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Mill Valley is taking steps to promote construction of the type of housing the community needs.

Its decision to update its zoning to allow for building more affordable housing, including so-called “micro” apartments, is a step toward actually seeing a long-term need addressed.

The council has taken a hard look at its “inclusionary” requirement, a zoning tool commonly used to promote construction of affordable housing, and plans to lower its thresholds.

Instead of requiring 25% of new units in a project of four or more residences to be affordable, the city is moving ahead with plans to lower that requirement to 15% and make it applicable for projects of seven or more units.

It is also removing restrictions that require apartments to be at least 450 square feet.

The goal is to get new housing built.

Its existing rules have done the opposite, discouraging developers to build smaller projects.

The city’s inclusionary housing rule has been on its books since 1982. In 2018, the city lowered the threshold for projects from 10 to four and required 25% be affordable.

That change did not meet its intended goal; it did not lead to a creation of affordable units. It, in fact, was one of the highest requirements in the Bay Area and was a disincentive for builders.

Over the last 10 years, only nine units of new multi-unit housing have been built.

The city has a longstanding need for affordable housing, especially workforce housing that local jobholders can afford.

On top of that, the state’s housing quotas mandate that the city pave the way for building 865 new units by 2031.

One developer advised the council that lowering the requirement might mean that developers will propose smaller projects.

Allowing “micro” units is a way to promote construction of affordable housing. Currently, it is estimated that only 3% of the city’s housing stock is studio apartments, units that typically rent for less than $2,000 per month.

The council is also considering a Mill Valley Planning Commission recommendation that it waive its development fees for projects with smaller units.

It will take time to see whether these measures work.

It took eight years to see that the 2018 changes didn’t generate many affordable units.

But the city deserves credit for being ready and willing to realize that its 2018 standard isn’t working and to move forward with changes council members hope may.

“I was on the planning commission in 2018 when we lowered it from 10 to four,” said Councilmember Urban Carmel. “It didn’t work. … You learn and I’m happy we’re pivoting.”

The clear goal is to get the kind of housing built that meets a longstanding local need.

Marin municipalities facing the overly ambitious state housing quotas are facing scenarios where even after making required zoning changes to accommodate this unprecedented growth, housing projects aren’t getting built.

Some observers note that even projects that get local approvals may not get built due to economic factors such as the cost of Marin real estate, interest rates and the cost of labor and supplies which drive up the cost of building, rents and sales prices.

Mill Valley is trying to make sure that the state is not going to be pointing at City Hall as the reason 865 units don’t get built.

It is also striving to facilitate that those units that do get built are addressing the community’s need for housing that local workers can afford.