Ridgecrest City Council
October 4, 2023

Agendas are available on the City Website
https://www.ridgecrest-ca.gov/council-agendas
Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority
AGENDA
October 4, 2023
Closed Session 5:30 p.m.

Regular Session 6:00 p.m.

City Hall, Council Chambers
100 100 West California Avenue
Ridgecrest CA 93555
Ricca Charlon, CMC
City Clerk
[email protected]
(760) 499-5002
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you are a disabled person and you need a disability-related modification or accommodation to participate in the meeting, please contact Ricca Charlon at (760) 499-5002. Requests must be made as early as possible and at least one full business day before the start of the meeting.

Watch meetings on-line:

All of our meetings are streamed live at https://ridgecrest-ca.gov/369/Watch or on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/cityofridgecrest/live and are also available for playback after the meeting.

Call in for public comments:

To participate with verbal comments, please call (760) 499-5010. This phone line will allow only one caller at a time, so if the line is busy, please continue to dial. We will be allowing a 20-30 second delay between callers to give time for media delays and callers to dial in. If you wish to comment on multiple items you will need to call in as each item is presented.

CITY COUNCIL
Eric A. Bruen, Mayor
Solomon P. Rajaratnam, Mayor Pro-Tem
Kyle Blades, Vice Mayor
L. Scott Hayman, Council Member
John ‘Skip’ Gorman, Council Member
Ron Strand, City Manager
Keith Lemieux, City Attorney
Martin Koczanowicz, City Attorney
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100 W. CALIFORNIA AVE. | RIDGECREST, CA 93555
Phone 760.499.5000 | Fax 760.499.1520
www.ridgecrest-ca.gov

NOTICE AND CALL OF A SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING OF THE

RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY /

HOUSING AUTHORITY / FINANCING AUTHORITY

TO THE MEMBERS OF THE RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR

REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / HOUSING AUTHORITY / FINANCING AUTHORITY, PUBLIC AND CITY CLERK:

PUBLIC NOTICE that a SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING of the Ridgecrest City Council/Successor Redevelopment Agency/Housing Authority/Financing Authority is hereby called on:

Wednesday, October 4, 2023 @ 5:30 p.m.

City Council Chambers
100 W. California Avenue
Ridgecrest, California
Said SPECIAL CLOSED SESSION MEETING shall be for the purpose of:

CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – Potential Litigation - Gov. Code § 54956.9(b)(d)(2) – one case
Dated: September 27, 2023
Eric A. Bruen, Mayor / Chair
ATTEST:

Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
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RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL

SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY

FINANCING AUTHORITY

HOUSING AUTHORITY

AGENDA
Wednesday, October 4, 2023 Closed Session – 5:30 p.m.

Regular Session – 6:00 p.m.

CALL TO ORDER
• Roll call

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

PUBLIC COMMENT ON CLOSED SESSION

CLOSED SESSION
CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – Potential Litigation
Gov. Code § 54956.9(b)(d)(2) – one case

REGULAR SESSION
• Pledge Of Allegiance
• Invocation

ATTORNEY REPORT OUT OF CLOSED SESSION

PRESENTATIONS

1. Constitution Week Proclamation Council

2. Key To The City Presentation – Darrell Eddins Council

3. Employee Service Award Presentations Council
PUBLIC COMMENT OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA - Persons wishing to address the Council on matters that are within the Council’s jurisdiction and DO NOT ALREADY APPEAR ON THE AGENDA, may do so at this time.

COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS/DIRECTION
CONSENT CALENDAR – All Matters Listed Under The Consent Calendar Are To Be Considered Routine And Enacted By One Motion Unless Pulled By A Council Member Or A Member Of The Public.

4. Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council Special Meeting Dated August 24, 2023 Charlon

5. Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council Special Meeting Dated September 11, 2023 Charlon

6. Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council Special Meeting Dated September 25, 2023 Charlon

AGENDA - CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / FINANCING AUTHORITY / HOUSING AUTHORITY REGULAR – October 4, 2023

PUBLIC HEARINGS

7. Second Public Hearing Before The City Council For Potential Protest And Vote On Resolution To Renew The Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District (RTID) 2023-2033 And Sunset The Existing One, Per Request Of Ridgecrest Area Convention Visitors Bureau (RACVB) Attorney

8. Public Hearing And Approval Of A Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Ridgecrest Authorizing Staff To Submit The 2023-2031 Draft General Plan Housing Element & The Fair Housing Analysis To The California Department Of Housing And Community Development Spurlock

DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS

9. A Resolution To Amend A Professional Services Agreement With Willdan Engineering Inc. In The Amount Of $32,500.00 For The Affordable Housing Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Improvement Project To Include Addition Design Efforts For The Felspar/Norma Detention Basin Quinn Ortega

COMMITTEE REPORTS
City Organization and Services Committee (‘City Org’)
Members: Mayor Eric A. Bruen and Skip Gorman
Meeting: 1st Thursday each month at 5:30 p.m.

Location: City Hall Council Chambers
➢ Report from 9/7/23
Finance Committee
Members: Mayor Eric A. Bruen and Scott Hayman
Meeting: 2nd Tuesday each month at 5:30 p.m.

Location: City Hall Council Chambers
➢ Report from 9/12/23
Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitor Bureau (RACVB)
Members: Solomon Rajaratnam and Megan McKenzie (staff)
Meeting: 4th Wednesday each month at 9:00 a.m.

Location: California Welcome Center
➢ Report from 9/27/23 - Canceled
Infrastructure Committee
Members: Solomon Rajaratnam and Kyle Blades
Meeting: 4th Thursday each month at 5:00 p.m.

Location: City Hall Council Chambers
➢ Report from 9/28/23 - Canceled
Economic Development Committee
Members: Kyle Blades and Solomon Rajaratnam
Meeting: 1st Monday of the month @ 5:15 p.m.

Location: City Hall Council Chambers
➢ Report from 10/2/23

AGENDA - CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / FINANCING AUTHORITY / HOUSING AUTHORITY REGULAR – October 4, 2023

Parks, Recreation, and Quality of Life Committee
Members: Mayor Eric A. Bruen and Skip Gorman
Meeting: 1st Tuesday each month at 5:30 p.m.

Location: Kerr McGee Center Meeting Rooms
➢ Report from 10/3/23

OTHER COMMITTEES, BOARDS, OR COMMISSIONS

CITY MANAGER REPORT

FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMENTS

ADJOURNMENT
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A Proclamation of
The City of Ridgecrest, California

HONORING
CONSTITUTION WEEK 2023
WHEREAS, The Constitution of the United States of America, the guardian of our liberties, embodies the principles of limited government in a Republic dedicated to rule by law; and,
WHEREAS, It is the privilege and duty of the American people to commemorate the two hundred and thirty-sixth anniversary of the drafting of the Constitution of the United States of America with appropriate ceremonies and activities; and, WHEREAS, Public Law 915 guarantees the issuing of a proclamation each year by the President of the United States of America designating September 17 through 23 as Constitution Week.

Now, Therefore, Be It Proclaimed, the Ridgecrest City Council does hereby proclaim the week of September 17 through 23, 2023 as CONSTITUTION WEEK and urge all citizens to study the Constitution and reflect on the privilege of being an American with all the rights and responsibilities which that privilege involves.

Proclaimed this 4
TH Day of October, 2023
Eric A. Bruen
Mayor

Kyle Blades
Vice Mayor
Solomon P. Rajaratnam
Mayor Pro Tem
L. Scott Hayman
Council Member
John ‘Skip’ Gorman
Council Member
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Key to the City Nomination
Nominee: Darrell Eddins
It is my honor to submit Darrell Eddins for a “Key to the City” recognition.

Darrell has been a committed volunteer for our community for more than twenty years. From coaching on the football field to dancing on the stage, Darrell’s impact on the youth and business community has been felt by many.

Darrell is probably most well-known for his 20 years of service in making the Ridgecrest Star Follies successful. I describe his role as “making it successful” because not only has he led numerous acts, but he also helps to build the stage, organize the music, coordinate the cast, and offer help with costumes. If Janis is “Mrs. Follies”, Darrell is “Mr. Follies”! Darrell has a heart of service for Ridgecrest and he has severed on numerous boards within the community. Below is just a small list of groups and boards which Darrell has served on:
• 7 Years on the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital Corporate Board • 13 Years as a Ridgecrest Chamber Ambassador
• 15 Years as Burroughs High Football Coach
• Deacon of Victory Baptist Church
After all of these different areas of service, Darrell settled into his most challenging and in many ways most important volunteer role as the Board President for the Desert Empire Fair in 2014.

Side-by-side with DEF CEO Chip Holloway, he has worked to rebuild and reinvigorate our local fairground. As the 2023 fair approaches, the Desert Empire Fair is positioned to have its most successful year ever with more than 15,000 guests over one weekend. Darrell’s leadership has been critical in this success.

An interesting fact is that this will not be Darrell’s first Key to the City. He was presented one by former Mayor Ron Carter in 2003 for his role in promoting youth sports programs. But his truly greatest accomplishment is his incredible family. Along side his wife Sarelle of 48 years, he has raised his kids and grandkids to love Ridgecrest.

The City of Ridgecrest, and its citizens, owe a great debt of gratitude to Darrell for his continued service and commitment to our community. From the hospital, to the chamber, to the fairgrounds; Darrell has been committed to Ridgecrest and it is my honor to nominate him for a “Key to the City” of Ridgecrest, CA.

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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Employee Service Award Presentations
PRESENTED BY: Mayor and City Council
SUMMARY:

Service recognition awards presented by the Ridgecrest City Council to employees who have reached milestones in increments of five (5) or more years of employment with the City of Ridgecrest.
2 nd Quarter April - June 2023
35 Years
Mary Stage – Animal Control / Police
5 Years
Jayson Arnold – Police
Nicholas Castillo – Parks & Rec
_______________________________________________
3 rd Quarter July - September 2023
5 Years
Erik Hallmark – Police
FISCAL IMPACT: None
ACTION REQUESTED:

Presentation Of Certificates To Employees By City Council Members CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION:

Action as requested
Submitted by: Ricca Charlon Action Date: Oct 4, 2023
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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council SPECIAL Meetings Dated August 24, 2023
PRESENTED BY: Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
SUMMARY:

Draft Minutes of the City Council / Successor Redevelopment Agency / Housing Authority / Financing Authority SPECIAL Meeting Dated August 24, 2023 FISCAL IMPACT: None
ACTION REQUESTED: Approve minutes
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as requested
Submitted by: Ricca Charlon Action Date: OCT 4, 2023
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RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL

SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY

FINANCING AUTHORITY

HOUSING AUTHORITY

DRAFT MINUTES
Thursday August 24, 2023 Special Session – 5:30 p.m.

This meeting was recorded and will be on file in the Office of the City Clerk for a certain period of time from date of approval by the Ridgecrest City Successor Agency/Financing Authority/Housing Authority.

Meetings are recorded solely for the purpose of preparation of minutes.

ROLL CALL – 5:30 p.m.

Council Present: Mayor Eric Bruen, Vice Mayor Kyle Blades; Council Member L. Scott Hayman; Council Member Skip Gorman

Absent: Mayor Pro-Tem Solomon P. Rajaratnam;
Staff Present: City Manager Strand; Chief Scott; Captain Dampier

APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Motion To Approve - Blades – Gorman 4 Ayes; 1 Absent
NOTE: The vote is displayed in bold below each item. For example, Blades-Rajaratnam denotes Council Member Blades made the motion and Council Member Rajaratnam seconded the motion. Ayes, Noes, Absents, Abstentions follow.

REGULAR SESSION

PUBLIC COMMENT OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA

COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS/DIRECTION

DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS

1. Resolution Of The Ridgecrest City Council Confirming Existence Of A Local Emergency Capt. Dampier
Motion To Approve - Blades – Gorman 4 Ayes; 1 Absent

MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMENTS
ADJOURNMENT – 5:42 p.m.

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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council SPECIAL Meetings Dated September 11, 2023
PRESENTED BY: Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
SUMMARY:

Draft Minutes of the City Council / Successor Redevelopment Agency / Housing Authority / Financing Authority SPECIAL Meeting Dated September 11, 2023 FISCAL IMPACT: None
ACTION REQUESTED: Approve minutes
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as requested
Submitted by: Ricca Charlon Action Date: OCT 4, 2023
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RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL

SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY

FINANCING AUTHORITY

HOUSING AUTHORITY

DRAFT MINUTES
Monday, September 11, 2023 Regular Session – 5:30 p.m.

This meeting was recorded and will be on file in the Office of the City Clerk for a certain period of time from date of approval by the Ridgecrest City Successor Agency/Financing Authority/Housing Authority. Meetings are recorded solely for the purpose of preparation of minutes.

ROLL CALL – 5:30 p.m.

Council Present: Mayor Eric A. Bruen; Mayor Pro-Tem Solomon P. Rajaratnam; Council Member L. Scott Hayman; Council Member Skip Gorman

Absent: Vice Mayor Kyle Blades
Staff Present: City Attorney P. Early; City Manager Strand; City Clerk Charlon; Chief Scott; PW Director Reed

APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Motion To Approve - Hayman - Rajaratnam – 4 Ayes, 1 Absent (Blades) NOTE: The vote is displayed in bold below each item. For example, Blades-Rajaratnam denotes Council Member Blades made the motion and Council Member Rajaratnam seconded the motion. Ayes, Noes, Absents, Abstentions follow.

REGULAR SESSION

PUBLIC COMMENT OF ITEMS NOT ON THE AGENDA

COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS/DIRECTION

DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS

1. A Resolution Approving The Program Supplement Agreement No. F-049 With The State Of California, Department Of Transportation, For The Construction & Construction Engineering Needed For The Overlay Of West Ward Ave. Between Norma St. And Downs St. And Authorizing The City Manager, Ronald Strand To Sign The Program Supplement *Blades came in at 5:43p.m.

Motion To Approve item 1 - Rajaratnam – Hayman – 5 Ayes

2. A Resolution To Accept The Base Bid For Schedule A & B As Submitted By Griffith Company; Allocate Measure V & Drainage Impact Funds, And Up To $203,639.50 For A 10% Contingency. A Maximum Total Of Up To $2,240,034.50. Award A Construction Contract To Griffith Company To Construct The West Ward Ave. Phase 2 Street Rehabilitation Project, Federal Project No. Stpl5385(075) For Two Million Thirty-Six Thousand Three Hundred Ninety-Five Dollars ($2,036,395.00); And, Award A Professional Services Agreement With Willdan Engineering In The Amount Of $145,000.00 To Provide Construction Engineering Services (“CE”) For The Project; And, Authorize The City Manager, Ronald Strand, To Execute The Contract & Agreement Motion To Approve item 2 with amendment to Consultant Agreement Section 1. Purpose ‘Phase I’ should be ‘Phase II’ - Blades - Rajaratnam – 5 Ayes

MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMENTS
ADJOURNMENT – 6:00 p.m.

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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Proposed Action To Approve Draft Minutes Of The Ridgecrest City Council SPECIAL Meetings Dated September 25, 2023
PRESENTED BY: Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
SUMMARY:

Draft Minutes of the City Council / Successor Redevelopment Agency / Housing Authority / Financing Authority SPECIAL Meeting Dated September 25, 2023 FISCAL IMPACT: None
ACTION REQUESTED: Approve minutes
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION: Action as requested
Submitted by: Ricca Charlon Action Date: OCT 4, 2023
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RIDGECREST CITY COUNCIL

SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY

FINANCING AUTHORITY

HOUSING AUTHORITY

DRAFT MINUTES - CITY COUNCIL / SUCCESSOR REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY / FINANCING AUTHORITY / HOUSING AUTHORITY SPECIAL – SEPTEMBER 25, 2023

DRAFT MINUTES
Monday, September 25, 2023 Regular Session – 5:30 p.m.

This meeting was recorded and will be on file in the Office of the City Clerk for a certain period of time from date of approval by the Ridgecrest City Successor Agency/Financing Authority/Housing Authority. Meetings are recorded solely for the purpose of preparation of minutes.

ROLL CALL – 5:30 p.m.

Council Present: Vice Mayor Kyle Blades; Mayor Pro-Tem Solomon P. Rajaratnam; Council Member L. Scott Hayman; Council Member Skip Gorman

Absent: Mayor Eric A. Bruen
Staff Present: City Attorney M. Koczanowicz(webex); City Manager Strand; City Clerk Charlon; Chief Scott; PW Director Reed; Capt. Dampier
*Mayor Bruen came in at 5:32

APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Motion To Approve WITH AMENDMENT TO ADD NEEDS AROSE CLOSED SESSION ITEM Blades - Rajaratnam – 5 Ayes
NOTE: The vote is displayed in bold below each item. For example, Blades-Rajaratnam denotes Council Member Blades made the motion and Council Member Rajaratnam seconded the motion. Ayes, Noes, Absents, Abstentions follow.

REGULAR SESSION

COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS/DIRECTION

DISCUSSION / ACTION ITEMS

1. Resolution Of The Ridgecrest City Council Authorizing The Acceptance Of The United States Department Of Justice, Byrne Program Grant Capt. Dampier Public comment - M. Mancini
Motion To Approve - Blades- Hayman – 5 Ayes

MAYOR AND COUNCIL COMMENTS
CLOSED SESSION – 5:41 p.m.

Conference with Legal Counsel – Existing Litigation (§ 54956.9) Name of Case: Finley v. City of Ridgecrest et al. - Case No. BCV-22-100048 ATTORNEY REPORT OUT OF CLOSED SESSION- No reportable action ADJOURNMENT – 5:53 p.m.

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Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Second Public Hearing Before The City Council For Potential Protest And Vote On Resolution To Renew The Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District (RTID) 2023-2033 And Sunset The Existing One, Per Request Of Ridgecrest Area Convention Visitors Bureau (RACVB)
PRESENTED BY: City Attorney
SUMMARY:

At the June 20, 2023 City Council meeting, the Council adopted a Resolution of Intention, setting two public hearings for the RACVB request of renewal of the TBID. Attached to this Staff Report, as Exhibit A, is the June 1, 2023 letter from RACVB Executive Director Kari Crutcher, which in detail lays out the request for renewal of the existing TBID with an increased annual assessment rate of 5.75%. The request was supported by the necessary petitions and a new Management District Plan (Exhibit B).

This is the second of two public hearings set to provide second opportunity to obtain public input and to count any possible protest votes. If the weighted majority of affected businesses is in favor of the TBID renewal at the proposed 5.75% rate, City Council may adopt Resolution approving the request for renewal of the TBID.

CEQA: This is not a Project under CEQA Guidelines as it is Categorically Exempt (15061(b)(3).

FISCAL IMPACT:

There is no fiscal impact from the recommended action.

ACTION REQUESTED:

Staff recommends that Council open the Public Hearing and receive any input from the public on this matter and confirm whether a valid protest was lodged and if not, vote on the proposed Resolution of Approval.

CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION:

Concur with Recommended action
Submitted by: Ronald Strand, City Manager Action Date: October 4, 2023 (Revised Jan2019)
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Reso 23- XX RTID
Rl

RESOLUTION NO. 23- XX

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF RIDGECREST

DECLARING RESULTS OF MAJORITY PROTEST PROCEEDINGS AND

RENEWING THE RIDGECREST TOURISM IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
WHEREAS, the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 (Streets and Highways Code §36600 et. seq.) authorizes the City to renew business improvement districts for the purpose of promoting tourism; and
WHEREAS, on June 20, 2023 at 6:00 PM at 100 West California Avenue, Ridgecrest, CA 93555, based on request from Ridgecrest Area Convention & Visitors Bureau (RACVB) to renew Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District ("RTID"), the City Council adopted a Resolution of lntention, Resolution No. 23- ; and
WHEREAS, the public meeting and public hearings to consider renewal of the RTID have been properly noticed in accordance with Streets and Highways Code §36623;and WHEREAS, on July 19, 2023 at 6:00 PM at 100 West California Avenue, Ridgecrest, CA 93555, the City Council held a public meeting regarding renewal of the RTID, and the City Council heard and received objections and protests, if any, to renewal of the RTID and the levy of the proposed assessment; and
WHEREAS, on October 4, 2023 at 6:00 PM at 100 West California Avenue, Ridgecrest, CA 93555, the City Council held a public hearing regarding renewal of the RTID, and the City Council heard and received all objections and protests, if any, to renewal of the RTID and the levy of the proposed assessment; and
WHEREAS, the City Clerk has determined that there was no majority protest. A majority protest is defined as written protests received from owners of businesses in the district which would pay fifty percent (50%) or more of the assessments; and
WHEREAS, the City bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that an assessment imposed for a specific benefit or specific government service is not a tax, that the amount is no more than necessary to cover the costs to the City in providing the specific benefit or specific government service, and that the manner in which those costs are allocated to a payor bear a fair or reasonable relationship to the specific benefits or specific government services received by the payor.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL THAT:

1. The recitals set forth herein are adopted by the City Council as findings and they are true and correct.

2. The Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District is hereby renewed for a ten (10) year term, beginning October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2033 and the existing RTID is hereby extinguished as of the renewal date.

3. The 2023-2033 Management Plan is hereby adopted and approved.

Reso 23- XX RTID Page 2 of 3
Renewal

4. The activities and improvements to be provided to benefit businesses in the RTID will be funded by the levy of the assessment. The revenue from the assessment levy shall not be used: to provide activities or improvements that directly benefit businesses outside the RTID; to provide activities or improvements outside the RTID; or for any purpose other than the purposes specified in this Resolution, the Resolution of lntention, and the Plan. Notwithstanding the foregoing, improvements and activities that must be provided outside the RTID boundaries to create a special benefit to the assessed businesses may be provided, but shall be limited to marketing or signage pointing to the RTID.

5. The City Council finds as follows:
a) The activities and improvements funded by the assessment will provide a specific benefit to assessed businesses within the RTID that is not provided to those not paying the assessment. b) The assessment is a charge imposed for a specific benefit conferred or privilege granted directly to the payor that is not provided to those not charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable costs to the City of conferring the benefit or granting the privilege. c) The assessment is a charge imposed for a specific government service or product provided directly to the payor that is not provided to those not charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable costs to the City of providing the service or product. d) Assessments imposed pursuant to the RTID are levied solely upon the assessed business, and the business owner is solely responsible for payment of the assessment when due. If the owner chooses to collect any portion of the assessment from a customer, that portion shall be disclosed in advance and specifically identified for the customer in any and all communications from the business owner as the "RTID Assessment."

6. The assessments levied for the RTID shall be applied towards sales, marketing and events programs to market Ridgecrest lodging businesses as tourist, meeting and event destinations as set forth in the Plan.

7. Assessments levied on lodging businesses pursuant to this resolution shall be levied on the basis of benefit. Because the services provided are intended to increase room rentals and revenue therefrom, an assessment based on room rentals and revenue is the best measure of benefit.

8. The total RTID annual budget for the initial year of operation is anticipated to be approximately $1,139,647. This budget is expected to fluctuate as room sales do, but is not expected to significantly change over the term.

9. Bonds shall not be issued.

10. The RTID shall include all lodging business located within the boundaries of the City of Ridgecrest. A boundary map is attached hereto and incorporated herein by reference.

11. The assessments shall be used for the purposes set forth above and any funds remaining at the end of any year may be used in subsequent years in which the RTID assessment is levied as long as they are used consistent with this Resolution, the Plan, and the Resolution of lntention.

12. The assessments will be collected by the City on a monthly basis, and in accordance with Streets and Highways Code §36631.

Reso 23- XX RTID
Renewal

13. The City Council, through adoption of this Resolution and the Plan, has the right pursuant to Streets and Highways Code §36651, to identify the body that shall implement the proposed program, which shall be the Owners' Association of the RTID as defined in Streets and Highways Code §36612. The City Council has determined that the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau shall continue to be the Owners' Association.

14. The Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, pursuant to Streets and Highways Code § 36650, shall cause to be prepared a report for each fiscal year, except the first year, for which assessments are to be levied and collected to pay the costs of the improvement and activities described in the report.

15. The RTID renewed pursuant to this resolution will be subject to any amendments to the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 (California Streets and Highways Code §36600 et. seq.).

16. The City Clerk, or his or her designee, is directed to take all necessary actions to complete renewal of the RTID and to levy the assessments.

17. This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption.

I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Resolution of Adoption was introduced and adopted at a regular meeting of the Council on October 4, 2023 by the following vote:

AYES:

NOES:

ABSENT:

ABSTAIN:
______________________________
Eric Bruen, Mayor
ATTEST:
___________________________
Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
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DATE:

TO:

FROM:

June 1, 2023
Honorable Mayor Eric Bruen, City of Ridgecrest
Kari Crutcher, Executive Director, RACVB
SUBJECT: RESOLUTION OF INTENTION TO RENEW THE RIDGECREST TOURISM IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT 2023-2033
RECOMMENDATION:

It is recommended that the City Council:

1. Find that the Resolution of Intention proposed herein is categorically exempt under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) (common sense exemption) that there is no possibility for causing a significant effect on the environment.

2. Adopt a Resolution of Intention to renew the Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District.

3. Set a public meeting on July 5, 2023, and a public hearing on August 2, 2023, 6:00 p.m. to renew the RTID and the levy of assessments on lodging businesses.

BACKGROUND:

Developed by Ridgecrest lodging businesses and the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (RACVB), the RTID is an assessment district proposed to continue to provide specific benefits to payors by funding marketing and sales promotion efforts for assessed businesses. This approach has been used successfully in other destination areas throughout the country to provide the benefit of additional room night sales directly to payors. The current RTID was formed in 2012 pursuant to the Property and Business Improvement Area Law of 1989 ('89 Law) and converted in 2017 pursuant to the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 ('94 Law) for a ten (10) year term. The RACVB and Ridgecrest lodging businesses now wish to sunset the current RTID on September 30, 2023, and renew a new term of 10 years effective October 1, 2023.

The RTID is a benefit assessment district proposed to continue a revenue source to help fund marketing and sales promotion efforts for Ridgecrest lodging businesses.

The renewed RTID includes all lodging businesses, existing and in the future, located within the boundaries of the City of Ridgecrest.

Resolution of Intention to Renew the Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District June 1, 2023

The RACVB and Lodging business owners decided to pursue renewal of the RTID in order to continue a revenue source devoted to marketing Ridgecrest as a tourist, meeting, and event destination. If renewed, the RTID would generate approximately $1,139,647 in its initial year for promotion of travel and tourism specific to Ridgecrest and continue to fund the Ridgecrest Convention & Visitors Bureau and to support the California Welcome Center – Ridgecrest, as part of the Visit California welcome center statewide network.

TOURISM BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS
Tourism Business Improvement Districts (TBIDs) utilize the efficiencies of private sector operation in the market-based promotion of tourism. These special assessment districts allow lodging business owners to organize their efforts to increase tourism. Lodging business owners within the TBID fund the TBID, and those funds are used to provide services that are desired by and benefit the lodging businesses within the TBID.

TBID benefits:
► Funds cannot be diverted for other government programs ► They are customized to fit the needs of each destination ► They allow for a wide range of services; including: destination marketing, tourism promotion, and sales lead generation
► They are designed, created and governed by those who will pay the assessment ► They provide a stable funding source for tourism promotion In California, TBIDs are primarily formed pursuant to the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994 ('94 Law). This law allows for the creation of a special benefit assessment districts to raise funds within a specific geographic area.

The key difference between TBIDs and other special benefit assessment districts is that funds raised are returned to the private non-profit corporation governing the TBID.

MANAGEMENT DISTRICT PLAN
The Management District Plan includes the proposed boundary of the RTID, a service plan and budget, and a proposed means of governance. The renewed RTID will include all lodging businesses, existing and in the future, and available for public occupancy, located within the boundaries of the City of Ridgecrest.

The initial annual assessment rate is 5.75% of gross short-term sleeping room rental revenue. Based on the benefit received, the assessment shall not be collected on: stays of more than thirty (30) consecutive days; and stays by any officer or employee of a foreign government who is exempt by reason of express provision of federal law or international treaty.

Resolution of Intention to Renew the Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District June 1, 2023

The renewed RTID will have a ten (10) year term, beginning October 1, 2023 and ending ten (10) years from its start date on September 30, 2033. The assessment will be implemented beginning October 1, 2023. Once per year, beginning on the anniversary of RTID renewal, there is a thirty (30) day period in which business owners paying fifty percent (50%) or more of the assessment may protest and begin proceedings to terminate the RTID.

The City of Ridgecrest will be responsible for collecting the assessment on a monthly basis from each lodging business located in the RTID boundaries. The City shall continue to forward the assessments to RACVB, which will have the responsibility of managing RTID programs as provided in the Management District Plan.

RTID RENEWAL PROCESS
June 7, 2023 RESOLUTION OF INTENTION HEARING
Upon the submission of a written petition, signed by the business owners in the renewed district who will pay more than fifty percent (50%) of the assessments proposed to be levied, the City may initiate proceedings to renew a district by the adoption of a resolution expressing its intention to renew a district.

June 8, 2023 NOTICE
The '94 Law requires the City to mail written notice to the owners of all businesses proposed to be within the RTID. Mailing the notice begins a mandatory forty-five (45) day period in which owners may protest RTID renewal.

July 5, 2023
August 7, 2023

PUBLIC MEETING
Allow public testimony on the renewal of the RTID and levy of assessments. No Council action required.

FINAL PUBLIC HEARING
If written protests are received from the owners of businesses in the renewed RTID which will pay more than fifty percent (50%) of the assessments proposed to be levied and protests are not withdrawn so as to reduce the protests to less than fifty percent (50%), no further proceedings to levy the proposed assessment against such businesses shall be taken for a period of one (1) year from the date of the finding of a majority protest by the Council.

If the Council, following the public hearing, decides to establish the renewed RTID, the Council shall adopt a resolution of formation.

Resolution of Intention to Renew the Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District June 1, 2023

ENVIRONMENTAL:

The proposed action has been determined to be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3), the common sense exemption that CEQA only applies to projects which have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. There is no possibility that the adoption of the Resolution of Intention, by itself, will have a significant effect on the environment.

FISCAL IMPACT:

The proposed RTID programs and services have been in place since 2012. This renewal effort will:
• Levy an initial assessment of 5.75% of gross hotel room (passed through to hotel guests) to fund the Ridgecrest Area Convention & Visitors Bureau and the California Welcome Center - Ridgecrest sales and marketing efforts; • Support the future stability and health of the Transit Occupancy Tax (TOT) revenues for the City and RTID by continuing to fund tourism promotions for Ridgecrest; and
• No increase in cost to the City's general fund or other special funds.

Respectfully submitted,

Kari Crutcher, Executive Director
Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau
Attachments (2)
Attachment 1 - RTID Management District Plan
Attachment 2 - Resolution of Intention

CONTENTS
I. OVERVIEW ........................................................................................................... 2 II. BACKGROUND..................................................................................................... 3 III. BOUNDARY .......................................................................................................... 4 IV. SERVICES ............................................................................................................ 5 Sales and Marketing.................................................................................................. 5 Administration............................................................................................................ 5 City Collection Fee .................................................................................................... 5 Contingency/Reserve ................................................................................................ 5 V. BUDGET................................................................................................................ 7 A. Total Annual Budget.............................................................................................. 7 B. Budget Allocations ................................................................................................. 7 C. GAAP Compliance................................................................................................. 7 VI. ASSESSMENT ...................................................................................................... 8 A. Assessment ........................................................................................................... 8 B. Penalties and Interest ............................................................................................ 8 C. Time and Manner for Collecting Assessments ...................................................... 8 V. CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTIONAL COMPLIANCE .............................................. 10 D. Specific Benefit.................................................................................................... 10 E. Specific Government Service............................................................................... 11 F. Reasonable Cost ................................................................................................. 11 VI. GOVERNANCE ................................................................................................... 12 A. Owners’ Association ............................................................................................ 12 B. Brown Act and California Public Records Act Compliance.................................. 12 C. Annual Report...................................................................................................... 12 APPENDIX 1 – LAW....................................................................................................... 13 APPENDIX 2 – ASSESSED BUSINESSES……………………………………………….. 24 RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
2 I. OVERVIEW
Developed by the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau (the Bureau), the Ridgecrest Tourism Improvement District (RTID) is an assessment district renewed to provide specific benefits to payors, by funding targeted marketing and sales promotion efforts.

Location: The renewed RTID includes all lodging businesses located within the boundaries of the City of Ridgecrest, as shown on the map in section IV.

Services: The RTID is designed to provide specific benefits directly to payors by increasing room night sales and revenue therefrom. Marketing and sales promotions will increase overnight tourism and market payors as tourist, meeting and event destinations, thereby increasing room night sales and revenue therefrom.

Budget: The total RTID annual budget for the initial year of its 10-year operation is anticipated to be approximately $1,139,647. This budget is expected to fluctuate as room sales do, but is not expected to significantly change over the life of the RTID.

Cost: The annual assessment rate shall be 5.75 percent of gross room rental revenue. Based on the benefit received, the assessment shall not be collected on: stays of more than thirty (30) consecutive days; stays by any officer or employee of a foreign government who is exempt by reason of express provision of Federal law or international treaty; and stays pursuant to contracts executed prior to October 1, 2012.

Collection: The City will be responsible for collecting the assessment on a monthly basis (including any delinquencies, penalties and interest) from each lodging business located in the RTID.

Duration: The renewed RTID will have a 10-year life, beginning October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2033. Once per year, beginning on October 1, there is a 30-day period in which owners paying more than fifty percent (50%) of the assessment may protest and initiate a City Council hearing on district termination.

Management: The Bureau will continue to serve as the RTID’s Owners’ Association. The Owners’ Association is charged with managing funds and implementing programs in accordance with this Plan and must provide annual reports to the City Council.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
3 II. BACKGROUND
TIDs are an evolution of the traditional Business Improvement District. The first TID was formed in West Hollywood, California in 1989. Since then, over ninety California destinations have followed suit. In recent years, other states have begun adopting the California model – Montana, South Dakota, Washington, Colorado, Texas and Louisiana have adopted TID laws. Several other states are in the process of adopting their own legislation. The cities of Wichita, Kansas and Newark, New Jersey used an existing business improvement district law to form a TID. And, some cities, like Portland, Oregon and Memphis, Tennessee have utilized their home rule powers to create TIDs without a state law.

California’s TIDs collectively
raise over $225 million for
local destination marketing.

With competitors raising their
budgets, and increasing rivalry
for visitor dollars, it is
important that Ridgecrest
lodging businesses continue
to invest in stable, lodgingspecific marketing programs.

TIDs utilize the efficiencies of
private sector operation in the
market-based promotion of
tourism districts. TIDs allow
lodging business owners
to organize their efforts to
increase room night sales. Lodging business owners within the TID pay an assessment and those funds are used to provide services that increase room night sales.

In California, TIDs are formed pursuant to the Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994. This law allows for the creation of a benefit assessment district to raise funds within a specific geographic area. Unlike transient occupancy tax levies, TID funds cannot be diverted to government programs.

There are many benefits to TIDs:
• Funds must be spent on services and improvements that provide a specific benefit only to those lodging businesses that pay;
• They are customized to fit the needs of payors in each destination; • They allow for a wide range of services;
• They are designed, created, and governed by those who will pay the assessment; and • They provide a stable, long-term funding source for tourism promotion.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
4 III. BOUNDARY
The RTID will include all lodging businesses, existing and in the future, available for public occupancy within the boundaries of the City of Ridgecrest.

As used herein, lodging business means: any structure, or any portion of any structure, which is occupied or intended or designed for occupancy by transients for dwelling, lodging or sleeping purposes, and including any hotel, inn, tourist home or house, motel, studio hotel, bachelor hotel, lodging house, rooming house, apartment house, dormitory, public or private club, mobile home or house trailer at a fixed located, or other similar structure or portion thereof. Lodging business does not include a private home, vacation cabin or similar facility which is rented by a person who is not regularly engaged in the business of renting such facility and does so only occasionally and incidentally to his own use thereof.

The boundary, as shown in the map below, currently includes 18 lodging businesses.

A listing of lodging businesses within the renewed RTID can be found in Appendix 2.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
5 IV. SERVICES
Assessment funds will be spent on specific benefits conferred or privileges granted directly to the payors that are not provided to those not charged, and which do not exceed the reasonable cost to the City of conferring the benefits or granting the privileges. The privileges and services provided with the RTID funds are sales and marketing programs available only to assessed businesses, which are designed to increase room night sales and revenue therefrom. A description of the proposed activities for the initial year of operation is below; the same activities are proposed for subsequent years.

Sales, Marketing & Events
A sales and marketing program will promote assessed businesses as tourist, meeting, and event destinations. The sales and marketing program will have a central theme of promoting Ridgecrest as a desirable place for overnight visits. The program will have the goal of increasing overnight visitation and room night sales at assessed businesses, and may include the following activities:
• Digital marketing efforts, including advertising and social media, to increase awareness and optimize Internet presence to drive overnight visitation and room sales to assessed businesses;
• Print ads in magazines and newspapers, television ads, and radio ads targeted at potential visitors to drive overnight visitation and room sales to assessed businesses; • Attendance of trade shows to promote assessed businesses; • Sales blitzes for assessed businesses;
• Familiarization tours of assessed businesses;
• Preparation and production of collateral promotional materials such as brochures, flyers and maps featuring assessed businesses;
• Coordinated promotions with visitor-attracting businesses, events, and attractions targeted at increasing overnight visitation to assessed businesses; • Attendance of professional industry conferences and affiliation events to promote assessed businesses;
• Sponsorship and promotion of events marketed to overnight visitors encouraging them to stay at assessed businesses;
• Lead generation activities designed to attract tourists and group events to assessed businesses;
• Director of Sales and General Manager meetings to plan and coordinate tourism promotion efforts for assessed businesses; and
• Development and maintenance of a website designed to promote assessed businesses.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
6 Administration
In order to provide the sales and marketing services, the Bureau will incur various administrative costs, such as staffing, rent, advocacy, insurance, legal, and accounting fees.

City Collection Fee
The City of Ridgecrest shall retain a fee to cover its actual costs of assessment collection and administration.

Contingency/Reserve
In order to ensure effective provision of services, a contingency will be established to account for uncollected assessments or unanticipated program costs. If there are contingency funds collected, they may be held in a reserve fund or utilized for other program, administration, or renewal costs at the discretion of the Bureau Board.

Policies relating to contributions to the reserve fund, the target amount of the reserve fund, and expenditure of the reserve fund shall be set by the Bureau Board. The reserve fund may be spent on programs described in this Plan in any proportion deemed appropriate by the Bureau Board.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
7 V. BUDGET
A. Total Annual Budget
The total 10-year budget is projected at approximately $1,139,647 annually, or $11,396,470 through 2033. This budget is expected to fluctuate as room sales do, but is not expected to significantly change over the life of the RTID.

B. Budget Allocations
The budget allocations for the initial year are shown below. Although actual annual revenues will fluctuate due to market conditions, the proportional allocations of the budget shall remain consistent; however, the City and the Bureau Board shall have the authority to adjust categorical allocations by up to fifteen percent (15%) of the total budget each year. In the event of a legal challenge against the RTID, any and all assessment funds may be used for the costs of defending the RTID, the City and the Bureau related to the RTID.

The initial annual budget of $1,139,647 will be allocated as follows:

C. GAAP Compliance
Each budget category includes all costs related to providing that service, in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Procedures (GAAP). For example, the sales and marketing budget includes the cost of staff time dedicated to overseeing and implementing the sales and marketing program. Staff time dedicated purely to administrative tasks is allocated to the administrative portion of the budget. The costs of employing an individual staff member may be allocated to multiple budget categories, as appropriate in accordance with GAAP. The staffing levels necessary to provide the services below will be determined by the Bureau Board on an as-needed basis.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
8 VI. ASSESSMENT
A. Assessment
The annual assessment rate shall be 5.75 percent of gross room rental revenue. Based on the benefit received, the assessment shall not be collected on: stays of more than thirty (30) consecutive days; stays by any officer or employee of a foreign government who is exempt by reason of express provision of Federal law or international treaty; and stays pursuant to contracts executed prior to October 1, 2012.

The term “gross room rental revenue” as used herein means: the consideration charged, whether or not received, for the occupancy of space in a lodging business value in money, whether to be received in money, goods, labor or otherwise, including all receipts, cash, credits and property and services of any kind or nature, without any deduction therefrom whatsoever. Gross room rental revenue shall not include any federal, state or local taxes collected, including but not limited to transient occupancy taxes. The assessment shall not be considered revenue for any purposes, including calculation of transient occupancy taxes.

The assessment is levied upon and a direct obligation of the assessed lodging business.

However, the assessed lodging business may, at its discretion, pass the assessment on to customers. The amount of assessment, if passed on to each customer, shall be disclosed in advance and separately stated from the amount of rent charged and any other applicable taxes, and each customer shall receive a receipt for payment from the business. The assessment shall be disclosed as the “RTID Assessment.” The assessment is imposed solely upon, and is the sole obligation of the assessed lodging business even if it is passed on to customers.

Bonds shall not be issued.

B. Penalties and Interest
The City shall be responsible for collection of delinquent assessments. The RTID shall reimburse the City of Ridgecrest for any costs associated with collecting unpaid assessments. If sums in excess of the delinquent RTID assessment are sought to be recovered in the same collection action by the City, the RTID shall bear its pro rata share of such collection costs. Assessed businesses which are delinquent in paying the assessment shall be responsible for paying:

1. Original Delinquency: any lodging business which fails to remit any assessment imposed within the time required shall pay a penalty of ten percent (10%) of the amount of the assessment in addition to the amount of the assessment.

2. Fraud: If the City determines that the nonpayment of any remittance due is due to fraud, a penalty of twenty-five percent (25%) of the amount of the assessment shall be added thereto in addition to the penalties stated in subsection 1 above.

3. Interest: In addition to the penalties imposed, any lodging business which fails to remit any assessment imposed shall pay interest at the rate of one-half of one percent (0.5%) per month or fraction thereof on the amount of the assessment, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which the remittance first became delinquent until paid.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
9 4. Penalties Merged With Assessment: Every penalty imposed and such interest as accrues shall become a part of the assessment herein required to be paid.

C. Time and Manner for Collecting Assessments
The RTID assessment will be implemented beginning October 1, 2023 and will continue for 10 years through September 30, 2033. The City will be responsible for collecting the assessment on a monthly basis (including any delinquencies, penalties and interest) from each lodging business. The City shall take all reasonable efforts to collect the assessments from each lodging business. The City shall forward the assessments collected to the Owners’ Association.

RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
10 V. CALIFORNIA CONSTITUTIONAL COMPLIANCE
The RTID is subject to certain provisions of the California Constitution. Although it levies an assessment, the RTID is not a property-based assessment subject to the requirements of Article XIII D of the Constitution (“Proposition 218”). The Court has found, “Proposition 218 limited the term ‘assessments’ to levies on real property.”1 Rather, the RTID assessment is a business-based assessment, and is subject to Article XIII C of the Constitution (“Proposition 26”). Pursuant to Proposition 26 all City levies are a tax unless they fit one of seven exceptions. Two of these exceptions apply to the RTID, a “specific benefit” and a “specific government service.” Both require that the costs of benefits or services do not exceed the reasonable costs to the City of conferring the benefits or providing the services.

D. Specific Benefit
Proposition 26 requires that assessment funds be expended on, “a specific benefit conferred or privilege granted directly to the payor that is not provided to those not charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable costs to the local government of conferring the benefit or granting the privilege.”2 The services in this Plan are designed to provide targeted benefits directly to assessed lodging businesses, and are intended only to provide benefits and services directly to those businesses paying the assessment. These services are tailored not to serve the general public, businesses in general, or parcels of land, but rather to serve the specific lodging businesses within the RTID. The activities described in this Plan are specifically targeted to increase room night sales for assessed lodging businesses within the boundaries of the RTID, and are narrowly tailored. RTID funds will be used exclusively to provide the specific benefit of increased room night sales directly to the assessees. Assessment funds shall not be used to feature non-assessed lodging businesses in RTID programs, or to directly generate sales for non-assessed businesses. The activities paid for from assessment revenues are business services constituting and providing specific benefits to the assessed businesses.

The assessment imposed by the RTID is for a specific benefit conferred directly to the payors that is not provided to those not charged. The specific benefit conferred directly to the payors is an increase in room night sales and revenue therefrom. The specific benefit of an increase in room night sales for assessed lodging businesses will be directly provided only to lodging businesses paying the RTID assessment, with marketing and sales programs promoting only those lodging businesses paying the assessment. The marketing and sales programs will be designed to increase room night sales at each assessed lodging business. Because they are necessary to provide the marketing and sales programs that specifically benefit the assessed lodging businesses, the administration, collection and contingency expenditures also provide the specific benefit of increased room night sales to the assessed lodging businesses.

Although the RTID, in providing specific benefits to payors, may produce incidental benefits to non- paying businesses, the incidental benefit does not preclude the services RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
11 from being considered a specific benefit. The legislature has found that, “A specific benefit is not excluded from classification as a ‘specific benefit’ merely because an indirect benefit to a nonpayor occurs incidentally and without cost to the payor as a consequence of providing the specific benefit to the payor.”3 1 Jarvis v. the City of San Diego 72 Cal App. 4th 230
2 Cal. Const. art XIII C § 1(e)(1)
3 Government Code § 53758(a)
A. Specific Government Service
The assessment may also be utilized to provide, “a specific government service or product provided directly to the payor that is not provided to those not charged, and which does not exceed the reasonable costs to the local government of providing the service or product.”4 The legislature has recognized that marketing and promotions services like those to be provided by the RTID are government services within the meaning of Proposition 265. Further, the legislature has determined that “a specific government service is not excluded from classification as a ‘specific government service’ merely because an indirect benefit to a nonpayor occurs incidentally and without cost to the payor as a consequence of providing the specific government service to the payor.”6
B. Reasonable Cost
RTID services will be implemented carefully to ensure they do not exceed the reasonable cost of such services. The full amount assessed will be used to provide the services described herein. Funds will be managed by the Bureau, and reports submitted on an annual basis to the City. Only assessed lodging businesses will be featured in marketing materials, receive sales leads generated from RTID- funded activities, be featured in advertising campaigns, and directly benefit from other RTID-funded services.

Non-assessed lodging businesses will not directly receive these, nor any other, RTIDfunded services and benefits.

The RTID-funded programs are all targeted directly at and feature only assessed businesses. It is, however, possible that there will be a spill over benefit to nonassessed businesses. If non-assessed lodging businesses receive incremental room nights, that portion of the promotion or program generating those room nights shall be paid with non-RTID funds. RTID funds shall only be spent to benefit the assessed businesses, and shall not be spent on that portion of any program which directly generates incidental room nights for non-assessed businesses. 4 Cal. Const. art XIII C § 1(e)(2)
5 Government Code § 53758(b)
6 Government Code § 53758(b)
RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
12 VI. GOVERNANCE
A. Owners’ Association
The City Council, through adoption of this Management District Plan, has the right, pursuant to Streets and Highways Code §36651, to identify the body that shall implement the proposed program, which shall be the Owners’ Association of the RTID as defined in Streets and Highways Code §36612. The City Council has determined that the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bureau will serve as the Owners’ Association for the RTID. A majority of the Bureau’s board of directors shall be representatives of assessed lodging businesses.

B. Brown Act and California Public Records Act Compliance An Owners’ Association is a private entity and may not be considered a public entity for any purpose, nor may its board members or staff be public officials for any purpose. The Owners’ Association is, however, subject to government regulations relating to transparency, namely the Ralph M. Brown Act and the California Public Records Act.

These regulations are designed to promote public accountability. The Owners’ Association acts as a legislative body under the Ralph M. Brown Act (Government Code §54950 et seq.). Thus, meetings of the Bureau board and certain committees wherein the RTID is discussed must be held in compliance with the public notice and other requirements of the Brown Act. The Owners’ Association is also subject to the record keeping and disclosure requirements of the California Public Records Act. Accordingly, the Owners’ Association shall publicly report any action taken and the vote or abstention on that action of each member present for the action.

C. Annual Report
The Bureau shall present an annual report at the end of each year of operation to the City Council pursuant to Streets and Highways Code §36650 (see Appendix 1). The annual report shall include:
• Any proposed changes in the boundaries of the improvement district or in any benefit zones or classification of businesses within the district. • The improvements and activities to be provided for that fiscal year. • An estimate of the cost of providing the improvements and the activities for that fiscal year.
• The method and basis of levying the assessment in sufficient detail to allow each business owner to estimate the amount of the assessment to be levied against his or her business for that fiscal year.
• The estimated amount of any surplus or deficit revenues to be carried over from a previous fiscal year.
• The estimated amount of any contributions to be made from sources other than assessments levied pursuant to this part.

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13 APPENDIX 1 – LAW
*** THIS DOCUMENT IS CURRENT THROUGH THE 2022 SUPPLEMENT *** (ALL 2021 LEGISLATION)

STREETS AND HIGHWAYS CODE
DIVISION 18. PARKING
PART 7. PROPERTY AND BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT LAW OF 1994 CHAPTER 1. General Provisions
ARTICLE 1. Declarations
36600. Citation of part
This part shall be known and may be cited as the “Property and Business Improvement District Law of 1994.” 36601. Legislative findings and declarations; Legislative guidance The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Businesses located and operating within business districts in some of this state’s communities are economically disadvantaged, are underutilized, and are unable to attract customers due to inadequate facilities, services, and activities in the business districts. (b) It is in the public interest to promote the economic revitalization and physical maintenance of business districts in order to create jobs, attract new businesses, and prevent the erosion of the business districts.
(c) It is of particular local benefit to allow business districts to fund business related improvements, maintenance, and activities through the levy of assessments upon the businesses or real property that receive benefits from those improvements. (d) Assessments levied for the purpose of conferring special benefit upon the real property or a specific benefit upon the businesses in a business district are not taxes for the general benefit of a city, even if property, businesses, or persons not assessed receive incidental or collateral effects that benefit them.
(e) Property and business improvement districts formed throughout this state have conferred special benefits upon properties and businesses within their districts and have made those properties and businesses more useful by providing the following benefits:
(1) Crime reduction. A study by the Rand Corporation has confirmed a 12-percent reduction in the incidence of robbery and an 8-percent reduction in the total incidence of violent crimes within the 30 districts studied.
(2) Job creation.
(3) Business attraction.
(4) Business retention.
(5) Economic growth.
(6) New investments.
(f) With the dissolution of redevelopment agencies throughout the state, property and business improvement districts have become even more important tools with which communities can combat blight, promote economic opportunities, and create a clean and safe environment. (g) Since the enactment of this act, the people of California have adopted Proposition 218, which added Article XIII D to the Constitution in order to place certain requirements and restrictions on the formation of, and activities, expenditures, and assessments by property-based districts. Article XIII D of the Constitution provides that property-based districts may only levy assessments for special benefits.
(h) The act amending this section is intended to provide the Legislature’s guidance with regard to this act, its interaction with the provisions of Article XIII D of the Constitution, and the determination of special benefits in property-based districts.
(1) The lack of legislative guidance has resulted in uncertainty and inconsistent application of this act, which discourages the use of assessments to fund needed improvements, maintenance, and activities in property-based districts, contributing to blight and other underutilization of property.
(2) Activities undertaken for the purpose of conferring special benefits upon property to be assessed inherently produce incidental or collateral effects that benefit property or RTID Management District Plan
May 1, 2023
14 persons not assessed. Therefore, for special benefits to exist as a separate and distinct category from general benefits, theincidental or collateral effects of those special benefits are inherently part of those special benefits. The mere fact that special benefits produce incidental or collateral effects that benefit property or persons not assessed does not convert any portion of those special benefits or their incidental or collateral effects into general benefits.
(3) It is of the utmost importance that property-based districts created under this act have clarity regarding restrictions on assessments they may levy and the proper determination of special benefits. Legislative clarity with regard to this act will provide districts with clear instructions and courts with legislative intent regarding restrictions on property-based assessments, and the manner in which special benefits should be determined. 36602. Purpose of part
The purpose of this part is to supplement previously enacted provisions of law that authorize cities to levy assessments within property and business improvement districts, to ensure that those assessments conform to all constitutional requirements and are determined and assessed in accordance with the guidance set forth in this act. This part does not affect or limit any other provisions of law authorizing or providing for the furnishing of improvements or activities or the raising of revenue for these purposes. 36603. Preemption of authority or charter city to adopt ordinances levying assessments Nothing in this part is intended to preempt the authority of a charter city to adopt ordinances providing for a different method of levying assessments for similar or additional purposes from those set forth in this part.

A property and business improvement district created pursuant to this part is expressly exempt from the provisions of the Special Assessment Investigation, Limitation and Majority Protest Act of 1931 (Division 4 (commencing with Section 2800)).
36603.5. Part prevails over conflicting provisions
Any provision of this part that conflicts with any other provision of law shall prevail over the other provision of law, as to districts created under this part.
36604. Severability
This part is intended to be construed liberally and, if any provision is held invalid, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect. Assessments levied under this part are not special taxes.

ARTICLE 2. Definitions
36606. “Activities”
“Activities” means, but is not limited to, all of the following that benefit businesses or real property in the district:
(a) Promotion of public events.
(b) Furnishing of music in any public place.
(c) Promotion of tourism within the district.
(d) Marketing and economic development, including retail retention and recruitment. (e) Providing security, sanitation, graffiti removal, street and sidewalk cleaning, and other municipal services supplemental to those normally provided by the municipality. (f) Other services provided for the purpose of conferring special benefit upon assessed real property or specific benefits upon assessed businesses located in the district. 36606.5. “Assessment”
“Assessment” means a levy for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, installing, or maintaining improvements and providing activities that will provide certain benefits to properties or businesses located within a property and business improvement district.
36607. “Business”
“Business” means all types of businesses and includes financial institutions and professions.

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15 36608. “City”
“City” means a city, county, city and county, or an agency or entity created pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 6500) of Chapter 5 of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code, the public member agencies of which includes only cities, counties, or a city and county, or the State of California. 36609. “City council”
“City council” means the city council of a city or the board of supervisors of a county, or the agency, commission, or board created pursuant to a joint powers agreement and which is a city within the meaning of this part.
36609.4. “Clerk”
“Clerk” means the clerk of the legislative body.
36609.5. “General benefit”
“General benefit” means, for purposes of a property-based district, any benefit that is not a “special benefit” as defined in Section 36615.5.
36610. “Improvement”
“Improvement” means the acquisition, construction, installation, or maintenance of any tangible property with an estimated useful life of five years or more including, but not limited to, the following:
(a) Parking facilities.
(b) Benches, booths, kiosks, display cases, pedestrian shelters and signs. (c) Trash receptacles and public restrooms.
(d) Lighting and heating facilities.
(e) Decorations.
(f) Parks.
(g) Fountains.
(h) Planting areas.
(i) Closing, opening, widening, or narrowing of existing streets. (j) Facilities or equipment, or both, to enhance security of persons and property within the district. (k) Ramps, sidewalks, plazas, and pedestrian malls.
(l) Rehabilitation or removal of existing structures.
36611. “Management district plan”; “Plan”
“Management district plan” or “plan” means a proposal as defined in Section 36622. 36612. “Owners’ association”
“Owners’ association” means a private nonprofit entity that is under contract with a city to administer or implement improvements, maintenance, and activities specified in the management district plan. An owners’ association may be an existing nonprofit entity or a newly formed nonprofit entity. An owners’ association is a private entity and may not be considered a public entity for any purpose, nor may its board members or staff be considered to be public officials for any purpose. Notwithstanding this section, an owners’ association shall comply with the Ralph M. Brown Act (Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 54950) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code), at all times when matters within the subject matter of the district are heard, discussed, or deliberated, and with the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code), for all records relating to activities of the district.
36614. “Property”
“Property” means real property situated within a district. 36614.5. “Property and business improvement district”;
“District”
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“Property and business improvement district,” or “district,” means a property and business improvement district established pursuant to this part.
36614.6. “Property-based assessment”
“Property-based assessment” means any assessment made pursuant to this part upon real property. 36614.7. “Property-based district”
“Property-based district” means any district in which a city levies a property-based assessment. 36615. “Property owner”; “Business owner”; “Owner”
“Property owner” means any person shown as the owner of land on the last equalized assessment roll or otherwise known to be the owner of land by the city council. “Business owner” means any person recognized by the city as the owner of the business. “Owner” means either a business owner or a property owner. The city council has no obligation to obtain other information as to the ownership of land or businesses, and its determination of ownership shall be final and conclusive for the purposes of this part.

Wherever this part requires the signature of the property owner, the signature of the authorized agent of the property owner shall be sufficient. Wherever this part requires the signature of the business owner, the signature of the authorized agent of the business owner shall be sufficient. 36615.5. “Special benefit”
“Special benefit” means, for purposes of a property-based district, a particular and distinct benefit over and above general benefits conferred on real property located in a district or to the public at large. Special benefit includes incidental or collateral effects that arise from the improvements, maintenance, or activities of property-based districts even if those incidental or collateral effects benefit property or persons not assessed. Special benefit excludes general enhancement of property value. 36616. “Tenant”
“Tenant” means an occupant pursuant to a lease of commercial space or a dwelling unit, other than an owner.

ARTICLE 3. Prior Law
36617. Alternate method of financing certain improvements and activities; Effect on other provisions This part provides an alternative method of financing certain improvements and activities. The provisions of this part shall not affect or limit any other provisions of law authorizing or providing for the furnishing of improvements or activities or the raising of revenue for these purposes. Every improvement area established pursuant to the Parking and Business Improvement Area Law of 1989 (Part 6 (commencing with Section 36500) of this division) is valid and effective and is unaffected by this part.

CHAPTER 2. Establishment
36620. Establishment of property and business improvement district A property and business improvement district may be established as provided in this chapter. 36620.5. Requirement of consent of city council
A county may not form a district within the territorial jurisdiction of a city without the consent of the city council of that city. A city may not form a district within the unincorporated territory of a county without the consent of the board of supervisors of that county. A city may not form a district within the territorial jurisdiction of another city without the consent of the city council of the other city. 36621. Initiation of proceedings; Petition of property or business owners in proposed district
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(a) Upon the submission of a written petition, signed by the property or business owners in the proposed district who will pay more than 50 percent of the assessments proposed to be levied, the city council may initiate proceedings to form a district by the adoption of a resolution expressing its intention to form a district. The amount of assessment attributable to property or a business owned by the same property or business owner that is in excess of 40 percent of the amount of all assessments proposed to be levied, shall not be included in determining whether the petition is signed by property or business owners who will pay more than 50 percent of the total amount of assessments proposed to be levied.
(b) The petition of property or business owners required under subdivision (a) shall include a summary of the management district plan. That summary shall include all of the following:
(1) A map showing the boundaries of the district.
(2) Information specifying where the complete management district plan can be obtained. (3) Information specifying that the complete management district plan shall be furnished upon request.
(c) The resolution of intention described in subdivision (a) shall contain all of the following:
(1) A brief description of the proposed improvements, maintenance, and activities, the amount of the proposed assessment, a statement as to whether the assessment will be levied on property or businesses within the district, a statement as to whether bonds will be issued, and a description of the exterior boundaries of the proposed district, which may be made by reference to any plan or map that is on file with the clerk. The descriptions and statements do not need to be detailed and shall be sufficient if they enable an owner to generally identify the nature and extent of the improvements, maintenance, and activities, and the location and extent of the proposed district.
(2) A time and place for a public hearing on the establishment of the property and business improvement district and the levy of assessments, which shall be consistent with the requirements of Section 36623.
36622. Contents of management district plan
The management district plan shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(a) If the assessment will be levied on property, a map of the district in sufficient detail to locate each parcel of property and, if businesses are to be assessed, each business within the district. If the assessment will be levied on businesses, a map that identifies the district boundaries in sufficient detail to allow a business owner to reasonably determine whether a business is located within the district boundaries. If the assessment will be levied on property and businesses, a map of the district in sufficient detail to locate each parcel of property and to allow a business owner to reasonably determine whether a business is located within the district boundaries. (b) The name of the proposed district.
(c) A description of the boundaries of the district, including the boundaries of benefit zones, proposed for establishment or extension in a manner sufficient to identify the affected property and businesses included, which may be made by reference to any plan or map that is on file with the clerk. The boundaries of a proposed property assessment district shall not overlap with the boundaries of another existing property assessment district created pursuant to this part. This part does not prohibit the boundaries of a district created pursuant to this part to overlap with other assessment districts established pursuant to other provisions of law, including, but not limited to, the Parking and Business Improvement Area Law of 1989 (Part 6 (commencing with Section 36500)). This part does not prohibit the boundaries of a business assessment district created pursuant to this part to overlap with another business assessment district created pursuant to this part. This part does not prohibit the boundaries of a business assessment district created pursuant to this part to overlap with a property assessment district created pursuant to this part. (d) The improvements, maintenance, and activities proposed for each year of operation of the district and the maximum cost thereof. If the improvements, maintenance, and activities proposed for each year of operation are the same, a description of the first year’s proposed improvements, maintenance, and activities and a statement that the same improvements, maintenance, and activities are proposed for subsequent years shall satisfy the requirements of this subdivision. (e) The total annual amount proposed to be expended for improvements, maintenance, or activities, and debt service in each year of operation of the district. If the assessment is levied on businesses, this amount may be estimated based upon the assessment rate. If the total annual amount proposed to be expended in each year of operation of the district is not significantly different, the amount proposed to be expended in the initial RTID Management District Plan 18
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year and a statement that a similar amount applies to subsequent years shall satisfy the requirements of this subdivision.
(f) The proposed source or sources of financing, including the proposed method and basis of levying the assessment in sufficient detail to allow each property or business owner to calculate the amount of the assessment to be levied against his or her property or business. The plan also shall state whether bonds will be issued to finance improvements. (g) The time and manner of collecting the assessments.
(h) The specific number of years in which assessments will be levied. In a new district, the maximum number of years shall be five. Upon renewal, a district shall have a term not to exceed 10 years. Notwithstanding these limitations, a district created pursuant to this part to finance capital improvements with bonds may levy assessments until the maximum maturity of the bonds.

The management district plan may set forth specific increases in assessments for each year of operation of the district.
(i) The proposed time for implementation and completion of the management district plan. (j) Any proposed rules and regulations to be applicable to the district. (k)
(1) A list of the properties or businesses to be assessed, including the assessor’s parcel numbers for properties to be assessed, and a statement of the method or methods by which the expenses of a district will be imposed upon benefited real property or businesses, in proportion to the benefit received by the property or business, to defray the cost thereof.
(2) In a property-based district, the proportionate special benefit derived by each identified parcel shall be determined exclusively in relationship to the entirety of the capital cost of a public improvement, the maintenance and operation expenses of a public improvement, or the cost of the activities. An assessment shall not be imposed on any parcel that exceeds the reasonable cost of the proportional special benefit conferred on that parcel. Only special benefits are assessable, and a property-based district shall separate the general benefits, if any, from the special benefits conferred on a parcel.

Parcels within a property-based district that are owned or used by any city, public agency, the State of California, or the United States shall not be exempt from assessment unless the governmental entity can demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that those publicly owned parcels in fact receive no special benefit. The value of any incidental, secondary, or collateral effects that arise from the improvements, maintenance, or activities of a property-based district and that benefit property or persons not assessed shall not be deducted from the entirety of the cost of any special benefit or affect the proportionate special benefit derived by each identified parcel. (l) In a property-based district, the total amount of all special benefits to be conferred upon the properties located within the property-based district.
(m) In a property-based district, the total amount of general benefits, if any. (n) In a property-based district, a detailed engineer’s report prepared by a registered professional engineer certified by the State of California supporting all assessments contemplated by the management district plan. (o) Any other item or matter required to be incorporated therein by the city council. 36623. Procedure to levy assessment
(a) If a city council proposes to levy a new or increased property assessment, the notice and protest and hearing procedure shall comply with Section 53753 of the Government Code. (b) If a city council proposes to levy a new or increased business assessment, the notice and protest and hearing procedure shall comply with Section 54954.6 of the Government Code, except that notice shall be mailed to the owners of the businesses proposed to be assessed. A protest may be made orally or in writing by any interested person. Every written protest shall be filed with the clerk at or before the time fixed for the public hearing. The city council may waive any irregularity in the form or content of any written protest. A written protest may be withdrawn in writing at any time before the conclusion of the public hearing. Each written protest shall contain a description of the business in which the person subscribing the protest is interested sufficient to identify the business and, if a person subscribing is not shown on the official records of the city as the owner of the business, the protest shall contain or be accompanied by written evidence that the person subscribing is the owner of the business or the authorized representative. A written protest that does not comply with this section shall not be counted in determining a majority protest. If written protests are received from the owners or authorized representatives of businesses in the proposed district that will pay 50 percent or more of the assessments proposed to be levied and protests are not withdrawn so as to reduce the protests to less than 50 percent, no further proceedings to levy the proposed assessment against such businesses, as contained RTID Management District Plan 19
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in the resolution of intention, shall be taken for a period of one year from the date of the finding of a majority protest by the city council.
(c) If a city council proposes to conduct a single proceeding to levy both a new or increased property assessment and a new or increased business assessment, the notice and protest and hearing procedure for the property assessment shall comply with subdivision (a), and the notice and protest and hearing procedure for the business assessment shall comply with subdivision (b).

If a majority protest is received from either the property or business owners, that respective portion of the assessment shall not be levied. The remaining portion of the assessment may be levied unless the improvement or other special benefit was proposed to be funded by assessing both property and business owners.
36624. Changes to proposed assessments
At the conclusion of the public hearing to establish the district, the city council may adopt, revise, change, reduce, or modify the proposed assessment or the type or types of improvements, maintenance, and activities to be funded with the revenues from the assessments. Proposed assessments may only be revised by reducing any or all of them. At the public hearing, the city council may only make changes in, to, or from the boundaries of the proposed property and business improvement district that will exclude territory that will not benefit from the proposed improvements, maintenance, and activities. Any modifications, revisions, reductions, or changes to the proposed assessment district shall be reflected in the notice and map recorded pursuant to Section 36627.
36625. Resolution of formation
(a) If the city council, following the public hearing, decides to establish a proposed property and business improvement district, the city council shall adopt a resolution of formation that shall include, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(1) A brief description of the proposed improvements, maintenance, and activities, the amount of the proposed assessment, a statement as to whether the assessment will be levied on property, businesses, or both within the district, a statement on whether bonds will be issued, and a description of the exterior boundaries of the proposed district, which may be made by reference to any plan or map that is on file with the clerk. The descriptions and statements need not be detailed and shall be sufficient if they enable an owner to generally identify the nature and extent of the improvements, maintenance, and activities and the location and extent of the proposed district. (2) The number, date of adoption, and title of the resolution of intention. (3) The time and place where the public hearing was held concerning the establishment of the district.
(4) A determination regarding any protests received. The city shall not establish the district or levy assessments if a majority protest was received. (5) A statement that the properties, businesses, or properties and businesses in the district established by the resolution shall be subject to any amendments to this part. (6) A statement that the improvements, maintenance, and activities to be conferred on businesses and properties in the district will be funded by the levy of the assessments.

The revenue from the levy of assessments within a district shall not be used to provide improvements, maintenance, or activities outside the district or for any purpose other than the purposes specified in the resolution of intention, as modified by the city council at the hearing concerning establishment of the district. Notwithstanding the foregoing, improvements and activities that must be provided outside the district boundaries to create a special or specific benefit to the assessed parcels or businesses may be provided, but shall be limited to marketing or signage pointing to the district. (7) A finding that the property or businesses within the area of the property and business improvement district will be benefited by the improvements, maintenance, and activities funded by the proposed assessments, and, for a property-based district, that property within the district will receive a special benefit.
(8) In a property-based district, the total amount of all special benefits to be conferred on the properties within the property-based district.
(b) The adoption of the resolution of formation and, if required, recordation of the notice and map pursuant to Section 36627 shall constitute the levy of an assessment in each of the fiscal years referred to in the management district plan.
36627. Notice and assessment diagram
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Following adoption of the resolution establishing district assessments on properties pursuant to Section 36625, the clerk shall record a notice and an assessment diagram pursuant to Section 3114. No other provision of Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 3100) applies to an assessment district created pursuant to this part.
36628. Establishment of separate benefit zones within district; Categories of businesses The city council may establish one or more separate benefit zones within the district based upon the degree of benefit derived from the improvements or activities to be provided within the benefit zone and may impose a different assessment within each benefit zone. If the assessment is to be levied on businesses, the city council may also define categories of businesses based upon the degree of benefit that each will derive from the improvements or activities to be provided within the district and may impose a different assessment or rate of assessment on each category of business, or on each category of business within each zone.
36628.5. Assessments on businesses or property owners
The city council may levy assessments on businesses or on property owners, or a combination of the two, pursuant to this part. The city council shall structure the assessments in whatever manner it determines corresponds with the distribution of benefits from the proposed improvements, maintenance, and activities, provided that any property- based assessment conforms with the requirements set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (k) of Section 36622.
36629. Provisions and procedures applicable to benefit zones and business categories All provisions of this part applicable to the establishment, modification, or disestablishment of a property and business improvement district apply to the establishment, modification, or disestablishment of benefit zones or categories of business. The city council shall, to establish, modify, or disestablish a benefit zone or category of business, follow the procedure to establish, modify, or disestablish a property and business improvement district.
36630. Expiration of district; Creation of new district If a property and business improvement district expires due to the time limit set pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 36622, a new management district plan may be created and the district may be renewed pursuant to this part.

CHAPTER 3. Assessments
36631. Time and manner of collection of assessments; Delinquent payments The collection of the assessments levied pursuant to this part shall be made at the time and in the manner set forth by the city council in the resolution levying the assessment. Assessments levied on real property may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as for the ad valorem property tax, and may provide for the same lien priority and penalties for delinquent payment. All delinquent payments for assessments levied pursuant to this part may be charged interest and penalties. 36632. Assessments to be based on estimated benefit; Classification of real property and businesses; Exclusion of residential and agricultural property (a) The assessments levied on real property pursuant to this part shall be levied on the basis of the estimated benefit to the real property within the property and business improvement district.

The city council may classify properties for purposes of determining the benefit to property of the improvements and activities provided pursuant to this part. (b) Assessments levied on businesses pursuant to this part shall be levied on the basis of the estimated benefit to the businesses within the property and business improvement district. The city council may classify businesses for purposes of determining the benefit to the businesses of the improvements and activities provided pursuant to this part. (c) Properties zoned solely for residential use, or that are zoned for agricultural use, are conclusively presumed not to benefit from the improvements and service funded through these assessments, and shall not be subject to any assessment pursuant to this part.

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36633. Time for contesting validity of assessment
The validity of an assessment levied under this part shall not be contested in an action or proceeding unless the action or proceeding is commenced within 30 days after the resolution levying the assessment is adopted pursuant to Section 36625. An appeal from a final judgment in an action or proceeding shall be perfected within 30 days after the entry of judgment.
36634. Service contracts authorized to establish levels of city services The city council may execute baseline service contracts that would establish levels of city services that would continue after a property and business improvement district has been formed. 36635. Request to modify management district plan
The owners’ association may, at any time, request that the city council modify the management district plan. Any modification of the management district plan shall be made pursuant to this chapter. 36636. Modification of plan by resolution after public hearing; Adoption of resolution of intention (a) Upon the written request of the owners’ association, the city council may modify the management district plan after conducting one public hearing on the proposed modifications. The city council may modify the improvements and activities to be funded with the revenue derived from the levy of the assessments by adopting a resolution determining to make the modifications after holding a public hearing on the proposed modifications. If the modification includes the levy of a new or increased assessment, the city council shall comply with Section 36623. Notice of all other public hearings pursuant to this section shall comply with both of the following:
(1) The resolution of intention shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city once at least seven days before the public hearing. (2) A complete copy of the resolution of intention shall be mailed by first class mail, at least 10 days before the public hearing, to each business owner or property owner affected by the proposed modification.
(b) The city council shall adopt a resolution of intention which states the proposed modification prior to the public hearing required by this section. The public hearing shall be held not more than 90 days after the adoption of the resolution of intention. 36637. Reflection of modification in notices recorded and maps Any subsequent modification of the resolution shall be reflected in subsequent notices and maps recorded pursuant to Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 3100), in a manner consistent with the provisions of Section 36627.

CHAPTER 3.5. Financing
36640. Bonds authorized; Procedure; Restriction on reduction or termination of assessments (a)The city council may, by resolution, determine and declare that bonds shall be issued to finance the estimated cost of some or all of the proposed improvements described in the resolution of formation adopted pursuant to Section 36625, if the resolution of formation adopted pursuant to that section provides for the issuance of bonds, under the Improvement Bond Act of 1915 (Division 10 (commencing with Section 8500)) or in conjunction with Marks-Roos Local Bond Pooling Act of 1985 (Article 4 (commencing with Section 6584) of Chapter 5 of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code). Either act, as the case may be, shall govern the proceedings relating to the issuance of bonds, although proceedings under the Bond Act of 1915 may be modified by the city council as necessary to accommodate assessments levied upon business pursuant to this part.
(b) The resolution adopted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall generally describe the proposed improvements specified in the resolution of formation adopted pursuant to Section 36625, set forth the estimated cost of those improvements, specify the number of annual installments and the fiscal years during which they are to
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be collected. The amount of debt service to retire the bonds shall not exceed the amount of revenue estimated to be raised from assessments over 30 years. (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, assessments levied to pay the principal and interest on any bond issued pursuant to this section shall not be reduced or terminated if doing so would interfere with the timely retirement of the debt.

CHAPTER 4. Governance
36650. Report by owners’ association; Approval or modification by city council (a) The owners’ association shall cause to be prepared a report for each fiscal year, except the first year, for which assessments are to be levied and collected to pay the costs of the improvements, maintenance, and activities described in the report. The owners’ association’s first report shall be due after the first year of operation of the district. The report may propose changes, including, but not limited to, the boundaries of the property and business improvement district or any benefit zones within the district, the basis and method of levying the assessments, and any changes in the classification of property, including any categories of business, if a classification is used.
(b) The report shall be filed with the clerk and shall refer to the property and business improvement district by name, specify the fiscal year to which the report applies, and, with respect to that fiscal year, shall contain all of the following information:
(1) Any proposed changes in the boundaries of the property and business improvement district or in any benefit zones or classification of property or businesses within the district.
(2) The improvements, maintenance, and activities to be provided for that fiscal year. (3) An estimate of the cost of providing the improvements, maintenance, and activities for that fiscal year.
(4) The method and basis of levying the assessment in sufficient detail to allow each real property or business owner, as appropriate, to estimate the amount of the assessment to be levied against his or her property or business for that fiscal year. (5) The estimated amount of any surplus or deficit revenues to be carried over from a previous fiscal year.
(6) The estimated amount of any contributions to be made from sources other than assessments levied pursuant to this part.
(c) The city council may approve the report as filed by the owners’ association or may modify any particular contained in the report and approve it as modified. Any modification shall be made pursuant to Sections 36635 and 36636.

The city council shall not approve a change in the basis and method of levying assessments that would impair an authorized or executed contract to be paid from the revenues derived from the levy of assessments, including any commitment to pay principal and interest on any bonds issued on behalf of the district.
36651. Designation of owners’ association to provide improvements, maintenance, and activities The management district plan may, but is not required to, state that an owners’ association will provide the improvements, maintenance, and activities described in the management district plan. If the management district plan designates an owners’ association, the city shall contract with the designated nonprofit corporation to provide services.

CHAPTER 5. Renewal
36660. Renewal of district; Transfer or refund of remaining revenues; District term limit (a) Any district previously established whose term has expired, or will expire, may be renewed by following the procedures for establishment as provided in this chapter. (b) Upon renewal, any remaining revenues derived from the levy of assessments, or any revenues derived from the sale of assets acquired with the revenues, shall be transferred to the renewed district. If the renewed district includes additional parcels or businesses not included in the prior district, the remaining revenues shall be spent to benefit only the parcels or businesses in the prior district. If the renewed district does not include parcels or businesses included in the prior district, the remaining revenues attributable to these parcels shall be refunded to the owners of these parcels or businesses.

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(c) Upon renewal, a district shall have a term not to exceed 10 years, or, if the district is authorized to issue bonds, until the maximum maturity of those bonds. There is no requirement that the boundaries, assessments, improvements, or activities of a renewed district be the same as the original or prior district.

CHAPTER 6. Disestablishment
36670. Circumstances permitting disestablishment of district; Procedure
(a) Any district established or extended pursuant to the provisions of this part, where there is no indebtedness, outstanding and unpaid, incurred to accomplish any of the purposes of the district, may be disestablished by resolution by the city council in either of the following circumstances:
(1) If the city council finds there has been misappropriation of funds, malfeasance, or a violation of law in connection with the management of the district, it shall notice a hearing on disestablishment.
(2) During the operation of the district, there shall be a 30-day period each year in which assessees may request disestablishment of the district. The first such period shall begin one year after the date of establishment of the district and shall continue for 30 days.

The next such 30-day period shall begin two years after the date of the establishment of the district. Each successive year of operation of the district shall have such a 30-day period. Upon the written petition of the owners or authorized representatives of real property or the owners or authorized representatives of businesses in the district who pay 50 percent or more of the assessments levied, the city council shall pass a resolution of intention to disestablish the district. The city council shall notice a hearing on disestablishment.
(b) The city council shall adopt a resolution of intention to disestablish the district prior to the public hearing required by this section. The resolution shall state the reason for the disestablishment, shall state the time and place of the public hearing, and shall contain a proposal to dispose of any assets acquired with the revenues of the assessments levied within the property and business improvement district. The notice of the hearing on disestablishment required by this section shall be given by mail to the property owner of each parcel or to the owner of each business subject to assessment in the district, as appropriate. The city shall conduct the public hearing not less than 30 days after mailing the notice to the property or business owners. The public hearing shall be held not more than 60 days after the adoption of the resolution of intention.
36671. Refund of remaining revenues upon disestablishment or expiration without renewal of district; Calculation of refund; Use of outstanding revenue collected after disestablishment of district (a) Upon the disestablishment or expiration without renewal of a district, any remaining revenues, after all outstanding debts are paid, derived from the levy of assessments, or derived from the sale of assets acquired with the revenues, or from bond reserve or construction funds, shall be refunded to the owners of the property or businesses then located and operating within the district in which assessments were levied by applying the same method and basis that was used to calculate the assessments levied in the fiscal year in which the district is disestablished or expires.

All outstanding assessment revenue collected after disestablishment shall be spent on improvements and activities specified in the management district plan. (b) If the disestablishment occurs before an assessment is levied for the fiscal year, the method and basis that was used to calculate the assessments levied in the immediate prior fiscal year shall be used to calculate the amount of any refund.

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APPENDIX 2 – ASSESSED BUSINESSES
A Nights Inn 706 N. Balsam Street Ridgecrest, CA 93555
American Inn & Suites 553 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Baymont by Wyndham Ridgecrest 131 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Best Western China Lake Inn Budget Inn 400 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Clarion Inn 901 N. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Desert Motel 339 W. Church St. Ridgecrest, CA 93555
Econolodge Inn & Suites 201 W. Inyokern Rd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Hampton Inn & Suites 104 E. Sydnor Ave. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Heritage Inn & Suites 1050 N. Norma St. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Holiday Inn Express 1010 N China Lake Blvd Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Howard Johnson 831 N. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Motel 6 329 E. Ridgecrest Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555
OYO Hotel Europa 131 W. Upjohn Ave. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Quality Inn 507 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Rodeway Inn & Suites 416 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Springhill Suites 113 E. Sydnor Ave. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 Super 8 426 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555
Travel Suites Hotel 535 S. China Lake Blvd. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
8 This Page Intentionally Left Blank
Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
SUBJECT: Public Hearing And Approval Of A Resolution Of The City Council Of The City Of Ridgecrest Authorizing Staff To Submit The 2023-2031 Draft General Plan Housing Element & The Fair Housing Analysis To The California Department Of Housing And Community Development
PRESENTED BY: Heather Spurlock, City Planner
SUMMARY:

I. BACKGROUND: 2023-2031 GENERAL PLAN HOUSING ELEMENT UPDATE & FAIR

HOUSING ANALYSIS
The Housing Element is a State mandated element of the City’s General Plan containing analysis, policies, and programs with the objective to preserve, improve, and develop housing for all economic segments of the community. The current update covers the period 2023-2031 (Sixth Cycle Housing Element).

The Draft Housing Element, Exhibit A, has been prepared in accordance with State Housing Element Law and Guidelines of the State Department of Housing and Community Development Department (HCD). Upon approval of the Draft by the City Council, staff will send the Draft to HCD for review, which review could take up to 90 days. HCD may approve the Draft, or submit comments requiring further update, or approve the draft conditioned upon clarifying or requiring further changes and provide a finding of statutory compliance. If a revised draft is submitted for further review and approval, it could take another 60 days for HCD review. Upon obtaining the letter of statutory compliance, the Final Housing Element will be scheduled before the City Council for Adoption. Once adopted, a copy of the Housing Element will be submitted to HCD for Certification.

II. FAIR HOUSING ANALYSIS
California State Law AB 686 created new requirements for all housing elements revised on or after January 1, 2021, to contain an Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) analysis, Exhibit B.

Under State law, affirmatively further fair housing means “taking meaningful actions, in addition to combatting discrimination, to facilitate deliberate actions to explicitly address, combat, and relieve disparities resulting from past patterns of segregation to foster more inclusive communities free from barriers that restrict access to opportunity based on protected characteristics”.

The Housing Element analysis must include an analysis of Racially Concentrated Areas of Affluence, and patterns and trends at both a local and regional scale. The city’s consultant has prepared the Housing Element and a Fair Housing Analysis addressing the following topics:

1. Outreach

2. Assessment of Fair Housing
a. Key Data and Background Information
b. Fair Housing Enforcement and Outreach Capacity
c. Integration and Segregation Patterns and Trends
d. Racially or Ethnically Concentrated Areas of Poverty Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
e. Disparities in Access to Opportunity
f. Disproportionate Housing Needs in the Jurisdiction
g. Displacement Risk

3. Sites Inventory

4. Identification of Contributing Factors, Goals and Actions FAIR HOUSING ANALYSIS – FINDINGS
The following ten (10) discussion items describe Ridgecrest’s compliance with and implementation of the California State Law AB 686 - Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) requirements.

1. Diversity Index:

Diversity Index captures the racial and ethnic diversity of a geographic area in a single number, from 0 to 100. Scores less than 40 represent lower diversity in the jurisdiction while scores of greater than 85 represent higher diversity.

Higher diversity scores are located in the central and northeastern portions of the city, while low diversity is located the southern portion of the city.

2. GINI Index: The GINI index is a measure of the extent to which the distribution of income among families/households within a community deviate from a perfect equal distribution. In other words, there is income disparity between the populations in the jurisdiction. The scale is from 0 to 1, with 0 representing perfect equality and 1 representing the highest possible level of inequality.

Ridgecrest’s Gini index is generally moderate at 0.4159, indicating that income equality is not so drastic. Gini coefficient for California is 0.487 and Kern County, 0.4673.

3. Dissimilarity Index: The dissimilarity index ranges from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate that groups are more unevenly distributed (for example, they tend to live in different neighborhoods).

No Dissimilarity Index could be found. However, the following Map shows that there are some dissimilarities in the distribution of different ethnic groups.

Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
Figure 1: Predominant Population by Census Tract and Racial Demographics 2018 by Block Group – Graduated Dots

4. Racially or Ethnically Concentrated area of Poverty (R/ECAP):

It appears that areas of high diversity do generally correlate with lower incomes and that areas of medium to low diversity reflect high income levels.

5. Racially Concentrated Areas of Affluence (RCAA):

RCAAs are defined as census tracts where 1) 80 percent or more of the population is White, and 2) the median household income is $125,000 or greater.

There are no census block in the city with a median household income of $125,000 and a population that is 80 percent or more white. As such, there is no census tract in Ridgecrest that fit these criteria. Therefore, the city has no RCAAs.

6. Disparities in Access to Opportunities: The Tax Credit Allocation Committee and the Housing and Community Development Department has categorized all Census Tracts in the State as Resource Opportunity areas and maps associated with it. Economic, Educational and Environmental domains were identified and studied. Based on the domain scores, census tracts Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
are categorized as Highest Resource, High Resource, Moderate Resource, Moderate Resource (Rapidly Changing), Low Resource, or areas of High Segregation and Poverty.

The majority of the city is designated as high to highest resource area, with the exception of census tract 53.00, which is designated as high segregation and poverty. Overall, it appears that generally residents of Ridgecrest have consistent levels of access to opportunities.

7. Disproportionate Housing Needs:

The most disproportionate housing needs in Ridgecrest include increasing the variety of housing types at affordable prices for low-income households as 48.23% of the households have experienced cost burden during the period 2017 to 2021. Overall, the cost burden has reduced significantly compared to the 2010-2014 period when the cost burden was over 80%.

Some 43.6% of total households in Ridgecrest are renters, with 77% of the renters between the ages of 25 and 54.

8. Displacement: Displacement occurs when households are forced to move because they are evicted or their building was torn down, often to make way for new and more expensive development.

The most disproportionate housing needs in Ridgecrest includes rehabilitation of the existing housing stock and increased variety of housing types at affordable prices, including housing for lower income households. A significant number of renters in Ridgecrest pay more than the 30% of their household income for rent. While the percent of home owners overpaying for their mortgages is less than renter overpayment for their rent, more than 80% of home owners in Census Tract 53 seem to overpay for their mortgage. As it has been previously discussed, tract 53 seems has a low median household income and low TCAC scores. Therefore, it is important to consider the population of tract 53 in future plans of affordable housing implementation.

9. Site Inventory: The distribution of RHNA sites across the community will help to improve the opportunities and outcomes throughout the city. Furthermore, the RHNA sites will allow for development at densities needed to stimulate affordable housing development. All the sites available in the inventory allow accommodation of moderate to low-income housing units, provided that the structures containing the units meet all development standards.

Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT

10. Identification of Contributing Factors, Goals and Actions:

Based on the issues identified in this Fair Housing Analysis, the following are the top 4 issues to be addressed through the programs in the Housing Plan:

1. Assisting in the provision of housing opportunities for all;

2. Removing regulatory and financial constraints, as necessary;

3. Providing adequate sites to achieve a variety and diversity of housing; and

4. Promoting equal housing opportunity.

The 2023-2031 Housing Element has proposed a Housing Plan (Chapter 6 of Housing Element), which includes policies and programs augmenting Fair Housing goals of the City.

III. DRAFT 2023-2031 HOUSING ELEMENT
Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA).

The Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) as allocated by HCD shows the housing units that should be constructed for each jurisdiction in each RHNA period.

The city’s 6th Cycle RHNA obligations are shown in Table 1. Of the total 1,436 units required, 189 units are needed for extremely low-income; 190 units for very low income; 241 units for low income; and 816 units for moderate and above moderate-income categories.

Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
Table 1:

Ridgecrest’s Share of Regional Housing Needs 2023-2031
Income Category
RHNA Allocation
Percentage Number of Units
Extremely Low 13.16% 189
Very Low 13.23 190
Low 16.78% 241
Moderate 15.67% 225
Above Moderate 41.16% 591
Total 100% 1,436
Source: California Department of Housing and Community Development, 2023-2031 The commonly used income categories based on Area Median Income (AMI) are approximately as follows, subject to variations for household size and other factors:

Acutely low income: 0-15% of AMI
Extremely low income: 15-30% of AMI
Very low income: 30% to 50% of AMI
Lower income: 50% to 80% of AMI; also used to mean 0% to 80% of AMI Moderate income: 80% to 120% of AMI
Quantified Objectives:

Table 2 summarizes Ridgecrest’s Quantified Objectives for the 6th Housing Element Cycle.

Table 2: Quantified Objectives
Income Group New Construction1 Rehabilitation Conservation2 Extremely Low Income 189 5
Very Low Income 190 5
Low Income 241 5
Moderate Income 225
Above Moderate Income 591
Total 1436 15 0
Source: Realty Planners Group, Inc. 2023
Notes:

1. Corresponds to RHNA in Chapter 4.

2. The Ridge Apartments with 79 units was at risk when it recently sold, but the City was able to maintain the affordability restriction.

Ridgecrest City Council
Successor Redevelopment Agency
Financing Authority
Housing Authority

STAFF REPORT
IV. IMPLEMENTING ACTIONS:

The new Housing Element has proposed a Housing Plan (Chapter 6 of Housing Element), that include policies and programs augmenting Fair Housing goals of the City. Some of the existing programs will be continued. The programs are intended to bring the City’s codes and housing approvals consistent with the State Law and have provisions to implement them. The city is required to submit to HCD Annual Progress Reports on implementation of the Housing Element.

V. EXHIBITS:

1. Resolution.

2. Exhibit A: Draft 2023-2031 Housing Element.

3. Exhibit B: Draft 2023-2031 Fair Housing Analysis.

FISCAL IMPACT:

None
ACTION REQUESTED:

RECOMMENDATION:
• Open the public hearing.
• Receive Staff/City Consultant to present the Staff Report and PowerPoint presentation. • Provide opportunity to receive public comments.
• Close the hearing and discuss the matter and recommend changes to the Draft, if needed. • Adopt Resolution.

CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION:

Submitted by: H. Spurlock Action Date: 9/20 & 10/4, 2023 (Revised Jan2019)
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RESOLUTION NO. 23-XX

A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
RIDGECREST AUTHORIZING STAFF TO SUBMIT THE 2023-2031

DRAFT GENERAL PLAN HOUSING ELEMENT & THE FAIR HOUSING

ANALYSIS TO THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
WHEREAS, the City of Ridgecrest has authorized the 2023-2031 update of the General Plan Housing Element, and the preparation of a Fair Housing Analysis; and, WHEREAS, the Draft Housing Element and the Fair Housing Analysis were prepared in accordance with State Housing Element Law and Guidelines of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD); and,
WHEREAS, the Planning Commission has conducted a Scoping meeting on the matter on February 28, 2023; a Workshop on May 8, 2023; and a public hearing on September 7, 2023 and recommended that the City Council review the Draft Housing Element and the Fairn Housing Analysis; and,
WHEREAS, a notice of public hearing and a 30-day Notice of Availability of the Draft Housing Element & the Fair Housing Analysis was published on August 25, 2023, and the said hearing was conducted by the Planning Commission on September 7, 2023; and, WHEREAS, a notice of this meeting/hearing was duly published on August 18, 2023 by the city.

NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest find, determine, resolve and recommend as follows:

1. The above recitals are true and correct.

2. The City Council hereby authorize staff submit the 2023-2031 Draft Housing Element and Fair Housing Analysis to the California Department of Housing and Community Development for review and approval.

I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing Resolution was passed and adopted by the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest at their meeting thereof held on the 4 th day of October, 2023 by the
following vote:

AYES:

NOES:

ABSTAIN:

ABSENT:

City Council Resolution 23- XX - 2023-2031 Housing Element Update & Fair Housing Analysis Eric A. Bruen, Mayor
ATTEST:
_________________________
Ricca Charlon, City Clerk
I, Ricca Charlon, City Clerk of the City of Ridgecrest, California, DO HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing is a true and accurate copy of the Resolution passed and adopted by the City Council of the City of Ridgecrest on the date and by the vote indicated herein. _________________________
Ricca Charlon, City Clerk

City Council Resolution 23- XX - 2023-2031 Housing Element Update & Fair Housing Analysis Exhibit A – 2023 Housing Element Update
2023 – 2031 Draft Housing
Element & Fair Housing
Analysis
City of Ridgecrest, California
September 2023
Prepared by:

Realty Planners Group, Inc.,
Fallbrook, California
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 0-1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Chapter One - Introduction
Housing Element Intent ............................................................................................... 1-1 State Housing Element Law......................................................................................... 1-1 State Required Local Program Strategy ....................................................................... 1-2 Scope - Description of Geographic Area ...................................................................... 1-2 Scope of Research and Analysis .................................................................................. 1-2 Organization of the Housing Element .......................................................................... 1-3 Application and Flexibility of the Document ............................................................... 1-3

2. Chapter Two - Evaluation of Previous Housing Element Effectiveness of the Previous Housing Element ........................................................... 2-2

3. Chapter Three - Population and Housing Data
Population Characteristics .......................................................................................... 3-1 Household Characteristics .......................................................................................... 3-4 Special Needs Groups.................................................................................................3-11 Employment ...............................................................................................................3-18 Housing Unit Characteristics and Their Relationship to Housing Need .......................3-22 Updated Housing Stock Condition..............................................................................3-27

4. Chapter Four - Land for Housing
Overview and Housing Sites........................................................................................ 4-1 Future Housing Needs ................................................................................................. 4-1 Progress Towards Meeting the RHNA......................................................................... 4-3 Land Availability......................................................................................................... 4-4 City Infrastructure ......................................................................................................4-26 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 0-2

5. Chapter Five - Constraints to Housing Production
Governmental Constraints ........................................................................................... 5-1 Non-Governmental Constraints...................................................................................5-20

6. Chapter Six – Goals, Policies and Programs
Goals and Policies ....................................................................................................... 6-2 Programs..................................................................................................................... 6-4

7. Chapter Seven - Public Participation
Housing Need and Priority Survey............................................................................... 7-1 Stakeholder Input and Participation ............................................................................. 7-2 List of Tables
Table 2-1 Existing Housing Policies and Programs and Recommended Changes..................... 2-1 Table 3-1: Kern County Population, 2020 ............................................................................... 3-2 Table 3-2: Kern County Population Trends and Forecasts, 2000–2035 .................................... 3-2 Table 3-3: City of Ridgecrest Age Characteristics ................................................................... 3-3 Table 3-4: City of Ridgecrest Race and Ethnicity 2010, 2020.................................................. 3-4 Table 3-5: City of Ridgecrest Household Trends, 2000, 2010, 2020 ........................................ 3-4 Table 3-6: City of Ridgecrest Household Income .................................................................... 3-5 Table 3-7: Income Levels for Kern County, 2020.................................................................... 3-6 Table 3-8: Lower Income Households Overpaying by Tenure ................................................. 3-7 Table 3-9: City of Ridgecrest Overcrowding, 2020.................................................................. 3-7 Table 3-10: Overcrowding by Tenure...................................................................................... 3-8 Table 3-11: Median Home Value 2019-2023........................................................................... 3-8 Table 3-12: Ridgecrest Residential Sale Prices, 2022 .............................................................. 3-9 Table 3-13: Housing Affordability, 2022............................................................................... 3-10 Table 3-14: Ridgecrest Residential Rental Prices, 2023 ......................................................... 3-11 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 0-3
Table 3-15: Households with Elderly Occupants, 2020.......................................................... 3-12 Table 3-16: Elderly Households by Owner and Renter .......................................................... 3-12 Table 3-17: Persons with a Disability by Age and Type, 2020 ............................................... 3-13 Table 3-18: Persons with a Disability by Employment Status, 2020 ...................................... 3-13 Table 3-19: Developmentally Disabled Residents by Age ..................................................... 3-14 Table 3-20: Developmentally Disabled Residents by Residence Type ................................... 3-14 Table 3-21 Large Households Within Ridgecrest, Bakersfield, and Kern County, 2010 and 2020 ............................................................................................................................................. 3-15 Table 3-22: City of Ridgecrest Tenure by Unit, 2020 ............................................................ 3-16 Table 3-23: Female Heads of Household, 2020 .................................................................... 3-16 Table 3-24: Major Employers in Ridgecrest .......................................................................... 3-18 Table 3-25: Employment by Industry City of Ridgecrest and Kern County............................ 3-19 Table 3-26: Fastest-Growing Occupations in Kern County 2010-2020 .................................. 3-20 Table 3-27: Travel Time to Work.......................................................................................... 3-21 Table 3-28: Jobs to Housing Ratio, 2020–2035 ..................................................................... 3-21 Table 3-29: Total Housing Units, 2010-2020......................................................................... 3-22 Table 3-30 Occupied Households by Jurisdiction, 2020......................................................... 3-22 Table 3-31 City of Ridgecrest Total Housing Units by Type, 2010-2020............................... 3-23 Table 3-32: Age of Housing Stock ........................................................................................ 3-23 Table 3-33: Number of Housing Units, Occupied and Vacant 2020 ....................................... 3-24 Table 3-34: Total Households with Any Housing Problem* .................................................. 3-24 Table 3-35: Sample Field Survey Tabulation......................................................................... 3-26 Table 3-36: Residential Building Permits City of Ridgecrest, 2006–2014.............................. 3-27 Table 4-1: 2013–2023 Regional Housing Needs Allocation..................................................... 4-2 Table 4-2: 2023–2031 Regional Housing Needs Allocation..................................................... 4-2 Table 4-3 Lower-Income Projects Since 2015 ......................................................................... 4-3 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 0-4
Table 4-4 Progress in Meeting Regional Housing Need Allocation.......................................... 4-4 Table 4-5 Inventory of Available Incorporated Land ............................................................... 4-4 Table 4-6 Land Inventory........................................................................................................ 4-7 Table 5-1: Ridgecrest General Plan Land Use Designations .................................................... 5-2 Table 5-2: Ridgecrest General Plan Residential Land Use Designations.................................. 5-4 Table 5-3: City of Ridgecrest Zones where Residential Uses are Allowed ............................... 5-4 Table 5-4: City of Ridgecrest Development Standards by Zoning District .............................. 5-5 Table 5-5: City of Ridgecrest Housing Types Permitted by Zoning District............................. 5-7 Table 5-6: Residential Parking Standards ................................................................................ 5-9 Table 5-7: Inventory of Assisted Units.................................................................................. 5-14 Table 5-8: Local Nonprofit Organizations Interested in Preserving At-Risk Housing............. 5-15 Table 5-9: City of Ridgecrest Impact Fees, 2023 ................................................................... 5-17 Table 5-10: City of Ridgecrest Impact Fees for a Typical Single-Family Dwelling, 2022* .... 5-18 Table 5-11: Permit Processing Fess....................................................................................... 5-18 Table 5-12: Proportion of Fee in Overall Development Cost for a Typical Residential Development ............................................................................................................................................. 5-19 Table 5-13: Typical Processing Procedures by Project Type.................................................. 5-20 Table 5-14: Conforming Loan Interest Rates......................................................................... 5-21 Table 6-1: Quantified Objectives by Income Group................. 6-Error! Bookmark not defined.

Table 7-1: 2023–2031 Ridgecrest Housing Element Schedule 2023 ........................................ 7-1 List of Figures
Figure 4-1: Vacant Land Inventory........................................................................................ 4-24 Appendices
Appendix A – Fair Housing Analysis
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 1-1

1. CHAPTER ONE – INTRODUCTION
Community Context
The City of Ridgecrest is situated in the Indian Wells Valley near China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station. It is in Kern County and was incorporated in 1963. Ridgecrest has a population of 28,905 with 12,673 households as per Census 2020. The median household income is $71,774, and the average home price in 2021 was $286,000.

The City of Ridgecrest has been focused on recovery efforts from the 2019 earthquakes and the COVID-19 pandemic. In spite of these challenges, the City has experienced steady economic growth with multiple new businesses. The Navy has been the largest employer in Indian Wells Valley. Good access to Highways 178, 14 and 395 makes it a convenient place to live in and commute to Trona, California City, Mojave and Lone Pine for work.

Housing Element Intent
The Housing Element is one of seven General Plan Elements that is mandated by California state law. It is intended to provide citizens and public officials with an understanding of the housing needs in the community and set forth an integrated set of policies and programs aimed at the attainment of defined goals. More specifically, the Housing Element is intended to:

1. Provide comprehensive housing-related information through compilation of data from numerous sources.

2. Provide an estimate of present and future housing needs and constraints by examining population characteristics and growth trends, as well as the current condition of the housing stock.

3. Act as a tool for coordination between governmental bodies and the local building industry.

4. Provide direction for future planning programs to ensure that sufficient consideration is given to housing goals and policies.

5. Establish and portray community goals and policies relative to housing through the identification of existing stated and implicit goals and the identification of housing needs and problems.

6. Establish and identify programs intended to attain and implement the community's goals and policies, taking into consideration the feasibility of those programs; and act as a meaningful guide to decision-makers considering housing related issues.

State Housing Element Law
State law delineating Housing Element requirements is found in California Government Code Sections 65580 through 65589, Chapter 1143, Article 10.6. The law is administered by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD).

Section 65300.7 of the law provide that local agencies may prepare their General Plans to accommodate local conditions and circumstances, while meeting the law’s minimum requirements.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 1-2
State Required Local Program Strategy
Housing program requirements call for development of a local housing program strategy consisting of two primary components: a statement of goals, policies and priorities, and a plan for implementation. This program must reflect the commitment of the locality to address a range of housing needs, including those for fair and affordable housing.

General Plan Consistency
State law requires that the Housing Element contain a statement of “the means by which consistency will be achieved with other general plan elements and community goals” (California Government Code, Section 65583[c] [6] [B]). This requires an evaluation of two primary characteristics: (1) an identification of other General Plan goals, policies, and programs that could affect implementation of the Housing Element or that could be affected by the implementation of the Housing Element; and (2) an identification of actions to ensure consistency between the Housing Element and affected parts of other General Plan elements. The 2009 General Plan contains several elements with policies related to housing. A review of the other General Plan elements demonstrates consistency with all other policies and programs. The City will maintain this consistency in the future by ensuring that General Plan amendments are evaluated for consistency with all General Plan elements.

Scope of Research and Analysis
Two major classifications of data important to an analysis of housing needs are population and housing stock. Some of the more important population data is related to changing household size, population growth or decline, change in special needs, and the income levels of various segments of the community.

Housing stock information of major significance includes an analysis of units by various types, age and quality of the housing stock, owner/renter ratios, recent building activity, and housing cost trends. Future housing need indicators include: projected population growth income and forecasted availability of housing types and expected growth in employment opportunities.

In preparing the Housing Element, various sources of information were consulted. In addition, data supplied by the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) Regional Early Action Program (REAP) approved by HCD that contains much of the information required for the background information chapters of this Housing Element (Chapters 3, 4 and 5) and is the primary source of data for this document.

Where additional information is required, the US Census, which is completed every 10 years, is the preferred data source, as it provides the most reliable and in-depth data for demographic characteristics of a locality. 2010 and 2020 US Census data were used. The California Department of Finance (DOF) is another source of valuable data that is more current than the Census. However, the DOF does not provide the depth of information that can be found in the 2020 US Census.

Whenever possible, the SJA REAP data packet, DOF data, and other local sources were used in order to provide the most current profile of the community.

The 2020 US Census did not collect information in several categories that are required by HCD in the Housing Element. Where this is the case, historical DOF data is used. Where DOF data is not available, information from the 2010 US Census is retained. In cases where this was not feasible City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 1-3
or useful, this assessment references US Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) data.

The ACS provides estimates of numerous housing-related indicators based on samples averaged over a five-year period. Where the US Census provides complete counts of various demographic indicators, the ACS provides estimates based on statistically significant samples. Due to the small size of the sample taken in Ridgecrest, some of the estimates reported by the ACS have large margins of error. Where ACS data is used, the numbers should not be interpreted as absolute fact, but rather as a tool to illustrate general proportion or scale.

Organization of the Housing Element
Chapter 1 states the relationship of the General Plan Housing Element to California state law. It also states the overall intent of the Housing Element and how the Housing Element is consistent with the remainder of the General Plan, and provides an overview of the organization of the 2023- 2031 Housing Element.

Chapter 2 reviews and evaluates the previous Housing Element's goals, policies, and programs related to the effectiveness of the element and the appropriateness of the goals, policies, and programs. Determinations are made where the previous Housing Element met, exceeded, or fell short of what was anticipated. Recommendations are made for inclusion in the 2023-2031 Housing Element.

Chapter 3 discusses changes in population characteristics, housing stock, describes and quantifies priority housing needs, and identifies types of housing products to meet those needs.

Chapter 4 discusses land that is available for housing development and the City infrastructure capacity.

Chapter 5 describes market, governmental and non-governmental constraints which may limit adequate housing development.

Chapter 6 identifies goals, policies, and programs and quantified objectives relative to housing needs identified in previous chapters.

Chapter 7 describes public participation conducted for the 2023-2031 Housing Element.

Application and Flexibility of the Document
This Housing Element is a dynamic document that may be subject to change as a result of significant shifts in demographics and/or housing needs during the planning period. It is the intent of the City of Ridgecrest to achieve the fair share allocation and estimated quantitative objectives through the implementation of some or all of the Housing Element programs, as deemed appropriate by the City staff and City Council. The City will monitor implementation on an annual basis and make appropriate adjustments over the next eight years. Specific programs are identified that would achieve the desired objectives; however, the City recognizes that funding and resource allocation may change over the planning period and other options may need to be explored to achieve the identified goals.

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Housing Element 1-4
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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-1

2. CHAPTER TWO – EVALUATION OF PREVIOUS HOUSING ELEMENT The City of Ridgecrest has reviewed and evaluated the previous Housing Element pursuant to pertinent Government Code Sections as follows:

Section 65588 (a)(1): "Appropriateness of goals, objectives and policies" – Based on the above analysis, a determination has been made to keep the program as is, modify, or eliminate the program. A description is given regarding the changes or modifications to the program that are being made in this Housing Element.

Section 65588 (a)(2): "Effectiveness of the Element" – The City of Ridgecrest has reviewed the results of the previous element's goals, objectives, policies, and programs. The results are quantified and/or qualified when possible.

Section 65588 (a)(3): "Progress in Implementation" – The City of Ridgecrest has compared what was projected or planned in the previous element and made a determination on whether the program has been successful, unsuccessful, or neutral in achieving the previous element's stated goals, objectives, and policies.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-1
Effectiveness of the Previous Housing Element
Table 2-1 below provides the review of each of the above requirements of the City’s 2015 Housing Element to determine its effectiveness.

Table 2-1 Existing Housing Policies and Programs and Recommended Changes Program Objective
Timeframe
in
Existing
H.E
Status of
Program
Implementation
in Existing H.E
AccomplishmentsEffectiveness/Ap
propriateness
and Future
Action
Inclusionary
Housing
Definitions
Addition to the zoning
code of inclusionary
housing definitions
(supportive, target
populations
transitional, family,
ADU and JADU)
Completed Definitions
adopted to zoning
code
Zoning code
was updated
for
inclusionary
housing.

Completed -
eliminate
ADUs Adopt an ADU
ordinance
Completed ADU ordinance
and permit
adopted
Zoning code
was amended
the
development
of ADUs and
JADUs.

Website
includes ADU
development
guide. 14
ADU
applications
have been
approved in
2021 and
2022.

Continue ADU
development guide
and continue to
provide residents
with information.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Family
daycare
homes
Reduce restrictions on
family daycare homes
Completed Family daycare
homes ordinance
adopted
Zoning code
was amended
reducing the
restrictions on
family daycare
homes.

Completed -
eliminate
Residential
Land Use
Database
The City will
coordinate with and
provide assistance to
Kern COG in
maintaining a
At least every
five years
The City
continued to
maintain the
vacant land
inventory
The Mojave
View
affordable
housing
project used
Continue program
and seek additional
funding for GIS
mapping.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-2
residential land use
database. The City will
work with the COG to
ensure the COG’s
database will be
reviewed, updated, and
summarized at least
every five years as
necessary
contained in the
Housing Element.

Inquiries have
been received
from prospective
housing
developers for
available land.
the database to
find available
multifamily
land. The
Mojave View
project
provided an
additional 72
affordable
units to
Ridgecrest.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Monitor
Assisted
Units
Monitor federal-, state-,
and locally funded units
at risk of conversion to
market rate. There are
94 units at risk during
the 2015–2023
planning period. The
City will take the
following actions to
alleviate the loss of
units at risk due to
conversion to marketrate units.
• On an annual basis the
City will update its list
of subsidized rental
properties and identify
those units at risk of
converting to marketrate units.
• The City will contact
owners of units at risk
of conversion regarding
their interest in selling
properties or
maintaining the rental
units as affordable
units.
• The City will ensure
property owners are
aware of federal and
state subsidies to ensure
the continued
affordability of housing
units.

Annually/On
going
Ongoing City staff were
successful in
preventing the
conversion of
the Ridge
affordable
units during
the sale of the
property.

Continue program.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-3
• The City will
maintain a list of
nonprofit agencies
interested in
acquisition/rehabilitatio
n of at-risk units and
inform them of the
status of such units.
• The City will provide
information to
nonprofit agencies
about federal, state, or
local funding
opportunities to assist
with providing funding
for the acquisition and
rehabilitation of at-risk
projects when
requested.
• The City will make
available referral and
contact information
regarding tenant rights
and conversion
procedures, as well as
information regarding
other affordable
housing opportunities
in the city to tenants of
at-risk units.

Code
Enforcemen
t Program
The City of Ridgecrest
is participating in a
cooperative agreement
with Kern County, and
receives a fair share
allocation of
Community
Development Block
Grant (CDBG) funding.

Because funding may
significantly vary from
year to year, in addition
to the required process
of public hearings, it is
not possible or feasible
Annually Ongoing No CDBG
funded
programs were
implemented
for code
enforcement
programs.

Code
enforcement
activities
included
rehabilitated,
tree trimming,
the removal of
blight and
Code enforcement
program will
continue.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element2-4
to identify future
funding items.

According to City staff,
CDBG funds are
currently allocated
through the first half of
the 2015–2013
planning period. The
City can identify
programs which may be
recommended for
consideration by the
public and Council for
inclusion in the CDBG
Action Plan, but no
firm commitment can
be given to any specific
item without public
hearings. The City will
conduct public
hearings, as required,
usually in October or
November to have
public participation in
the process of
identifying suitable
CDBG projects during
the second half of the
planning period.

Ridgecrest is
committed to using
CDBG funds for:
rehabilitating housing
and other property,
building public
facilities, education and
job training, public
services for youths,
disabled, and the
elderly, crime reduction
initiatives, assisting
low-income home
buyers with down
payment assistance and
subsidizing interest
rates, etc. Possible
activities include
acquisition and
hazards to
residents
through out
the planning
period.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-5
disposition of real
property, public facility
and infrastructure
improvements,
clearance activities,
public services, housing
rehabilitation, home
ownership assistance,
micro-enterprise
assistance, economic
development, and
planning activities.

These activities will
target special needs
groups meeting the
required income
guidelines.

Community
Developme
nt Block
Grants
(CDBG)
The City of Ridgecrest
is participating in a
cooperative agreement
with Kern County, and
receives a fair share
allocation of
Community
Development Block
Grant (CDBG) funding.

Because funding may
significantly vary from
year to year, in addition
to the required process
of public hearings, it is
not possible or feasible
to identify future
funding items.

According to City staff,
CDBG funds are
currently allocated
through the first half of
the 2015–2013
planning period. The
City can identify
programs which may be
recommended for
consideration by the
public and Council for
inclusion in the CDBG
Annually Ongoing CDBG grants
were obtained
to provide
community
services.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element2-6
Action Plan, but no
firm commitment can
be given to any specific
item without public
hearings. The City will
conduct public
hearings, as required,
usually in October or
November to have
public participation in
the process of
identifying suitable
CDBG projects during
the second half of the
planning period.

Ridgecrest is
committed to using
CDBG funds for:
rehabilitating housing
and other property,
building public
facilities, education and
job training, public
services for youths,
disabled, and the
elderly, crime reduction
initiatives, assisting
low-income home
buyers with down
payment assistance and
subsidizing interest
rates, etc. Possible
activities include
acquisition and
disposition of real
property, public facility
and infrastructure
improvements,
clearance activities,
public services, housing
rehabilitation, home
ownership assistance,
micro-enterprise
assistance, economic
development, and
planning activities.

These activities will
target special needs
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-7
groups meeting the
required income
guidelines.

Kern
County
Housing
Authority
(HACK)
The Kern County
Housing Authority
(HACK) administers
the Housing Choice
Voucher (Section 8)
and Family SelfSufficiency programs.

Section 8 is a rent
subsidy program,
whereby low-income
residents of Kern
County are awarded
vouchers which enable
them to obtain housing
in the private sector.

HACK contracts with
landlords to subsidize
the participants' rents.

The housing must meet
HUD Housing Quality
Standards in order for
HACK to enter into a
Housing Assistance
Payment contract with
the landlord.

The Family SelfSufficiency Program
(FSSP) is designed to
assist public housing
tenants receiving
Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance (SNAP) or
other assistance with
becoming selfsufficient, primarily
through employment,
within five years.

Participants set goals
for themselves to reach
during that time frame.

In return, HACK sets
up escrow (savings)
Ongoing The City
continued to
implement this
program and
information
regarding section
8 and all other
affordable housing
programs on its
Website and other
printed material
available to
public.

The website
includes
information on
the available
units within
the
community
and provides
information
for County
opportunities.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-8
accounts for
participants, with a
portion of the extra rent
paid when participants
obtain employment.

Referrals are made to
assist participants in
obtaining educational
training and/or
employment services in
the community. This
program is coordinated
with the collaborative
services of the
Employment
Development
Department, Regional
Occupational Center,
CalWORKs,
Employers' Training
Resource, and other
supportive services in
Kern County.

The City of Ridgecrest
will make interested
citizens aware of these
two programs and
provide them with
contact information for
the program
administrators at
HACK.

Mobile
Home
Improveme
nt Program
The City may act as a
liaison between mobile
home parks, dwelling
unit owners, and the
state and Kern County
in identifying and
coordinating grants and
funding for the
improvement of mobile
home units.

Rehabilitation
assistance shall be
given to extremely lowAnnual
review of
funding
opportunities
Ongoing No funding
requests were
received.

Discontinue
program, as no
funds have been
available.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-9
, very low-, and lowincome families which
could include repair of
damaged mobile
homes.

Mortgage
Credit
Certificate
Program
The City may qualify
and participate in a
Mortgage Credit
Certificate (MCC)
program either solely or
jointly with Kern
County if one becomes
available between
2015–2023. The
County continues to
operate its MCC
program which is
available to Ridgecrest
residents through the
Kern County Planning
and Community
Development
Department.

Evaluate
possibility of
city
participation
in MCC
program
every two
years
beginning in
2016
Ongoing No funds were
available.

Continue to seeking
funding
opportunities.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Outreach
Program
1) Provide information
through public access
television and
newspaper
advertisements twice
per fiscal year
regarding availability
of grants and loans for
handicap accessibility.

Establish a key contact
person at City Hall to
distribute information
as requested, and to
assist with further
information.
2) Brochures and
printed information will
be produced by 2016
for public distribution
at City Hall upon
request. Public access
Produce
printed
materials by
2016; update
housing
rehabilitation
brochure
every two
years and
ongoing
Ongoing Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-10
television may
advertise the
availability of such
information at City
Hall.
3) The City may
provide the public with
at least one key contact
that will identify grant
sources and coordinate
efforts between the
private individual and
the grant source.
4) Update housing
rehabilitation brochure
every two years
between 2015 and 2023
or as necessary as
information changes
Police and
Community
Together
Program
(PACT)
Continue and fund the
Police and Community
Together (PACT)
neighborhood watch
program between 2015-
2023 for increased
safety.

Ongoing Ongoing PACT
volunteers
contribute
over 9,000
hours annually
in support of
community
policing,
outreach and
crime
prevention.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Parking
Reduction
Program
1) Continue to reduce
parking requirements
by 50 percent for
developments that
provide at least half of
the units exclusively for
elderly persons.
2) Continue to reduce
parking ratio for nonhandicap units on-site
by 20 percent.

As
development
applications
are received
Reduced parking
requirements by
20% for affordable
housing project;
ongoing
Mojave View
affordable
housing
project
received the
20% parking
reduction.

Continue program.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Reduced or
Waived
The City will make
every reasonable effort
As
development
Ongoing Continue program.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element2-11
Sewer
Capacity
Fees
to assist in the
development of
extremely low-, very
low-, and low-income
housing as well as
housing for persons
with special needs
through programs
identified in this
Housing Element.

When no other
programs are feasible in
the provision of such
housing, the City will
give favorable
consideration to the
following:
1) The City may
approve sewer capacity
fee waivers or
reductions based upon
the demonstration of
financial need by a
qualifying extremely
low-, very low-, or low-
income family or
special needs person.
2) The City may
eliminate or reduce
sewer capacity fees
based upon
demonstration of
financial need for the
development of new
senior housing projects
between 2015–2023.
3) The City may
eliminate or reduce
sewer capacity fees
based upon
demonstration of
financial need for the
development of
handicapped units
between 2015–2023.
applications
are received
Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-12
4) The City of
Ridgecrest may reduce
or waive the sewer
capacity fees for lowerincome, large-family
units.

Rehabilitati
on Program
The City shall regularly
complete an application
for rehabilitation funds
to serve city residents.

Currently, the City does
not have resources to
administer a
rehabilitation program.

If funding is received
the City will initiate
discussions with Kern
County or other
agencies or
organizations that may
be able to take on the
administration of
rehabilitation loans for
residents of the city. In
addition, the City will
actively market the
Kern County
Rehabilitation Program
during the planning
period.

Apply for
rehabilitation
funds every
two years or
when funding
opportunities
become
available
Consistently
seeking for new
funding sources
Appropriate -retain
and revise
Fair
Housing
Services
Under the Community
Development Block
Grant Program, Kern
County operates a Fair
Housing Program under
Title VIII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1968
aimed at combating
illegal discrimination in
housing.
• Education Activities –
Provide brochures,
posters, presentations to
the public, poster/essay
Ongoing Ongoing Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element2-13
contest in the schools,
public service
announcements,
community outreach
activities.
• Investigation/Testing – Investigate the
validity of a
discrimination
complaint. Mediation –
Serve as a mediator and
offer a resolution to the
conflict between two
parties. The program is
not an enforcement
agency, but an
impartial third party.
• Coordination –
Provide connecting
links between groups,
agencies, individuals,
and private enterprises
that are involved in fair
housing that will
enhance the delivery of
fair housing services.

Information about the
County’s Fair Housing
Program will be
disseminated
throughout the
community in a variety
of ways. The City Clerk
can provide referrals to
the County program.

Brochures and printed
information regarding
fair housing practices
will be available for
public distribution at
City Hall. Educational
activities and other
services will be
promoted on a regular
basis in brochures at
the library, community
center, senior center,
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-14
service clubs, schools,
and businesses.

Nonprofit
Housing
Provider
Substandard units may
be improved and/or
new units constructed
between 2015–2023 by
various nonprofit
organizations
Ongoing Ongoing Habitat for
Humanity no
longer has a
local program.

Continue to seek
nonprofit
organizations to
support activities.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Energy
Conservation
The City will continue
to implement Title 24
of the California Code
of Regulations on all
new development and
will continue to ensure
that local building
codes are consistent
with state mandated or
recommended green
building standards. The
City will also
encourage the use of
additional innovative
energy conservation
techniques such as
active and passive solar
systems, orientation,
and project layout in an
endeavor to further
reduce dependence on
outside energy sources.

The City will make
handouts and literature
available to the public
outlining measures that
they can take to reduce
energy use.

Provide
handouts
about
available
programs at
City Hall by
June 2016;
ensure
consistency
with state
green
building
standards
triennially
when the
California
Building
Code is
adopted
Ongoing Appropriate -retain
and revise
Special
Needs
Housing
The City has a number
of incentives to
encourage the
production of housing
to meet the needs of
special needs
populations, such as the
Assist or
support
applications
when feasible
2015-2023;
evaluate
whether a
Ongoing The City
assisted a
nonprofit
organization
that provides a
rehabilitation
shelter for
Program to
continue.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-15
elderly and persons
with physical and
developmental
disabilities. These
include density bonuses
and modification of
development standards.

The City has provided
incentives in the past to
facilitate special needs
housing. The
Ridgecrest Senior
Apartments project
received reduced
parking standards. As
feasible, the City will
support others’
applications for funding
under state and federal
programs designated
specifically for special
needs groups and other
lower- income
households. The City
may also provide
assistance to applicants
or organizations
working to provide
housing or services for
special needs groups in
Ridgecrest. The City of
Ridgecrest may
coordinate with Kern
County and local
nonprofit organizations
to provide assistance
and support to
homeless persons.

During the 2015–2023
planning period, the
City may explore the
feasibility of
implementing a Hotel
Voucher Program to
assist homeless families
and individuals in
obtaining emergency
Hotel
Voucher
Program will
be pursued
by 2017; if
pursued
implement by
2018
individuals
with
addictions that
are at risk of
homelessness.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-16
shelter and/or
transitional housing.

Update
Zoning
Ordinance
The Zoning Ordinance
will be amended to
allow group homes by
right in residential
zones for small group
homes (six persons or
fewer) and with a
conditional use permit
for large facilities
(seven persons or more)
consistent with state
law.

The Zoning Ordinance
will be amended to
update the definition of
“family” to remove any
limit on number of
persons consistent with
state law.

The Zoning Ordinance
will be amended to
allow mobile homes of
10 years of age or less
in all single-family
zones.

The Zoning Ordinance
will be amended to
permit single-room
occupancy (SRO) units
subject to site plan
review and without a
conditional use permit
in the R-2, R-3, and R4 zones.

The City will, as
required by SB 2,
amend the Zoning
Ordinance for
transitional and
supportive housing as
residential uses in all
zones allowing
residential uses, subject
Within one
year of
Housing
Element
adoption for
amendments
to allow
transitional
and
supportive
housing;
December
2016 for
other
portions
Adopted
Accessory
Dwelling Units
Ordinance
consistent with
Government Code
Section
65852.150;
adopted Ordinance
for Temporary
Employee
Housing; ongoing
review and update
of municipal code
to reflect current
regulations.

The municipal
code was
amended to
comply with
state laws.

Municipal
code was
amended to in
conformance
with state law
for the
following:
-update
definition of
“family”, and
remove limits
of number of
persons
-Mobile
homes in all
single-family
-Transitional,
supportive
housing in
residential
zones
Continue to update
the zoning code to
reflect state laws in
support of housing.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-17
only to those
restrictions that apply
to other residential uses
of the same type in the
same zone. The Zoning
Ordinance will also be
amended to include the
following definitions
related to transitional
and supportive housing
per Government Code
Sections 65582(f), (g)
and (h):

Extremely
LowIncome
Households
Assembly Bill (AB)
2634 requires the
quantification and
analysis of existing and
projected housing
needs of extremely
low-income
households. To
facilitate housing for
extremely low-income
persons, the City will
prioritize funding
and/or offer financial
incentives or regulatory
concessions to
encourage the
development or
rehabilitation of singleroom occupancy units
and/or other units
affordable to the
extremely low-income,
such as supportive and
multi- family units.

Assist or
support
applications
when feasible
2015-2023;
evaluate
whether a
Hotel
Voucher
Program will
be pursued
by 2017; if
pursued
implement by
2018
Ongoing Continue to seek
funding and
opportunities to
facilitate program.

Appropriate -retain
and revise
Employee
Housing Act
Amend the City’s
Zoning Ordinance to
comply with the state
Employee Housing Act
(Health and Safety
Code Sections 17021.5
and 17021.6) to treat
December
2016
The city intends to
adopt Ordinances
to reflect current
regulations within
2022
Temporary
employee
housing
ordinance
adopted.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-18
employee housing for
farm workers or other
employees that serves
six or fewer persons as
a single-family
structure and permitted
in the same manner as
other single-family
structures of the same
type in the same zone
(Section 17021.5). The
Zoning Ordinance will
also be amended to
treat employee housing
consisting of no more
than 12 units or 36 beds
as an agricultural use
and permitted in the
same manner as other
agricultural uses in the
same zone in zones
where agricultural uses
are permitted (Section
17021.6).

Reasonable
Accommod
ation
In response to SB 520
and to ensure fair and
efficient process for
persons with
disabilities to make
necessary accessibility
adjustments to their
homes, the City is
currently in the process
of amending the Zoning
Ordinance to create a
reasonable
accommodation
procedure.

Amend
zoning
Ordinance
prior to or
concurrent
with Housing
Element
adoption
The City intends
to adopt
Ordinances to
reflect current
regulations within
2022
Appropriate -retain
and revise
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-19
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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 2-1

3. CHAPTER THREE – POPULATION AND HOUSING DATA
A successful strategy for improving housing conditions must be preceded by an assessment of the housing needs of the community and the region. This section discusses the components of housing need. The components include the trends between 2010 and 2020 (and other more recent data when available) in Ridgecrest's population, households, employment base, and the type of housing units available. Comparisons are made to countywide statistical data.

Much of the information in the 2023-2031 Housing Element is provided by the San Joaquin Valley REAP Program. This information is based on statistical data provided by the US Decennial Census, the American Community Survey (ACS), and the Department of Finance (DOF). The Decennial Census is an important source of information for the Housing Needs Assessment.

Completed every 10 years, it provides the most reliable and in-depth data for demographic characteristics of a locality. The ACS is another source of information provided by the US Census Bureau. The ACS is a nationwide survey that collects information such as age, race, income, commute time to work, home value, veteran status, and other important data. The ACS uses this information to estimate the statistical data for a community. However, this is just an estimate based on a random survey and therefore can have a fairly large margin of error. As such, the ACS is not as accurate as the Decennial Census. The DOF is another source of valuable data that is more current than the Census. However, the DOF does not provide the depth of information that can be found in the US Census Bureau reports. Whenever possible, DOF data and other local sources were used in the Housing Needs Assessment in order to provide the most current profile of the community.

The analysis that follows is divided into four major subsections. Population Characteristics analyzes the City of Ridgecrest in terms of individual persons and identifies population trends that may affect future housing needs. Household Characteristics analyzes Ridgecrest by households, or living groups, to see how past and expected household changes will affect housing needs.

Employment analyzes individual persons in Ridgecrest by occupation and employment sources.

Housing Unit Characteristics and Their Relationship to Housing Need analyzes the housing units in Ridgecrest by availability, affordability, and condition. This information can be used to help identify programs needed to ensure that the existing and future housing stock meets the housing needs of every segment of the City's population. Analysis in each of these subsections provides data upon which decisions concerning programs and policies for the provision of adequate housing in the City can be made.

Population Characteristics
Number of Inhabitants
Table 3-1 shows current population estimates for Ridgecrest, Kern County, and other incorporated places within Kern County. The 2020 Census recorded 27,959 residents in the City of Ridgecrest, an increase of 343 persons or about one percent of the City's population from 2010.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-2
Table 3-1: Kern County Population, 2020
City Population
Arvin 19,495
Bakersfield 403,455
California City 14,973
Delano 51,428
Maricopa 1,026
McFarland 14,161
Ridgecrest 27,959
Shafter 19,953
Taft 8,546
Tehachapi 12,939
Wasco 27,047
Total Incorporated 600,982
Unincorporated 308,253
Kern County Total Population 909,235
Source: U.S. Census 2020
Table 3-2: Kern County Population Trends and Forecasts, 2000–2035 2000 2010 2020 2035
%
Increase
from
2020-2035
Kern County 661,649 839,631 909,235 1,076,000 18.3%
Arvin 12,956 19,304 19,495 23,600 21.1%
Bakersfield 253,562 347,483 403,455 507,400 25.8%
California City 8,838 14,120 14973 16,700 11.5%
Delano 40,036 53,041 51,428 59,400 15.5%
Maricopa 1,173 1,154 1,026 1,050 2.3%
McFarland 9,932 12,707 14,161 14,800 4.5%
Ridgecrest 25,103 27,616 27,959 31,500 12.7%
Shafter 13,045 16,988 19,953 28,700 43.8%
Taft 8,975 9,327 8,546 9,800 14.7%
Tehachapi 10,861 14,414 12,939 15,500 19.8%
Wasco 21,604 25,545 27,047 31,000 14.6%
Source: US. Census 2000, 2010, 2020 and Kern COG 2022 RTP/SCS Good access to Highways 178, 14, and 395 enables workers to live in Ridgecrest and commute to Trona, California City, Mojave, and Lone Pine. A large inventory of developable land also facilitates an ongoing supply of affordable market rate housing in the area. According to the ACS 2016–2020 data, over 60 percent of Ridgecrest residents commute less than 15 minutes to work, which is significantly higher than the 28 percent of County residents.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-3
In Table 3-2, the growth rate of Kern County communities can be compared. According to the Kern COG 2022 RTP/SCS, Ridgecrest is forecast to reach a population of 31,500 by the year 2035.

This represents an increase of 3,541 persons over the 15-year period, or approximately 12.7 percent in growth.

Age Characteristics
As shown in Table 3-3, between 2010 and 2020, the median age increased from 33.8 years to 37.2 years, an additional 3.4 years.

The most significant change occurred in the 35-44 age range which increased from 11.4 percent of the total population in 2010 to 15.0 percent in 2020. A significant change was also seen in the 0-4 age group which decreased from 8.2 percent to 4.9 percent during the same time period.

Table 3-3: City of Ridgecrest Age Characteristics
Age Range
2010 2020
Number of
Persons
Percent of
Total
Number of
Persons
Percent of
Total
0-4 2,265 8.2% 1,422 4.9%
5-9 2,012 7.3% 2,172 7.5%
10-14 1,992 7.2% 2,316 8.0%
15-19 2,081 7.5% 1,944 6.7%
20-24 1,848 6.7% 1,372 4.7%
25-34 4,022 14.6% 4,053 14.0%
35-44 3,135 11.4% 4,344 15.0%
45-54 3,832 13.8% 3,706 12.8%
55-64 3,012 10.9% 3,457 12.0%
65-74 1,873 6.8% 2,278 7.9%
75+ 1,544 5.6% 1,841 6.4%
Totals 27,616 100% 28,905 100.0%
Median Age 33.8 37.2
Source: U.S. Census 2010, 2020 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table S0101) City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-4
Race and Ethnicity
Ridgecrest residents are predominantly comprised of two racial/ethnic groups: White (nonHispanic) and Hispanic. Together these two racial/ethnic groups represented 82 percent of the total population in 2020. As shown in Table 3-4, the White population, which accounted for 60 percent of the City’s population, declined by 11.9 percent over the 2010-2020 period. During the same ten-year period, the Hispanic population of the city increased by 23.9 percent. Although relatively small in number, the Native American population declined by 35.9 percent and the Other/Two or more races group grew the fasted during this period, almost doubling in size (96.7%).

Table 3-4: City of Ridgecrest Race and Ethnicity 2010, 2020 Racial/Ethnic Group1 2010 2020 2010-2020
Population Percent Population Percent Percent Inc.

White 19,019 68.9% 16,763 60.0% -11.9%
Hispanic 4,941 17.9% 6,124 21.9% 23.9%
Black/African American 1,041 3.8% 1,222 4.4% 17.4%
Asian/Pacific Islander 1,315 4.8% 1,618 5.8% 23.0%
Native American 245 0.9% 157 0.6% -35.9%
Other/Two or more races 1,055 3.8% 2,075 7.4% 96.7%
TOTAL 27,616 100.0% 27,959 100.0% 1.2%
Source: U.S. Census 2010 and 2020 (Table P2)
1White, Black/African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Native American, and Other/Two or more races denote nonHispanic.

Household Characteristics
Household Trends
Table 3-5 indicates that the number of households, average number of persons per household, and total population in households have all increased in the City of Ridgecrest between 2000 and 2020.

Table 3-5: City of Ridgecrest Household Trends, 2000, 2010, 2020 Year Number of
Households
Population in
Households
Average
Household Size
2000 9,919 24,794 2.50
2010 10,882 27,420 2.54
2020 11,667 28,706 2.46
Source: U.S. Census 2000, 2010 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table DP02) Household Size
Trends in household size can indicate the growth pattern of a community. Average household size will increase if there is an influx of larger families or a rise in the local birth rate. Household size City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-5
will decline where the population is aging, or when there is an influx of single residents outside childbearing age.

As shown in Table 3-5, average household size in Ridgecrest was 2.50 persons per household in 2000 and increased to 2.54 persons per household in 2010. By 2020, the City’s household size declined to 2.46. Based on data from the Census ACS 2016-2020 five-year estimates, Kern County's average household size was higher than Ridgecrest, with a 2020 household size of 3.15.

Income
The major factor which constrains the ability of households to obtain adequate housing is income, the ability to pay for adequate housing. Median income of a community is one key indicator used to determine housing needs. Median income is a statistic which marks the halfway point in a community's income distribution. Fifty percent of all households earn more than the median; fifty percent earn less. Table 3-6 shows Ridgecrest household income distribution. A total of 10.4 percent of the City's households earn less than $15,000 per year, and 6.4 percent earn less than $10,000 annually. At the upper end of the spectrum, almost one-third (31.9%) of Ridgecrest households earn $100,000 or more. When looking at income data for seniors or those over the age of 65 differences emerge from the total household income trends. About eight percent of seniors earn less than $15,000 per year, which is slightly less than for total households in the City. More than one-quarter (26.5%) of seniors earn more than $100,000 per year. Both seniors and total households have significant numbers earning between $35,000 and $100,000 per year, 44.5 percent of total households and 43.9 percent of senior households.

Table 3-6: City of Ridgecrest Household Income
Income Range
Number of
Total
Households
Percent of
Total
Households
Number of
Senior
Households
(65 years and
older)
Percent of
Senior
Households
Less than $10,000 751 6.4% 128 4.9%
$10,000 to $14,999 471 4.0% 84 3.2%
$15,000 to $24,999 899 7.7% 328 12.4%
$25,000 to $34,999 633 5.4% 236 9.0%
$35,000 to $49,999 1,566 13.4% 412 15.6%
$50,000 to $74,999 1,733 14.9% 343 13.0%
$75,000 to $99,999 1,885 16.2% 404 15.3%
$100,000 to $149,999 1,904 16.3% 433 16.4%
$150,000 to $199,999 1,322 11.3% 104 3.9%
$200,000 or more 503 4.3% 163 6.2%
Total 11,667 100.0% 2,635 100.0%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B19037)
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) have established five income classifications using City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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the county median as a guideline for defining housing needs. The 2020 Kern County income limits are shown in Table 3-7. Incomes are specifically defined as follows:

Table 3-7: Income Levels for Kern County, 2020
Income
Category
Household Size
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Extremely Low $14,700 $17,240 $21,720 $26,200 $30,680 $35,160 $39,640 $44,120 Very Low $24,500 $28,000 $31,500 $34,950 $37,750 $40,550 $43,350 $46,150 Low $39,150 $44,750 $50,350 $55,900 $60,400 $64,850 $69,350 $73,800 Moderate $59,400 $67,900 $76,350 $84,850 $91,650 $98,450 $105,200 $112,000 Above Moderate >$59,400 >$67,900 >$76,350 >$84,850 >$91,650 >$98,450 >$105,200 >$112,000 Area Median
$70,700
Extremely Low-Income: Less than 30 percent of the county median Very Low Income: 31 to 50 percent of the county area median.

Low Income: 51 to 80 percent of the county area median.

Moderate Income: 81 to 120 percent of the county area median.

Above Moderate Income: More than 120 percent of the county area median.

Older parts of the City generally contain the largest concentrations of persons with lower incomes.

The age of the housing stock is often correlated with income, which results in lower-income persons living in older housing stock. The Crumville area (area bounded by Norma Street, China Lake Boulevard, Upjohn Avenue, and Church Street) has been identified as a blighted area. This neighborhood is predominantly multi-family with single-family residential units throughout.

Homes in this area are approximately 50 years old and may be in need of rehabilitation before other neighborhoods of the same vintage.

Overpayment of Rent
State and federal standards for housing overpayment are defined as an income-to-housing cost ratio of 30 percent. Households paying more than this percentage of their income for shelter have less money left over for other necessities, such as food, clothing, utilities and healthcare. It is recognized, however, that moderate- and above moderate-income households are generally capable of paying a larger proportion of their income on housing. Therefore, estimates of housing overpayment generally focus on low-income groups.

As shown in Table 3-8, of the total 3,560 lower income households in the city, the majority (58.7%) were paying more than 30 percent of their income for shelter and almost one-third (32.7%) were paying over 50 percent on shelter. Additionally, 64.0 percent of the lower income renter households and 51.6 percent of lower income owner households were overpaying (over 30% of income) on shelter.

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Table 3-8: Lower Income Households Overpaying by Tenure Owner
Occupied
% Owner
Occupied
Renter
Occupied
% Renter
Occupied Total % Total
Cost Burden > 30% 805 51.6% 1,280 64.0% 2,090 58.7%
Cost Burden >50% 450 28.8% 715 35.8% 1,165 32.7%
Total Lower Income
Households 1,560 2,000 3,560
Source: U.S. Housing and Urban Development, CHAS 2014-18 The Kern COG Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) plan has allocated 620 housing units as Ridgecrest's 2023-2031 regional housing share for low- and very low-income households. The distinction between renter and owner housing overpayment is important. Although homeowners may overextend themselves to afford to purchase a house, the owner is building equity and is likely to have fixed housing costs, or to have a relatively predictable increase in mortgage payments over time. In addition, the option to sell the home always remains.

Overcrowding
Overcrowding reflects the inability of households to buy or rent housing which provides reasonable privacy for each member. As defined by HUD, overcrowding occurs when there is more than one person per room (excluding kitchens, bathrooms and hallways). As shown in Table 3-9, of the 11,667 total occupied housing units in Ridgecrest, 321 or 2.7 percent were overcrowded in 2020 (1.01 or more persons per occupied unit).

Table 3-9: City of Ridgecrest Overcrowding, 2020
Persons per unit Number of
Households Percent

1.00 or less 11,346 97.2%

1.01 to 1.50 134 1.1%

1.51 or more 187 1.6%
Occupied Units 11,667 100%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B25014)
Table 3-10 shows the percentages of overcrowding between owners and renters in Ridgecrest and Kern County in 2020. In Ridgecrest, only one percent of owners lived in overcrowded conditions (more than one person per room), while five percent of the renters lived under overcrowded conditions. Kern County had significantly higher overcrowding than Ridgecrest, with 5.6 percent of its owners and 14.3 percent or its renters living in overcrowded conditions.

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Table 3-10: Overcrowding by Tenure
Tenure Ridgecrest Kern County
Owner Occupied
Overcrowding
(1.1-1.5 persons/room) 0.7% 4.4%
Severe Overcrowding
(>1.5 persons/room) 0.6% 1.2%
Total Overcrowding
(>1.1 persons/room) 1.3% 5.6%
Renter Occupied
Overcrowding
(1.1-1.5 persons/room) 1.9% 9.4%
Severe Overcrowding
(>1.5 persons/room) 3.1% 4.9%
Total Overcrowding
(>1.1 persons/room) 5.0% 14.3%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B25014)
Home Values and Sales Prices
Home values presented in Table 3-11 are based on the Zillow Home Value Index, which is a smoothed, seasonally adjusted measure of the typical home value and market changes across a given region and housing type. According to the table, Ridgecrest’s median home value in January 2023 was $261,900, a slight increase from the prior year, but a significant increase (31.9%) since 2019. In comparison to Kern County, the Zillow estimated home value for Ridgecrest was lower by $68,700 in 2023.

Table 3-11: Median Home Value 2019-2023
Year
(January)
Ridgecrest Kern County
Median Home
Value
Percent
Change
Median Home
Value
Percent
Change
2019 $198,500 $222,500
2020 $206,600 4.1% $234,700 5.5%
2021 $227,000 9.9% $261,800 11.6%
2022 $259,000 14.1% $309,400 18.2%
2023 $261,900 1.1% $330,600 6.9%
Source: Zillow Home Value Index for January 2019-2023.

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In addition, the Ridgecrest Area Association of Realtors provided information of homes sold in the City (Zip Code 93555), which are presented in Table 3-12. The information shows that the median price of homes sold between 2021 and 2022 increased in Ridgecrest. For example, the median sale price of a three-bedroom house in Ridgecrest increased from $242,000 in 2021 to $255,000 the following year. Additionally, three-bedroom home, which accounted for the majority of homes sold in 2022, had a sales price range from a low of $85,000 to a high of $620,000.

Table 3-12: Ridgecrest Residential Sale Prices, 2022
Number of
Units Sold Low High Median
2021
2-bedroom 21 $50,000 $230,000 $154,000
3-bedroom 282 $120,000 $475,000 $242,000
4+ bedrooms 206 $155,000 $690,000 $319,000
2022
2-bedroom 20 $70,000 $415,000 $175,000
3-bedroom 310 $85,000 $620,000 $255,000
4+ bedrooms 201 $120,000 $1,300,000 $350,000
Source: Ridgecrest Area Association of Realtors
Table 3-13 presents 2022 income limits and maximum monthly rents and sale prices for Kern County households, which also applies for Ridgecrest households. The maximum rents and sale prices were developed using the HCD Housing Affordability Calculator for year 2022. In comparing the housing affordability limits to recent home sale prices in Table 3-12, the City’s residential units sold in 2022 were not affordable to extremely low-income households and very low-income large households (5 or more person households). As shown in Table 3-13, the maximum affordable sale price for a very low-income large household was $106,600; however, the lowest sales price for a four+ bedroom home was $120,000 or $13,400 more than the maximum affordability limit. While a very low-income large household could move into a two-bedroom housing at the lower price range, it would result in overcrowded conditions.

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Table 3-13: Housing Affordability, 2022
Limits 1-Bedroom
(1-2 persons)
2-Bedroom
(3 persons)
3-Bedroom
(4 persons)
4-Bedroom
(5 persons)
Extremely Low Income
Annual income limit $16,350-$18,700 $23,030 $27,750 $32,470 Monthly income $1,363-$1,558 $1,919 $2,313 $2,706
Max. monthly rent $360 $420 $480 $530
Max. sales price $32,100 $39,500 $47,000 $52,900
Very Low Income
Annual income limit $27,300-$31,200 $35,100 $38,950 $42,100 Monthly income $2,275-$2,600 $2,925 $3,246 $3,508
Max. monthly rent $680 $780 $880 $960
Max. sales price $71,800 $84,200 $96,600 $106,600
Low Income
Annual income limit $43,650-$49,850 $56,100 $62,300 $67,300 Monthly income $3,638-$4,154 $4,675 $5,192 $5,608
Max. monthly rent $1,120 $1,280 $1,440 $1,560
Max. sales price $111,500 $128,900 $146,300 $160,200
Moderate Income
Annual income limit $67,450-$77,100 $86,700 $96,350 $104,050 Monthly income $5,621-$6,425 $7,225 $8,029 $8,671
Monthly rent $1,810 $2,050 $2,290 $2,480
Max. sales price $227,400 $259,200 $291,100 $316,600
Source: HCD Income Limits 2022 and HCD Affordability Calculator https://www.hcd.ca.gov/planning-and-communitydevelopment/annual-progress-reports Rental Costs
Examining the rental housing market is a direct means to identifying rental price information.

Rents are ultimately determined by the interaction of supply and demand within the housing market. The two most significant factors contributing to rental prices are location and amenities.

Table 3-14 provides samples of “typical” rental housing in the Ridgecrest area as identified through a point-in-time survey conducted using the online rental listing website Zillow.com in May 2023. This recent listing included mostly two- and three-bedroom units with average rents of $1,213 per month and $1,587 per month, respectively.

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Table 3-14: Ridgecrest Residential Rental Prices, 2023
Number of
Units
Surveyed
Low
Rent
High
Rent
Average
Rent
1-bedroom 7 $600 $1,788 $1,125
2-bedroom 22 $559 $2,000 $1,213
3-bedroom 22 $646 $2,495 $1,587
4+ bedrooms 4 $1,995 $2,600 $2,324
Source: Zillow, Ridgecrest Rental, May 2023
Although the monthly cost of rental housing is important, most landlords require the first and last month rental payment plus a security deposit prior to moving in. Many landlords require a minimum monthly income of up to three times the monthly rent. There may also be requirements for deposits to connect to services such as water and electricity and possibly extra charges for additional people or pets. Due to these factors, often the actual cost of moving into a rental unit is a greater burden.

As previously mentioned, Table 3-13 shows the maximum affordable monthly rents by income level and number of bedrooms. For example, a two-bedroom rental unit affordable to a very lowincome household would be $780 a month. As shown in Table 3-14, recent rental rates in Ridgecrest for two-bedroom units range from $559 to $2,000, with an average rent of $1,213. This indicates that a very low-income three-person household could find affordable housing in Ridgecrest, although at the lower end of the rental rate range. However, rental units would not be affordable to households in the extremely low-income category regardless of the number of bedrooms. In addition, four-bedroom rental units would not be affordable to extremely low, very low-, and low-income households. This indicates a need for more affordable housing for households with extremely low-incomes in the city and those with larger households (5 persons or more).

Special Needs Groups
Elderly
The special needs of many elderly households often result from lower fixed incomes, physical disabilities, and dependence needs. As Table 3-15 shows, an estimated 2,635 households with elderly (65 years and over) occupants reside in Ridgecrest. Households with elderly occupants accounted for less than one-quarter (22.6%) the Ridgecrest’s total households, which is slightly higher than the countywide proportion of 21.2 percent. According to the previous Table 3.3, the 65 years and over age group in Ridgecrest increased from 12.4 percent of the population in 2010 to 14.3 percent of the population in 2020. As detailed earlier in Table 3-7 the incomes of elderly households in Ridgecrest are lower overall when compared to total households. Housing needs of the elderly can be addressed through congregate housing, housing rehabilitation assistance, and repair programs. In addition, the needs of elderly with lower incomes can also be addressed through rental subsidies and mortgage assistance programs.

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Table 3-15: Households with Elderly Occupants, 2020
Area Age 65+
Households
Total
Households
Age 65+
Percent
Ridgecrest 2,635 11,667 22.6%
Kern County 58,117 273,556 21.2%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table S2502)
As shown in Table 3-16, there were approximately 2,175 owner-occupied elderly householders (82.5%) age 65 or older in the City of Ridgecrest, and 460 (17.5%) renter-occupied householders.

Ridgecrest has a higher percentage of owner-occupied age 65 and older householders than Kern County.

Table 3-16: Elderly Households by Owner and Renter
Area
Owner-Occupied Renter-Occupied
Age 65+
Households
Percent of Age
65+ Households
Age 65+
Households
Percent of Age
65+ Households
Ridgecrest 2,175 82.5% 460 17.5%
Kern County 44,406 76.4% 13,711 23.6%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table S2502)
Disabled Population
A "disability" includes, but is not limited to, any physical or mental disability as defined in California Government Code Section 12926. A "mental disability" involves having any mental or psychological disorder or condition, such as mental retardation, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness, or specific learning disabilities that limits a major life activity. A "physical disability" involves having any physiological disease, disorder, condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss that affects body systems including neurological, immunological, musculoskeletal, special sense organs, respiratory, speech organs, cardiovascular, reproductive, digestive, genitourinary, hemic and lymphatic, skin, and endocrine. In addition, a mental or physical disability limits a major life activity by making the achievement of major life activities difficult including physical, mental, and social activities and working.

Physical, mental, and/or developmental disabilities often prevent a person from working, restrict a person’s mobility, or make caring for oneself difficult. Therefore, disabled persons often require special housing needs related to potential limited earning capacity, the lack of accessible and affordable housing, and higher health costs associated with disabilities. Additionally, people with disabilities require a wide range of different housing, depending on the type and severity of their disability. Housing needs can range from institutional care facilities to facilities that support partial or full independence (i.e., group care homes). Supportive services such as daily living skills and employment assistance need to be integrated in the housing situation. The disabled person with a mobility limitation requires housing that is physically accessible. Examples of accessibility in housing include widened doorways and hallways, ramps, bathroom modifications (lowered countertops, grab bars, adjustable shower heads, etc.), and special sensory devices including smoke alarms and flashing lights.

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According to the ACS 2016-2020, there are 4,402 persons with some form or type of disability which may impede their ability to earn an adequate income or find suitable housing accommodations to meet their special needs. Therefore, many of the heads of household in this group may be in need of housing assistance. Households with persons with disabilities may also need housing with special features to allow better physical mobility for occupants. Table 3-17 shows a breakdown of persons with disabilities by age and type in 2020. Persons in the age group 16-64 had a larger proportion of disabilities related to cognitive, ambulatory, and independent living, whereas disabilities in the 65 and over age group were significant in hearing, ambulatory, and independent living.

Table 3-17: Persons with a Disability by Age and Type, 2020 Age 5 to 15 Age 16 to 64 Age 65+ Total
Hearing disability 23 440 692 1,155
Vision disability 56 485 261 802
Cognitive disability 336 1,022 292 1,650
Ambulatory disability 62 1,270 853 2,185
Self-care disability 62 288 332 682
Independent living disability - 1,850 590 2,440
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table S1810)
Note: Person may have more than one disability
Table 3-18 estimates that almost one-third (31.6%) of persons with a disability in the City were employed in 2020 and almost two-thirds (63.5%) were not in the labor force.

Table 3-18: Persons with a Disability by Employment Status, 2020 Number Percent
Employed 815 31.6%
Unemployed 128 5.0%
Not in the labor force 1,639 63.5%
Total 2,582 100%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table C18120)
Persons with Developmental Disabilities
Senate Bill (SB) 812 requires the City to include the needs of individuals with a developmental disability within the community in the special housing needs analysis. According to Section 4512 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, a “developmental disability” means a disability that originates before an individual attains age 18 years, continues, or can be expected to continue, City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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indefinitely, and constitutes a substantial disability for that individual which includes mental retardation, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and autism.

Many developmentally disabled persons can live and work independently in a conventional housing environment. More severely disabled individuals require a group living environment where supervision is provided. The most severely affected individuals may require an institutional environment where medical attention and physical therapy are provided. Because developmental disabilities exist before adulthood, the first issue in supportive housing for the developmentally disabled is the transition from the person’s living situation as a child to an appropriate level of independence as an adult.

The California Department of Developmental Services provided community-based services to approximately 363,000 consumers with developmental disabilities and their families through a statewide system of 21 regional centers and three state-operated facilities (two developmental centers and one community facility). The center is a private, nonprofit community agency that contracts with local businesses to offer a wide range of services to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families. Ridgecrest is part of the Kern Regional Center which serves Kern, Inyo, and Mono Counties and more than 10,000 consumers.

Table 3-19 provides information about Ridgecrest’s population of developmentally disabled persons; Table 3-19 provides information about those persons’ place of residence type.

Table 3-19: Developmentally Disabled Residents by Age
0-17 years 18+ years Total
Ridgecrest
(Zip Code 93555) 224 180 404
Source: Department of Developmental Services Quarterly Consumer Report, December 2021
Table 3-20: Developmentally Disabled Residents by Residence Type Community
Care
Foster/
Family
Home
Intermediate
Care Facility
Independ./
Supported
Living
Home of
Parent/
Family/
Guardian
Other Total
Ridgecrest
(Zip Code 93555) <11 <11 0 69 322 <11 404
Source: Department of Developmental Services Quarterly Consumer Report, December 2021 A number of housing types are appropriate for people living with a development disability: rentsubsidized homes, licensed and unlicensed single-family homes, inclusionary housing, Section 8 vouchers, special programs for home purchase, HUD housing, and SB 962 homes. The design of housing-accessibility modifications, the proximity to services and transit, and the availability of group living opportunities represent some of the types of considerations that are important in City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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serving these special needs group. Incorporating “barrier-free” design in all new multi-family housing (as required by California and federal fair housing laws) is especially important to provide the widest range of choices for disabled residents. Special consideration should also be given to the affordability of housing, as people with disabilities may be living on a fixed income. Program Q. is proposed to specifically address the needs of the developmentally disabled.

Large Households
Large households are defined as households with five or more persons. Large households may also have lower incomes, frequently resulting in the overcrowding of smaller dwelling units, and sometimes two or more persons per room. Large families may also have difficulty finding rental units that qualify for the Section 8 Housing Assistance Program, because larger units often exceed maximum rent limits, and there are fewer large units to choose from. The majority of apartments for rent are either one-bedroom or two-bedroom units. In addition, some landlords are reluctant to rent to large families. The housing needs of large households can be addressed through the expansion of existing smaller units and the provision of new, affordably priced larger units.

Table 3-21 provides 2010 and 2020 comparative information on the number and percentage of large households for Ridgecrest, Bakersfield, and Kern County. In 2020, it was estimated that 9.0 percent of households in Ridgecrest had five or more persons, which was lower than Bakersfield (17.8%) and Kern County (18.2%). In comparison to 2010, each of the three areas experienced a decline in the number of large households as well as its portion of the total households of each jurisdiction. In Ridgecrest the percentage of large household decreased from 10.8 percent in 2010 to 9.0 percent in 2020. This compares to the 2010-2020 changes in Bakersfield from 20.2 percent down to 17.8 percent and countywide from 21.6 percent to 18.2 percent.

Table 3-21 Large Households Within Ridgecrest, Bakersfield, and Kern County, 2010 and 2020 Area
2010 2020
Number of
Large
Households
% of Total
Households
Number of
Large
Households
% of Total
Households
Ridgecrest 1,158 10.8% 1,048 9.0%
Bakersfield 22,436 20.2% 21,065 17.8%
Kern County 55,102 21.6% 49,656 18.2%
Source: U.S. Census 2010 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table B25009) As shown in Table 3-22, of the total households reported in Ridgecrest consisting of five or more persons, 631 or 8.8 percent were owners and 417 or 9.2 percent were renters. In relation to the 1,048 total large households in the City, owners represented 60.2 percent and renters 39.8 percent.

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Table 3-22: City of Ridgecrest Tenure by Unit, 2020
Persons Per Unit Owner
Occupied Percent RenterOccupied Percent
1 Person 2,082 29.2% 1,691 37.2%
2 Person 2,238 31.4% 1,340 29.5%
3 Person 1,377 19.3% 560 12.3%
4 Person 791 11.1% 540 11.9%
5 or More Persons 631 8.8% 417 9.2%
Total 7,119 100.0% 4,548 100.0%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B25009)
Extremely Low-Income Households
The City of Ridgecrest must provide an estimate of the projected extremely low-income housing needs. Per HCD guidelines, 50 percent of the City’s very low-income RHNA number qualifies as extremely low income. Therefore, the City is estimating approximately 50 percent of its very lowincome regional housing need to be an extremely low-income housing need. In other words, of the 379 very low-income housing needed, the City is estimating 189 units for extremely low-income households. Most, if not all, extremely low-income households will require rental housing. The extremely low-income households will likely face housing problems such as overpaying, overcrowding, and/or accessibility issues as a result of their limited incomes. Also, many of the extremely low-income households will fall within a special needs category (disabled, seniors, large families, or female-headed households) and require supportive housing services.

Female Heads of Household
Female-headed single-parent households experience numerous housing problems, including affordability (the individuals are often on public assistance), overcrowding (the individuals often cannot afford units large enough to accommodate their families), insufficient housing choices, and discrimination.

Table 3-23 illustrates the number of family households that are headed by a female with no husband present. Female-headed households with no husband present account for 10.3 percent of all households in the city, which is lower than the countywide 16.1 percent.

Table 3-23: Female Heads of Household, 2020
Area Total
Households
Female-Headed
Households
Percent of
All Households
Ridgecrest 11,667 1,206 10.3%
Kern County 273,556 43,963 16.1%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table S1101)
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Farm Workers
There is no agriculture within the City of Ridgecrest at present. However, during the past three years, a significant amount of land, (2,000 – 3,000 acres) in the Indian Wells Valley has been converted to intense pistachio farms. Therefore, farmworkers now constitute part of the area’s population. The US Census of Agriculture estimated that in 2012 there were 34,501 farm workers on 1,004 farms in Kern County. The ACS 2016-2020 estimate indicates 410 residents employed in the "agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting, and mining" industries in Ridgecrest. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has a field office located in Ridgecrest, with 50–60 employees, and approximately 10 contract workers. It is believed that approximately one third all of those employed in the farming industry are BLM-related and not farm workers. Program T is proposed in this Housing Element update to comply with state requirements to allow farmworker housing.

Homeless
Throughout the county, homelessness has become an increasing concern. General factors contributing to the rise in homeless include the lack of affordable housing to low- and very lowincome persons, increases in the number of persons whose incomes fall below the poverty level, reductions in public subsidies to the poor, and the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill.

Ridgecrest's location off the main highway limits the number of transient homeless who pass through the community; however, in recent years numbers of chronic homeless persons are increasing in the city. There are a number of organizations which provide services to the homeless in the Ridgecrest area, but none provide emergency shelter. The Bakersfield-Kern Regional Homeless Collaborative conducted a point-in-time survey regarding the homeless population in Kern County. The countywide survey was completed on January 23 and 24, 2020. The survey found there were four unsheltered homeless persons residing in Ridgecrest during the two-day period.

Some local information was gathered about those using homeless services. This data is more qualitative but helps further describe the current situation for those who are homeless in Ridgecrest. According to the City of Ridgecrest, in January of 2023 three homeless individuals were counted in the community, including outside city limits but within the valley. The Salvation Army provides emergency food four days a week, as well as other assistance including utility bill, prescription drug, and eye glass assistance. It serves between 10 and 25 clients per day. The Women's Shelter also provides emergency food and household items and reported providing motel rooms to homeless persons on occasion, but usually refers clients to other services for shelter.

Other service providers include the Family Resource Centers, which supports families and children, and the Ridgecrest Senior Center.

He reported that there is a huge need for mental health services in the city. The closest services are a couple to several hours away in Lancaster or Bakersfield. He understands that the shelters in Lancaster are full. The biggest issue facing homeless persons in Ridgecrest is the lack of local resources and no transit available to get to other cities. A place in Ridgecrest that provides access to medication, medical services, and shelter is needed. There also are no adult protective services in Ridgecrest; the closest location for this type of service is Bakersfield.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-18
Transitional housing is allowed in zones A, E-1, E-2, E-3, R-1 R-2, R-3, R-4 and MH. Conditional uses may be authorized in zones CG and CS by the granting of a conditional use permit by the Planning Commission. Conditional use permits are discretionary, and the approved process is described on pages 5-19 and 5-20 of this element. Emergency shelters are allowed in the R-3 and R-4 zones without discretionary review. These zones have land available to accommodate an emergency shelter. Program R. requires the City to amend the Zoning Ordinance to allow transitional and supportive housing per Senate Bill 2 in all zones that allow residential uses in the same way other residential uses are allowed. Program Q. addresses special needs groups including the homeless.

Employment
One of the factors that can contribute to an increase in demand for housing is expansion of the employment base. The major employers in Ridgecrest are shown in Table 3-24. The largest employer in Ridgecrest is the Naval Air Warfare Center, which employs between 5,000–9,999 people. Other major employers include the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital, Sierra Sands Unified School District, and the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake Table 3-24: Major Employers in Ridgecrest
Employer Number of Jobs
Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division (NAWCWD) 5,000–9,999 Ridgecrest Regional Hospital 500-999
Sierra Sands Unified School District 500-999
U.S. Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake 500-999
Source:California Employment Development Department,
https://labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/majorer/countymajorer.asp?CountyCode=000029 Current employment data was obtained from NAWCWD, the Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS) China Lake, and the Military Installations Website. NAWCWD and NAWS report that, as of March 2021, there are 4,100 full-time civilians, 620 military, and 1,734 on-board and off-site contractors employed at the base. The majority of these jobs include engineers, scientists, technicians, and office and administrative staff.

Table 3-25 shows employment by industry for the City of Ridgecrest and Kern County. In Ridgecrest, the "Public administration" and "Educational services" industries employed the most people, with 37.6 percent and 19.8 percent, respectively. Kern County's top two industries by employment were Educational services (20.2%) and Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and mining (14.5%).

Although industries are categorized as non-civilian by the ACS, due to the NAWCWD and NAWS China Lake being located partially within city boundaries, it is important to note the number of residents in the city currently serving in the armed services as reported earlier on this page.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-19
Table 3-25: Employment by Industry
City of Ridgecrest and Kern County
Industry City of Ridgecrest Kern County
Employed persons 16 years and over Number Percent Number Percent Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and
mining
410 4.3% 32,510 14.5%
Construction 308 3.2% 17,397 7.8%
Manufacturing 644 6.8% 15,408 6.9%
Transportation and warehousing, and utilities 272 2.9% 15,345 6.9% Information 80 0.8% 2,265 1.0%
Wholesale trade 54 0.6% 7,214 3.2%
Retail trade 621 6.5% 19,972 8.9%
Finance, insurance, and real estate 285 3.0% 9,431 4.2% Professional, scientific, and management, and
administration
815 8.6% 17,824 8.0%
Arts, entertainment and recreation, accommodation
and food services
332 3.5% 12,214 5.5%
Educational services, healthcare, and social
assistance
1,882 19.8% 45,220 20.2%
Other services, except public administration 235 2.5% 8,989 4.0% Public administration 3,578 37.6% 20,206 9.0%
Total Employed 9,516 100.0% 223,995 100.0%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table C24050)
The fastest-growing occupations in Kern County are listed in Table 3-26. While this information is not specific to Ridgecrest, it is nevertheless applicable because Ridgecrest residents work both inside and outside of the city. The fastest-growing occupations during the ten-year period between 2010 and 2020 were Healthcare support occupations (103.2% increase) and Material moving occupations (71.5%), followed by Computer, engineering, and science occupations (33.3%).

During the same period, the two occupations that experienced the greatest decline were Personal care and service (-13.9%) and Occupation and office and administrative support (-10.0%).

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-20
Table 3-26: Fastest-Growing Occupations in Kern County 2010-2020 Occupational Title
Annual Average
Employment Employment Change
2010 2020 Net Percent
Management, business, and financial occupations 29,715 35,936 6,221 20.9% Computer, engineering, and science occupations 10,541 14,054 3,513 33.3% Education, legal, community service, arts, and media
occupations
28,335 32,869 4,534 16.0%
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations 12,396 14,813 2,417 19.5% Healthcare support occupations 6,621 13,452 6,831 103.2% Protective service occupations 10,666 9,848 (818) -7.7% Food preparation and serving related occupations 15,919 18,139 2,220 13.9% Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations 14,221 14,705 484 3.4% Personal care and service occupations 10,380 8,938 (1,442) -13.9% Sales and related occupations 30,918 30,359 (559) -1.8% Office and administrative support occupations 40,021 36,017 (4,004) -10.0% Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations 26,057 30,911 4,854 18.6% Construction and extraction occupations 22,563 23,547 984 4.4% Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations 13,307 13,540 233 1.8% Production occupations 15,394 15,637 243 1.6%
Transportation occupations 13,543 16,189 2,646 19.5%
Material moving occupations 10,398 17,833 7,435 71.5%
Total 310,995 346,787 35,792 11.5%
Source: ACS 2006-2010 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table S2401)
Commute
Commute distance is an important factor in housing availability and affordability and is also an indicator of jobs/housing balance. Communities with extended commute distances generally have a poor jobs/housing balance, while those with short average commutes tend to have a strong jobs/housing balance. The burden of the additional costs associated with extended commuting disproportionately affects lower-income households who must spend a larger portion of their overall income on fuel. This in turn affects a household’s ability to occupy decent housing without being overburdened by cost. Table 3-27 indicates that the majority (61.2%) of Ridgecrest residents travel less than 15 minutes from home to work as compared to about one-quarter (28.4%) of countywide residents. The mean travel time to work for Ridgecrest residents was 15.6 minutes while Kern County residents was 23.6 minutes. This figure indicates that many of the jobs are within the city and that there is a strong jobs/housing balance, meaning that the available jobs are within relatively close distance to the employees’ places of residence.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-21
Table 3-27: Travel Time to Work
Travel Time to Work Ridgecrest Kern County
Less than 15 minutes 61.2% 28.4%
15-30 minutes 26.5% 45.7%
30 to 59 minutes 8.0% 19.4%
60 or more minutes 4.2% 6.5%
Mean Travel Time 15.6 minutes 23.6 minutes
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B08303)
Jobs/Housing Ratio
The jobs/housing balance is the ratio of jobs in a city compared to the number of housing units in that city. The jobs/housing balance is a meaningful way to gain a sense of how many people will commute to work and how far they will have to commute. An unbalanced jobs/housing ratio implies employees will be spending more time on roadways that may be better spent with their families, at work, or recreationally. Further examination of the jobs/housing balance would identify what future type industries are needed in a city or town, future trends of employment, the future wage indicators, needed future housing to match the projected incomes of new jobs, etc., and be a study in and of itself, beyond the scope of a Housing Element. If the jobs/housing ratio is greater than one, the city is likely to import workers. If the ratio is less than one, the city is likely to export workers. Perhaps a better indicator of the jobs/housing balance may be the number of persons who work in their city of residence compared to the number of housing units. A perfect jobs/housing ratio results when the number of employed households working in a city is equal to the number of housing units in that city. However, there is no perfect scenario for a city, and what works in one area may not work in another.

According to Table 3-28, in 2020 it was estimated that there were 10,674 jobs in Ridgecrest and 12,673 housing units. This results in a ratio of 0.84 jobs per housing unit, which indicates a housing rich/jobs poor city.

Table 3-28: Jobs to Housing Ratio, 2020–2035
2020 2035 Net Change
(2020-2035)
Percent
Change
Jobs 10,674 11,700 720 5%
Housing Units 12,673 13,200 527 4%
Jobs/Housing Ratio 0.84 0.89 0.05 6%
Source: ACS 2006-2010, Kern COG 2022 RTP/SCS
Note: Kern COG 2022 RTP/SCS forecasts employment and households for 2035. Housing units for 2035 calculated based on 2020 vacancy rate of eight percent.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-22
Housing Unit Characteristics and Their Relationship to Housing Need Housing Units
Table 3-29 identifies the total housing units for Ridgecrest, Bakersfield, California City, and Kern County. The increase in the number of housing units from 2000 to 2010 in Ridgecrest was larger than those of other Kern County jurisdictions.

Table 3-29: Total Housing Units, 2010-2020
Jurisdiction
2010 2020
Housing Units
Percent
Change 2000-
2010 Housing Units
Percent
Change
2010-2020
Ridgecrest 11,915 5.1% 12,673 6.4%
Bakersfield 120,725 26.9% 125,143 3.7%
California City 5,210 31.7% 4,825 -7.4%
Kern County 294,367 21.3% 299,179 1.6%
Source: U.S. Census 2010 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table DP04) Occupied Households
Table 3-30 identifies total occupied households, and owner- and renter-occupied households for Ridgecrest, Bakersfield, California City, and Kern County.

Table 3-30 Occupied Households by Jurisdiction, 2020
Jurisdiction Total Occupied
Households
OwnerOccupied
Households
Percent
OwnerOccupied
Households
RenterOccupied
Households
Percent
RenterOccupied
Households
Ridgecrest 11,667 7,119 61.0% 4,548 39.0%
Bakersfield 118,568 70,470 59.4% 48,098 40.6%
California City 4,169 2,394 57.4% 1,775 42.6%
Kern County 273,556 161,113 58.9% 112,443 41.1%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table S2501)
The percentage of owner-occupied households in Ridgecrest was 61.0 percent, and 39.0 percent for renter-occupied households. In comparison to the other jurisdictions in the table, Ridgecrest has the highest percentage of owner-occupied households.

Housing Units by Type
As shown in Table 3-31, the percentage of single-family housing units (detached and attached) increased in Ridgecrest between 2010 and 2020 from 70.0 percent to 70.5 percent, while the percentage of multiple family housing units (2 units and more) decreased from 22.1 percent to 21.6 percent. The percentage of mobile homes decreased from 7.8 percent to 7.6 percent during the same time period.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-23
Table 3-31 City of Ridgecrest
Total Housing Units by Type, 2010-2020
Housing Type
2010 2020
Number
of Units
Percent of
Total Units
Number of
Units
Percent of
Total Units
Single-family, detached 7,879 66.1% 8,404 66.3%
Single-family, attached 470 3.9% 538 4.2%
Multi-Family 2-4 Units 1,852 15.5% 1,946 15.4%
Multi-Family 5 or More Units 782 6.6% 782 6.2%
Mobile Homes 932 7.8% 958 7.6%
Other 932 7.8% 45 0.4%
Total Housing Units 12,847 100.0% 12,673 100.0%
Source: U.S. Census2010 and ACS 2016-2020 (Table DP04)
Because land is abundant and very inexpensive in Ridgecrest by state and Kern County standards, single-family dwelling units are the preferred dwelling unit type and that is reflected in demand.

This is also reflected in the vacancy rates.

The housing stock in Ridgecrest is typical of many communities in Central and Southern California. The vast majority of housing units in the city were built after World War II (see Table 3-32). Approximately one half (53.2%) of Ridgecrest's housing stock was built after 1980.

Countywide, 55.4 percent of the housing stock was built after 1980.

Table 3-32: Age of Housing Stock
Year Built Ridgecrest Kern County
Before 1940 0.5% 4.1%
1940s 1.2% 4.4%
1950s 9.6% 10.3%
1960s 11.2% 10.1%
1970s 24.3% 15.7%
1980s 36.8% 16.7%
1990s 8.5% 14.8%
2000s 5.2% 18.4%
2010 and after 2.7% 5.5%
Vacancy Rates
Considering information provided in Table 3-33, the total vacancy rate in 2020 was 7.9 percent for Ridgecrest. These vacancy rates include dilapidated units, seasonal units, units rented or sold and waiting for occupancy, units held for occasional use, and units held off the market for other reasons. According to “Raising the Roof, California Housing Development Projections and Constraints, 1997–2020,” the desirable vacancy rate in a community is considered to be 5 percent.

Generally, when the vacancy rate drops below 5 percent, the demand for housing exceeds the City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-24
supply of housing. Subsequently, prospective buyers and renters may experience an increase in housing costs.

Table 3-33: Number of Housing Units, Occupied and Vacant 2020 Type Number Percent
Occupied Housing Units 11,667 92.1%
Vacant Housing Units 1,006 7.9%
For Rent 238 23.7%
Rented, Not Occupied 52 5.2%
For Sale 115 11.4%
Sold, Not Occupied 24 2.4%
For Seasonal/Recreational or Occasional Use 203 20.2%
For Migrant Workers 0 0%
Other Vacant 374 37.2%
Total Housing Units 12,673 100%
Source: ACS 2016-2020 (Table B25004)
Housing Problems
The Comprehensive Housing Affordability Strategy (CHAS) was developed by HUD to assist jurisdictions in writing their consolidated plans. Table 3-34 presents the total number of households with one or more housing problems (incomplete kitchen facilities, incomplete plumbing facilities, overcrowding, and a cost burden greater than 30 percent) for the City of Ridgecrest and Kern County. As shown in Table 3-34, more renter households have housing problems than owner households at both the city and county levels. For example, almost twothirds of the City (63.7%) and County (63.9%) households with incomes less than 80 percent of the AMI were renters.

Table 3-34: Total Households with Any Housing Problem*
Income Range Owner
HHs
Renter
HHs
Total
HHs
Ridgecrest
Household Inc. ≤30% AMI with Any Housing Problems 325 650 975 Household Inc. >30% to ≤50% AMI with Any Housing Problems 270 490 760 Household Inc. >50% to ≤80% AMI with Any Housing Problems 205 265 470 Total 800 1,405 2.205
Percent of Total 36.3% 63.7% 100.0%
Kern County
Household Inc. ≤30% AMI with Any Housing Problems 9,825 24,350 34,175 Household Inc. >30% to ≤50% AMI with Any Housing Problems 10,255 19,885 30,140 Household Inc.>50% to ≤80% AMI with Any Housing Problems 12,370 13,165 25,535 Total 32,450 57,400 89,850
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-25
Percent of Total 36.1% 63.9% 100.0%
Source: 2015-2019 CHAS
Housing Conditions
As a part of the development of the 2002 Housing Element, a citywide housing quality survey was conducted, which was completed in January 2002. A representative sample was completed for every census tract of significant residential use. The sample size was based on HCD's sampling requirements contained in HCD's Program Guidelines. The completed tabulation appears in Table 3-35.

The ratings are defined by HCD as:

SOUND - a unit that appears new or well maintained and structurally intact. The foundation should appear structurally undamaged and there should be straight rooflines. Siding, windows, and doors should be in good repair with good exterior paint condition. Minor problems such as small areas of peeling paint and/or other maintenance items are allowable under this category. A sound unit will reflect 9 or less points on survey.

MINOR – a unit that shows signs of deferred maintenance, or which needs only one major component such as a roof.

MODERATE – a unit in need of replacement of one or more major components and other repairs, such as roof replacement, painting, and window repairs.

SUBSTANTIAL – a unit that requires replacement of several major systems and possible other repairs (e.g., complete foundation work, roof structure replacement and re-roofing, as well as painting and window replacement.)
DILAPIDATED – a unit suffering from excessive neglect, where the building appears structurally unsound and maintenance is non-existent, not fit for human habitation in its current condition, may be considered for demolition or at minimum, major rehabilitation will be required.

It is important to note that the rating system used is based on exterior conditions only. The highest concentration of minor, moderate, and substantial housing units is located within census tract 54.03 with 2.5 percent of surveyed units needing some type of repair. This correlates with the age of the housing stock for this census tract which is the oldest in the city. In census tract 55.01, where all of the units are relatively new, there were no surveyed units found in need of repair. Census tracts

54.01 and 54.02 also had no surveyed units found needing repairs (reference Table 3-35).

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-26
Table 3-35: Sample Field Survey Tabulation
Census
Tracts
Total
Units In
Total
Units In
Survey Sound
%
Sound Minor
%
MinorModerate
%
Moderate Substantial
%
Substantial Dilapidated
%
Dilapidated
Total Units
Needing
Work
%
Needing
Work
53 812 340 339 99.7 1 0.3 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 1 0.3

54.01 2,776 458 458 100.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0

54.02 2,071 436 436 100.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0

54.03 3,153 565 551 97.5 7 1.2 5 0.9 2 0.4 0 0.0 14 2.5

54.04 3,030 418 417 99.8 1 0.2 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 1 0.2

55.01 2,689 294 294 100.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0.0 Total
Surveyed 2,511 2,495 99.4 9 0.4 5 0.2 2 0.1 0 0.0 16 0.6 Estimated
Total 14,531 14,438 99.4 52 0.4 29 0.2 12 0.1 0 0.0 93 0.6 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 3-27
Overall, only 16 units of those surveyed needed repairs. The survey sample size was approximately 2,500 housing units. Undoubtedly there are more units in need of repair if interior conditions were included in the survey. Also, the rear and side yards of most dwelling units are inaccessible to survey crews to assist in the housing quality determination.

Updated Housing Stock Conditions
Based on a consensus between the code enforcement officer, city planner, and police captain, the City estimates that approximately 10 to 15 percent of the city’s housing stock is in need some type of rehabilitation. This includes all identified rehabilitation needs from minor to dilapidated.

Residential Building Permits
This section presents information on residential building permit activity for the local housing market area. It can be used to identify and analyze market trends and to project future building activity. During the eight-year period between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2022, the City of Ridgecrest issued permits for 458 housing units. (Refer Table 3-36). 11% of total approved units were very low-income housing units and 5.5% were low-income units.

Table 3-36: Residential Building Units Permitted, 2016-2022 Total New Housing Units 458
Very Low-Income Units Issued 50
Low Income Units Issued 25
Moderate Income Units Issued 44
Above Moderate-Income Units Issued 339
Average Housing Units Permitted Per Year 65
Source: City of Ridgecrest, Planning Department 2023

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-1

4. CHAPTER FOUR – LAND FOR HOUSING
Overview and Housing Sites
Ridgecrest is a rural city with relatively low housing costs compared to many areas of California.

Over the past decade, Ridgecrest has grown at a very slow rate. Ridgecrest has added multi-family housing, some focused on special needs groups including seniors and those with disabilities. As noted in Chapter 3, as of 2022, the residential units sold would not be affordable to extremely or very low-income families but would be affordable to the low-, moderate-, and above moderateincome categories, or those making 80 percent or more of area median income. Of the total 1,560 lower income and owner-occupied households in the city, 51.6% of households experience a cost burden greater than 30% of the income, and 28.8% experience a cost burden greater than 50% of the income. Of approximately 2000, lower income and renter occupied households, 64% experience a cost burden greater than 30% of the household income and 35.8% experience a cost burden of greater than 50% of the household income. The City has to plan for 620 housing units to meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) for low and very low income households.

To determine whether Ridgecrest has sufficient land to accommodate its share of regional housing needs for all income groups, the City must identify “adequate sites.” Under state law (California Government Code Section 65583[c] [1]), adequate sites are those with appropriate zoning and development standards, with services and facilities, needed to facilitate and encourage the development of a variety of housing for all income levels. Also, per state law the analysis of land looks at sites within the City’s boundary.

Future Housing Needs
State law (California Government Code Section 65584) provides for councils of governments to prepare regional housing allocation plans that assign a share of a region’s housing need to each city and county. In Kern County, the Kern County Council of Governments (Kern COG) is the council of governments authorized under state law to identify existing and future housing needs for the region. Kern COG adopted a Regional Housing Needs Plan (RHNP) on July 21, 2022. This plan addresses the RHNA for the period from June 30, 2023, through December 30, 2031.

Kern COG’s methodology is based on the regional numbers supplied by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The numbers produced by HCD are provided to Kern COG in the form of a regional goal number, which is then broken into income categories.

Kern COG is mandated to distribute the numbers to Kern County jurisdictions by income categories.

The RHNP allocation is a minimum needs number—cities and counties may plan for, and accommodate, a larger number of dwelling units than the allocation. The City must, however, use the numbers allocated under the RHNP to identify measures (policies and programs) that are consistent with these goals. While the City must also show how it will accommodate these units to be built, it is not obligated to build any of the units itself or finance their construction.

Table 4-1 provides the detailed breakdown of units by income category for the previous planning period. The RHNA for the current planning period totals 1,346 new units. Table 4-1 provides a City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-2
breakdown of Ridgecrest’s share of the regional housing need by the affordability level/income category: extremely low, very low, low, moderate, and above moderate. Extremely low-, very low- , and low-income categories are often referred to as a group as lower-income. Through this Housing Element, the City is required to demonstrate the availability of adequate sites to accommodate these new units.

Table 4-1: 2013–2023 Regional Housing Needs Allocation
Income Category
RHNA Allocation
Percentage Number of Units
Extremely Low 5.9% 80
Very Low 5.9% 80
Low 9.7% 131
Moderate 15.5% 207
Above Moderate 63.0% 848
Total 100% 1,346
Source: Kern COG, 2007
Table 4-2: 2023–2031 Regional Housing Needs Allocation
Income Category
RHNA Allocation
Percentage Number of Units
Extremely Low 13.16% 189
Very Low 13.23 190
Low 16.78% 241
Moderate 15.67% 225
Above Moderate 41.16% 591
Total 100% 1,436
Source: Kern COG, 2022
State law requires jurisdictions to demonstrate that “adequate sites” will be made available over the planning period (2023–2031 for the Kern COG region) to facilitate and encourage sufficient housing sites are available for the RHNA. Jurisdictions must also demonstrate that appropriate zoning and development standards, as well as services and facilities, will be in place to facilitate and encourage housing. To that end, the Housing Element must inventory land suitable for residential development, including vacant and underutilized sites (if appropriate), and analyze the relationship of zoning and public facilities and services to these sites.

The following discussion identifies how the City may provide for a sufficient number of sites to facilitate housing production commensurate with 2023-2031 RHNA numbers. In evaluating the adequacy of sites to fulfill the RHNA by income level, HCD assesses a jurisdiction’s development potential by zoning district and corresponding density level. The assumption is that increased density can reduce the per-unit cost of development and therefore the sales price or rent of the housing units developed.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-3
Progress Toward Meeting the RHNA
An important component of the Housing Element is the identification of sites for future housing development and evaluation of the adequacy of these sites in fulfilling Ridgecrest’s share of regional housing needs as determined by Kern COG.

One project, Mojave View Apartments, was built since 2015 with units affordable to those with lower incomes as detailed in Table 4-3. Out of 75 affordable units, 16 units were at 30% AMI, 34 units at 50% AMI, 25 units at 60% AMI and the last unit was allocated to the unit manager. Three projects were built during the previous RHNA cycle - Desert Willow Apartments with 14 units that serve those with mental health disabilities, Larkspur Apartments has 80 units serving extremely low, very low, and low-income families and Ridgecrest Senior Citizen Apartments with 31 units for extremely low, very low, and low-income seniors. The affordability levels units are rented to are maintained at Ridgecrest Senior apartments and Larkspur Apartments. The two projects are under the same management. Households applying to live at the Larkspur Apartments, or the Ridgecrest Senior Apartments are income qualified when they apply and then annually as long as they reside there. Desert Willow Apartments are reserved for those of low incomes with a mental disability. Those applying to live at Desert Willow must be income qualified as lowincome.

Table 4-3 Lower-Income Projects Since 2015
Project Description Year
Completed
Affordable
Units
Income-Category/
Group Served
Mojave View Apartments 2023 75 16 units at 30% AMI, 34 units at 50% AMI, 25 units at 60% AMI and 1 Manager Unit
Total Units 75
Source: City of Ridgecrest, 2023; email from city planner 2023 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-4
Table 4-4 summarizes the status of housing units approved and constructed in the 2013-2023 Cycle.

Table 4-4 Progress in Meeting Regional Housing Need Allocation Extremely
Low
Income
Very Low
Income
Low
Income
Moderate
Income
Above
Moderate
Income
Totals
2013-2023 Constructed and
Approved 0 50 25 44 339 458
2023-2031 RHNA 189 190 241 225 591 1436
Source: City of Ridgecrest, 2023
Land Availability
The City of Ridgecrest follows established standards for the development of housing in the area.

Criteria for assessing the suitability of housing sites are outlined below. The inventory of available land (Table 4-5, Table 4-6, and Figure 4-1) identifies the amount of zoned land available for residential development that may be utilized to meet the projected housing need through 2031. For zones that allow more than 1 unit per site, 80 percent of maximum development capacity was used to estimate the realistic dwelling unit potential. This was done to take into account areas of a parcel that may be needed for infrastructure, access, and areas of a parcel that may be less easy to develop due to slopes or other constraints.

Table 4-5 Inventory of Available Incorporated Land
Zone Dwelling Units
Per Acre Vacant Acres
Realistic
Dwelling Unit
Potential
Approximate
Number of
Vacant Lots
E-1 1 du per site 145.31 134 2
E-2 1 du per site 282 901 44
R-1 1 du per site 292.75 1,684 115
R-2 14.52 171.72 1,785 79
R-3 21.78 55.043 926 38
R-4 43.56 3.346 115 5
RMH 1 du per site 33.718 193 16
Total 984.014 5,738 299
Source: City of Ridgecrest Site Inventory, 2023
In short, the number of vacant parcels zoned for residential development in the city overall is 299.

The number of units that could be developed on these parcels is around 5730. More vacant land is available but not currently zoned for residential uses. There is adequate infrastructure throughout the city with no environmental constraints. There are sufficient vacant parcels to accommodate the City’s share of regional housing needs for lower-income households and special needs groups, throughout the planning period and beyond.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-5
City of Ridgecrest September2023
Housing Element 4-6
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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-7
Table 4-6 Land Inventory
APN Zoning General Plan Land Use Acreage Realistic Units Infrastructure Constraints 455-100-09 E-1 Estate Residential RR Residential Rural Density 112.7 122 Yes Yes 455-100-06 E-1 Estate Residential RR Residential Rural Density 32.61 13 Yes Yes 145.31 134
453-270-01-00-4 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-14-00-2 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.25 1 Yes No 453-270-02-00-7 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.25 1 Yes No 453-270-13-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-03-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-12-00-6 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-04-00-3 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-11-00-3 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-05-00-6 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-10-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-06-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-09-00-8 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-07-00-2 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-270-08-00-5 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 453-231-08-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.23 1 Yes No 453-253-07-00-7 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.43 1 Yes No 453-240-04-00-4 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.26 1 Yes No 510-010-17-00-1 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 20.9 66 Yes No 510-010-24-00-1 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 19.6 62 Yes No 510-010-07-00-2 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 20.32 65 Yes No 510-010-06-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 20.31 65 Yes No 510-010-04-00-3 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 20.25 65 Yes No 510-010-05-00-6 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 20.31 65 Yes No 510-020-02-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 26.92 86 Yes No 510-020-03-00-3 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 9.22 29 Yes No 510-020-07-00-5 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 3.82 12 Yes No 479-041-01-00-2 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.69 2 Yes No 479-041-40-00-5 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 0.23 1 Yes No City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-8
510-020-11-00-6 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 6.62 21 Yes No 509-020-16-00-1 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 5.04 16 Yes No 509-020-14-00-5 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.52 8 Yes No 509-020-15-00-8 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.52 8 Yes No 509-020-19-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 40.37 129 Yes No 509-020-43-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 13.57 43 Yes No 509-010-01-00-4 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 8.56 27 Yes No 509-090-03-00-4 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.76 9 Yes No 509-090-02-00-1 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 3.05 10 Yes No 509-090-01-00-8 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.2 6 Yes No 509-090-10-00-4 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 1.61 5 Yes No 509-090-11-00-7 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.56 8 Yes No 509-090-12-00-0 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.06 6 Yes No 509-090-14-00-6 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 1.83 6 Yes No 509-090-15-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RT Residential Estate 2.05 6 Yes No 455-100-08-00-9 E-2 Estate Residential RR Residential Rural Density 17.7 59 Yes Yes 282 901
080-142-16-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential CD Commercial Downtown 0.17 1 Yes No
080-141-03-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential CD Commercial Downtown 0.189 1 Yes No
080-133-15-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential CD Commercial Downtown 0.189 1 Yes No
067-040-13-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 18.01 209 Yes No
418-064-07-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.189 1 Yes No
418-064-10-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.189 1 Yes No
418-071-05-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.159 1 Yes No
418-072-09-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.189 1 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-9
418-071-04-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
418-071-03-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
418-072-11-00-2
R-1 Single Family Reside
ntial RL Residential Low Density 0.2191 Yes No
418-071-02-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
418-071-01-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
418-074-12-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.21 Yes No
418-073-13-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
418-073-11-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2191 Yes No
419-010-21-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.922 Yes No
419-010-22-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.113 Yes No
419-010-23-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density12 Yes No
419-010-32-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
419-010-31-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
419-010-30-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.21 Yes No
419-010-29-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
419-010-25-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
419-010-26-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
419-010-27-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.431 Yes No
419-010-28-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.241 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-10
420-041-08-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-041-28-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
420-041-27-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
420-041-26-01-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
420-051-23-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1691 Yes No
420-051-36-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-051-35-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-051-55-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1691 Yes No
420-052-05-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
420-052-06-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-052-18-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-052-37-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-052-36-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
420-020-25-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.5491 Yes No
419-020-07-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 2.188 Yes No
067-121-13-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
067-126-07-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
067-121-10-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
067-050-21-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 11.08 64 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-11
456-020-02-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 4.59 26 Yes No
456-020-16-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.211 Yes No
456-031-03-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2891 Yes No
456-331-03-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.21 Yes No
456-040-11-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2191 Yes No
456-051-01-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
456-051-02-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1691 Yes No
456-052-15-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2691 Yes No
456-040-23-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.31 Yes No
456-020-21-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.367 Yes No
456-020-14-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.935 Yes No
456-040-14-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.16 Yes No
456-040-15-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.267 Yes No
456-051-13-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-051-05-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-052-23-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2591 Yes No
456-020-01-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.89 10 Yes No
456-051-12-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-051-06-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-12
456-052-24-00-2
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2591 Yes No
456-031-16-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-051-11-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-051-07-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2091 Yes No
456-052-25-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1961 Yes No
456-051-08-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2791 Yes No
456-040-08-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.42 Yes No
456-040-04-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.734 Yes No
456-040-07-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.251 Yes No
456-052-01-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3591 Yes No
456-052-10-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
456-052-02-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2291 Yes No
456-052-03-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2291 Yes No
479-020-12-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.915 Yes No
080-132-18-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
456-052-12-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2291 Yes No
456-052-30-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
456-020-03-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 2.53 14 Yes No
477-020-05-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2191 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-13
477-020-08-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.251 Yes No
479-020-11-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2291 Yes No
479-020-12-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.921 Yes No
080-132-18-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
080-132-17-00-6
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1895 Yes No
080-132-09-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
080-152-12-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
479-020-13-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.935 Yes No
080-162-18-00-8
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
080-162-08-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
479-020-10-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 6.96 38 Yes No
479-020-09-00-3
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 5.69 31 Yes No
080-073-07-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
080-091-11-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
080-093-03-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1691 Yes No
080-093-10-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.161 Yes No
080-152-12-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
080-152-10-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
080-162-08-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1791 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-14
080-133-02-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
080-132-06-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1891 Yes No
080-010-18-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 22.5 116 Yes No
343-070-24-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 13.04 58 Yes No
343-070-34-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 17.22 86 Yes No
343-052-04-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
343-051-10-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
343-061-42-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1391 Yes No
080-020-03-00-9
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 69.26 386 Yes No 080-020-24-00-0
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 34.04 194 Yes No 480-010-13-00-1
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 1.529 Yes No
480-010-15-00-7
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density9 50 Yes No
480-030-05-00-4
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 2.78 15 Yes No
343-351-40-00-5
R-1 Single Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 41.45 232 Yes No 292.755 1684
419-042-10-00-7
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.161 Yes No
419-041-11-00-3
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.151 Yes No
419-041-16-00-8
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
419-041-38-00-2
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1591 Yes No
456-082-03-00-0
RMH Mobile Home
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.824 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-15
456-070-16-00-1
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3092 Yes No
456-070-12-00-9
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3192 Yes No
456-070-03-00-3
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3292 Yes No
456-060-05-00-6
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3492 Yes No
456-060-03-00-0
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.4092 Yes No
456-060-06-00-9
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2391 Yes No
456-060-07-00-2
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2391 Yes No
456-060-08-00-5
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2391 Yes No
456-060-10-00-0
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.3192 Yes No
456-060-09-00-8
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.2291 Yes No
508-020-11-00-9
RMH Mobile Home
Residential RL Residential Low Density 29.29 173 Yes No

33.718 193
067-010-15-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential IS Institutional 1.72 19 Yes No
080-141-03-00-1R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1892 Yes No
343-351-39-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 7.46 83 Yes No
343-351-38-00-0
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 8.07 90 Yes No
067-150-22-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1392 Yes No
067-140-18-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.1392 Yes No
067-050-02-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 38.87 348 Yes
No
508-020-10-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 25.51 290 Yes
No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-16
418-041-18-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.150 Yes No
418-041-15-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
418-041-14-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
419-020-30-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.42 Yes No
419-020-32-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.496 Yes No
067-210-25-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.44 Yes No
067-022-10-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.466 Yes No
067-210-27-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.3894 Yes No
067-023-18-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 1.87 22 Yes No
067-035-12-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
067-034-12-00-9
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1592 Yes No
067-040-30-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 26.72 263 Yes No
456-081-02-00-0
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.546 Yes No
456-081-01-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4395 Yes No
456-081-03-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.647 Yes No
456-081-04-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.526 Yes No
456-082-01-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.566 Yes No
456-082-05-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 1.38 16 Yes No
456-090-13-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4195 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-17
456-090-08-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4195 Yes No
456-082-08-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.3093 Yes No
456-090-11-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4094 Yes No
456-081-11-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4195 Yes No
456-081-10-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4094 Yes No
456-090-10-00-9
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 2.29 26 Yes No
477-090-12-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.86 10 Yes No
477-100-04-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.687 Yes No
477-100-22-00-9
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.455 Yes No
477-100-21-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.455 Yes No
477-100-06-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.475 Yes No
477-100-20-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.283 Yes No
477-100-19-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.829 Yes No
477-100-09-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.354 Yes No
477-100-08-00-9
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.262 Yes No
477-100-10-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.266 Yes No
477-100-26-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.532 Yes No
477-070-20-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.3126 Yes No
477-070-09-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.683 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-18
477-110-08-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.187 Yes No
477-080-02-00-6
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.362 Yes No
477-110-10-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.574 Yes No
477-080-22-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.316 Yes No
477-080-13-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.153 Yes No
477-080-09-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.22 Yes No
080-061-38-00-0
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-061-37-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-062-07-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-062-11-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
479-010-15-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 20.132 Yes No
479-010-14-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 7.49 225 Yes No
479-010-12-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 5.83 83 Yes No
080-041-38-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.15 65 Yes No
080-041-34-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
080-051-35-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-051-34-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-052-06-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-052-12-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-19
080-042-08-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1592 Yes No
080-042-09-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
080-061-38-00-0
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.152 Yes No
343-230-43-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2392 Yes No
343-230-44-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2692 Yes No
343-230-45-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2592 Yes No
343-230-46-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2792 Yes No
343-230-50-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2692 Yes No
343-230-51-00-5
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2792 Yes No
343-230-52-00-8
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2392 Yes No
343-230-53-00-1
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2692 Yes No
343-230-33-00-3
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2692 Yes No
343-230-32-00-0
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.2793 Yes No
343-032-52-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 1.05 11 Yes No
343-042-57-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 1.33 14 Yes No
343-061-09-00-2
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
343-061-10-00-4
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
343-061-11-00-7
R-2 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1392 Yes No
171.72 1785
Moderate Income Site Totals
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-20
453-071-07-00-1
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.3696 Yes No
453-061-24-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1692 Yes No
453-061-23-00-4
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1692 Yes No
453-072-03-00-6
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1692 Yes No
453-072-05-00-2
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1692 Yes No
453-062-22-00-8
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-062-20-00-2
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-061-41-00-6
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-072-02-00-3
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-071-10-00-9
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-071-12-00-5
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-071-20-00-8
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-072-06-00-5
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
453-062-28-00-6
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-062-27-00-3
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-062-24-00-4
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-062-23-00-1
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-071-08-00-4
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-071-09-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-21
453-071-23-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-071-08-00-4
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-071-09-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
453-071-23-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1893 Yes No
418-062-17-00-7
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1592 Yes No
418-062-23-00-4
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1592 Yes No
453-013-02-00-2
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 4.02 70 Yes No
453-013-28-00-8
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 1.18 20 Yes No
453-142-02-00-3
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.1792 Yes No
396-060-08-00-8
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 4.75 82 Yes No
080-122-11-00-5
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.4297 Yes No
480-010-17-00-3
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 12.81 215 Yes No
343-351-27-00-8
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 2.43 41 Yes No
343-351-26-00-5
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 2.07 34 Yes No
343-081-15-00-5
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 14.59 245 Yes No
396-400-07-00-3
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 3.74 65 Yes No
396-400-06-00-0
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 3.86 67 Yes No
080-122-09-00-0
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.152 Yes No
080-122-10-00-2
R-3 Multi-Family
Residential RL Residential Low Density 0.152 Yes No

55.043 926
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-22
508-020-12-00-2
R-4 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 2.5 86 Yes No
478-103-01-00-6
R-4 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.219 7 Yes No
478-104-07-00-1
R-4 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.209 7 Yes No
478-104-06-00-8
R-4 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.209 7 Yes No
478-104-05-00-5
R-4 Multi-Family
Residential
RM Residential Medium
Density 0.209 7 Yes No

3.346 115
TOTAL LAND INVENTORY 984 5,738

CAPACITY BY INCOME CATEGORY
Lower Income Capacity 79.297 1018
Moderate Income Capacity 746.45 4469
Above Moderate Income Capacity 158.27 250
Grand Total 984 5738
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-23
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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-24
Figure 4-1: Vacant Land Inventory
Source: City of Ridgecrest Planning Department
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-25
City Infrastructure
The ability of a city to provide an adequate housing supply is also closely linked to the capacity of the city's infrastructure. Decreases in public funds available for such improvements, and the corresponding need for providing services to developing areas, are likely to create some of the most significant problems of the current decade.

Sanitary sewer and water lines are in place to the edge of the city limits along all arterial roads to the west, south, and east. NAWS is in the northeast section of the city, and no residential development is generally planned on the base by the City of Ridgecrest. Therefore, infrastructure is available to the majority of residential parcels, and can easily be extended to accommodate new land divisions. Infrastructure availability to residential parcels is not a constraint to meeting the anticipated fair share allocation of 1,436 dwelling units for the period 2023-2031.

Effective January 2006, SB 1087 requires water and sewer providers to grant priority for service allocations to proposed developments that include units affordable to lower-income households.

Pursuant to these statutes, upon adoption of its Housing Element, the City of Ridgecrest will immediately deliver the Housing Element to local water and sewer providers, along with a summary of its regional housing needs allocation.

Wastewater
The City of Ridgecrest operates a wastewater treatment facility with a rated capacity of 3.6 million gallons per day. The facility serves the entire city with a tributary area of over 13,000 acres, and consists of four components; influent and effluent flow measurement, preliminary treatment, primary treatment (including sludge-handling facilities) and a series of oxidation ponds. Based on 2010 estimates the facility was operating at 75 percent or less of capacity. Population increase since 2010 has been less than 10% leaving enough capacity for growth. The City is currently in the early planning stages for construction of an additional wastewater treatment plant. More than one-third of the wastewater treated at the plant is generated by the Navy, with the remainder generated within the City of Ridgecrest. Therefore, current capacity is adequate to provide the necessary infrastructure to serve the projected 1,436 dwelling units during the planning period.

Sanitary Sewer Collection
All wastewater collected is conveyed through regional wastewater conveyance facilities (trunk sewer, lift station, and force main) to the City of Ridgecrest's Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant. The City's sanitary sewer collection system comprises more than 150 miles of collection lines constructed mostly of vitreous clay pipe and polyvinyl chloride pipe. The sewer system lines range in diameter from 6 to 27 inches. The entire system is gravity-conveyed to the treatment plant located north of the city on NAWS by two separate trunk line systems with a common junction at the plant site. The sanitary sewer collection system is adequate to provide the necessary infrastructure to serve the required 1,436 dwelling units during the planning period.

Water
Ridgecrest's water supply relies on groundwater pumped from 18 wells and extracted from 11 reservoirs. Groundwater in the valley is usually identified as belonging to either the shallow or City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-26
deep aquifer, and potable water comes from both. The Indian Wells Valley Water District 2020 Urban Water Management Plan provides planning and management tools to accommodate current water demand and proposed growth over the next 25 years.

The 2020 Urban Water Master Plan (UWMP) service area consists of an estimated population of 35,800, and 5,430 acre feet per year (AFY) of water was delivered to 12,489 metered connections.

The UWMP estimates the population in the service area will grow to 37,906 people by 2030 and to 42,826 people by 2045. Water delivery was expected to grow to 7,203 AFY by 2045. Water conservation measures are in place and required; however, the water district is currently in an overdraft groundwater basin and other sources of water will need to be identified in the next 10 to 20 years. In 2020, the City of Ridgecrest used 1,159 AFY of recycled water. Conducting a water study is beyond the scope of the Housing Element Update. The City will rely on the data available from the Water District to support its housing unit projections.

Storm Drain Collection
The City has adopted a Final Master Drainage Plan which identifies existing natural and improved watercourses and drainage basins. Water courses in Ridgecrest are primarily composed of flood control channels, retention basins, underground conduit, culverts, and the City street system.

Funding to implement the plan is not available.

The City requires new residential construction to have its lowest habitable floor elevated above the base flood level elevation, determined by Federal Emergency Management Agency standards, and no development is allowed that would create a flood hazard. Development within the 100‐year floodplain must comply with standards established within City ordinances and the National Flood Insurance Program standards. Large developments are required to develop a master drainage plan as a condition of approval.

Streets and Roads
The General Plan's Circulation Element contains the City’s goals, policies, and implementation measures to ensure an adequate and functional transportation and circulation system. It identifies major roadways (i.e., freeways, highways, and collectors) to accommodate circulation needs beyond the year 2030. In the city, there is a network of roadways including state highways, arterials, scenic corridors, secondary, collector, and local streets. The Indian Wells Valley and City of Ridgecrest are served by three state highway facilities: Highway 14, Highway 395, and Highway 178. Highway 14 and Highway 395 to the west are linked to Ridgecrest by Highway 178 at the northern city limits.

The term "level of service" (LOS) is used to describe the quality or ease of traffic movement for operating conditions that may occur on a roadway segment as it accommodates various traffic volumes. There are six levels of service, A through F, that relate to driving conditions. LOS A indicates free-flow conditions with little or no delays, and LOS F indicates that traffic volume exceeds capacity. The capacities of existing roadways to accommodate traffic is considered good, with the exception of a.m. and p.m. peak demand periods when employment-related commuter traffic is at its highest, the majority of the city's roadways are levels of service A or B. Traffic volumes do not pose a significant constraint on the provision of 1,346 additional housing units during the planning period.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element4-27
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 4-28
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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-1

5. CHAPTER FIVE – CONSTRAINTS TO HOUSING PRODUCTION
The development industry is faced with a variety of constraints in the construction of new housing.

These constraints, which limit the number and increase the cost of housing units which are constructed, may be loosely classified as governmental and non-governmental, although there is a strong interrelationship between these factors.

Pursuant to state law, each jurisdiction is responsible for a share of the region’s projected housing needs. To meet these needs, real and perceived constraints to the provision of adequate housing facilities have been identified in the City of Ridgecrest. This chapter identifies those constraints and recommends provisions to eliminate or reduce them to acceptable levels.

Chapter four discussed infrastructure availability and, as discussed previously, the projected growth will not have a significant impact on sewer, water, or storm drain systems in the community. Specific constraints are discussed in more detail in the following paragraphs.

Governmental Constraints
Governmental constraints are potential and actual policies, standards, government codes/requirements, fees, or actions imposed by the various levels of government on development, which serve to ensure public safety and welfare with respect to housing construction and land use issues. Federal and state programs and agencies play a role in the imposition of non-local governmental constraints and are beyond the influence of local government, and therefore cannot be effectively addressed in this document. Analysis of potential local governmental constraints is as follows:

Land Use Controls
Land use controls are minimum standards included within City Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances. Zoning is a means of ensuring that the land uses in the community are properly situated in relation to one another and providing adequate space for each type of development.

Zoning regulations also control such features as height and bulk of buildings, lot area, yard setbacks, population density, the building use, etc. If zoning standards are significantly more rigid than private sector design standards and do not allow sufficient land use flexibility, then development costs could increase, and housing production may decrease.

The City of Ridgecrest General Plan Land Use Element provides a range of residential building types and densities in various areas of Ridgecrest. Table 5-1 identifies the residential land use designations established by the Ridgecrest General Plan 2030. Table 5-2 provides a summary of less than 0.4 units per acre in the Residential Large Lot designation to up to 29 units per acre in the Residential High-Density Designation. Table 5-3 identifies zones in the City of Ridgecrest’s Zoning Ordinance that allow residential uses. Development standards by Zoning District are shown in Table 5-4. Ridgecrest's development standards are similar to those found in other communities in Kern County and are not seen as a constraint to housing.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-2
Table 5-1: Ridgecrest General Plan Land Use Designations Land Use Designation Description
Residential Large Lot (RX)
This designation establishes areas for single‐family residential development on large lots that involve the ownership of acreage. Uses typically include single-family dwellings and mini‐farms or ranchettes that may include agricultural activity.

Residential Rural Density (RR)
This designation establishes areas for single‐family residential development on large lots. Uses typically include single-family dwellings and mini‐farms or ranchettes where agricultural activity is secondary to the residential land use.

Residential Estate Density (RE)
This designation establishes areas for large lot single-family estate dwellings. Uses typically allowed include detached single-family homes, secondary dwellings, and support uses (i.e., workshop, pool house).

Residential Low Density (RL)
This designation establishes areas for single-family residences in a suburban configuration. Uses typically allowed include detached singlefamily homes, secondary dwellings, and residential support uses such as churches, schools, and other necessary public utilities and safety facilities.

Residential Medium Density (RM)
This land designation establishes areas for single-family and low-density multi-family dwellings located near neighborhood serving uses such as grocery stores, schools, parks and other public services. Uses typically allowed include single family dwellings, second units, town homes, duplexes, triplexes and mobile home parks.

Residential High Density (RH)
This designation established areas for multi‐family dwellings in urbanized areas with access to public transportation and residential serving uses (i.e., coffee shops and drug stores). Uses typically allowed include duplexes, tri‐ plexes, townhomes and apartments near schools, parks and other public services.

Commercial (C)
This designation establishes the more intensive commercial retail and shopping service uses adjacent to residential neighborhoods. A broad mix of uses, including offices and high density residential are also encouraged within or adjacent to these areas in order to provide “active” centers in which many uses may be accessed on foot from residential areas or lodging areas. Uses typically allowed include regional malls and outlet centers, supermarkets, drug stores, other residential serving uses as well as office uses.

High density residential uses are permitted within the Commercial designation provided these residential activities are located on the second floor or above along building frontages. Residential may be included on the first floor if the total residential square footage does not exceed 50% of the total square footage. Therefore, all Commercial designations provide for a vibrant mixed use of compatible land uses further regulated by the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance. Larger centers may include community commercial centers, shopping centers, shopping plazas, and shopping centers that include a junior department store, or a large variety, discount or department store with direct and convenient arterial access and access for pedestrians, bicyclists, and public transit.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-3
Land Use Designation Description
Commercial Downtown (CD)
This designation provides for a vibrant mix of compatible land uses in the Olde Towne area that can include residential, administrative and professional offices, retail and commercial service uses, and public and quasi‐public facilities. Development standards would be determined through a Design Review.

Commercial Village (CV)
This designation establishes the small areas where residents can shop, socialize or recreate. Allowed land uses would include commercial uses that would be appropriate along major thoroughfares and adjacent to medium and high-density residential areas. Different Commercial Village land uses can be located in the same building, (including residential or office uses located above a commercial use) or on the same site, and include retail, child care, convenience markets, office and personal services. All Commercial Village uses shall be subject to the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance which shall ensure compatibility with the activities proposed and surrounding neighborhood.

Open Space (OS)
The purpose of this designation is to conserve lands that should remain as open space for passive and active recreation uses, resource management, flood control management and public safety. Uses that would typically be appropriate in this land use designation include but are not limited to public parks, playgrounds, and parkways; vista areas, wetlands, wildlife habitats and outdoor nature laboratories; stormwater management facilities; and buffer zones separating urban development and ecologically‐sensitive resources. Such land areas are primarily publicly owned, but may include private property. The FAR for non‐residential uses shall not exceed 0.10.

Industrial (I)
This designation establishes areas for a range of non‐intensive business park, industrial park, and warehouse uses that do not have detrimental noise or odor impacts on surrounding uses. Uses typically allowed include warehousing, welding and fabrication shops, manufacturing, processing, fabrication, trucking terminals, and business support uses such as retail or eating establishments that serve adjacent light industrial uses and employees.

Specific Plan (SP)
The SP overlay designation is established where infrastructure needs, land use patterns, or other substantial land use related issues indicate a need to require the preparation and adoption of a Specific Plan, as defined by California Government Code sections 65450 et seq. Although the SP overlay does not itself modify the General Plan land use designation on a property within the overlay area, the adoption of a specific plan can modify the underlying zoning district(s) and their requirements.

Military Influence Area (MIA)
Overlay
The MIA overlay defines specific areas requiring additional controls on the types of land use designations and densities / intensities appropriate in areas near NAWS China Lake and its approach and departure zones. These additional considerations are necessary to protect public safety and maintain the operational capabilities of NAWS China Lake. Refer to Policy LU‐7.1 and the goals, policies, and implementation measures in Section 4, Military Sustainability Element.

Source: Ridgecrest General Plan 2030
City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-4
Table 5-2: Ridgecrest General Plan Residential Land Use Designations Land Use Designation Dwelling Units per acre
Residential Large Lot 0.0-0.4
Residential Rural Density 0.0-1.0
Residential Estate Density 1.1-2.0
Residential Low Density 2.1-5.0
Residential Medium Density 5.1-14.0
Residential High Density 14.1-29.0
Commercial 14.1-29.0
Commercial Downtown 14.1-29.0
Commercial Village 14.1-29.0
Open Space -
Industrial -
Specific Plan Based on underlying designation
Military Influence Area Overlay -
Source: Ridgecrest General Plan 2030
Table 5-3: City of Ridgecrest Zones where Residential Uses are Allowed District
RA Residential Agriculture District
E-1 Estate Density
E-2 E-2 Estate Single Family Residential
E-3 E-3 Estate Single Family Residential
PUD Planned Unit Development
R-1 Single-Family Residential
R-2 Multi-Family Residential
R-3 Multi-Family Residential
R-4 Multi-Family Residential
MH Mobile Home Parks
RMH Residential Mobile Home District
CG General Commercial
CS Service Commercial
M-1 Light Industrial
M-2 Heavy Industrial Zone
UR Urban Reserve Zone
City of Ridgecrest Zoning Ordinance, Version November 29, 2022 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-5
Table 5-4: City of Ridgecrest
Development Standards by Zoning District
Zoning
District
Minimum
Site Area
Maximum
Density
Lot
Coverage
Minimum
Lot Size
Height
Restriction
Parking
Requirement
Front
Setback
Side
Setback
Rear
Setback
Design
Restrictions
Permitted
Uses
A 5 ac. 1 dwelling per site 60% 5 ac. 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF E-1 40,000 sf 1 dwelling per site 60% 40,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF E-2 10,000 sf 1 dwelling per site 60% 10,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF E-3 7,500 sf 1 dwelling per site 60% 7,500 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF PUD *Underlying Zone Dictates Requirements
R-1 6,000 sf 1 dwelling per site 60% 6,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF R-2
6,000 sf 14.52 60% 6,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit SF
1-2 1/2/unit MF 20 5 10 None SF/MF
R-3
6,000 sf 21.78 65% 6,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit SF
1-2 1/2/unit MF 10 5 10 None SF/MF
R-4
6,000 sf 43.56 70% 6,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit SF
1-2 1/2/unit MF 10 5 10 None SF/MF
RMH
6,000 sf 1 dwelling per site 60% 6,000 sf 35 Ft. 2/unit SF 1-2 1/2/unit MF 20 5 10 None SF/MF
CG 10,000 sf 1
1 2 10,000 sf 60 ft. 2/unit 5 03 0 None Live-work
CS 20,000 sf 1
1 2 20,000 sf 60 ft. 2/unit 5 04 0 None Live-work
M-1 10,000 sf 1
1 75%2 10,000 sf 60 ft. 2/unit 5 05 0 None Live-work
M-2 1 acre 1
1 75%2 1 acre 60 ft. 2/unit 5 05 0 None Live-work
UR 2.5 acres 1 dwelling per site 60% 2.5 acres 35 Ft. 2/unit 20 5 10 None SF Source: City of Ridgecrest Zoning Ordinance
1 A maximum of one manager/caretaker dwelling unit shall be located per legal parcel. 2 A maximum of 50 percent of the gross floor area with a maximum of 1,250 square feet of all commercial development on the parcel shall be devoted to a residential dwelling unit.
3 Rear and side yard of 10 feet required when adjacent to any R district and street side of a corner lot shall be 5 feet except that where a reverse corner lot rears upon a lot in any R District, the side yard on the street side shall not be less than 50 percent of the front yard required on the key lot. 4 The street side of a corner lot shall be 5 feet except that where a Service Commercial lot abuts a side or rear yard of any R District, the side or rear yard shall be no less than 10 feet. Where a reverse corner lot rears upon a lot in any R District, the side yard on the street shall be no less than 50 percent of the front yard required on the key lot.
5 The minimum side and rear yard abutting any residential or Professional Office district shall be 10 feet. The street side of a corner lot shall be 5 feet.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-6
The Housing Element must identify adequate sites that are available to encourage the development of various housing types for all economic segments of the population through appropriate zoning and development standards. Some of the housing types include single-family residential housing, multiple-family residential housing, residential accessory dwelling units, mobile homes, duplexes, transitional housing, supportive housing, second units, single-room occupancy units, and emergency shelters. Table 5-5 shows the housing types that will be permitted by Zoning District.

City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-7
Table 5-5: City of Ridgecrest Housing Types Permitted by Zoning District Land Use/Zoning District A E-1 E-2 E-3 R-1 R-2 R-3 R-4 MH CG CS M-1 M-2 Adult Day Care Home P P P P P P P P - - - - -
Caretaker Housing - - - - - - - - - P P P P
Dwelling, Multi-family - P- P P P P P P - - - - -
Accessory Dwelling Unit P P P P P P P P - - - - -
Dwelling, Single-Family P P P P P P P P P - - - -
Dwelling, Two-Family - P P P P P P P - - - - -
Dwelling, Three- and Four-Family - P P P P P P P - - - - - Emergency Shelter - - - - - - P P - - - - -
Employee Housing C C C C C C C C C C C C C
Family Day Care Home, Large P P P P P P P P P - - - -
Family Day Care Home, Small P P P P P P P P P - - - -
Home Occupations - P P P P P P P P - - - -
Live-Work Facility - - - - - - - - - P P P P
Mobile Home/ Manufactured
Home - - - - C C C C P - - - -
Mobile Home Park - - - - - - - - P - - - -
Residential Care Facility/ Group
Home P P P P P P P P P P P - -
Single Room Occupancy (SRO)
Facilities - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Supportive Housing P P P P P P P P P C C - -
Transitional Housing P P P P P P P P P C C - -
Source: City of Ridgecrest Zoning Ordinance (P- Permitted, C- Conditional) City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 5-8
Planning Unit Development (PUD) Overlay
The current zoning ordinance for the City of Ridgecrest contains a planned unit development (PUD) overlay zone that allows greater design flexibility and planning than the strict application of conventional single-family land use and development criteria. The PUD application enables clustering of units, mixing of uses and building types, and establishment of special development standards and criteria, which respond to the particular features of a site. This flexibility allows for more efficient infrastructure designed through clustered development, decreasing the cost per unit for development projects. The amount of cost reduction to be realized varies with the site.

However, experience in other communities suggests that savings of approximately 25 percent per unit can be achieved. The clustering approach, coupled with density bonuses, can enhance Ridgecrest's role as an affordable housing resource, and can be beneficial in meeting the housing needs of special groups (seniors, disabled, etc.). The number of vacant parcels greater than 6000 square feet in the city zoned for residential development is 299.

Parking Standards
The City requires off-street parking for all new housing projects as shown in Table 5-6. These parking regulations do not impact the ability to construct housing. In order to reduce development costs for low-income projects, reductions in parking standards are allowed including tandem parking for residents, and a reduction in parking standards for inclusionary or senior housing is allowed.

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Table 5-6: Residential Parking Standards
Requirement
Single-family detached
dwellings Two open or enclosed spaces.

Accessory dwelling units One parking space per unit.

Multi-family dwelling
units:

NOTE: In addition, one guest parking space shall be provided on-site in a convenient and accessible location for each five residential units. Projects on sites with four or fewer units are exempt from this requirement.

One bedroom One and one-half parking spaces per unit.

Two bedrooms Two parking spaces per unit.

Three bedrooms or more Two and one-half parking spaces per unit.

Condominiums or
townhouses:

NOTE: In addition, one-third parking space shall be provided for each dwelling unit for guest parking and one space for each five units shall be provided for recreational vehicles.

One bedroom One and one-half parking spaces/dwelling unit.

Two bedrooms Two parking spaces/dwelling unit.

Three bedrooms or more Two and one-half spaces/dwelling unit.

Mobile home park Two parking spaces/dwelling unit plus one space for each five units for guests.

Housing for elderly (public
or federally assisted)
One parking space/dwelling unit plus one parking space for each five units for guests.

Inclusionary housing for
elderly
Residential parking requirements for developments providing at least 50% of the units exclusively for elderly persons may be reduced up to 50% upon site plan review and approval by the City.

Source: City of Ridgecrest Zoning Ordinance
Density Bonuses
Developers of affordable housing are entitled to a density bonus and/or equivalent concessions or incentives under certain conditions per state law. Although the City has processed an update to the Density Bonus Ordinance in May 2015 (Ordinance No. 15-03) to comply with updates to state density bonus law since adoption of the previous Housing Element, a new program has been added to prepare a comprehensive zoning and subdivision code amendment to update all housing laws that takes effect in 2023, including an update of the bonus density laws.

Provisions for a Variety of Housing Types
Single-Family Dwellings
Single-family homes are permitted by right in all residential districts.

Apartments, Condominiums, and Townhomes
The R-2, R-3, and R-4 districts allow for the development of all multiple family dwellings by right.

None of the other districts allow these as conditional uses.

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Secondary Living Units
A second unit is considered an attached or detached dwelling unit which provides complete independent living facilities for one or more persons, with permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation sited on the same parcel as the primary dwelling unit.

This definition includes granny flats. Secondary living units are permitted in all residential districts with the exception of Mobile Home Park.

Mobile Homes with Permanent Foundations
Mobile homes offer an affordable housing option to many low- and moderate-income households.

The City permits mobile homes only in the Mobile Home Park (MH) district.

The City amended its code to allow mobile homes on permanent foundation of 10 years of age or less in all single-family zones.

Farm Worker Housing
Farm worker or employee housing is property used temporarily or seasonally for the residential use of five or more unrelated persons or families employed to perform agricultural or industrial labor. The accommodations may consist of any living quarters, dwelling, boardinghouse, tent, bunkhouse, mobile home, manufactured home, recreational vehicle, travel trailer, or other housing accommodations maintained in one or more buildings, or one or more sites, and the premises upon which they are situated, including area set aside for parking of mobile homes or camping of five or more employees by the employer. State law (Sections 17021.5 and 17021.6 of the Health and Safety Code) requires the City to treat employee housing that serves six or fewer persons as a single-family structure and permitted in the same manner as other single-family structures of the same type in the same zone and also to treat employee housing consisting of no more than 12 units or 36 beds as an agricultural use and permitted in the same manner as other agricultural uses in the same zone (Section 17021.6) in zones where agricultural uses are permitted.

The city complies with these requirements.

Residential Care Facility/Group Home
A residential care facility or group home is a facility that provides 24-hour non-medical care for more than six persons 18 years of age or older, or emancipated minors, with chronic, lifethreatening illness in need of personal services, protection, supervision, assistance, guidance, or training essential for sustaining the activities of daily living, or for the protection of the individual.

This classification includes group homes, residential care facilities for the elderly, adult residential facilities, wards of the juvenile court, and other facilities licensed by the state of California. Clearly stated requirements for approval of group homes will give greater certainty to an applicant and remove an impediment to fair housing choice for elderly, disabled, or persons with special needs (Kern County Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice, July 1996).

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The City amended the Zoning Ordinance to specify that group homes/residential care facilities are allowed by right in residential zones consistent with state law for small group homes and with a conditional use permit for large facilities.

Emergency Shelters
California Health and Safety Code (Section 50801) defines an emergency shelter as “housing with minimal supportive services for homeless persons that is limited to occupancy of six months or less by a homeless person.”
In effect since January 1, 2008, Senate Bill (SB) 2 (Cedillo, 2007) requires the City to allow emergency shelters without any discretionary action in at least one zone that is appropriate for permanent emergency shelters (i.e., with commercial uses compatible with residential or light industrial zones in transition), regardless of its demonstrated need. The goal of SB 2 was to ensure that local governments are sharing the responsibility of providing opportunities for the development of emergency shelters. To that end, the legislation also requires that the City demonstrate site capacity in the zone identified to be appropriate for the development of emergency shelters. Within the identified zone, only objective development and management standards may be applied, given they are designed to encourage and facilitate the development of or conversion to an emergency shelter.

The City processed a Zoning Ordinance amendment to allow emergency shelters without discretionary review in the R-3 and R-4 zones in May 2015 (Ordinance No. 15-03). There are 74 acres on 134 vacant parcels available in the R-3 zone and 4.76 acres on two vacant parcels in the R-4 zone, sufficient capacity to accommodate an emergency shelter.

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Transitional and Supportive Housing
Transitional housing is defined in Section 65582(h) of the Health and Safety Code as buildings configured as rental housing developments, but operated under program requirements that require the termination of assistance and recirculating of the assisted unit to another eligible program recipient at a predetermined future point in time that shall be no less than six months from the beginning of the assistance.

Supportive housing is defined by Section 56682(f) of the Health and Safety Code as housing with no limit on length of stay, that is occupied by the target population, and that is linked to an on-site or off-site service that assists the supportive housing resident in retaining the housing, improving his or her health status, and maximizing his or her ability to live and, when possible, work in the community. Target population is defined in Health and Safety Code Section 56682(g) as persons with low incomes who have one or more disabilities, including mental illness, HIV or AIDS, substance abuse, or other chronic health condition, or individuals eligible for services provided pursuant to the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act (Division 4.5 (commencing with Section 4500) of the Welfare and Institutions Code) and may include, among other populations, adults, emancipated minors, families with children, elderly persons, young adults aging out of the foster care system, individuals exiting from institutional settings, veterans, and homeless people.

Senate Bill 2 requires that transitional and supportive housing types be treated as residential uses and subject only to those restrictions that apply to other residential uses of the same type in the same zone. Both transitional and supportive housing types must be explicitly permitted in the municipal code.

The City amended the Zoning Ordinance to allow transitional and supportive housing per Senate Bill 2 in all zones that allow residential uses in the same way other residential uses are allowed. A new program has been included to amend the code to allow Low Barrier Navigation facilities.

Extremely Low-Income Households
Assembly Bill 2634 (Lieber, 2006) requires the quantification and analysis of existing and projected housing needs of extremely low-income households. Elements must also identify zoning to encourage and facilitate supportive housing and single-room occupancy (SRO) units.

Extremely low-income households typically comprise persons with special housing needs including but not limited to persons experiencing homelessness or near-homelessness, persons with substance abuse problems, and farm workers.

To address the needs of extremely low-income households, the City will amend the Zoning Ordinance to permit SROs subject to site plan review and without a conditional use permit in the R-2, R-3 and R-4 zones.

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Ridgecrest Housing for Persons with Disabilities
Compliance with provisions of the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is assessed and enforced by the Building Official in Ridgecrest. ADA access is enforced through building permit entitlement and is required for all commercial development, new construction of multi-family apartments with three or more units in any one building, and new construction of congregate housing or shelters. Special ADA access retrofitting is not required for remodeling or renovation of buildings, but only for new construction.

In response to SB 520 and to ensure fair and efficient process for persons with disabilities to make necessary accessibility adjustments to their homes, the City has processed an ordinance (Ordinance No. 15-03) to create a reasonable accommodation procedure that was adopted in May 2015. The definition of family in the Zoning Ordinance to remove the limit on number of persons was also adopted.

Subdivision Ordinance
The Subdivision Ordinance governs the process of converting raw land into building sites. It allows the City to control the internal design of each new subdivision so that its pattern of streets, lots, public utilities, etc. will be safe, pleasant, and economical to maintain. Overly restrictive standards will result in greater land development costs and/or lack of development interest.

The Subdivision Ordinance requires on- and off-site improvements that are similar to the requirements of other cities in Kern County. Fees in lieu of improvements for curb and gutter are often collected in fringe areas within the community until at least 50 percent of the lots develop.

The City will then install the improvements.

The Subdivision Ordinance does not create any undue obstacles or constraints in the provision of any housing type.

At-Risk Housing Units
Section 65583(a) of the Housing Element law requires that there be an analysis of existing or potential "at-risk" assisted housing developments, which are eligible to convert to market-rate housing. The conversion may be due to termination of subsidy contracts, mortgage prepayment, or expiration of use restrictions. "Assisted housing developments" are multi-family rental housing projects that receive or have received government assistance under federal programs listed in subdivision (a) of Section 65835.10, state and local multi-family revenue bond programs, the federal Community Development Block Grant Program, or local in-lieu fees.

Table 5-7 lists assisted housing projects in the City of Ridgecrest and identifies their current contract expiration dates after which conversion to market rate housing is possible. The Larkspur Village property is owned by private developers and is currently under a Low-Income Housing Tax Credits deed restriction through 2023. Desert Willow is owned by a nonprofit organization and funded through the HUD Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities program through 2014. According to the management company, they plan to maintain affordability restrictions for Desert Willow indefinitely. According to the CHPC, the Ridge Apartments have tax credit restrictions that make it extremely unlikely that the property could convert to market rate City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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before 2029. No assisted units are at risk of conversion to market-rate housing. Program commits the City to monitoring at-risk units and taking steps to prevent them from converting to market rate if needed.

Table 5-7: Inventory of Assisted Units
Projects Total
Units
Assisted
Units Type FundingSource
Assistance
Expiration
Date
Desert Willow 15 14 Disabilities PRAC/811 10/31/2014*
The Ridge Apartments 80 79 Large Family Section 8/ Tax credits 2029 Larkspur Village 81 80 Large Family Tax credits 12/19/2023 Ridgecrest Senior
Apartments 32 31 Senior Tax credits 2066
Totals 254 250
Source: California Housing Partnership Corporation (CHPC), June 2014 and Ridgecrest Senior Apartments developer, November 2014.
*According to the management company, they plan to maintain affordability restrictions for Desert Willow indefinitely.

Reviewed in 2023 and all units maintain the affordability restriction.

To maintain the existing affordable housing stock, the City can either preserve the existing assisted units or facilitate the development of new units. Depending on the circumstances of at-risk projects, different options may be used to preserve or replace the units. Preservation options typically include: (1) transfer of project to nonprofit ownership; (2) provision of rental assistance to tenants using non-federal funding sources; and (3) purchase of affordability covenants. In terms of replacement, the most direct option is the development of new assisted multi-family housing units. These options are described below.

Transfer of Ownership
Transferring ownership of an at-risk project to a nonprofit housing provider is generally one of the least costly ways to ensure that at-risk units remain affordable for the long term. By transferring property ownership to a nonprofit organization, low-income restrictions can be secured indefinitely and the project would become potentially eligible for a greater range of governmental assistance.

The current market value of the projects was estimated using information from multi-family sales listings in Ridgecrest. The average cost to purchase a multi-family development was $141,883 per unit. There are no units at risk of converting to market rate within the current planning cycle.

Rental Assistance
Rental subsidies using non-federal (state, local, or other) funding sources can be used to maintain affordability units. These rent subsidies can be structured to mirror the federal Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program. Under Section 8, HUD pays the difference between what tenants can pay (defined as 30 percent of household income) and what HUD estimates as the fair market City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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rent on the unit. In Kern County, the 2023 fair market rent is determined to be $869 for a 1-bedroom unit, $1,137 for a two-bedroom unit and $1,616 for a three-bedroom unit (source:
www.huduser.gov).

The feasibility of this alternative is highly dependent upon the availability of other funding sources necessary to make rent subsidies available and the willingness of property owners to accept rental vouchers if they can be provided. Purchase of Affordability Covenants Another option to preserve the affordability of at-risk projects is to provide an incentive package to the owners to maintain the projects as affordable housing. Incentives could include writing down the interest rate on the remaining loan balance and/or supplementing the Section 8 subsidy received to market levels. The feasibility of this option depends on whether the complex is too highly leveraged. By providing lump sum financial incentives or ongoing subsidies in the form of rents or reduced mortgage interest rates to the owner, the City can ensure that some or all of the units remain affordable.

Construction of Replacement Units
The construction of new affordable housing units is a means of replacing the at-risk units should they be converted to market-rate units. The cost of developing housing depends on a variety of factors, including density, size of the units (i.e., square footage and number of bedrooms), location, land costs, and type of construction. The approximate cost of construction of a 780 sq.ft. unit with a $15,000 included for a vacant lot and construction costs at $145 a sq.ft is approximately $141,883.

Organizations Interested in Preserving Assisted Rental Housing There are numerous entities with the managerial capacity to own and manage units at risk of conversion. Listed in Table 5-8 are agencies which have been identified as having specific interest in Kern County.

Table 5-8: Local Nonprofit Organizations Interested in Preserving At-Risk Housing Name Address City
Abbey Road Inc. 15305 Rayen Street North Hills
DML & Associates Foundation 6043 Tampa Ave., Ste. 101A Tarzana Golden Empire Affordable Housing, Inc. 601 24th St B Bakersfield Housing Authority of the County of Kern 601 24th Street Bakersfield Housing Corporation of America 6330 Variel Avenue Suite 201 Woodland Hills Poker Flats II LLC 25972 Poker Flats Pl Laguna Beach
ROEM Development Corporation 1650 Lafayette Circle Santa Clara Self-Help Enterprises 8445W Elowin Ct Visalia
Southern California Housing Development Corp 9692 Haven Avenue., Ste. 100 Rancho Cucamonga The East Los Angeles Community Union (TELACU) 5400 E Olympic Blvd, Third Floor. Los Angeles California Veterans Assistance Foundation Inc 1400 Easton Dr STE 102 Bakersfield City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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Source: HCD and Kern County 2023
Tenant-based Section 8 assistance (Housing Choice Voucher Program) remains available in the city administered through the Housing Authority of the County of Kern, and provides tenant-based rental assistance. The vouchers act as cash that qualifying persons can use toward any privately owned residence that accepts vouchers for a portion of rent. Both apartments and single-family homes can be included with residents of Kern County are given preference over applicants from other communities.

Section 8 vouchers opened to new users on 28 January 2022 after a 10-year waiting period when it was last issued during the 2012-2013 fiscal year. It will no longer be issued on a first come first served basis. The choice regarding who gets a voucher is random, but weight may be given to applicants who are military veterans, homeless or persons involuntarily displaced due to natural disaster, governmental action or those who are avoiding reprisals or are victims of hate crimes.

Under the certificate program, combined rent and utilities are guaranteed not to exceed 30 percent of the tenant's monthly income; rent and utilities for the unit must conform to HUD-mandated fair market rent for that particular unit size and geographical area.

Over 11,000 applications were received for about 450 available vouchers. Federal government assistance was also available during the pandemic which was extended to around 8000 families in need.

All identified governmental constraints which act as an impediment to fair housing for persons with disabilities have been addressed by programs proposed in this Housing Element. Existing land use practices have been analyzed and no discriminatory policies have been identified against persons with disabilities. Permit processing times are the same for the disabled, low income, elderly, etc. as they are for non-special needs groups. Building codes were analyzed, and no constraints on housing for the disabled were identified. Incentives are described in Chapter 6 which encourage the provision of additional housing for disabled persons of low and moderate income, and provides additional incentives for this housing type. Information and outreach programs are identified in Chapter 6 which identify available grants and programs available for low- and moderate-income disabled persons. These programs can be used for new housing and redevelopment of existing dwelling units.

Building Codes
Building codes regulate the physical construction of dwellings and include plumbing, electrical, and mechanical improvements. The City currently uses and enforces the 2022 California Building, Mechanical, Plumbing and Electric Codes and ADA requirements, as established by state law, and has little control over these standards. There are no local city amendments to the building codes.

The Building Department is responsible for the enforcement of the building codes in the city. The City of Ridgecrest contracts with Kern County to provide plan checks and inspections. Building code enforcement is basically conducted through scheduled inspections of new construction, City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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remodeling, and rehabilitation projects. Inspections are also conducted in response to public complaints or an inspector's observation that construction is occurring without proper permits.

Local enforcement of these codes does not add significantly to the cost of housing in Ridgecrest.

Site Improvement
Site improvements are regulated by the Subdivision Ordinance and through conditions and standards imposed through the City Site Plan Review process. Site improvements include such things as required off-street parking, landscaping, walls, sewer and water systems, etc. To reduce housing costs, the City attempts to require only those improvements that are deemed necessary to maintain public health, safety, and welfare.

Fees
Although development fees do contribute to the total cost of housing development, the extent to which these costs are passed on to the consumer depends on price sensitivity of each housing type and the ability of housing developers to absorb such cost increases and still maintain acceptable profit margins. Where increased costs cannot be absorbed by the consumer or developer, housing production will decline. In "price sensitive" markets, such as that for affordable housing, when increased costs cannot be absorbed by the developer, or products modified to compensate the developer, affordable housing is not built.

Tables 5-9 and 5-10 show the City's schedule of fees in 2023 (most recently updated) and an example of the fees for an 1,800-square-foot single-family residence, which is a typical size of a new home in the City of Ridgecrest. An 1,800-square-foot single-family residence would normally have fees totaling approximately $19,605.

Table 5-9: City of Ridgecrest Impact Fees, 2023
Permit Type Single-Family Multi-family
Sewer Capacity Connection Fee $3,500 $3,200
Sewer Connection Fee $540 $540
School Facilities Fee As determined by school district As determined by school district Water Connection Fees As determined by IWV Water
District
As determined by IWV Water
District
Park Impact Fee $1,152 $1,152
Traffic Impact Fee $2,667 $1,863
Fire Impact Fee $564–$900 $189
Law Enforcement Impact Fee $935–$1,501 $312
Drainage Impact Fee $6,295-$14,480 $25,181
Lighting Maintenance District Annual assessment Annual assessment Source: Development Impact Fee Handbook, City of Ridgecrest, 2023 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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Table 5-10: City of Ridgecrest Impact Fees for a Typical Single-Family Dwelling, 2022* Fire Traffic Park Law
Enforcement
Storm
Drain Schools OtherFees1 Total
Singlefamily
dwelling
$845 $1,082 $1,409 $845 $2,366 $9,004 $4,054 $19,605
Source: Development Impact Fee Handbook, City of Ridgecrest, 2023 *(1800 sq.ft. is used for the example. Total building permit with impact fees is $23,431) Other fees include: Sewer Connection, Sewer Capacity and SIMP fees Table 5-11 identifies the development fees on the typical dwelling unit built in the City of Ridgecrest. As shown in Table 4-5 there is an adequate supply of residentially designated land for both infill (including redevelopment) and contiguous new development. However, it is recognized that it may be desirable for a developer to apply for a general plan amendment, zone change, or variance if none of the available land stock meets the needs of a particular type of development.

Table 5-12 shows the current permit processing fees.

Table 5-11: Permit Processing Fess
Permit Type Cost
General Plan Amendment: $1,526
Zone Change: $2,066
Site Plan Review: $680-Deposit1
Accessory Dwelling Unit $80
Variance $586
Conditional Use Permit $1,920
Tentative Tract Map $1,924
Tentative Parcel Map $1,414
Initial Study & Negative Declaration Deposit1
Mitigated Negative Declaration Deposit1
Environmental Impact Report Deposit1
New Construction Permit2
$1–$28,000 is variable
$28,001–$500,000 is 2.2% of valuation
$500,001–$1,000,000 is $5,500 for the first $500,000, plus $0.80 for each $100 of valuation or fraction thereof, up to and including $1,000,000
$1,000,001 or more is $9,500 for the first $1,000,000, plus $0.50 for each $100 of valuation or fraction thereof
Source: City of Ridgecrest Planning Department 2009, County of Kern 2008.

Notes:
1 Deposit based fees are charges from third party consultants that equal actual contract cost plus 25% administrative charges.
2 Administered by Kern County and includes plan check, building, electrical, mechanical and plumbing fees.

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As a means of assessing the cost that fees contribute to development in Ridgecrest, the City has calculated the total fees associated with development of a single-family and multi-family development. As indicated in Table 5-12, development fees for an 1,800-square-foot residential project run approximately $23,431 per unit, and development fees for a multi-family project are approximately $10,083 per unit. The fees for a single-family unit make up about 6.9 percent of the total construction costs, while that for a multi-family unit is 7.1 percent. These fees are consistent with other cities in Kern County and do not represent a significant financial constraint to new housing development.

Table 5-12: Proportion of Fee in Overall Development
Cost for a Typical Residential Development
Development Cost for
a Typical Unit Single-Family1 Multi-family2
Total estimated fees per unit $23,431 $10,083
Typical estimated cost of development per unit3 $339,000 $141,883 Estimated proportion of fee cost to overall
development cost per unit 6.9% 7.1%
Source: City of Ridgecrest 2023
Notes:
1 Cost is for an 1,800-square-foot house .single family unit with construction costs at $180 per sq.ft 2 Cost is for an 780-square-foot unit and assumes a construction cost of $145 per sq.ft 3 Cost for vacant lot included in these numbers and assumed as $15,000 based on search of listings on Realtor.com for Ridgecrest in August 2023.

Processing
Efforts have been made to streamline the processing of residential developments. Infill residential locations in the appropriate zoning designation require over-the-counter site plan review and improvement, and building plans are reviewed by Kern County. For Subdivision PUD or discretionary use permit entitlements, the Planning Commission will generally review a project with six weeks of application. The primary delay in processing is the statutory comment period allowed for responsible and trustee agencies of 30 days. No significant delays or constraints in processing have been identified.

The typical application procedure for developing ministerial projects on residential land is described as follows:
1) Submittal of application, fee, site drawings.
2) Initial study conducted.
3) Information sent out for review by interested agencies. 4) Staff analysis conducted for in-house site plan and approval given to applicant to submit building permit, or staff report prepared for Planning Commission.

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5) Planning Commission public hearing notice.
6) Planning Commission conducts public hearing and grants approval or denies. Five days after approval, applicant may submit building permits. If application requires City Council action, steps 5 and 6 are performed by City Council.

Table 5-13 show the typical procedures for discretionary housing projects (regardless and inclusive of all zoning designations) include PUD developments, subdivision, and parcel maps.

Table 5-13: Typical Processing Procedures by Project Type Single-Family
Unit
Multi-Family
Unit Subdivision
List Typical
Approval Requirements
Building Permit Site Plan Review Tentative Tract Map
Negative Declaration Negative Declaration or
EIR
Building Permit Building Permits
Total Est. Time 0.5–1 month 1–2 months 2–3 months
Source: Planning Department, City of Ridgecrest, 2014
Non-Governmental Constraints
Financing
Financing costs are subject to fluctuations of national economic policies and conditions. The cost of money for site preparation and construction is a very important determinant of the initial cost to the purchaser. Mortgage rates have an even more dramatic effect on the cost of housing to the home buyer and on the cost of constructing rental units. Interest rates are ultimately passed on to the renter by the apartment owner.

Fluctuating interest rates can have a particularly dramatic effect on the building industry when mortgage rates increase between the start of construction and completion of a project. Table 5-14 illustrates interest rates as of August 2023. The table presents both the interest rate and annual percentage rate (APR) for different types of home loans. The interest rate is the percentage of an amount of money which is paid for its use for a specified time, and the APR is the yearly percentage rate that expresses the total finance charge on a loan over its entire term. The APR includes the interest rate, fees, points, and mortgage insurance and is therefore a more complete measure of a loan's cost than the interest rate alone. However, the loan's interest rate, not its APR, is used to calculate the monthly principal and interest payment.

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Table 5-14: Conforming Loan Interest Rates
Term Interest APR
30-year Fixed 7.000% 7.217%
7/6-Month ARM 6.625% 7.469%
30-year Fixed Rate VA 6.625% 6.964%
Source: www.wellsfargo.com, August 2023
Notes: Conforming loan is for conventional home mortgages eligible for sale and delivery to either the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA) or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC).

Price of Land
Sufficient land is available to accommodate growth within the City of Ridgecrest through December 2031 and beyond. Land is still available at reasonable prices compared to larger urban areas of California and coastal communities up and down the state. Land within the Ridgecrest city limits is currently selling for approximately $15,000 to $303,846 per acre (www.landwatch.com – August 2023). Residential lots are available, with access to improvements, for as little as $6,000 and up to $1,495,000 at the time of survey. There was a total of 77 vacant residential properties surveyed with a median listing price of $281,5000 in July 2023.

Cost of Construction
Rising costs of labor and materials have contributed to the non-governmental constraints on housing development and improvement. As costs increase, so does the cost of housing as builders pass those increases along to the home buyer or renter.

According to Homebuilderdigest.com, a housing construction cost resource, home construction costs in Central Valley start at about $180 to $200 per square foot. A mid-range home would cost about $200 to $400 per square foot. Based on this data, the minimum construction cost for an 1,800-square-foot home with four walls, an attached two-car garage, central heating and air, and average building materials would be $324,000. The cost of building a multi-family unit is generally lower than a single-family unit. The City estimates that a typical multi-family unit would cost approximately $141,883 to construct in 2023 and a single family home would cost $339,000.

Other methods that can be used by jurisdictions to promote the construction of affordable housing include reducing processing fees and times, and allowing smaller lots. Lot size and improvement concessions need to consider possible site-specific characteristics such as soil quality and drainage capacity before they are granted. Reducing fees can have a significant effect on housing costs in those jurisdictions where the fees represent a large percentage of the overall cost. This option might be considered for developers who would ensure that housing developed with such concessions would be kept affordable to lower-income households for long periods of time.

Opportunities for Energy Conservation
This section describes opportunities for conserving energy in existing homes as well as in new residential construction. The factors affecting energy use, conservation programs currently available in Ridgecrest, and examples of effective programs used by other jurisdictions are discussed.

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Factors Affecting Energy Use
The factors that affect residential energy use must be understood to identify opportunities for conservation. One such factor is the size of the population. At any given time, the larger the population, the more electricity is consumed. But over time, new conservation mandates and technological advances decrease the per capita consumption of energy. This means that the total energy use increases at a slower rate than population. The price of energy also has a significant effect; the more expensive it becomes; the more incentive people have to conserve.

The local climate has a large effect on residential energy use. In general, Ridgecrest has a desert climate drier and hotter than most communities. Summers are very hot and winters are moderately cold. Prolonged periods of cold or hot weather cause increased energy use for space and water heating and air conditioning. This situation is particularly true if homes are not well insulated.

The efficiency of household appliances also affects energy use. Older appliances may not operate as efficiently as when they were new, and many older appliances were built when energy conservation was not considered important. Significant energy-efficient design advances have been made in refrigerators, stoves, and furnaces.

Existing Conservation Programs
The following energy conservation programs are implemented in Ridgecrest:
• The California State Building Standards Code Title 24, Part 6 – California Energy Code contains energy conservation standards applicable to all residential and non-residential buildings throughout California. The standards require ceiling, wall, and concrete slab insulation, vapor barriers, weatherstripping on doors and windows, closeable doors on fireplaces, no continuous burning gas pilot lights, insulated heating and cooling ducts, water heater insulation blankets, swimming pool covers and timers, certified energy-efficient appliances, etc. Part 11- California Green Building Standards (CALGreen) are also applicable to residential and non-residential buildings. CALGreen has mandatory provisions for commercial, residential, and public-school buildings for energy efficiency, water efficiency and conservation, material conservation & resource efficiency, environmental quality etc. All new construction in Ridgecrest must comply with Title 24. • The California Energy Commission (CEC) has developed a set of energy efficiency guidelines for local planning agencies. As part of those guidelines, the CEC addresses building efficiency beyond the Title 24 standards. The City of Ridgecrest may wish to include these guidelines in its building code. The CEC also offers a variety of funding opportunities for alternate fuels, energy efficiency, renewable energy and transportation. • California Climate & Energy Collaborative (CCEC) is supporting California local governments to save energy, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate climate action.

Services include opportunities for local governments to collaborate and learn from each other, best practices case studies, free technical assistance and funding resources webpage.

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• The City’s General Plan includes the following energy conservation-related Implementation Measures:
− The City shall develop a library of solar and energy conservation references for use by local residents.
− The City shall develop and implement a water conservation program in conjunction with other related agencies.
− The City shall develop and adopt a landscape ordinance encouraging the use of lowwater, native vegetation for landscaping purposes. − The City shall adopt regulations to require new development proposals using solar energy to provide solar access plans ensuring the ability of surrounding properties to directly access the sun.
− The City shall encourage the incorporation of alternative energy features in new public buildings.
− The City shall adopt a Green Building Ordinance.
− The City shall investigate the development of measures to capture runoff.

Examples of Programs from Other Jurisdictions
Land use planning and zoning practices can conserve energy. For example, if the General Plan and Zoning Ordinance encourage residential subdivision in a relatively isolated area, far from commercial facilities such as grocery stores, residents must travel longer distances to take care of their daily shopping and service needs. Keeping housing and jobs in balance and near each other helps to reduce energy use for commuting. Longer trips usually necessitate using an automobile rather than walking or cycling. Changing the land use pattern can also change energy use patterns.

The intent of land use planning measures is to reduce the distances of automobile travel, reduce the costs of construction, and increase the potential for residents to complete shopping and other chores without driving or by driving shorter distances.

One example of a land use planning technique for energy conservation is to encourage infill (development on vacant or underused lots) and compact, contiguous development. As property is annexed to the city to meet the demand for housing, the city boundaries should expand concentrically rather than allowing dispersed development in outlying areas. Mixed-use development should be allowed, particularly in the core areas and along collector roads.

Compact development results in the secondary energy savings of embodied energy. Embodied energy is the term used for the energy spent producing the materials and finished products, such as sewer pipes, electrical lines, and paving materials. Minimizing the length of necessary water, sewer, and electricity lines consumes less of those products and decreases the total energy consumption.

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Compact development also means there can be more convenient and accessible public transit.

Efficient intracity transit service requires a minimum of 12 housing units per acre (Calthorpe 1990). Ride along program can also be offered to residents and those employed within the City.

Efficiency in Individual Homes
A variety of public and quasi-public programs could be made available in Ridgecrest to assist homeowners and renters in retrofitting to improve energy efficiency. The Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) and Single-Family Affordable Solar Homes (SASH) program are current solar panel incentives in California. The City currently provides the following programs:
• Home Investment Partnership Program, which includes energy and water efficiency upgrades as eligible activities.
• Toilet Retrofit Program Rebates
• Water Efficient Washing Machine Rebate Program
The City should encourage energy efficiency in residential construction by offering incentives and negotiating with developers to emphasize energy-efficient construction practices. Developers and consumers often discard long-term savings potential in favor of immediate cost savings. Some incentives that can be offered include:
• Energy-efficient, new residential construction can cut energy consumption in the home by up to 50 percent. Energy-efficient home construction and retrofits should contain some or all of the following:
− Double-pane windows (two panes of glass enclose a vacuum-tight space that does not allow heat and cold to transfer as quickly as it does in a window with a single pane of glass)
− Attic insulation greater than R-19 (soft, fiberglass insulation is given an R rating based on its capacity to insulate an area; a higher R value indicates greater insulation capability)
− Rigid attic insulation (generally a compressed Styrofoam insulation with an R-30 value)
− Additional wall insulation (older homes may not have insulated walls) − Fluorescent indoor lighting (a standard, incandescent light bulb uses more energy) − Dimmer switches and task lighting (dimmer switches allow lower lighting levels and less electricity use, while task lighting directs light to necessary areas without wastefully lighting a larger area)
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− Halogen outdoor lighting (halogen, like fluorescent, is more efficient than incandescent light)
− Lighting motion detectors that turn on lights only when they detect a person in the room or area
− Drought tolerant shade trees along southern and western exposures, and glazing to reduce the heat from windows on hot summer days
− Solar screens that reduce the amount of heat from solar radiation coming through windows
− Microwave oven, which uses less energy than an electric or gas oven − Gas (rather than electric or propane) water heater and range/oven − Weatherized windows and doors that do not have cracks to cause drafts − Pools and/or hot tubs with integrated cleaning and heating systems (including pool covers, active solar heating, and efficient filters, pumps, and motors) − Energy use automatic timers that provide energy use only when it is necessary − Drip irrigation system that conserves water and reduces the energy needed for pumping water
− Drought-tolerant landscaping
− Active solar elements and passive solar design
− Energy-efficient appliances (in new construction and replacing older appliances in existing homes)
− Storm windows to cut back on heat loss through windows during the winter − Reflective film on south-facing windows to minimize heat gain during the summer − Individual meters for gas, electricity, and water (to encourage conservation) in multifamily units The City can also employ policies that encourage solar energy technology in both retrofits and new construction. There are two distinct approaches to solar heating: active and passive. Active systems use mechanical equipment to collect and transport heat - the relatively common roof plate collector system used in solar water and space heaters. Collectors can contain water or air that is pumped through conduits and heated, then piped to the spaces to be heated or to a water heater tank.

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Conversely, passive solar systems collect and transport heat through non-mechanical means.

Essentially, the structure itself becomes part of the collection and transmission system. Certain types of building materials absorb solar energy and can transmit that energy later. Passive systems often employ skylight windows to allow sunlight to enter the room and masonry walls or walls with water pipes inside to store the solar heat. This heat is then generated back into the room when the room cools in the evening.

The best method to encourage use of active solar systems for heating and cooling is to not restrict their use in the zoning and building ordinances and to require subdivision layouts that facilitate solar use. Program P. is proposed to address energy conservation and efficiency in the city.

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6. CHAPTER SIX – GOALS, POLICIES, AND PROGRAMS
This chapter describes housing goals, policies, and programs for the City of Ridgecrest. A goal is defined as a general statement of the highest aspirations of the community. A policy is a course of action chosen from among many possible alternatives. It guides decision-making and provides a framework around which the housing programs operate. A program is a specific action, which implements the policy and moves the community toward the achievement of its goals. This combination of goals, policies, and programs constitutes the City's local housing strategy.

According to the state of California, it is the goal of the state to "ensure to all Californians the opportunity to obtain safe, adequate housing in a suitable living environment." The City of Ridgecrest will implement the following goals in the 2023-2031 Housing Element Cycle:
• Provide new housing: Identify adequate sites, with appropriate zoning and development standards and services to accommodate the City’s share of the regional housing needs of extremely low, very low, low, and moderate-income households. • Remove Governmental Constraints: Address and, where possible, remove governmental constraints to the maintenance, improvement, and development of housing, including housing for people at all income levels, as well as housing for people with disabilities. • Conservation and Preservation: Conserve and preserve existing housing, including at-risk units, and neighborhoods, and promote conservation of energy through sustainable planning and development.
• Promote Fair Housing: Promote equal housing opportunities for all people, regardless of race, religion, sex, marital status, ancestry, national origin, color, familial status, or disability.

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Goals and Policies
GOAL H-1 Provide new housing: Identify adequate sites, with appropriate zoning and development standards and services to accommodate the City’s share of the regional housing needs of extremely low, very low, low, and moderate-income households.

Policy H-1.1 Annually review the Housing Element, together with other elements of the General Plan, for internal consistency, compliance with legal requirements, and suitability to changing local conditions and submit the required annual report to HCD.

Policy H-1.2 The 2023-2031 RHNA will be met during the planning period utilizing the appropriate programs as identified.

Policy H-1.3 Provide a variety of residential development opportunities, ranging from low density to high density, as designated on the General Plan Land Use Map.

Policy H-1.4 Allow for development of second units on single-family lots for seniors in residential zones, subject to availability of adequate infrastructure.

Policy H-1.5 Encourage development of housing for elderly by offering incentives such as density increases and reductions in parking requirements. Coordinate with local lending institutions to ensure availability of financing for senior housing projects and congregate care facilities.

Policy H-1.6 Permit the development of manufactured housing in all single-family residential zones.

Policy H-1.7 Encourage construction of planned residential developments under Planned Unit Development (PUD) guidelines.

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Policy H-1.8 Ensure that multi-family development is compatible in design.

Policy H-1.9 Prohibit new residential development from fronting on major arterial highways without adequate setbacks and buffering.

Policy H-1.10 Ensure high quality development standards in new mobile home developments, including compatibility with adjacent neighborhood as is allowed by state law.

Policy H-1.11 Prohibit housing development in areas subject to hazards (fire, noise, flood, etc.).

Policy H-1.12 Accommodate new residential development, which is coordinated with the provision of infrastructure and public services.

Policy H-1.13 Encourage energy conservation devices and passive design concepts, which make use of natural climate to increase energy efficiency and reduce housing costs.

Policy H-1.14 Regularly examine new construction methods and materials, and upgrade the City's residential building standards as appropriate.

Policy H-1.15 Encourage neighborhood watch programs that promote safety and protection in residential neighborhoods.

Policy H-1.16 Encourage development of residential units, which are accessible to handicapped/disabled or are adaptable for conversion to residential use by the handicapped/disabled. Require apartment complexes with 20 or more units to provide handicapped/disabled accessible unit, with at least two units per 100 units.

Policy H-1.17 Permit the development of manufactured housing in all single-family residential zones.

Goal H-2 Address and, where possible, remove governmental constraints to the maintenance, improvement, and development of housing, including housing for people at all income levels, as well as housing for people with disabilities.

Policy H-2.1 Continue to facilitate timely permit and development plan processing for residential construction.

Policy H-2.2 Ensure that development standards for parking, open space, and other amenities do not add unduly to the cost of housing.

Policy H-2.3 Coordinate efforts of all agencies responsible for the provision of housing and housing programs to acquire efficiency in use of funds and elimination of overlapping programs.

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Goal H-3 Conserve and preserve of existing housing, including at-risk units, and neighborhoods.

Policy H-3.1 Preserve or rehabilitate existing mobile homes.

Policy H-3.2 Continue a code enforcement program as the primary tool for bringing substandard units into compliance with city codes, and for improving overall housing conditions in the city.

Policy H-3.3 Encourage enforcement of the City's nuisance ordinances, along with other applicable codes, to promote property maintenance.

Policy H-3.4 Actively market rehabilitation programs as available through the Kern County Housing Rehabilitation Program, which provides financial and technical assistance to lower-income property owners to make housing repairs, which could otherwise not be taken.

Policy H-3.5 Preserve and enhance the quality of residential neighborhoods in Ridgecrest, and ensure that new housing is sensitive to the existing natural and built environment.

Goal H-4 Promote Fair Housing: Promote equal housing opportunities for all people, regardless of race, religion, sex, marital status, ancestry, national origin, color, familial status, or disability.

Policy H-4.1 Strive to distribute housing constructed expressly for lower- and moderateincome households throughout the city and to not be concentrated in any single area in the city.

Policy H-4.2 Prohibit practices that restrict housing choice by arbitrarily directing prospective buyers and renters to certain types of neighborhoods or types of housing.

Policy H-4.3 Provide fair housing information at City Hall, to inform both landlords and tenants of their rights and responsibilities.

Policy H-4.4 Assist in providing affordable large-family units to very low- and low-income families during the 2023-2031 Housing Element.

Policy H-4.5 Locate higher density residential development in close proximity to public transportation, retail, services, and recreation.

Programs
Implementation programs for this Housing Element are presented below. The subject of local housing programs is a complicated one. There are many more programs than are feasible to present in this chapter. For more detailed information, contact the primary agencies. Another difficulty in compiling and relating data by agency or programs is that often more than one program may be involved in a project. Additionally, more than one agency may work to administer, finance, and City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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determine eligibility for a program. The program summary is presented in a manner intended to reduce confusion by simplifying the complex interrelationships between programs.

1. Monitor Assisted Units
Monitor federal-, state-, and locally funded units at risk of conversion to market rate. The City will take the following actions to alleviate the loss of units at risk due to conversion to market-rate units.
7) On an annual basis the City will update its list of subsidized rental properties and identify those units at risk of converting to market-rate units. 8) The City will contact owners of units at risk of conversion regarding their interest in selling properties or maintaining the rental units as affordable units. 9) The City will ensure property owners are aware of federal and state subsidies to ensure the continued affordability of housing units.
10) The city will maintain a list of nonprofit agencies interested in acquisition/rehabilitation of at-risk units and inform them of the status of such units. 11) The city will provide information to nonprofit agencies about federal, state, or local funding opportunities to assist with providing funding for the acquisition and rehabilitation of at-risk projects when requested.
12) The City will make available referral and contact information regarding tenant rights and conversion procedures, as well as information regarding other affordable housing opportunities in the city to tenants of at-risk units.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Annually and ongoing

2. Code Enforcement Program
Code enforcement will continue to monitor all housing for compliance with City Codes and regulations.

The Code Enforcement Officer may make available information to owners and renters of substandard units regarding availability of various programs, loans, and grants.

Dwelling units that are unsafe and determined to not be habitable by the Chief Building Official may be demolished by the fire department, City of Ridgecrest, or other appropriate agencies or means during the 2023-2031 Housing Element Cycle.

Establish a formal program and procedure for the abatement of structurally unsound buildings.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department and Kern County City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Establish formal program for abatement by 2016 and ongoing

3. Community Development Block Grants (CDBG)/HOME
The City of Ridgecrest is participating in a cooperative agreement with Kern County, and receives a fair share allocation of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME funding.

Because funding may significantly vary from year to year, in addition to the required process of public hearings, it is not possible or feasible to identify future funding items. The city can identify programs which may be recommended for consideration by the public and Council for inclusion in the CDBG Action Plan, but no firm commitment can be given to any specific item without public hearings. The city will conduct public hearings, as required, usually in October or November to have public participation in the process of identifying suitable CDBG projects during the planning period. Ridgecrest is committed to using CDBG funds for: rehabilitating housing and other property, building public facilities, education and job training, public services for youths, disabled, and the elderly, crime reduction initiatives, assisting low-income home buyers with down payment assistance and subsidizing interest rates, etc. Possible activities include acquisition and disposition of real property, public facility and infrastructure improvements, clearance activities, public services, housing rehabilitation, home ownership assistance, micro-enterprise assistance, economic development, and planning activities. These activities will target special needs groups meeting the required income guidelines.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: CDBG
Time Frame: Annually

4. Fair Housing Services
Under the Community Development Block Grant Program, Kern County operates a Fair Housing Program under Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 aimed at combating illegal discrimination in housing.

Fair Housing Services
Education Activities – Provide brochures, posters, presentations to the public, poster/essay contest in the schools, public service announcements, community outreach activities.

Investigation/Testing – Investigate the validity of a discrimination complaint.

Mediation – Serve as a mediator and offer a resolution to the conflict between two parties.

The program is not an enforcement agency, but an impartial third party.

Coordination – Provide connecting links between groups, agencies, individuals, and private enterprises that are involved in fair housing that will enhance the delivery of fair housing services.

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Information about the County’s Fair Housing Program has been disseminated throughout the community in a variety of ways. Brochures and printed information regarding fair housing practices will be available for public distribution at City Hall. Educational activities and other services will be promoted on a regular basis in brochures at the library, community center, senior center, service clubs, schools, and businesses. The City Clerk can provide referrals to the County program.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department and Kern County Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Ongoing

5. Nonprofit Housing Provider (such as Habitat for Humanity) Substandard units may be improved and/or new units constructed between 2023-2031 by various nonprofit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity.

Responsible Agency: Nonprofit organizations
Funding: N/A
Time Frame: Ongoing

6. Kern County Housing Authority (HACK)
The Kern County Housing Authority (HACK) administers the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) and Family Self-Sufficiency programs.

Section 8 is a rent subsidy program, where low-income residents of Kern County are awarded vouchers which enable them to obtain housing in the private sector. HACK contracts with landlords to subsidize the participants' rents. The housing must meet HUD Housing Quality Standards in order for HACK to enter into a Housing Assistance Payment contract with the landlord.

The Family Self-Sufficiency Program (FSSP) is designed to assist public housing tenants receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP) or other assistance with becoming self-sufficient, primarily through employment, within five years. Participants set goals for themselves to reach during that time frame. In return, HACK sets up escrow (savings) accounts for participants, with a portion of the extra rent paid when participants obtain employment.

Referrals are made to assist participants in obtaining educational training and/or employment services in the community. This program is coordinated with the collaborative services of the Employment Development Department, Regional Occupational Center, CalWORKs, Employers' Training Resource, and other supportive services in Kern County.

The City of Ridgecrest will make interested citizens aware of these two programs and provide them with contact information for the program administrators at HACK.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department and HACK
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Funding: Various
Time Frame: Ongoing

7. Mortgage Credit Certificate Program
The city may qualify and participate in a Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC) program either solely or jointly with Kern County if one becomes available between 2023-2031. The County continues to operate its MCC program which is available to Ridgecrest residents through the Kern County Planning and Community Development Department.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department and Kern County Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Evaluate possibility of City participation in an MCC program every two years beginning in 2023.

8. Outreach Program
Provide information through public access television and newspaper advertisements twice per fiscal year regarding availability of grants and loans for handicap accessibility. Establish a key contact person at City Hall to distribute information as requested, and to assist with further information.

Brochures and printed information will be delivered for public distribution at City Hall and upon request. Public access television may advertise the availability of such information at City Hall.

The city may provide the public with at least one key contact that will identify grant sources and coordinate efforts between the private individual and the grant source.

Update housing rehabilitation brochure every two years between 2023 and 2031 or as necessary as information changes.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Update housing rehabilitation brochure every two years and ongoing.

9. Policy and Community Together (PACT) Program
Continue and fund the Policy and Community Together (PACT) neighborhood watch program between 2023-2031 for increased safety.

Responsible Agency: Police Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Ongoing
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10. Parking Reduction Program
13) Continue to reduce parking requirements by 50 percent for developments that provide at least half of the units exclusively for elderly persons. 14) Continue to reduce parking ratio for non-handicap units on-site by 20 percent.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: Staff time
Time Frame: As development applications are received

11. Reduced or Waived Sewer Capacity Fees
The city will make every reasonable effort to assist in the development of extremely low-, very low-, and low-income housing as well as housing for persons with special needs through programs identified in this Housing Element. When no other programs are feasible in the provision of such housing, the City will give favorable consideration to the following:
15) The City may approve sewer capacity fee waivers or reductions based upon the demonstration of financial need by a qualifying extremely low-, very low-, or low-income family or special needs person.

The City may eliminate or reduce sewer capacity fees based upon demonstration of financial need for the development of new senior housing projects between 2015–2023.

The City may eliminate or reduce sewer capacity fees based upon demonstration of financial need for the development of handicapped units between 2015–2023.

The City of Ridgecrest may reduce or waive the sewer capacity fees for lower-income, largefamily units.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: Staff time
Time Frame: As development applications are received

12. Rehabilitation Program
The City shall regularly complete an application for rehabilitation funds to serve city residents.

Currently, the city does not have resources to administer a rehabilitation program. If funding is received the city will initiate discussions with Kern County or other agencies or organizations that may be able to take on the administration of rehabilitation loans for residents of the city. In addition, the city will actively market the Kern County Rehabilitation Program during the planning period.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department and Kern County Funding: General Fund
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Time Frame: Apply for rehabilitation funds every two years or when funding opportunities become available; see Program K. above for rehabilitation brochure updates time frame.

13. Energy Conservation
The City will continue to implement Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations on all new development and will continue to ensure that local building codes are consistent with statemandated or recommended green building standards. The City will also encourage the use of additional innovative energy conservation techniques such as active and passive solar systems, orientation, and project layout in an endeavor to further reduce dependence on outside energy sources. The city will make handouts and literature available to the public outlining measures that they can take to reduce energy use.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Provide handouts about available programs at City Hall by June 2016; ensure consistency with state green building standards triennially when the California Building Code is adopted, and ongoing

14. Special Needs Housing
The city has a number of incentives to encourage the production of housing to meet the needs of special needs populations, such as the elderly and persons with physical and developmental disabilities. These include density bonuses and modification of development standards.

The city has provided incentives in the past to facilitate special needs housing. The Ridgecrest Senior Apartments project received reduced parking standards. As feasible, the City will support others’ applications for funding under state and federal programs designated specifically for special needs groups and other lower-income households. The City may also provide assistance to applicants or organizations working to provide housing or services for special needs groups in Ridgecrest.

The City of Ridgecrest may coordinate with Kern County and local nonprofit organizations to provide assistance and support to homeless persons. During the 2023-2031 planning period, the city may explore the feasibility of implementing a Hotel Voucher Program to assist homeless families and individuals in obtaining emergency shelter and/or transitional housing.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: Federal Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS, California Child Care Facilities Finance Program, and other state and federal programs designated specifically for special needs groups.

Time Frame: Assist or support applications when feasible – 2023-2031; evaluate whether a Hotel Voucher Program will be pursued by 2025; if pursued implement by 2026.

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15. Update Zoning and Subdivision Ordinances
1) Amend the Zoning Ordinance to allow group homes by right in residential zones for small group homes (six persons or fewer) and with a conditional use permit for large facilities (seven persons or more) consistent with state law.
2) Amended the Zoning Ordinance to permit single-room occupancy (SRO) units subject to site plan review and without a conditional use permit in the R-2, R-3, and R-4 zones. 3) Amend Density Bonus Ordinance to incorporate new laws effective January 1, 2023. 4) Amend ADU regulations in compliance with laws effective as of January 1, 2023, such as permitting 2-story ADUS and height allowances, and similar regulations, and prepare an ADU brochure.
5) Amend the Zoning Code and Subdivision ordinances to comply with SB-9. 6) Amend Zoning Ordinance to implement Objective Design Standards for multi-family residential projects in commercial and mixed-use zones and objective design standards for multi-family projects with affordable housing in compliance with SB 167 (Housing Accountability Act), SB 35 (streamlined Affordable Housing) and SB 330 (Housing Crisis Act).
7) Amend Zoning Ordinance to permit housing for a Variety of Housing Types such as Low Barrier Navigation Centers.
8) Amend Zoning and Subdivision codes consistent with all housing related laws that become effective during 2023, beyond amendments mentioned in items 1 through 8 above, such that the city’s amendments are comprehensive.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Within one year of Housing Element adoption.

16. Extremely Low-Income Households
Assembly Bill (AB) 2634 requires the quantification and analysis of existing and projected housing needs of extremely low-income households. To facilitate housing for extremely low-income persons, the City will prioritize funding and/or offer financial incentives or regulatory concessions to encourage the development or rehabilitation of single-room occupancy units and/or other units affordable to the extremely low-income, such as supportive and multi-family units.

Responsible Agency: Planning Department
Funding: General Fund
Time Frame: Assist or support applications when feasible – 2023-2031 City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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Table 6-1
Quantified Objectives by Income Group
Income Group New Construction1 Rehabilitation Conservation2 Extremely Low Income 189 5
Very Low Income 190 5
Low Income 241 5
Moderate Income 225
Above Moderate Income 591
Total 1436 15 0
Source: Realty Planners Group, Inc. 2023
Notes:

1. Corresponds to RHNA in Chapter 4.

2. The Ridge Apartments with 79 units was at risk when it recently sold, but the City was able to maintain the affordability restriction.

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City of Ridgecrest September 2023
Housing Element 7-1
CHAPTER SEVEN – PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
The 2023–2031 Ridgecrest Housing Element update began in spring 2023. The following is a summary of the process the City went through in delivering the draft Housing Element update to the Department of Housing and Community Development:

Table 7-1: 2023–2031 Ridgecrest Housing Element Schedule Task Date
Scoping Meeting February 28, 2023
First Housing Survey February 22, 2023 – June 27, 2023
Second Housing Survey May 9, 2023 – June 27, 2023
Special Planning Commission Workshop May 8, 2023
Draft Housing Element to City August 2023
Planning Commission Hearing to Review Draft September 2023 Public Review Draft Housing Element & Council Review September 2023 HCD 60-day review of draft Housing Element September 2023 Conditional Certification Received from HCD ----
Planning Commission Review of final draft Housing Element ---- City Council review of final draft Housing Element for adoption ---- Housing Need and Priorities Survey
The City has hosted two online Housing Element survey. The first survey focused primarily on housing policies and goals. This survey opened on February 22, 2023. The second survey focused primarily on housing needs and barriers. The second survey was circulated in English and Spanish.

This survey opened on May 9, 2023. Both surveys closed on June 27, 2023. A total of 121 individuals responded to the survey in English, while no response in Spanish was received. The city used both digital and paper platforms for this survey. The digital platform was promoted extensively through City communication channels including email communications, the Housing Element Update webpage, and social media. The survey was shared via multiple CommunityBased Organizations (CBOs) and publicized online. City staff also conducted the survey directly with residents during the Salvation Army food bank drive through distribution. The City received the following feedback:

When asked to identify their top three housing priorities (out of seven choices):
• 56% identified "increase the amount of housing that is for affordable to moderate, low, and very low-income residents"
• 53% of respondents selected “create programs to help existing homeowners stay in their homes”
• 52% of respondents selected “make it easier to build in Ridgecrest” • 46% of respondents selected “improve substandard housing conditions” • An additional 43% identified “increase homeownership opportunities for moderate, lowand very-low-income residents” City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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• 27% selected “target efforts to address inequities in the housing market, including discrimination in renting”
• And the remaining 20% selected “other” with a fill in choice When asked to identify the top barrier to affordable housing (out of five choices):
• 46% of respondents choose “limited availability of affordable units” • An additional 14% of respondents choose "lack of resources to help find affordable housing" and "quality of affordable housing does not meet my standards".

When asked to select the communities insufficient of housing (out of seven choices):
• 38% of respondents selected “Single individuals”
• 35% of respondents selected “Families with Children”
• 35% of respondents selected “Low-income households”
• 32% of respondents selected “Older adults (Seniors, Elderly)” Stakeholder Input and Participation
The City invited representatives from community stakeholders to provide input on housingrelated issues in Ridgecrest. The Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) who supported the outreach efforts included:
• Ridgecrest Chamber of Commerce
• IWV Collaborative
• Salvation Army
• Ridgecrest Area Association of Realtors
• Ridgecrest Vineyard Church & The Refuge
Scoping Meeting – February 28, 2023
A scoping meeting took place on February 18, 2023. In such meeting, the staff and Consultant presented a staff report and plans for the 6th Cycle Housing Element Update. The meeting was opened to the public for comments with regards to the type of Public Outreach desired in connection with the proposed Housing Element Update. The primary purpose of the Scoping City of Ridgecrest September 2023
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session was to determine the type of public outreach that is appropriate to receive the maximum public participation from citizens and stakeholders in the preparation of the housing element.

A member of the public supported the plan to conduct the public workshop at a Planning Commission meeting. No other comments were received.

Special Public Planning Commission Workshop – May 8, 2023 On May 8 2023, a public workshop was held with the Planning Commission to provide an overview of the Housing Element Update, invite input on housing-related needs and priorities, and to give the community an opportunity to identify housing-related concerns.

A member of the public inquired whether the City has an ADU ordinance to which staff responded in the affirmative.

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