A. City Profile. Housing

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1 I. Introduction This chapter includes a discussion of State housing element requirements and identifies where these requirements are addressed in the document. It also includes a summary of the relationship between the Housing Element and the other General Plan elements and a description of the public participation efforts involved in the preparation of this Housing Element update. A. City Profile The charming, seaside community of Solana Beach is nestled along the northern coast of San Diego County, and is approximately 23 miles from downtown San Diego. Its main access routes include Interstate 5, Highway 101, Lomas Santa Fe Drive, and Via de la Valle. The city enjoys temperatures that average 62 degrees in the winter and 77 degrees in the summer. It offers 1.7 miles of coastline for swimming and surfing. It is a favorite destination for those seeking eclectic shops, great dining, golfing, nightlife, and nearby hiking. Solana Beach was incorporated in It has the second smallest population (12,867) of all jurisdictions within the region. The City covers approximately 3.5 square miles along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by the cities of Del Mar and San Diego to the south, the City of Encinitas to the north, and the unincorporated community of Rancho Santa Fe to the east. The North County Transit District (NCTD) provides public transportation service to the area and operates the bus system as well as a commuter light rail service, the Coaster, which runs between Oceanside to the north and downtown San Diego to the south. Amtrak also provides rail service to Solana Beach as it spans the distance from San Diego to Los Angeles and other northbound destinations. Trains stop at the station located in Solana Beach at 105 N. Cedros Avenue. Solana Beach is bisected north to south by Interstate 5 and east to west by Lomas Santa Fe Drive, which creates four quadrants. Additionally, there is a fifth area bordered by Highway 101 to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. I-1

2 Residents typically view the City in terms of these five distinct areas. The City s proximity to the ocean and its unique community character have resulted in high land and housing values. The community is nearly built out, with very little vacant, developable land. Solana Beach is an affluent community with a median income of $86,908 and a median home price of $840,500. B. State Authorization and Requirements The California State Legislature has identified the attainment of a decent home and suitable living environment for every Californian as the State s main housing goal. Recognizing the important part that local planning programs play in pursuit of this goal, the Legislature has mandated that all cities and counties prepare a housing element as part of their comprehensive general plans. The housing element is an important planning tool that identifies the housing needs of the city and establishes an action plan to meet those needs. Planning to provide housing opportunities for all income levels is extremely important because, in many cases, there is a wide gap between the cost of housing and a person s ability to pay for it. The cost of housing has risen significantly faster than salaries over the years and the recent economic downturn has not improved the situation. Depressed incomes and a higher demand for rental housing have widened the gap. There is no state in the U.S. where a full time minimum wage worker can afford a two bedroom apartment and very few places in this country where one can afford a one bedroom apartment 1. Affordable housing means that no more than 30 percent of a household s income is spent on housing. According to the 2010 Census, 53 percent of all U.S. renters are paying more than 30 percent of their income on housing. In 1960, only 25 percent of renters faced such a burden 2. 1 National Low Income Housing Coalition, Out of Reach. 2 Joint center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, America s Rental Housing: Meeting Challenges, Building on Opportunities. I-2

3 When people cannot afford their housing expenses, there are ripple effects such as overcrowded households; dilapidated housing conditions as residents are unable to afford to maintain their properties; an increased homeless population; longer commutes and associated air quality problems as people try to find more affordable housing farther away from where they work; and potential economic impacts if businesses, unable to find employees that can afford to live in the area, relocate to other communities. Section of the California Government Code sets forth the specific components to be contained in a community s housing element. Table I-1 summarizes these State requirements and identifies the sections in the Solana Beach Housing Element where they are addressed. Table I-1 State Housing Element Requirements Required Housing Element Component Page A. Housing Needs Assessment, Resources, and Constraints 1. Analysis of population trends and projections. II-1, II-4 2. Analysis of employment trends and projections. II Quantification of existing and projected housing needs II-48 for all income levels, including extremely low income households. 4. Analysis and documentation of household II-12, characteristics, including level of payment and ability to pay, overcrowding, and housing stock condition. II-13, II An inventory of land suitable for residential B-2 development including vacant sites and those having redevelopment potential and an analysis of the relationship of zoning and public facilities and services to those sites. 6. The identification of a zone or zones where emergency shelters are allowed as a permitted use without a conditional use permit or other discretionary permit and which have sufficient capacity to accommodate at least one year round shelter. 7. An analysis demonstrating that existing or proposed permit processing, development, and management standards are objective and encourage and facilitate the development of, or conversion to, emergency shelters. 8. An analysis of potential and actual governmental constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing for all income levels, including multi-family rental housing, factory-built housing, mobilehomes, housing for agricultural workers, supportive housing, single-room occupancy units, emergency shelters, and transitional housing, and for persons with disabilities. I-3 II-23, IV-11, B-30 IV-11 IV-1 through IV-28

4 Table I-1 State Housing Element Requirements, Cont. Required Housing Element Component Page 9. Efforts to remove governmental constraints that hinder meeting the regional housing need allocations and IV-12, IV-14 from meeting the need for persons with disabilities, supportive housing, transitional housing, and emergency shelters. 10. An analysis of potential and actual non-governmental IV-29 constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing for all income levels, including the availability of financing, the price of land, and the cost of construction. 11. An analysis of special housing needs, such as those of II-15 the elderly; persons with disabilities, including developmental disabilities; large families; farmworkers, families with female heads of households; and families and persons in need of emergency shelter. 12. Opportunities for energy conservation. III An analysis of existing assisted housing developments II-41 that are eligible to change from low-income housing uses during the next 10 years due to termination of subsidy contracts, mortgage pre-payment, or expiration of restrictions on use. B. Goals and Policies 1. A statement of the community s goals, quantified V-1 objectives, and policies related to the maintenance, preservation, improvement, and development of housing. C. Programs 1. A program that sets forth a schedule of actions during V-5 the planning period, each with a timeline for implementation, which may recognize that certain programs are ongoing, such that there will be beneficial impacts of the programs within the planning period. a. Identify actions that will make sites available with N/A appropriate zoning and development standards to accommodate the City s RHNA. b. Assist in the development of housing to meet the needs of extremely low, very low, low, and moderate income households. V-5, V-9 V-10, V-11, V-12, V-15, V-18, c. Address, and where possible, remove governmental constraints to the maintenance, improvement, and development of housing. V-26 V-12 I-4

5 Table I-1 State Housing Element Requirements, Cont. Required Housing Element Component d. Conserve and improve the condition of the existing affordable housing stock e. Promote housing opportunities for all persons regardless of race, religion, sex, marital status, or disability. f. Preserve assisted housing developments identified as at risk of converting to market rate. g. Identify agencies and officials responsible for the implementation of the various actions and means by which consistency will be achieved with other general plan elements and community goals. h. Include a diligent effort to achieve public participation of all economic segments of the community in the development of the housing element. Page V-19, V-20, V-21, V-22 V-23, V-24 V-20 V-17 I-6, V-26 State housing element law changed in 2008 as a result of Senate Bill 375 to require housing elements to be updated at least every eight years (previously it was every five years) to reflect a community s changing housing needs and better synchronize the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) process with the Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA). Any local government that does not adopt a housing element within 120 days of the statutory deadline falls out of the eight year cycle and must adopt an element every four years. The statutory deadline for this Housing Element cycle is April 30, C. Relationship to Other General Plan Elements The Solana Beach s General Plan contains elements addressing Land Use, Circulation, Housing, Conservation and Open Space, Noise, Safety, and Economic Development. The content of this Housing Element is consistent with the goals and policies of all other elements of the General Plan. The City must ensure that the General Plan and its elements form an integrated, internally consistent, and compatible statement of development policies 3. All elements of a general plan, whether they are 3 Government Code I-5

6 mandatory or optional, are regarded as equally important. In addition, the goals and policies within each element are consistent with each other and with the other elements of the plan. The City will ensure that the Housing Element remains consistent with any amendments/updates to other elements of the General Plan during this Housing Element cycle. D. Public Participation As part of the Housing Element update process, the City utilized a variety of methods to engage the public including workshops, City Council update meetings, an online questionnaire, a General Plan Update website, public review of the draft document, and public hearings prior to adoption. The first public workshop was held on May 10, The City issued a press release regarding the workshop and it was also noticed through announcements at City Council meetings; through Facebook, Twitter, and blasts; a mass mailing to a number of stakeholders including, but not limited to, non-profit and for-profit housing developers, service providers, housing advocates, and citizen committees (see Appendix C); and flyers posted throughout the City at public parks, the library, apartment complexes, and churches. There were approximately 15 attendees and the meeting was broadcast online so people could watch from home. The workshop included a presentation to provide an overview of the purpose of the Housing Element and the State requirements for the document. Following the presentation, participants were organized into small groups and given questions to consider from the perspectives of different people, including those with special needs, such as the elderly, large households, single mothers, farmworkers, homeless individuals and families, persons with disabilities, etc. to identify potential similarities and differences in their housing needs or choices. They were also asked to consider the best way for Solana Beach to accommodate its regional housing needs given the community s constraints. A number of suggestions were provided including encouraging underground parking to maximize the developable area of a lot, encouraging lot consolidation of smaller sites to facilitate more effective multi-family housing, and encouraging redevelopment of the single-story structures along Highway 101 to include residential uses on upper floors. I-6

7 The City also launched a General Plan Update website to keep people informed of the process. The website also includes additional opportunities for the public to respond to questions regarding the Housing Element update and comments to staff. An online questionnaire was released in May of 2012 and is still available for people to respond to. The City noticed the availability of the online questionnaire through announcements at City Council meetings; through Facebook, Twitter, and blasts; through a press release and notice posted in the local newspaper; flyers posted throughout the City at public parks, the library, apartment complexes, churches, coffee shops, a grocery store, the golf course, and train station; flyers distributed by the local school district; hard copies of the questionnaire available at the permitting counter; and flyers distributed during Fiesta del Sol, a major annual family and community event featuring live music, arts & crafts, children's activities, and food and drinks. The questionnaire asks respondents to review the existing Housing Element goals, policies, and programs and identify additional considerations for the update. To date, there are 84 responses to the questionnaire. Responses have ranged from not wanting any new development, to wanting more mixed-use development, especially at the train station, to create an identifiable downtown area. Specific suggestions included, but were not limited to: Ensuring that community character is preserved, Providing incentives for energy efficiency, Reducing development fees, Preserving existing affordable and rental housing, Encouraging mixed use, Providing housing for lower income residents and relatively inexpensive housing for people who work in Solana Beach, Reducing residential densities, Developing over the train station parking lot, Integrating affordable housing throughout the community rather than concentrating it in one area, Letting the market decide what to build, Not building any more affordable housing, and Not changing anything. A public City Council Update meeting was held on June 13, 2012 to provide an update on the existing conditions research and public outreach efforts to date. A presentation I-7

8 was given that summarized 2010 Census data and feedback received from the first public workshop and online questionnaire. The second public workshop was held on July 18, It was noticed the same as the first public workshop with additional flyers posted around the city at coffee shops, a grocery store, the train station, and the golf course. There were 31 attendees and the workshop was broadcast online so people could watch from home. The second public workshop began with an introductory presentation regarding the status of the update, the State requirements, and the public input received to date. Following the presentation, participants were asked to organize into small groups. They were given the draft goals, policies, and programs to consider as well as a hypothetical affordable housing project intended to help generate discussion. In general, the community expressed concern over the State s density bonus law, which permits developers to request deviations to development standards and concern over potential parking and traffic impacts associated with new residential development. There was a desire to require more bicycle parking and bike facilities if a reduction in vehicular parking is requested, provide incentives for bicycle use, and implement a bike share program. Opportunities to encourage sustainable development, including such features as renewable energy, use of recycled materials, and drought tolerant landscaping were looked upon favorably. Suggestions for accommodating affordable housing included integrating it into a mixed-use project or converting existing market-rate apartments to affordable units. There was also a request to facilitate aging in place in the policies and address sexual orientation in the anti-discrimination policies. The results of the public participation efforts have been posted on the City s website and many of these comments have been incorporated into the Housing Element, such as encouraging sustainable green building practices, promoting opportunities to age in place, and continuing to encourage accessory living units. There will be additional opportunities for public comment as the update process continues. The draft document has been released for public review. The City of Solana Beach, as the lead agency, has also prepared a Negative Declaration (ND) in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). A subsequent notice and draft ND has been released for public review. Additionally, a I-8

9 noticed public hearing(s) will occur prior to the City Council s adoption of the Housing Element. In Solana Beach, the City Council performs the Planning Commission functions. I-9

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