There’s a saying in baseball that there’s no difference between a 1-0 game and a 16-0 one in the standings. The same holds true for legislation, whether a piece of legislation gets unanimous support or squeaks through with one vote at the 11th hour, it gets the same treatment.
Which is good news for state Senator Scott Wiener (D-SF) and his bill to increase housing near transit, SB 79: Housing development: transit-oriented development, which cleared the Senate with not one vote to spare: 21-13 with six abstentions. Legislation needs a support of the majority of Senators, so abstentions are counted the same as "no" votes.
Having passed the Senate, the legislation now needs to move through the Assembly. Should it pass there, it would head to the Governor’s desk to be signed into law or vetoed.
Should it become law, SB 79 would:
- Upzone near rail and bus rapid transit stations: allow buildings up to seven stories high within a quarter mile from major transit stops and up to four stories high within a half-mile;
- Allow transit agencies to set their own zoning standards for properties they own near rail and bus rapid transit stations,
- Speed up the permitting process for projects within a half-mile from rail and bus rapid transit stations transit stops.
“California urgently needs to build more homes to bring down costs, and building them near transit provides our public transportation systems with an urgently needed infusion of new riders,” said Wiener in a press statement. “This is an idea whose time has come. I thank my Senate colleagues for supporting this legislation and look forward to working with my Assembly colleagues to get the bill across the finish line.”
Wiener argues that SB 79 will both increase the housing stock of the state and increase transit ridership as people living nearer to bus rapid transit and rail lines will be more likely to use those services.
Much of the opposition to SB 79 came from either Republicans or liberal senators from Southern California. Republicans argued that the legislation reduces the authority that cities have on their local zoning, which they should keep as long as they meet state housing goals. But many Democrats argued that the legislation would actually hurt the production of affordable housing and facilitate the demolishing of existing rental properties. Should transit-adjacent rental properties be replaced by luxury or market-rate condos, it could even lead to an overall decrease in affordable housing as well as a drop in transit ridership.
The Alliance for Community Transit (ACT-LA) is leading a coalition of twenty affordable housing advocacy organizations opposing SB 79 unless it adds some major amendments.
In a letter posted to its Facebook page and sent to legislators, ACT-LA outlines those changes.
For example, the coalition is urging that SB 79 should include changing “base zoning” in areas where it applies to require a greater percentage of affordable housing than current state minimums. Should an area already have more progressive zoning standards than the new base, there would be no change in affordable housing requirements.
This is particularly important because SB 79 could override Los Angeles’ successful Transit Oriented Communities (TOC) program which is credited with creating thousands of new affordable units near transit.
The coalition also calls for protections for existing multi-family rental units, and minimum density requirements for the benefits of SB 79 to kick-in.
Wiener has shown willingness to work with opponents of SB 79. Original versions of the legislation applied to many more transit stops than the current one and included changes to the state’s Surplus Land Act which has fast-tracked 5,500 units of affordable housing in the last year and a half. These changes earned the support of the Nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California who were originally opposed.
Whether he’s willing to include enough changes to win over ACT-LA and their allies, and whether that would be enough to win over enough votes for SB 79 to pass the Assembly, remains to be seen.
For more coverage of SB 79, visit KQED.
