City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: December 19, 2023
Agenda Item: 10.A
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: David Martin, Director, Administration
Subject: Introduction and Adoption of Emergency Interim Zoning Ordinance Authorizing Establishment, By Resolution, of Objective Design Standards for Qualifying Housing Projects that Elect to Use the Streamlined, Ministerial Approval Process Established by Senate Bill 35 and Adoption of Resolution Establishing Objective Design Standards for Qualifying Housing Projects that Elect to Use the Streamlined, Ministerial Approval Process Established by Senate Bill 35
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding of no possibility of significant effect pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3)(Common Sense Exemption) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines;
2. Introduce and adopt an Emergency Interim Zoning ordinance authorizing Council to establish, by Resolution, objective design standards for housing projects that qualify for the streamlined, ministerial approval process established by SB 35 housing projects; and
3. Adopt Resolution establishing objective design standards for housing projects that qualify for the streamlined, ministerial approval process established by SB
35. Summary
Senate Bill 35 (SB 35) was passed in 2017 by the California State Legislature and signed into law; it was subsequently amended most recently by SB 423 in 2023. SB 35 provides qualifying housing projects the opportunity to opt-in to a streamlined approval process in jurisdictions that have not adopted a compliant Housing Element or are not meeting State-mandated housing production goals. Some of the preconditions include a minimum percentage of affordable units, labor requirements and consistency with local planning standards. Each year, the State Department of Housing and Community 2 of 14
Development (HCD) issues an SB 35 determination that indicates which cities are subject to SB 35 (https://www.hcd.ca.gov/planning-and-communitydevelopment/statutory-determinations). HCD’s determination is based on Annual Progress Report (APR) data submitted by jurisdictions each year compared to the prorated Lower (Very-Low and Low) and Above-Moderate Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) for each jurisdiction.
Figure 1: Statewide Summary of SB 35 Determinations (source: HCD) On June 30, 2023, HCD determined that Santa Monica is subject to SB 35 for housing projects that include more than 50% of their units as affordable units. This means that Santa Monica fell behind on addressing lower-income housing needs for the 5th Cycle Housing Element. The infographic created by HCD shows the statewide SB 35 determination summary.
SB 35 housing projects with more than 50% of their units as affordable units are eligible for a streamlined, ministerial review process that does not require public hearings. As a 3 of 14
result, the housing projects must only be reviewed against objective design standards (in addition to compliance with other development standards) and cannot be subject to the City’s standard architectural review process, which is designed to, among other things, prevent the development of structures or uses that are not of acceptable exterior design or appearance, are of inferior quality, or are likely to have a depreciating effect on the local environment or surrounding area by reason of appearance or value; to eliminate conditions, structures, or uses, which by reason of their effect tend to degrade the health, safety, or general welfare of the community. Because the City was not subject to SB 35 prior to June 2023, the City has no objective design standards in place for projects that qualify for and opt in to the SB 35 process. Should the City not adopt any objective design standards, projects could be approved without any design review that is intended to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community. The adoption of the proposed emergency interim ordinance (Attachment A) will ensure that the City will have standards (Attachment B) in place to apply to SB 35 projects, should an applicant opt into using that process.
Background
Overview of SB 35
SB 35 requires streamlining the approval of qualifying housing development by providing a ministerial process through which a project is only reviewed against objective standards (including objective zoning and design review standards). SB 35 applies to jurisdictions that are not meeting their RHNA goal for construction of abovemoderate income housing and/or housing for households below 80% area median income (AMI). SB 35 also applies if a jurisdiction has not adopted a compliant housing element. From a project applicant perspective, SB 35 is a voluntary program that a project applicant may elect to pursue once the State has determined that a jurisdiction has not meet its RHNA goal. As amended by SB 423, the provisions of SB 35 sunset Government Code Section 65913.4 on January 1, 2036.
Similar to the City’s Administrative Approval (AA) process for housing projects, SB 35’s streamlining process is available to qualifying projects if they meet certain criteria. A 4 of 14
comparison of the eligibility criteria for the SB 35 streamlining process as compared to the City’s streamlined AA process is shown in the table below:
Table 1: Comparison of SB 35 Process vs City’s Streamlined Process for Housing Projects
SB 35 Streamlining Santa Monica AA Streamlining
Housing Project Type
- At least 2 units - At least 2 units
- No more than 33% commercial - No more than 25% commercial - At least 50% on-site affordable to low-income
households
- At least 15% on-site affordable per AHPP evenly
distributed across all income categories
- Must be consistent with objective standards
(eligible density bonus/
incentives/concessions/waivers through State
Density Bonus Law (SDBL) permitted)
- Must be consistent with Zoning Ordinance. May
include a variance or modification (eligible density
bonus/incentives/concessions/waivers through
SDBL permitted)
Site Requirements
- No limit on site size - Cannot be on sites 1 acre or more - Cannot be on a site:
• With prime farmland
• Designated as a hazardous waste site,
unless site cleared for residential use
• With a mobile home park
• With conservation areas/easement or
protected species
• With wetlands
• With a floodplain or floodway
• Within a designated very high fire hazard
severity zone
- No environmental site limitations
- Cannot demolish a historic structure - Cannot demolish a historic structure Prevailing Wage and Labor Requirements
- Prevailing Wage required for projects that are both
11+ units and non-public work
- Skilled and trained workforce requirements for any
project over 85 feet in height
- Healthcare benefits must be provided for projects
with 50 units or more
- None
Tenant Protections
- Project cannot demolish units:
• Occupied by tenants within last 10 years
• Subject to affordable deed restriction
• Subject to any form of local rent or price
control
Consistent with SB 330 state requirements:
- Project cannot reduce the total number of dwelling
units on-site
- Project must replace protected units, which are
units:
• Occupied by low-income tenants within last 5
years
• Subject to affordable deed restriction
• Subject to any form of local rent or price control
• Subject to Ellis Act withdrawal in last 10 years
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SB 35 qualifying housing projects are processed ministerially under specified timelines.
Under SB 35, design review must be objective and is strictly focused on assessing compliance with those objective design standards published and adopted by ordinance or resolution at the time of project application. This means that SB 35 qualifying housing projects are not subject to review by the Architectural Review Board under the processes and findings set forth in Santa Monica Municipal Code Chapter 9.55.
Santa Monica’s RHNA & HCD’s SB 35 Determination
HCD is the agency charged with determining whether a jurisdiction is required to apply the streamlining provisions of SB 35 qualifying housing projects. Each year, HCD makes a determination based on the following:
• Has the jurisdiction submitted the most recent APR?
• Has the jurisdiction made sufficient progress toward RHNA or prorated RHNA? If a jurisdiction has failed to submit its most recent APR, then it would automatically be subject to SB35. In making the determination of whether sufficient progress has been made toward RHNA, SB 35 defines the reporting period as the first half of the RHNA cycle (i.e. 50% of RHNA or “prorated RHNA”) or the second half of the RHNA cycle (i.e. 100% of RHNA). Because the City is not yet halfway through the 6th Cycle RHNA, SB 35 compliance is based on the second half of the 5th Cycle RHNA (i.e. 100% of the 5th Cycle RHNA). This means that the City’s SB 35 compliance will not be updated again until the halfway point of the 6th Cycle RHNA, or in 2025. HCD considers anything less than 100% permitting progress toward 5th Cycle RHNA goals to be insufficient for purposes of SB 35. Thus in June 2023; HCD determined that the City did not make sufficient progress towards its 5th Cycle Housing Element RHNA for lower income housing. The following summary graphic displays the comparison of permits issued for housing units to the 5th Cycle RHNA. As shown, the City’s lower income RHNA target was 691 units, but the City issued permits for 545 lower income units. Therefore, at this time, development projects providing 50% of total on-site units as affordable to 6 of 14
households at or below 80% AMI are eligible for SB 35 streamlining in Santa Monica if they meet all of the eligibility criteria.
Figure 2: Progress Towards Meeting 5th Cycle RHNA (Source: HCD) To get a sense of future compliance, the below table shows the City’s progress towards meeting the 6th Cycle RHNA. HCD would evaluate the City’s progress at the halfway point of the 6th Cycle RHNA.
Santa Monica’s Progress Towards 6th Cycle RHNA as of November 2023 Approved Pending
In
construction*
(count towards
6th Cycle)
RHNA Remaining
Above Moderate 1,831 2,353 589 2,727 (2,046)
VLI 283 198 128 2,794 2,185
LI 152 80 28 1,672 1,412
Moderate 112 32 68 1,702 1,490
Total # of Units 2,378 2,663 813 8,895 3,041
5,854 Units Expected to Count Towards 6th Cycle HE
*building permits obtained after April 1, 2021
Excludes projects submitted under Builder’s Remedy
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Proposed Objective Design Standards for SB 35 Housing Projects (Greater than 50% affordable units)
The proposed objective design standards for SB 35 housing projects are not intended to replace existing development or objective design standards already in the zoning code.
Given that these standards apply only to SB 35 housing projects where more than 50% of the units are deed-restricted affordable units, the following objectives guided the creation of additional standards intended to replicate the ARB process:
• No replacement of existing objective design standards in zoning ordinance already extensively discussed throughout Housing Element process • Ensure that proposed standards are not a constraint on housing production • Ensure that proposed standards are within the scope of what the Architectural Review Board would typically review
Objective Design Standards (ODS) Program
On April 29, 2021, the City of Santa Monica was awarded a grant from the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) through the SCAG Sustainable Communities Program (SCP) program – Housing & Sustainable Development award, which provides direct technical assistance to SCAG member jurisdictions on planning and policy projects. The project seeks to help support participating cities with a greater understanding of the role of objective development and design standards in increasing housing production in Los Angeles County and throughout California. The project scope includes permit streamlining assistance, an online cost estimator tool, and the preparation of objective design standards. AECOM consultants have been assisting the City on this ODS Project with technical assistance in preparing the proposed SB 35 objective design standards for Council’s consideration.
Staff and AECOM have been developing objective design standards based on the public comments provided during the project’s initial outreach with the community, ARB, and Planning Commission. Below is a brief overview of the public meetings held for the ODS project to date:
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• On August 22, 2022, the City hosted a virtual community workshop with approximately 32 participants consisting of community members and stakeholders and provided an introduction to the Objective Design Standards project.
• On September 19, 2022, the Architectural Review Board held a study session on the ODS program and discussed the design features and concepts the Board is most interest in seeing developed in housing projects.
• On October 19, 2022, the Planning Commission held a study session on the introduction of the ODS Program and discussed design principals most important to the overall design of housing projects that should be evaluated as part of the ODS project.
• On October 26, 2023, the City hosted a second virtual community workshop with approximately 38 participants and discussed both SB 35 draft objective design standards and potential BAP conceptual design standards. • On November 6, 2023, the Architectural Review Board held a study session and provided comments on the draft SB 35 design standards and conceptual BAP design standards.
• On November 15, 2023, the Planning Commission held the first of two study sessions on objective design standards. The Commission was presented with and provided comments on draft SB 35 design standards that are the subject of this Emergency IZO currently proposed for City Council consideration. • On November 27, 2023, the City hosted a virtual community roundtable discussion including architects and affordable housing providers on the draft SB 35 objective design standards, with a particular focus on whether the draft standards would be workable and not present barriers to developing affordable 9 of 14
housing projects. Additional feedback received from affordable housing providers during this session has been incorporated into the proposed IZO standards. • On December 6, 2023, the Planning Commission held the second of two study sessions on objective design standards. The Commission was presented with and provided comments on an introduction to conceptual objective design standards for the Bergamot Area Plan (BAP) that will be evaluated in 2024 for possible adoption as part of Housing Element Program 1.E.
The purpose of the proposed Emergency Interim Zoning Ordinance and Resolution is to consider for adoption a set of objective design standards in coordination with Senate Bill 35 (SB 35) requirements and programs set forth in the 6th Cycle Housing Element. The proposed SB 35 objective design standards seek to ensure quality building design while addressing design-related issues often discussed by the Architectural Review Board (ARB) during the design review of housing projects. These design standards would apply exclusively to qualifying SB 35 projects providing at least 50% of its units as affordable. SB 35 projects are provided streamlined review and are exempt from any discretionary consideration, including ARB design review. These design standards are intended to implement the City’s design principles for housing projects absent the ARB’S review of qualifying SB 35 housing projects. In developing the standards, staff also focused on practicality, constructability and minimal additional cost so as not to create barriers to housing production.
Proposed SB 35 Objective Design Standards
The proposed SB 35 standards are based on common design-related issues that the ARB often discusses during its review of housing projects. Also included are standards that address recent changes in the zoning code for housing projects including the removal of restrictions that will allow ground floor residential units in non-residential districts. Additionally, in response to housing projects designing above-grade parking levels to reduce the cost of providing typical subterranean-level parking in density bonus projects, screening standards are proposed that seek to minimize its overall 10 of 14
appearance. These objective design standards are grouped into the following categories and are provided as Attachment B:
• Ground Floor: Residential and Commercial Entries and Design Elements:
Based on the recent zoning changes for housing projects in Spring 2022, ground floor residential restrictions have been removed and housing units are now allowed anywhere on the ground level in most non-residential zoning districts. As such, the establishment of ground floor design standards for residential uses facing the street are necessary to ensure that the ground floor is adequately designed and pedestrianoriented. Design standards are included for ground floors consisting of commercial uses and residential use where units are located at the sidewalk facing the street. • Facades: Transparency and Materials:
These standards address design details of façade materials, transitions, and overall visual interest. Transparency standards for both residential and commercial uses on the ground floor are proposed to ensure an active ground floor design. • Open Space: Roof Decks, Juliet Balconies, Landscaping, and Social Spaces:
The design and programming of open space for residential projects is critical to ensuring the quality of life for residents. In coordination with existing open space requirements, these standards seek to provide additional flexibility to ensure that the design of a project’s private and common open space are designed in a manner that maximizes resident use and enjoyment of the space. Balconet requirements are proposed as an alternate form of private open space other than traditional private balconies for residential units. Additionally, social space standards are included to ensure that common outdoor space is designed with adequate amenities (i.e. seating, cooking facilities, water features, play areas, etc.) that ensure the maximum use of these spaces by residents.
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• Parking: Entry Design and Screening of Above Grade Structured Parking:
These standards are intended to ensure that any above-grade parking levels proposed within housing projects are adequately screened and designed with materials that integrate well into the project’s design (minimize the appearance of parking levels above the ground floor).
Summary of ARB Study Session
The Architectural Review Board held a study session on November 6, 2023. The Board acknowledged that because the standards are likely to apply to projects with a significant percentage of affordable housing including 100% affordable housing, consideration should be given to focusing any requirements only on elevations that face a public street in order to ensure that objective design standards are not cost prohibitive.
The Board made a number of additional suggestions that have been incorporated into the draft standards. The comments focused on usability and constructability, while maintaining a high level of design. The ARB commented on standards for glazing at residential ground floor units, ensuring practicality where services such as trash are required, increasing clarity and flexibility in requirements for design of windows, common open space and landscaping.
Overall, staff is supportive of the Board’s comments and recommendations, and the standards have been revised accordingly.
Summary of Planning Commission Study Session
On November 15, 2023, the Planning Commission held a study session to review the proposed SB 35 objective design standards. The comments generally focused on ensuring practicality and to refrain from requirements that might add unreasonable costs or barriers to the development of housing and, in particular, for affordable housing development. The Commission also suggested additional intent statements for greater 12 of 14
clarity. Other comments included ensuring there would be no conflicts between design standards and other requirements, suggestions for additional refinements for pedestrian orientation at the street level, and for greater flexibility and practicality in common open space standards. Comments from the Planning Commission have been addressed in the proposed objective design standards.
Summary of Roundtable Discussion with Housing Providers On November 27, 2023, staff held a roundtable discussion with affordable housing providers and architects who are involved in designing such projects. The group provided key insight into specific operational requirements that enabled revisions to the standards to avoid unnecessary conflicts. Comments included flexibility for residential entries and for common open space requirements.
As a result of the comments received during the roundtable discussion, staff has made changes to the proposed objective design standards to provide more flexibility in achieving ground floor activation if there are ground floor residential units, created a sliding scale for landscape requirements, and added a definition of a shade tree.
Emergency Interim Zoning Ordinance and Resolution
Santa Monica is currently subject to SB 35 for qualifying housing projects with at least 50% affordable housing. Therefore, the proposed Emergency Interim Zoning ordinance (EIZO) will authorize Council to establish, by Resolution, objective design standards for housing projects that qualify for and elect to use the streamlined, ministerial approval process established by SB 35 and is intended to ensure that objective design standards are immediately in effect upon adoption of the ordinance. Staff further recommends adoption of the separate Resolution establishing the objective design review standards that will be applicable to qualifying projects that elect to use the SB 35 process. While staff has conducted multiple study sessions and community engagement on the proposed standards, the EIZO and Resolution allow the SB 35 objective design standards to be revisited for improvements upon further evaluation as necessary. 13 of 14
Because housing projects that opt in to the streamlined, ministerial approval process established by the housing projects must only be reviewed against objective design standards (in addition to compliance with other development standards) and are not subject to the City’s standard architectural review process, without objective design standards, housing projects could be approved without any design review that is intended to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community.
Environmental Analysis
The proposed approval of the EIZO and Resolution to establish objective design standards for qualifying SB 35 projects is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines (common sense exemption). Based on the evidence in the record, it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the proposed interim ordinance may have a significant effect on the environment. The proposed ordinance and resolution are administrative and regulatory in nature in that they establish objective design standards to ensure that future SB 35 projects will be subject to design review consistent with SB
35. The objective design standards to not alter development standards for housing projects previously analyzed as part of the 2021-2029 6th Cycle Housing Element Environmental Impact Report (EIR) [SCH No. 20212269242021] that was certified by Council on October 12, 2021, with an Addendum to the EIR approved on October 11, 2022. Therefore, no further environmental review under CEQA is required.
Financial Impacts
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the recommended action.
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Prepared By: Jing Yeo, Planning Manager
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. SB 35 Objective Design Standards Emergency IZO
B. SB 35 Objective Design Standards Resolution
C. PowerPoint Presentation