The Santa Clarita City Council struck a bargain Tuesday with Integral Communities in council chambers, paving the way for the project’s final approval at the council’s next meeting.  The developer has a plan to build 318 homes and more than 100,000 square feet of warehouse space at the current site of the Santa Clarita Swap Meet at Saugus Speedway.  The historic property hosts a twice-weekly open-air market closing for good on Sunday, but the item proposed to the City Council was a “conformance review” of a project the Planning Commission denied at its previous meeting.  The commission declined to approve the project on a 2-2 tie due to concerns that the developer declined to address during Tuesday’s City Council meeting.   In the city’s state-mandated Regional Housing Needs Assessment, a five-year plan the city must submit every five years showing the city’s capacity for housing, planners “contemplated” a potential for approximately 700 units on the 35-acre property — including a mix of low- to moderate-income housing.  Lennar Corp. was identified by the applicant as the building partner for the project during Tuesday’s discussion.  In exchange for letting the developer’s plan go below even the minimum estimate for that housing in favor of market-rate units, Peter Vanek, principal for Integral, agreed to spend about $500,000 on projects in the city: $250,000 toward a trail that would connect the project to Reuther Avenue; $100,000 into the city’s low-income housing fund; and $150,000 toward the restoration of the Pardee House, planned to become a museum as part of the Santa Clarita History Center in William S. Hart Park.   The Planning Commission initially denied the project because it fell so far below what planners estimated in terms of housing units for the property, commission members said during their September meeting.  Councilwoman Laurene Weste, who brought the concessions to the developer, appealed the commission’s denial, which prompted Tuesday’s hearing.   After a lengthy discussion and public comment on the project, many spoke in favor, but many also expressed concerns about the swap meet’s fate.  Because the project involves housing, which is the state’s priority due to the homelessness crisis, City Attorney Joe Montes sought to explain the situation as the city having the obligation to approve the project, unless it can prove that the approval would force the city to not meet the five-year goal in its RHNA allocation.   In response to a question from Councilman Bill Miranda, City Manager Ken Striplin answered confidently that it’s unlikely the city would meet its RHNA capacity regardless of this project.   In a phone interview Wednesday, Jason Crawford, community development director for the city of Santa Clarita, said the city will have opportunities to show the capacity for the low- and moderate-income homes that fall below the goal for this project.  He said the planning staff is now going to bring back a final version for council approval at its next meeting. The final version would require 22 of the homes to be affordable.  While declining to mention specific avenues, he confirmed the city is expected to review plans for thousands of homes in the next year, between a renovation of the Valencia Town Center and the Sunridge properties.  Any affordable units in future plans could make a statistical dent in the unbuilt homes in the Riverview property, he said.   Language barrier   One of the concerns local residents mentioned, including a number of vendors from the swap meet that was held earlier that day, was the lack of availability for a Spanish translator.  Ramiro Martinez, who was one of three who mentioned the concerns during public comment, told the council many of those working in the swap meet — at least a handful of whom were in attendance — have felt in the dark about what’s going on with the land.  And while he recognized that it was a private property matter, Martinez said in a phone interview Wednesday, as a vendor, it would have been nice to have a better understanding of the situation. Many didn’t realize until recently that the market’s closure was inevitable.   He said the family’s local soft-serve truck routes help sustain operations, but the crowds seen on Tuesdays and especially Sundays are crucial.  Doug Bonelli, who lives out of state but has represented his family’s ownership of the land at several council meetings, previously has apologized for any hardship created by the uncertainty surrounding the sale. He said previously he’s been trying to sell the land for years.  Carrie Lujan, communications director for the city of Santa Clarita, said the city received a call Tuesday afternoon seeking information about the meeting from a Spanish-speaking resident, but there was no request for a translator. Lujan said if residents are able to provide 24 hours’ notice for such a request, the city would do its best to comply.   The post Council overrules Planning over homes on swap meet lot  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.