Beginning on July 1, housing developers throughout California will have a much easier path to build large residential developments near trolley and bus stops due to the implementation of Senate Bill 79.
In San Diego local officials are trying to find a balance with implementing the law and ensuring that the density boost does not impact fire safety, pollution from traffic and environmental and historical resources.
On May 7, the San Diego City Council voted 6-0 to restrict SB 79 provisions to within a one-mile walking distance from existing or planned mass transit stops and to defer to the regional planning agency, San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), on which transit stops could be a good fit for a density boost.
According to SANDAG, as few as four and as many as 52 transit stops could be locations for higher and larger housing projects.
Asked how SB 79 will impact San Diego neighborhoods, city spokesman Peter Kelly says any version of a bill will ensure that the city will phase in the implementation of SB 79 in low-resource areas, areas with a high risk, historical sites, and locations where flooding occurs.
Yet as the city discusses exactly how it will enact SB 79, some San Diego communities may see big changes sooner than expected.
City spokesperson Kelly says that the city will be required to approve multi-family homes up to a specified height and density and floor area ratio on land that allows for residential, mixed-use and commercial uses in these areas.
“In many instances, these densities are already allowed by the current zoning,” he said. “In other instances, the state law would allow for more density than what would otherwise by allowed by San Diego’s local zoning.”
California YIMBY is a statewide advocacy organization working to pass legislation to
end the state’s housing shortage. Representatives from that industry, both locally and
statewide, say they’re all in on this bill that they claim is needed to kick-start construction of
more affordable housing.
Saad Asad, communications manager for the pro-housing advocacy group California
YIMBY, emphasized that his local chapter was not involved in the advocacy that led to the implementation of SB 79.
“We backed the law at the state level and defer to our local partners on their interpretation of the city’s implementation,” Asad said.
California Housing Defense Fund, another nonprofit using legal advocacy to pursue more
housing statewide was another proponent of SB 79 and its passage.
“The purpose of this law, and its effect over time, is to allow more multi-family type
housing development near transit corridors around trolley and bus stations and
dedicated bus lanes,” said James Lloyd, the defense fund’s director of planning &
investigations. “If local governments follow this law – more housing will be built.”
Lloyd noted SB 79 is a state mandate. “It is the law of the land,” he said. “Cities have
flexibility in implementing it: But it’s not optional.”
Andrew Malick, president of The Council of Infill Builders, San Diego Chapter, a
501(c)(6) nonprofit corporation seeking community solutions through smart infill
development, said his group’s letter to the City Council is clear in supporting his
group’s goal to preserve San Diego’s pro-housing momentum.
“At this critical juncture for our city, we believe that increasing housing density at major
transit stops represents a significant net benefit rather than a cost to be managed or delayed,” states the chapter’s letter. “In a time of severe budget crisis, San Diego must prioritize efficient land-use patterns … Delaying this housing, which could add an estimated 367,000 units near transit, stalls the economic engine San Diego needs right now.”
