Anti-Duplex Ballot Measure; SB 10 Lawsuit; Zoning vs. Building, and More

By Mckenzie Locke : cp-dr – excerpt

Group Pursues Ballot Measure to Overturn SB 9 “Duplex Law”
Californians for Community Planning is organizing to launch a ballot measure against SB 9, which Gov. Gavin Newsom just signed into law and is set to take effect January 1, 2022. The organization argues that SB 9, SB 10, and AB 1401 could have damaging impacts by eliminating minimum parking standards near transit stops and will accelerate gentrification because there are no affordable housing requirements. The measure’s proponents include Mayor Bill Brand of Redondo Beach, Mayor Peggy Huang of Yorba Linda, City Council member Jovita Mendoza of Brentwood, attorney John Heath, and Dennis Richards, a former San Francisco planning commissioner. The group’s overall agenda is to put an end to existing centralized zoning policies and advocate for local zoning control. They have completed step one — submitting the CCPI to Attorney General Rob Bonta — to allow residents to vote on their ballot measure on the November 7, 2022 ballot. (See related CP&DR coverage.)…

SB 10 Housing Streamlining Law Immediately Draws Lawsuit
Now that Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 10 into law, the bill is catching some heat from the Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation, who is suing the state of California to stop its implementation…

Study Finds Mismatch Between Zoning & Building in Bay Area
The median Bay Area city will likely approve housing projects on less than 10% of the sites listed and approved in its housing plan, according to a study published by the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies published a study titled “What Gets Built on Sites That Cities ‘Make Available’ for Housing?”…

California Cities Fare Poorly on Quality of Life “Ranking”
The US News and World Report released its 2021-2022 “Best Places to Live in the US” rankings, and no California cities made the top of the list…

CP&DR Coverage: Ruling Strengthens Housing Accountability Act
In an important new ruling, the Second District Court of Appeal has concluded that the City of San Mateo’s design guidelines are not “objective” under the Housing Accountability Act and has ordered San Mateo to reconsider its denial of a four-story 10-unit apartment buildings…
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