Riverside is making it easier to turn vacant offices, commercial buildings and other underused properties into housing after the City Council gave final approval Tuesday to a new adaptive reuse ordinance.
The ordinance, which was approved as part of the council's consent calendar without discussion, updates the city's zoning and building codes to encourage the conversion of existing nonresidential buildings into apartments and mixed-use developments.
City officials say the changes are intended to remove some of the regulatory hurdles that have historically made adaptive reuse projects difficult or too expensive to pursue, while helping Riverside meet its state-mandated housing goals.
The push for adaptive reuse comes as Riverside continues to fall short of such goals. A March report found the city had permitted just 19.6 percent of the 18,458 new homes state officials say it must plan for between 2021 and 2029, with no new very-low-income housing permitted since 2021.
The council had already voted to introduce the ordinance on June 23 — but before doing so, council members directed staff to strengthen protections for historic buildings by requiring review from the city's Historic Preservation staff before designated or eligible cultural resources can be altered or demolished. Those changes were incorporated into the final ordinance approved Tuesday.
Under the new rules, qualifying projects can convert existing commercial, office and certain industrial buildings into multifamily housing or mixed-use developments without going through discretionary approval in most cases. Buildings generally must be at least 15 years old and located within eligible commercial, office, mixed-use, multifamily or business manufacturing zoning districts.
The ordinance also includes several incentives designed to make those projects more financially viable. Existing parking can remain without requiring additional spaces for converted residential units, projects may exceed current residential density limits if they meet height standards, and there is no minimum unit size requirement. Existing buildings that don't conform to today's zoning standards for height or floor area can also continue to be used, with opportunities for limited vertical additions.
In addition, the ordinance authorizes the city's building official and fire marshal to develop alternative building standards tailored to adaptive reuse projects, providing greater flexibility when converting older buildings that may not meet modern construction standards.
The ordinance stems from Riverside's 2021 Housing Element, which identified adaptive reuse as one strategy for expanding the city's housing supply while reducing barriers to development. The project was developed with technical assistance funded through the Southern California Association of Governments' REAP 2.0 housing program in partnership with the Western Riverside Council of Governments.
Over the past year, city staff and consultants evaluated potential adaptive reuse sites, analyzed development regulations, met with developers and property owners, and hosted a public open house before bringing the proposal to the Planning Commission, which recommended approval in May.
Staff noted that Riverside has already seen successful examples of adaptive reuse, pointing to projects such as the Farm House Collective and The Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture.
The ordinance grew out of the "Repurpose Riverside" initiative, funded with roughly $300,000 in technical assistance through the Southern California Association of Governments' REAP 2.0 program.
The new ordinance creates a formal framework intended to make similar redevelopment projects easier to pursue in the future.
