By Sasha Ryu, Contributor
On Sept. 1, the Town Council adopted changes and additions to its objective design standards for multi-family and mixed-use housing projects in Los Gatos. The updated standards focus on two main categories: site standards and building standards. The changes establish the expected height and development of projects and demand the use of “high-quality” materials and detail. They also regulate architectural style to be “consistent with existing patterns” and require “smooth transitions” between developments of different sizes. The last time the council adopted changes to the Town’s objective design standards was on Feb. 13, 2024.
This year’s update is part of a process the Town has labeled Phase II, following a first set of standards the council adopted in Nov. 2022. In Sept. 2024, the Town contracted with Lisa Wise Consulting to lead and draft the updated standards, which the Planning Commission recently reviewed and unanimously approved on June 24, 2026.
The updated standards require buildings taller than two stories to include “a differentiated base, middle, and top” along street-facing walls. Building materials also must be “fire resistant,” and wood products, “even those labeled ‘ignition-resistant,’” are listed as prohibited primary building materials.
Parking structures visible from the street are limited to “50 percent of the length of the building elevation.”
Multi-family buildings and townhomes that exist adjacent to residential districts are limited to a height of 25 feet or two stories.
The update also details numerous standards for entrance design, ground floor design, façade design and roof design.
At the Sept. 1 meeting, the council voted to adopt the proposed changes and additions to the objective design standards, with a few corrections to the plan, such as increasing the required stepback for buildings taller than two stories adjacent to single-family homes from 40 feet to 50 feet.
The council also asked staff to obtain a cost estimate for the Town architect to review the adopted standards; once the Town has that estimate, it can decide whether to fund the review. If the Town architect’s review raises substantial concerns, the council can reopen the standards for further discussion. Staff, however, noted that the budget allocated for the broader objective design standards project is nearly exhausted, which could affect whether that additional review moves forward.
The resolution passed unanimously.
With the new objective design standards now in place, all new housing development projects in Los Gatos will be bound to follow the new rules outlined in the plan, however state law makes it possible for certain projects to sidestep total compliance.
Housing development projects adopted after Jan. 1, 2020 are protected under Senate Bill 330, which prohibits the Town from applying new design standards to projects unless the standards meet the state’s legal definition of “objective standards.”
Projects in Los Gatos must comply with all the Town’s objective design standards in place at the time of approval; however, if the project qualifies for the state’s density bonus law, the developers are entitled to an unlimited number of waivers to eliminate or modify local development standards that “physically preclude” construction.
Under the Housing Accountability Act, developers with “Builder’s Remedy” projects also have the power to argue against complying with the Town’s objective design standards if they believe meeting such standards would render their project “economically or physically infeasible.”
The updated objective standards will only apply to projects that are approved after the changes are adopted. Any existing projects are vested to the objective standards that were in place at the time they were approved.
