first reviewed the new policy at a meeting in April, then directed staff to revise it and gather public input. It came back in June, when commissioners removed a one-year residency requirement, added seniors as a preference and asked staff to explore a school district exemption.
During the Aug. 20 meeting, senior planner Stephanie Reck told the commissioners that, after meeting with the school district, staff added a new preference giving applicants a point if someone in their household works for a school district within the county. San Benito High School superintendent Shawn Tennenbaum celebrated the decision.
“Affordability for housing is one of the state’s greatest crises right now,” Tennenbaum said. “So, we’re trying to amend that so that we have a local workforce that can live and work in our community.”
Reck told the commissioners that, besides adding the senior preference, staff also added a disability preference, noting that “they typically go hand in hand. Our Aging and Disability Resource Center serves both individual populations.”
Commissioner Robert Gibson endorsed the changes and suggested seniors receive two points instead of one.
“They’re a very vulnerable population,” Gibson said. “A lot of them are surviving on Social Security, and I think if anyone deserves an extra point or two, it would be seniors.”
Gibson’s proposal received unanimous support from the commission.
Next, the local tenant preference will be discussed by the supervisors, who are expected to adopt it.
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