Nov 30, 2024 | Housing
By DAVID GARRICK
November 23, 2024
San Diego officials finally closed the zoning loophole pitting neighbor against neighbor in coastal communities — but angst continues over the many backyard apartments it has already allowed directly along property lines.
Two neighbors in Crown Point haven’t spoken for months, and a new backyard apartment on their property line remains unfinished because one neighbor won’t allow the other to access his yard to stucco the last wall.
Nov 23, 2024 | Legislation, Housing, Taxes
By Kota Suzuki,Data team intern
Nov 20, 2024
Over the last several decades, an increasing number of California cities have transitioned to “charter cities,” and many more could follow suit. The main obstacle? Recent elections show many residents don’t actually want that designation.
Charter cities in California are incorporated jurisdictions that can impose special taxes at higher rates and with greater flexibility than the state law allows. To become a charter city, a city has to adopt a charter through a majority vote of the city’s electorate.
Nov 16, 2024 | Housing, Legislation
By Alfred Twu
Nov 16, 2024
In California, 2023 was a blockbuster year for housing legislation with bills that streamlined approvals in most major cities, doubled the affordable housing density bonus, created more options for townhouses, condos and ADUs, and allowed religious organizations to build affordable housing on their land, regardless of zoning.
Nov 15, 2024 | Housing
By Roland Li, Business Reporter
Nov 15, 2024
Gov. Gavin Newsom is moving part time to a home in Marin County that sold on Thursday for $9.1 million, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The six-bedroom property in the unincorporated community of Kentfield includes floor-to-ceiling windows, a swimming pool and a spa, according to a real estate listing.
Newsom’s office declined to confirm the details of the plans nor whether Newsom bought the property.
Nov 15, 2024 | Housing
By Kevin V. Nguyen
Nov. 14, 2024 • 5:00am
Portola Valley considered dissolving itself after struggling to meet state housing mandates. Change is coming for the local population in the form of new housing, which the state is demanding after years of a worsening affordability crisis. Residents are being given the choice to hop on board, get out of the way, or risk getting run over.
Portola Valley, a town of roughly 4,200 people and an average home cost of $3.8 million, is finding out the price of resistance.
Nov 14, 2024 | Housing
By Claire Greenburger
November 13, 2024
“We are experiencing an extreme housing crisis here,” says Jenny Silva, board chair of Marin Environmental Housing Collaborative. Across Marin, affordable housing for low- and middle-income residents is scarce. “We priced out the nurses and teachers long ago,” Silva says. As Marin’s housing crisis intensifies, so do the climate risks throughout the county — a dual crisis that has sparked a contentious debate over where and how to develop new housing.
