Campbell's Move Reshapes Single-Family Neighborhoods

Campbell’s City Council voted April 21 to close a local housing loophole that had allowed multifamily projects to move onto single-family lots after existing homes were demolished. (sanjosespotlight.com) The 4-1 vote started work on a policy requiring a replacement single-family home when a livable single-family house is torn down, instead of letting developers treat the lot as vacant for a denser project. (eastbaytimes.com) (sanjosespotlight.com) The dispute grew out of Campbell’s implementation of California’s Starter Home Revitalization Act, first passed as Senate Bill 684 in 2023 and expanded by Senate Bill 1123 in 2024. The law allows ministerial approval of projects with up to 10 homes on eligible residential and mixed-use sites. (campbellca.gov 1) (campbellca.gov 2) On Campbell’s starter-home projects page, single-family parcels qualify only if they are vacant at the time an application is submitted, unless a structure is abandoned and uninhabitable. The city’s page says that standard was updated through an interim ordinance and lists project statuses as of April 21, 2026. (campbellca.gov) Residents argued the city had previously let developers buy properties with livable homes, seek preliminary approval, and then bulldoze those structures to pursue multifamily housing. Attorney Richard Drury told the council those projects were not eligible because the lots were not vacant when filed. (sanjosespotlight.com) The council did not revoke approvals or filings already in the pipeline. San José Spotlight reported that 16 projects would remain grandfathered, and opponents said those proposals could add 108 homes citywide. (sanjosespotlight.com) Campbell’s public project list shows multiple starter-home applications on single-family-zoned sites, including proposals for 5 units at 474 Budd Ave., 9 at 1573 Walnut Dr., 9 at 661 W. Parr Ave., and 10 at 1170 Steinway Ave. (campbellca.gov) This fight follows another state-driven change in Campbell. In January 2025, the council adopted a temporary policy to comply with Senate Bill 450, which made duplexes and fourplexes easier to build in single-family neighborhoods and reduced setbacks in some areas to 4 feet. (patch.com) The city is now trying to align its local rules with Sacramento’s housing laws while preserving the projects already filed under the earlier interpretation. For Campbell homeowners, that leaves the next battle over whether those grandfathered projects survive. (sanjosespotlight.com)