Title
Staff Report for a Resolution to Approve the City of San Leandro 2016 Housing Element Annual Progress Report
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the City Council review and approve the 2016 Annual Progress Report related to the status and progress in implementing the City’s Housing Element. The Annual Progress Report is accompanied by a resolution to meet State reporting requirements pursuant to Govt. Code §65400, which will then be forwarded to the California Department of Housing and Community Development and Governor’s Office of Planning and Research.
BACKGROUND
The Housing Element is one of the seven required elements of the San Leandro General Plan. The City’s current Housing Element Update covers 2015-2023. The State Department of Housing and Community Development certified City’s 2015-2023 Housing Element Update in February 2015.
Pursuant to Government Code §65400, cities and counties must submit an Annual Progress Report every year to the State. Because some regional and State programs have made submittal of the report a funding eligibility requirement, cities and counties are further incentivized to annually complete and submit their Annual Progress Reports. The City’s recent One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) funding application to help with the reconstruction of Washington Avenue from West Juana Avene to Castro Street requires the submittal of the 2016 Annual Report by June 30, 2017.
Analysis
The purpose of the Annual Progress Report is to track and monitor the status of and progress in addressing the City’s housing needs and goals. The primary Housing Element goals and objectives include:
1. New housing opportunities
2. Affordable housing development
3. Administration of housing programs
4. Home ownership
5. Affordable housing conservation
6. Green and sustainable neighborhoods
7. Special needs populations
8. Elimination of housing constraints
9. Fair housing
The State also uses the Annual Progress Report to monitor progress by cities and counties on achieving their Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) goals. State law requires that each city and county ensure that its “fair share” of regional housing accommodate community needs at all income levels. The Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) allocated to San Leandro its RHNA assignment of 2,287 total housing units for the 2015-2023 period.
The actual production of units in the “very low” and “low” income category is the result of Marea Alta Phase 1, BRIDGE Housing’s 115-unit multi-family rental housing development (includes two manager’s units) that was recently completed.
2015-23 RHNA HOUSING
UNIT INCOME LEVELS ALLOCATION UNITS
Very Low-Income 504 82
Low-Income 270 31
Moderate-Income 352 0
Above Moderate-Income 1,161 5
TOTALS 2,287 118
The unit income levels are as follows:
• Very Low-Income are households earning less than 50% of Area Median Income
• Low-Income are households earning between 50% and 80% of Area Median Income
• Moderate-Income are households earning between 80% and 120% Area Median Income
• Above Moderate-Income are households earning more than 120% of Area Median Income
In 2016, the City only issued building permits for three new market rate residential projects (2 single family homes and 1 duplex). However, the City Planning and Building Services Divisions are continuing to receive a large volume of new residential development applications and anticipate seeing more residential building permits issued in 2017 such as Marea Alta Phase 2 (85 units of affordable senior rental housing) and the 60 unit Galvan Apartments proposal at Washington and Thornton. Some of the City’s key accomplishments in 2016 include:
GOAL 53: AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT
• BRIDGE Housing Corporation's Marea Alta Phase 1, a 115-unlt affordable housing development, is nearing completion and occupancy in 2017. Marea Alta Phase 2 (which will have 85 units of affordable senior rental housing) received approval for State/federal low income housing tax credits in 2017 and BRIDGE submitted building permit plans for Phase 2 in late 2016
GOAL 55: HOME OWNERSHIP
• The City conducted two free first-time homebuyers’ seminars in 2016, one in June and one in December.
GOAL 56: AFFORDABLE HOUSING CONSERVATION
• Nine lower income homeowners were approved for Minor Home Repair grants, including two mobile home owners, under the City’s Owner-Occupied Housing Rehabilitation Program.
• The City adopted amendments to the City's Rent Review Ordinance to more effectively and efficiently administer the Rent Review Program.
• The City Council Rules Committee began the process of developing a tenant relocation assistance program for City Council consideration in 2017.
GOAL 60: FAIR HOUSING
• ECHO Housing provided information, counseling, and/or investigation into 20 fair housing complaints or allegations of housing discrimination: 7 for disability, 8 for race/national origin, 3 for familial status and 2 for religion. ECHO also continued to affirmatively further fair housing on behalf of the City through workshops, trainings, public service announcements and fair housing audits.
The submission of the City’s 2016 Annual Progress Reports by June 30, 2017 is a requirement for the City’s current application for $1,048,000 from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) funding to help with the reconstruction of Washington Avenue from West Juana Avenue to Castro Street. The Federal One Bay Area Grant (OBAG) funding is intended to support Alameda County Transportation Commission’s (Alameda CTC) Sustainable Communities Strategy by linking transportation dollars to land-use decisions and targeting transportation investments to support Priority Development Areas (PDAs).
Previous Actions
The City Council adopted the 2015 Housing Element in January 2015, and the State HCD certified the 2015 Housing Element Update in February 2015.
Attachments to Resolution
• Annual Progress Report 2016
PREPARED BY: Tom Liao, Deputy Community Development Director