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San Francisco to Upzone Least-Dense Neighborhoods through "Family Zoning" Plan
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted 7-4 to adopt the Family Zoning Plan, which will allow taller and more dense buildings particularly in the residential north and west sides of the city. The plan, which aims to create capacity for over 36,000 new units, comes in response to state mandates for new homes to keep up with population and affordability challenges. The first-term mayor Daniel Lurie touts the program as a response to rising housing costs, while critics including neighborhood groups and tenant-rights advocates warn that the rezoning may spur real-estate speculation, displace low-income tenants or small businesses, and erode the character of long-standing communities. Analyses suggest mixed results on the actual amount of housing the plan will produce, and supervisors acknowledge that the number of units is not only dependent on zoning but also on funding and enhanced financing mechanisms. The new plan changes zoning rules for about 96,000 parcels, enabling moderate height increases of two to four additional stories primarily near transit lines or other commercial corridors on the west side. The plan was approved in the wake of a state mandate to pass a rezoning plan by Jan. 31, 2026 at the risk of losing funding for housing and other public services and local control over development projects.
Dodger Stadium Gondola Wins Key Approval from L.A. Metro
The Los Angeles Metro board of directors certified the revised environmental impact report for the Dodger Stadium gondola project despite protests that temporarily shut down the meeting for over an hour. Hundreds of community members gathered either in support or opposition of the project, which at its last projection in 2023 was set to cost between $385 million and $500 million. When it was announced that public comment would be held until after the vote, chants began on both sides and prompted board members to retreat to a private meeting for 75 minutes until directors eventually agreed to provide one hour for public comment before. Of 52 public speakers, 42 spoke against the gondola project, including three members of the Los Angeles City Council. After public comment, the gondola was approved, but the project still requires approval of several state agencies and the Los Angeles City Council, which last month voted 12-1 to approve a resolution urging Metro to abandon the gondola project. Final decisions on whether or not to approve the gondola are set to take toward the end of next year.
Los Angeles County Sustainability Plan Seeks to Improve Air Quality, Increase Affordable Housing
The LA County Board of Supervisors adopted the 2025 OurCounty Sustainability Plan, an update of 2019's comprehensive sustainability roadmap that outlines 179 action items under 12 main goals. In a press release, the Board of Supervisors said more than half the original 2019 action items have been achieved or are on track for completion by the target dates. The board cited notable achievements including adopting a plan to phase out oil and gas extraction in unincorporated LA County, developing 110 acres of new parkland in unincorporated LA County, reducing County operations greenhouse gas emissions by 40% since 2009, and investing nearly $1 billion in multi-benefit stormwater capture projects. Community engagement surveys for the 2025 update found that air quality to be residents' number one concern, followed by water pollution, affordable housing, utility costs, and clean energy. New and expanded focus areas for the 2025 update include wildfire risk management, community resilience, tribal and Indigenous partnership, marine ecosystems, and green goods movement.
Assembly Forms Committee on Construction Innovation
The California State Assembly has established the Select Committee on Housing Construction Innovation, charged with advancing modern construction techniques in the state in order to help bring down construction costs and ease the housing shortage. Advancements like prefabrication and modular design, as well as new materials and construction methods have reduced housing costs in many countries worldwide, but have not seen widespread application in California. The committee, to be chaired by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (San Diego) plans to hold several public hearings during winter 2025-2026 to assess opportunities for cost-reduction, timeline acceleration, and environmental benefits, as well as regulatory, labor, and financial factors, and the risks, benefits, and barriers to scaling up industrialized construction. The committee plans to release a white paper summarizing its findings in early 2026, followed by a raft of legislative proposals.
Study Finds Modest Successes for Los Angeles Transit-Oriented Development Program
A recent paper examines the impact of Los Angeles’s Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC) Incentive Program, which was implemented in 2017 to encourage construction of denser housing near transit by raising the threshold for discretionary review and granting density bonuses and reduced parking requirements in exchange for income-restricted units. According to this analysis, by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, the number of units proposed annually has more than doubled, but despite a surge in applications and locations of approved projects the TOC program had little impact on the housing supply, with fewer than 560 units being added to housing stock over the past six years. However, projects using TOC initiatives were found to be more likely to include income-restricted units and to be in lower-income neighborhoods, suggesting that the program increased the number of income-restricted units by decreasing the number of market-rate units. This study also found that TOC aided in the approval of projects that would previously have faced low approval chances, especially in areas where community opposition was predicted to be high.
CP&DR Coverage: Measures to Comply with Housing Law Pass in Santa Cruz, Sausalito
Voters resoundingly favored new housing in Santa Cruz and Sausalito, two cities that have historically had strong anti-growth movements. In Sausalito, a pair of complementary measures designed to help the city comply with state Housing Element law passed easily. Measure J, which received over 75% of the vote, adopts a range of housing overlay zones. Measure K was less popular (54% Yes), presumably because it involved the conversion of land that is currently part of a public park, though the parcel does not include any recreational space. In Santa Cruz, a competition between two measures to promote affordable housing proved to be a snooze, as the more aggressive measure won by a comfortable margin whereas a watered-down measure barely broke double-digit percentages. Santa Cruz's Measure C, a parcel tax to raise up to $4 million for affordable housing, was squeaking by at 54% percent as of publication time.
Quick Hits & Updates
Berkeley City Council unanimously asked city staff to review the city's landmark designation process, citing concerns that "frivolous" landmarking attempts are delaying and even preventing affordable housing development.
A San Diego Superior Court ruled that Cal Fire must amend its statewide vegetation-management program because clearing native chaparral can cause highly flammable invasive grasses to spread, potentially worsening wildfire risk. The case highlights a deep divide between ecologists, who want to protect native ecosystems, and fire officials, who view vegetation as fuel to be removed. Until Cal Fire revises the program to address these risks, many projects can no longer rely on its blanket environmental review under CEQA.
The Oceanside City Council voted to advance the Oceanside Transit Center Redevelopment Project, a nearly $100 million plan that will transform the station into a mixed-use hub with 547 new apartments, 15% of which will be designated affordable. The plan also includes a boutique hotel, retail space, public plaza, a redesigned bus-to-rail layout, and relocated headquarters for North County Transit District.
The Trump administration intends to open federal waters in the Pacific, Alaska, and the Gulf of Mexico to new oil and gas leases for the first time in decades, replacing the more limited leasing plan under President Biden. The proposal could include as many as 34 offshore lease sales across 1.27 billion acres, though it has sparked strong opposition from environmental groups and coastal states like California, citing risks of spills and ecological damage. Public input will be considered during a 60-day comment period before finalizing the program.
Hard Rock Casino Tejon, the new $600 million casino and entertainment resort, opened in November in Kern County. The casino, a joint bet by Hard Rock International and the Tejon Indian Tribe, promises 1,100 regional jobs, with future plans for a 400-room hotel and a concert venue.
