New housing laws roil officials in Burlingame

While acknowledging the intent of the policies designed to address affordability through loosened development regulations, councilmembers suggested the implementation may be inappropriate for Burlingame.

“I find this whole thing very frustrating,” said Councilwoman Ann Keighran, regarding the nearly dozen bills signed by Gov. Jerry Brown as part of a housing law package.

Top of mind among concerns to councilmembers were new laws streamlining development, with special consideration for projects setting aside a substantial amount of units aside at an affordable rate.

Senate Bill 35 is perhaps the most notable example of the recently-signed laws, as the legislation strips the currently held rights of local administrative bodies to hold up construction of proposals meeting a certain, albeit narrow, criteria.

The law pertaining to multi-residential developments with at least 10 percent of affordable units proposed in an appropriately zoned area on a site which has not served as tenant housing in the last decade would only be subject to objective review by planning commissions.

Such standards would greatly reduce the rights of commissioners to delay or deny certain proposals on the grounds of project designs being deemed incompatible with surrounding neighborhood character.

Burlingame Historical Society President Jennifer Pfaff harshly criticized the legislation, which she considered counterproductive.

“I’m floored. Shocked. Just shocked,” said Pfaff, who is also a local architectural expert.

Officials agreed, and raised concerns the legislation will invite development of boilerplate, cookie-cutter plans by sapping officials authority to enforce design driven decisions.

“Burlingame for many years has worked very hard to develop guidelines, but many of those guidelines have to deal with neighborhood consistency, so all of that goes out the door with this,” said Keighran.

Beyond the architectural impact, SB 35 would also disallow local officials from denying a proposal due to concerns it would be too dense for its surrounding community.

As well, officials raised their eyebrows at legislation enhancing the state government’s ability to force compliance with Regional Housing Needs Allocation, which dictates the amount of new homes and affordable units local municipalities should build.

Cities and counties are required to identify appropriate sites for development of housing at each level of affordability, while also quantifying the amount of units each location can accommodate.

Under Senate Bill 166, officials must justify the rationale for allowing developments diverting from the state’s consideration of each site’s highest and best use, which favors construction of dense and affordable housing.

If cities are challenged for not following the legislation, they are subject to substantial financial penalties for coming up short of the state’s mandate.

“This just opens up Pandora’s Box for attorneys to sue and sue and sue,” said Councilwoman Donna Colson.

The decisions come down just as Burlingame officials are in the midst of reconsidering the city’s general plan, which aims to update development standards and zoning regulations for the first time in decades.

Vice Mayor Michael Brownrigg suggested the state laws may have far reaching impacts though, as he expects local officials will be more selective with their decisions.

“This legislation as a whole could have a chilling effect on cities like our expanding zoning,” he said.

He also questioned the logic of lawmakers pushing private developers to construct affordable units, which he believes could lessen builder interest in high priced regions such as the Bay Area.

Keighran expressed a similar sentiment.

“It’s going to be very difficult to get anyone who wants to develop here,” she said. “We may be in a worse position.”

Colson said she believed the new regulations could help address housing and affordability concerns in larger state cities, while introducing a more contentious dynamic in smaller communities.

“It creates almost a hostile environment where you will be pitting developers against citizens,” she said. “It doesn’t seem productive.”

She added the heightened requirements may invite increased staffing costs, as cities could need more personnel to assure their cities are in accordance with the new laws.

Observing the variety of potential hurdles posed through the legislation package, Mayor Ricardo Ortiz succinctly summarized the position of most Burlingame officials.

“All of us up here are very concerned,” he said.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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