The Mayor’s Program to Eliminate Single Family Zoning and Tear Down Entry-Level Houses
War on Homeowners
The Mayor’s Misguided Housing Programs
Mayor Todd Gloria and his advisers have repeatedly created policies intended to eliminate single family zoning.
They first extended the definition of a backyard unit to mean “unlimited number of ADUs”. Then the mayor directed the Planning Department to create a program based on state SB10.
The mayor believes that anyone who owns a house on a lot is part of a racist system. He appears unaware that the current Community Plans and zoning allow for about 200,000 more housing units, which is vastly morethan the forecast need. So developers can build on thousands of lots, in all 50 communities, on land which is already zoned for multi-family housing.
- SB10. This was an optional state program, intended to eliminate single family zoning. It was so bad that no city in California adopted it. Intense public pressure and a disapproval from the San Diego Planning Commission led to the plan’s cancelation. But mayor Todd Gloria is now promoting a similar plan.
- Son of SB 10. Racist accusations
The mayor is seeking a $7 million federal grant to promote a new plan. It would allow up to 9 units on single-family lots. Here’s the divisive and racist rationale of the mayor:
… white communities that benefited from racist-redlining principles continue to resist land use changes …
Is the mayor helping residents? Here’s what’s actually happening in lower income neighborhoods:
- Houses are torn down and replaced by rental projects.
- Investors buy houses and add ADUs. As a result, affordable “starter homes” become rental properties which only investors can afford to buy.
- Home ownership opportunities are reduced every time a house is torn down, or made part of a multi-unit rental property.
In the end, while Mayor Todd is talking about “housing for all”, he is creating a “city of renters” who won’t be able to take the step to home ownership.