Sonoma, CA Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Density Bonus Law (2026)
Key Facts
- Inclusionary threshold
- 5+ parcels or units
- Required affordable share
- 25% of units
- Small-project alternative
- In-lieu fee (4 or fewer units)
- Density bonus cap
- One bonus per project
- Affordability duration
- In perpetuity
- State law floor
- Gov. Code §§ 65915-65918
Summary
The City of Sonoma requires developments of five or more parcels or units to make at least 25 percent of them affordable, or pay an in-lieu fee if the project has four or fewer units. Qualifying affordable projects can then claim a state-law density bonus, processed under the city's own Chapter 19.44 procedures.
C. Inclusionary Requirements. 1. A development containing five or more parcels or units shall provide the following affordable housing units: a. Rental Projects. A rental project shall provide that at least 25 percent of the total parcels and/or units are rental units that are affordable to households in the extremely low, very low, and low income categories. ... ... 2. A development containing four or fewer parcels or units shall pay a fee pursuant to SMC 19.44.030 – In-lieu fees. ... ... 7. Accessory dwelling units shall not be counted toward meeting a project's inclusionary housing requirements.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 13-2025, passed December 3, 2025).
Full Breakdown
44, Affordable Housing and Density Bonuses (current through Ordinance 13-2025, December 3, 2025), is the City of Sonoma's own inclusionary and density-bonus ordinance, built on top of California's State Density Bonus Law (Government Code §§ 65915 through 65918), which sets the floor the city cannot go below. 020(C), a rental project of five or more parcels or units must make at least 25 percent of its units affordable, split five percent to extremely-low-income households, ten percent to very-low-income, and ten percent to low-income; an ownership project must hit the same 25 percent, split five percent low-income, ten percent moderate-income and ten percent middle-income.
030, set periodically by city council resolution and deposited into the city's housing trust fund. 50 let the developer choose between rounding up on-site or paying the in-lieu fee. 020(F). Accessory dwelling units never count toward meeting this inclusionary requirement. 050(A)(2). 050(B). 060), approved by the city attorney and planning director and recorded with the Sonoma County recorder's office before building permits issue.
Violations & Fines
Density-bonus and inclusionary applications are processed under SMC 19.44.080: reductions in development standards for density-bonus units may be approved by the planning commission, while any other incentive requires city council approval, and the council or commission must approve requested incentives unless it makes written findings under Government Code § 65915(d). Because the affordability agreement is recorded against title and binds future owners under SMC 19.44.060(B), noncompliance runs with the land and is enforceable against subsequent property owners as well as the original developer.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a small City of Sonoma project have to build affordable units?
Do accessory dwelling units count toward Sonoma's inclusionary requirement?
Who approves a density bonus incentive request in the City of Sonoma?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sonoma
California rules heatmap·Compare Sonoma to another location·View the California zoning overlays & bonuses overview
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Density Bonus Law in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Sonoma County handle density bonus law.