David Mohlenbrok, Director of Community Development

Laura Webster, Director of Long Range Planning & Housing

OBJECTIVE:

Staff will update the City Council regarding the State Department of Housing and Community Development’s comments pertaining to the Draft 2021-2029 Housing Element Update and present recommendations to address these items. Staff is seeking concurrence from the City Council regarding:

1. Modifications to the Available Sites Inventory for the Lower Income Category to address a 5^th Cycle Carryover.
   
   
2. Revised ADU Assumptions.
   
   
3. Incorporation of a more proactive approach to housing mobility and affirmatively furthering fair housing opportunities in high resource areas.
   
   
4. Expanded evaluation of Housing Conditions and incorporation of a more proactive approach to address preservation/maintenance of existing affordable housing stock and avoid displacement.
   
   
5. Suggested program language regarding review of regulations pertaining to large residential community care facilities.

Like many cities and counties throughout the state, the City of Rocklin is in the process of updating its 6^th Cycle 2021-2029 Housing Element and Safety Element consistent with recent legislation and state law.  Long before the formal start of the City’s current Housing Element Update, the City participated in a Regional Assessment of Impediments to Fair Housing (AI), which included extensive public outreach both with Rocklin stakeholders and those throughout the Sacramento region.

The City also formed a Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Committee that conducted public meetings approximately every two weeks for a nine month period between October 2019 and June 2020. The RHNA Committee, made up of local housing and affordable housing developers, current and former City Council Members, Planning Commissioners and representatives from the Building Industry Association (BIA), examined a number of criteria and critical factors culminating in specific recommendations for sites to be included in the City’s Available Sites Inventory for the 6^th Cycle Housing Element Update.

The City Council conducted a public hearing on July 28, 2020 and provided direction to staff regarding sites to be included in the RHNA Resolution of Intent (ROI) for inclusion in the Housing Element Update Available Sites Inventory and associated General Plan Amendments and Rezones. Actual General Plan Amendments and Rezones will be separately processed.

The City Council conducted a public workshop to solicit input on potential housing programs on September 22, 2020. 

A Public Review Draft Housing Element was prepared and widely distributed for public review on November 20, 2020.

The City Council and the Planning Commission conducted a special joint meeting and public hearing on December 8, 2020 to provide an additional opportunity for input prior to the City’s submittal of the document to the State Department of Housing Community Development (HCD) for their technical review.

The Draft 2021-2029 Housing Element document was submitted to HCD for their 60-day review on December 23, 2020.

Staff and the City's Housing Element consultant team (PlaceWorks) worked with staff from HCD during that agency’s 60-day review period answering questions, providing additional text, maps, data and clarifications that HCD asked be incorporated into document.

Although staff had hoped all items could be resolved by the close of HCD’s initial 60-day review period, a limited number of items remained outstanding and were included in the February 19, 2021 Findings Letter that the City received from HCD (see Attachment 1 - 2/19/21 HCD Letter).

Each of these items will be discussed in more detail below along with recommendations for the City Council to consider and ultimately direct staff to move forward.

Available Sites Inventory and 5^th Cycle Carryover

Because the General Plan Amendments and Rezones that are needed were not completed prior to or concurrent with adoption of the 6th Cycle 2021-2029 Housing Element, the City will need to include a Rezone Program to address the Lower and Moderate Income categories.

HCD’s letter also notes that although General Plan Amendments were completed for a number of the sites identified in the 5^th Cycle 2013-2021 Housing Element, and an interim ordinance was adopted giving land use priority to the General Plan designations, full rezoning of a number of the sites did not occur. This was primarily due to the inability to reach consensus on the details of what was to be incorporated into a Mixed Use zone.

At the time HCD’s comment letter was issued in February 2021, they were unable to verify that enough sites had land use and zoning in place to accommodate the 1,769 Lower Income RHNA identified in the City’s 5^th Cycle 2013-2021 Housing Element and indicated that without other information, this number of units would need to be carried over and accommodated in the City’s 6th Cycle Housing Element. This would be in addition to the 3,062 Lower Income units already required for the 2021-2029 Element.

Subsequent to receipt of HCD’s letter, City staff and PlaceWorks provided additional documentation and conducted a follow up meeting with HCD. Through those discussions, we were able to demonstrate that the 5^th Cycle Rezone Program did not accurately reflect or distinguish sites that had already been redesignated in 2012 as part of the General Plan Update, and therefore the (2012) sites actually were available at the time the 2013-2021 Element had been prepared. With this very important clarification, staff from HCD verbally agreed that the 5^th Cycle carryover could be reduced from 1,769 units to 481 units.  This means the minimum number needed to meet the City’s revised RHNA for the Lower Income Category is 3,543 units.

The number of units provided in the current 2021-2029 Draft Housing Element likely to be accepted by the state is 3,066 units, or up to 3,126 if 60 ADU’s are approved to count toward the Lower Income Category for RHNA. The City does not have a large surplus of sites built into the draft 2021-2029 Housing Element Available Sites Inventory to accommodate the revised required number of units in the Lower Category.

Recommendation: Continue to allow the sites already identified in the Available Sites Inventory for the Lower Income Category in the 2021-2029 Draft Housing Element to have 24 unit per acre minimums, but use 30 units per acre as the “assumed density” in the inventory because 30 units per acre is allowed within the proposed land use range. Increasing the assumed density of all sites on the current Draft Inventory to 30 dwelling units per acre will increase the overall capacity without adding additional sites.  This calculation (including a revised ADU assumption discussed in more detail in the next section of this staff report) would create the capacity for 3,874 units, which is 331 units over the required minimum.

It should also be noted that the City will need to carefully monitor the Inventory moving forward. Due to state Housing Element “no net loss” requirements, it is likely that sites removed from the inventory due to development or other rezones will need to be made up fairly quickly during the 8 year cycle.

HCD Comments and Revised ADU Assumptions

On December 10, 2019, staff and the consultant hired to prepare the City’s ADU ordinance presented information regarding potential ADU development assumptions toward RHNA based on historic trends both in Rocklin and regional averages at that time that could be incorporated into the 6^th Cycle Housing Element. The City Council requested that the assumptions be revisited with the goal of increasing the number of units assumed. On February 25, 2020, staff presented more robust options and the City Council directed that Option 2, which consisted of a total of 283 units (75% Lower and 25% Moderate), be incorporated into the Draft 2021-2029 Housing Element Update.

In their February 2021 comment letter, HCD indicated that while they are supportive of the City’s efforts and goals to encourage the development of ADU’s, they will not accept an estimated 10 fold increase in annual ADU production as an assumption to accommodate RHNA. In subsequent discussions with HCD staff, it appears that the maximum ADU assumption they are likely to accept is 80 total units for the Planning Period and a maximum of 60 of those could be applied to the Lower Income Category. They have also expressed the need for the City to include a program committing that if production falls short of the 10 units assumed per year after 2 years, the City would need to redesignate and zone other properties to make up for any shortfall in its RHNA.

Total building permits issued for ADU’s in 2020 was 6 units, which represents a doubling of ADU units when compared to the number of ADU permits issued in 2019.

Recommendation: Staff seeks City Council concurrence to reduce the number of ADU’s assumed in the 2021-2029 Draft Housing Element from 283 to 80 units and incorporate a monitoring program to confirm targets are being met or require the redesignation of additional sites if needed to meet the Lower Income Category RHNA.

Proactive Programs Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing and Housing Preservation

One of the new requirements for the 6^th Cycle 2021-2029 Housing Element is to prepare a detailed analysis of fair housing issues both in Rocklin and as it relates to our position in the region. The November 2020 Draft 2021-2029 Housing Element included information on these topics; however, in discussions with HCD during their first 60-day review period a considerable amount of additional data and programs were requested and provided. The remaining areas mentioned in HCD’s February 2021 comment letter that they would like to see addressed with greater emphasis are actions to enhance housing mobility and protect residents from displacement. In subsequent discussions with HCD, it appears that they are looking for programs to be included that would promote development of new affordable units and increased rental opportunities in the highest resource areas of the City (i.e., create housing mobility), and further evaluation of the physical condition of existing housing stock in portions of the City with the lowest income levels along with proactive measures focusing on preservation, maintenance and prevention of displacement.

Housing Condition Survey - Rehabilitation & Preservation

To obtain data needed regarding the physical condition of existing housing stock, staff recommends that a program be included in the Housing Element directing the City to complete an updated housing condition survey. The geographical focus of the survey would be within the census tracts that have the oldest housing stock and highest concentrations of Low Income residents. Depending upon the results of the survey, a number of strategies could be considered to address needed rehabilitation and/or preservation. The City could also pursue funds to assist with temporary relocation and avoid displacement depending upon the scale of rehabilitation that is needed.  Once the homes or multi-family residential units in greatest jeopardy were identified, the City would then engage the residents or land owners by informing them about these issues and guide them to resources such as Handyman Programs or provide funds to help get the repairs completed. Due to limited staffing in the Housing Division, the City has not administered a Housing Rehabilitation program in several years. Existing funding sources that could potentially be used to create loans or grants to fund these types of rehabilitation activities include Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) or Low Moderate Housing Asset Funds. However, the amount of those funds that can be used for program administration is very limited. Depending upon the level of need identified, implementation of this type of program could ultimately require hiring additional city staff or consultants. While some of the costs of administration might be able to be off-set by the funds mentioned above, there could still be currently unknown impacts to the City’s General Fund. The scope and depth of the program will have to be tailored to what is both beneficial and achievable.

Recommendation: Staff is seeking City Council concurrence to expand proposed programs to include a Housing Condition Survey and associated housing rehabilitation/preservation program in the 2021-2029 Housing Element with the understanding that additional funding may be needed to provide the grant funds or loans to complete identified repairs and fund the staffing increases and/or consultants contracts necessary to administer the program.

Housing Mobility

The second issue raised by the state relative to furthering fair housing is to increase opportunities for households in the Lower Income categories to obtain housing within the highest resource areas of the City and create opportunities for those who may currently work in Rocklin, but may currently live outside of the community, to also obtain housing that is affordable.

In more detailed discussions of this item, HCD is challenging all communities to be a part of regional housing solutions that provide the opportunity for increased housing equity and accessibility.      

Recommendation: Staff is seeking City Council concurrence to expand programs in the 2021-2029 Housing Element to affirmatively further fair housing and increase housing mobility, by conducting targeted outreach on the benefits of constructing ADUs to property owners in the highest resource areas and working with landlords to more effectively market their available units to Housing Choice Voucher holders or other similar strategies.

Other Items

Although not identified specifically in HCD’s February 2021 comment letter, through informal comments they have requested that a program be added to allow large residential community care facilities with 7 or more residents without a use permit. Interpretation of state regulations and case law on this topic are continuing to evolve; therefore, staff recommends an approach that would allow for further evaluation by the City.

Recommendation: Staff is seeking City Council concurrence to add a program to review, and revise as appropriate, requirements to allow group homes and residential care facilities in all residential zones for seven or more residents and ensure that the City’s policies do not pose a constraint to housing for persons with disabilities.

2021-2029 Housing Element Processing and Adoption

Following receipt of City Council concurrence on these items, final changes will be made to the Draft 2021-2029 Housing Element, which will then be resubmitted to HCD for their review. HCD has 60-days to complete their review and will either notify the City of additional findings (i.e., needed changes), or provide a conditional compliance letter indicating if the revised element is adopted as presented it could be certified by that agency.

In order to remain on an eight-year planning cycle, the City must adopt its Housing Element within 120 calendar days from the statutory due date of May 15, 2021.  If adopted after this date (i.e., beyond September 10, 2021), the City would be required to update its Housing Element every four years until adopting at least two consecutive revisions by the statutory deadline.  

Assuming that City Council concurrence is provided this evening and resubmittal to HCD can occur on or before April 30, 2021, staff estimates that the revised 2021-2029 Housing Element could be presented to the Planning Commission in July for their recommendation and then be brought to the City Council in August for final adoption.