Livermore City Council refuses to put contested affordable housing project to public vote

A drone view of construction and a parking lot adjacent to Stockmen’s Park where construction of 130 units of affordable housing is proposed in downtown Livermore, Calif., Tuesday, March 12, 2024. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group )

After all, Livermore residents may not get a chance to vote on a hotly contested affordable housing project.

After a court ruling appeared likely to put the project before voters next November, city officials determined that a referendum was not necessary and that construction of the 130-unit downtown complex could move forward .

In March, a state appeals court ruled that the city must consider a request for a referendum filed by a neighborhood group opposed to the project, which was to be developed by the nonprofit Eden Hayward Housing.

But on Monday, the City Council, which has the final say on whether to put the issue on the ballot, voted 4-1 to end the measure.

Neighborhood group Move Eden Housing, which has gathered the thousands of signatures needed for a referendum, says the project cannot move forward without a public vote. City officials argue, however, that the court’s decision makes clear that a referendum is needed only to build a proposed public park at the edge of the project, not to build the housing itself.

Despite objections from residents who accused the city of denying the will of voters, the council voted to hold off completion of the one-acre park for at least a year while it continues to work with the developer on the proposed accommodation provided at the corner of the railway line. South L Avenue and Street.

At Monday’s public meeting, Councilman Evan Branning, whose district includes downtown, chastised residents who objected and delayed the project. Before moving forward with the referendum, opponents unsuccessfully sued the city in 2021 to block development.

“You are the ones who are sowing hatred and division in our community,” Branning said. “You have the opportunity to welcome our neighbors, to bring them in, to say that Livermore is a community that loves each other.”

Opponents, meanwhile, echoed a familiar refrain: We support affordable housing, but not this particular project.

“Eden Housing can be built elsewhere in this city, not downtown, where we play, where we walk, where we eat, where we entertain,” said resident Greg Rogowski. “Not everyone here is against Eden Housing – we are just against the current management.”

In its interpretation of the court decision, the city maintains that its decision to sell the project land to Eden Housing was an “administrative act,” which cannot be challenged by referendum. Therefore, city officials said, only the decision to build a new park is subject to a public vote.