U.S. Senator Alex Padilla Announces New “Housing for All Act of 2022” |
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On Friday, February 25th, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla visited Sacramento to unveil a new federal housing and homeless bill—the Housing for All Act of 2022—that seeks to address housing insecurity with a significant new investment of federal funding. In total, the bill would invest more than $530 billion over a 10-year period to combat homelessness and increase and improve the affordable housing stock. It is expected that Representative Ted Lieu (Torrance, CA) will introduce a companion bill in the House. Read More. . .
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More than 150 Housing Bills Introduced by the CA Legislative Deadline
Dozens of housing and land use bills were introduced by the February 18th deadline, with the first hearings expected to begin next month. Because this is an election year and last year was a big year for housing, it wasn’t anticipated that housing would be a key focus of the Legislature this year. Nevertheless, there are a number of key bills that we think will garner some interest this year. Read More. . .
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State Prohousing Designation Program Moves Forward
In his Fiscal Year 2019-20 budget, Governor Newsom announced a new Pro-Housing Designation Program, which provides incentives to local governments in the competition for certain State housing and infrastructure funding if they take steps to eliminate barriers to building new affordable, transit-oriented housing. Currently, the designation is being applied to four programs: Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHCS), Infill Infrastructure Grant (IIG), Transformative Climate Communities (TCC), and Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP). This list may grow as the program is finalized.
Gustavo Velasquez, HCD Director
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Fourth District Court of Appeal Rules in Favor of Density Bonuses
A major court decision announced earlier this year upholds Density Bonus Law and affirms the rights of developers who include affordable housing in their projects to be exempt from local zoning laws and restrictions. In the case Bankers Hill 150 v City of San Diego, opponents sought to halt a 20-story, 204-unit development, with 18 affordable homes, expressing concerns over views, shade, and interference with airport flight paths. The Fourth District Court of Appeals ruled that, once a developer agrees to include a number of homes that are affordable to lower-income families, local agencies must allow for increased density, and grant needed permits and waive developments standards “unless certain limited exceptions apply.” Limited exceptions include threats to public health and safety, harm to a historic resource, or conflicts with other State or federal laws.
While the court’s original ruling applied only to the San Diego project, it subsequently ruled that it was precedent for future cases, essentially ensuring that the ruling applied to all Density Bonus projects throughout the State.
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California Housing Accelerator Program Awards Announced; Tier 2 Funding Solicitation Just Released
Earlier this month, Governor Newsom announced that $923 million in funding had been awarded to affordable housing projects as a part of a $1.75 billion investment to provide gap funding to developments that are shovel ready and have received funding from the State Department of Housing and Community Development but have been unable to access low-income housing tax credits due to high demand. To date, 27 projects, with 2,315 new homes, have been approved.
The Tier 2 Program Funding Solicitation for approximately $800M in funding was released on Monday, February 28. Applications are due April 8, 2022. This round, priority is given to developments that target those experiencing homelessness, those whose incomes are below 30% of the area median income, large families, and special needs populations. To receive a funding commitment, developers must demonstrate that their projects will complete all needed financing and entitlement approvals in order to begin construction within six months of award. Funds will be distributed as a forgivable loan, with no interest for 20 years, and no residual receipts or payment requirements. Read more here.
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New Interagency Council on Homelessness (Cal ICH) Begins its Work
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United to House LA Ballot Measure Campaign in Full Swing |
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Advocates in Los Angeles are gearing up for a campaign to place an $8 billion ballot measure on the November 2022 ballot—called United to House LA— to provide funding for the development of affordable housing, the preservation of existing affordable housing, and for assistance to residents at risk of displacement. The focus will be on people experiencing homelessness and those who are at risk of homelessness (those who earn less than 30% of area median income). Seventy percent of the funding would go to affordable housing production, preservation, and homeownership, with the remaining 30% targeted to programs that prevent and respond to homelessness and housing instability. Read More. .
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Our Neighborhood Voices Campaign Drops 2022 Measure |
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The group behind the Our Neighborhood Voices campaign, which was working to secure the needed signatures to place a measure on the November ballot to nullify laws that promote new development as well as other planning and environmental laws, announced on February 18th that it was unable to gather the needed signatures. The campaign is now targeting the 2024 election. Read More. . .
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New Report on Housing Preservation Released
The California Housing Partnership Corporation just released Affordable Homes At Risk—2022 Report, which finds that more than 32,700 affordable homes could lose their affordability by 2031. This is in addition to the 20,792 affordable homes that have already been lost to conversion to market rate. The report also includes data about “naturally” affordable housing that is typically older and outdated, making it attractive to market-rate developers to purchase and redevelop. Check out Appendix A, which details at-risk affordable homes by county.
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US Census Pulse on Housing Insecurity Released
In collaboration with a number of federal agencies, the U.S. Census Bureau regularly collects and publishes data every few weeks to measure the impact of the pandemic on the social and economic impacts faced by U.S. families. The Household Pulse Survey breaks down data by State and locality, detailing the number of people who are housing insecure or are at risk of eviction or foreclosure. Check out the data for your jurisdiction here.
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Menino Survey of Mayors
In January, Boston University released the 2021 results from the Menino Survey of Mayors, which provides insights into city leader’s opinions on housing and homelessness. This year’s report, which focused on homeless policy, included results from interviews with 126 mayors who lead cities with more than 75,000 residents. Read more for report highlights here...
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Upcoming Events + Announcements |
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GPLA Vienna’s Social Housing Academy |
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Vienna, Austria, is considered one of the world’s most livable and affordable cities, having been ranked ten times as the most livable city in the world. This is the result of a pioneering Social Housing program initiated by the City of Vienna in the 1920s in response to rapid rent escalation, overcrowding, and widespread housing insecurity that emerged after World War I. The program transformed the city from one where 10% of residents lived in squalid conditions to the present-day Vienna, where 62% of Vienna’s 1.7 million households live in high quality affordable housing, spending a fraction of the cost of the average California household. How did this major European city reverse direction and create a stable, well-functioning, and affordable housing system?
The Global Policy Leadership Academy, in partnership with International Building Exhibition Vienna (IBA_Wien), is offering an intensive housing policy program designed to give California local and regional housing policy leaders and practitioners a deep understanding of the Vienna Social Housing Model. The program enables participants to understand the forces that shaped Vienna’s unique approach to housing and evaluate how it compares to California’s affordable housing system.
Social Housing Academy Program Structure:
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5-week Live Virtual Introductory Course on the Vienna Social Housing Model (June 29-August 4, 2022)
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1-week Vienna Austria Field Study in Vienna, Austria (September 10-17, 2022)
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1 Year Community of Practice for ongoing group collaboration and research (2022-2023)
Participants will learn about the housing ecosystem in Vienna, from urban planning, design, consultant selection, construction, financing, government land management, and subsidies to newer strategies for environmental sustainability and climate resilience. This program will also take a close look at how Vienna approaches community engagement, transit-oriented development, the growing need for deeper affordability, and inclusion of housing options for diverse populations, including single parents, seniors, and newly arrived refugees and people at-risk of homelessness.
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Come join our team! LeSar Development Consultants is growing, and we are looking for talented and motivated team members to join our diverse team. Please help us reach a wide group of candidates by sharing with your networks and social media channels. Find more information about these positions on our Careers Page.
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