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A's Spurn Would-Be Developer for Oakland Coliseum Site The (likely) departing Oakland A's turned down an offer from a local Black-owned development group to purchase their share of the Oakland Coliseum site. The A's president declined the offer in a letter to the head of the African American Sports and Entertainment Group (AASEG), stating their current lack of interest in selling their Coliseum stake. AASEG is in talks with the city to potentially buy or lease Oakland's part of the site for a $5 billion megaproject featuring housing, restaurants and a new convention center. While the A's initially had plans for the site, they later shifted their focus to Las Vegas. The A's current plans for the Coliseum remain unclear, and a cooperation agreement with AASEG has not yet been signed. Meanwhile, A's endeavor to move to the Las Vegas Strip faces the potential of being subjected to a statewide vote in Nevada. A Nevada political action committee named "Schools Over Stadiums" filed a referendum petition, aiming to force a statewide vote on the use of public funding for the A's stadium bonds, which would require approximately 102,000 valid signatures to qualify for the 2024 ballot. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Two California Tribes Receive Federal Affordable Housing Funds The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a total of $128 million in affordable housing investments in 22 tribal communities , nationwide. The grants include $4.4 million to the Cahto Tribe of Laytonville Rancheria and $2.9 million to the Susanville Indian Housing Authority, both in California. The funds are designated to the construction of 14 new housing units for low-income Cahto indigenous families and nine affordable housing units in Susanville. Since 2019, 94 percent of funds from the federal Indian Housing Block Grant Competitive grants have gone towards the construction of new housing units to address the housing crisis for indigenous tribes across the nation. Los Angeles Approves Spending of Funds Collected from Controversial Transfer Tax The Los Angeles City Council approved a $150 million expenditure plan for funds generated by Measure ULA directed towards six programs for the first time since voted into law last November, including short-term emergency rental assistance, eviction defense, tenant outreach and education, direct cash assistance for low-income seniors and people with disabilities, tenant protections and affordable housing production. Notably, $23 million will be allocated to eviction defense, $23 million for income support for rent-burdened seniors, and $18.4 million for rent debt assistance. The first program to roll out will be an emergency rental assistance program, scheduled to begin on September 19. Measure ULA, often referred to as a "mansion tax" but applicable to all types of properties in the city, was initiated on April 1, imposing a 4% charge on real estate transactions exceeding $5 million and a 5.5% charge on sales above $10 million. To date, the tax has raised approximately $55 million, with the stipulation that the funds can only be spent as they accrue, thus requiring $150 million in tax revenue before the full allocation can be utilized. Despite $55 million in funding for L.A.'s housing crisis, the funds from the tax fall significantly short of early estimates -- which anticipated around $900 million annually -- due to a cooling luxury real estate market and homeowners' efforts to evade the tax. (See related CP&DR coverage .) PPIC Survey Shows Conflicting Sentiments on Housing, Environment Recent surveys by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) reveal conflicting opinions among California residents on the state housing crisis, despite ongoing efforts to address it. Many Californians want the state to ease environmental and land use restrictions to boost housing supply, even as a significant portion believes the restrictions should remain the same, even if it increases housing costs. The sentiment is strong across the state, except for the San Francisco Bay Area, where opinions are divided. Renters are more supportive of easing restrictions than homeowners. A majority of Californians also favor changing regulations under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to make housing more affordable. Democrats, independents and residents from various regions support the California Legislature requiring local governments to build affordable housing, while Republicans prefer local governments to decide housing policy. Despite the demand for affordable housing, 71% of Californians prefer single-family homes over condos or townhomes, even if it means relying on cars for commuting. CP&DR Coverage: Fulton on "Creative" Interpretations of CEQA The California Environmental Quality Act plays a unique role in California planning and development. Depending on your point of view, it's either the one thing standing in the way of destruction of your neighborhood or the one thing standing in the way of providing needed housing. As we recently reported, both sides of the CEQA debate often use CEQA litigation - either the supposed prevalence of it or the supposed rareness of it - to defend their point of view. But, whichever side of the issue you are on, CEQA continues to operate as the “big dog” of California planning, overshadowing almost everything else in sight. But lately, we've seen California's appellate courts having to deal with more creativity than usual. Quick Hits & Updates Two landowners in East Elliott , a once-planned housing development area in eastern San Diego, contend that the city's classification of the region as open space has resulted in substantial financial losses and worsened the housing crisis. Their lawsuit argues that historical agreements from the 1960s with the federal government, aimed at transforming East Elliott into a residential neighborhood, should invalidate the city's 1997 decision to designate it as open space, potentially posing significant financial consequences for the city if the lawsuit prevails. On Wednesday, the California Water Resources Control Board rejected Cemex's plea to reconsider the agency's decision to re-notify an old water permit application by the Mexican mining company. The water permit, crucial for Cemex's long-standing efforts to establish a large mine, has been a major obstacle, with community concerns and opposition from the city, residents, environmentalists, and state legislators delaying the project since its initial permit issuance in 1991. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the US Army have jointly issued a new regulation significantly reducing the extent of federally protected water in response to a Supreme Court decision in May that curtailed protections for US wetlands. This new rule, which redefines the scope of "waters of the United States," excludes wetlands and smaller tributaries from protection, potentially affecting up to 63% of US wetlands by acreage and around 1.2 million to 4.9 million miles of streams. Los Angeles Metro unveiled its updated Active Transportation Strategic Plan , aiming to connect passengers walking, biking or rolling to and from transit facilities. The plan includes projects to improve pedestrian crossings, enhance bikeways and create safer walkways in underserved communities, but it faces funding challenges, with regional bikeways alone estimated to cost $36 billion, four times the agency's annual budget. A committee has formed in Marin County in order to designate the area as a Dark Sky Reserve under the International Dark-Sky Association, combatting light pollution . The committee identifies non-compliant lighting in the area to preserve wildlife and human wellbeing. The Fremont City Council unanimously approved the purchase of a 23,000-square-foot office building to rebuilding as a potential new city hall, consolidating operations and using thee current city hall into a mixed-use housing development.

Concord Names New Developer for Former Navy Site Possibly ending a two-decade saga of false starts and controversies, the City of Concord selected Brookfield Properties as the master developer for the transformation of the former Concord Naval Weapons Station into a massive mixed-use community. Covering 2,300 acres and comprising a significant portion of the site's total 5,046 acres, this project is the largest ongoing development in the Bay Area. Brookfield Properties has committed to designating at least 25% of the housing as affordable, hiring 40% of the construction workforce locally and prioritizing early connections to the nearby BART station. Before the U.S. Navy transfers ownership to the city, environmental concerns must be addressed, including soil assessment and cleanup efforts. The final phases of construction are expected to span the next 30 to 40 years, with ongoing negotiations to clarify timelines and costs. Despite past divisions among Concord residents, Brookfield's proposal has gained approval as the most promising option for revitalizing the former Naval outpost, shuttered in 1999, potentially creating a new city within Concord that could significantly impact the region's housing landscape. (See related CP&DR coverage .) State to Disburse $757 Million in Grants to Fund 2,500 Affordable Housing Units The California Strategic Growth Council announced $757 million in funding from the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program aimed at advancing affordable housing construction in walkable neighborhoods with job opportunities. The funds will go to 21 projects statewide, with awards ranging from $19 million to $49 million. The investment is expected to result in development of over 2,500 affordable residences, 150 zero-emissions buses, 50 miles of new bikeways and improvements to sidewalks across various communities in the state. Once completed, these projects are projected to reduce 800,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to removing 178,000 gas-powered cars from California's roads for a year. Governor Newsom emphasized the significance of these investments in addressing climate change and housing scarcity, underscoring their role in creating a cleaner energy future. San Jose Housing Element Fails to Win State Approval Regulators at the Department of Housing and Community Development have declined to certify San Jose's draft housing element, which would add more than 60,000 new homes over the next decade. Without this approval, the city risks losing access to crucial affordable housing and transportation funds and relinquishing control over the approval process for new housing projects. When San Jose's City Council submitted the plan for approval in June, it faced skepticism from pro-housing advocates, tenant activists, and construction labor supporters. In HCD's letter to the city, they urge greater community engagement and public input during the housing element revision process while calling for more evidence the identified sites for housing are viable. The letter also demanded more details on programs to streamline permitting processes and combat housing discrimination and displacement. San Jose must specify where and how it intends to facilitate the development of at least 62,200 additional homes, over half of which must be affordable, by 2031. This represents a 20% boost in the city's housing stock and a 77% increase from its previous eight-year housing goal. San Bernardino Agrees to Update Housing Element to Avoid Penalties California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Governor Gavin Newsom and three state agencies have announced a settlement with the City of San Bernardino for violating California's Housing Element Law. San Bernardino failed to adopt a compliant housing plan within the statutory deadline, prompting state intervention. The settlement requires the City of San Bernardino to adopt a compliant housing element by no later than February 7, 2024, expedited to meet the deadline. Additionally, the city must modernize its zoning code, amend its emergency shelter ordinance to streamline homeless shelter construction, and adjust its local density bonus ordinance to permit increased density for housing projects with affordable dwelling units. Failure to comply with the settlement terms will result in escalating penalties, including limitations on zoning changes and variances and restrictions on permitting any development except for residential projects containing affordable housing. (See related CP&DR coverage .) CP&DR Coverage: Success and Struggles in California's Downtowns The depths of the covid pandemic inspired dire proclamations about the “death of cities." Three years later, plenty of cities have contradicted those predictions—while a few still struggle. California cities represent both extremes , with downtowns in Los Angeles and, most notably, San Francisco still struggling while downtowns in San Diego, Fresno, and even Bakersfield are operating as if the pandemic never happened. At both ends of the spectrum, urban planners who focus on downtowns are thinking of new, and more aggressive, ways to maintain or regain their vibrancy. San Francisco’s Financial District may have to reinvent itself entirely. Once home to a high concentration of tech companies and professional services, such as law and accounting firms, the district has an estimated 18 million vacant square feet, and relatively little housing, leading to predictions that the city is facing a “doom loop.” Meanwhile, San Diego credits its success largely to its high concentration of residences--and is doubling-down on policies that led to a residential boom over the past decade. Over 8,700 units, many of them in high-rise buildings, have been developed since 2013. Quick Hits & Updates According to an analysis by the San Jose Mercury News, apartment construction in the Bay Area, particularly in Silicon Valley, has come to a standstill in the first half of 2023, with no new projects breaking ground. The slowdown is attributed to higher interest rates, reduced financing returns, lingering material and labor costs from the pandemic, declining demand for market-rate apartments, and persistent obstacles like local regulations and opposition. The Healdsburg City Council is evaluating three potential sites for the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit ( SMART ) train extension following the availability of $30 million worth of funding to continue the construction north. The current depot location on Harmon Street has long been planned as the SMART depot, with two downtown station locations under consideration, one north and one south of North Street. SMART recently secured $30 million to cover the remaining cost of the $70 million extension to Windsor, while the rest of the extension still requires $82.4 million. (See related CP&DR coverage .) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army have issued a final rule , aligned with a recent Supreme Court ruling, changing the definition of "waters of the United States," potentially reducing federal protections for up to 63 percent of the nation's wetlands and affecting 1.2 million to 4.9 million miles of ephemeral streams. This revision comes in response to the Supreme Court's decision in Sackett v. EPA, which limited the EPA's regulatory power over certain waterways, with the EPA Administrator expressing disappointment but the obligation to follow the court's ruling. The highly-publicized " Doom Loop Walking Tour " in Downtown San Francisco, originally organized by an anonymous City Hall commissioner, was canceled at the last minute due to concerns about preserving the organizer's anonymity. However, the cancellation inadvertently revealed the identity of the organizer, the vice president of the city's Commission on Community Investment and Infrastructure, who subsequently resigned from his position amidst controversy and criticism from city officials and the community. The plans for a new housing project in San Jose, located on the former site of the Century 24 movie house, includes a 264-unit residential building with 35 studios, 113 one-bedroom, and 116 two-bedroom apartments, with approximately 52 to 53 units designated as affordable for low-income households. The developer plans to use a "builder's remedy" strategy to expedite the project's approval as San Jose's long-range housing plan is still awaiting state certification.

CP&DR Vol. 38 No. 8 August 2023

Financiers, Tech Leaders Purchase Land for "New City" in Northeast Bay Area Over the past five years, a company called Flannery Associates has been acquiring over $800 million of open and agricultural land near Fairfield in Solano County, with apparent ambitions to build a new city in the Bay Area hinterlands. The holdings total roughly 40,000 across 230 parcels. The company, which is registered as an agricultural company and has no apparent experience in real estate development, was founded by former Goldman Sachs trader Jan Sramek and has been funded by some of the wealthiest individuals in the tech industry, including Reid Hoffman (LinkedIn), Patrick and John Collison (Stripe), investor Michael Moritz, and the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Mortiz reportedly circulated investment memos describing the development of a new, walkable city with an innovative governance structure. The company has purchased land for as little as $5,000 per acre, but prices have risen to $20,000 per acre as available land has become more scarce. The purchases have raised national security concerns due to their proximity to Travis Air Force Base. A local mayor believes the company -- which has not previously stated their intentions behind the purchases -- could be planning to create a new city, as suggested by a poll reportedly sent to Solano County residents. This poll stated the potential city could include new homes, a solar energy farm, orchards, parks and open spaces. Federal entities like the U.S. Air Force's Foreign Investment Risk Review Office and the Committee on Foreign Investment are looking into the acquisitions. Orange County COG to Ask Supreme Court for Relief from Housing Goals The Orange County Council of Governments unanimously voted to ask the California Supreme Court to overturn the state's directive requiring cities and counties in Southern California to construct 1.34 million new homes by the end of the decade. This move comes after lower courts dismissed their former lawsuit alongside several Los Angeles County cities challenging the housing mandate's excessiveness. The Second District Court of Appeal upheld the original ruling, stating that legislative changes in 2004 shield the Regional Housing Needs Assessment process from legal intervention. Orange County leaders claim state housing and community development officials did not adhere to the law in determining the region's housing needs. The Attorney General's Office, representing HCD, emphasizes their commitment to aiding struggling California families in affording housing. The 1.34 million-unit mandate is applicable to all city and county jurisdictions within the Southern California Association of Governments region, encompassing LA, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Imperial counties. The appeal filing deadline for the council of governments is September 5, with the California Supreme Court having the discretion to review the matter. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Supreme Court Throws Out Monterey County Ban on Oil Wells The state Supreme Court ruled, on a 7-0 decision, Monterey County's voter-approved ban on new oil and gas wells as invalid due to state laws promoting oil and gas production. Measure Z aimed to prohibit drilling new wells and wastewater injection in unincorporated areas of the county, but the court found it conflicting with existing state laws. While oil companies welcomed the decision, supporters of Measure Z expressed disappointment and emphasized the need for state law prioritizing public health and climate concerns over industry interests. The ruling avoided addressing the issue of restricting well locations. “By providing that certain oil production methods may never be used by anyone, anywhere, in the county, Measure Z nullifies — and therefore contradicts — (the state law's) mandate that the state ‘shall' supervise oil operation in a way that permits well operators to ‘utilize all methods and practices' the (state) supervisor has approved,” the ruling reads. San Diego Revamps Mission Bay Recreation and Restoration Plan The City of San Diego amended plans to turn parts of Mission Bay into marshland , including a 10 percent increased of land -- from 60 acres to 66 of the 505-acre redevelopment -- for golfing, tennis, sports and recreation. The new plan includes other additional offsite replacement recreation sites and a promise to minimize disruption to activities if fields are relocated. Many recreational institutions in the area disputed with environmental groups pushing for more wetlands and camping companies advocating for campgrounds. The plans initially began with the closure of a mobile home at Mission Bay, and have faced large community pushback. City officials stated they cannot promise any individual activity will be included in the plans. The city council will vote on a revised concept plan in the fall. CP&DR Coverage: CEQA & Solar As California enters a new world of renewable energy, local governments are struggling to make sure their plans and zoning ordinances are keeping up with changes in technology. A good example is the battle in North Livermore over the Aramis Solar project, a 347-acre solar farm in unincorporated Alameda County that would include 267,000 solar panels as well as on-site battery storage. The Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved the project back in 2020. But neighbors and local environmentalists, including the local chapter of the Audubon Society, have consistently opposed the project, calling it an industrial “power plant” and arguing that it would convert an agricultural area into an industrial area. Recently, an unpublished First District Court of Appeal ruling gave the county a complete victory on the Aramis project. Quick Hits & Updates A new report by SPUR studies San Jose's Al Fresco Initiative allowing local businesses to operate on sidewalks, street parking spaces and private parking lots, concluding that making the initiative permanent by making the program affordable, easy to implement and easy to scale up would enable the city to continue a program benefitting businesses and community members. The University of California Regents face a $4.5 million lawsuit from neighborhood groups linked to Berkeley's People's Park, alleging that they intentionally destroyed plants and property, hindering access and enjoyment of the park. The lawsuit, filed by three nonprofits, claims the destruction was a result of the university's order to clear the land for a housing development project, arguing the demolition damaged the park's features, including a wheelchair ramp to the "People's Stage," with the nonprofits seeking compensation for the lost vegetation and repairs, while emphasizing the importance of protecting the environment. (See related CP&DR coverage .) The Los Angeles City Council has approved the purchase of the Mayfair Hotel for $60 million to be used as part of the city's efforts to combat homelessness, despite concerns about safety, costs, and operational plans. The purchase, intended to provide interim housing and services, received mixed reactions, including concern over community engagement and the site's access to Skid Row residents, but was approved with a 12-2 vote. Oakland's lead negotiator for the A's Howard Terminal ballpark project left her position to join a real estate developer after the A's stopped payments in May while shifting their focus to exploring a new ballpark in Las Vegas. If the A's return to negotiations an assistant city administrator, will take over the role. The City and County of San Francisco has engaged San Francisco-based design firm Gensler on a "feasibility study" for a downtown soccer stadium that would replace the city's faltering Westfield mall. The city does not control the site, but Mayor London Breed hopes to "get a developer and others excited about making investments into the stadium as a way to diversify what happens in the downtown area." Several flagship stores have vacated the mall amid poor sales and lack of activity downtown. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Fairfield's Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) approved the annexation of three county "islands" within city limits, while also approving a 5% cost-of-living increase for its employees and adding a project specialist position. The annexations involve several properties, an apartment complex and a local church as part of the ongoing effort to incorporate unincorporated properties within the Solano city. The Los Angeles City Council voted 8-6 to halt a contentious hotel project in Benedict Canyon due to concerns about environmental impact and public safety, citing potential ethics violations, environmental threats and community opposition. The development group behind the Mall of America abandoned plans to buy a 47-acre site in Canoga Park in Los Angeles after almost five years in escrow. The parcel requires extensive environmental cleanup due to groundwater and soil contamination. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Department of General Services and the Department of Housing and Community Development have selected McCormack Baron Salazar to lead the team to transform three state office buildings in Sacramento into affordable housing. This move is in line with Governor Newsom's efforts to address California's housing crisis by repurposing state properties for affordable housing, potentially creating 400 new homes in the heart of downtown Sacramento with various affordability levels. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development agreed to exempt Los Angeles-based housing providers from rules requiring applicants to provide identification and documentation of their homeless status and income before moving into their apartments. Now, applicants can move into apartments and acquire the necessary documents, particularly prescient for people moving from interim to permanent housing.

As most readers of CP&DR are aware, the California Environmental Quality Act plays a unique role in California planning and development. Depending on your point of view, it’s either the one thing standing in the way of destruction of your neighborhood or the one thing standing in the way of providing needed housing. As we recently reported , both sides of the CEQA debate often use CEQA litigation – either the supposed prevalence of it or the supposed rareness of it – to defend their point of view. But, whichever side of the issue you are on, CEQA continues to operate as the “big dog” of California planning, overshadowing almost everything else in sight (with, currently, the possible exception of the builder’s remedy). There is no question that CEQA invites creative challenges to development projects. The whole law is designed to encourage the creation of citizen groups that will sue and try to find something wrong with the environmental analysis – or the procedure used to conduct the environmental analysis. But lately, we’ve seen California’s appellate courts having to deal with more creativity than usual. Most of this creativity results in nothing more than a lengthy and expensive win for the local government approving the development, but it does highlight the state of play for CEQA right now. Three recent cases – two of which resulted in wins for the local government, one of which resulted in a loss – are unusually good examples of this creativity. The first, in case you didn’t notice it when we reported on it, was what is probably best described as “the Montecito biking trail case”. Here’s what happened: There’s a popular trail in pricey Montecito called Hot Springs Canyon, which has only about eight or 10 off-road parking spaces. During COVID, trail usage went through the roof and people started parking on adjacent streets and roads. Then, nearby residents – and this is an extremely expensive neighborhoods, with houses currently on the market for between $4 million and $25 million – put boulders, plants, and other obstructions out in the public street to prevent people from parking there – a violation of the Santa Barbara County’s encroachment law. But the hikers simply parked around the boulders and obstacles, blocking traffic. When the county tried to enforce the encroachment ordinance, the neighbors sued, saying that removal of the obstacles was really a prelude to an expansion of the parking area and therefore was part of a “project” under CEQA. The Court of Appeal disagreed, saying that the county was simply trying to reclaim parking that already existed. “Any claimed ‘failure’ to follow the California Environmental Quality Act is not a defense to the commission of a crime,” the court wrote. ( CP&DR ’s writeup of this case can be found here .) The reaction to our writeup of this case was virtually unprecedented. When Bay Area YIMBY Max Dubler called the case “bonkers,” on X (formerly Twitter), we got more web traffic than we’d had on any other story all year. Which I guess means all this CEQA creativity is good for us, even if the creative lawyers lose in appellate court. But that wasn’t the only creative case we’ve run across recently. Here’s another recent creative case: In San Diego, the city decided to try to underground utilities – something that most neighborhoods welcome. But because the underground utilities would have required above-ground transformer boxes, a resident of the affluent close-in neighborhood of Kensington sued. (The resident has sued the city several times over tree removal, which might have been part of the undergrounding project, and has also written a book about the neighborhood .) This case has now been to the Court of Appeal twice. The first time, the appellate court ruled in favor of the neighbor – saying that the city’s mitigated negative declaration was insufficient because the city had not analyzed consistency between the project and sent the case back down for the judge to resolve. Instead of redoing the environmental analysis, the city simply abandoned the project. You’d think that would be the end of it. But the neighbor continued the litigation, arguing that the city needed to do the additional environmental analysis anyway because the project might be re-started at some point in the future. At that point, the appellate court called a halt to the whole thing, saying that if the city re-starts the project in the future, additional CEQA analysis can be done at that time. ( CP&DR ’s writeup of that case can be found here .) But both those creative challenges failed. The challenge to the Marilyn succeeded. If you’ve been to downtown Palm Springs, you’ve probably seen the 26-foot-tall, 34,000-pound statue of Marilyn Monroe – recreating her famous scene from The Seven-Year Itch – which is located in the middle of Museum Way in front of the Palm Springs Art Museum. When the statue was placed on Museum Way in 2020, quite a few locals objected, calling it a sexist statue. The director of the Art Museum said : “You come out of the museum and the first thing you're going to see is a 26-foot-tall Marilyn Monroe with her entire backside and underwear exposed…We serve over 100,000 school-age children that come to our museum every single year. What message does that send to our young people, our visitors and community to present a statue that objectifies women, is sexually charged and disrespectful?” (Following a variety of controversies, that particular museum director left Palm Springs after two years.) However distasteful misogyny is, it’s not an environmental impact. So the Committee to Relocate Marilyn had to find something else to sue over, and they did. The city had declared the statue’s location on Museum Way as exempt from CEQA and also declared the statue’s positioning (and closure of the street) as “temporary” under the state Motor Vehicle Code. (When you stand in front of it, the statue sure looks permanent.) In this case, the appellate court said the CEQA problem was the exemption was tied to a temporary closure and subsequently the city permanently closed the street. The court revived the CEQA part of the case on those grounds. ( CP&DR ’s writeup of the Marilyn case can be found here .) What’s the common theme? In all of these cases, the plaintiffs were opposed to something for reasons other than the reasons they sued on. The Montecito residents didn’t want to comply with the law, so they sued based on CEQA grounds. The San Diego resident feared her trees would be removed, so she sued based on the city’s Climate Action Plan. The Palm Springs Marilyn opponents thought the statue sent the wrong message, but they sued over CEQA technicalities. You can complain all you want about these kinds of cases, but, as I say in my CEQA summing up in Guide to California Planning , CEQA is doing what it is designed to do: Engage communities (affluent ones, anyway) in a robust debate over the environmental effects of proposed projects – even if those supposed environmental effects are sometimes a stretch. If you don’t want CEQA to do that, you’ve got to change the law in a big way. And, for a variety of reasons, nobody in Sacramento is willing to take that on.

The depths of the covid pandemic inspired dire proclamations about the “death of cities,” and downtown areas were Exhibit A.

HCD to Award $2.8 Billion in Next 18 Months The California Department of Housing and Community Development released its 2023-2024 Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) calendar. This calendar includes NOFA release dates, application deadlines, and anticipated award dates for various HCD funding programs. Over the next 18 months, HCD will provide more than $2.8 billion in funding for affordable housing and homelessness prevention, including $1 billion for multifamily housing, $124 million for affordable homeownership opportunities, $129 million for critical infrastructure support, $124 million for Tribal entities and $438 million for non-entitlement jurisdictions and disaster-impacted communities. These funds align with the state's goal of reducing homelessness and ensuring safe and affordable housing for all Californians, with funding announcements made through individual Notices of Funding Availability. Court Supports San Diego's 2020 Convention Center Ballot Measure An appellate court ruled in favor of San Diego's decision to approve a 2020 ballot measure for an expanded convention center via a simple majority vote. The court's decision overturns a previous ruling that questioned the city's authority to change the measure's outcome post-election. The court clarified that Measure C, a citizens' initiative seeking to raise taxes for the convention center project, only needed a simple majority for passage. However, the ruling did not conclusively determine whether Measure C truly qualified as a citizens' initiative, leaving that aspect for further consideration. The ruling has implications for the convention center project and funding for homeless services, as it introduces a delay of approximately 1 1/2 years. While proponents of the initiative see this as a positive step toward addressing homelessness and expanding the Convention Center, critics, including Alliance San Diego, view the ruling as a concerning precedent. Alliance San Diego, which challenged the city's authority to alter the election outcome, is considering further action, including seeking review by the state Supreme Court. State Plan Intends to Plug 5,000 Oil Wells California officials announced a plan to permanently seal over 5,000 orphaned oil wells, with the first phase allocated $80 million to plug 378 wells in the southern half of the state. Kern County, including the Arvin community and Morning Star neighborhood, will benefit from this effort. These orphaned wells, often neglected and abandoned, are known to release methane and other toxic compounds into the air, posing an environmental threat to nearby communities. Although advocates welcome this move, some criticize the delay in addressing the issue, emphasizing the need for permanent solutions given the recurring nature of leaks. Plugging wells will be costly for the state, with estimates exceeding $100,000 per well, and while some funds will be allocated to training displaced oil and gas workers, concerns remain about the adequacy of fees collected from producers to cover these expenses. The plan is part of a broader effort to address environmental and health concerns in disadvantaged communities, but some residents believe a higher proportion of funds should be directed towards these communities. Grand Jury Finds Williamson Act Underused in Contra Costa County A statewide tax relief act utilized in Contra Costa County to reduce development in open spaces has been essentially inactive for the last five years, according to analysis by the San Jose Mercury News. The largely suburban but formerly agricultural county relies on the Williamson Act to restrict land for agricultural or open space use. This law, passed in 1965, offers tax reductions from 20% to 70% to landowners who commit to keeping their land as open space or for agricultural use, discouraging premature conversion to urban areas. A civil grand jury report found delays in the approval process in Contra Costa County, causing overpayment of property taxes. The report recommends streamlining the process, similar to another county that approves agricultural contract applications in a few months. The DCD's response to these findings is pending, and Contra Costa County's history of development and the need to preserve open space underscores the importance of efficient land use policies. The county's response to these findings is pending, but the failure to process Williamson Act contracts could impact small farmers and contribute to further development in the region. CP&DR Coverage: CEQA Doesn't Allow You To Break The Law Santa Barbara County officials can enforce misdemeanor encroachment laws without conducting an analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act. An appellate overturned a Superior Court judge's ruling in a dispute between Santa Barbara County and Montecito residents who illegally placed rocks, plants, and other obstructions in the public right-of-way to discourage other people from parking near their houses while using a popular hiking trail. The residents had argued - successfully in Superior Court - that enforcing the encroachment law was really part of a larger “project” to be undertaken by Santa Barbara County that would result in more parking spaces in order to allow more hikers to use the trail. But the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Six, in Ventura disagreed. Whether or not enforcing the law was part of a larger project, Yegan wrote, the county acted properly in declaring the enforcement action as exempt from CEQA. Quick Hits & Updates Three California cities - Rohnert Park, Santa Cruz and South San Francisco - have been awarded the state's Prohousing Designation, making them eligible for funding incentives and additional resources for their efforts to reduce barriers to housing construction. This brings the total number of Prohousing communities in the state to 30 as part of Governor Newsom's initiative to address California's housing crisis and promote the development of more housing. A New York-based development firm is set to formally present their proposal for the redevelopment of the former Concord Naval Weapons Station, a 2,750-acre site, to city officials on August 26. The city expects to grant exclusive negotiating rights to Brookfield, as other contenders have fallen short, potentially leading to the project's collapse if the city does not select a project developer. (See related CP&DR coverage .) An analysis by Costar News found apartment construction across cities on the West Coast, including California, is slowing despite high demand due to rising interest rates and construction costs, particularly in cities like San Jose and Los Angeles. This trend is expected to exacerbate housing shortages and escalate prices, with experts predicting an oversupply in demand and delayed construction in the coming years. The City of El Centro filed a request for an injunction against the Imperial County Local Agency Formation Commission, alleging an improper California Environmental Quality Act process in a proposed healthcare district expansion project. The city aims to halt LAFCO's proceedings until the CEQA process concerns are addressed, citing alleged failures in adhering to statutory and regulatory procedures. The Santa Clara County Local Agency Formation Commission partially approved Gilroy's request to annex 55 acres into its northern limits, with a suggestion for Gilroy officials to come back later with modifications for the rest of the acreage, considering concerns over vacant land and service provisions for the development, highlighting the city's need for housing units and the need to balance affordable and single-family homes in the growth plan. An Australian developer responsible for the only major high-rise project in San Francisco initiated during the pandemic will suspend construction on its Hayes Point development until new tenants or a capital partner are secured. The $1.2 billion project with 333 condos and 300,000 square feet of office and retail space, faces postponement until 2024. A new study from the Public Policy Institute of California found most state residents are greatly concerned about wildfires in their part of the state, with 44% of all adults call wildfires a "big problem" and 34% calling them "somewhat a problem." Most Californians only have some confidence in the government response to wildfires (53%). In a recent study on environmental policy, the PPIC found 68% of likely voters areee in favor of the state establishing a citizens' assembly on environmental issues. The Santa Clara County Local Agency Formation Commission partially approved Gilroy's request to annex 55 acres into its northern limits, with a suggestion for Gilroy officials to come back later with modifications for the rest of the acreage, considering concerns over vacant land and service provisions for the development, highlighting the city's need for housing units and the need to balance affordable and single-family homes in the growth plan. The Department of Housing and Community Development rejected Palo Alto's newly adopted housing plan, requiring the city to revise the document to meet the requirements of the State Housing Element Law, including demonstrating the feasibility of housing production on listed sites and addressing historic injustices such as past discriminatory practices. The rejection puts the city at risk of "builder's remedy" development applications, and the revisions are required within a year of the statutory deadline, which was January 31. The Hermosa Beach City Council unanimously voted to adopt its housing element, aiming to build 558 units by 2029, despite some residents' concerns about over-development and potential changes in zoning affecting height limits. The LA Metro and Caltrans 605 Corridor Improvement Project will not result in any residential displacement in the widening of freeways. Previously, earlier announcements indicated the project would impact over a thousand land parcels and demolish over 300 homes and apartments in Latino working-class neighborhoods. The new announcement confirmed the project will remain within existing Caltrans right-of-way, avoiding residential demolitions. The eastern San Diego county city of El Cajon's City Council voted 4-1 to cease funding for the East County Homeless Task Force over the task force's support of the Housing First model, prioritizing providing shelter before addressing other needs like mental health or substance abuse. The city council pointed to a number of complaints against the organization, including uneven distribution of hotel vouchers and a lack of focus on diverse approaches. The task force, now under a La Mesa-based organization, defended their work and stated they will continue it.

Santa Barbara County officials can enforce misdemeanor encroachment laws without conducting an analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act. “Any claimed ‘failure’ to follow the California Environmental Quality Act is not a defense to the commission of a crime,” wrote Second District Court of Appeal Justice Kenneth Yegan for a unanimous three-judge panel. That was the conclusion an appellate court came to, overturning a Superior Court judge’s ruling in a dispute between the county and Montecito residents who illegally placed rocks, plants, and other obstructions in the public right-of-way to discourage other people from parking near their houses while using a popular hiking trail. The residents had argued – successfully in Superior Court – that enforcing the encroachment law was really part of a larger “project” to be undertaken by Santa Barbara County that would result in more parking spaces in order to allow more hikers to use the trail. A Superior Court judge in Santa Barbara issued an injunction blocking the county from enforcing the law, saying the neighbors were likely to win on appeal and would suffer irreparable harm because their plants would be permanently damaged. But the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Six, in Ventura disagreed. Whether or not enforcing the law was part of a larger project, Yegan wrote, the county acted properly in declaring the enforcement action as exempt from CEQA. The county began the enforcement action against Montecito residents who live close to the popular Hot Springs Canyon hiking trail on East Mountain Drive after the number of hikers increased dramatically during the COVID pandemic. There are approximately 10 offstreet parking spaces for the trail but during COVID hundreds of hikers began using the trail. The barriers apparently did not discourage hikers from parking on the road but, rather, caused them to park their cars in a manner that blocked the road, reducing it from a two-lane road to a one-lane road. Neighboring residents sued, and in May 2022 Superior Court Judge Donna Geck issued a preliminary injunction against the county. Subsequently, however, the county sent letters to 11 homeowners demanding that they remove the obstructions. In June 2022, Superior Court Judge Thomas Anderle ruled that the county had violated the preliminary injunction and ordered that the letters be withdrawn. (Local news reports on the underlying situation can be found here and here . The county then appealed. The appellate ruling revolved around the question of whether the enforcement action was a separate “project” (and therefore exempt from CEQA) or whether it was part of a larger plan by the city to expand the overall amount of parking at Hot Springs Canyon in order to alleviate the parking problem. “Respondents and the trial court inferred that these notices were the first step of a ‘larger project,’ which involves encouraging many more hikers to use the Hot Springs trail by making it easier for them to park near the trailhead,” Yegan wrote. But he and his colleagues were not persuaded. “Removing the encroachments does not “increase” or add new parking; it restores access to parking spaces that have always existed,” he wrote for a unanimous three-judge panel. Yegan also said the lower-court judge had not balanced the potential harm to the neighbors of removing the barriers against the potential harm to hikes of leaving the barriers in place. Judge Anderle had argued that the homeowners would suffer real harm because “many of the longstanding encroachments consist of mature landscaping which, once removed, will likely be gone forever.” The county’s arguments for harm, he concluded, “relate more to its perceptions of the benefits of proceeding with the project, than they do to any legitimate harm which it or the public would suffer if the status quo were preserved.” Yegan shot that argument down forcefully. First, he said, the neighbors won’t suffer any real harm. “The plants and other objects they have installed in the public right of way can presumably be moved off public property and onto respondents’ private property. In any event, respondents have an obligation to obey the law, including the encroachment laws,” he wrote. And he said the current situation could cause real harm to the public. “The record includes substantial evidence that encroachments in the public right of way present both fire safety risks and public safety risks to motorists, pedestrians and cyclists,” he wrote. “Even without that evidence, the encroachment statutes and ordinances themselves represent a legislative determination that the public interest is served by prohibiting and authorizing the removal of unpermitted encroachments in the public right of way. The Case: Anderson v. County of Santa Barbara , No. B322465 (filed July 19, 2023; published August 16, 2023). The Lawyers: For Christopher Anderson and other neighbors: A. Barry Cappello, Cappello & Noël. abc@cappellonoel.com For Santa Barbara County: Lina Somait, Senior Deputy County Counsel, lsomait@countyofsb.org

Terner Center Estimates SB 35 Has Supported over 18,000 Housing Units A report from UC Berkeley's Terner Center for Housing Innovation studies the impact of Senate Bill 35 five years after its statewide approval. SB35, enacted in 2017, aimed to streamline housing development in California by simplifying the approval process for qualified multifamily infill projects, particularly in jurisdictions falling behind on housing production goals. The law, set to expire in 2026, has garnered favor among affordable housing developers, with 156 projects approved or pending between 2018 and 2021, totaling over 18,000 proposed housing units, primarily in the Bay Area and Los Angeles regions. Most of these projects are 100 percent affordable developments. The report suggests that the law has expedited the approval process for affordable housing, enhancing its attractiveness to developers. The report also highlights recommendations to improve SB 35's implementation, including the need for updated guidelines from the California Department of Housing and Community Development to clarify how SB 35 interacts with other land use laws, thereby making it more widely applicable to housing projects across the state. Autonomous Vehicles Win Major Regulatory Approval in S.F. The California Public Utilities Commission approved an expansion of driverless robotaxi services in San Francisco, allowing General Motors' Cruise and Alphabet's Waymo to operate without safety drivers and charge passengers fares for the service. This represents a significant step towards commercializing driverless technology and is part of the state's efforts to address the growing demand for autonomous transportation. The expansion has drawn both support and opposition, with some seeing it as a way to improve transportation access, particularly for vulnerable populations, while others express concerns about job displacement and the safety of autonomous vehicles. The approval covers a wide area of the city and represents a major milestone for the robotaxi industry. OPR to Allocate $50 Million for Regional Resilience Planning The Governor's Office of Planning and Research unveiled the initial funding round for the Regional Resilience Grant program, aimed at financing regional-scale projects to enhance climate change resilience. The 2021 Climate Budget has allocated $25 million for this grant, and the upcoming 2023-2024 budget proposes an additional $25 million, resulting in a total of $50 million across two funding rounds. The focus on regional projects responds to climate change risks that impact entire regions rather than individual jurisdictions. The grant is intended to foster long-term community-based partnerships that can continue leading climate resilience efforts in their regions for many years. The grant is part of the Integrated Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program (ICARP), distinct from other ICARP grants due to its regional emphasis, while the Adaptation Planning Grant targets individual local governments, community-based organizations, and tribes to address local hazards. The Regional Resilience Grant supports projects addressing various climate change risks, such as wildfires, rising sea levels, droughts, floods, and extreme heat events, with a focus on disadvantaged communities and California Native American tribes. HUD Invites Local Jurisdictions to Apply for $85 Million in Pro-Housing Planning Grants The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development HUD unveiled an $85 million funding opportunity to tackle housing barriers and announced tools to enhance affordable housing development. This move aligns with the Biden administration's approach to reducing housing costs from the bottom up and the middle out. The PRO Housing competitive grants hope to empower communities to develop housing policy plans, address zoning and regulatory policies, and bolster affordable housing production. These grants, ranging from $1 million to $10 million, will target local governments, states, MPOs, and multi-jurisdictional entities. Furthermore, HUD is providing housing providers involved in the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) with new tools for repairs, promoting energy-efficiency investments, and addressing climate resilience. This action aims to support the larger goal of making national housing more affordable, reflecting commitments from the Biden-Harris Administration. CP&DR Coverage: Cities Attempt "Self-Certification" of Housing Elements Developers are continuing to propose builder's remedy projects around the state, especially in Silicon Valley and in smaller affluent communities. But the pushback continues - especially over the question of whether cities can get out from under the builder's remedy by self-certifying their housing element, rather than waiting for approval from the Department of Housing and Community Development. Cities that have recently attempted versions of self-certification include, among others, Claremont, Beverly Hills, Menlo Park, and San Jose. Whether these approaches will hold up in court remains to be seen. Quick Hits & Updates Construction on a large tech campus in downtown San Jose has been paused by the development company due to weak market conditions in the Silicon Valley office sector, including rising office vacancy rates, sublease space being offered by tech companies and low demand for large office spaces. The first phase of the project, an office building totaling 390,000 square feet, was under construction, and the pause is set to occur after completing the garage and foundation by the end of 2023. A lawsuit filed by Ventura County, Ojai, Patagonia and other environmental groups hoping to stop the U.S. Forest Service from forest thinning old-growth pines on Pine Mountain hit a dead end as a federal judge dismissed the case with prejudice, preventing the group from refiling. They have 60 additional days to file an appeal. The project was approved under the Trump Administration to meet logging quotas. El Centro filed suit against the Imperial Local Agency Formation Commission over concerns of the environmental impacts related to the formation of a Valley-wide health care district. The lawsuit challenges one path of a project to build a single hospital district in Imperial County, claiming LAFCO did not comply with the California Environmental lQuality Act (CEEQA) requirements during their initial assessment. The Los Angeles Housing Department responded they will start an investigation following a report that residential hotels required by law to be reserved for low-cost housing advertise on travel websites and rent to tourists. The report found 21 hotels with over 800 units across Los Angeles turned housing units into hotel rooms, breaking a 2008 law requiring they remain residential unless the owner pays to replace units taken off the market or pay a city housing fund. Census data from the last two years shows fluctuation in population rates between large and small counties across the state, finding that some larger counties like Los Angeles, San Francisco and Santa Barbara are rebounding from population losses. Smaller counties' populations are more susceptible to local changes such as the construction of a prison or new housing. The census data still found that general state population continues to decline. The US Department of Housing and Urban development announced a $9.3 million grant to Mendocino County Indigenous Tribes to fund affordable housing activities. San Diego County built fewer homes last year than in 2021 despite a large political push for more housing in the area. The county saw 521 less homes built in 2022 than in 2021 even as the county cites housing as a significant focus. The San Diego Building Industry Administration believes the county must build approximately 21,000 homes a year to keep up with demand. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors voted to purchase land to build affordable housing for educators, hoping to reduce financial strains on local teachers. The Board of Supervisors agreed to swap a 1.5-acre county-owned parcel of land with Apple for a nearly-five-acre parcel.

Legal Briefs

In the original version of this story,  CP&DR mistakenly reported that Claremont's position was that housing element approval meant it did not have to process the Trumark application. We have corrected this information below and we regret the error.

California Population May Remain Flat for Decades to Come New projections from the California Department of Finance suggest the state's long-term population growth is slowing. The forecast predicts that by 2060, the state population will look the same as it does now with around 39.5 million people. Previously, an earlier population estimate project a population of 45 million people as of 2020 and almost 53 million a decade ago. The aging population of baby boomers and lower birth rates, as well as higher numbers of residents leaving the state due to high housing costs, attribute for the decline in population growth. The decline in population growth resulted in a lost seat for California in 2021 for the first time in the state's history. The forecast predicts deaths in the state by 2035 will surpass births and the total fertility rate will decline from 2.1 births per woman to 1.5. Sunnyvale Approves Plan for Mini-City of 20,000 Residential Units The Sunnyvale City Council unanimously approved a plan to transform the Moffett Park area into a large urban village. The redevelopment plan aims to convert the 1,156-acre office district into six distinct neighborhoods, featuring a mix of commercial and residential spaces, as well as community and public areas. The plan, which envisions an "an ecological innovation district," includes the development of 20,000 new residential units and an increase in approved office space from 22 million square feet to 30 million square. Around 15 percent of the residential units are planned to be affordable, with hopes to increase it to 20 percent. Additionally, there will be 500,000 square feet of retail space and 150,000 square feet of hospitality. The project is expected to address Sunnyvale's housing needs, as the city is required to build 12,000 new homes to meet state requirements by 2031. Planning Commission Rejects Major Housing Reforms in San Diego The San Diego Planning Commission unanimously rejected Mayor Todd Gloria's proposal to eliminate single-family zoning in much of the city. The commission approved the Housing Action Package 2.0 but excluded the controversial Senate Bill 10, which would have allowed the replacement of single-family homes with up to 10 units in a majority of the city. The rest of the housing package received approval and will proceed to the City Council for consideration. The decision reflects the ongoing debate between those supporting increased density and diverse housing options and opponents concerned about neighborhood character and potential negative impacts of greater housing density. (See related CP&DR coverage .) UC Davis Releases Database of Local General Plans The California General Plan Databases Mapping Tool, created by a team of students and professors out of UC Davis, is a new online tool to track statewide, local general plans for land-use. The goal is to be a free, easy-to-use integrated database for community members, policymakers, or experts to find general plans in one place. The creators hope the Mapping Tool is a method of education, and will help community members coordinate efforts to advocate for their best interests. The next step in the database rollout is workshops across California to teach people how to use the tool to visualize general plans across the state, with the ability to compare general plans from local government to local government. These state-mandated general plans influence land-use decisions and can cover a myriad of issues important to any community member including open space, housing, conservation, circulation, noise and safety. The database can search these plans by keyword, utilizing interactive maps and refined searches to make the tool as useable as possible. CP&DR Coverage: Cases May Decide Legality of "Self-Certification" of Housing Elements The battle over the builder's remedy and self-certification of housing elements expanded last week with two new lawsuits against the City of La Cañada Flintridge challenging the city's denial of a mixed-use project on Foothill Boulevard. The project's developer, Glendale-based Cedar Street Partners, came out with guns blazing. Cedar Street hired the aggressive law firm of Holland & Knight, which filed a lawsuit on July 21 which, with exhibits, amounted to 430 pages, with more than 10 causes of action. Four days later, the California Housing Defense Fund (formerly California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund, or CaRLA), asking that the denial of the project be overturned. Cedar Street's lawsuit could be the test case for the biggest legal question that has emerged from the trend toward builder's remedy applications: Do cities need approval from the Department of Housing & Community Development for their housing element to be compliant, or can they “self-certify” that their housing element complies with state law? Quick Hits & Updates Hasan Ikhrata, the executive director of the San Diego Association of Governments, has submitted his resignation . He stated his relationship with the board was challenging, but he was proud of his work in transportation and regional planning like the per-mile fees on drivers and limiting car travel while improving public transit. Internal audits of the organization in recent years raised concerns about improper spending and poor policies at SANDAG. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is offering $85 million in competitive grant funding in the hopes of identifying and removing barriers to affordable housing production and preservation. The new Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing) initiative aims to support communities in removing barriers to affordable housing by awarding local and state governments, metropolitan planning organizations, and multijurisdictional entities funds to establish housing policy plans and housing plans. The application deadline is October 30. The Antioch City Council voted 3-1 in favor of strengthening tenant protections with new rules against landlord retaliation and harassment, which includes barring landlords from retaliating against tenants exercising certain legal rights related to their rentals and addressing harmful landlord actions done in "bad faith" or for difficult-to-prove reasons. While some local landlords and real estate agents expressed concerns about the ordinance's impact on rental properties, tenant advocates applauded the measure, stating that new rules were necessary to protect tenants from harassment and ensure their rights are enforced. A 500-acre Petrified Forest located in Sonoma County, known for its prehistoric redwood trees, is up for sale for $12 million. The current owners hope to pass it on to a state agency or nonprofit for continued public operation. Los Angeles officials are working on a new master plan for the 2,000-acre Sepulveda Basin in the San Fernando Valley. The plan includes three alternatives, all three including expansion of multi-modal transportation infrastructure and adding new bridges, green streets, walking paths and an extension of the Los Angeles River Bike Path, in addition to new recreational facilities. The three alternatives propose various treatment of the Los Angeles River, ranging from more aggressive de-channelizing of the river to widening the river corridor without removing the concrete walls around the river and retaining all remaining golf courses. The Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles (AAGLA) has filed a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles over a pandemic-related rent hike freeze scheduled to end in early 2024, arguing the state of emergency has ended, and city officials have not reconsidered the freeze in light of recent inflation, making it a financial strain on rental housing providers. The ordinance, adopted in May 2020, applies to about 624,000 rent-stabilized units in L.A., preventing rent increases until February 1, 2024. The association seeks to overturn the freeze immediately and have it declared unconstitutional. This lawsuit follows another by AAGLA against Los Angeles county regarding Measure ULA, a tax on real estate properties over $5 million. A new study by regional planners suggests that a people mover plan to bring mass transit to the San Diego airport could reduce traffic congestion on surrounding roads up to 20%. The plan, estimated to cost between $1 billion and $2 billion, is considered more cost-effective and efficient than an extension of the San Diego Trolley. The project could qualify for Federal Transit Agency funding and a required 50% match from local sources. A U.S. District Court Judge sentenced a Los Angeles real estate developer to six years in prison for bribing elected officials and ordering a subordinate to falsify internal records of the transaction. The developer was found guilty last year for giving $500,000 in cash bribes to City Councilmember Jose Huizar in exchange for Huizar's approval of a 20-story residential tower downtown. A city working group in San Francisco sent a proposal to the Board of Supervisors to review a potential plan to explore public banking in the city. The proposal includes a plan to partner with private banks and utilize government funding for low-interest loans for community initiatives. California legislature previously authorized cities to explore public banking in 2019, with other other cities like Los Angeles looking into public banks.