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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCD Annual Progress Report (APR) on Housing____________________________________________________________________________________ FOR CITY CLERK ONLY Council Meeting: April 5, 2021 Disposition: Accepted report Agenda Item No: 7.a Meeting Date: April 5, 2021 SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT Department: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT Prepared by: Paul A. Jensen (RN) Community Development Director City Manager Approval: ___________ TOPIC: ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT (APR) ON HOUSING SUBJECT: ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT (APR) ON: HOUSING UNITS SUBMITTED, APPROVED AND BUILT IN 2020; AND UPDATE ON PROGRESS OF IMPLEMENTING PROGRAMS IN THE HOUSING ELEMENT. CASE NO. P21-003 RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that the City Council: a.Open the public hearing and accept comments; and b.Accept report. BACKGROUND: Government Code Section 65400 requires local jurisdictions to prepare an Annual Progress Report (APR) on the status of the City’s Housing Element and the progress in meeting its share of regional housing needs. A copy of the report must be submitted to both the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) and the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) by April 1st for the previous calendar year (January 1-December 31). Historically, the APR has been prepared in narrative format and informally reported to the City Council as part of routine updates on housing. However, the State housing laws have dramatically changed in the last several years, and now mandate higher reporting standards and a greater level of accountability by the local jurisdiction. The housing laws require that a public hearing on the APR be conducted by the local jurisdiction to allow for public comment. The APR is reported on forms prescribed by HCD. Prior to the 2018 reporting year, the APR forms were simpler, requiring the reporting of housing units approved (entitled) in the reporting calendar year, and progress on the implementation programs contained in the Housing Element. However, in response to changes in the State housing laws, in 2020, the forms became far more complex. The APR now requires that the local jurisdictions itemize and report the number of housing units: a) submitted and deemed complete; b) approved/entitled; c) issued building permits; and d) built and issued final inspections for occupancy. Further, the APR requires reporting the type of housing unit and the level of affordability. As noted above, the APR also requires listing all of the housing programs outlined in the Housing Element and status of implementation of these programs. Lastly, the recent changes to the APR require that local jurisdictions report on housing development processed using the by-right housing approval process SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 2 prescribed by Senate Bill 35 (SB 35). The APR now contains nine (9) reporting tables briefly described as follows: 1. Table A – Housing Development Applications Submitted. An “application” is a formal permit application submittal of a project for approval. This application is either for a discretionary entitlement (e.g. Environmental and Design Review, Use Permit), or where a ministerial process is solely required, such as an application for a building permit. 2. Table A2 – Annual Building Activity Report Summary. This table requires reporting all new housing construction, approved/entitled units, building permits issued, and built units issued a Certificate of Occupancy/final inspection. 3. Table B – Regional Housing Needs Allocation Progress. This table tallies the reporting year and prior year(s) of building permits issued for housing units under the current Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA) Planning Cycle (current cycle is 2015-2023). Permitted housing units are reported by their affordability (e.g., low-income, above moderate income/market rate). This table tracks the local jurisdictions progress towards meeting the RHNA. Table B contains the RHNA by income level and compares that number with total annual new housing units and housing units to date. 4. Table C – Properties Rezoned to Accommodate a Shortfall of Housing Need. State housing law requires that if the local jurisdiction approves a housing development on a housing opportunity site that results in fewer units than the number estimated for the site in the Housing Element, the shortfall of units must be made by rezoning another site to accommodate the shortfall. For the 2020 reporting year, the City was not required to rezone any site(s) to accommodate a shortfall of housing need. 5. Table D – Housing Element Program Implementation. This table requires that all Housing Element programs be listed and accompanied by a report on the progress of program implementation. 6. Table E – Commercial Development Bonus. This table allows for reporting of commercial development bonus for applications that include an agreement for partnered housing that contributes affordable housing through a joint project or two separate projects encompassing affordable housing. For the 2020 reporting year, the City did not approve any project involving a commercial development bonus. 7. Table F – Housing Units Rehabilitated, Converted from Non-affordable to Affordable and Preserved. This table allows the local jurisdiction to report housing units that have been substantially rehabilitated, converted from non-affordable to affordable by acquisition, and preserved. For the 2020 reporting year, there were no housing units approved/built that meet this criterion. 8. Table G – City-owned Properties Sold, Leased or Otherwise Disposed. This table requires the local jurisdiction to identify any City-owned property that has been included in the Housing Element Sites Inventory that have been sold, leased, or otherwise disposed of during the reporting year. The City did not dispose of any such property during the 2020 reporting period. 9. Summary Table. This table tallies the data from several of the tables listed above. The summary data focuses on the total of all permits issued and all applications submitted and approved for the 2019 reporting period. SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 3 ANALYSIS: Staff has completed the APR for the 2020 calendar year. The APR tables are attached (Attachment 1). Staff submitted the report to HCD on April 1, 2021. The following is a summary of the City’s progress on housing approvals/entitlements, building permits issued and housing units completed for occupancy.  As reported in the Housing Application Summary Table, a total of 46 housing development applications were submitted to the City and deemed complete in 2020. These completed applications included: 38 Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADUs) applications; four (4) Junior Accessory Dwelling Unit (JADUs) application; two (2) single family dwellings (SFDs) applications; a three (3)-unit development application; and a 32-unit development application. HCD allows accessory units that are less than 500 square feet in area to be reported as low-income (non-deed restricted) because rental prices for these units tend to fall within the low-income rental rates. A total of 7 units fall under this category. The 32-unit development at 190 Mill Street is recorded as very low-income units but were in fact approved as extremely low-income units.  Table A2 data includes the following report for 2020: a. Housing Units Entitled: 201 units b. Building Permits Issued: 82 units c. Units Built and Granted Final Occupancy: 32 units d. Units Lost: 1 unit  RHNA (Regional Housing Needs Allocation) progress is presented in Table B (below): Income Level RHNA Allocation by Income Level 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Very Low Deed Restricted 240 2 1 4 Non-Deed Restricted Low Deed Restricted 148 10 5 1 2 Non-Deed Restricted 4 7 24 6 7 Moderate Deed Restricted 181 Non-Deed Restricted 10 1 Above Moderate 438 94 21 20 14 22 69 Total RHNA 1007 Total Units 120 26 27 41 28 82 Note: units serving extremely low-income households are included in the very low-income permitted unit totals As mentioned above the tables use building permit issuance for the purposes of determining progress towards RHNA. The 82 units that were issued building permits in 2020 including the 41-unit housing SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 4 development at 815 B Street (at 2nd Street), which is near completion, as well as a total of 36 ADUs/JADUs; 2 single family residential units; and 3 units in multifamily development. Please note that housing projects that have been approved/entitled are not necessarily reflected in the APR if they did not also receive a building permit. Those units will be counted in future reporting periods once building permits are issued. Entitlements were granted for the following key housing projects in 2020, but are not yet counted toward the RHNA number as building permits for these projects were not issued in 2020: • 190 Mill Street (32 extremely low-income transitional housing units) • 999 Third Street (BioMarin R&D + Whistlestop/EDEN Housing Senior Center and Housing (68 low-income senior housing units) • 350 Merrydale Road (45 townhome units) While Table B only shows credit for 82 units, the City received completed applications for 201 units in 2020 getting us closer to reaching our RHNA goals.  As reported in Table D, there are a number of Housing Element programs that are ongoing and serve to streamline housing development within the City and provide housing protections to vulnerable communities. The following are some key Housing Element programs that were part of the 2020 reporting period: a. H11-b. & H16-a. Accessory Dwelling Units and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units. The city began drafting of an ADU Ordinance in 2019. However, due to additional changes in state legislation on ADUs, the final draft ordinance was not completed and released until late 2020. The draft ADU ordinance was reviewed by the Planning Commission on March 23, 3021. b. H-5a. Fair Housing Program. In 2020, the City continued to initiate and adopt renter protection policies, practices, and programs. Policy and ordinance actions initiated in 2020 included a temporary moratorium on rent increases to residents living in US Census Tracts most disproportionally impacted by COVID-19. a. H-6a. Funding Sources. In 2020, the City piloted a “buy out” of a portion of the inclusionary housing requirement for Village @ Loch Lomond Marina development. The buy-out authorized the City acceptance of an in-lieu fee for six, undeveloped, for sale housing units. A portion of the in-lieu fee that was collected was granted to Homeward Bound to subsidize their transitional housing project at 190 Mill Street. Further, a portion of the in-lieu fee that was collected was allocated to EDEN Housing for a loan to build 68 low-income housing units at 999 3rd Street. b. H-8d. Relocation Assistance. In 2020, this City initiated municipal code amendments to establish residential rental relocation assistance requirements for residents subject to “no fault” eviction in the US Census Tract 1122.01 (federally designated Opportunity Zone). a. H-9d. Housing for Extremely Low-Income Households. In 2020, the City granted “by right” approvals for the redevelopment of the Homeward Bound emergency shelter at 190 Mill Street. The redevelopment includes the approval of 32 extremely low-income transitional housing units. Further, in 2020, the City collaborated with and assisted the County of Marin in its purchase of 3301 Kerner Boulevard to convert this office-developed site with transitional housing. b. H-13a. Assisted Living. In 2020, the City issued building permits for the development of the Oakmont Assisted at 3773 Redwood Highway. This development will provide 89 assisted living apartment units with supportive services. c. H-17d. Efficient Project Review. In 2020, the City implemented and initiated a number or measures to further promote efficient project review. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the City launched: a) an online permit application program for both Planning review and Building SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 5 Permits; b) a “virtual public counter” to service customers during City Hall closure; and c) a piloted Design Review Board Sub-Committee to review projects. d. H-18a. Inclusionary Housing Nexus Study. In 2020, the City partnered with the County of Marin to initiate a study to update the affordable housing in-lieu fee for new residential and non- residential (commercial linkage fee) projects.  Summary Table. The Summary Table tab includes a summary of Tables A through G. There are only two relevant tables as shown below. As shown in these tables there were total 82 units were issued building permits in the 2020 reporting period. This is also the total number of units that count toward the City’s RHNA goals. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: As required by State law (California Environmental Quality Act), review and action on the APR must be reviewed to determine if it is subject to environmental review. As the APR is an informational report, it will have no physical impact on the environment. The APR is classified as a planning study, which qualifies for a Statutory Exemption from the provisions of the CEQA Guidelines under 14 CRR Section 15262. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: Notice of the public hearing was conducted in accordance with the public review period and noticing requirements contained in Chapter 29 of the Zoning Ordinance. Notice of public hearing was mailed to all neighborhood associations and stakeholders including the San Rafael Chamber of Commerce and housing advocacy groups. FISCAL IMPACT: There is no fiscal impact associated with the completion and submittal of the 2020 APR. SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT / Page: 6 OPTIONS: 1. Accept the APR as presented by staff; 2. Accept the APR with modifications; or 3. Reject the APR and direct staff to return with additional information. ATTACHMENTS: 1. 2020 HCD Annual Progress Report Tables 2. Public Hearing Notice 3. Correspondence Jurisdiction San Rafael Reporting Year 2020 (Jan. 1 - Dec. 31) Current Year Deed Restricted 4 Non-Deed Restricted 0 Deed Restricted 2 Non-Deed Restricted 7 Deed Restricted 0 Non-Deed Restricted 0 69 82 46 80 80 0 0 0 0 0 Income Rental Ownership Total Very Low 0 0 0 Low 0 0 0 Moderate 0 0 0 Above Moderate 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 Cells in grey contain auto-calculation formulas Very Low Low Moderate Above Moderate Units Constructed - SB 35 Streamlining Permits Number of Streamlining Applications Approved Total Developments Approved with Streamlining Total Units Constructed with Streamlining Total Housing Applications Submitted: Number of Proposed Units in All Applications Received: Total Housing Units Approved: Total Housing Units Disapproved: Total Units Housing Applications Summary Use of SB 35 Streamlining Provisions Note: Units serving extremely low-income households are included in the very low- income permitted units totals Number of Applications for Streamlining Building Permits Issued by Affordability Summary Income Level CITY OF SAN RAFAEL NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Notice is hereby given that the San Rafael City Council will hold a public hearing on the following project: MEETING DATE/TIME/LOCATION: Monday, March 15, 2021 7:00 p.m. COVID-19 ADVISORY NOTICE Consistent with Executive Orders No.-25-20 and No. N-29-20 from the Executive Department of the State of California and the Marin County March 16, 2020 Shelter in Place Order, the San Rafael City Council meeting of March 15, 2021 will not be physically open to the public and the meeting will be streamed live to YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/cityofsanrafael and through Zoom. Instructions on how to participate online, will be available on the YouTube channel. PROJECT DESCRIPTION: ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORT (APR) ON HOUSING – Per State law, the City of San Rafael is required to complete and submit an Annual Progress Report (APR) on housing to the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development. The APR includes data on the number of housing units submitted and approved in 2020, and an update on the progress of implementing programs in the City’s Housing Element. Further, State law requires that the City conduct a public hearing on the APR to solicit public comments. File No.: P21-003. As required by State law (California Environmental Quality Act), review and action on the APR must be reviewed to determine if it is subject to environmental review. As the APR is an informational report, it will have no physical impact on the environment. The APR is classified as a planning study, which qualifies for a Statutory Exemption from the provisions of the CEQA Guidelines under 14 CRR Section 15262. WHAT WILL HAPPEN: You may comment on the project online. The City Council will consider public comment/testimony and decide whether to accept the APR. IF YOU CANNOT PARTICIPATE: You may send a letter to Lindsay Lara, City Clerk by email to Lindsay.Lara@cityofsanrafael.org.. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Renee Nickenig, Assistant Planner at (415) 485-3397 or renee.nickenig@cityofsanrafael.org. City offices are currently closed to public walk in, but you can contact the planner for more information. You can also view the staff report after 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before the meeting at http://www.cityofsanrafael.org/meetings. SAN RAFAEL CITY COUNCIL /s/ Lindsay Lara Lindsay Lara CITY CLERK