Community Development Agency
www.santa-ana.org/community-development
Item # 39
City of Santa Ana
20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Staff Report
June 4, 2024
TOPIC: Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance
AGENDA TITLE
Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Approve first reading of the Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance to comply with the State of California Local Tenant Preferences to Prevent Displacement Act and codify the City’s existing local resident preference policy.
ORDINANCE NO. NS-XXXX entitled AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA ANA CREATING A NEW ARTICLE XXI IN CHAPTER 8 OF THE MUNICIPAL CODE TO CODIFY THE CITY’S LOCAL RESIDENT PREFERENCE IN AFFORDABLE HOUSING (includes determination that the ordinance is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) because the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment and 15060(c)(3) because the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378 of the CEQA Guidelines)
GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: No
DISCUSSION
On March 20, 2018, the City Council adopted the Affordable Housing Funds Policies and Procedures, which included a new local resident preference policy. The local resident preference policy prioritizes Santa Ana residents who live or work in the city for affordable housing projects by giving them a preference when they apply for a project.
Since the adoption of this policy, staff has implemented the City’s local resident preference in all affordable housing projects funded or entitled in the city. The City's local preference policy has been effective to provide priority access to limited affordable housing opportunities for Santa Ana residents.
For example, the Legacy Square project opened their waiting list in February 2023 and received a total of 4,668 applications for only 93 affordable housing units. However, the City’s local resident preference allowed 1,451 applicants who live or work in Santa Ana to be prioritized at the top of the waiting list by giving them a preference. This means
Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance June 4, 2024
4 3
2 0
Santa Ana local residents were selected first off of the waiting list. These three other projects had similar numbers of applicants with a local resident preference:
Project Name
(# of Affordable
Housing Units)
Waiting List Opening
Month
Total # of
Applications
Applicants with a
Local Resident
Preference
Crossroads at
Washington
(86 units)
December 2023 2,034 1,167
Rafferty
(11 units) January 2024 3,141 2,472
Archways
(85 units) February 2024 5,889 3,991
Since March 20, 2018, the City’s new local resident preference policy has had a positive impact to ensure that the limited affordable housing units developed in the city are prioritized for our residents who live or work in Santa Ana.
After the adoption of the City’s local resident preference policy, on January 1, 2023, the State of California adopted the Local Tenant Preferences to Prevent Displacement Act (the “Act”). The Act requires any local government adopting a local resident preference policy to create a webpage on its internet website containing their ordinance and its supporting materials, and to annually submit a link to its local resident preference webpage to the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). Finally, the Act requires local governments adopting a local resident preference policy to submit the ordinance to HCD within 30 days of it becoming operational.
As a result, staff is recommending approval of the Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance to facilitate compliance with the State of California Local Tenant Preferences to Prevent Displacement Act and codify the City’s existing local resident preference policy.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this item.
EXHIBIT
1. Local Resident Preference in Affordable Housing Ordinance Submitted By: Michael L. Garcia, Executive Director of Community Development Approved By: Alvaro Nuñez, Acting City Manager