Sustainable Development and Land Use Update - 3.16.23 #3

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California files lawsuit accusing Huntington Beach of violating affordable housing laws

Bullet The Hill – March 9

Governor Gavin Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta have filed a lawsuit accusing the city of Huntington Beach of violating state housing laws, seeking a preliminary injunction against the city. The lawsuit relates to the city’s recent ban on applications to build housing under the state’s Senate Bill 9 and Accessory Dwelling Unit laws, which allow homeowners to build up to four units and backyard cottages on a single-family parcel. Bonta maintained the city’s effort is “illegal under the Housing Accountability Act,” while Newsom described the Huntington Beach decision as “Exhibit A of what’s wrong with housing in the State of California.”


News

Fixing California’s student housing crisis faces roadblocks

Bullet Los Angeles Times – March 14

An estimated 417,000 students lack stable places to sleep, according to surveys conducted across California’s three public higher education systems. The issue will be highlighted this week in several public forums, including the UC Board of Regents meeting, a state Assembly budget hearing, and the unveiling of proposed state legislation to ease barriers to construction near campuses. Assembly Bill 1630, sponsored by Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia would give developers a “density bonus” allowing them to build housing for students, faculty, and staff up to three stories high if they are located within 1,000 feet of campus and offer at least 20% of the units at affordable rates as determined in part by Cal Grant eligibility.


Advocates push for state amendment to make housing a ‘human right’

Bullet The Mercury News – March 12

Should the state guarantee a right to housing for all Californians? A coalition of anti-poverty advocates led by Matt Haney, a state assemblymember from San Francisco, is proposing an amendment to the state constitution that seeks to do just that. The amendment does not define a right to housing, and backers have offered few specifics about what it would mean in practice. But they say it could make it easier for state officials to sue local governments that resist adding significantly more affordable homes. To pass, it needs a two-thirds majority in the state Legislature and then approval by voters.


Proposed bill would place restrictions on warehouse construction

Bullet Fontana Herald News – March 14

California Assembly Majority Leader Eloise Gómez Reyes has proposed a bill that would place restrictions on warehouse construction. Reyes said that AB 1000, which she called the Good Neighbor Policy, would address the environmental concerns related to the planning and construction of new logistics centers across California. The bill would only permit local governments to approve construction of large warehouses and logistics centers of more than 100,000 square feet when they are 1,000 feet from “sensitive receptors,” such as schools, homes, and daycares.


S.F. Mayor Breed and supervisor propose separate efforts to speed up housing development

Bullet San Francisco Chronicle – March 14

Two of San Francisco’s top officials are working on separate bills with similar goals of speeding up the city’s complex and lengthy approval process for new housing. Supervisor Ahsha Safaí asked the City Attorney on Tuesday to draft amendments that would hasten the approval of project site permits, which he said currently take around four to 18 months to be issued. Separately, Mayor London Breed plans to introduce legislation in about a month that would also change the site permit process by shifting some oversight from the Department of Building Inspection to the Planning Department and allow for faster reviews. The proposals come as the city seeks to approve 82,000 housing units over eight years.


University City community divided over City of San Diego’s housing plan

Bullet CBS8 – March 11

The City of San Diego is drawing up a plan to build more housing in University City. The University community plan update would build more high-density units. Supporters say the plan will help fix the housing crisis, but the plan faces significant community opposition. The city’s original proposal called for as many as 56,000 units. The updated community plan would add between 30,000 to 35,000 housing units.

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DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations.

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