After years of study and negotiations, the San Jose City Council has adopted a citywide inclusionary housing ordinance. The measure, which takes effect in 2013 (unless certain market conditions improve), requires market-rate developers to make 15% of new units available to households with incomes of no more than the median. If developers choose to meet the mandate off-site, the affordable housing requirement rises to 20%. The city has had similar requirements for the downtown area for years.
The City Council's decision on citywide inclusionary regulation came only three months after the council suspended a rule requiring 45-year restrictions on 20% of new units in redevelopment project areas to ensure their availability to low- and moderate-income households. Because prices for market-rate and affordable units are so close these days, there is no incentive for buyers to buy an income-restricted unit, city officials concluded. Developers asked for the relief, which city officials say they will revisit when the market changes.
It's official: 2009 was the slowest year for new housing construction since the 1940s. Builders pulled permits for only 36,209 housing units in 2009, according to the Construction Industry Research Board. That was a little more than half of the 64,962 housing starts in 2008, which had been the record post-war low.
The Merriam Mountains housing project in North San Diego County lives – at least until the Board of Supervisors has another chance to consider the proposed development.
The proposed Merriam Mountains housing development in North San Diego County suffered a setback in December when the Board of Supervisors split 2-2 on the project. The tie vote equates to rejection of the project; however, supervisors within 30 days may call for a new hearing, and reconsideration appears likely.
A report by the California state auditor gives the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) generally good marks for overseeing nearly $5 billion in bond funds approved by voters.
The City of Los Angeles's closely watched density bonus ordinance has been struck down because the city did not subject the ordinance to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review.
Disney continues fight against housing project in Anaheim's resort district; the League of California Cities proposes eminent domain reform; San Francisco limits residential demolitions; Stanislaus County picks a base reuse developer; Solana Beach voters limit monster houses; HCD questions Alhambra Redevelopment Agency; Carmel Valley sues LAFCO.
A state appellate court has upheld the City of Gilroy's housing element against a challenge filed by affordable housing advocates. The court ruled that, under the housing element law in effect when Gilroy updated its housing plan in 2002, the city did not have to provide a site-specific inventory and analysis.
Anaheim officials have sided with Disneyland and rejected SunCal's neighboring development proposal; report by LAO says Indian casinos will not provide significant revenues for the state of California; Madera County settled with Indian tribe; the Bureau of Indian Affairs has approved a proposed landfill on a Colusa County Indian reservation; Seal Beach has repealed a ban on three-story houses in the Old Town area; and the ongoing redevelopment of the former George Air Force Base in Victorville receives a boost from Newell Rubbermaid.
Relations between the City of Alameda and developer SunCal appear to have soured in the wake of voters' overwhelming defeat of SunCal's plan to redevelop Alameda Naval Air Station. Three days after 85% of voters rejected SunCal's plan during a February 2 special election, city officials sent SunCal a notice of default, the first step in ending SunCal's exclusive negotiating agreement to redevelop the base.
The nonprofit organization GreenInfo Network has released a newly revised database that attempts to identify every publicly protected parcel of open land in California, ranging from national forest to urban pocket park. The database inventories 49 million acres of protected land composed of 51,500 separate holdings owned by 860 governmental agencies or nonprofit organizations. Downloadable for free, the information should be of use to planners, academics, government agencies, nonprofit organization, businesses and others, said Larry Orman, GreenInfo Network executive director.
Opponents of the Gold Rush Ranch 1,600-unit housing development and golf resort in Sutter Creek submitted referendum petitions with 468 signatures in early February (see CP&DR Local Watch, January 15, 2010). If as few as one-third of those signatures is valid, the referendum of the Gold Rush Ranch specific plan and general plan amendment would qualify for the ballot, possibly as soon as June.
Characterized as "the last piece in the puzzle" for Chula Vista bayfront redevelopment, a land swap between the San Diego Unified Port District and developer Pacifica Holdings has been approved by the district and the City of Chula Vista.
