Nevada County Sends Housing Plan to State With 677-Unit Gap

Nevada County must plan room for 3,712 new homes, and its draft blueprint is 677 lower-income units short of what state law requires. On Oct. 20, 2026, the Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to send that draft to state reviewers, starting the clock toward a May 15, 2027 deadline. The same session raised the bar for cannabis dispensary applicants, revived a debate over county payroll growth and drew organized opposition to two industrial projects.

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• Draft Housing Element heads to the state 5-0, with roughly 40 acres of rezoning promised
• Cannabis dispensary applicants must now score 85 of 100, up from staff's proposed 70
• Staffing changes pass 5-0, but three permanent tech-system jobs draw pushback
• Residents rally against Mountain Enterprises wood grinding and a Cedar Ridge industrial plan
• Harmony Ridge's 10-year map extension continued after a midnight air-quality letter

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Housing Plan Heads to Sacramento With a Gap

The housing element dominated the agenda, running more than an hour.

The basics: A housing element is the state-required chapter of a general plan showing where housing can be built. Under the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), the region must plan for 7,055 units. Unincorporated Nevada County's share is 3,712, about 1,700 of them for lower-income households.

Why it matters: "Having a compliant housing element is really important in making you eligible for certain affordable housing grants, infrastructure grant programs," said Chelsea Norton, Director of Urban Planning, Ascent, the county's consultant.

Where things stand: Norton said current zoning can absorb 1,026 lower-income units, which leaves a 677-unit shortfall. The draft commits to rezoning about 40 acres across six candidate areas. Action 8.1.1 in the draft cites 42 acres by May 2030. Norton also pointed to an aging population: seniors now make up 32% of residents, up from 22% in 2010. She stressed that this vote only sends the draft for state review and does not adopt it.

Advocates want more: Tom Durkin of the No Place to Go project asked the county to keep relocating people living in RVs a low priority. He also urged support for yurts, containers and safe parking. Tracy of Nevco West Community Land Trust asked for a youth shelter, adoption of AB 1033 to allow ADU sales, and restored grant-writing capacity. Abby of FREED Center for Independent Living sought aging-in-place and universal design measures. Michael Taylor urged rezoning sooner than 2030.

The other side: Supervisors cited infrastructure, insurance and mobile home parks as constraints. "It really doesn't help on the ground," said Rob Tucker, Supervisor. Tucker also disclosed a stake in two Higgins-area candidate parcels: "It looks like two of them that are identified I'm a part owner of, so I just want to disclose that." Heidi Hall, Supervisor, framed the choice bluntly: "If we don't do the job, the state's gonna come in and do it for us." Board Chair Lisa Swarthout noted how the targets have changed over time: "This is my 4th housing element in the last 29 years I've been involved doing this, and I've never seen them go down."

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The vote passed 5-0 (For: 5, Hall, Tucker, Hoek, Bullock, Swarthout; Against: 0; Absent: 0). Hardy Bullock, Supervisor, District 5, signaled openness to ADU sales. Vice Chair Sue Hoek asked how to make building advantageous for development partners. Lower-income renters, seniors and owners of candidate parcels have the most at stake in the rezoning decisions.

What's next: The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) will review the draft. An adoption hearing must follow before May 15, 2027.

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Cannabis Applicants Face a Steeper Climb

Where things stand: Matt Kelley, Director of Code and Cannabis Compliance, proposed a minimum qualifying score of 70 of 100 points. His proposal also included a re-release process if no applicant qualifies and a minimum 30-day application period. The score applies to dispensary licenses in North San Juan and Soda Springs.

Bullock pushed for a higher bar. "I'd like to see a minimum score on each individual area of 70, and then a cumulative score of 85," said Hardy Bullock, Supervisor, District 5. One supervisor argued that the extra margin guards against any future loosening of state rules.

The industry backed the stricter standard. "I also support what has been suggested of raising the standard to 85%," said Diana Gamzon, Executive Director, Nevada County Cannabis Alliance.

The other side: "I don't know why we are asking so much more of this business than we would any other small business," said Supervisor Heidi Hall, who nonetheless deferred to colleagues. Supervisor Rob Tucker said, "I would probably not be supportive if we didn't have that additional 85%."

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The Board amended Resolution 24-594 and passed it 5-0. Applicants must now average 85 of 100 points and score at least 70% in every evaluation category. Swarthout also agreed that all seven members of the evaluation committee should attend the selection meeting. Supervisors said the tougher standard lowers the risk of challenges claiming selections were arbitrary. Established operators with strong applications benefit most.

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New Software, Permanent Jobs?

Where things stand: The Board amended Staffing Resolution 26-320. The changes:

• Shift positions within the Health and Human Services Agency
• Add two limited-term human service specialists for Medi-Cal recertifications
• Add an HR program manager for the Workday enterprise resource planning (ERP) system
• Add three Sheriff's Office positions funded by a grant through 2029

Of eight limited-term ERP positions, three would become permanent, in HR, the Auditor's Office and Information and General Services (IGS).

The other side: "We're going to have an IGS department that's bigger than any other department if we keep doing this," said Supervisor Heidi Hall, objecting to adding permanent staff with each system upgrade. Another supervisor noted the county's old systems were archaic. "These positions are intended to look for those broader organizational efficiencies that the new system … promised in terms of delivery," said Patrick Eichmann, Assistant CEO.

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The resolution passed 5-0. The grant-funded positions carry no general fund impact. Whether Workday shrinks payroll over time remains an open question.

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Neighbors Organize Against Industrial Proposals

General public comment turned into a coordinated case against two pending projects.

Why it matters: The Planning Commission has already recommended denying wood grinding by Mountain Enterprises. Residents want supervisors to follow that recommendation.

Where things stand: Christy Hubbard, a member of the Brunswick Homeowners Association, cited a WTrans report of 18 collisions in five years at Brunswick Road and Highway 174. She asked the Board to deny wood grinding and work with Caltrans on safety improvements. Robert Hubbard cited noise projections, including a 5-decibel daytime increase, along with health and property-value concerns. A separate commenter read resident statements from a petition with more than 4,350 signatures opposing the Hidden Grove industrial plan in Cedar Ridge.

Another speaker argued the county is wrongly demanding a competing study before it will accept substantial evidence under CEQA, the California Environmental Quality Act. The speaker cited CEQA Guidelines Section 15384(b), which says non-expert testimony can qualify. Gordon Gossage of Regenesis Planet urged post-election cooperation across party lines on housing, wildfire resilience and the local economy.

What's next: Both projects remain pending. No hearing dates were announced.

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Harmony Ridge Extension Delayed

Where things stand: Mark Smith of Ridgetop Holdings LLC seeks to amend the Harmony Ridge development agreement. The change would extend the project's vesting tentative final map by 10 years, to Jan. 7, 2039. "Based on a number of comments that we've received, including from the Air Quality Management District, staff and the applicant are requesting a continuance," said Brian Foss, Planning Director.

The other side: Andy Cassano of Nevada City Engineering, the applicant's representative, agreed to the delay. He asked that the next hearing close public comment to prevent another last-minute document drop. Cassano said he was alarmed by claims that construction conditions of approval are not being followed and said he is looking into them. "I'm also disturbed by the lateness of the air quality comment," said Supervisor Heidi Hall. Swarthout noted that state law governs the public comment period.

Decisions and stakeholder impacts: The hearing was continued 5-0 to a future noticed hearing.

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Minor Items

• Veterans: David, the Veterans Services Officer, said his four-person, $855,336 office drives $95M in annual federal benefits; Military Appreciation Week (Nov. 7–15) was adopted 5-0.
• Domestic violence services: Community Beyond Violence reported 773 survivors served and a new confidential shelter, with about 90% grant funding; the presentation was accepted 5-0.
• United Way: The Board proclaimed November 2026 Campaign Month 5-0, with an $8,000 employee giving goal.
• Consent calendar: It passed 5-0 twice after a call-in outage forced a re-hearing; the Chair declined Michael Taylor's request to pull Item 16, the tax-defaulted property auction moved from Nov. 5 to Jan. 7.
• Highway 49: The transfer of county rights-of-way to the state (Item 21) was pulled from consent and continued.

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Looking Ahead

The Board's only November meeting is Nov. 17. Election Day is Nov. 3.