City of Goleta Reaches Settlement Agreement with Shelby Family Partnership Over Glen Annie Housing Project

The City of Goleta has reached a settlement with Shelby Family Partnership, L.P., over the Glen Annie housing project litigation. The settlement comes after a February 2025 court ruling ordered the City to accept Shelby’s SB 330 preliminary application and process the revised project in accordance with state law, on the condition that they submit a revised housing application under California’s Builder’s Remedy provisions.

Highlights

• The City of Goleta has settled with Shelby Family Partnership, L.P., over the Glen Annie housing project.
• The settlement invites Shelby to present a revised application to the City, including increased affordable housing and comprehensive environmental review.
• The settlement, however, does not guarantee approval from the City Council and Planning Commission.

Settlement to Include Increased Affordable Housing and Environmental Review

Shelby’s original application from 2005 consisted of 60 single-family homes. It was revised to 56 units later. However, delays due to a water moratorium and subsequent legal disputes over the City’s refusal to accept an SB 330 preliminary application led to a court order requiring the City to process the revised project.

Under the settlement, the project has to designate 11 of 56 units (19.6%) under affordable housing—an increase from the state’s minimum. The affordable housing units will include:

• 4 units for extremely low-income households
• 1 unit for lower-income households
• 3 units for moderate-income households
• 3 units for above-moderate-income households (120–200% AMI)

All the affordable housing units will be built using materials and designs that match market-rate units. Furthermore, the City will revise and recirculate the project’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). This will ensure that the revised proposal is subject to thorough and updated environmental evaluation while also allowing public input.

Nevertheless, the revised proposal does not guarantee approval from the City. After the environmental review, the proposal will be presented to the Planning Commission and City Council for additional consideration. The final settlement will be made available for public review once executed in its entirety. More information about the settlement is available through the official announcement on the City of Goleta official website.