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A proposed six-story apartment complex in Sacramento near McKinley Park was approved by the city\u2019s Planning and Design Commission. Opponents of that decision had until 5 p.m. Monday to appeal it <\/p>\n
HRGA<\/p>\n
Opponents of a proposed six-story apartment complex in East Sacramento are appealing to the City Council to reject the project.<\/p>\n
That would overrule a decision by the Planning and Design Commission earlier this month<\/a> to approve the 332-East Sacramento apartment development and grant it the city\u2019s first exemption under a new state law meant to speed up home building.<\/p>\n The complex would be built on Alhambra Boulevard at a site now occupied by vacant brick warehouses and a few homes. It is owned by the Demas family, which has held the land for more than 50 years, John Hodgson, who runs a real estate advocacy firm, told the commission.<\/p>\n \u201cWe remain confident about our project and its merits,\u201d Hodgson, who is representing Demas Enterprises LLC, said Monday.<\/p>\n Many residents say the complex would not fit the character of the neighborhood and warn it will worsen traffic, strain the city\u2019s sewer system and should require additional environmental review. That did not sway the commission, which approved requests to exceed the area\u2019s height limit and to grant the development an exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act, a change pushed through the Legislature<\/a> last year by Gov. Gavin Newsom.<\/p>\n The appeal, filed by Citizens for Positive Growth & Preservation, argues that the complex needs to be subject to greater environmental review and the local height limits.<\/p>\n \u201cThe commission\u2019s approval of a conditional use permit was improper because there is no substantial evidence in the record that a project of this height and mass would not be out of scale with adjacent residential development even with the planned step-backs,\u201d the appeal said.<\/p>\n It goes on to argue that the development is not exempt from the state environmental law, known as CEQA, \u201cbecause it is inconsistent with the city of Sacramento\u2019s General Plan in multiple respects.\u201d<\/p>\n The project includes a six-level parking garage and ground-floor commercial space.<\/p>\n Citizens for Positive Growth & Preservation describes itself as an \u201cunincorporated association whose members reside in or around\u201d Sacramento that \u201cwas created to advocate for positive growth in the City, and the preservation of safe, healthy, and livable residential neighborhoods.\u201d<\/p>\n The group has sued the city at least three times over CEQA-related concerns with the city\u2019s General Plan and changes that would allow for denser and taller buildings in a certain section of East Sacramento. In the most recent case, filed in 2018, the 3rd District Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the city.<\/p>\n An attorney representing the group did not immediately respond to an email requesting a comment.<\/p>\n No commissioners voted to deny the project at a meeting Feb. 12,<\/a> although four of its 13 members were absent. The deadline to appeal the decision was 5 p.m. Monday.<\/p>\n It is unclear when the project will go before the City Council. Staff will need to review the appeal and find a date when the council is able to hear it, said Kelli Trapani, a city spokesperson.<\/p>\n This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 11:48 AM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n
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