Search Results

Bay Area Adopts $1.5 Trillion Regional Vision for 2050 The Association of Bay Area Governments and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission adopted Plan Bay Area 2050 and its associated Environmental Impact Report. The unanimous votes by both boards cap a nearly four-year process during which more than 20,000 Bay Area residents contributed to the development of the new plan. Defined by 35 strategies for housing, transportation, economic vitality and the environment, Plan Bay Area 2050 lays out a $1.4 trillion vision for policies and investments to make the nine-county region more affordable, connected, diverse, healthy and economically vibrant for all its residents through 2050 and beyond. Housing strategies would produce roughly 400,000 new permanently affordable homes by 2050 and seeks to preserve another half-million permanently affordable homes. Transportation strategies include transit-fare reforms that would reduce cost burdens for riders with low incomes, and the plan's economic development strategy seeks paths to economic mobility through job training and a universal basic income. With a focus on climate change, strategies also are crafted for resilience against future uncertainties, including protection from hazards such sea-level rise and wildfires. Among the features that distinguish Plan Bay Area 2050 from previous regional plans is an associated Implementation Plan that details the specific actions ABAG and MTC can take in the next five years to put the new plan into action. (See related CP&DR coverage .) S.F. Supervisors' Rejection of Apartment Complex Draws Criticism, Investigation The Department of Housing and Community Development is looking into the legality of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors' decision to deny a previously approved 495-unit apartment complex, with 118 affordable units, in the city's SoMa neighborhood near the Powell Street BART station. The property is currently a department store parking lot. The board upheld, 8-3, an appeal of the proposal, maintaining that the project's 1,129-page environmental review was inadequate and needed to be revised. Critics have called the development "a monster" and claim that it does not include enough affordable housing and that it will cast unduly intrusive shadows at certain times of day. These arguments have been lambasted by many supporters of HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez is considering whether the board violated the Housing Accountability Act or the California Environmental Quality Act. The city is divided on the project, with Mayor London Breed criticizing the board's decision, while numerous community members are concerned that the project will drive gentrification in the low-income neighborhood because most of the units are market-rate. Concord Approves Developer for Massive Base Redevelopment Concord City Council unanimously approved to make the Seeno family's Discovery Builders the new developer of the Concord Naval Weapons Station's redevelopment project. The group will now be in charge of constructing 13,000 homes and millions of square feet of office and retail space on the 2,300-acre property. Moving forward, Seeno companies and the city will decide on finances and a more specific plan for the site's redevelopment, which could span the next few decades. If the environmental report shows no major concerns, the Navy will likely transfer the land to the city in the next two years. Meanwhile, environmental groups and housing advocates are continuing to fight the proposal and the council members who approved it. (See prior CP&DR coverage .) Judge Blocks Housing Developments in Fire-Prone Area of San Diego County A series of rural housing developments planned for areas at high risk to wildfires in San Diego County will not move forward after a San Diego superior court judge blocked the proposal. Judge Richard S. Whitney sided with the Sierra Club and many other environmental organizations with the support of California Attorney General Rob Bonta. The Jackson Pendo Development Company submitted a plan to construct 1,119 upscale homes, retail shops, an elementary school, and a fire station on multiple unconnected parcels on Proctor Valley Road, east of Chula Vista and south of Jamul. Judge Whitney found that the development, named Adara at Otay Ranch, raised greenhouse gas, wildfire, and affordable housing concerns. The San Diego County Board of Supervisors originally approved the plan in 2019 alongside local firefighters. CP&DR Coverage: Cities Look to Commercial, Mall Conversions to Meet Housing Goals Cities, developers, and lawmakers are trying to figure out whether there might be a common solution to the housing crisis and the pandemic-related work-from-home phenomenon: Can excess office and retail space be used for housing? Many cities in California’s major urban areas, where housing pressures are most acute, are being required through the Regional Housing Needs Allocation program to zone for significant numbers of additional units. This year, lawmakers advanced several bills meant to promote the use of property currently zoned for commercial uses. The American Planning Association endorsed those bills in part because they would help cities meet those RHNA goals. Mapping and research firm Urban Footprint estimated that SB 6 – which would have allowed for residential development on virtually all commercial properties statewide – would have created a zoned capacity for 14.2 million units and that 14% of those units would be market-feasible, for a potential 2 million units. Quick Hits & Updates  While the Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved a plan to develop the Oakland A's waterfront ballpark at Howard Terminal, obstacles for completing the project remain. Their 4-1 approval is non-binding, the final environmental report is yet to be completed, and the board and the team still have to agree on a public financing plan and development agreement.Santa Ana is the first Orange County city to put rent control into law after decades of housing advocacy matched by objections from landlords and developers. Landlords will not be allowed to increase rent by more than 3% each year, and tenants will now be more protected against eviction threats. (See related CP&DR coverage .)The Palo Alto City Council voted 5-2 to increase the cost of building commercial and research and development projects in order to pay for affordable housing construction. The city's impact fees will increase from $39.50 to $68.50 per square foot.Opponents of California High Speed Rail are urging a state appeals court to squash the project by denying billions in bond funds for construction, which has already begun in Fresno County and the central Joaquin Valley. The court will decide if a piece of 2016 legislation contradicts Proposition 1A, which approved a $9.9 billion bond for the project.The San Diego Association of Governments is proposing to make public transportation free while charging a per-mile fee to drivers as soon as 2030. The $160 billion idea includes sectioning off highway lanes for buses and carpools and expanding a high-speed transit system.A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences from UC Berkeley School Professor Joshua Apte proves that air pollution levels between city blocks vary depending on proximity to emission sources, including automobiles, factories, and power plants. Their findings further understandings of an intersection between racial and environmental injustice, as high air pollution levels are found not just in communities but city blocks primarily populated by people of color.New research published by Patrick Adler and Richard Florida that analyzes the geographic origins of "urban tech" start-up enterprises suggests that their locations depend on both the amount of existing tech action and the size of metro areas. According to "The Rise of Urban Tech: How Innovation for Cities Come from Cities," urban tech firms are largely concentrated in specialized tech hubs, like San Francisco, or large cities, like New York and Beijing largely because of their potential for expanding innovation.Proposed walls to protect residents from sea level rise in San Mateo County might cause severe floods , according to a new study from the Stanford Natural Capital Project. As sea levels could rise by 7 feet in the next 80 years in the Bay Area, many officials are looking to walls or levees as a defense mechanism. Researchers found that building a seawall might just cause more water to flow into communities that are not protected.The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board notified Mark West Quarry that it may have to pay a $4.5 million fine for multiple violations of the Clean Water Act because they are further endangering salmon populations in tributaries of the Russian River. The operator of Mark West Quarry allegedly allowed 10.5 million gallons of highly turbid stormwater from its operations flow into Porter Creek from September 2018 through May 2019. Young renters' real estate decisions depend heavily on price, not location, according to an analysis of a Lending Tree compilation of Census Bureau housing demographics for 50 large metropolitan areas. Young renters are more attracted to living inland, where it's about 14% less expensive to live compared to Los Angeles-Orange County. Environmental advocates are celebrating initiatives in Sonoma County aimed at minimizing greenhouse gas emissions and urban sprawl by stopping the construction of new gas stations. The Regional Climate Protection Authority, which organizes climate goals in Sonoma County, approved a resolution asking officials to ban new gas stations, and an application for a new gas station in Santa Rosa has been withdrawn.

As CP&DR has reported in the past, local governments are using exemptions under the California Environmental Quality Act far more than they used to and now use exemptions more often than the use mitigated nergative declarations. Agencies now use exemptiosn more often partly because of new exemption opportunities, such as the Class 32 infill exemption , and partly because of more favorable rulings, such as the California Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in the Berkeley Hillside case . Nevertheless, exemptions can still prove controversial, generating significant pushback even in situations that would seem relatively straightforward. One example is the current blow-up over use of an exemption to permit a new Costco gas station in Tustin. Neighbors have ferociously opposed the gas station, but so far they’ve been shut down by the courts – most recently by the Fourth District Court of Appeal. The facts of the Tustin case are pretty straightforward, though there’s one definitional wrinkle – the geographical size of the project – that the neighbors keep bringing up. The Tustin Costco is located on an old Kmart site near the interchange of Interstate 5 and State Route 261, which is part of the Eastern Transportation Corridor toll road. Unlike most Costcos in the United States, it doesn’t currently have a gas station. (Costco gas stations are extremely popular, often with long lines, because Costco negotiates low prices for gas.) There’s another Costco with gas pumps three miles away. Costco argued, among other things, that the new gas station would reduce lines at the other Costco gas station.

CP&DR Vol. 36 No. 10 October 2021

California Planning Directors Sign on To Statement Acknowledging Systemic Racism Several big-city California planning directors signed a joint statement alongside 17 other planning officials from around the country acknowledging city planning's significant role in exacerbating systemic racism and segregation. Los Angeles City Planning Director Vince Bertoni, San Diego Planning Director Mike Hansen, and San Francisco Planning Director Rich Hillis all committed to reversing years of racist, exclusionary, and inequitable planning decisions and are pushing for more planning directors to sign the statement. In their dedication to systemic change, the signatories plan to rebuild government trust, tackle environmental injustice, amend exclusionary zoning policies, increase housing affordability, invest in BIPOC communities and businesses, minimize displacement, address biases, encourage public dialogue, and more. Google Conveys Properties to City of San Jose for Affordable Housing Google has handed three contiguous parcels in downtown San Jose over to the city to build affordable housing without charging municipality. The three parcels total 0.8 acres, which could hold 240 affordable homes, and Google plans to add 1,000 affordable units to the market on its own. The sites are located near the SAP Center and Google's Downtown West, a mixed-use proposal for transit, homes, retail, restaurants, cultural hubs, and entertainment spaces next to Diridon train station. Going forward, the city will now draft its design plan, decide on a developer, and choose how many units will be affordable and to what extent. Developers Compete for San Diego Arena Redevelopment Brookfield Properties and the Midway Sport and Entertainment District are still fighting over a chance to redevelop the 48-acre Midway District area, including the San Diego Sports Arena (Pechanga Arena). In the past, then Mayor Kevin Faulconer decided on Brookfield, while the public was interested in MSED, but the decision process will start all over again since the city's process contradicted the Surplus Land Act. Now, the developer must make at least 25% of the housing affordable and will change its design based on the approval of Measure E, which removes the 30-foot height restriction. While both will consider these new guidelines, Brookfield Properties' proposal, "Discover Midway" is said to differ from MSED's, "Midway Village+," which has committed to 50% affordable or available to middle-income residents. CP&DR Coverage: Land Use Legislation Roundup In addition to dozens of housing bills passed and signed this year, the legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom were busy with 60-odd bills related to other aspects of land use that were signed into law (plus a few notable vetoes). New laws cover wildfire risk and other hazards, conservation of open space, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and many bureaucratic changes to planning and zoning regulations. Quick Hits & Updates Chevron and other oil and gas companies will be able to continue fracking in Monterey County after a California appeals court found that state law overrules a measure intended to ban fracking in the region. Monterey County residents passed Measure Z in 2016 after concerns about fracking's impact on the region's water supply and its tourism and agriculture industries. The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative introduced a pilot program in Oakland intended to help Black homeowners receive financing to construct ADUs on their properties. The organization hopes to increase affordable housing availability and property values and promote economic prosperity for Black residents who have been systemically excluded from homeownership and wealth-building. Gov. Gavin Newsom is proposing regulations that would ban oil and gas wells located within 3,200 feet of homes, schools, and healthcare facilities and would demand emissions monitoring within buffer zones in an effort to protect public health and environmental justice. The move will likely see significant pushback from the oil industry but could impact over 2 million California residents and predominantly communities of color. San Mateo will adhere to a decision by the California Court of Appeals that will require a $450,000 payment to the California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund, which argued that the city violated the Housing Accountability Act when it rejected a 10-unit market-rate development. The city denied the development due to neighbor concerns and multifamily design discrepancies and asked the developer to resubmit its application with an amended design plan. The San Diego County Board of Supervisors, alongside the county's Housing Authority board, approved a new policy that will expand affordable housing construction through a voucher program. The Health and Human Services Agency will be in charge of analyzing voucher attrition rates and transfers, projected fair market rents, voucher availability, and a waitlist system as well as giving voucher priority to projects near high-transit areas and that use sustainable construction materials and design principles. Researchers at the UC Berkeley Center for Community Innovation collaborated with non-profit think tank Next 10 to release a report titled Rebuilding for a Resilient Recovery: Planning in California's Wildland Urban Interface , which determines that, if the state does not reimagine how it rebuilds after wildfires, costs and housing supply setbacks will amplify. Researchers found that state and local land use policies encourage rebuilding in the high-risk wildland urban interface, which exacerbates safety, economic, and climate risks as wildfires surge. Irvine city officials are hoping to include 4,400 units of currently existing housing for UC Irvine graduate students, families, and staff as part the city's housing requirements set by the HCD. The city has to provide at least 23,600 units over the next eight years and are hoping to significantly lower their requirement by counting these homes. Caltrans' construction of a $87 million wildlife bridge above the 101 Freeway at Liberty Canyon in Agoura Hills is set to begin in late January of 2022. The 200-foot-long, 165-foot-wide crossing is intended to protect mountain lions at risk of extinction as they cross a freeway used by 300,000 vehicles a day and would be the largest of its kind globally. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Bridge Development Partners is proposing a large industrial park open 24/7 for a 32-acre parcel in San Jose. The project would entail demolishing three existing buildings to construct a four-building modern development that functions similarly to those that Amazon has historically been interested in. In an effort to care for the city's low-income and older residents, San Francisco's Planning Commission is proposing to change the planning code to ban the demolition of laundromats without conditional use authorization and prohibit ADU construction that would reduce on-site laundry availability. Over the past eight years, one-third of the city's laundromats have closed. Alameda County launched a program that will add 18 affordable housing units, streamline the process of constructing ADUs, and offer assistance to homeowners who want to build ADUs on their properties. Homeowners are invited to apply to the program, which reflects pilots proposed in San Francisco and San Diego, by November 27.

Among all the urban-related effects of the pandemic, the future of office work surely ranks among the most uncertain and, potentially, the most significant. In the depths of the pandemic, downtowns turned into ghost towns. The efficiencies of Zoom and the comforts of home may yet render many offices obsolete.

Former Seattle Planning Director Sam Assefa to Take Helm of OPR Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed Samuel Assefa, a Democrat from Seattle, as Director of the Governor's Office of Planning and Research. Assefa, 63, has been Director of the Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development since 2016. He was Senior Urban Designer for the Department of Community Planning and Sustainability for the City of Boulder from 2010 to 2016, Director of Land Use and Planning Policy for the Department of Planning and Development and Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic and Physical Development for the Chicago Mayor’s Office from 2004 to 2010 and Senior Urban Designer for SmithGroup JJR from 2002 to 2004. This position does not require Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $200,004. Court Opens Door for Listing Joshua Tree as Endangered A federal district court judge is asking Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and the US Fish and Wildlife Service to reconsider their rejection of the Joshua tree from protection under the Endangered Species Act. Judge Otis Wright II found that their decision was "arbitrary and capricious" and ignorant of several scientific studies that suggest that, by 2100, key populations of the tree may become extinct. If they do not appeal the order, the federal agency will have to make a new decision within 12 months and consider the impacts that high temperatures, drought, and other climate dangers will have on the species. The Trump administration failed to take action when WildEarth Guardians asked to list the Joshua tree as "threatened," and the group is disappointed in the Biden administration's negligence in protecting the species. Group Sues to Block Development on Defunct Golf Course in San Diego While the City of San Diego is attempting to confront its housing crisis with dense suburban developments, the Peñasquitos-Northeast Action Group is filing a lawsuit to challenge the city's plans. The group, composed of Rancho Peñasquitos residents, hopes to block construction of a 112-acre, 536-unit Junipers project on the unused DoubleTree Golf Course. They believe that the city did not adequately examine how they project will affect traffic, fire safety, and community character. According to the suit, the plan would increase wildfire risk and also violates the city's general plan and the Rancho Peñasquitos community plan. In June, city council approved the plan but required that the developer, Lennar Homes, build an emergency evacuation route before residents move in. California Cities Rank among Least-Affordable for Renters California is the least-affordable state to rent a two-bedroom apartment than a one-bedroom, according to a study published by rent.com . The study considered cities with a population of over 50,000 with at least 10 available one-bedroom and two-bedroom housing units and found that many of these cities, which were smaller in population, were close to larger urban areas with high rent costs. Napa, Fresno, Bakersfield, Rancho Cordova, Ventura, and Temecula all made the list, with the last five appearing in the top ten. In all of these cities, more two-bedroom units were available. Berkeley, Santa Monica, Los Angeles, Camarillo, Palo Alto, and Alhambra, meanwhile, were all included as cities with a reversed trend. CP&DR Coverage: Fulton on Housing Legislation Here is a rundown of the important housing bills in the Legislature this year – beyond just SB 9, which essentially ended single-family zoning in California, and SB 10, which allows local governments to allow up to 10 units on parcels near transit. The Legislature has begun to address the question of preserving affordable housing – either by preserving existing income-restricted units or converting market-rate units to income-restricted units. We can expect a lot more activity on that front in the next few years. Quick Hits & Updates The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians has talked about reclaiming parts of the forest adjacent to the tribe's reservation with San Bernardino National Forest officials, though neither group mentioned any specific portions of the forest. After Nestlé and BlueTriton took millions of gallons of public water from Strawberry Creek, there have been discussions about whether Strawberry Creek would be included in the agreement. A group of unhoused individuals in San Luis Obispo is suing the city for violating the Eighth Amendment by punishing homelessness, the Fourth Amendment for seizing and destroying personal property, and the California Constitution's banning of cruel and unusual punishment. The plaintiffs are hoping to legally secure the right to camp in tents and vehicles without facing property destruction or fines, as the city council has passed ordinances designed to ban overnight access to parks and public spaces. San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced a plan to both address the city's housing crisis and minimize greenhouse gas emissions by streamlining the process for turning properties with automobile-related purposes into housing. The ordinance, titled "cars to casas" would allow housing developers to avoid acquiring a conditional use authorization from the planning commission when building on gas stations, auto body shops, and parking lots and would also loosen density limits. Bridge Development Partners is proposing a large industrial park open 24/7 for a 32-acre parcel in San Jose. The project would entail demolishing three existing buildings to construct a four-building modern development that functions similarly to those that Amazon has historically been interested in. A new poll from Joint Venture Silicon Valley and the Bay Area News Group demonstrates that 71% of Bay Area residents find quality of life to be worse than it was five years ago, and 56% are contemplating moving in the next five years. Across all of the Bay Area's five counties, respondents largely cited high housing cots and costs of living in addition to homelessness and climate disasters. Researchers at UC Davis have concluded that nearly 40% of trips made using Sacramento's bike-share system replaced car trips, reducing vehicle miles driven by 2,000 a day and exhibiting significant environmental, climate, and health benefits. Their findings are meaningful because they demonstrate that the bike-share system specifically, not just individual bicyclists, pedestrians, or transit-users, show environmental benefits, which will make it easier to grant the program government support. The Sierra Nevada red fox, which faces threats caused by wildfires and droughts and competition with coyotes, will be protected under the Endangered Species Act after its numbers have significantly diminished to 18 to 39 foxes in Sierra Nevada. The species' population in the southern Cascade Range of Oregon and California will not be protected. Cal Poly Pomona and two real estate development firms, Edgewood Realty Partners and Greystar, are negotiating an agreement to redevelop a controversiat state-owned facility once used to care for people with mental illnesses into a mixed-use community. Redevelopment of the 300-acre Lanterman site near the State Route 57 would include existing historic structures and new construction. San Diego County best reflects California's overall demographic makeup, according to a study based on 2020 Census data from the San Francisco Chronicle. The publication considered five characteristics related to race and age and found that San Diego's share of white, Hispanic, Black, and Asian residents and its number of adults differed by 8 percentage-points or less. Meanwhile, in Sierra County, where 81% of residents are non-Hispanic white, and non-Hispanic Black and Asian populations are under 1%, data differed the most from the state's. The Picayune Rancheria of the Chukchansi Native Americans signed a compact with Gov. Gavin Newsom that will allow the Chukchansi Gold Resort & Casino to increase its gaming device limit to 3,500 and provide more protections for non-gaming tribes and tribes with smaller casinos. The compact has been sent to the legislature for ratification and would then head to the secretary of the US Department of the Interior for approval.

As in previous years, the legislature passed, and the governor signed, a raft of laws designed to, in various ways, to put more roofs over Californians' heads and to reduce their housing expenses. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed over 30 laws r elated to housing, with laws promoting duplexes and strategic upzoning among the most prominent (and controversial). it's tempting to wonder what a legislative session would be like if California actually had a sufficient number of housing units, at reasonable costs, and didn't have to rely on public policy contortions. Only time will tell.

SB 9 and SB 10 got all the big publicity out of this year’s legislative session – but Gov. Gavin Newsom signed almost 30 other bills about housing this year. And most of them have one thing in common: They further constrain the ability of local governments in California to restrict new housing development. And they continue the accelerating patterns of housing reform we have seren in the last few years.

Fresno Mayor Vetoes Plan to Loosen Construction Labor Rules Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer vetoed an agreement passed by city council that would allow union workers and apprentices to build more construction projects in the city because he believes it excludes local workers. City council approved the agreement 6-1, and overriding the Dyer's veto will require five affirmative votes, which are likely to materialize. The original agreement formed between Fresno, Madera, Kings, and Tulare Building and Construction Trades Council regarding projects costing over $1 million. It gives priority to workers who are women, veterans, and from underserved communities and is intended to restore the city's middle class by encouraging apprentice programs and good-paying jobs with good benefits. The mayor said he would support the agreement if it concentrated on local businesses and hiring practices. S.F. Supervisors Nix Micro-Unit Apartment Proposal In a decision symbolic of longstanding debates over market-rate versus affordable housing in San Francisco, a 316 micro-unit group home development in Tenderloin will not move forward after the San Francisco Board of Supervisors rejected the plan. They argued that the micro-units would not help house families with children but cater to workers as a temporary residence. The project, led by Fifth Church of Christ, Scientist with builder Forge Development Partners, would have destroyed an existing building to give rise to the 13-story development that, in its proposal, included a church with a Christian Science reading room on the second floor. Some pro-housing advocates were in support of the proposal, but other local groups believe that the Tenderloin neighborhood does not have enough larger units with full kitchens and private bedrooms to house families, for which the project was previously intended until Forge took over. Merced Adopts Housing Plan Amid Rising Prices in Central Valley After a long discussion between city council members, staff, and local residents, Merced City Council established a broad plan to tackle the area's affordable housing crisis, though the final plans did not include more specific policies like inclusionary zoning and ways to enforce affordable housing construction advocated for by the public. Over recent years, Merced officials have argued for building more low-income and multi-family units, but only 21% of all city permits over the past decade have been for multi-family developments, and no affordable housing projects have been built since 2014. Their new proposal includes updates to the city's general plan and zoning code, becoming a "pro-housing" community, encouraging affordable-by-design standards, achieving quotas set in the RHNA, and streamlining building permit processes. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Backlash Against Accessory Units Arises in San Diego Some San Diego officials are considering rolling back recent policy changes that have made it much easier for property owners to construct additional dwelling units on their single-family lots due to increasing opposition from residents who believe it will destroy neighborhood character. Councilman Sean Elo-Rivera has suggested policies that will make ADUs more accessible to low-income tenants, prevent investors from capitalizing off of ADUs, amend parking restrictions, and ensure trees removed to build ADUs are replaced. Opponents, however, are still concerned that his proposals do not include removing density bonuses, which allow property owners to build more ADUs if they implement rent restrictions on one of them. Proponents of ADUs, meanwhile, believe that simplifying the construction process will help confront the housing crisis, and Elo-Rivera's approach is an overreaction. CP&DR Legal Coverage: Reversal Confirms Huntington Beach's Violation of Housing Accountability Act In a significant win for housing advocates, an Orange County judge has reversed her previous ruling, saying that Huntington Beach actually did violate the Housing Accountability Act in rejecting a 48-unit condominium building just off Beach Boulevard. The judge reversed herself after an appellate court ruling from the City of San Mateo – in a lawsuit brought by the same plaintiffs, the California Rental Legal Advocacy and Education Fund, or CaRLA – clarified what local governments must do to comply with the “objective standards” requirement in the law. (See related CP&DR coverage .) Quick Hits & Updates While San Jose's " urban village " strategy for redeveloping the city into many villages with tall buildings that incorporate housing, retail stores, and offices was intended to promote job and housing growth, only 13 out of 60 blueprints have been approved over the past decade, and residents frequently commute to other cities for work. Many suggest that the rules of creating urban villages, including pairing housing production with office spaces, is driving development to other parts of the city. Enrollment at UC San Diego could increase by 10,000 over the next decade, through nearly 1,175 students are currently on a waiting list for on-campus housing, partly due to social-distancing guidelines. Over the past decade, enrollment increases to 40,000 have already caused crowding issues, and pushing enrollment to 50,000 could cause more housing problems outside of pandemic-era requirements. San Diego City Council voted 8-1 to approve the 1,200-unit Trains at Carmel Mountain Ranch project designed by developer New Urban West to occupy the Carmel Mountain Ranch Country Club's closed golf course. The developer held 30 community meetings and discussed the plan with over 500 nearby residents and will include 110 acres of open space and 15% low-income housing, though residents say New Urban West did not fairly adopt their requests. Lake Tahoe's Squaw Valley ski resort will change its derogatory name to Palisades Tahoe starting immediately, though full adoption of the new name will likely be a years-long process. For a year, owners collaborated with the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California to replace the name it's used since 1949 with Palisades Tahoe. US District Judge David O. Carter will, for now, not challenge a Los Angeles city law that bans people from parking recreational vehicles overnight in designated areas because city officials said they have not been enforcing it. Stephen Yagman, the attorney representing a woman who lives in an RV in Venice, is arguing that the city law violates the rights of unhoused people under the 8th and 14th amendments, and though the case is still open if the city decides to enforce its law, the city should remove its parking restriction signs if it isn't acting on them. Rep. Salud Carbajal, Senator Dianne Feinstein, and Senator Alex Padilla are asking the US Commerce Secretary and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Administrator to move the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary from nomination to designation. Designating this central coast area, which contributes to the state's $1.9 trillion coastal economy, would protect its resources as a marine sanctuary. A Sacramento property owner is suing the city for allowing unhoused people to set up camps and live in RVs near their business after the owner asked the city to force the unhoused population to relocate and tow vehicles. In the lawsuit, the property owner asks that the judge order the city to provide relief in a manner "to be determined by law," though a previous federal court ruling established that governments cannot penalize people for camping on public property unless they can offer shelter, all of which is usually full in Sacramento. Dismantling of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station will continue after Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff ruled against a lawsuit filed by the Samuel Lawrence Foundation aimed at stopping work. Beckloff ruled that the California Coastal Commission was correct in granting a permit to Southern California Edison to start deconstruction work. Two environmental groups, Orange County Coastkeeper and the California Coastkeeper Alliance, have sued the Regional Water Quality Control Board after it approved a permit for Poseidon Water's Huntington Beach desalination plant because the board did not fully consider more habitat-friendly options. The company only needs one more permit from the Coastal Commission to move forward with its $1.4 billion, 22-year-long project unless the regional board's permit no longer stands. In an effort to make affordable housing more accessible, Los Angeles City Council voted to require that all covenanted affordable units in the city be publicly listed on the website lahousing.lacity.org in addition to the leasing website specific to the project and is also calling for an open application process for new units. Their vote aligns with the city's Transit Oriented Communities guidelines and the statewide density bonus designed to confront the state's housing crisis. Whatever their use, ADUs are an increasingly popular and affordable housing option for many residents in Los Angeles. According to the Department of City Planning, the city permitted 2,401 ADUs from January to June of 2021 (or 24% of all housing units permitted in the first half of this year). The South Valley had the highest share of ADUs permitted (30%), followed by the North Valley (25%), South Los Angeles (15%), West Los Angeles (10%), Central (9%), East Los Angeles (9%), and the Harbor (2%).

In a significant win for housing advocates, an Orange County judge has reversed her previous ruling, saying that Huntington Beach actually did violate the Housing Accountability Act in rejecting a 48-unit condominium building just off Beach Boulevard.

San Diego County Sued over Approval of Exurban Solar Project A group of Jacumba residents filed a lawsuit against the San Diego County Board of Supervisors after they unanimously approved a 600-acre solar and battery storage project in their East County desert town. They also filed against BayWa r.e., the project developer, and have hired the same law firm who fought the Keystone XL pipeline. The residents claim that the Board of Supervisors violated the California Environmental Quality Act and regional planning and zoning requirements and believe that the project is far too large, will harm nearby wildlife, and damage the town's landscape. One plaintiff noted that the project is inequitable because it would never be proposed in a wealthy community. Proponents of the project believe it will make huge strides in achieving renewable energy and carbon reduction targets and will create 350 union jobs in the construction process. San Jose Mayor Envisions Significant Development for Homeless Housing San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo is proposing to construct 2,300 new housing units for unhoused people by the end of 2022 and is calling on support from city councilmembers to accomplish his goal. His plan includes opening 683 new transitional beds, which would triple the current amount, and asking councilmembers to suggest sites in their districts for building modular apartments throughout San Jose. He is also considering placing the beds in converted motels. For permanent housing, Liccardo plans to increase the housing stock by 1,384 units funded by the city and county and 239 units funded by California's Homekey program. San Jose has an estimated unhoused population of 7,000, and Liccardo is hoping to put a pandemic-induced increase in federal and state funding for confronting homelessness to good use. Governor Expands Funding for Statewide Homeless Housing Plan Gov. Gavin Newsom is adding $2.75 billion in funding to the state's Homekey initiative, forming the largest investment in homeless housing in California's history. The $2.75 billion is part of $5.8 billion allocated toward creating 42,000 housing units and treatment beds under the California Comeback Plan. Newsom's plan is to purchase and renovate buildings, including hotels, motels, and empty apartment buildings, and transform them into roughly 14,000 long-term housing units. His administration has noted that Homekey has resulted in the fastest, cheapest, and most expansive permanent housing construction in state history, and its first $846 million investment created 94 different projects. Within its first year, the program been crucial in creating safe and clean living environments for thousands of residents during the pandemic and produced 6,000 affordable units. Study Links California Poverty Rate to Housing Costs California's high housing costs are largely responsible for increasing poverty in the state, according to a new study from the Public Policy Institute of California. The PPIC, using data from the 2019 California Poverty Measure and housing costs if they reflected 2013 cost levels, determined that 800,000 fewer Californians, or 2.2% of the population, would have lived in poverty in 2019. Residents living in the Bay Area would be the most impacted; limiting housing costs to 2013 levels would lower the poverty line by 12.3%. Poverty rates for Latinx and Black residents as well as renters would fall the most. The report determined that, while state and federal programs have temporarily helped residents, more effective solutions that lower housing costs are essential to permanently confronting poverty. Auditor Faults State for Ineffective Use of Federal Homelessness Funds In its high-risk audit of the California HCD's management of federal funds classified under COVID-19 assistance, State Auditor Elaine M. Howle determined that the Emergency Solutions Grant program failed to effectively use federal funding to address the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on the state's unhoused population. The ESG program received $316 million from the federal government to help those who were at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness, but the audit found that the HCD was too slow to provide access to the funding to Continuum of Care entities, which aid in homeless services. According to the audit, the HCD also failed by not hiring a contractor who would manage and monitor ESG-funded activities, so direction and organization were lacking, leaving the unhoused population and those at risk to homelessness even more vulnerable. CP&DR Legal Coverage: Court Strikes Down Use of Financial Pro Formas Cities and counties can no longer require developers to produce pro-formas in order to justify concessions related to density bonuses, according to a recent appellate court ruling. The case dealt with changes to stater law in 2008. Prior to 2008, the City of Los Angeles had adopted an ordinance requiring developers to provide pro-formas explaining how concessions would make their projects “pencil”. But the court concluded that this requirement was deleted from state law in 2008. Neighbors opposed to the project subsequently sued, saying the pro-forma analysis provided by the developer under the city’s ordinance was inadequate. But the Second District Court of Appeal disagreed, concluding the burden of proof for financial feasibility is on the city and not the developer. Quick Hits & Updates The House of Representatives passed Representative Salud Carbajal's Protecting America's Wilderness and Public Lands Act designed to make public lands, including the Los Padres National Forest and the Carrizo Plain National Monument, more accessible to local communities. Carbajal noted that this policy, which is part of the "must-pass" National Defense Authorization Act, would be very impactful in terms of climate change, access to the outdoors, the economy, and plant and wildlife protection and could permanently ban development on 288,000 acres of land on the Central Coast. The Los Angeles City Planning Commission has amended and approved its draft DTLA 2040 plan to house over 175,000 new residents and generate 100,000 new jobs in just 1 percent of Los Angeles' total land area. The plan to rezone the city's Downtown center, eliminate parking requirements, and streamline design standards will now head to City Council for review. The Trust for Public Land, a San Francisco environmental group, purchased the 540-acre Nyland Property ranch for $4.4 million to prevent the area from becoming a luxury development and protect San Juan Bautista's rustic scenery. The ranch is composed of oak-studded grasslands, wetlands, and seasonal streams and is situated along 1.5 miles of Highway 156 in San Benito County. A federal appeals court reversed a decision made by Judge David O. Carter's that ordered Los Angeles to offer housing to Skid Row's entire unhoused population by October. The three judges ruled that Carter did not follow basic legal requirements when making his decision because he based it on racial discrimination, but the claims made by the LA Alliance for Human Rights were not race-based. Thousands of UC students are struggling to find housing due to rising off-campus costs and limited availability for on-campus housing, according to a Mercury News analysis . The difficulties are due to limited density in off-campus housing for social distancing, and there are few additional on-campus rooms available for students who cannot afford off-campus housing. Amazon is planning to open several 30,000 square-foot retail stores throughout California and Ohio, putting more traditional department stores on edge. Their stores would be smaller than most department stores, which Amazon believes will attract more customers While Simi Valley City Council in 2019 rejected a proposal for a 108-unit assisted-living facility and suggested that it would harm single- and multi-family neighborhood character, the council approved the proposal, declaring that it had no option based on a judge's ruling. The site would include 68 assisted-living units and 40 memory-care units in addition to a gym, a communal dining room and kitchen, a lounge area, and a hair salon. While heatwaves and drought have drained water levels in Lake Tahoe over the past few years, water levels are expected to rise exponentially, according to a study from environmental scientists at the UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center. The influx of water could put several towns in the Lake Tahoe area at risk of severe flooding. Zoning and investment in Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade may undergo a significant transformation to allow for housing and hotel development along the stretch. Part of the Third Street Promenade Stabilization and Economic Vitality Plan also includes expanding outdoor dining on sidewalks and rooftops as well as a "town square" for large gatherings in order to bring more sales tax revenue to the city lost during the pandemic. Fix the City, Inc. filed an unsuccessful lawsuit that maintained that two Los Angeles housing projects fail to meet requirements under Measure JJJ, which includes Transit Oriented Community Guidelines. The court rejected all of the group's claims, stating that the proposals meet all four requirements for TOC incentive eligibility. Emile Haddad, CEO of developer Five Point, developer of several large-scale developments statewide, will step down from his position at the end of the month and take a senior adviser role while remaining on the board as chairman emeritus. Stuart Miller and Lynn Jochim will take over on the management team, while Haddad hopes to focus on growing public interest projects and confronting the housing crisis. Mountain View City council unanimously approved a plan to transform a parking lot near the City Hall building into 120 affordable apartments as well as a ground-floor retail and community space intended to promote pedestrian attraction. Alta Housing plans to set 20 units aside for residents facing homelessness, another 20 for those making up to 30% of the area's median income, and 40 for those making between 30% and 50%. San Bernardino is moving forward with the redevelopment of its boarded-up and closed Carousel Mall after entering an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement with the developer, Renaissance Downtowns USA and ICO Real Estate Group. Moving forward, the city and developer will begin negotiating and determining their terms and conditions for the 43-acre site's sale and development.

Cities and counties can no longer require developers to produce pro-formas in order to justify concessions related to density bonuses, according to a recent appellate court ruling.