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9A Page 3 AB 2484 (HANCOCK): LEAGUE-SPONSORED BILL SEEKS EXEMPTION FOR HIGHER-DENSI1Y ZONED PARCELS AB 2484 (Hancock), the League of Californía Cities-sponsored housing measure designed to exempt sites zoned at high densities from the density bonus law is set for hearing in the Assem- bly Local Government Committee on April 19. Following passage by the Local Government Committee, the bill will next be heard by the As- sembly Housing, Community and Economic Development Committee. If it becomes law, AB 2484 would reward communities that have zoned for high-density residential use (40/25/15 units per acre in metro- politan, suburban, unincorporated rural jurisdic- tions, respectively) by exempting sites zoned at high densities from the density bonus law. The bill also promotes higher densities, as communities that already up-zoned will be rewarded with local control and may consider up-zoning parcels as. a way to bring more certainty to local planning. "We need to reward cities that are working to build higher densities," said Assemblymember and bill author Loni Hancock. "There have to be incen- tives built into our housing laws if we want them to work." Visit www.cacities.org!billsearch and search for A8 2484 for a background document on the mea- sure. AS 2484 Clears Up Density Bonus Law Confusion for Planners Recent changes to state Density Bonus Law have made implementation of the law unpredict- able for many cities. Under the law, developers can demand a city to increase residential densities on a parcel by 35 percent; demand many develop- ment concessions and waivers when they propose to add only a small percentage of affordable units to a project; and then sue the city and collect attorney fees if their demands are not met. This creates confusion for local planners: how can a city plan a neighborhood, including streets, parking, and other infrastructure when a state law allows an increase of the density of any parcel on the block by an additional 35 percent? State Housing Element Law, Section 65583.3(c )(3)(B) of the Government Code, requires the state to recognize the following zoning densities in a city or county's housing element as appropriate and sufficient to accom- modate housing for ~ income households. These are known as the "Mullin" standards: For incorporated cities within non-metro- politan counties and for non-metropolitan coun- ties that have micropolitan areas: sites allowing at least 15 units per acre. For unincorporated areas in all non- metropolitan counties sites allowing at least 10 units per acre. . For suburban jurisdictions sites allowing at least 20 units per acre. . For jurisdictions in metropolitan counties sites allowing at least 30 units per acre. State housing element law recognizes the established "Mullin" densities as appropriate for local plans to meet the needs of 100 percent lower income housing developments. Density Bonus Law, however, operates without any connection to densities that have been recog- nized as sufficient by the Department of Housing. A perverse result of this law is that it leads some cities to consider down zoning parcels - or avoiding zoning parcels for residential uses at all - to protect themselves from developer de- mands, lawsuits, and other uncertainties. "AB 2484 solves this problem by rewarding 'good actor' communities that have already zoned parcels at high densities," explained league Legislative Director Dan Carrigg. "It's a solution that is simple and fair. Continued on Page 5 Visit the League's Official Website-www.cacities.org PRIORITY FOCUS. PAGE 3 March 24, 2006 -Issue #12