Big news! We’ve added new housing program data - check them out under “Housing Programs” on each city page.
Housing programs are the strategies 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 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 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.
Use the below data to explore this jurisdiction’s approaches to affirmatively furthering fair housing for the 6th element cycle, and review the actions, deliverables, and deadlines committed to for each program.
PROGRAM NUMBER | ACTIONS | DELIVERABLE | DELIVERABLE DATE |
---|---|---|---|
H-1 | The City will monitor the Sites Inventory annually, and as projects are processed through the Planning and Economic Development, to ensure sufficient capacity is maintained to accommodate the City’s remaining RHNA numbers. Should the City fall into a no-net-loss situation, within 180 days, the City will identify a replacement site to ensure the remaining RHNA is being met. | The City will monitor the Sites Inventory annually, and as projects are processed through the Planning and Economic Development, to ensure sufficient capacity is maintained to accommodate the City’s remaining RHNA numbers. Should the City fall into a no-net-loss situation, within 180 days, the City will identify a replacement site to ensure the remaining RHNA is being met. | Annually monitor and as projects are processed |
H-2 | The City shall help facilitate consolidation of small lots in the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan to allow development to utilize the land more efficiently, achieve economies of scale, and offer opportunity for improved site design and amenities. The City encourages the consolidation of small lots to facilitate the development of mixed-use and multifamily developments, particularly for affordable housing by: ● Maintaining an inventory of sites on the City’s website. ● Assisting developers in identification of parcels with lot consolidation potential. ● Continuing to utilize a ministerial process for lot consolidation unless other discretionary reviews are required as part of the project. | Objective: 100 lower-income units in the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan to improve housing mobility and reduce displacement due to overcrowding and overpayment. | By the end of 2024, consider appropriate lot consolidation incentives to facilitate mixed use development. Promote the program through dissemination of brochures at public counters and providing information on City website. |
H-3 | The City shall incentivize development of residential units in mixed-use projects in the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan. The program shall create incentives for residential and mixed-use infill development, including but not limited to: ● Priority project processing ● Deferral of development impact or permit fees ● Flexibility in development standards such as parking, setbacks, and landscaping requirements ● Density and intensity bonuses ● Support for infrastructure upgrades | Objective: 10 very-low- income units, 10 low-income units, and 78 moderate income units to improve access to high resource areas including the downtown for lower-income households and increase housing mobility opportunities. | Timeframe: Reach out to developers to obtain feedback by January 2024, develop incentives by October 2024, review annually and amend as needed. |
H-4 | Facilitate higher-density and affordable housing development in the Opportunity Areas identified within the Downtown Station Area Specific Plan and within other Priority Development Areas (PDAs), which include sites near the rail transit corridor and on regional/arterial streets for convenient access to bus and rail transit. | Objective: 10 very-low- income units, 10 low-income units, and 78 moderate income units to improve access to high resource areas for lowerincome households and increase housing mobility opportunities. | Ongoing, as projects are processed. |
H-5 | The city will promote the construction of affordable ADUs through the following actions, which are aimed at providing an increased supply of affordable units throughout the city, thereby increasing access to high resource established neighborhoods outside of the Downtown and Opportunity zone areas and help reduce displacement risk for low-income households. ● Continue to implement a multilingual public information and proactive outreach campaign via the City’s website and other outlets to inform property owners of the standards for ADU development, permitting procedures, construction resources, and the importance of ADUs to Santa Rosa, including ADUs affordable to lower-income households. ● Collaborate with Napa Sonoma ADU to offer residents pre-reviewed plans and provide incentives to residents using these pre-reviewed plans. ● Consider providing funding to assist with the ongoing Napa Sonoma ADU services. ● Provide information and offer review of resident’s homes floor plan to encourage residents to apply for ADUs, particularly where their homes already include space that is configured for a conforming ADU (e.g., carriage houses, au pair quarters, second kitchens on floors with separate entrances). ● Develop multilingual outreach material for public dissemination, including updates to the City’s website, information at City Hall and via other appropriate print and digital media, particularly directed to historically underrepresented communities (such as residents of Central and Southwestern Santa Rosa) and in collaboration with local agencies serving such communities (such as the Community Action Partnership of Sonoma County). ● Identify incentives for construction of ADUs with new development, which may include differing collection of impact fees for the square footage associated with the ADU until issuance of the certificate of occupancy. ● Monitor ADU production and affordability every other year and adjust or expand the focus of the education and outreach efforts. If needed, identify additional sites and to accommodate the unmet portion of the lowerincome RHNA. | Objective: 519 ADUs to improve housing mobility and reduce displacement risk. Ensure distribution of ADUs includes 200 ADUs in areas that are proximate to services and employment opportunities for lower- and moderate-income households, and incentivize 100 ADUs in high resource, predominantly single-family neighborhoods to promote housing mobility opportunities for lower- and moderate-income households. | Make ADU materials available by December 2023 and implement proactive outreach campaign by June 2024; identify funding source by June 2023, evaluate effectiveness of ADU approvals and affordability every other year, starting April 2024 and identify additional site capacity, if needed, by 2025. |
H-6 | Explore innovative and alternative housing options that provide greater flexibility and affordability in the housing stock. This may include consideration for further reduction in regulatory barriers for tiny houses, inclusionary housing, microhomes, housing cooperatives, and other alternative housing types as well as explore a variety of densities and housing types in all zoning districts. The city will also consider amending the Zoning Code to allow movable tiny homes to be considered an ADU. The city will use the findings of this program to target development of a variety of housing types in areas of concentrated overpayment to reduce displacement risk as well as promote inclusion and support integration of housing types based on income to facilitate mobility opportunities in high resource areas and areas of high median income to support integration of housing types based on income to facilitate mobility opportunities. | Objective: 200 lower income units to improve housing mobility and reduce displacement risk, aiming for at least 50 in close proximity to jobs, transit, and other services and 50 integrated into predominantly single-family, and higher income areas. | Explore innovative and alternative housing options to help further housing production by December 2024, amend the zoning ordinance as needed. |
H-7 | The City shall strive to receive and maintain through the sunset date of January 1, 2025, the State’s Prohousing Designation by demonstrating a sufficient number of polices that significantly contribute to accelerating housing production. Jurisdictions that receive a Prohousing Designation will receive incentives in the form of additional points or other preferences in the scoring of competitive State funding grant programs in the areas of housing, transportation, infrastructure, and land use. | Objective: Increase the City’s competitiveness in receiving affordable housing funding from the State. | Initiate application in 2023 and maintain designation through sunset date of January 1, 2025. |
H-8 | Pursuant to Government Code Section 65583.2(c), any non-vacant sites identified in the prior fifth Cycle or vacant sites identified two or more consecutive planning periods, shall be provided by-right development when at least 20 percent of the units in the proposed development are affordable to lower-income households. | Pursuant to Government Code Section 65583.2(c), any non-vacant sites identified in the prior fifth Cycle or vacant sites identified two or more consecutive planning periods, shall be provided by-right development when at least 20 percent of the units in the proposed development are affordable to lower-income households. | Upon adoption of the Housing Element. |
H-9 | To facilitate the development of large lots for affordable housing and provide for development phasing for development of 50 to 150 units, the City will give high priority to processing housing developments that include housing for all income levels on lots larger than 10 acres, specifically site 7, and provide incentives on a case-by-case basis for development of high-density residential on large sites. The City will provide technical assistance and incentives to subdivide parcels in the housing sites inventory larger than 10 acres for projects including affordable housing. The City will offer expedited review for the subdivision of larger sites into buildable lots as long as the development is consistent with City land use and environmental regulations, and priority processing for subdivision maps including affordable housing. To ensure the program is successful, the city will reach out to developers annually, and as projects are processed, of affordable housing and incorporate necessary strategies such as ministerial lot splits or other incentives. | Objective: 250 lower-income units to reduce displacement risk | Ongoing, as projects are processed through the Planning and Economic Development Department and incentives will be adopted within one year of adoption of the Housing Element. Annually meet with developers and incorporate and revise strategies at least every two years. |
H-10 | Continue the Code Enforcement activities monitoring housing and neighborhood conditions through enforcement of the Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP), a coordinated inter-departmental City task force lead by Code Enforcement. NRP's mission is to improve living conditions and quality of life in focus neighborhoods throughout the City, resulting in safer environments and increased property values. NRP focuses on eight neighborhoods in Central Santa Rosa, which corresponds to areas with higher concentration of communities of color (specifically, a predominant Hispanic population) and some of the lowest median incomes in the city. Through this effort, the City will continue to target improving housing conditions in areas of need to facilitate place-based revitalization and assist in reducing displacement risk for these residents by improving living conditions and enabling them to remain in their home and community. Code Enforcement staff shall continue to provide property owners and tenants with information on how to rectify violations, who to contact in Code Enforcement for assistance, and other resources that may be pertinent to the citation, particularly available housing repair assistance and subsidy programs for lower-income, senior and disabled households. | Objective: Rehabilitate 200 housing units (25 extremely low income, 25 very low income, 75 low income, and 75 moderate income) through the NRP Program, targeting neighborhoods with an older housing stock, such as in the West End, Cherry Street, St. Rose, Railroad Square, Olive Park, Burbank Gardens, and Ridgway, and provide grants to at least four households with disabilities annually, reducing displacement. | Pursue funding for additional assistance annually and as notices of funding availability (NOFAs) are made available. Provide information on the City’s website by June 2023, printed materials by December 2023, update annually as needed. |
H-11 | To ensure the City has an accurate percentage of the homes in need of rehabilitation and replacement, the City will complete a Housing Conditions Survey in older neighborhoods and neighborhoods with lower median incomes, to evaluate rehabilitation need. Based on findings of the focused evaluation, the City will identify measures to encourage housing preservation, conservation, and acquisition rehabilitation, and mitigate potential costs, displacement and relocation impacts on residents. These measures may include, but are not limited to: ● Streamline permit review for home repairs on housing units identified during the conditions survey. ● Seek funding to offer relocation assistance to low-income tenants or owners displaced during rehabilitation efforts. ● Seek funding to develop a housing rehabilitation program (see H-9). | Objective: See program H-10, and program H-12. | Complete a Housing Conditions Survey by December 2023 and determine next steps by June 2024. |
H-12 | The city will pursue funding to reinstate the Housing Rehabilitation and Conservation Program (HRCP) and the Loan Program to promote conservation and rehabilitation of the existing housing stock. The city will continue to offer the Housing Accessibility Modification Grant Program to assist low-income renters with disabilities. The city will advertise the programs on the City’s website, add social media posts to the City’s account and include information in the quarterly newsletter. The city will also distribute information in multiple languages on the available programs in areas of concentrated rehabilitation need, where the need for rehabilitation may be greatest, such as in the Downtown/Station area and the City’s older neighborhoods in southwestern Santa Rosa. Additionally, seek opportunities to reinstate the Housing Authority’s rehabilitation loan program toimprove residential energy conservation and develop programs to assist low-income households and rental properties in meeting weatherization and energy conservation and preservation needs. | Objective: Rehabilitate 500 housing units (150 extremely low income, 150 very low income, 100 low income, and 100 moderate income) annually and provide grants to at least four households with disabilities annually, reducing displacement. Target at least half of these units to be rehabilitated in areas of concentrated poverty, overpayment, and where rehabilitation need is greatest, such as in older neighborhoods and the Downtown/Station area. | Ongoing; provide information on the City’s website by January 2023, printed materials by March 2023, updating each annually or as changes are made. Pursue funding for additional assistance annually and as notices of funding availability (NOFAs) are made available. |
H-13 | Encourage the preservation of mobile home parks through the Conversion of Mobile Home Parks Ordinance. | Objective: Preserve 1,573 mobile home spaces (787 moderate income spaces, 262 low-income spaces, 262 very low-income spaces, and 262 extremely low-income spaces) to conserve as affordable housing. | Implement City’s Mobile Home Parks Conversion ordinance on a project-by-project basis. |
H-14 | The Housing and Community Services Division will continue the Mobile home Park Rent Review Program to establish the maximum base rent allowed in mobile home parks on an annual basis for spaces that are under a rental agreement with a term of 12 months or less. The City shall encourage affected residents to convene quarterly meetings to assure that the amount of rent charged at mobile home parks does not increase more than the amount set forth in the Mobile Home Park Rent Control Ordinance. This information will be shared back with the Department of Housing and Community Services. In implementing this program, the County is protecting affordable housing options (17 privately owned mobile home parks with 2,155 mobile home spaces), supporting anti-displacement efforts and furthering fair housing. | Objective: Reduce displacement risk for residents of 17 mobile home parks. | Undertake an update of the Mobile Home Rent Control Ordinance to review the annual rent increases and the maximum base rent allowed upon an in-place transfer of ownership of a mobile home for each year. |
H-15 | The City shall work proactively and continue to maintain and update the affordable housing database as a mechanism to monitor and identify units at risk of losing their affordability subsidies or requirements. For complexes at risk of converting to market rate, the City shall: ● Contact property owners of units at risk of converting to market-rate housing within one year of affordability expiration to discuss the City’s desire to preserve complexes as affordable housing. ● Coordinate with owners of expiring subsidies to ensure the required notices to tenants are sent out at 3 years, 12 months, and 6 months. ● Reach out to agencies interested in purchasing and/or managing at-risk units. ● Work with tenants to provide multilingual education regarding tenant rights and conversion procedures pursuant to California law. | Objective: Preserve 319 units as affordable housing. | The City will prepare the Risk Assessments biannually by January and July of each year, ongoing work with responsible entities to ensure tenants receive education of housing rights and preservation/acquisition status. |
H-16 | Utilize the Santa Rosa Housing Trust to maximize and leverage available federal, state, and local funding to assist in the development of affordable housing, the preservation and rehabilitation of low-income housing, the development and maintenance of homeless shelters, and the acquisition and development of facilities for the physically and developmentally disabled. Implement a system to track projects supported by the Santa Rosa Housing Trust, including units by affordability category. | Objective: Use Santa Rosa Housing Trust with other funding sources to support development of 300 total units over the planning period, including 150 units for lower-income households (50 units of extremely low-income housing, 50 units of very low-income housing, and 50 units of low-income housing) and 150 units of the 771 units affordable to moderate-income households. Target at least 150 units affordable lower- and moderate-income households in predominantly single-family, affluent neighborhoods, including eastern portions of the city. | Implement tracking system for Santa Rosa Housing Trust funds by December 2023; Ongoing, allocate funds annually and as affordable projects are proposed. |
H-17 | The city will develop a system to review and document the number of affordable units annually. The system will track projects approved, including ADUs, the number of affordable units by income level, and the various funding sources. | The city will develop a system to review and document the number of affordable units annually. The system will track projects approved, including ADUs, the number of affordable units by income level, and the various funding sources. | Annually, starting in July 2023 and continuing through the planning period. |
H-18 | Implement the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance to increase the number of affordable units in Santa Rosa, through collection of residential in-lieu fees and commercial linkage fees. Use fees generated for the development of housing units affordable to extremely low-, very low-, and lowincome households. Continue to track the projects supported by the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance fee programs, including number of units by affordability category. Evaluate the feasibility and consider requiring onsite inclusionary units once a minimum of 6 units is reached. | Objective: Use Residential In-Lieu fees and Commercial Linkage fees to support development of 400 affordable units over the planning period, including 50 extremely low-income units, 75 very low-income units, and 75 very low-income units of the 1,919 units affordable to lower-income households and 100 units of the 771 units affordable to moderate-income households. Target at least 150 units affordable lower- and moderate-income households in predominantly single-family, affluent neighborhoods, including eastern portions of the city. | Ongoing, as development proposals are received. Evaluate the possibility of an onsite inclusionary requirement by December 2024, make revisions by June 2025. |
H-19 | In partnership with a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) and non-profit asset manager, utilize tax exempt bonds to fund: (1) the acquisition of existing market-rate apartment complexes and restrict future rents to be affordable to households that earn very low to moderate incomes, and (2) the construction of new development of deed-restricted affordable housing. In order for asset managers to access these types of bonds, Cities must join a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) and authorize the JPA to issue these bonds on behalf of the City. The JPA, in partnership with the non-profit asset manager, then purchases the apartment complex, using only money from the bond financing, and sets the rents to be affordable to low- to moderateincome households. | Objective: Target at least 150 units affordable lower- and moderateincome households in predominantly single-family, affluent neighborhoods, including eastern portions of the city. | Establish JPA structure or join existing JPA by July 2023 Implement construction or acquisition projects. |
H-20 | Work with housing developers to expand opportunities for affordable lower-income housing for special-needs groups, including persons with physical and developmental disabilities, femaleheaded households, large families, extremely low-income households, and persons experiencing homelessness by creating partnerships, providing incentives, and pursuing funding opportunities. ● Prioritize projects that are in areas with currently low percentages of renteroccupied households to facilitate housing mobility and integration of ownership and rental units, primarily north and northeastern Santa Rosa (areas considered RCAAs as identified in the Assessment of Fair Housing). ● Support affordable housing development for special-needs groups throughout the city, including in areas that are predominantly single-family residential. The target populations include seniors; persons with disabilities, including developmental disabilities; female-headed households; and persons experiencing homelessness to reduce the displacement risk for these residents from their existing homes and communities. ● Promote the use of the density bonus ordinance, application process streamlining, fee deferrals, and consider development fee exemption for projects that are 100 percent affordable to encourage affordable housing, with an emphasis on encouraging affordable housing in high-resource areas and areas with limited rental opportunities currently. ● Facilitate the approval process for land divisions, lot line adjustments, and/or specific plans or master plans resulting in parcel sizes that enable affordable housing development and process fee deferrals related to the subdivision for projects affordable to lower-income households. ● Give priority to permit processing for projects providing affordable housing for special-needs groups. ● Work with public or private sponsors to identify candidate sites for new construction of housing for special needs and take all actions necessary to expedite processing of such projects. ● Encourage residential development near parks, open space, transit routes, civic uses, social services, grocery stores, and other health resources. ● Partner with nonprofit and for-profit affordable housing developers to support their financing applications for state and federal grant programs, tax-exempt bonds, and other programs that become available. ● Pursue federal, state, and private funding for low- and moderate-income housing by applying for state and federal monies for direct support of lower-income housing construction and rehabilitation, specifically for development of housing affordable to extremely low-income households. | Objective: Development of 850 units of 1,919 units affordable to special-needs, lower-income households to reduce displacement risk for these populations. Target 300 units in close proximity to services and transit, and 200 are in higher-income, predominantly single-family neighborhoods to promote mobility opportunities. | Ongoing, as projects are processed by the City. Annually apply for funding and annually engage with housing developers. |