SB 10 will allow up to 10 units on lots zoned for single-family housing — if it’s near a transit-rich area.
On Thursday, Governor Newsom signed SB 10 into law, allowing cities to approve up to 10 dwellings on single-family lots near “transit-rich areas.” Written by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Senate Bill 10 allows local governments to override voter-approved initiatives on rezoning and bypass the California Environmental Quality Act review process.
According to the bill’s text, there is no limit on the number of parcels used for this purpose.
Several community groups are opposed to the law. During a meeting at La Jolla’s Bird Rock Community Council, residents expressed concern that the bill “contains no parking requirement if a development location is within a half-mile of a transit line and no height limit for the additional developments, though there is a 30-foot height limit in La Jolla because it is in the coastal zone.”
Additionally, according to the LA Conservancy, SB 10 severely weakens existing protections for historic places, “as it allows communities to bypass CEQA review for a critical stage in the redevelopment process, and will undoubtedly directly result in the demolition and loss of historic resources.”
Wiener stated that the intention is to combat California’s severe housing shortage. “SB 10 provides one important approach: making it dramatically easier and faster for cities to zone for more housing. It shouldn’t take five or 10 years for cities to re-zone, and SB 10 gives cities a powerful new tool to get the job done quickly,” he said.
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