How You Can Support Affordable Housing in Redwood City

Have you heard of AB 1229? This bill was recently passed by the State Legislature and is sitting on Governor Jerry Brown's desk awaiting his signature.

AB 1229 is a valuable tool that will promote the building of affordable housing in our community. As the Peninsula struggles with the impacts of the current jobs/housing imbalance, it's really important that we support legislation like AB 1229 that will give cities like Redwood City the authority needed to make the right choice and support strong ordinances that promote affordable housing, such as a commercial linkage fee ordinance, or an inclusionary housing ordinance.

How can you support AB 1229? Call the Governor's office at 916.445.2841, press 1 for English, and press 6 to talk to a staff member. Then tell them who you are and where you're calling from and that you want to register your support for the governor's signature on AB 1229.

Below is a copy of a letter I sent to the City Council on September 11, asking for their support for AB 1229. It explains in greater detail how AB 1229 will help communities across California. You can also read an excellent op-ed on AB 1229 here.

Ensuring that families of all income levels have housing options in Redwood City is important to me, and it's one of the main reasons I am running for council this fall. To read more about my campaign, please visit JamesHan.Org.

James Lee Han

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11 Sept. 2013

Good afternoon Madame Mayor and the City Council,

I am writing to you today to follow up on the public comment I made to you at the September 9 City Council meeting regarding AB 1229.

AB 1229 is an inclusionary housing bill that will help empower City Hall to shore up the number of low-rent units in our community as property values rise. AB 1229 allows local governments to set their own standards and make decisions on the ground for their community, and ensures cities' rights to require developers to build low-income housing. If the city council members feel that affordable housing is an important issue, AB 1229 would allow them to take proactive measures. You can read the details of the bill here.

(As you can see, the bill has the support of our state representatives Senator Jerry Hill and Assemblymember Kevin Mullin. Mr. Mullin is a principal co-author of AB 1229.)

AB 1229 is a direct response to the 2009 decision in Palmer v. the City of Los Angeles that said city zoning codes which require developers to include housing priced below market rates violate the 1995 Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act. Costa-Hawkins, which was passed to roll back stringent restrictions placed on landlords by local rent control laws, says that property owners have the right to initially set rents in new developments at market rate. AB 1229 clearly articulates that local governments do indeed have the ability and power to enact inclusionary housing ordinances.

Although Redwood City began preliminary discussions in June regarding a "community benefits program" that would promote inclusionary housing and prevailing wage standards for future development projects, it is my understanding from the housing advocates I have spoken to that such a program will not be finalized for about two years, and that the program is purely incentive-based, meaning that developers will not be required to take part in such a program in order to have their projects approved in our community. AB 1229 will provide Redwood City with the legislative backing needed to move forward right away with strong inclusionary housing measures that protect, preserve, and expand our affordable housing base.

I have heard at multiple city council meetings concerns expressed by council members over the loss of redevelopment agency funds and the lack of tools available to plan for affordable housing. AB 1229 will give the city more flexibility: the loss of RDA funds means it is vital to make sure cities have all tools for building affordable housing at their disposal, and being able to include affordable housing requirements in zoning ordinances is certainly an increasingly important tool.

AB 1229 was sent to Governor Jerry Brown's desk on Monday afternoon, and he has twelve days to sign or veto the bill. I called the Governor's office earlier today and was informed by a member of his staff that he has not signed it yet.

[Note: It turns out that I misspoke about the deadline. In fact, the Governor has until Oct. 13 to sign or veto the bill. -- James]

While the bill will become law if the governor takes no action during the twelve days, I strongly urge you, either as members of the city council or as individuals, to act and send a letter to Governor Brown supporting AB 1229 and asking for his signature. Powerful interests are pressuring the governor to veto the bill, and he needs to hear from leaders within local governments like Redwood City in order to act and do the right thing. If you are truly concerned about a lack of tools for building affordable housing, I believe you will be compelled to contact the Governor.

If the council has already sent such a letter of support to the Governor's office sometime within the last seven months since the bill was introduced, I would appreciate it if you would please respond with a copy. If such a letter has not been sent, I look forward to a response that outlines why the council will or will not be taking any action, either as council members or as individuals, to support AB 1229.

Thank you for your time,

James Lee Han