After months of debating a code change to make housing conversions from office space easier, the Fresno City Council on a 4-3 vote removed a key element of the proposal Thursday.

Opponents to the code change said the element — which would have allowed city staff to approve conversion projects meeting set standards — subverted the council’s authority over land use.

Councilmember Annalisa Perea said she wrote the measure to speed up housing construction and make it cheaper, especially for infill projects. Approval can take months — or years — and add tens of thousands of dollars to costs.

Perea built in safeguards to preserve council authority, she said. The proposal required councilmembers to be notified of any ministerial approvals, allowing them to appeal.

Without that key element, Perea said the code change as a passed could make housing production more difficult.

The council must review what it approved Thursday and sign off on it a second time before the action becomes official. Perea told GV Wire she’s confident the original form will return at some point.

“The whole purpose of the item was to allow for expedited processing time while still preserving a councilmember’s ability to participate in the process if there was a concern,” Perea said. “It was a well-thought out policy that had built in safeguards. It was a win-win for all that unfortunately fell short today due to confusion that was created by the motion.”

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Perea Added Safeguards to Make Sure Council Can Review Projects

Building housing in office zones can be an expensive venture. The council in 2024 twice voted down housing projects that met code.

One decision to nix an affordable housing project cost the city a Pro-Housing Designation from the state, thus making Fresno ineligible for millions of dollars in grants. The city faces a lawsuit for the other rejected project.

Perea’s proposal — backed by Mayor Jerry Dyer’s administration — would have satisfied many requirements to get the Pro-Housing Designation back, staff said.

The notification requirement doesn’t currently exist. City Manager Georgeanne White said the council only see about 1% of project proposals in their districts.

But councilmembers Nelson Esparza and Mike Karbassi said ministerial approval takes away from a councilmember’s ability to oversee land-use decisions. They said future councilmembers may not be attentive enough to scrutinize projects.

“These projects can be very difficult and we do see some resistance from residents, but to me, that’s democracy in action, and it’s part of the process to get the most optimal outcome for the community,” Esparza said.

Karbassi said he doesn’t “give a crap about developers.”

“There’s a reason why developers are here today. There’s a reason why they’ve sent letters and they’re in support,” Karbassi said. “They want this because it makes it easier for them and that should be a big red flag.”

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Ultimately, councilmembers Nick Richardson, Brandon Vang, and Karbassi voted for Esparza’s modification allowing for housing in office zoning but taking away ministerial approval.

Councilmembers Tyler Maxwell and Miguel Arias sided with Perea. Maxwell said people want housing to be built easier and faster.

“I’ve seen good housing projects not move forward because they’ve become politicized, and I don’t think that’s fair to a lot of folks who want housing,” Maxwell said.

Ministerial Gives Power to Unelected Employees: Residents

To be approved ministerially, project proposals had to meet key requirements, including height, landscaping, parking, and several others. Projects also could not be close to airports, hazardous sites, or schools. Most eligible sites would be along Herndon and Shaw avenues. City staff estimated it could make nearly 5,000 housing units easier to build.

Perea warned that passing the change without the ministerial portion makes it harder because it maintains the safeguards. Councilmembers considered her warning but said they would work out the difficulties before it comes back for its essential second reading.

Dozens of residents of northwest Fresno came out to oppose the proposal. Many of those residents also opposed a four-story apartment complex proposed in their neighborhood. The council, led by Karbassi, voted that project down, saying it was too dense for the area.

Susan Griffin, a northwest Fresno resident, said the proposal puts power in the hands of unelected people.

“The bottom line is it results in elected official regulating their power and that of the people they are elected to represent to unelected employees who have already shown they will bend to the will of developers instead of considering the unique layout of long established areas,” Griffin said.

Ministerial Protects Against NIMBYism: Rassamni

Business advocacy groups INVEST Fresno and the Fresno County Economic Development Corp. came out in support of the proposal, saying it helps cut red tape.

“First, it support local competitiveness, it cuts red tape, it makes it easier to invest in housing projects, especially those aligned with infill and adaptive reuse,” said Julian Ramos, director of community affairs for EDC.

President of the Blackstone Merchants Association AJ Rassamni, who is also running for city council District 7 in 2026, said many councilmembers don’t have the knowledge of planning department staff. He said councilmembers can be swayed by NIMBYism — or “Not in my backyard.”

“Their decisions, your decisions are influenced by special interests, by NIMBY, versus the planning department hired to do a job,” Rassamni said.