Huntington Beach Ends One Housing Fight, with More to Come
- Josh Stephens
- Mar 17, 2020
- 7 min read
Huntington Beach bills itself as “Surf City USA.” The name invokes chill dudes at one with the ocean. Or it can invoke combative localism protecting a prized break from invading kooks.
When it comes to housing, Huntington Beach’s attitude is decidedly the latter. It recently settled one housing-related dispute with the state but is fighting another suit and has filed one of its own.
When Gov. Gavin Newsom came into office and pledged to force cities to accept their fair share of housing, Huntington Beach was the first city he targeted. The city had long argued with the Department of Housing and Community Development about a shortfall of 413 low-income units required by its 2013 Regional Housing Needs Allocation numbers. Newsom took the dispute a step further by filing suit against the city to force it into compliance.
A year later, the city adopted a revised specific plan that adds zoning for the required 413 affordable units and has tentatively brought the city back into compliance with HCD and Newsom’s good graces. The city has also sued the state to exempt it (and other charter cities) from two housing bills that strengthen the ability of HCD and the Attorney General to enforce the law against Huntington Beach.
It was a long process — originating nine years ago.
In 2011, the city adopted the Beach Edinger Corridors Specific Plan (BECSP) to spur development on two of the city’s biggest commercial corridors. The area was, and is, largely a collection of low-rise commercial properties such as strip malls. The plan included streamlined project approval, no floor:area ratio or density caps, and reduced parking standards. the plan was designed to accommodate 4,500 new residential units, and, in its first year of adoption, several projects of over 100 units were approved. The plan won an Award of Merit from the California chapter of the American Planning Association. (See prior CP&DR coverage.)
Even so, the plan concerned some residents.
“With the Beach Edinger Corridor Specific Plan, it was a lot in a very short amount of time,” said Huntington Beach City Council Member Kim Carr. “I don’t think people were prepared for this shift in what the city as doing.”
