Housing policies and programs are the strategies and laws that cities and counties legally have at their disposal to produce more and preserve existing affordable housing, as well as protect existing residents from getting displaced from their homes and communities.
Local housing policies and programs, as part of a housing element, have significant impacts on a city or county reaching its affordable housing goals. Each additional housing policy has a significant impact on the residents who are most in need of affordable housing. However, the number of policies or programs that a jurisdiction includes in their housing element is not meant to imply how well a city or county is addressing local housing needs since the quality and impact of each will need to be determined as well. Policies and programs listed here from jurisdictions’ Housing Elements are intended to allow readers to review the text themselves and see if a city or county is doing all they can to reach their affordable housing goals.
To further policy innovation and local action, the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) contacted all of the region's jurisdictions to track the adoption of key housing policies throughout the nine county Bay Area in four major categories Protect, Preserve, Produce, and Prevent. This data is from ABAG’s Policies and Program list and was last updated in 2018/2019.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development tracks all of the ongoing and completed programs from 2018 onward and can be seen in the table below.
YEAR | PROGRAM NAME | PROGRAM OBJECTIVE | STATUS | ACCOMPLISHED DATE | HOUSING CYCLE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 1.E Weatherization Program | Continue the partnership with the cities of Berkeley and Emeryville to provide weatherization assistance to low
income Albany households. | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.E Public Information Campaign | Continue to develop and implement a Housing Opportunities Public Information Campaign. The purpose of this action is to disseminate information to Albany residents and business and commercial property owners about housing programs and the need for affordable housing, special needs housing, and emergency shelter. Typical campaign actions would include publication and distribution of flyers, workshops and town meetings, creation of committees or working groups addressing housing issues, participating in an annual Affordable Housing Week, and | on-going | 2016 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.H Land Assembly and Lot
Consolidation | Continue to work with interested property owners to encourage the assembly of underutilized parcels and their consolidation into single parcels marketable potential housing sites, especially along the San Pablo Avenue corridor | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.J Second Unit Rents | Conduct a survey of second unit rents every three years to determine the extent to which they may be counted as affordable to lower and moderate income households for the purposes of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation | Surveys conducted in 2015 and 2018. In addition, staff monitors rental listings to monitor rental market conditions. Staff also utilizes an ABAG prepared rent survey of ADUS in the San Francisco Bay Area prepared in 2021. | 2017 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.B Second Units | Explore, and if feasible adopt, additional changes to the City's second unit regulations and permitting policies to facilitate the construction of both attached and detached units, including manufactured, modular, and pre-fabricated dwellings. In addition, consider provisions for reduced fees, fee waivers, and other concessions for owners who agree to rent-restrict their units to a very low income household for a period of at least 10 years | Amendments to regulations completed. City defers to more permissive state law. | 2017 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.H Capital Improvement Plan | Prepare and periodically update a Capital Improvement Plan to define upcoming projects and funding needs. | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 5.A Fair Housing Services | Continue to work with Eden Council for Hope and Opportunity (ECHO) in the administration of fair housing services to Albany residents. Publicize these services in the quarterly Albany newsletter, on the website and through direct mail if feasible, and through other media at City Hall, the Albany Library, the Albany Community Center, and other important social centers in the city. Make fair housing materials available to local organizations for distribution to their members and those who they serve | On-going. ECHO has been retained to provide fair housing services as well as to administer rent review program. Training for interested members of the public have been held in 2017 and 2020. Training also incorporated into recent community meetings on rent review program | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 5.E Rent Review Board Feasibility | Evaluate the feasibility of creating a rent review board to mediate instances of rapid rent increases | Program adopted in 2018 and implemented in 2019. | 2018 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 1.A Code Enforcement. Maintain building and housing code enforcement programs | Maintain building and housing code enforcement programs. | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.D Affordable Housing Incentive Program | Evaluate, and if feasible implement, an Affordable Housing Incentive Program (AHIP) focused on the SC and SPC zoning districts. | San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan completed in July 2022. Development standards include incentives for provision of affordable housing. | 2017 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 3.D Section 8 Program | Continue to participate in the Section 8 voucher program, which provides assistance to very low income tenants through rent subsidies paid directly to landlords. Provide outreach and informational materials to residents eligible to participate in the program and encourage the Alameda County Housing Authority to expand the availability of vouchers for Albany residents | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.I General Plan Consistency | Ensure that future amendments to the General Plan consider potential impacts on the Housing Element, particularly the viability of development on the Housing Opportunity Sites. Conversely, ensure that any future amendments to the Housing Element include amendments to other elements of the Plan as necessary to maintain internal consistency | General plan update Completed in 2016. Amendments adopted in 2022 to accommodate increased density provisions prepared as part of the San Pablo Specific Plan. | 2015 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 5.C Removal of Impediments to Fair Housing | Implement appropriate recommendations from the 2010 Alameda County Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice report. | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.A Inclusionary Zoning | Continue implementation of an inclusionary housing program which requires 15% of proposed units in for-sale projects with seven units or more to be made affordable to low income households, and which requires payment of an in-lieu fee for 5-6 unit projects. Explore revisions to the program to ensure that it is achieving desired outcomes, is compliant with inclusionary zoning case law and statutes, and is responsive to changes in the housing market | Inclusionary housing requirement in place. Nexus fee study completed in 2017. No changes to ordinance required. Zoning applications are encouraged to include inclusionary units in projects rather than payment of in-lieu fee. | 2016 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.F Mortgage Credit Certificate Program | Continue to participate in the Alameda County HCD Mortgage Credit Certificate Program, which provides home ownership opportunities for moderate income first time home buyers | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 2.G Technical Assistance | Work with local non-profit developers to identify potential housing sites, and to pursue available funding, including CDBG and HOME funds, for the construction of affordable housing | Provisions of a Development and Disposition Agreement fulfilled and long term ground lease executed for development of a 62 unit affordable housing project. | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 3.C Room Rentals and Home Sharing | Continue to allow the renting of rooms in private homes to provide affordable housing opportunities for students, seniors, non-traditional households, extremely low income households, and others. Support the use of home-sharing services to pair those seeking housing with those with available space | on-going | 2023 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.D Evaluation of Mixed Use Standards | Consider, and if appropriate adopt, additional modifications to the development standards for mixed use development (e.g., residential over commercial) to further incentivize the development of housing, including housing affordable to low, very low, and extremely low income households, on commercially zoned sites | San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan completed in July 2022. Specific plan includes objective design standards. | 2016 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.F Parking Ballot Measure | Pursue a 2016 ballot measure to revise the two space per unit residential parking standard required by Measure D (1978). This revision would recommend more proportional ways to calculate parking requirements (e.g., based upon unit size, number of bedrooms, unit type, and the population served, with special exemptions for senior housing, proximity to transit, or available land
for parking in the immediate neighborhood). | Completed in 2016. Voters approved ballot measure and implementing ordinance approved in 2017. | 2016 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |
| 2022 | 4.G Incentives for Affordable Housing | Continue to provide reduced fees and expedited processing procedures for affordable housing. Review the impact
of these incentives every four years and revise them as necessary. | Completed. | 2015 | 5th cycle, 2013 to 2022 |