Fontana's Planning Commission voted 5-0 to approve a 108-townhome development near the northwest corner of Baseline and Palmetto avenues, marking the first project greenlit under the city's newly readopted Walnut Village Specific Plan. The 6.7-acre site, currently home to two single-family houses that will be demolished before construction, sits within a 342-acre planning area that has been remade to encourage denser housing in northeast Fontana.
Associate Planner Cecily Session-Goins told commissioners the development would be the first approved under the 2024 Walnut Village Specific Plan, according to the Fontana Herald News. The original Walnut Village plan dates back to 1980, and the city rescinded and replaced it in 2024 with an updated framework meant to guide development in the plan's underdeveloped pockets, according to the same report. That regulatory overhaul is documented in filings with the state's environmental clearinghouse, which identify the New Walnut Village Specific Plan EIR and roughly 53 acres of the 342-acre area for potential residential up-zoning, per CEQAnet.
The Walnut Village Specific Plan area is bounded by State Route 210 to the north, Baseline Avenue to the south, Sierra Avenue to the west, and Palmetto Avenue to the east, according to the City of Fontana. The plan sets a density range of roughly 12 to 24 units per acre, and the approved townhome project comes in at about 16 units per acre — squarely within that band, the Herald News reports.
How the Developer Boosted Unit Count Through State Law
The 32.5% density increase and two affordable units are associated with Monte Vista Homes' separate 26-home project at 7844 Alder Avenue, per the Fontana Herald News account of the meeting. Chris Courtney appeared on behalf of the applicant to accept the conditions of approval, the report notes.
The project will feature two architectural styles spread across buildings that each hold four to eight units. Cottage-style buildings will carry a light brown color scheme with blue accents, flat concrete roof tiles, shutters, gridded windows and horizontal siding, while Spanish-style buildings will use a light neutral palette with dark green accents, concrete S-roof tiles, decorative clay pipes, arched openings, shutters and decorative rafter tails, according to the Herald News. The community will mix drive-aisle-loaded units with plaza-loaded townhomes clustered near the center, and it will not be gated.
Access Points and Neighborhood Amenities
Baseline Avenue and Palmetto Avenue will each serve as a vehicle and pedestrian access point, and the project will also include a gated emergency-vehicle access point, per the same report. Improvements are planned along both Baseline and Palmetto avenues as part of the development.
Amenities will include a tot lot with a slide, shaded tables, benches, bike racks, and additional landscaping. Another outdoor grass area in the northeastern portion of the site will serve as a passive recreational area. The Fontana Herald News notes the small open lawn area will also get extra benches and bicycle parking.
Fontana's State Housing Mandate Looms Over Approvals
Fontana's State Housing Mandate Looms Over Approvals
The project adds townhomes to the local housing mix, adding another layer to local housing.
Fontana's density-bonus approach reflects a statewide policy framework. California's Density Bonus Law provides a framework for linking added density with affordable housing.
Developer's Second Fontana Project Also Advancing
Monte Vista Homes is simultaneously pursuing another Fontana project: a proposal for a 26-home subdivision at 7844 Alder Avenue, south of Miller Avenue, accompanied by its own housing density bonus agreement. The proposal is one of the builder's Fontana projects. The firm's other Fontana projects are not identified in the provided material.
Fontana Planning Commission meetings are held at 6 p.m. on the first and third Tuesday of each month at the Steelworker's Auditorium at the Fontana Lewis Library & Technology Center while City Hall remains under construction, and sessions are livestreamed on KFONTV. Agendas, minutes and recordings are available at fontanaca.gov.
