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<br />Gov.rnmentalConstraints <br />Governmental regulation, while intentionally regulating the qUAlity <br />Or developmenl in the community can also, unintentionally, increase the <br />cost of development And thus the cost of housing. These governmental <br />constraints include land use controls, building codes and their <br />enforcement, site improvements. fees And other eXActions required of <br />developers, and local processing and permit procedures. Land use <br />controls may limit the amount or density of development, thus increasing <br />the cost per unit. Building codes may set specific building standards <br />which add material costs or limit building space on a site, thus <br />increAsing costs. Site improvements like traffic signals or adjacent <br />streets or sewer improvements may increase a development's cost. Finally <br />proce,ssing and permit req..lirements may delay construction, increasing <br />financing and overhead costs of development. <br /> <br />The following describes governmental constraints which may affect the <br />cost of housing in Redwood City. <br /> <br />Land Use Controls <br />General plan density lirr,itations, by their r.ature, lilrit the amount <br />of development on a giver. site and thus may increase the costs of <br />development. The city requIres 60 feet of lot width and a rninimurn of ~O <br />feet of frontage on a public street in R-2 zones for two units. This, <br />and other requirements, may increase the costs of housing development and <br />sometimes prevent development of housing. <br /> <br />Building Code Require~ent5 <br />Whlle rninimu~ building standards are essential to e~sGre safe <br />housing, additional requirements may increase the cost of such housing. <br />Redwood City currentl; faces a particularly severe proble~ ~ith housing <br />deterioration due to the age of the stock and cumulative disinvestmEnt. <br />Pl.any of the houses ir, extremely poor conditiorl present a health and <br />safEty hazard to their occupants and yet provide some of the most <br />affordable housing in the city. <br /> <br />Fees <br />Fees, while important in offsetting the costs of city time in planning <br />and regulating development, can be limited to minimiZE the effect on the <br />cost per unit of housing development. The city has reviewed these fees <br />and set them at a level which reflects the costs to the city and yet <br />makes appropriate contributions to the community for traffic mitigation <br />and other items. <br /> <br />~ <br /> <br />Processinq and Permit Procedure <br />Permit processing can be a lengthy process which delays the development <br />of housing and thus increAses costs. <br /> <br />EXB <br /> <br />'l " <br />J -7 <br /> <br />l.:l <br />