Commission calls for housing change

The Newport Beach planning commission voted Thursday to recommend the City Council reduce the city’s goal for affordable housing in its general plan from 20% to 15%.

In a 4-3 vote, the commission voted to recommend the reduction unless the public rejects the general plan update on the November ballot. Commissioners Jeffrey Cole, Barry Eaton, Larry Tucker and Michael Henn voted for the reduction, while Earl McDaniel, Robert Hawkins and Chairman Michael Toerge voted against.

The council, which can either accept or reject the commission’s recommendation, will take the matter up at a future meeting.

The state requires cities to assess their housing needs, analyze the population by age and income level and set a goal as to how many low- and moderate-income housing units the city will need in future years. The state must approve the housing element of a city’s general plan, the roadmap for future development in the city. The city cannot build the affordable housing itself, but it does set objectives and offer incentives for developers to do so.

At Thursday’s planning commission meeting, commissioners debated whether the goal of having 20% of new development qualify as affordable housing would place an undue burden on property owners and asked how neighboring cities with lower goals ? commissioners said Irvine’s goal is 10% and Huntington Beach’s 15% ? were able to get their general plans approved by the state.

Commissioner Larry Tucker, who made the successful motion, opened the debate by asking how other cities could set their affordable housing goals at lower levels.

“It appears to me that our numbers are on the high side,” Tucker said, adding it’s not fair to the public for the numbers to be on the low side either. He said 15% would be a better number than 20%.”It’s very clear there is no right number,” said commissioner Michael Henn, who also said the city should not set an “arbitrary” number.

Hawkins said he agreed the city should not “unnecessarily burden” property owners with regulatory requirements that don’t seem to “make a lot of sense.” He suggested, however, the city wait and look at the affordable housing goals when more current information on age, income and other variables are available in two years.

Hawkins first moved to leave the affordable housing goal at 20%, but Tucker made a substitute motion to drop the number to 15%, which passed.

The commissioners linked the recommendation to the November ballot because if the general plan does not win voter approval, the city would have to redo its assessment with respect to the need for affordable housing.