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San Francisco Bay Area Housing Needs Plan, 2007-2014
At its annual housing conference, June 5, 2008, ABAG released San Francisco Bay Area Housing Needs Plan, 2007-2014.
The 2008 report is the third annual housing report, building on A Place to Call Home: Housing in the San Francisco Bay Area.
It includes housing targets for 2007-2014 established as part of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation process.
San Francisco Bay Area Housing Needs Plan, 2007-2014
can be read online in PDF format.
ABAG Executive Board Approves Final Allocation - May 15, 2008
At the ABAG Executive Board meeting on May 15, 2008, Paul Fassinger, ABAG Research Director, and Christy Riviere, Senior Planner, requested that the Executive Board approve the Final RHNA and direct staff to forward that allocation, along with supporting written material, to the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
A public hearing was held at 7:30 p.m. during the Executive Board meeting to receive oral or written testimony on the Final RHNA. The Executive Board adopted the staff recommendation.
ABAG Executive Board Releases Proposed Final Allocation
At its March 20th meeting, the Executive Board held a public hearing on appeals to the draft RHNA allocations. Ultimately, it approved the recommendations of its Appeals Committee, including a trade between the City of Mountain View and the County of Santa Clara. Below is the revised table adopted by the Board, which shows the trade and the detailed allocation for the San Mateo Subregion. The Executive Board released this as its Proposed Final Allocation.
Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Appeals
The RHNA Appeals Committee met on February 27, 2008 to hear the presentations of each of the jurisdictions that requested an appeal of to their housing needs allocation. The results of the committee meeting are outlined in a memorandum prepared for the March 20, 2008, ABAG Executive Board meeting. The memorandum is posted below.
A public hearing on the appeals is scheduled as part of the ABAG Executive Board meeting on March 20th at 8:00 p.m. in the Joseph P. Bort MetroCenter Auditorium, 101 Eighth Street, Oakland, California.
Appeals Period Begins
According to state law, appeals and negotiated transfers can be made if ABAG does not accept the proposed revised share or modify the revised share to the satisfaction of the requesting local government. If this happens, a local government who has made a revision request may then appeal its draft allocation or transfer the appealed amount to another willing jurisdiction.
The appeals period is 60 days and starts November 15, 2007. Appeals must be made before January 17, 2008. All appeals must be made in writing.
ABAG Responds to RHNA Revision Requests
The period to request revisions to local RHNA allocations closed on September 21, 2007. Nineteen local governments submitted comments during this period. The majority of comments focused on Projections 2007 and consistency with local land use plans. (click here for copy of all local revision requests) Two jurisdictions, Palo Alto and Mountain View, made specific revision requests based on their local planning and permitting authority. ABAG's Board denied the revision request of 280 units for the City of Mountain View. The Board agreed that the lack of planning authority for the NASA Ames land does not preclude the requirement to plan for the housing generated by NASA Ames. The Board granted the revision request of 645 units for the City of Palo Alto. This amount was attributed to Palo Alto due to housing growth, existing jobs and job growth at Stanford University, however Santa Clara County has planning authority for Stanford University. (click here for staff report on revision requests)
A Place to Call Home: Housing in the San Francisco Bay Area
ABAG recently released its second edition of A Place to Call Home: Housing in the San Francisco Bay Area (updated August 2007). The 2007 report emphasizes the importance of encouraging housing development in existing communities and near transit. A shift toward this development pattern can improve the quality of life in the region, particularly by expanding housing and transportation choices. Promoting growth in these areas is a trend that is gaining momentum throughout the Bay Area, and the report presents some of the best practices and tools that local communities are using to promote housing in these locations. It also documents local government progress in meeting the housing targets established for 1999-2006 as part of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation process.
A Place to Call Home: Housing in the San Francisco Bay Area is available for purchase from the ABAG Web Store ($20.00 U.S.) or can be read online in PDF format.
Draft Regional Housing Needs Allocations - Adopted
On July 19, 2007, ABAG's Executive Board adopted the draft RHN allocations for all the jurisdictions in the San Francisco Bay Area (excluding the San Mateo County Subregion), by income category, for the 2007 - 2014 period. The release of this draft RHNA allocation begins a 60-day public comment period. Jurisdictions will have until September 18, 2007 to request revisions to their allocations. ABAG will have 60 days to respond to requests for revisions. After any revisions, local governments will have an additional 60 days to appeal the revised RHNA numbers. In early 2008, ABAG will hold a public hearing on appeals. Prior to June 2008, the final RHNA will need to be adopted by ABAG's Executive Board and released by ABAG. The draft RHN allocations and technical document are posted below.
Regional Housing Need Allocation for San Mateo Subregion - Adopted
On May 17, 2007, the ABAG Executive Board adopted San Mateo's Regional Housing Need of 15,738 units.
2007-2014 Regional Housing Need Delivered by HCD
On April 6th, HCD delivered to ABAG, via letter, the region's total housing need for the 2007-2014 RHNA period. The total regional need is a minimum of 214,500 housing units.
Total units by income categories are: (percentages are determined by regional average income distribution)
| Income Category | Percent | Units |
| Very-Low | 22.8% | 48,840 |
| Low | 16.4% | 35,102 |
| Moderate | 19.3% | 41,316 |
| Above Moderate | 41.5% | 89,242 |
| Total | 100% | 214,500 |
The total regional need will be allocated to jurisdictions, outside of the San Mateo Subregion,
at the May 17th ABAG Executive Board meeting. The allocation will be performed using the RHNA allocation method adopted by the Board at their January 18th meeting. This will open a 60-day comment period on the regional allocation. During this period, local governments may request revisions to their allocation. After the 60-day revision period, ABAG will respond to requests for revisions. Upon the completion of revisions, appeals can be made. Jurisdictions will have a 60-day appeal period, beginning approximately in December 2007.
The San Mateo Subregion will be allocated its share of the regional need on April 16th, at the ABAG Administrative Committee meeting. This will open a 30-day comment period on the San Mateo Subregion allocation.
Final Methodology Adopted and Released at ABAG's Executive Board Meeting on January 18, 2007.
The staff memorandum to the Executive Board and the final resolution noting revisions to the draft Methodology are accesible by the links below. The public comment period for the draft Methodology ended on January 18, 2007 at 5:00 p.m. All written comments received during the 60-day period have been compiled in one file.
Housing Methodology Committee (HMC)
The Housing Methodology Committee (HMC), an advisory committee to staff, was established in May. It had its first meeting on May 25th. The agenda, materials and notes on the discussion are available.
The Membership of the HMC includes 3 representatives from each of the 9 counties, 2 representatives of the ABAG Executive Board, as well as stakeholder representatives related to Affordable Housing, Environmental Issues, Social Equity and the Home Building Industry.
Members were sought through an April 11th letter sent to all of the region's City Managers and County Executives and through announcements at the April meeting of ABAG's Regional Planning Committee and the May meeting of ABAG's Executive Board. The HMC includes both Elected Officials and city and county staff. All meetings are open to the public.
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