DRAFT Housing ELEMENT

The City of Culver City is updating its Housing Element to plan for housing between 2021 and 2029. The Housing Element is a part of the City's General Plan Update (GPU) and is the City's blueprint to identify housing conditions and needs; establish the goals, objectives, and policies that are the foundation of the City's housing strategy; and provide a range of programs to create sustainable, varied-income neighborhoods across the city. Possible changes to single-family zoning are being studied as part of the GPU project's preferred land use map, which informed the Housing Element sites inventory.

What’s new

At the January 6, 2022 Planning Commission hearing, the Planning Commission considered the 2021-2029 Housing Element, environmental documentation, staff report, and public testimony and recommended that the City Council adopt the 2021-2029 Housing Element and its Negative Declaration, with a few additional recommendations, by a vote of 4 to 1. The additional recommendations included the following:

  • The Housing Element not establish a 3-4 unit floor for multifamily development in multifamily zones (vote of 4 to 1). The Commissioners who opposed the floor stated that setting a floor would pose a hardship to property owners. The Commissioner who supported setting a floor noted that it aligned with City Council’s recommendations at the December 10, 2021 meeting.

  • Culver City not allow four-plexes by-right through incremental infill (vote of 4 to 1). The Commissioners who opposed allowing four-plexes by-right expressed support for applying the incremental infill definition, as defined in the Housing Element. As noted in the Housing Element, up to four units are allowed through incremental infill, provided that the fourth unit is affordable. The Commissioner who voted to allow four-plexes by-right stated that they would support incremental infill if the fourth unit was not required to be affordable as that may not be financially feasible.

  • Support for redeveloping shopping centers and redevelopment in commercial and industrial districts as opportunity sites while offering special development incentives and all five supported streamlining projects (vote of 5 to 0).

At the January 24, 2022 City Council public hearing, the City Council will review the Planning Commission’s recommendations from the January 6, 2022 Planning Commission public hearing and determine whether to adopt the 2021-2029 Housing Element Update for submittal to the HCD.

Before the City can approve a plan, like a Housing Element, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires that the City study the plan's potential impacts on the environment and find ways to avoid or reduce any expected environmental damage. The Housing Element will not result in changes in the land use designations or development. An environmental review conducted through an Initial Study and Negative Declaration (IS/ND) found that the plan would not result in significant environmental impacts.

The public comment period on the Draft Housing Element environmental document was open from October 7 through November 8. You can review digital copies of the Draft Housing Element and IS/ND and related noticing on the GPU project website and hard copies at City Hall at the Current Planning Division counter on the Second Floor and the Culver City Julian Dixon Library. If you'd like to pick up a hard copy from City Hall, please contact Advance Planning Division staff at (310) 253-5740 or [email protected]. The Advance Planning Division is located on the Third Floor of City Hall at 9770 Culver Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232-0507 (handicap accessible location). City Hall business hours are 7:30 AM – 5:30 PM, Monday through Friday, except alternate Fridays.

BACKGROUND – DRAFT HOUSING ELEMENT

The City received public comments on the draft Housing Element from July 19 to October 1, 2021; submitted a revised draft based on community input to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) on September 10 for their 60-day review; and updated the City Council on September 27. After receiving the Planning Commission’s recommendation, the City Council directed the site inventory be revised to remove properties in the Culver Crest Residential Hillside Zone and a few added sites were removed based on project status and further feasibility review. The Culver Crest Residential Hillside zone prohibits accessory dwelling units (ADUs) due to findings related to fire hazard, slope, and emergency access. The removed sites and an updated Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) capacity summary are posted below.

Below is the City’s second draft of the 2021-2029 Housing Element. The second draft incorporated community feedback gathered in July and August 2021 and from the General Plan Advisory Committee, Housing Technical Advisory Committee, the Advisory Committee on Housing and Homelessness, the Planning Commission, and public comments on the first online draft. The GPU team considered all the diverse perspectives reflected in the community’s input and revised technical aspects wherever feasible before submitting this second draft to HCD. Revisions include but are not limited to: the Housing Plan, Sites Inventory, Public Participation, and Fair Housing Assessment. View the revised draft below.

HCD assigned Analyst Shawn Danino to review the draft.

Next steps

After presenting updates on the 2021-2029 Housing Element to the Planning Commission on November 30, 2021 and the City Council on December 10, 2021, the City prepared a final, third version of the 2021-2029 Housing Element, considering public, Planning Commission, City Council, and HCD comments. On January 6, 2022, the Planning Commission considered the final draft and recommended that the City Council consider it for adoption on January 24, 2022. Upon adoption, the City will submit the Housing Element to HCD to review for substantial compliance with State law. The City will also prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the remaining GPU Elements and will release a Notice of Preparation.

Updates and Resources

  • At the January 24, 2022 City Council public hearing, the City Council will review the Planning Commission’s recommendations from the January 6, 2022 Planning Commission public hearing and determine whether to adopt the 2021-2029 Housing Element Update for submittal to the HCD.

  • At the January 6, 2022 Planning Commission hearing, the Planning Commission considered the 2021-2029 Housing Element, environmental documentation, staff report, and public testimony, and recommended that the City Council adopt the 2021-2029 Housing Element and its Negative Declaration, with a few additional recommendations, by a vote of 4 to 1.

  • At the December 10, 2021 City Council meeting, the City Council received updates on the status of the Housing Element and directed staff to consider the setting a floor on the number of units that may be developed on multifamily lots, examining the Sites Inventory, additional sites that could be expected to be developed at existing under-performing shopping centers, streamlining permitting for mixed use development, and methods to promote the recycling of shopping centers and other commercial or industrial districts for new mixed- use development.

  • At the November 30, 2021 Planning Commission meeting, the Planning Commission received updates on the status of the Housing Element and directed staff to consider the implications of setting a floor on the number of units that may be developed on multifamily lots, examining the Sites Inventory, additional sites that could be expected to be developed at existing under-performing shopping centers, streamlining permitting for mixed use development, and methods to promote the recycling of shopping centers and other commercial or industrial districts for new mixed- use development.

  • On November 9, 2021, HCD’s 60-day review period on the draft submitted to them on September 13, 2021 ended and they sent the City a comment letter outlining their feedback. Review HCD’s comments below:

  • On September 27, 2021, City Council directed staff to revise the site inventory to remove properties in the Culver Crest Residential Hillside Zone where ADUs are prohibited, and a few other sites based on project status and further feasibility review. See below for the removed sites.

  • Comments received on the second public draft of materials, between September 14 and October 1, are available for download here:

  • The Housing and Community Development Submittal Draft (with appendices and the public participation summary) is available for download as one file (9/13/2021).

  • Comments received on the first public draft of materials between July 19 and September 13 are available for download here:

  • The First Draft Housing Element, without comments, is available for download (8/2/2021). The following updates were posted during the review period between July 19 and September 13:

    • The sites inventory was posted in a separate interactive document (7/23/2021).

    • Appendix E of the Draft Housing Element, the Fair Housing Assessment, was posted in a separate interactive document for review (7/22/2021).

    • Updates and clarifying comments from City staff on the Draft Housing Element were added via pinned comments by the site administrator. The site administrator was denoted with a star in the comment box (7/22/2021).

To learn about upcoming meetings related to the Housing Element, please sign up for project notifications. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Advance Planning staff at (310) 253-5740 or [email protected].

Also, make sure to check out the GPU’s updated Frequently Asked Questions. The topics include GPU Basics, Community Input and Timeline, Housing Element, Affordable Housing, and Preferred Land Use Map. Information is included that may help as you review the draft Housing Element. Let us know if you would like to see other questions answered.

Do you have questions about the General Plan Update process or want to learn more about the Housing Element?

If you would like to talk with a staff member or you or a group of friends and neighbors are interested in learning more and getting up to speed at any time, please reach out to Advance Planning staff by visiting the Contact page. We will meet virtually one-on-one or in small groups to go over the basics and answer all of your questions.

Advance Planning, a Community Development Department division, leads the General Plan Update and Housing Element Update process. Advance Planning staff and the City's consultants are updating the General Plan to plan for Culver City's future and address factors that can improve daily life for all.