San Francisco’s state-mandated plan to raise building height limits to encourage housing production along transit corridors from the Sunset to the Richmond to the Marina came under criticism at the Planning Commission’s...more
Fullerton leaders have reached a settlement with the state over the city’s housing element. When looking at how much housing is needed in the state to meet the growing population, Fullerton’s Regional Housing Needs Allocation...more
Last February, two pro-housing groups sued a dozen Bay Area jurisdictions, including Cupertino, over their failure to meet the January 31, 2023, state deadline for housing elements detailing how they plan to approach...more
Governor Gavin Newsom, whose second and final term ends in January 2027, has made curbing homelessness and increasing housing key priorities. However, his recent budget cut proposal contains more than $1.2 billion in cuts...more
We previously published a legal alert on October 12, 2023, about the extensive housing package that Governor Gavin Newsom signed on October 11, 2023, consisting of 56 bills to help address California’s decades-in-the-making...more
The California Coastal Commission unanimously voted last Thursday to issue $4.7 million in fines to the Rio Del Mar Beach Island Homeowners Association. The violations, accruing since 1982, have to do with blocked beach...more
The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) approved housing streamlining legislation voted in last week by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, thus allowing the city to avoid a series of...more
The Berkeley City Council opened the door to high-rise apartment buildings in the Southside neighborhood by signing off on new zoning regulations that could allow for thousands more homes at UC Berkeley’s doorstep....more
12/5/2023
/ Affordable Housing ,
California Coastal Commission ,
Community Development ,
Eviction ,
Housing Developers ,
Office Space ,
Public Health ,
Renter's Rights ,
Student Housing ,
Sustainability ,
Zoning Laws
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass last Wednesday announced a new executive order to reduce permitting time for housing by 25-30%, a move that could significantly expand housing production....more
The Biden administration is launching a multi-agency effort to encourage states and cities to convert more empty office buildings into housing units, with billions of federal dollars available to help spur such transitions....more
11/10/2023
/ Affordable Housing ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
CEQA ,
Homeless Issues ,
Housing Developers ,
HUD ,
Office Space ,
Property Tax ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Vacant Properties
After more than two years of resistance, the city of Coronado, a wealthy island city in San Diego County, has agreed to follow state housing law by setting aside more land for development, Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney...more
On October 11, 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom signed an extensive housing package consisting of 56 bills to help address California’s decades-in-the-making housing crisis by simplifying and expediting the construction of new...more
10/16/2023
/ Affordable Housing ,
Apartments ,
Brick-and-Mortar Stores ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Certiorari ,
Charging Stations ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Fifth Amendment ,
Governor Newsom ,
Housing Developers ,
SCOTUS ,
Stanford University
In recognition of the substantial effect that widespread use of electric vehicles (EV) will have in reducing carbon emissions, the state and federal governments have set ambitious goals to increase the number of EVs on the...more
The much-discussed push to revive downtown San Francisco by converting empty office buildings to housing is starting to gather momentum. Eight office building owners have responded to the city’s “request for information”...more
With the state facing a severe housing crisis, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law that will make it easier for universities and other housing developers to build housing and overcome lawsuits from local residents...more
9/21/2023
/ Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) ,
Affordable Housing ,
California ,
CEQA ,
Community Development ,
Governor Newsom ,
Housing Developers ,
Real Estate Development ,
Rental Property ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans
The California Coastal Commission approved a landmark settlement Wednesday with San Diego’s Paradise Point resort aimed at remedying years of Coastal Act violations that have long inhibited public access to the waterfront on...more
The Hermosa Beach City Council unanimously approved its Housing Element, which now must be submitted to the state Department of Housing & Community Development for certification. The state has said Hermosa Beach must build...more
San Diego’s Planning Commission unanimously voted last Thursday against a key part of Mayor Todd Gloria’s housing plan that would have eliminated single-family zoning in much of the city. The commission voted to recommend the...more
The Biden administration last Thursday announced further steps to lower housing costs and boost supply. The administration is looking to incentivize municipalities to lift restrictive land use and zoning policies by...more
Governor Gavin Newsom is releasing more than $300 million dollars in grants to fund housing and infrastructure development around transit hubs across the state. Funded by the Regional Early Action Planning (REAP 2.0) grants...more
In a sweeping effort to expand affordable housing and combat homelessness, Representative Maxine Waters of California introduced a package of three bills on June 21 aimed at narrowing the country’s racial wealth gap....more
After a three-judge panel ruled that cities do not have the authority to ban the installation of natural gas equipment in newly constructed buildings, Berkeley is now asking for a do-over. Berkeley City Attorney Farimah Faiz...more
As we reported in our prior legal alert, these important new state housing laws will allow for the streamlined approval of qualifying housing development projects on properties where retail, office and/or parking are...more
Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration filed a lawsuit against Elk Grove on Monday, claiming the city discriminated against low-income residents when it denied an affordable housing project last July. California Attorney...more
A federal appeals court on Monday overturned Berkeley’s first-in-the-nation ban on natural gas in new construction, agreeing with restaurant owners who argued the city bypassed federal energy regulations when it approved the...more