AP

California governor signs laws to boost housing production

Sep 28, 2022, 12:44 PM | Updated: 4:32 pm

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — They’ve become a familiar sight along the wide commercial corridors of America — empty buildings once filled by big retailers who have closed their doors, in part because many of their customers shop online.

Now, two new laws in California would let developers build housing on that land and largely prevent revenue-hungry local governments from stopping them.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two laws Wednesday that would open up much of the state’s commercial land for residential development. It’s a long-sought victory for affordable housing advocates, who say such sites are ready-made for apartments because they are often near populated areas and come with ample parking.

“This is a moment on a journey to reconcile the original sin of the state of California, and that’s the issue of housing and affordability,” Newsom said in San Francisco before signing the bills into law. “We need to all be a little bit more accountable to this crisis of affordability.”

Local government officials say the laws undermine their authority and upend years of careful planning that reflect community preferences. But there’s also a financial consequence, they say, because stores generate more property taxes for local governments than homes do.

“It’s a concern when state law is going to override these local decisions, particularly when these local decisions are made in a public process with the community as part of a larger housing plan,” said Jason Rhine, assistant director of legislative affairs for the League of California Cities.

California, the nation’s most populous state with just over 39 million residents, has a housing shortage that has driven up home prices and contributed to a homelessness crisis. State officials say California needs to build about 310,000 new housing units each year over the next eight years, more than 2 1/2 times the number the state normally builds each year.

Lawmakers in the Democratic-controlled state Legislature introduce dozens of bills each year to try to increase housing production, but many of their boldest ideas often fail in the face of opposition from local governments, labor unions and neighborhood groups.

One popular idea in recent years has been to override local laws about where housing can be built. Housing advocates complain that local governments are often content to let commercial buildings sit vacant for years — sometimes for decades — hoping for a replacement that will generate more property taxes, rather than change the law to allow housing there.

Previous efforts to do so have failed to pass the Legislature, but this year, lawmakers passed two bills, both of which Newsom signed Wednesday.

One law will let developers build housing on some commercial land without having to ask permission from local governments, as long as a certain percentage of the housing is affordable. Another law will let developers build all market-rate housing on some commercial land — which would be more lucrative — but the projects would still have to go through an environmental review process.

“Stores are leaving permanently, the Sears, the Toys R Us, the JC Penneys, the Kmarts — they are closing,” said Democratic Sen. Anna Caballero, author of one of the laws. “There is not a thing that is going to take the place here commercially, and so the ability to actually transform the property and to do it in an expedited way … is invaluable.”

When he was running for governor in 2017, Newsom pledged to develop 3.5 million new housing units by 2025 — a number the state is likely to fall far short of meeting. Newsom said Wednesday that he’s now shooting for 2.5 million new housing units by 2030, saying his original number “was always a stretch goal” that “in the process of trying to achieve it will allow us to see what’s possible.”

“We intend to continue to have audacious goals because Californians deserve them,” Newsom said.

The new laws reflect a compromise between labor unions and housing developers. Some labor unions, including the powerful State Building and Construction Trades Council of California, had insisted that legislation should require a “skilled and trained” workforce to build the housing. That means a certain percentage of workers would have participated in a state-approved apprenticeship program.

But housing developers argue there aren’t enough workers available to meet that standard, which would make some projects difficult to complete.

The solution was to give homebuilders a choice. The bill that requires affordable housing does not require a skilled and trained workforce, while the bill that doesn’t require affordable housing does require one.

“Doing anything that is big or consequential in the Legislature isn’t easy. And it can be messy. But at the end of the day, all sides came together,” state Senate Democratic Leader Mike McGuire said.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Lead water pipes pulled from underneath the street are seen in Newark, N.J., Oct. 21, 2021. (AP Pho...

Associated Press

Biden to require cities to replace harmful lead pipes within 10 years

The Biden administration has previously said it wants all of the nation's roughly 9 million lead pipes to be removed, and rapidly.

4 days ago

Facebook's Meta logo sign is seen at the company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., on, Oct. 28, 2...

Associated Press

Meta shuts down thousands of fake Facebook accounts that were primed to polarize voters ahead of 2024

Meta said it removed 4789 Facebook accounts in China that targeted the United States before next year’s election.

4 days ago

A demonstrator in Tel Aviv holds a sign calling for a cease-fire in the Hamas-Israel war on Nov. 21...

Associated Press

Hamas releases a third group of hostages as part of truce, and says it will seek to extend the deal

The fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was back on track Sunday as the first American was released under a four-day truce.

9 days ago

Men look over the site of a deadly explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, Wednesday, Oct. 18, ...

Associated Press

New AP analysis of last month’s deadly Gaza hospital explosion rules out widely cited video

The Associated Press is publishing an updated visual analysis of the deadly Oct. 17 explosion at Gaza's Al-Ahli Hospital.

12 days ago

Peggy Simpson holds a photograph of law enforcement carrying Lee Harvey Oswald's gun through a hall...

Associated Press

JFK assassination remembered 60 years later by surviving witnesses to history, including AP reporter

Peggy Simpson is among the last surviving witnesses who are sharing their stories as the nation marks the 60th anniversary.

12 days ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, chairs the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, ...

Associated Press

Israeli Cabinet approves cease-fire with Hamas; deal includes release of 50 hostages

Israel’s Cabinet on Wednesday approved a cease-fire deal with the Hamas militant group that would bring a temporary halt to a devastating war.

13 days ago

Sponsored Articles

Follow @KTAR923...

The best ways to honor our heroes on Veterans Day and give back to the community

Veterans Day is fast approaching and there's no better way to support our veterans than to donate to the Military Assistance Mission.

...

SCHWARTZ LASER EYE CENTER

Key dates for Arizona sports fans to look forward to this fall

Fall brings new beginnings in different ways for Arizona’s professional sports teams like the Cardinals and Coyotes.

...

DAY & NIGHT AIR CONDITIONING, HEATING AND PLUMBING

Importance of AC maintenance after Arizona’s excruciating heat wave

An air conditioning unit in Phoenix is vital to living a comfortable life inside, away from triple-digit heat.

California governor signs laws to boost housing production