Housing Santa Cruz County’s Priority Principles for 2023-2031 6th Cycle Housing Element Update

We believe the following principles should be reflected in the Housing Elements of each local government jurisdiction…

• Identify opportunity sites that represent realistic opportunities for housing development to ensure numerical housing goals can be met.

• Zoning and density regulations should maximize housing production and minimize sprawl and long commutes associated with greenhouse gas emissions. This includes increased height limits; a reduction in unnecessary parking and setback requirements; elimination of units-per-acre limits to encourage more family housing. 

• Site selection should give priority to 100% affordable housing projects, especially sites on public land and church properties, using criteria (such as proximity to transportation, essential services, and schools) required by competitive funding sources. Set high site density minimums to ensure opportunity sites create the highest number of affordable homes.

• Affordable housing sites should be distributed throughout the community to affirmatively further fair housing.

• Housing sites should be selected to take advantage of State laws that support increased housing production.

• Jurisdictions should provide flexibility to allow for reducing or eliminating requirements for commercial space if demand for such space is low. 

• Streamline the government approval process, especially for 100% affordable projects,  and enable ministerial approvals and provide realistic timelines to developers. Approvals from more than one government agency (such as the local government and the Coastal Commission) should be processed simultaneously to reduce approval time. 

• A reliable and plentiful funding stream for affordable housing should be created.

• Renter protections, such as eviction protection, emergency rent assistance, and reasonable limits on rents, should be included in housing element policies.

• ADU and duplex rules should strongly encourage production of these housing types and significant obstacles should be removed.

• Permanent supportive housing should be facilitated and encouraged to ensure that vulnerable individuals and families can remain housed in the community.

• Housing Elements should name achieving the state ProHousing designation as a specific goal so the jurisdiction can be more competitive in securing state funding.

Additional Resources:

• Santa Cruz YIMBY is doing fantastic work tracking 6th cycle Housing Element Updates across jurisdictions in Santa Cruz County! Check out their Housing Element webpage to learn more: www.santacruzyimby.org/housing-elements

• The Monterey Bay Economic Partnership (MBEP) recently released a white paper offering insights and recommendations to increase housing supply and improve affordability across the region. You can read an executive summary of the white paper here, and you can read the full white paper here.