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If stadium redevelopment was a baseball game, Sacramento would be on third base. Oakland would still be trying to get a hit.

Los Angeles's Widely Lauded Housing Element Rejected by State The Department of Housing and Community Development has rejected Los Angeles's Housing Element and ordered the city to rezone to add over 250,000 new homes by mid-October 2022. Per state law, cities with noncompliant housing elements must rezone in one year rather than three years. While it's unlikely the city will be able to meet the HCD's requirement under the deadline, failing to amend the zoning plan may result in a loss of billions of dollars in affordable housing grants, significantly hindering the development of new housing for low-income and unhoused residents. While state officials have praised L.A. for its dedication to rezoning wealthier neighborhoods and adding more affordable housing, they say the city hasn't done enough to increase access to green spaces or economic development in low-income communities. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Sacramento Gains State's First "Prohousing" Designation Sacramento became the first city in California to achieve the state Prohousing designation that identifies the city's dedication to streamlining and advancing housing production. Going forward, this means that Sacramento will earn added points when competing for Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program funding for low-income housing, transportation, and infrastructure. The Department of Housing and Community Development announced the award when visiting On Broadway, a proposed affordable housing development that received AHSC funds. Benefits to Sacramento may include waiving construction fees, approving housing by right in commercial corridors, streamlining approvals for ADUs, and reducing parking requirements. Sacramento will also have a greater competitive edge when applying for the Infill Infrastructure grant, the Transformative Climate Communities grant, the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program, and federal tax credits. (See related CP&DR coverage and analysis .) New Business Plan Anticipates Higher Costs for High Speed Rail The California High-Speed Rail Authority released its Draft 2022 Business Plan that details the estimated $5 billion cost increase for its bullet train, bringing the total to $105 billion. When voters approved a bond for railroad construction in 2008, the estimated cost was $33 billion. While officials could have saved money by building a single track for a 171-mile system between Bakersfield and Merced, they decided in their newest blueprint that they will continue with a two-track operation. The authority also must pay more to avoid burdens on San Joaquin Valley communities. The authority expects to have environmentally cleared 422 miles by mid-2022 and in the meantime will seek public review and comment until April 11. Contested Point Molate Development in Richmond Prevails in Court A mixed-use development proposed for Richmond's northern shoreline will move forward after a judge tossed an environmental lawsuit and found that the city adequately considered the project's environmental impacts. Contra Costa County Superior Court Judge Edward G. Weil ruled that city officials did comply with CEQA; state planning, zoning, and open meeting laws; the state constitution; and Richmond's general plan when it approved Winehaven Legacy LLC's proposal for a 193-acre space with 1,425 housing units and 400,000 square feet of commercial space. For years, the future of Point Molate has been a point of contention between those who believe the site should be a place of economic and housing revitalization and those who find that development will lead to environmental ruin. CP&DR Analysis: Fulton on UC Berkeley Enrollment Freeze At its core, the Berkeley CEQA case has everything a critic of the law would want: First, a university that tried to move forward with a project while finessing the required environmental review. Second, a city and a sophisticated group of neighbors who know how to use the law to gum up the works. And third, a judge willing to go nuclear in response to a flawed environmental impact report. The question that the Berkeley case raises is one that all planners and CEQA practitioners grapple with: Is an increase in the number of people an environmental impact – or, at the very least, a state of affairs that requires constant and renewed environmental assessment? More to the point, the Berkeley case highlights CEQA’s bias toward the status quo – the idea that, whatever is being proposed, it will probably only make things worse. Quick Hits & Updates San Francisco has become the first major U.S. city to propose an 18-month moratorium on new parcel delivery stations in order to limit Amazon's recent expansion of delivery operations. The bill will likely be unanimously approved, laying the groundwork for other decision makers to limit Amazon's influence in their own cities. California YIMBY and State Senator Scott Wiener have proposed a new policy, the Student Housing Crisis Act, that would streamline the production of student housing at all University of California and California State University campuses and properties. SB 886 would recognize student housing projects as environmentally beneficial and seek to house the 5-10% of students who experience homelessness. The bill is considered to be a response to a legal ruling that may curtail UC Berkeley's student population. (See related CP&DR analysis .) Hollywood Burbank Airport filed an environmental lawsuit that requests that the state's bullet train be put on hold for the rail authority to reimagine designs and produce a new environmental impact report. The suit suggests that the 13.7-mile L.A.-to-Burbank segment would impact the airport's operations and safety. The most recent quarterly auction in the cap-and-trade carbon market did not sell out, suggesting that a pandemic-induced increased surplus of banked credits may be obstructing the state's greenhouse gas reduction plan. UC San Diego has a plan to house 3,310 students in new dorms in the context of a housing shortage and a quickly growing student population. The UC Board of Regents approved two housing projects, Pepper Canyon West and Thurgood Marshall College Undergraduate Student Housing, which will be 22 or 23 stories tall and feature retail space. The Santa Cruz City Council unanimously decided to oppose a proposal that would cease freight service on the Felton and Santa Cruz Rail Lines and give up plans to make essential repairs. While the decision has no actionable power, it alerts the council's position, in alignment with Roaring Camp Railroads, to the Santa Cruz County Regional Transportation Commission. The Department of Housing and Community Development launched the Prohousing Designation Program through emergency regulations onJune 30, 2021 and must go through a regular rulemaking process to make it permanent. Emergency regulations will remain in effect throughout the regular rulemaking process. HCD has submitted proposed regulations for the Prohousing Designation Program and is accepting public comments through March 23. A new report from the UC Berkeley Terner Center for Housing Innovation and its partners details the potential impacts of transforming land owned by school districts into faculty and staff housing. The report identifies tens of thousands of sites that could serve to promote education workforce housing and provides recommendations for reinventing underused school lands. If the "Emergency Temporary Shelter and Enforcement Act of 2022" gathers enough signatures, Sacramento voters will consider an initiative that would establish over 3,000 shelter beds and Safe Ground sanctioned camping spaces for people experiencing homelessness. L.A. Metro, in collaboration with San Gabriel Valley officials, presented 15 proposals to the San Gabriel Valley Council of Governments' Technical Advisory Committee that would address long-term transit in place of the extension of the Eastside branch of the Gold Line. Metro has $2.7 billion to spend on improvements to existing services or north-south and east-west bus and rail services that could connect to other transit lines. A new study evaluates the impact of concentrated Ellis Act eviction notices in the city of San Francisco from 1997 to 2016 and analyzes the law's role in allowing for tenant displacement to further gentrification. L.A. Metro approved a 19.3-mile light rail line from Artesia to Union Station, going through Cerritos, Bellflower, Paramount, Downey, South Gate, Bell, Huntington Park, and Vernon. The project will cost an estimated $8.5 billion, propelling officials to construct the project in two segments, and will be completed as soon as 2043. Los Angeles City voters may have an opportunity to voice their opinion on the Healthy Streets L.A. initiative if proponents obtain enough signatures. The initiative would require Los Angeles to implement its Mobility Plan every time the city repaves or works on other street improvements.

CP&DR Vol. 37 No. 2 February 2022

The California Environmental Quality Act stimulates lots of headlines – but nothing in recent memory compares to the uproar in reaction to the University of California’s decision to comply with a local judge’s CEQA ruling that the UC Berkeley must consider reducing enrollment because of a faulty environmental impact report.

Walt Disney Co. to Develop Branded Master-Planned Community in Rancho Mirage Walt Disney Co. is proposing to develop a series of master-planned communities around the country dedicated to what the company describe as "storyliving." "Storyliving by Disney," will begin with a 618-acre project called Cotino in Rancho Mirage, close to Walt Disney's former Coachella Valley home, in collaboration with DMB Development. Mayor Ted Weill noted that, if completed, this would be Rancho Mirage's largest development. Though the complexes will be for all ages, one section will be dedicated to residents aged 55 and older, and options for purchase include estates, single-family homes, and condominiums. The company intends to foster a unique Disney experience while facilitating new connections between residents and plans to provide wellness, entertainment, and philanthropic services. The community will include "access to curated experiences, such as wellness programming; entertainment ranging from live performances to cooking classes; philanthropic endeavors; seminars and much more," according to a company statement . Court Orders UC Berkeley to Curtail Enrollment to Ease Environmental Impacts An appellate court denied a request from the University of California Board of Regents to suspend proceedings to freeze enrollment at UC Berkeley, as ordered by an Alameda County Superior Court Judge in August, while the regents move forward with the appellate process. While the regents also appealed this decision to the state Supreme Court, the move suggests that the university may be forced to reduce its incoming fall 2022 class by 3,050, which would total one-third of the class population and decrease tuition earnings by $57 million. Campus officials say this will reduce financial aid and classroom resources. In August, Save Berkeley's Neighborhoods succeeded in its lawsuit that argued that UC Berkeley's expansion plan would harm traffic, noise, housing prices, and the environment. (See related CP&DR analysis .) Court Strikes Down Attempt to Block Housing in Livermore Affordable housing developer Eden Housing and supporters of a downtown Livermore affordable housing project are celebrating a legal victory after Alameda County Superior Court Judge Frank Roesch rejected a lawsuit filed by Save Livermore Downtown. Opponents, though, will likely appeal and continue to delay construction for two more years. The judge found that the neighborhood group's attempt to obstruct 130 units of affordable housing had no legal validity, and many believe that the group was leading with racism and classism in its opposition. The original lawsuit has already delayed the project by one year and cost Eden Housing a return of $68 million in low-income housing tax credits. Eden Housing now must reapply for funding to move forward with the project. Report: Lessons from Pandemic-Era Tactical Urbanism in S.F. SPUR published a report titled Temporary to Transformative that considers pandemic-era improvements to San Francisco's city streetscape and how those might be included or expanded in a more equitable and functioning city future with streets as the center of public life and health. The nonprofit determined 4 key strategies that encompass 18 recommendations and consider the benefits of San Francisco's Shared Spaces and Slow Streets programs. The 4 strategies include " a comprehensive and resilient network," improving "the prototyping and feedback loop," securing "equitable and sustainable funding," and streamlining initiatives to reflect the effectiveness of quickly implementing measures to make streets safer and more lively toward the pandemic's beginning. CP&DR Coverage: New Era of Housing Element Enforcement Cities across the state are required to draft and adopt housing elements that not only accommodate, in most cases, significantly higher targets (for both market-rate and affordable units) than ever before but also must do so in greater detail and with a greater level of certainty than ever before. So far, roughly half the participating justifications in the state have submitted draft housing elements to HCD for review and approval. The early results suggest that there are going to be some growing pains. Out of roughly 200 drafts submitted from the Southern California Association of Governments region and the San Diego Association of Governments region, more than 70% have needed revisions—some minor, some not-so-minor—in order for HCD to deem them in compliance. Quick Hits & Updates A new study from researchers at the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies, "By Transit, By-Right: Impacts of Housing Development Approval Processes on Transit-Supportive Density" found that Transit Oriented Community projects are approved faster than non-TOC projects, and all by-right multifamily developments are approved faster than discretionary projects. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the California Housing Accelerator will award $923 million to affordable housing projects across the state that are ready for construction but could not move forward due to a lack of federal tax credits and bonds. 27 projects have been approved thus far, and most of them will begin construction this summer, generating 2,300 housing units, 500 of which will be for unhoused residents. San Diego has passed San Francisco as the country's least affordable metro area, according to a recent unaffordability report from OJO Labs. The report, which compares median home prices to local incomes, found that San Diego home prices rose 14.3% year over year to $764,000. The Watsonville City Council approved the city clerk's certification of a petition hoping to extend Measure U city boundaries until 2040, which will likely send the decision to voters on the November ballot. In 2002, residents voted to establish urban boundaries that would impact where developers could build. In response to the HCD's finding that Anaheim's sale of Angel Stadium violated the Surplus Land Act, the city wrote back, saying it disagrees with the state's decision and offering no solution or confirmation that it would agree to a potential $96 million fine. Going forward, the state will have to decide if it will negotiate with, financially penalize, or go to court with Anaheim. The gray wolf is back under federal endangered species protections after U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey S. White ruled that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, acting under the Trump administration, chose to remove protections and promote gray wolf hunting, capturing, and poisoning. Developers of One Metro West in Costa Mesa have requested that a special election be held to welcome voter opinion on a city council-approved plan for the 15.320-acre mixed-use development in northwest Costa Mesa that would add 1,057 apartments. Beverly Hills-based Rose Equities has committed to covering the maximum $500,000 cost of the election that would make One Metro West the first major project to be on a ballot under Measure Y. San Francisco developer Republic Metropolitan is suing Santa Clara for violating state housing law and breaching a contract to construct a housing project with 170 units for students and 70 units for low-income residents. The city blocked the project after two years of planning for a mixed-use complex on land owned by the city and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority. Caltrans is considering solutions to protect the 21-mile State Route 37 Corridor, the North Bay's most heavily trafficked east/west highway, from periodic flooding while also minimizing traffic congestion and creating safe travel options for pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit riders. San Diego County Supervisors unanimously approved a master plan for the proposed McClellan-Palomar Airport near Carlsbad and have committed to conducting a sustainability plan for all county airports. The McClellan-Palomar plan includes runway extensions and safety improvements regarding noise and runway configurations. Strada TCC Partners' plan to entirely demolish and redevelop San Francisco's Piers 30-32 and Seawall Lot 330 into 30,000 square feet of retail and 376,000 square feet of office space with floating pools and "wetlands" is generating several concerns. City commissions are worried that water recreation may be an unfair use of land, that the balance between office space and public benefits is uneven, and that pier reconstruction may not even be possible. A 34.5 acre site in Folsom may become home to a micro-hospital, ambulatory surgery center, outpatient medical office building, and hotel if UC Davis Health succeeds with a new development proposal. The health center announced that it would work with AKT Development Corp. and Angelo K. Tsakopoulos on a proposal for a high-technology residential space near the medical campus. The Mid-Sunset Neighborhood Association suffered a loss after San Francisco Superior Court Judge Charles Haines rejected a request for injunctive relief from the association's attorneys who hoped to block a 7-story affordable housing complex in the Sunset District. The group argued that the Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation's proposal is unlawful because neither the developer nor the government considered a building with fewer floors and, naturally, fewer units. Mountain View City Council will consider Google's proposal for reimagining a suburban office park into a walkable urban village. Google filed two proposals for two new communities located on 127 acres of office parks that would include 7,000 residential units and 3.1 million square feet of office space, shops, restaurants, and a school.

The layers of bureaucracy that lie between the state’s estimated housing need, as expressed by projections by the Department of Housing and Community Development, and the actual zoning for new units at the local level are seemingly infinite—from the legislature to metropolitan planning organizations to local agencies, with an array of stakeholders and agencies thrown in for good measure.

San Diego Adopts Suite of Housing Incentives San Diego City Council approved , 8-1, a package of seven housing incentives, including regulation changes for ADUs, that are intended to increase housing availability while also catering to residents with concerns about "neighborhood character." The package, named "Homes for All of Us," also includes a policy that disallows property owners who take advantage of SB9 to also benefit from the new ADU incentives, which expand on San Diego's already lenient ADU regulations. Developers may also now build housing projects with new libraries and fire stations on public land, and businesses will have an easier time building on-site housing for workers. Other incentives exist for those who build larger "family" units and units for disabled people. Critics of the package believe that it does not do enough to protect "neighborhood character." San Francisco May Face Vacancy Tax Ballot Measure San Francisco Supervisor Dean Preston and two housing advocacy groups introduced a ballot measure titled the "Empty Homes Tax" that would tax property owners with vacant residential units. This would apply to owners of buildings with a unit that has been vacant for over six months, and the tax rate would increase for larger units and longer vacancies. The Democratic Socialists of America San Francisco Chapter and Faith in Action Bay Area are working with Preston to raise about $38 million annually add about 5,000 units to the housing stock in the first two years of implementation. Residents would voice their opinion on the measure on the November ballot, but supporters will have to father 9,000 signatures by July 11 for the measure to qualify. Cities Threaten Suit to Undo SB 9 Carson, Redondo Beach, and Torrance have begun a legal battle against SB 9 to render the law as invalid, arguing that the law's failure to allow for local control over land-use decisions and its lack of specificity regarding the affordable housing crisis violate the state Constitution, specifically for charter cities. While supporters of the bill celebrate its potential to confront the housing crisis, opponents are arguing that rescinding local decision-making ability will make it harder for leaders to properly address community needs. Specifically, Carson City Attorney Sunny Soltani mentioned concerns regarding environmental impacts, affordable housing, and gentrification. SB 9 will likely face additional challenges from general law cities like Rancho Palos Verdes and Hesperia. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Lost Coast Land Returned to Indigenous Tribes Save the Redwoods League has committed to giving over 500 acres on the Lost Coast to the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council, returning land with ancient redwoods to the descendants of the region's original inhabitants. Ten tribes who have lived on the land, Tc'ih-Léh-Dûñ, or "Fish Run Place" in the Sinkyone language, for thousands of years will now care for the land with steep hills and a tributary of the Eel River, which is home to steelhead trout and Coho salmon. The league had previously purchased a 5-mile stretch of the Lost Coast from a lumber company that stripped the forest for timber. The land will return to the area's indigenous inhabitants as part of the LANDBACK movement. CP&DR Legal Coverage: San Diego High Rise Prevails on Density Bonus  In the Bankers Hill neighborhood of San Diego, a community association opposed a 20-story apartment building based on two arguments that might have succeeded in the past: conflicts with the general plan and the idea that the project’s “massing and scale” is out of character with the neighborhood. But the Bankers Hill neighbors aren’t winning the argument. They’ve lost all the way down the line – planning commission, city council, Superior Court, and now in an unpublished opinion by the Court of Appeal. The reason is the recent changes in state law that give developers more power to seek density bonuses, concessions, and waivers, which in this case are overpowering the neighbors’ traditional arguments. In fact, the appellate court criticized the neighborhood group for “sidestepping” the density bonus law in their arguments. Quick Hits & Updates Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the California Housing Accelerator will award $923 million to affordable housing projects across the state that are ready for construction but could not move forward due to a lack of federal tax credits and bonds. 27 projects have been approved thus far, and most of them will begin construction this summer, generating 2,300 housing units, 500 of which will be for unhoused residents. HCD has submitted proposed regulations for the Prohousing Designation Program and is accepting public comments. (See related CP&DR coverage .) The first headquarters of the Black Panther Party, now home to It's All Good Bakery in Oakland, might get demolished and transformed into a five-story, 20-unit mixed-use housing development. Many Oakland residents have voiced concerns about the potential project's erasure of Black history and the impact on the city's Black community. Three environmental groups have sued the National Park Service in the U.S. District Court of Northern California over its decision to allow cattle ranching to operate at the Point Reyes National Seashore. The environmentalists are arguing that officials are prioritizing the dairy and beef industries at the expense of wildlife, including tule elk, and their ecosystem. While most large U.S. cities are not on track to meet their climate goals, San Francisco is equitably cleaning up its energy use, according to the  2021 City Clean Energy Scorecard . The report, released by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), ranks 100 major U.S. cities on efforts including reducing energy waste in homes and buildings and moving toward a cleaner power grid. San Francisco came in first place for its new program that provides free home energy-saving kits to residents living in low-income areas with high pollution. The city also updated its energy code for new buildings and received honors for its transportation programs. Los Angeles, San Jose, and Oakland took 8th, 9th, and 10th place, respectively. The Antioch City Council has banned future natural gas and oil drilling in the city, ensuring that its future remains well-free, in updates to its municipal code. While Sunset Exploration had applied for a drilling permit to operate in the city's "heavy industrial" zone, they will now have to look outside of Antioch. Berkeley is considering a new paving policy that would prioritize quieter neighborhood streets over busy corridors and invest further in low-income neighborhoods. Under the new policy and $38.5 million five-year paving plan, streets in the city's "Equity Zone" would receive increased resources. San Diego's Blue Line Trolley extension cost double the per mile national average for light-rail projects and finished construction in half the average time, according to a recent UC Berkeley study. The report's co-author found that the 11-mile, $2.2 billion extension with nine new stations was "well executed" by SANDAG. Orange County Superior Court Judge James Crandall ruled that Mission Viejo City Council members acted in accordance with transparency law in their private negotiations surrounding the purchase and redevelopment of the Stein Mart building in the city's downtown shopping center. The property owner who filed the lawsuit argued that the City Council violated the Brown Act. Anaheim's Disneyland Resort may transform an area with a strip mall, mobile home park, and a Toy Story parking lot into a mixed-use development with hotels, restaurants, shops, and apartments along Katella Avenue. If approved by the city, "DisneylandForward" is intended to work with another proposal, Katella Gateway Anaheim, that would construct four hotel towers, four residential towers, and seven commercial buildings on 23 acres of an existing mobile home park, to increase tourism and revenue. Locals have voiced concerns about the 200 mobile homes that would be demolished and the likely increase in traffic. OPR recently released a  technical advisory that provides an overview of existing CEQA provisions that can streamline the planning and construction of sustainable transportation projects. This TA also provides guidance on how to prepare a project business case and racial equity analysis, as required for sustainable transportation projects over $100 million seeking to use the CEQA exemption contained in Public Resources Code § 21080.25. California’s  Regional Early Action Planning Program 2.0 (REAP 2.0) will provide $600 million in state and federal investment to advance the implementation of adopted regional plans by funding projects that accelerate infill housing and reductions in per capita vehicle miles traveled. An advance application for the program is now available. Berkeley officials, including Mayor Jesse Arreguín, have voiced their support for a ballot initiative that would raise hundreds of millions of dollars to fund infrastructure improvements and affordable housing construction. Officials are still considering several details related to the measure but have determined that the city must be more bold to address its housing crisis and raise the $1 billion required for maintenance.

The Chico general plan does not mandate that all new development projects must be “infill” projects – and even a project that substantially increases greenhouse gas emissions is permissible, an appellate court has ruled in an unpublished csae.

Why would a city win a land-use court case and then argue that it shouldn’t be used as a precedent for future cases?

Woodside Draws Scorn for Declaring City "Mountain Lion Habitat" In an apparent surrender after a short-lived but high-profile debacle, the town of Woodside has decided not to oppose certain residential units in the name of mountain lion protection. In a response to the implementation of Senate Bill 9, which widely permits lot splits and the development of duplexes on single-family lots statewide, Woodside had planned to put a moratorium on SB 9 projects by declaring itself a mountain lion habitat. The mountain lion is a candidate species for protection under the California Endangered Species Act, and city leaders argued that the mountain lion's status prevented the city from approving further development. The move attracted widespread derision, especially from housing advocates who claimed that the habitat designation was simply an excuse to deny more housing in the city. Even the California Mountain Lion Foundation criticized the move; the organization tweeted , "a blanket prohibition against adding an additional unit on an already developed parcel anywhere in the town is neither required by the California Endangered Species Act, nor contributing to the protection of mountain lions." The move was also opposed by Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose office issued a statement reading, in part, "Habitat is land that has the capacity to support a specific species, including providing food and shelter. Land that is already developed — with, for example a single-family home — is not, by definition, habitat. . . . Any exemption under SB 9 requires the town to examine the attributes of an individual parcel of land. An entire town cannot be declared habitat for a protected species, and the exemption of a specific lot would have to be based on substantial evidence." A statement from the town indicates that it will accept SB 9 applications effective immediately. (See related CP&DR coverage .) S.F. Supervisors Thwart Mayor's Ballot Initiative to Promote Housing San Francisco Mayor London Breed's third attempt to place a measure that would streamline housing production on the June 7 ballot has failed after the Board of Supervisors rejected her proposal. Mayor Breed hoped that San Francisco residents would be able to vote on a charter amendment that would allow certain projects to quickly move past the city's discretionary review process, cutting down the approval timeline by one or two years. However, Supervisor Peskin argued that the Mayor failed to achieve adequate input from impacted stakeholders. Proposals to build 100% affordable housing or developments with over 25 units that include an affordable hosing requirement and would have qualified for the streamlined process. Report Contradicts Claims that CEQA Impedes Development The 50-year old California Environmental Quality Act is a critical tool for advancing environmental justice and combating climate change, according to a report released by The Housing Workshop and commissioned by the Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment. The report contends that the CEQA is not a significant barrier to the state’s housing production, contrary to critic’s contentions, and its provisions are helpful in ensuring government transparency and community involvement. The report uses current data and case studies to assess CEQA litigation rates, economic prosperity metrics, and the cost of CEQA compliance. Its analysis shows that the number of CEQA lawsuits has remained consistently very low over the last two decades, despite a rapid growth in the state’s population in the same period. Toxic Troubles Plague Vallco Mall Redevelopment Property owners of the Vallco Town Center will have to decontaminate 50 acres of chemical-ridden soil that lays as the foundation for the new development before beginning construction. The site formerly held a shopping mall with several nearby dry cleaners and a Sears Automotive Center that left contaminated soil, which the property owners analyzed in their updated report to the Santa Clara County Department of Environmental Health. The proposal for the new development includes 2,402 new homes, 400,000 square feet of retail, and 1.8 million square feet of office space, though the county still needs to sign off on the new report, and site owner Sand Hill Property Co. must submit its proposal for decontamination, which will likely come in the form of soil removal that is already planned to allow for underground parking. (See related CP&DR coverage .) CP&DR Coverage: Ballot Initiative Would Curtail State Land Use Authority Prompted by dissatisfaction over Senate Bill 9 and Senate Bill 10, an advocacy group led by municipal officials is seeking to put a measure on the November ballot that would not only undo those laws but also curtail almost all of Sacramento's power to influence local planning, zoning, and housing production. The ballot initiative goes by the slogan "Our Neighborhood Voices" and is officially called the "Brand-Huang-Mendoza Tripartisan Land Use Initiative," named for its three major backers: Mayor Bill Brand of Redondo Beach, Council Member Peggy Huang of Yorba Linda, and Council Member Jovita Mendoza of Brentwood. Quick Hits & Updates Los Angeles City Council voted to ban future oil and gas wells and phase out existing wells, a momentous decision that will combat pollution, fossil fuel dependence, and environmental injustice in a city that contains the country's largest number of urban wells. This move will come as a meaningful success to community organizations who have fought for fossil fuel divestment for years and will lead to a study that suggests how to legally remove oil wells from the city. California's years-long drought is infamous, but a proposed statewide ballot measure that would make it easier to fund and build dams and more large water projects will likely not move forward due to momentum and fundraising shortfalls. The initiative would require that 2% of the state's general fund, roughly $4 billion, be dedicated to growing water supplies. Long Beach City Council approved an updated plan to the city's park system that details investment initiatives in local parks and programming for the next 10 years, specifically in areas with minimal green space tied to systemic racism. The plan would invest further in equitable park land, consider park disparities, and increase mobile recreation programs and language access. California was one of three states to hold areas with the highest concentrations of at-risk markets , with seven throughout the entire state, according to ATTOM, which released its fourth-quarter 2021 Special Coronavirus Report that analyzes county-level housing markets and their vulnerability to the pandemic's economic impacts. The counties of Butte, El Dorado, Humboldt, Shasta, Kern, Madera, and Riverside were included on this list. The United States Supreme Court will consider an appeal from Chantell and Michael Sackett that would minimize federal control of private property related to the Clean Water Act. In 2007, the EPA required the Sacketts to stop work on their property, noting that it would impact wetlands that could not legally be polluted without a permit. A federal judge rejected a request from oil, gas, and hydropower industry groups to reinstate a Trump-era rule that reduces the regulation of projects that result in significant water pollution, delivering a victory to 20 states who sued to block the rule, including California. The groups argued that, without the rule, the country would lose out on important energy projects, heighten costs on developers, and harm the economy and claimed that they would not be able to fairly participate in rulemaking processes if the rule were rejected. San Diego City Council approved a new growth blueprint for Barrio Logan intended to improve community public health by approving green spaces and other projects that would separate residents from the shipping industry and its pollution and confront environmental racism. The update also demands "freeway lids" over I-5 and community gardens to increase healthy food access. The Town of Fairfax has approved amendments to its General Plan that will include more respectful and equitable language. Specifically, the town will no longer use the terms "community character" and "neighborhood character" and will instead clarify the intended message behind that language. The San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley metropolitan area remained the nation's most expensive place to live for the sixth year in a row, according to 2020 federal data that found prices in the area were 17.4% higher than the national average. The data also found San Diego-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara in fifth place and proved that California is the third-most expensive state. Developer Hines is hoping to build a residential building three blocks away from and a few feet shorter than its San Francisco high-rise Salesforce Tower development. The developer would use density bonuses to construct its 808-unit apartment building on a site originally zoned for 400 feet in height but supposedly allowed to reach Hines's desired 1,066 feet using public-subsidized bonuses. The Natomas Unified School District unanimously approved a proposal to purchase part of the mostly unused Sleep Train Arena site from Sacramento Business Holdings Natomas LLC, who owns the Sacramento Kings, for $6 million. The NUSD School Board plans to build a school site on its newly-acquired 12-acre lot. The Oakland Department of Transportation is beginning to phase out its Slow Streets program intended to protect pedestrians and bicyclists, a process that began almost two years ago. Officials will start removing Slow Streets infrastructure, including signs, safety cones, and barricades, located on about 21 miles of roadway within the next two weeks, allowing vehicles to return to the streets.

Amid all the publicity about recent housing production bills, one important tool hasn’t gotten much publicity: the specific plan. Designed to be a cross between a mini-general plan and a zoning ordinance, the specific plan can play a role in moving housing and other development projects – not least because, under a 1984 law, a specific project qualifies for an exemption under the California Environmental Quality Act if it conforms with an adopted specific plan. That’s a lesson that the Coalition for Biological Diversity and other environmentalists learned anew recently when they challenged the City of Newark’s approval of almost 500 housing units in an environmentally sensitive area near San Francisco Bay. The environmentalists claimed the project would harm the endangered harvest mouse, even though the project as approved wasn’t nearly as big as the project considered in the city’s environmental impact report, which was prepared for an entire specific plan area. Recently, the First District Court of Appeal ruled that Newark had acted properly in exempting the housing project from CEQA because it conformed to – and indeed was smaller than the project envisioned by – the Areas 3 and 4 Specific Plan. The court also resisted the temptation to reverse the anti-“reverse CEQA” bent of recent California court rulings, saying that sea level rise in the coming decades is not a matter for analysis in the environmental documentation for this project. Areas 3 and 4 are located south of the Dumbarton Bridge close to the Bay. The areas include significant wetlands. The city approved a specific plan and certified an environmental impact report for the area in 2010. After the Citizens Committee to Complete the Refuge , a wetlands advocacy group, sued and won in the trial court based on confusion over whether the EIR was a program- or project-level document, the city clarified that it was a program-level EIR and recirculated it. In 2015, the city re-certified the EIR and re-adopted the specific plan. The EIR identified significant impacts for the harvest mouse and for wetlands. The city then approved two housing projects: one in Area 3 for 386 units and one in Area 4 for 469 units , proposed by Sobrato Development and known as Sanctuary West. The second project abandoned a golf course that had been included in the specific plan and instead offered to deed much of the area to the city for conservation.

CP&DR Vol. 37 No. 1 January 2022