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Cleanup of Destroyed Blimp Hangar Renews Redevelopment Plans in Tustin
The US Navy and the City of Tustin have completed an environmental cleanup of the former Tustin Marine Corps Air Station's north hangar site, which was destroyed by a fire in November 2023. City officials are now focused on plans for redeveloping the remaining 500 undeveloped acres of the former base and completing Tustin Legacy, a mixed-use project already spanning 1,600 acres of the decommissioned base and consisting of 4,200 homes in addition to shopping centers, schools, government buildings, and 95 acres of public parks. Local officials emphasized the "tremendous opportunity" presented by such a large contiguous parcel of land, but Tustin Mayor Austin Lombardi cautioned that redevelopment would be complicated since some of the land is still owned by the Navy. Under the current arrangement the city must adopt a reuse plan for the land, which the Navy would then act on.
Santa Ana Approves Major Mall Redevelopment
Santa Ana City Council approved a proposal from developers Hines and C.J. Segerstrom and Sons to redevelop the 17-acre South Coast Plaza Village mall into a mixed-use project named The Village Santa Ana. The plan calls for replacing 100,000 square feet of existing commercial space with 1.9 million square feet of new development including 1,583 homes, 300,000 square feet of offices, 80,000 square feets of restaurants and shops, 13.8 acres of open space, 7.5 of which will be publicly accessible, and parking for 3,500 vehicles. In exchange for the entitlements, the developers will make $9.3 million in community benefits payments and pay $7.1 million of in-lieu fees for affordable housing development. The development is planned for five phases spanning twenty years.
Report: Dearth of Condominiums Exacerbates Housing Shortage
According to a new report by the Terner Center for Housing Innovation out of UC Berkeley, California’s housing shortage has been compounded by a sharp decline in condominium construction and is linked to the state’s construction defect liability laws and the resulting surge in insurance costs. Developers of condos pay three to four times more for insurance than rental builders, partly because insurers assume most condo projects will face lawsuits during the state’s unusually long ten-year liability window. Broad definitions of “defects,” aggressive solicitation by trial lawyers and rules that let HOA boards file lawsuits without member approval have created a litigation-heavy environment, further discouraging construction. The report highlights that insurance requirements such as costly “wrap” policies add millions to project budgets, limiting condo development to only the wealthiest markets. To revive condo production and expand homeownership options, the report suggests reforms like shortening the liability period, strengthening HOA accountability, protecting developers who follow repair procedures, capping attorney fees or adopting warranty systems that shift focus from litigation to maintenance and quality assurance.
SGC Provides Updates on AHSC Housing Program, SALC Conservation Program
The Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program and Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program have contributed to the development of over 1,200 affordable units in 13 projects statewide and permanent conservation via easements in 13 counties of 8,880 acres of working agricultural land in the first half of 2025. This is according to figures recently released by the Strategic Growth Council. In total, the programs have constructed 22,000 affordable homes with climate-friendly transit options and conserved over 240,000 acres of farmland determined to be at risk of pollution-heavy development. Governor Newsom praised the programs as examples of the state's agricultural and environmental leadership. (See related CP&DR coverage.)
CP&DR Coverage: Four Decades of CP&DR
As CP&DR enters its 40th year, Editor and Publisher Bill Fulton looks back on a quirky idea -- a newsletter dedicated to nothing but urban planning, covering nowhere but California -- that turned out to have serious staying power. Bill writes, "At the time I was a fledging land use journalist freelancing for a wide variety of publications, including APA’s own Planning magazine, as well as California Business (now out of business) and California Lawyer. Industry newsletters – printed and mailed – were all the rage in those days, and I figured that if I compiled all the interesting stuff that crossed my desk each month, at least my friends would pay to read a newsletter." Contributing Editor Josh Stephens, who has been around for 15 of those years, reflects on CP&DR's place in a media landscape that looks very different from what it did in 1986 -- with social media commentary on the rise and traditional news lamentably on the wane.
Quick Hits & Updates
After a court ordered a new environmental review, Metro and Los Angeles Aerial Rapid Transit (LA ART) have revived plans for a $500 million gondola linking Union Station to Dodger Stadium. The newly released supplemental environmental impact report addresses potential construction noise. It details a 1.2-mile system capable of carrying 10,000 passengers per hour round-trip. However, the project continues to face legal challenges, local opposition and scrutiny from city officials before any construction can proceed.
According a loan request published by the Department of Transportation, the cost of the Brightline high-speed rail line between Los Angeles and Las Vegas has increased from $16 billion to $21.5 billion. Brightline West, the private company responsible for construction, requested a $6 billion loan to help cover the cost increase, which Brightline West attributes to increasing raw material and labor costs. (See related CP&DR coverage.)
The California State Auditor removed the high-risk designation from the cities of Richmond and Calexico, and kept it for Compton in a report released last week. The report found that Richmond and Calexico took satisfactory action regarding their financial and administrative conditions. The State Auditor noted that Compton took steps to improve their operational health, but not enough to remove the designation.
The LA City Council advanced a plan for zoning exemptions for Olympic games-related construction including public bathrooms, fan zones, broadcast centers, training facilities, transit infrastructure. Under the proposed ordinance, temporary structures and projects would be required to be removed six months after the games conclude. The Planning Commission is expected to review the draft ordinance ahead of a full council vote.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development warned the Patterson City Council that the Stanislaus County city may have violated the state's Housing Accountability Act when it blocked the 95-acre Keystone Ranch Project. The city said its decision was guided by new water restrictions, and that it is caught between conflicting state directives. The city is required to respond by the end of October.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife secured a 6-month extension from the California Fish and Game Commission to complete its review of a petition to list the western burrowing owl under the California Endangered Species Act. The CFDW will now recieve public comments and scientific data until April 25, 2026.
Mack Real Estate Group has withdrawn plans for a 60-story, 713-unit tower in Downtown Los Angeles, shelving what would have been its largest South Park project. While the developer still holds approvals for a nearby 51-story residential tower and a 16-story hotel, neither has advanced to construction, reflecting a broader trend of stalled or abandoned high-rise proposals in DTLA.
Hermosa Beach’s Planning Commission unanimously approved a scaled-down apartment project at 3415 Palm Avenue after the developers dropped their original 50-foot, five-unit Builder’s Remedy plan to a 35-foot, four-unit design in response to community opposition.
