This article is brought to you courtesy of the paying subscribers to California Planning & Development Report. You can subscribe to CP&DR by clicking here. You can sign up for CP&DR’s free weekly newsletter here.
State to Suspend SB 9 "Duplex Law" Provisions for L.A. County Fire Recovery
Under pressure from Los Angeles-area elected officials, Gov. Newsom issued an executive order allowing Pacific Palisades and parts of Malibu and Altadena affected by wildfires to be exempt from development under CA Senate Bill 9. The 2021 law allows property owners to build up to four units on lots previously zoned for single-family homes. The order applies to areas that burned in the Palisades and Eaton fires which are designated as "very high fire hazard severity zones" by the CA Deptartment of Forestry and Fire Protection. The announcement follows concerns about increasing density beyond the capabilities of existing infrastructure and fire evacuation routes, with City Councilmember Traci Park and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass both calling for Newsom to suspend SB 9 in fire-affected areas.
Jarvis Assoc. Pushes Ballot Initiative to Reinforce Prop 13, Limit Transfer Taxes
The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association is proposing a ballot measure called the "Save Prop 13 Act of 2026" that would reinforce provisions of 1978's Prop 13, which limits property tax increases. It would also roll back real estate transfer taxes, like Los Angeles’ Measure ULA. The move is partially a response to court rulings like the 2017 California Cannabis Coalition v. City of Upland decision, which opened the door for special interest groups to pass tax initiatives with only a simple majority, bypassing the original two-thirds threshold. Howard Jarvis proposed Save Prop. 13 Act hoping to re-instill voter-approved taxpayer protections. The proposed ballot initiative would also roll back real estate transfer taxes, unless re-approved by a 2/3 voter majority, and prevent charter cities from enacting similar levies. Save Prop. 13 supporters say it’s a critical step to uphold the intent of Prop. 13 and stop what they call “equity theft” from California property owners, while critics say Measure ULA is still redeemable and actionable in Los Angeles. (See related CP&DR coverage.)
Report Details Uses of $632 Million in Greenhouse Gas Funds
A progress report from the Air Resources Board indicates that California’s Community Air Protection Program is delivering cleaner air to over four million residents in the state’s most polluted areas. Since 2017, the program has funded more than 9,000 local projects with $632 million from the state’s Cap-and-Invest program, prioritizing disadvantaged communities. Projects range from replacing polluting equipment to reducing school-area dust and launching the country’s first electric tugboat, collectively cutting emissions equivalent to millions of cars and trucks. A recent expansion, Blueprint 2.0, is bringing the program to 64 high-pollution communities with new grants, enforcement strategies and mobile air monitoring. Newsom is pushing to extend Cap-and-Invest, calling it essential to protecting public health and combating federal rollbacks on clean air.
CP&DR Coverage: New Approaches to VMT Mitigation
Ever since SB 743 switched CEQA’s emphasis on traffic mitigation from level of service (congestion) to VMT (the overall amount of driving), lead agencies – including not just local governments but transportation agencies – have been vexed about exactly how to make this happen. AB 130 sets up a formal process allowing fees to pay for infill housing as mitigation for increased VMT. But a lot of questions still remain – and the Legislature’s approach to this issue may create yet another CEQA quagmire, at least temporarily.Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation must release its initial guidance within one year and adopt its final guidance by 2028. In the meantime, there’s likely to be a lot of confusion over how much infill housing is adequate mitigation for VMT (which lead agencies will have to calculate and prove on their own, at least for now), when and how contributions to the state’s fund will be allowed, and whether other forms of VMT mitigation will also be required.
Quick Hits & Updates
The U.S. EPA has recognized Fresno's Saint Rest + Food to Share Hub as a successful brownfields redevelopment project. The EPA's Brownfields program provides technical assistance and supports cleanup and planning for communities repurposing properties contaminated with hazardous substances. The Share Hub was previously a 6,800 square foot unused industrial complex suffering from contamination and structural decline, but was repurposed as a community food hub.
With San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie's Family Zoning Plan up for review by city lawmakers in the coming months, the pro-housing group GrowSF conducted a poll finding that of the 35% of respondents who had heard of the plan, 65%supported higher density housing, with just 23% in opposition. Lori Brooke, the co-founder of Neighborhoods United SF, a group strongly opposed to Lurie's plan, said the poll did not reflect resident's feelings about other possibilities, and said the Mayor's proposal would promote unaffordable luxury appartments and displace existing residents.
The U.S. Senate Banking Committee has advanced the bipartisan "ROAD to Housing Act of 2025," a sweeping package that claims to tackle housing supply challenges by incentivizing local reforms, supporting ADU and manufactured housing construction and updating federal regulations to reduce development barriers.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved $750,000 in redress funds for former residents displaced from Russel City when it was seized by Alameda County and the City of Hayward and bulldozed in the early 1960s. The neighborhood of around 1,400 people was a cultural and residential center hub for Black and Latino families following WWII, and was seized by the city through eminent domain to create an industrial park. The City of Hayward pledged an additional $250,000 dollars to the reparations, bringing the total to be paid to $1 million.
Public access plans were released for the Frank and Joan Randall Preserve, a 376-acre coastal area between Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. Formerly known as Banning Ranch and the site of an oil field, the land was purchased by conservation groups for nearly $100 million in 2022, and is going to be permanently protected. The plans for the preserve emphasize public access, resource management, coastal resilience and tribal access and engagement.
The LA County Regional Park and Open Space District will issue $58 million in competitive grants, the largest in its history, to convert neglected spaces into parks, trails, and green infrastructure. At least 30% of the funds are reserved for communities designated as High or Very High Park Need, following the District's goal of providing every LA resident access to green spaces in their community. The program is intended for "shovel-ready, climate-smart, and community-rooted" projects.
Sunset Magazine's former headquarters in Menlo Park has received 617 letters in support of, and 12 against, it's potential placement on the National Register of Historic Places, after a state commission voted 6-0 in May recommending the site be designated as historically significant. The designation would pose a roadblock to the development group N17, which has proposed to build 3 towers up to 31 stories tall, including 665 housing units with 133 set as affordable, 300,000 square feet of office space, a 130-room hotel, nearly 5 acres of parks, and other commericial spaces.
California's population grew for the second year in a row in 2024, nearing its pre-pandemic peak thanks to gains in major cities like Bakersfield, San Diego and Los Angeles, despite continued net migration losses to other states. Growth was driven largely by natural increase and international immigration, while housing construction remained modest, with Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) playing an increasingly significant role.
California's population grew for the second year in a row in 2024, nearing its pre-pandemic peak thanks to gains in major cities like Bakersfield, San Diego and Los Angeles, despite continued net migration losses to other states. Growth was driven largely by natural increase and international immigration, while housing construction remained modest, with Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) playing an increasingly significant role.
Developer Hines has proposed a 1,225-foot skyscraper at 77 Beale Street that would become the tallest building on the West Coast, surpassing Salesforce Tower by over 150 feet. The project includes 1.6 million square feet of office space, retail, restaurants and a new public garden, along with the conversion of a smaller office building into 120 housing units. It also calls for the restoration of two historic buildings on the block and replaces a previous plan for an 808-unit residential tower. City officials have praised the project as a bold investment in San Francisco’s recovery, though it arrives amid high office vacancy rates and broader efforts to encourage office-to-housing conversions.
