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New Newport Beach Development Can Rely On Old EIR

The City of Pomona decided that cannabis-related businesses were not materially different in their land use and environmental impacts than other similar businesses – and that’s okay with the Court of Appeal.

State Awards $33 Million in Grants to Prohousing Cities The California Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and Department of Housing and Community Development awarded $33.2 million in grants from the Prohousing Incentive Pilot (PIP) Program to 18 jurisdictions that have achieved the Prohousing Designation. HCD awards the Prohousing Designation to cities and counties that demonstrate a commitment to tackling California's housing and homelessness challenges by enacting Prohousing policies including, but not limited to, streamlining multifamily housing development, up-zoning in places near jobs and transit to reduce emissions, and creating more affordable homes in places that historically or currently exclude households of color and those earning lower incomes. The cities of Los Angeles and San Diego received the largest awards -- $5 million and $4.9 million, respectively. They were roughly double the next largest awards. The City of Sacramento ($2.5 million), Oakland, Fresno, Riverside, and San Diego County all received awards between $2.0 and $2.5 million. (See related CP&DR coverage .) San Francisco Adopts Ordinance to Hasten Adaptive Reuse The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved measures to ease zoning restrictions and expedite the process and requirements for converting existing commercial buildings and flexibility for use. The restrictions for commercial buildings date back to when Union Square retailers intended to preserve upper floors of retail spaces for more expensive stores. The new zoning ordinance allows the upper floors to convert to offices, service, design and additional retail use. Ground floor zoning will now allow indoor and outdoor entertainment areas. The zoning amendments also allows for ease of converting offices to housing, a concept many believe will be a solution to Downtown San Francisco's decreased foot traffic. The Board of Supervisors President said in a statement the city will gauge interest block-by-block in Downtown to understand what building owners may be interested in converting retail spaces, while also offering connections between them to potential tenants or organizations. (See related CP&DR coverage .) California Cities Get Mixed Reviews in Walkability Ranking Smart Growth America's Foot Traffic Ahead (FTA) report found most metropolitan cities grew in walkable urban areas, ranking San Francisco as fifth in the country for walkable areas and Los Angeles as eighth of the 35 major cities studied. The study identifies changes in walkability in these 35 cities since 2019. The report used Los Angeles as a case study, highlighting the discrepancies in race and income, as well as income-segregated neighborhoods, ranking the city last on its Social Equity Index despite its wide range of walkable areas. The study found that 19.1% of the total U.S. real gross domestic product and 6.8% of the U.S. population are located in walkable urban places that represent just 1.2% of total landmass of the top 35 U.S. cities. The report seeks to present information on walkability publicly for advocates, community members, policymakers and researchers. The report ranks Sacramento 24th and San Diego 28th. The top spot went to New York City; the bottom spot went to Las Vegas. San Diego County Adopts Measures to Promote Housing The San Diego Board of Supervisors approved a number of measures to streamline housing development and increase housing projects in unincorporated areas of San Diego. The measure targets housing types like workforce, subsidized and emergency shelters, attempting to remove barriers. The city's Planning and Development Services director said the measures can guarantee building permit review times and provide financial incentives for development. The vote also includes a $14.5 million budget to implement the policy changes. Additionally, the measures include the plan to develop policies for tiny homes, pre-approved home planes and upgraded information technology over the next one- to three-year period. CP&DR Coverage: Do More Housing Laws Equal More Housing? For the past six years, legislators have worked feverishly to pass laws designed to ease the state's housing supply crisis . In total, over 100 bills have passed since the 2017 legislative season. While many lawmakers have taken victory laps, the question remains, have these laws worked as intended? The Terner Center for Housing Innovation at UC Berkeley recently took on that question, producing a report entitled, “New Pathways to Encourage Housing Production: A Review of California's Recent Housing Legislation.” CP&DR's Josh Stephens recently spoke with the Terner Center's Ben Metcalf about what the report says about the legislature's fecundity and the future of housing bills. Quick Hits & Updates Smart Growth America's newest study of local complete streets policies found Sacramento as 10th strongest the country by reducing traffic violence, improving health equity in their community and roadways, responding to the climate crisis and amending historic inequities of transportation. Following San Bernardino's decision to cut ties with selected developers for the large Carousel Mall redevelopment project, the state Department of Housing and Community Development announced they will no longer pursue legal action against the city. The state's lawsuit previously claimed the city violated state law in their process of choosing a developer for the project, and did not make the property available for affordable housing. A San Diego grand jury concluded the City Council's plan to utilize developer money from wealthy neighborhoods for infrastructure project in low-income areas lacks details. The grand jury did not comment on the legality or fairness of the plan, but stated the city needs concrete details on the implementation of shifting funds. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear oil companies' challenge to 2019 federal court orders halting fracking off the California coast, leaving the ban in place. The federal ban applies to water three miles off the coast, while Governor Newsom signed an executive order banning all fracking permits within three miles of the coast starting next January. Both Cudahy and Buena Park recently adopted rent control and other ordinances aimed at protecting tenants. Cudahy adopted an ordinance prohibiting landlords from evicting tenants for renovations without first obtaining city permits. Buena Park adopted two ordinances, one capping annual rent increase at 3% and another offering relocation services for residents evicted without cause. Think thank California Forward released a report with recommendations to voters and policy-makers to maximize federal infrastructure funding within the state, hoping to create equitable and climate-conscious infrastructure projects. According to the report -- written in collaboration with Governor Newsom's office -- the state can create $180 billion worth of infrastructure and approximately 400,000 jobs. California could lose between 25% and 70% of state beaches by 2100 if climate change is not addressed, according to a yet-to-be published study by researchers at the U.S. Geological Survey. The beaches face risks of coastal erosion and higher sea levels, potentially erasing up to two-thirds of state beaches. A San Jose judge ruled against the Santa Clara Valley Water District and their plans for a $2.8 billion dam, concluding the district violated CEQA in its initial geological analysis. This decision follows numerous hurdles for the project, including a lack of secured funding and political opposition. Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 341 , creating a 20 year moratorium on new cardrooms in the state. Already-stablished cardrooms with less than 20 gambling tables can add an addition ten during the moratorium. The decision sides with indigenous tribes in the state in an attempt to not oversaturate the gambling market. The developer behind the supportive housing piece of UC Berkeley's proposed student housing development at People's Park left the project, citing court delays. A spokesperson for the project said the recent court decision halting the $312 million project sets a dangerous precedent for affordable housing by dictating developers research the environmental impact of the "type" of resident occupying a building and their noise levels. San Jose is moving forward in a plan to utilize robotic shuttles between San Jose Mineta International Airport and Diridon Station. The City Council initially approved the project partially funded by the city with an investment firm fronting some other costs. The project has already received pushback from transit unions. According to a report by the American Lung Association, 98% of Californians live in communities with unhealthy levels of smog or fine particles. The Greater Los Angeles County area remains the smoggiest metropolitan city in the country. The city received an F grade again for air quality by the Association. A new report by the Congress for New Urbanism highlights ten campaigns in North America to transform highways into walking spaces. The report showcased efforts behind the removal efforts of Interstate 980 in Oakland. The city, Caltrans and neighborhood organizations are planning and studying for a future without the freeway, which negatively impacts the surrounding environment and residents.

Given recent history, it’s not surprising that the University of California gets sued by Berkeley environmentalists and neighbors no matter what it does. So when UC decided to undertake a plan to reduce wildfire risk on the Berkeley campus, it got sued by not one but two different local groups. They wanted opposite outcomes – one wanted more clearing of non-native trees and the other less – but they both challenged the university’s environmental impact report on similar grounds.

Santa Monica may have settled its builder’s remedy cases . Redondo Beach and Huntington Beach may be resisting the whole idea of a builder’s remedy. But in several other jurisdictions around the state, developers are trying to use the builder’s remedy to move their projects forward. In many cases, the applications are being made by developers who have been trying to obtain approval for many years. In some cases, they are adding multifamily affordable units to a single-family proposal in order to qualify.

Thirteen years after it was originally adopted, Huntington Beach’s Beach and Edinger Corridors Specific Plan remains a hotbed of controversy, with a new City Council and housing advocates seemingly at odds over how the two corridors should be developed.

Legislature Moves to Prop Up Transit Agencies With transit agencies around the state facing severe budget shortages, caused largely by decreased ridership and farebox recovery compared to pre-pandmeic levels, the legislature tentatively agreed to make $2 billion in state general funds available to transit agencies statewide. The move is a restoration of funds that were cut in Gov. Newsom's January budget proposal. The legislature is also proposing that $1.1 billion in cap-and-trade funds be available, over three years. The state funds represent compromise compared to what agencies asked for: $5 billion through 2028. Many agencies are currently facing "fiscal cliffs" that might necessitate dramatic cuts in service. BART and Muni, in the Bay Area, are threatening to cut service as early as this fall in the absence of state subsidies. The move must be approved by Newsom; Thursday is the deadline to pass the state budget. Disneyland Proposes 30-Year Build-Out of Anaheim Resort Disneyland detailed a 30-year expansion plan for potential new projects within the park, including tax revenue, anticipated tourism and potential added job benefits of the expansion. Disneyland did not release details, but renderings indicate development of new attractions and hotels on current parking lots on the west and southeastern sides of the Disneyland/California Adventure campus. Disney hopes "to evolve the way we entertain today and mix together theme park, entertainment, shops, restaurants and hotels." The projects, which would not add more square footage than what si currently allowed, would require amendment of Anaheim's 1994 Resort Specific Plan, which governs the park and its surroundings. According to the DisneylandForward website , the current plan separates land uses too strictly:"'traditional' district/zone approach does not allow for the diverse, integrated experiences theme park visitors now seek, severely limiting Disney's ability to continue investing in Anaheim." Disney first announced the project in 2021, and has since been working with the city of Anaheim to update the planning approval process in the resort district. Disneyland plans to present an environmental impact study to the City Council in early 2024. In a study by Cal State Fullerton, during a typical 4-year construction period for Disneyland, the park generates 4,500 jobs, $11 million in tax revenue and $1.1 billion in economic output in Anaheim for every billion dollars spent. (See related CP&DR coverage.) State's Water Supply May be Less than Estimated A report by California State Auditor found the Department of Water Resources overestimated the state's water supply and fails to account for climate change in forecasts, despite its acknowledgment over a decade ago that it needs to improve forecasting methods. The audit also found the Department of Water Resources has not created a comprehensive plan accounting for more droughts for the State Water Project, the water system between Northern and Southern California, supplying water for 27 million state residents. The Department of Water Resources relies on historical climate data without factoring in extreme weather patterns like increased rain, snow and flooding and severe and prolonged drought. The audit recommended a number of changes to the department's methods, including more adept forecasting, reevaluating data for specific projects like the State Water Project and developing long-term plans for mitigating the impacts of climate change. California Downtowns Recover at Disparate Rates Recovery for some California downtown cities has accelerated much faster than others, according to a new study by the School of Cities at the University of Toronto recording data via cellphone usage. Bakersfield's downtown recovery rate is 125%, followed by Fresno at 121%, San Diego at 99%, Sacramento at 75%, San Jose at 67% and Los Angeles at 65%. San Francisco trails at 31% in pre-pandemic levels of foot traffic. San Diego's downtown prior to the pandemic and presently relies on tourism and residential development, aiding in its recovery. Events like Comic-Con and a diversifying use of downtown, including an emerging biotechnology industry, have helped the area regain foot traffic. San Francisco's downtown, conversely relied on office workers, many of whom now work remotely. San Francisco leaders have been working to revitalize their downtown and propose alternative uses for the spaces. Downtown Los Angeles's office occupancy rates presently lie at 47% of pre-pandemic levels, with rental rates below 2019 levels. The downtown area is also seeing less tourism, with average monthly visits at 10% below the pre-pandemic average but gradually increasing. CP&DR Coverage: Supreme Court's Wetlands Decision Unlikely to Affect California In Sackett v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court narrowed the definition of a wetland subject to regulation by the federal Clean Water Act - a topic that has been the subject of intense legal and bureaucratic debate for decades. By a 5-4 vote, a majority of the court said that, to be subject to regulation, a wetland must be connected to bodies of water in a ways that makes the wetland “indistinguishable” from the water bodies - in other words, they must be connected on the surface. Wetlands that are not connected to water bodies on the surface are not subject to Clean Water Act regulation. The California Water Resources Control Board was quick to respond to the ruling, saying that the state's own clean water law, commonly known as the Porter-Cologne Act, remains in place and will continue to define wetlands expansively. Quick Hits & Updates Due to ongoing droughts, impacts of wildfires and infrastructure developments like dams and road encroachments, the Southern California steelhead will stay on the federal Endangered Species list according to National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration Fisheries five-year plan. Two state agencies are solidifying plans to remove two dams in Ojai and Malibu to increase the fishes' habitat by 15 miles. The warehouse and site of the deadliest fire in Oakland's history was demolished and a housing nonprofit purchased the property with the intention of developing a low-income housing complex. The plans include a memorial to the 36 victims of the 2016 fire. The Alameda County Transportation Commission -- representing the East Bay local governments, AC Transit and Bart -- approved a $5.1 million grant to fund the design, environmental review and engineering work to repair the Berkeley Marina historic pier. The pier closed in 2015 due to safety concerns and eroding concrete and requires a $121 million-worth restoration. A downtown Los Angeles-based company was fined $4 million and fives years probation for the over $1 million bribes from their Chinese real estate developer owner to then-Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar. Huizar accepted over $1 million from February 2013 to November 2018 in exchange for his support of a 77-story skyscraper in his district. The California Supreme court announced it will hear the oral arguments in the legal battle over Monterey County's Measure Z, a ban on hydraulic fracturing or fracking, prohibiting new oil and gas wells and phasing out wastewater disposal wells. Voters approved Measure Z in 2016, with six oil companies including Chevon subsequently suing and overturning the measure in December 2017 and upheld again in October 2021. A group of advocates for the measure appealed to the Supreme Court. A Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge ruled against the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's plan to reposition over 2 million cubic yards of soil for earthen levees and introduce tidal flows in the Ballona Creek wetlands. The court ordered the agency to pause any project activity as it failed to report any flood control designs associated with the project. Of more than 180 U.S. cities analyzed, WalletHub found Fremont the best city to raise a family, followed by Irvine as the third best city to raise a family. The analysis found San Bernardino one of the worst-scoring cities to raise a family, using metrics like health and safety, access to good education and childcare and affordability.

Los Angeles County Considers Congestion Pricing The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transport Authority is pursuing a feasibility study on traffic congestion with a draft of a congestion pricing scheme to manage traffic in some of the region's most congested areas. Metro narrowed down three potential locations for a pilot program including the 16-mile stretch of the 10 Freeway between downtown Los Angeles and Santa Monica, freeways and streets around downtown and canyon streets between the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles Basin. Pricing, technology and projected revenue from the project is yet to be decided, but the pilot program will include subsidies for low-income drivers and carpoolers and funding for driving alternatives. Early modeling predicts the range of gross revenue from the program to be between $400,000 and $2.5 million daily. Metro hopes the program will decrease air pollution and traffic in the city, as well as fund other city agencies. Congestion pricing schemes have faced backlash in other areas like New York and San Diego. Insurance Companies Balk at Covering Properties in Wildfire Areas State Farm Insurance announced it will no longer accept homeowner insurance applications in California citing rising risks of catastrophe, especially wildfires, increases in construction costs and a "challenging" reinsurance market. Additionally, Allstate has paused new policies in California last year and will not continue to write new homeowner, condominium and commercial insurance policies in the state. State Farm cited it was in the best financial interest for their company, but Allstate did not make a public statement on why they were not issuing homeowners insurance in the state except to "continue to protect current customers." Both pullbacks indicate a growing price of insurance. Two other insurers protecting high-end homes, AIG and Chubb, pulled coverage in California in recent years. State Farm is the leading insurance provider in California and Allstate is the fourth leading property and casualty insurance provider in California. La Jolla Explores Independent Cityhood The upscale San Diego neighborhood of La Jolla is exploring the prospect of seceding from the City of San Diego and becoming an independent city of San Diego County, the Association for the City of La Jolla is collecting data from the City of San Diego and completing a fiscal analysis. The association needs 25% of residents' support followed by the support of San Diego residents. The application would then go to San Diego's Local Agency Formation Commission, which will conduct an independent financial assessment. The cities of Del Mar and Malibu, which both incorporated in the 1990s, advising secession proponents in La Jolla. A 2005 study of potential cityhood estimated that La Jolla could owe up to $4.6 million annually in mitigation payments to San Diego. Beverly Hills Voters Reject Luxury Hotel Beverly Hills voters rejected a proposal to develop an ultra-luxury hotel project after a long haul fight over the property between a union advocating for affordable housing and a conglomerate owned by Bernard Arnault, chair of LVMH and the world's richest person. The union gathered enough signatures to force the decision to a vote. The new hotel location would be the first property of the chain in North America, promising the city hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue. The project was approved by the city council and the Planning Commission last year. The conglomerate behind the chain has spent almost $2.8 million over a few months on a campaign to promote the project. The pro-housing union spent almost $86,000 over the same period. Residents Against Overdevelopment spent another $16,000 to support the campaign against the hotel. Beverly Hills has struggled to adopt a housing plan or establish any affordable housing nearby the city limits. Symptoms of Climate Change Growing More Severe in California The fourth edition of "Indicators of Climate Change in California," published by Cal EPA and the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, details the severe increase in climate crisis impacts throughout the state. According to state scientists, the dangers of fossil fuel dependence are abundantly clear and worsening; wildfires, drought, and excessive heat have intensified, placed human health in increased danger, and created irreparable damage to landscapes and communities. Notably, annual average air temperatures have increased by 2.5 degrees since 1895, and eight of the 10 hottest years took place in the last decade. The report, which totals nearly 700 pages, suggests that the state has taken meaningful action in terms of coastal protection, renewable energy, and electric vehicle use, but initiatives must involve stronger actions to prevent the most catastrophic impacts. CP&DR Coverage: New Perspectives on the Parking Crisis Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World is the best, and breeziest, book on parking since Shoup Dogg first dropped the mic. By journalist Henry Grabar, who is best known for writing about cities on Slate, Paved Paradise is hip, current, and comprehensive. It covers not just Shoupian economics but also design, business, public administration, culture, and just about every other impact that parking has on America's cities, soul, and psyche in a relatively slim 300 pages. For Grabar, "parking is the primary determinant of the way the place you live looks, feels, and functions." If planners are to truly reform parking in the United States, they need to tell stories just like Grabar does, making the ills of over-parking and under-pricing accessible to everyone. Quick Hits & Updates The Los Angeles City Planning Commission is proposing potential citywide expansion of an adaptive reuse ordinance. Originally, the ordinance was adopted in 1999 for the Downtown area and converted 12,000 residential homes from offices. The Planning Commission aims to expand the ordinance as part of the citywide housing incentive program to meet a state mandate of 255,000 additional homes by 2024. UC Davis's recent Joint Housing Report found the university housed almost 81,000 people in their local community as of fall 2022. Over the last six years, the UCD campus added housing accommodations for approximately 7,000 residents within the surrounding city and on the campus itself. An additional six planned projects would add 2,800 beds by 2030. Tech billionaire Chris Larsen will provide a total of $2 million in grants to fifty groups to bolster San Francisco shopping districts and residential neighborhood merchants associations in the hopes to revive the city's slow economy recovery in the wake of the pandemic. Grants will also go towards safety measures like more street lights and over 1,000 private security cameras. The U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released its California Floating Offshore Wind Regional Ports Assessment to study the requirements and potential scenarios for offshore wind plant developments and the capabilities and constraints of port facilities, setting up concrete recommendations and requirements for potential new clean energy sites statewide. Attorney General Rob Bonta's office requested the state Supreme Court reconsider San Francisco's First District Court of Appeals ruling against UC Berkeley's plans for a student dorm at People's Park for failing to study noise impacts. The Governor's office voiced concern the ruling will create a leeway under the California Environmental Quality Act to block housing developments. Think tank California Forward and Governor Newsom released a report recommending actions to expedite $180 billion worth of infrastructure projects in the state. The state anticipates up to $120 billion in federal and state funding for infrastructure projects. California Forward's report includes ways to leverage that total another $60 billion in projects centering equity, environmental sustainability and economic growth, estimating up to 400,000 construction jobs through the plan. The Marin County Planning Commission voted to encourage county supervisors to reject the state's order allowing two accessory dwelling units (ADUs) on one, single-family parcel. The commission reviewed a letter from the state Department of Housing and Community Development's enforcement unit and rejected the suggested amendments to the city's development code, recommending the county supervisors push back against the order. According to data from the most recent U.S. Census, San Jose has fallen off the list of top 10 largest cities in the U.S. by population. The city is now 12th largest in the country after population drops of 1% since the year previous and 4% since April 2020. A new report by financial think tank Carbon Tracker Initiative found cleaning up California's oil sites will cost up to $21.5 billion, exceeding the oil industry's projected profits by three times. The cost of plugging oil and gas wells, deconstructing surface infrastructure and decontaminating sites will far exceed the projected profit of $6.3 billion.

The Supreme Court’s sweeping wetlands ruling is likely to affect clean water and environmental conservation efforts around the country. But the effect in California may be limited because the state has its own strong water quality law that regulates wetlands.

In a recent controversy in downtown San Jose, the City Council declined to declare a brutalist first-generation redevelopment building as an historic landmark, and a developer torn the building down quickly. Now an appellate court has rejected the argument from a local preservation group that the city violated the California Environmental Quality Act in the process. Importantly, the court rejected a novel argument by local preservationists that the developer who tore the building down should be responsible for “compensatory mitigation,” similar to the mitigation required when agricultural land or biological resources are replaced with new development. The reason is that, unlike on undeveloped rural land, in a situation involving urban historic buildings it can be difficult to find similar structures to save. While acknowledging that there is no statutory prohibition on applying the compensatory mitigation idea to a situation involving demolition of an historic building, the Sixth District Court of Appeal concluded: “Nothing in the administrative record here suggests the existence of any structures of similar architectural and historic significance, and PAC*SJ has offered no authority to support its argument that compensatory mitigation, broadly directed at historic preservation generally (such as by creating an historic preservation fund to identify and protect offsite historic resources), would serve as feasible mitigation in this context.: The situation involves what was originally known as Park Plaza, a redevelopment project built in downtown San Jose between 1968 and 1985, and especially the former Bank of America building – commonly known as “The Sphinx” -- designed by the famous architect Cesar Pelli and constructed in the early 1970s. A developer has changed the name of the project to City View Plaza and has proposed replacing the original redevelopment project with three 19-story office towers with approximately 3.5 million square feet of office space, 65,000 square feet of ground floor retail, and five levels of underground parking. A CEQA analysis began in 2018.

Senate Committee Puts Damper on Newsom's Infrastructure Plan The Senate Budget Committee voted , 3-0, to recommend shelving Gov. Newsom's highly publicized package of bills designed to promote development of climate-friendly infrastructure, partially through CEQA streamlining. The three-member committee, consisting of two Democrats and one Republican, voted unanimously against the ten-bill package. Committee members said that the package, which was introduced only two weeks ago, is too complex for the legislature to properly consider it before the September 30 legislative deadline. June 2 is the deadline for bills to move out of their respective houses of origin. The package could still prevail in budget negotiations, or Newsom could re-introduce it via policy committees. “The overwhelming agreement is that we need to build clean faster and cut green tape,” said Committee Chair Sen. Josh Becker, as quoted in CalMatters. “Although... we are rejecting the governor's trailer bill proposals based on process, as seven days is insufficient to vet the hundreds of pages of policy nuance in these proposals, we look forward to working with the administration on all of these critical issues.” (See related CP&DR coverage .) Santa Ana Asks State for Exemptions from Key Housing Laws The Santa Ana City Council will consider filing for exemption of properties from two state housing laws in an effort to exact more local control. Set to vote on the exemption resolution, Santa Ana received a letter from Attorney General Rob Bonta's office urging the council to vote at a later date and consider the impacts of the resolution. The properties eligible presently under state law allow residential development on commercially-zoned sites with little to no local control from planners. Under Assembly Bill 2011 and Senate Bill 6, Santa Ana can label that land as exempt and find other eligible, alternative sites for residential development. City officials stated they are considering the exemption not to avoid state housing law, but because they are already complying. The city has already reached 52% of their Regional Housing Needs Allocation and has a state-certified Housing Element. The City Council will consider the resolution later next month. Redlands Puts Pause on Warehouse Development; Seeks Housing Instead Redlands City Council voted to extend a moratorium for the next year on the development of 15 warehouse properties. The city council hopes to rezone the properties for residential use and affordable housing during that time. Council members indicated that they want to prioritize housing over logistics. The original moratorium in June 2022 was only 45 days for new warehouse projects at 15 Commercial Industrial District properties falling within the East Valley Corridor Specific Plan. The housing plan designates more housing under the state's housing inventory for Redlands. City staff extended the deadline to make further adjustments to Redlands' Housing Element, with an anticipated spring 2024 completion. Report Identifies Roadblocks to Housing Production in L.A. A report by the Los Angeles Business Council (LABC) found entitlement processes are impeding Los Angeles's ability to meet its lofty housing production goals. The study referenced UCLA and California State University, Northridge's findings that the city is not keeping up with housing demands and its ability to meet California's Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) would require the city to complete 57,000 units per year. Presently, the city completes less than 9,000 annually throughout the last decade. LABC's report concludes fast-tracking approval of affordable housing projects and state laws exempting qualifying mixed-income projects from discretionary reviews would add a significant number of housing units. LABC recommends extending those measures to market-rate housing and increasing coordination between city agencies. CP&DR Coverage: Cities Slow to Adopt SB 10 Streamlining A faint successor to the failed SB 827 and SB 50, Senate Bill 10 clears the way for cities to zone for up to ten units on infill parcels currently zoned for as few as one home so long as they are within a half-mile of a major transit stop. Specifically, it carves out a CEQA exemption for the upzoning to save time and money—and, importantly, preempting many would-be lawsuits— in the name of infill development. But more than a year after SB 10's passage, interest from cities and counties has been tepid. Reluctance prevails despite aggressive Regional Housing Needs Assessment goals that many jurisdictions have to achieve in their housing elements and accompanying zoning codes. Humboldt County and the City of San Diego, though, appear to be blazing a trail. Both are considering incorporating SB 10 into their housing action plans. San Diego is drafting its “Housing Action Package 2.0,” and Humboldt County is working on its “Multifamily Rezone Project.” Quick Hits & Updates Following two lawsuits against the Coastal Commission, a homeowners' association in Half Moon Bay is encouraging the commission to reconsider the homeowners' plans to build a seawall around expensive beachfront homes facing rising sea levels. The association is continuing to legally push against the city's proposed relocation plan of the homes, hoping to set a precedent against relocation and in favor of protecting expensive beachfront properties along the state coast. Voters in Sierra Madre approved Measure M, a zoning map amendment as well as a plan and development agreement for a contentious 17-acre, 42-unit housing development. The project stalled since November's failed Measure HR almost changed the zoning plans against the development. MLS announced an investor will pay $500 million for expansion rights in San Diego for a new club and home of California's fourth MLS team. The team will start playing by 2025 in the 35,000-seat Snapdragon Stadium, owned by San Diego State University (on the site of the former Jack Murphy Stadium). The Sycuan Indigenous Tribe will take a minority stake in the team, making it the first Indigenous tribe to take an ownership stake in a soccer team in the US. Following the expiration of the Oakland A's contract with the Port of Oakland at Howard Terminal, the Port announced plans to develop a 50-acre site to support exports from the Central Valley and inland, potentially including overnight truck parking and temporary dry and refrigerated storage. The Moreno Valley City Council voted to approve the city's planning commission recommendation that the proposed plan for the Moreno Valley Mall move forward. The plan includes transforming the Moreno Valley Mall into four apartments totaling 1,627 units, two different hotels, 40,000 square-feet of retail space and additional office space. The city will consider mixed-income housing and job opportunities. A new study found the U.S. lost 8% of its affordable housing units during the pandemic due to a number of units converting to market rate. This loss amounts to 500,000 affordable units for low-income renters. In the midst of the ongoing legal dispute between Los Angeles City and a coalition of downtown residents suing the city for allowing inhumane and unsafe conditions to worsen downtown, the city petitioned a federal appeals court to end the lawsuit. The city claims the U.S. District Judge overseeing the case has overstepped his legal jurisdiction in refusing to accept a settlement between the group and the city. A group of investors and business owners are pushing a large-scale transformation of San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, including a food hall, interactive museum, short-term apartment rentals, and public space centering on and around Pier 45. The Long Beach City Council is once again considering a plan to replace a Terminal Island freeway with a large park space to work as a green buffer between the Port of Long Beach and the western part of the city impacted by traffic congestion and air pollution. UC Berkeley's Terner Center for Housing Innovation released a nation-wide report on how states are incentivizing local housing production by analyzing state pro-housing laws. The database and typology of state laws is used to understand trends in overall housing legislation on the state level.

CP&DR Vol. 38 No. 5 May 2023