Latest news with #CaliforniaYIMBY
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lawmakers push to fast-track radical housing model that could transform urban areas: 'Faster timelines and fewer bureaucratic hoops'
In February, a revolutionary housing bill was introduced in the California State Assembly. Assembly Bill 609 will streamline the approval process for urban multi-family housing on pre-developed land (a.k.a., infill housing). This presents an alternative to suburban sprawl, which develops unused land outside cities. California YIMBY, an organization that advocates for affordable housing, collaborated with Buffy Wicks, a California State Representative, to create the bill. If passed, infill housing will be exempt from review under California's Environmental Quality Act. Since it's been proven that infill housing benefits the environment, the bill's proponents argue that there's no need for such extensive review. "The science is clear: building infill housing in cities reduces pollution that causes climate change," Brian Hanlon, CEO of California YIMBY, said in a press release. "AB 609 codifies that science in law." According to the press release, new developments would still have to comply with local regulations, which are already approved by the CEQA. Building cheap, affordable housing in urban centers is key to solving California's ongoing housing crisis. Infill housing also takes less of an environmental toll. Residents will be closer to work and other daily necessities, meaning less pollution from cars and shorter commutes. More cities around the globe are waking up to infill housing. London's Elephant and Castle neighborhood utilizes infill housing to keep the city's emissions down, for example. If the process becomes simpler in California, it could set a great precedent for the rest of the United States. AB 609 is part of a larger package of bills introduced in the California state legislature in early 2025. A press release from Assemblymember Wicks' office said, "The Fast Track Housing package is about making our systems work better: clearer rules, faster timelines, and fewer bureaucratic hoops." Do you think America is in a housing crisis? Definitely Not sure No way Only in some cities Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
L.A. County says state housing laws stand in way of rebuilding. Advocates disagree
A request by L.A. County officials to temporarily waive state housing laws as residents rebuild in fire-ravaged swaths of unincorporated areas drew the ire of housing advocates, who accused the officials of skirting efforts at boosting affordable housing. County Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey Horvath, who represent districts blackened by this month's wildfires, put forward a motion Tuesday with 41 steps they want department heads to take to speed up the recovery process. That included an ask to Gov. Gavin Newsom to temporarily exempt the county from some of the state's most significant housing laws intended to speed up the creation of affordable housing, including parts of Senate Bill 330, aimed at preserving affordable housing, and the Density Bonus Law, which encourages developers to build new units. Amy Bodek, head of the county planning department, said she believed the state laws could end up hampering recovery, incentivizing density at the expense of homeowners looking to rebuild what they had. 'In order to provide the community the ability to return and not face immediate displacement, we understand the need to pause some of these policies,' she said at Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting, adding that she wanted to ask for a five-year waiver for unincorporated areas, which include Altadena and some of the communities burned by the Palisades fire. 'We are not antihousing,' she said. 'To say that we are antihousing is someone that's not been paying attention.' At the meeting, housing advocates contended that the county's waiver proposal would slash too many restrictions, bypassing laws aimed at solving the region's affordable housing crisis. 'This is just totally going in the wrong direction,' said Nolan Gray, senior director of legislation and research for California YIMBY, noting that the laws have spurred the construction of thousands of affordable units across the state. 'There's so much in here that has nothing to do with helping people rebuild.' Chris Elmendorf, a law professor at UC Davis who studies California housing law, said the county was too broad in requesting a waiver in undefined 'fire impacted communities.' 'If the goal is to get people back to their communities as fast as possible, shouldn't the goal be to build as much housing in those communities as fast as possible?' he said. Barger, who represents Altadena, said the accusation that the county was uninterested in ramping up housing 'could not be further from the truth.' Bodek said it was unclear whether the governor would agree to the county's waiver request, but she hoped the letter would be a starting point for conversations with the state. The remarks came as part of a larger discussion over how the county should prepare for an influx of new buildings in areas reduced to rubble. Bodek said the planning department, which is responsible for permitting in unincorporated L.A. County, is expecting as many as 8,000 permit applications from homeowners wanting to rebuild after the Eaton fire and 600 from the Palisades fire. Without beefing up staffing, she said, 'it is going to be breaking our department.' Mark Pestrella, the head of the county public works department, said his agency was similarly preparing for a mammoth undertaking in repairing utilities in fire-scarred areas. 'A small public works department needs to be created in particular for the Altadena area if we are to meet the needs of the community to rebuild,' he told the supervisors Tuesday. The repairs and rebuilding are likely to cost the county billions of dollars, much of which county officials hope will come from the federal government. On Tuesday, the White House said it would freeze trillions in federal grants and loans that don't align with the Trump administration's priorities. The order was quickly blocked by a federal judge. 'We are very concerned about that,' said Fesia Davenport, the county's chief executive. 'We do need to know what the exact impact will be on the county.' Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
L.A. County says state housing laws stand in way of rebuilding. Advocates disagree
A request by L.A. County officials to temporarily waive state housing laws as residents rebuild in fire-ravaged swaths of unincorporated areas drew the ire of housing advocates, who accused the officials of skirting efforts at boosting affordable housing. County Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey Horvath, who represent districts blackened by this month's wildfires, put forward a motion Tuesday with 41 steps they want department heads to take to speed up the recovery process. That included an ask to Gov. Gavin Newsom to temporarily exempt the county from some of the state's most significant housing laws intended to speed up the creation of affordable housing, including parts of Senate Bill 330, aimed at preserving affordable housing, and the Density Bonus Law, which encourages developers to build new units. Amy Bodek, head of the county planning department, said she believed the state laws could end up hampering recovery, incentivizing density at the expense of homeowners looking to rebuild what they had. 'In order to provide the community the ability to return and not face immediate displacement, we understand the need to pause some of these policies,' she said at Tuesday's Board of Supervisors meeting, adding that she wanted to ask for a five-year waiver for unincorporated areas, which include Altadena and some of the communities burned by the Palisades fire. 'We are not antihousing,' she said. 'To say that we are antihousing is someone that's not been paying attention.' At the meeting, housing advocates contended that the county's waiver proposal would slash too many restrictions, bypassing laws aimed at solving the region's affordable housing crisis. 'This is just totally going in the wrong direction,' said Nolan Gray, senior director of legislation and research for California YIMBY, noting that the laws have spurred the construction of thousands of affordable units across the state. 'There's so much in here that has nothing to do with helping people rebuild.' Chris Elmendorf, a law professor at UC Davis who studies California housing law, said the county was too broad in requesting a waiver in undefined 'fire impacted communities.' 'If the goal is to get people back to their communities as fast as possible, shouldn't the goal be to build as much housing in those communities as fast as possible?' he said. Barger, who represents Altadena, said the accusation that the county was uninterested in ramping up housing 'could not be further from the truth.' Bodek said it was unclear whether the governor would agree to the county's waiver request, but she hoped the letter would be a starting point for conversations with the state. The remarks came as part of a larger discussion over how the county should prepare for an influx of new buildings in areas reduced to rubble. Bodek said the planning department, which is responsible for permitting in unincorporated L.A. County, is expecting as many as 8,000 permit applications from homeowners wanting to rebuild after the Eaton fire and 600 from the Palisades fire. Without beefing up staffing, she said, 'it is going to be breaking our department.' Mark Pestrella, the head of the county public works department, said his agency was similarly preparing for a mammoth undertaking in repairing utilities in fire-scarred areas. 'A small public works department needs to be created in particular for the Altadena area if we are to meet the needs of the community to rebuild,' he told the supervisors Tuesday. The repairs and rebuilding are likely to cost the county billions of dollars, much of which county officials hope will come from the federal government. On Tuesday, the White House said it would freeze trillions in federal grants and loans that don't align with the Trump administration's priorities. The order was quickly blocked by a federal judge. 'We are very concerned about that,' said Fesia Davenport, the county's chief executive. 'We do need to know what the exact impact will be on the county.'
