Rocklin declares surplus property downtown for affordable housing

The city of Rocklin recently declared two small parcels downtown as surplus land for low-income housing. The Rocklin-Pacific property is at the southwest corner of Rocklin Road and Pacific Street, and the Railroad-Pine lot is two blocks away on the northeast corner of Railroad Avenue and Pine Street. The state Surplus Land Act requires cities to offer surplus land for affordable housing developers before others. Key aspects include reporting surplus land to the state, following a specific process with public notice and good-faith negotiations with interested parties. Violating the act can result in penalties against the city. The Pacific parcel is roughly 21,519 square feet, or .49 acres. The lot is a remnant of the completed traffic circle and is zoned general-retail-service-commercial, staff said. "This property was acquired by the City to be developed into a roundabout at Rocklin Road and Pacific Street for public right of way. The roundabout has been completed and the remaining property is not needed for the roundabout or any other public purpose," said Assistant City Manager Andrew Keys in the council report. The Railroad-Pine parcel is even smaller, about 6,600 square feet, or .15 acres. Both properties are exempt from environmental review as surplus land because they're less than an acre. The lots are also not contiguous to state or local public land for open space. There is a current development application for the Railroad property for a 100-percent affordable housing project. However, for surplus land purposes, the parcel is considered vacant since no dvelopment has yet been done, staff said. "In order to lease the land to the project proponent, the property must be declared exempt surplus," said Elizabeth Sorg of the City Manager's office. There are no financial impacts to the city associated with the surplus lands. Any sale, lease or disposal of the properties will be considered at a future date, staff said. The Rocklin City Council unanimously approved the declaration Oct. 28 during the non-controversial consent agenda.