HomeMy WebLinkAbout23 - Necessary Amendments to Implement the 6th Cycle Housing Element and to Place the Major General Plan Amendment on the November 5, 2024 General Election Ballot Pursuant - Handout-�--�s - a �� ��, ;Zm_q
July 23, 2024
Mayor Will O'Neill & Members of the City Council
City of Newport Beach
100 Civic Center Drive
Newport Beach, CA 92660
Subject: Newport Beach Housing Element; Agenda Item 23
Via Email: citycouncil@newportbeachca.gov
Dear Mayor O'Neill and Members of the City Council,
We are requesting this correspondence be included in the official public record.
Site Selection
The City's site selection process was overinclusive, not guided by planning principles and not in
accordance with the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD)
Guidelines. The City sent a form letter to every commercial owner asking if they would consider
having their property included in the Housing Element. This was quite unusual given that in the
State of California, a city is under no obligation to include private owners in their rezoning
process. Of course, commercial property owners whose property values would be meaningfully
increased by high density multi -family zoning responded "YES". The "YES" response was so
large the City was forced to apply an arbitrary 30% plus or minus redevelopment factor to reduce
the number of units that would be zoned for residential to 11,878 including Banning Ranch and
other pipeline units.
One must be suspicious that this approach, which had the effect of politicizing the process and
creating a constituency of support for growth was the first step in the overall plan.
Buffer and Pipeline Units
Our City has the opportunity to minimize the number of housing units they are required to zone
and remain in compliance with California Department of Housing and Community Development
("HCD") through its application of the sanctioned use of Pipeline units and an HCD
recommended buffer of 15-30%. Pipeline units are defined as 5th Cycle RHNA sites not yet
permitted, Accessory Dwelling Units ("ADUs") and other sites entitled but not yet permitted.
There were 2,229 Pipeline units at the time HCD certified the City's Housing Element (October,
2022). The city has continued to approve new housing developments since October, 2022 and
the Pipeline units have increased to approximately 3,000. The city can reduce it's 4,845 RHNA
mandate by 3,000 Pipeline units resulting in 1,845 units that they are required to zone as
residential housing units and remain in compliance with HCD.
Santa Ana, La Habra, and Yorba Linda used its Pipeline units to reduce or completely satisfy
their state mandated RHNA requirement.
Fountain Valley, Placentia, Lake Forest, and Cerritos are examples of cities that decided to only
zone the state mandated units with little or no buffer.
Instead of following the commonsense approach of these cities, Newport Beach is applying a
70% buffer, and zoning 8,174 units, 3,329 units above the RHNA mandate of 4,845 units.
State Density Bonus
The City has also decided to allow developers to use the State Density Bonus in addition to the
8,174 zoned units rather than inclusive of the 8,174 zoned units. State Density Bonus Law
requires the City to provide a housing developer with a density bonus and other concessions or
incentives if the developer agrees to provide specified percentages of units for lower income
households. As a result, the 8,174 zoned units can be increased by 100% to 16,348 units by use
of the density bonus. The City is not required to take this approach.
The amendment to make State Density Bonus units in addition to the 8,174 zoned units was not
highlighted at the February 13, 2024 City Council study session. In fact, it was buried in an
internal document published on March 28, 2024, and in the package the city sent to ALUC on
April 30, 2024. City Council's first opportunity to vote on the amended State Density Bonus
language will be on July 23, 2024. The City indicates they cannot make a change to the zoning
implementation language sent to ALUC because there will not be sufficient time to go back to
ALUC and set a November election. In effect the process by design effectively usurps City
Council's authority to approve or disapprove this very critical issue on including or excluding the
State Density Bonus units from the zoned 8,174.
Bypass Greenlight Initiative
The staff report for the July 23, 2024, City Council meeting states, "Pursuant to the Housing
Element Section 4 (Housing Plan), a failed vote should result in the City's pursuit of a second
ballot vote with a revised approval that lessens the amount of the development proposed to meet
the RHNA allocation. However, this approach anticipated an initial ballot vote in March 2024,
and there is no longer time to conduct a second ballot vote and meet the February 2025 deadline
for implementation." So, even in the context of Greenlight, this City Council and City staff
failed to organize and schedule the Housing Element process in a way that would have provided
ample time to follow HCD guidelines (i.e. hold a vote, if that vote fails, modify and hold a
second vote, if that second vote fails, seek guidance from the Attorney General).
Yorba Linda's Measure B empowers voters to approve or reject major adjustments to the city's
land use documents. They are scheduled to go to a second vote of the people in November 2024.
They reduced their number of sites to be zoned residential after a failed first vote by increasing
the Pipeline units, and by reducing the RHNA buffer.
Yorba Linda's RHNA buffer is 3% versus Newport Beach which has a buffer of 70%. Why was
Yorba Linda able to effectively plan and organize a process to allow the people to vote?
One must be suspicious that the City Council never intended to honor Greenlight. This mistake
is just too egregious and damaging to believe that it was not intentional!
There is absolutely no State Law that denies Newport Beach residents the ability to exercise our
right under the City Charter to vote on the Housing Plan. There is also no judicial support for
bypassing the Greenlight vote if the City Council votes to approve far more housing than is
required by state law. Let the people vote!
This process has been shrouded with deception and whether you vote to allow the people their
right to vote or not the truth will come out.
Sincerely,
Marshall "Duffy" Duffield
Former city council member and Mayor
Joy Brenner
Former city council member