Berkeley's Housing Element
Tomorrow, the City Council will hold a special meeting to approve the 2023-2031 Housing Element Update. This marks the culmination of an 18 month process to inform and develop an eight-year plan for accommodating Berkeley’s share of our regional housing need. The draft plan comes after dozens of community meetings and extensive input from various commissions, stakeholders and the general public, taking into consideration a wide range of objectives to make Berkeley an accessible and more affordable community.
What is the Housing Element?
Every eight years, jurisdictions across California are required to update their Housing Element of the General Plan. The purpose of this update is to show how cities will accommodate the production of units required by the state mandated Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA). RHNA requirements are updated every eight years by the Association of Bay Area Governments reflecting state and regional population projections and factors to address jobs-housing balance. Under the 2023-2031 allocation, which represents the 6th RHNA cycle, Berkeley must show it has the capacity to build 8,934 units. Of this, 2,446 (27.4%) are for very-low-income households (below 50% of the Area Median Income (AMI)), 1,408 (15.8%) at low-income (50%-80% AMI), 1,416 (15.8%) at moderate income (80%-120% AMI), and 3,664 (41.0%) above moderate income (above 120% AMI). For reference 100% AMI in Alameda County is $99,950 annual income for a single person and $114,250 and $142,800 for families of 2 - 4 respectively.
The proposed Housing Element is split into five sections:
Chapter 1: Introduction. Provides an overview of the purpose, scope and organization of the Housing Element.
Chapter 2: Goals and Policies. Outlines the City’s commitments to providing and preserving housing opportunities in the City.
Chapter 3: Housing Needs. Provides a summary of the City’s community profile, including demographic and housing characteristics, and an assessment of the associated housing needs.
Chapter 4: Housing Constraints. Provides an assessment of the potential constraints to housing development and preservation, including governmental and non-governmental constraints (this includes zoning restrictions).
Chapter 5: Housing Resources. Provides a collection of resources available for meeting the City’s existing and projected housing needs, including an inventory of sites that could be developed, housing implementation programs, and an assessment of direct or indirect impacts in furthering fair housing choice initiatives.
Collectively, the Housing Element acts as a blueprint to fulfill State law and meet our housing goals. This includes an analysis of population and employment trends, and inventory of suitable land for residential development, including special needs housing and shelters, and an analysis of governmental and non-governmental constraints and how to overcome them, among other topics.
Housing Production Needed to Meet Growing Population
Since 2000, Berkeley’s population has been growing approximately 1% annually, climbing from over 102,000 in 2000 to around 125,000 today. According to projections from the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), these trends will continue over the next two decades, with Berkeley’s population reaching 141,000 by 2040. While people between the ages of 15-24 remain the largest age group in the City, accounting for 27.2% of the population, the fastest growing segment of the population are seniors. The second fastest growing age group is 25-34, suggesting that many students stay in Berkeley after graduating and start families here. Future housing development needs to take into consideration both the growing population and the types of households needed to accommodate a wide range of ages and living arrangements.
Under the 5th RHNA Cycle from 2015-2023, Berkeley was required to plan for 2,959 units. This includes 532 at very low income, 442 at low income, 584 at moderate income, and 1,401 at above moderate income. As of 2021, 3,742 units have been built, or 126% of the target. However, the targets for affordable housing were missed, with 309 very low income (58%), 130 low income (29%), and 106 moderate income (18%) units completed. 3,197 units of above moderate, or market rate housing was built, which was 228% of the goal. While this has resulted in recent trends of market rate rents leveling off or even declining, much of Berkeley’s housing stock remains out of reach for those below 100% of the Area Median Income.
With many jurisdictions throughout California failing to meet their goals for housing production, the State has become increasingly involved with ensuring new development moves forward in recent years. SB 35, approved in 2017, requires streamlining of developments that have at least 50% affordable housing, meaning they are not subject to discretionary processes such as CEQA and public hearings. Four developments in Berkeley have been approved under SB 35 since 2018. AB 1397 requires that sites identified under the 5th RHNA cycle for development that were unused be incorporated into the 6th cycle, with by-right approval for developments that include at least 20% affordable units for lower incomes. 13 sites under AB 1397 exist in Berkeley that could develop 1,215 lower income units, mostly along transit corridors.
Goals Under the Housing Element
The proposed Housing Element identifies six main goals, with 35 policies to enact those goals. These goals are detailed starting on page 15 of the proposed Housing Element.
Housing Affordability: Berkeley residents should have access to quality housing at a range of housing options and prices. Housing is least affordable for people at the lowest income levels, especially those with extremely low income, and City resources should focus on this area of need.
Housing Preservation & Improvement: Existing housing should be maintained and improved. The City should promote efficiency in new and existing housing to improve building comfort and safety, reduce energy and water use and costs, provide quality and resilient housing, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Improvements that will prepare buildings for a major seismic event should be encouraged.
Housing Production: Berkeley should provide adequate housing capacity to meet its current and future housing needs, including coordinating with the UC and other agencies. New housing should be developed to expand opportunities and choices to meet the diverse needs of all socioeconomic segments of the community, and should be safe, healthy and resilient.
Special Needs Housing & Homelessness Prevention: Berkeley should expand the supply of housing for special needs groups, including housing affordable to those with extremely low incomes.
Affirmatively Further Fair Housing: The City should continue to take meaningful actions to affirmatively further fair housing choices in Berkeley.
Mitigate Governmental Constraints: Berkeley should identify and mitigate barriers to the construction and improvement of housing.
To meet the goals laid out in the proposed Housing Element, address the housing needs that have been identified, and resolve possible constraints, dozens of programs have been developed, as described starting in page 118 of the proposed Housing Element. Program highlights include:
Making housing more accessible to low income residents by expanding Housing Choice Voucher programs, enhancing affordable housing requirements, providing rental assistance, expanding the Housing Trust Fund, and preserving housing for at-risk individuals.
Improving conditions of existing housing by expanding the Rental Housing Safety Program, making housing more accessible to those with disabilities, home improvement loans for seniors, seismic safety and energy improvement programs.
Expanding homeless services and Shelter Plus Care, and developing housing for unhoused individuals, including those with disabilities.
Spreading development in resource rich neighborhoods and transit corridors, including the creation of the San Pablo Ave Priority Development Area Specific Plan, updating the Southside Plan Area, and development of the North Berkeley and Ashby BART stations.
Ending exclusionary housing and promoting missing middle housing, allowing small-scale development that conforms to existing neighborhood conditions and continuing development of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs).
Under the plan, there are three types of housing sites where development can occur:
Likely Sites: These are proposed developments that have received their land use entitlement but have not gotten a certificate of occupancy. These include developments that have been approved, are under construction, and/or are the process of securing financing. 2,701 units have been identified as being developed on likely sites.
Pipeline Sites: These are proposed and pending developments that have submitted applications for entitlement or a building permit, which is currently under review, or are in the pre-application phase. 5,811 units have been identified as being developed on pipeline sites.
Opportunity Sites: These are vacant or underutilized sites that could see proposed development in the near future. This includes sites that had been identified under the 5th RHNA cycle but have not yet been developed. Up to 6,489 units have been identified that could be developed on opportunity sites.
This brings the total number of units identified under the proposed Housing Element to 15,001, which is 168% of the RHNA target for Berkeley. This does not guarantee that all those units will be built, but it shows what is capable under the Housing Element. This meets or exceeds all requirements for development across all income levels. For reference, under the 2015 Housing Element, there was an estimated capacity of 5,328 units that were identified, and 3,742 units were built.
Next Steps
Once approved, the Housing Element will be submitted to the State, which must be done by January 31st. Creating a Housing Element that is compliant with State law is essential, as failure to do so could result in the loss of access to State Grants, fines and penalties from the State, and/or intervention from the courts that would take away the City’s ability to independently control its zoning regulations.
The Housing Element does not create specific development proposals, nor does the City create its own housing. Rather, the Housing Element creates the conditions needed to meet the number of units required under the Regional Housing Needs Allocation. After decades of underdevelopment statewide, this cycle’s numbers are significantly higher. But through this Housing Element, we have been able to find a way to incorporate these goals in a way that will not result in overdevelopment or out of scale development. This plan will allow us to meet the demands of a growing population and increase our housing stock to provide a wide range of options for individuals and families of all income levels and needs.