Land Use and Planning

Overview

Land Use and Planning

Article Local Works By Benjamin Garza

Backyard cottages are having a big impact in these two cities

Accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are easier to build than other housing units and blend seamlessly into the community. As a result, many cities are incentivizing ADUs to quickly increase housing — including Rosemead and Arcata. 

Article Legal Notes By Solange Z. Fortenbach and Stephen E. Velyvis

How could a new CEQA law impact your city’s infill housing projects?

AB 1633 (Ting) does not amend the California Environmental Quality Act. Instead, it clarifies that withholding approval of a housing development that otherwise meets the state’s environmental review law could be a violation of the Housing Accountability Act.

Article Local Works By Anthony Valdez 

Bakersfield, known for moving quickly to address California’s homeless crisis, has a simple message: More must be done

For the past two years, Bakersfield has had more homeless people living in shelter than those without shelter. Yet as is the case across California, Bakersfield is staring down an inflow crisis. For every six people placed in permanent housing locally, another ten become newly homeless. 

An aerial view of a suburban community.
Article Local Works By Jackie Krentzman

Gateway cities band together to bridge housing funding gaps

Approximately 4,000 affordable housing units in Southern California’s Gateway region have stalled due to funding shortfalls. A group of cities has formed an affordable housing trust fund, which they hope can close funding gaps — especially in small, under-resourced communities.

Article Local Works By Sarah Henry and Andrew Thomas

Alameda’s journey from restrictive to pro-housing policies

Alameda was the first Bay Area city to have its 2023-31 housing element certified by the state. How did a city that had restrictive and discriminatory land use regulations change its tune? For starters, it had a two-year conversation with the community about equity and housing.

Article Executive Director's Message By League of California Cities Executive Director and CEO Carolyn Coleman

On housing, let’s get beyond the rhetoric of blame

Seven in ten Californians view housing affordability as one of the top problems in their community. City officials understand this and are working hard to find solutions that ensure families of all income levels can afford to live in their communities.

Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Jeff Davis

Eureka uplifts vulnerable residents with social services program

Eureka is reversing an unusually high rate of homelessness thanks to an innovative set of social service programs. Since launching the program in 2019, Eureka has housed over 120 individuals and helped more than 200 people obtain employment.

Article Local Works By Brian Lee-Mounger Hendershot

Nevada City exceeds its low-income housing allocation

A lack of buildable terrain, funding, and skilled labor, as well as the threat of wildfires, makes building affordable, multifamily housing difficult in California’s rural, mountainous communities. Until 2023, Nevada City’s last large, multifamily development was built in 2001. Before that, the 1980s. So, what changed? 

Article Features By Marina Wiant

Cities across California have adopted big new affordable housing plans. Now comes the hard part

Statewide affordable housing production is not growing fast enough to close the state’s housing gap. However, it is not impossible to reverse the trends that got us here — so long as we can learn from our mistakes.

Apartment complex exterior
Article Features By Brian Lee-Mounger Hendershot

As housing challenges reach new heights, cities pave the way for millions of homes

The supply and affordability of housing is one of California’s most persistent, high-profile issues. Cities are actively planning, zoning, and approving millions of new homes, but even in the highest-producing cities, there is still an acute lack of housing. This begs a figurative, and increasingly literal, million-dollar question: Why?

Women on computers
Article News from the Institute for the Local Government By Melissa Kuehne

Planning for the future: New land use and housing resources for cities

To help support planning commissioners, their staff, and other officials interested in land use and planning, the Institute for Local Government has updated its flagship Planning Commissioners Handbook and compiled a list of related resources. The update is intended to help local officials understand the planning process and provide a window into future planning challenges on the horizon.

City officials at ribbon cutting
Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence By Eddie Fenton

Buena Park Navigation Center transforms shipping containers into new possibilities for unhoused residents

The city of Buena Park is no stranger to the nationwide homelessness crisis. A 2019 Orange County Point in Time Count Report found that 6,860 people in the county were experiencing homelessness. However, thanks to a collaborative, regional effort, the city is now part of an effective, cost-efficient solution that looks to permanently break the cycle of homelessness.

Aerial view of affordable apartments
Article Local Works By Anita D. Gutierrez

Pomona’s housing toolbox: A holistic, long-term plan for housing construction

To address its housing shortfall, Pomona has adopted a set of holistic housing and land use policies. The tools help address a range of related issues, including housing, racial inequity, accessibility, and transportation. When used together, they can boost production and ensure that housing is safe, affordable, and supports a higher quality of life.

Man on computer
Article California Cities Helen Putnam Award for Excellence

Irvine’s building and planning portal saves time and trees

As part of an ongoing effort to enhance customer service, the city of Irvine launched a new, streamlined, web-based platform for planning, building, and engineering applications. Launched in 2019, IrvineREADY! is a web-based platform that provides a portal for customers to upload plans and pay fees online using either credit card or electronic check.

Article By Cal Cities Annual Conference and Expo speakers

Tools for California’s housing crisis: Surplus land requirements, sortition, and short-term rental policies

The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated California’s housing crisis, adding even more urgency and complexity to an already dire situation. Land availability and housing affordability continue to dominate local policy discussions, while at the same time city leaders grapple with the best way to implement regulations for the growing short-term rental industry. Moreover, all of these decisions require significant public input. During the League of California Cities Annual Conference and Expo, hear from city leaders and industry experts about ways in which cities throughout the state can tackle the myriad of housing issues facing their communities.

Article By Cal Cities Annual Conference and Expo speakers

New challenges, new solutions: How city leaders are creating safer communities

Keeping families and communities safe is one of the primary functions of city government. The last few years have brought new challenges, such as a sharp increase in cybercrimes, a lack of dedicated resources for critical issues, and recent legislative changes that require new ways of approaching old problems. Here are three ways city leaders and industry experts are increasing public safety in California’s cities.

Article President’s Message By League of California Cities President and El Centro Mayor Cheryl Viegas Walker

Cal Cities delivers on local control, funding, and resources for cities

The decisions that we make every day as city leaders, especially housing and land use decisions, cannot be made in a vacuum. All city services and programs must be viewed through a lens of equity, and this new Advancing Equity Advisory Committee will play an integral role in identifying how cities can recognize and eliminate disparities in our systems.

Exterior view of Sacramento fourplex.
Article News from the Institute for the Local Government by Karalee Browne

Beyond the short term: Land use principles to advance fair housing goals

Over the past year, cities have implemented a variety of programs to help keep vulnerable populations housed, but cities need to look beyond short-term relief. Local planning and policy decisions present some unique opportunities to remedy longstanding inequities, specifically through the housing element update process and activities related to AB 686.

Exterior view of St. Paul’s Commons in Walnut Creek, CA.
Article Local Works by Jill Oviatt

A community partnership brings a transformative affordable housing development to Walnut Creek

A dynamic group of committed religious, community, housing, and local government leaders in Walnut Creek came together to solve one of our state’s most pressing problems: the need for more affordable housing. Working together they created St. Paul’s Commons, a mixed-use, transit-oriented affordable housing development that opened its doors to residents in February 2020, just before the pandemic hit.

Exterior view of El Centro "tiny home."
Article Features by Lisa Yarbrough

Tiny homes in El Centro provide housing for former foster youth attending the local college

El Centro was one of the first recipients of funding under Homekey, a statewide program designed to house those experiencing homelessness. Through a partnership between the city and a local college, the funding was leveraged to construct 26 tiny homes that will provide two years of permanent housing for college students who are former foster youths and are experiencing or at risk of experiencing homelessness.