(3)Joint Meeting - AR 062309 General Plan Update

Browse Search

Draft Housing Element Study Session June 23, 2009 Joint City Council / Planning Commission Meeting Page 3 Availability of Sites for Housing State law requires that jurisdictions provide an adequate number of sites to allow for and facilitate production of their regional share of housing (RHNA). California Government Code Section 65583(c)(1) states that adequate sites are those with appropriate zoning and development standards, with services and facilities, needed to facilitate and encourage the development of a variety of housing for all income levels. "Appropriate zoning and development standards," in the context of this law, means a higher residential density, because a factor directly related to development cost is development density. With an increase in the number of units built in a project, overall costs generally decrease as builders benefit from economies of scale. Because of this, State law equates the identification of higher density sites with meeting the RHNA. Specifically, HCD guidance states: "The densities of sites identified in the inventory must be sufficient to encourage and facilitate the development of housing affordable to lower-income households." As noted throughout the Housing Element, Colton has more than met its obligation to accommodate affordable housing. Low rents, low purchase prices, and the age of existing housing have created entire neighborhoods where virtually any unit is affordable to lower- income households. The City's overall focus is to create a much better local economy that will facilitate investment in these neighborhoods, with that economy including opportunities for move -up and higher -quality housing. The City's primary housing goal is to encourage and help current property owners improve aging and substandard housing, and to make neighborhoods safer. Any higher density housing that is to occur — both for -sale and rental - will be focused in the two specific plan areas, as part of new communities, where housing for persons of all income levels can be provided in integrated neighborhoods. With these goals in mind, the City of Colton has defined an overall strategy for accommodating new housing that includes identifying sites available for new housing construction within a range of densities. Cost of Housing and Density Assumptions HCD has deemed affordability to be correlated with density. Consequently, State law has established "default densities" that by definition are considered sufficient to provide market- based incentives for the development of housing for lower-income households. For jurisdictions that have a population greater than 25,000 and are located within a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) with a population of more than two million, the default density is 30 dwelling units per acre (or higher). This default standard applies equally to communities of relative affluence, with higher residential property values (such as Rancho Cucamonga or Claremont), and to communities with significant economic challenges, where home prices, rents, and the cost of vacant land is significantly below the regional average. Colton has a population greater than 25,000 and is within the Riverside -San Bernardino -Ontario MSA. Thus, State law establishes a default density for Colton of 30 units per acre. However, the City's General Plan land use and zoning standards do not allow densities at this level, as the historic suburban character of Colton represents the historically desired land use pattern and as shown, households of lower incomes have been able to afford housing in the City.