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Over $2 Billion Made Available for Affordable Housing
Gov. Newsom announced new tools and funding to accelerate the development of permanent supportive housing for veterans and others in need, addressing homelessness and housing affordability. The state is making $2.145 billion in Prop 1 funding available, alongside streamlined permitting processes to help local governments acquire and rehabilitate existing buildings or construct new housing more quickly. Homekey+, part of the Prop 1 initiative, will support both the acquisition of existing properties and the construction of new supportive housing projects, with a focus on cost containment and faster timelines. Local governments and tribal entities are encouraged to apply for funding, with applications starting in January 2025. The initiative aligns with California’s broader strategy to address homelessness, mental health and substance use issues, backed by voter-approved reforms and funding in Proposition 1.

Placer County Sued over Approval of Palisades Tahoe Village
The League to Save Lake Tahoe and Sierra Watch have filed a lawsuit challenging Placer County's approval of the Village at Palisades Tahoe development, citing concerns over its environmental impacts at the storied ski area formerly known as Squaw Valley. The proposed development, which dates back at least 12 years (see prior CP&DR coverage) includes 300,000 square feet of commercial space, nearly 1,500 bedrooms and over 2,000 parking spaces, potentially increasing traffic and air pollution in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The project’s environmental reports predict it will add 3,300 new daily car trips, contributing to the region's pollution and worsening road damage, which already impacts the clarity of Lake Tahoe’s water. Despite the League's proposals for a smaller, phased project to reduce these impacts, Alterra Mountain Company, backed by the private equity firm Alterra, rejected these alternatives. Community groups, residents and local businesses have also voiced strong opposition to the development, citing concerns about worsening traffic and public safety.

Contrary to Fair Housing Laws, New Housing Concentrated in Low-Income Areas
A report from the UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies finds that most cities, roughly 80%, disproportionately plan new housing in lower-income, environmentally compromised neighborhoods, contrary to state mandates that encourage housing in higher-opportunity areas. While cities that proposed rezoning for new housing sites showed better fair housing results, the majority of cities relied on existing zoning, which perpetuates income and racial disparities due to the location of multifamily zones. The analysis, which looked at 199 cities' housing elements statewide, suggests that inertia, political pressure and legal challenges are major reasons cities avoid rezoning, even though state laws offer penalties for non-compliance. The report also critiques California's housing element laws, which impose complex requirements that may discourage cities from rezoning in more affluent neighborhoods or using mixed-use zoning to meet low-income housing targets.

CP&DR Coverage: November 2024 Local Ballot Measure Results
This month’s local land use ballot measures addressed some common issues – tenant protections, open space, and broad notions of local control included – and emerged with little by way of discernible patterns. Most significantly, a measure to give Huntington Beach voters broad control over housing prevailed whereas a similar measure – in similarly iconoclastic Redondo Beach – failed. Tenant protections, including rent control, passed in traditionally liberal cities and failed in more conservative and residential cities. countywide sales tax measure for transportation in San Diego County failed, by a slim margin. San Francisco’s high-profile attempt to shut the Great Highway to cars prevailed, as did several measures to strengthen urban growth boundaries. Finally, one of the most dramatic conflicts this year took place in Eureka, where voters thwarted the will of a local multimillionaire who wanted to prevent downtown parking lots from being redeveloped into housing. It was, in short, a mixed bag – and also a poignant microcosm of land use debates in California.

Quick Hits & Updates

The City of Norwalk has adopted a plan to redevelop a former youth prison site into the Norwalk Transit Village, a 32-acre mixed-use development featuring 770 homes, commercial space, a hotel, and parks, with 40% of the housing set aside for low- and very low-income households. This project is part of Norwalk's 2021-2029 Housing Element, but it comes amid tensions with the state over a controversial homeless shelter ban, which has led to legal actions and threats to decertify the city’s housing plan.

The Link21 project, aiming to build a second Transbay Tube, announced that it favors the use of standard gauge rail for the new rail crossing between Oakland and San Francisco. Standard gauge, which is compatible with other regional rail systems like Caltrain and Amtrak, would improve regional connectivity and allow for more frequent intercity service. However, BART’s union, SEIU 1021, opposes the recommendation, advocating for the continued use of BART's unique broad gauge system, while planners from Capitol Corridor and the California State Transportation Agency support the shift to standard gauge.

The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria are suing to block the Koi Nation's proposed Sonoma County casino, claiming the project threatens their tribal sovereignty and ancestral rights, as the land in question is outside the Koi Nation's historic territory. The lawsuit challenges the federal approval process, arguing that the Koi Nation’s ties to the area are insufficient and that the project could harm local communities and the environment.

The EPA has urged California regulators to protect tribal cultural practices, particularly subsistence fishing, in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta, which is facing an ecological crisis. EPA administrator Martha Guzman criticized a proposal by Governor Newsom that would allow voluntary water cutbacks with limited oversight, calling for stronger accountability. Environmental groups and tribes have filed a civil rights complaint, arguing that current water policies harm Native communities and their cultural reliance on the Delta’s fish populations.

Sentinel Peak, the owner of the Inglewood Oil Field, is suing California over Assembly Bill 2617, a law that mandates the closure of low-production oil wells in the field by 2027 and the plugging of all wells by 2030, with penalties of $10,000 per well per month for non-compliance. The company argues the law is unconstitutional, claiming it imposes excessive fines and unfairly targets its operations while other similar oil fields are not subject to the same requirements, but environmental groups and lawmakers defend the legislation as necessary to protect public health and the surrounding communities.

A Superior Court judge ruled in favor of YIMBY Law in the organization’s lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles for illegally denying 78 affordable homes located on Olinda St in Sun Valley. The project proposal falls under the original form of Mayor Karen Bass’ Executive Directive 1 (ED1) which streamlines 100% affordable housing projects. The court validated YIMBY Law’s interpretation of the interaction between California state law and ED1. The project will now return to the entitlement process.

Carlsbad is exploring the possibility of building a solar power farm on 30 to 40 acres at the Maerkle Reservoir, with a feasibility study approved by the City Council to assess the project's viability. The plan faces challenges, including limited access to the site and concerns about the safety of lithium-ion battery storage systems, though experts will be consulted to address these issues. The study will take up to 18 months to complete, with an allocated budget of $481,000 for the project. 

The Sacramento City Council approved a pilot program that permits social cannabis consumption in designated areas of dispensaries, with Mayor Darrell Steinberg casting the deciding vote. The program includes two types of permits—one for consuming infused food and drinks, and another for smoking cannabis—along with specific requirements for ventilation systems and impaired driving prevention plans.