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An artist’s rendering of an example of a single-family home in the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters.<\/p>\n
Willowgrove project<\/p>\n
The Davis City Council voted unianimously Tuesday that a proposed 1,250-unit housing development was ready for Davis voters to consider. The Willowgrove project<\/a> would develop 232 acres north of East Covell Boulevard and east of the Wildhorse neighborhood.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s very exciting, it\u2019s been a long time coming,\u201d Davis Mayor Donna Neville said during the council meeting.<\/p>\n The council voted 5-0 to certify the project\u2019s environmental impact report, the final hurdle before it could go to voters. Willowgrove \u2014 just north of Mace Ranch and east of Wildhorse along East Covell Boulevard in the city\u2019s northeastern fringe \u2014 is the second-largest development in the city\u2019s housing development pipeline.<\/a><\/p>\n Under Davis\u2019 Measure J-R-D, first passed in 2000, any development that rezones agricultural land for urban use must be approved by voters.<\/p>\n City staff said the project was ready to be placed on the November ballot, Senior Planner Eric Lee told council members. The staff report said their fiscal analysis found the project would have a cumulative negative impact of $190,422 over 15 years, which staff described as \u201cessentially neutral,\u201d but would provide more than $6.8 million in additional affordable housing funding.<\/p>\n The city held a workshop April 21 to present the project and take questions and feedback. Most public comments were positive, Lee said. The project was approved by the Davis Planning Commission last month.<\/p>\n Before the vote, each council member spoke in favor of the development.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is one I fully support,\u201d Councilmember Josh Chapman said. \u201cI think it goes above and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n What does the project include?<\/p>\n The Willowgrove proposal includes 197 low-density units, which typically are detached single-family homes; 515 medium-density units, which typically are smaller single-family homes and townhouses; and 538 high-density units, which typically are apartments or condos.<\/p>\n The developers plan to build 288 townhomes and condos priced for middle-income families. Davis\u2019 mix of student housing and million-dollar homes has made it hard for young families to move to or remain in Davis. Many of the homes in Davis\u2019 development pipeline are intended to bring that \u201cmissing generation\u201d back to the city<\/a>.<\/p>\n The development would include 250 affordable housing units. Most of those units would be high-density housing in a three-story apartment building on about 10 acres of the site. Developers have partnered with Alta California Regional Center to make 20 units available to people with physical or intellectual disabilities. Willowgrove would also include 20 townhomes priced for moderate-income families.<\/p>\n The proposal includes a separate two- or three-story building for the high-density market-rate units. Both the market-rate and affordable high-density homes would be located in the southwestern corner of the development site, closest to public transit options and downtown Davis.<\/p>\n The Willowgrove proposal also includes 74 acres of shared spaces, including a community park, a garden and a neighborhood greenbelt. It includes planting 2,500 trees and removing about 50 trees from East Covell Boulevard. The project also includes 5,000 square feet of retail space for businesses such as cafes and coffee shops.<\/p>\n What would the project\u2019s impact be?<\/p>\n Bre Moebiu, counsel for the Willowgrove project, said the proposal is \u201cshovel ready\u201d and would bring several benefits to the city. The project would increase the city\u2019s property tax base by more than $1.2 billion and bring more students into Davis Joint Unified School District, she said.<\/p>\n The project\u2019s environmental impact report was conducted by Nick Pappani of Raney Planning and Management Inc., who presented the report\u2019s findings to the council.<\/p>\n Because the project would permanently convert farmland to urban space, it \u201cwould result in substantial unplanned population growth,\u201d Pappani said. The project would exceed the city and region\u2019s threshold for added vehicle miles traveled. Developers have suggested mitigation strategies, but those would not bring the project below the threshold, he said.<\/p>\n The report offered five alternatives, as required by the California Environmental Quality Act. Among the proposals were smaller project footprints, fewer units on the same footprint and canceling the project altogether. Increasing the density of housing units would mean converting less farmland and could help the project meet vehicle emissions targets.<\/p>\n The project has been shaped by community input since its earliest iterations, Moebius said. It had been discussed in 70 public meetings over the past five years, she said.<\/p>\n More than 20 people spoke in favor of the development on Tuesday. They said they were in support because it would help address the city\u2019s housing crisis, increase DJUSD\u2019s student enrollment<\/a> and would include housing units for people with disabilities. Among the commenters in favor was DJUSD Board President Hiram Jackson.<\/p>\n \u201cWe see a lack of housing as connected to declining district enrollment,\u201d Jackson said.<\/p>\n The decision comes as voters consider Village Farms<\/a>, an 1,800-unit development proposal that will appear on the June ballot as Measure V. Willowgrove has proven less controversial, even among Measure V opponents.<\/p>\n Several commenters spoke in favor of the athletic fields included in the proposed community park, including three fifth-grade softball players from Montgomery Elementary School and a group of third-graders.<\/p>\n As part of the deal, according to the city staff report, the developers would kick in $1.8 million to the Housing Trust Fund, giving the city the ability to offer \u201chousing ownership opportunities for moderate-income buyers\u201d within Willowgrove\u2019s potential future footprint.<\/p>\n During public comment ahead of the vote, resident Alan Brownstein told council members that he chose Davis for law school decades ago in part because housing was affordable.<\/p>\n \u201cHow times have changed,\u201d said Brownstein, who turns 80 next month. If voters approve Willowgrove in November, he said he would especially look forward to the new pickleball courts.<\/p>\n This story was originally published May 5, 2026 at 10:00 PM.<\/p>\n Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/img-26-05-05-6A4B3.jpg\" "\\"img-26-05-05-6A4B3.jpg\\"")
An artist’s rendering of a single-family home for the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters. Willowgrove project ![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/img-26-05-05-59678.jpg\" "\\"img-26-05-05-59678.jpg\\"")
An artist’s rendering of a single-family home for the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters. Willowgrove project <\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/img-26-05-05-F0DE1.jpg\" "\\"img-26-05-05-F0DE1.jpg\\"")
An artist’s rendering of high-density housing along East Covell Boulevard in the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters. Willowgrove project What do residents think?<\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/img-26-05-05-70B40.jpg\" "\\"img-26-05-05-70B40.jpg\\"")
An artist’s rendering of a greenbelt within the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters. Willowgrove project <\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/img-26-05-05-BB300.jpg\" "\\"img-26-05-05-BB300.jpg\\"")
An artist’s rendering of a playground and park for the proposed Willowgrove development in northeast Davis. The City Council voted Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to put the project before Davis voters. Willowgrove project <\/p>\n
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