COUNTY OF SAN MATEO

Inter-Departmental Correspondence

Planning and Building Department

 

DATE:

November 18, 2010

BOARD MEETING DATE:

December 7, 2010

SPECIAL NOTICE/HEARING:

10-Day Notice

VOTE REQUIRED:

Majority

 

TO:

Honorable Board of Supervisors

   

FROM:

Jim Eggemeyer, Community Development Director

   

SUBJECT:

Public hearing to consider a Resolution certifying a Negative Declaration for a revision to the County Housing Element, and directing staff to submit the revised Housing Element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development for review.

 

RECOMMENDATION:

Adopt a Resolution:

1.

Certifying the Negative Declaration as complete, correct and adequate, and prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act and applicable State and County Guidelines, and

   

2.

Directing staff to submit the updated General Plan Housing Element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for review and certification.

   

BACKGROUND:

On November 2, 2010, the Board of Supervisors considered the actions described above, certification of a Negative Declaration for the updated Housing Element of the County’s General Plan, and direction to staff to submit said Housing Element to HCD for review and certification (the staff report from the November 2 hearing remains a current and accurate description of the project and the recommended actions). Prior to and at the public hearing on November 2, Planning and Building Department staff and the Board of Supervisors received significant amounts of public comment on the updated Housing Element. The majority of public comment expressed opposition to Policy HE 2.5, which proposed a potential time-of-sale code inspection program for multi-family rental units, and to Policies HE 6.2 and HE 10.2, which referenced the potential program described in Policy HE 2.5. There was also some opposition to Policies 6.1 and 10.1, which proposed exploration of methods to prohibit or discourage demolition and/or conversion of residential properties to other uses. A small subset of public comment also expressed specific opposition to the inclusion of a reference to design review in Policy HE 3, which focuses on ways to preserve the character of existing residential neighborhoods. After comment and discussion, the Board continued this item until the December 7 hearing, and directed staff to make modifications to the Housing Element to address public concerns, and to explore alternative methods to achieve the goals of the policies in question.

 

Staff has assessed public comment, met with members of the public and stakeholders, including the San Mateo County Association of Realtors and Silicon Valley Association of Realtors, and has modified the relevant policies, as described below. Staff believes these modifications still effectively address the needs and goals of the policies in question, while also fully addressing the concerns expressed by the public. The proposed modifications do not impact the Initial Study and Negative Declaration for the updated Housing Element.

 

DISCUSSION:

Staff proposes the following modifications to Housing Element policies to address the public comments received and the direction given by the Board of Supervisors:

 

HE 2.5 and 2.6 would be combined into HE 2.5, and would read as follows:

 

HE 2.5

In order to maintain the viability of our rental housing stock and ensure safe and sanitary conditions for tenants, study the most feasible and effective methods for identifying and correcting code violations in multi-family rental properties that impact the health and safety of tenants, including codes addressing the interior condition of units. Potential methods include a program of periodic inspections of all multi-family rental properties, a complaint-based inspection system, landlord self-certification with periodic audits, or some combination of these methods. Any of these methods may include multi-family rental landlord/owner registration with the County and collection of fees to cover the costs of an inspection program. The proposed program might also draw on resources from the Planning and Building Department’s Building Inspection Section and Code Enforcement Section, the Housing Department, and Environmental Health. Any program would also include incentives and opportunities for multi-family rental landlords and/or owners to use the Housing Department’s rehabilitation assistance programs. Based on the results of study and analysis, draft an ordinance for Board of Supervisors approval.

   
 

Lead: Planning and Building Department/Housing Department

   
 

Implementation Target: Undertake a study in 2011-2012, including analysis of methods used in other jurisdictions and input from stakeholders, and report back to the Board on the most feasible and effective methods for unincorporated San Mateo County. At Board direction, draft an ordinance for adoption in 2012-2013.

   
 

Timeframe: 2011-2013

   

HE 6.2, which references HE 2 by number only, would not change.

   

HE 10.2 would be modified to read as follows:

   

HE 10.2

Study and consider adopting a program to ensure and enforce compliance in multi-family rental properties with all codes impacting the health and safety of tenants, as listed in HE 2.5.

   

HE 6.1 would be modified to read as follows:

   

HE 6.1

Study, and consider enacting an ordinance that would: require the County to assess the potential impacts of any demolitions and/or conversions of multi-family residential property to non-residential uses (including demolition for the purposes of conversion, and demolition due to rehabilitation, health and safety, and code compliance issues, including those demolitions initiated by County enforcement action) on the housing need described in the County Housing Element; require some mitigation measures on the part of the property owner to offset the loss of housing stock and increased housing need due to demolition and/or conversion, potentially including in-lieu fees and/or other mitigation; and require the County to work with property owners, including offering rehabilitation, relocation, and other assistance when feasible, to ensure that any demolition and conversion that would adversely impact the County’s housing need is avoided or mitigated to the maximum possible extent.

   
 

Lead: Planning and Building Department/Housing Department

   
 

Timeframe: Study in 2010-2011; return to the Board with program options in 2011-2012.

   

HE 10.1 would be modified to read as follows:

   

HE 10.1

Consider enacting an ordinance addressing demolition and/or conversion of multi-family residential property to other uses (e.g., office or commercial), as listed in HE 6.1.

   

HE 3 would be modified to read as follows:

   

Policy HE 3 – Preserve and Enhance Neighborhood Character. Preserve and enhance the desirable characteristics of residential areas by establishing and implementing appropriate land use designations and development standards that promote compatible development and minimize displacement of existing residents, particularly during consideration of area plans, land use studies and rezonings.

   

Next Steps

   

Prior to adoption of the revised Housing Element, the Board of Supervisors must forward the Housing Element to the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for review and certification. HCD has 60 days after receipt of the Housing Element to comment, suggest changes, and/or certify the Housing Element as adequately meeting the requirements of State law. After HCD’s review, and after consideration of any changes to the Housing Element suggested by HCD, the Board of Supervisors may adopt the updated Housing Element, which would replace the current Housing Element of the County’s General Plan.

 

Environmental Review

 

County staff has completed an Initial Study of the project, indicating that adoption of the updated Housing Element will not have any significant environmental impacts. The Initial Study and Negative Declaration for the project are included at the end of this report. The Initial Study and Notice of Intent to Adopt a Negative Declaration were circulated for public review between August 6, 2010 and September 7, 2010. No comments on the Negative Declaration were received during this time period, and no subsequent comments were received.

 

Reviewing Agencies

 

County Counsel

San Mateo County Housing Department

 

County Counsel has reviewed and approved the Resolution as to form and content.

 

Submittal of the updated General Plan Housing Element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development, and eventual adoption of the revised Housing Element, contributes to the 2025 Shared Vision outcome of a Livable Community by promoting affordable housing for San Mateo County residents.

 

FISCAL IMPACT:

The updated Housing Element, once adopted, will commit County staff to a number of programmatic actions. However, these actions are within the scope of normal work by Planning and Building Department staff, Housing Department staff, and other County staff. Submittal of the updated General Plan Housing Element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development, and eventual adoption of the revised Housing Element, will not have any fiscal impact to the County.