The legislative push to wrest control of zoning from local governments and spur construction of affordable housing developments with more density, such as apartments, will languish in the California senate.
The Senate Appropriations Committee decided to delay SB50 until 2020. There are other modest proposals, per a National Mortgage News story, that overlap somewhat with SB50 like a proposal to prohibit cities with high rents and low vacancy rates from restricting housing construction for five years and a bill that would remove density limits for developments that contain only affordable units. But these and other measures targeting the state’s housing shortage may run into the same headwinds that stopped SB50.
Advertisement
Related Stories
Housing Policy + Finance
The Garden State Takes a New Approach to Expanding Affordable Housing
Recent legislation in New Jersey could provide inspiration for eliminating affordable housing hurdles in other places with strong housing markets
Planning + Development
What's Standing in the Way of Building Housing Near Transit Stops
Two recent studies look at the factors hindering housing development near rapid transit
Affordability
Models of Affordability: Houston, Beyond Zoning
Limited land use regulations have certainly helped the city's housing affordability, but for low-income residents, policies such as inclusionary zoning may not be enough