ACTION Apartment Association

Council Caught in a Tight Spot on Development

02/14/2023 8:05 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The City Council on Tuesday will face a volatile political dilemma -- change the unique nature of Santa Monica's four Neighborhood Commercial (NC) districts or open the floodgates to virtually unchecked State-sanctioned development.

Neighborhood residents, businesses and the Planning Commission are urging the Council to remove "upzoning" the NC districts from the 2021-29 Housing Element when it takes up the issue at a study session.

Plans to densify Main St., Montana, Pico and Ocean Park alarm planners

02/13/2023 10:44 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The Planning Commission previously debated the issue and asked Council to request an amendment to the Housing Element to preserve existing limitations on development along Neighborhood Commercial (NC) zones that include portions of Montana, Main Street, Ocean Park Blvd. and Pico Blvd.

As currently written the housing element allows denser projects in those areas that would create housing above ground floor retail and the Commission said such action would jeopardize the city’s economic recovery.

Santa Monica Set to Declare Homelessness Emergency

02/10/2023 9:15 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The move comes amid a rising number of Police and Fire department calls for service, encampments, public deaths, arson and vandalism tied to the homeless, according to City staff's report to the Council.

The state of emergency would make it easier to work with other government agencies, seek grants and "take expedited actions to address imminent health and safety impacts" caused by homelessness, staff said.

Homelessness is the top priority for city officials

02/09/2023 10:56 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Santa Monica residents should expect the city to focus on homelessness and safety in the coming year but other projects big and small may be put on the back burner due to potential budget constraints according to this year’s State of the City.

City Manager David White and Mayor Gleam Davis gave recorded speeches this week and while both touched on positive notes regarding economic recovery, they also alluded to pending budget issues that will limit the scope of city services in the near future.

California expands mortgage relief

02/08/2023 12:20 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Under the expansion of California’s mortgage relief program being unveiled today at a Sacramento nonprofit:

Eligible homeowners who have already used the program and are in need of additional assistance can reapply, for as much as $80,000 in total grants.
Homeowners can use the program to pay off second home loans, or loan deferrals, that they negotiated in the midst of the pandemic.
The program will also be available to homeowners who have properties of up to four units, as long as those small landlords live on those properties.
While the program was previously only available for people who had missed at least two mortgage payments and at least one property tax payment before last summer, it will now be available to those homeowners until March 1.
Read More: https://smdp.com/2023/02/08/mortgage/

County Approves Record Budget to Fight Homelessness

02/08/2023 12:10 PM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

One month after declaring a state of emergency on homelessness, the LA County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a record $609.7 million budget to tackle the growing crisis.

Metro Working on Plan to Provide Shelter for Homeless Passengers When Trains Are Emptied

02/07/2023 11:29 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

Metro Los Angeles is considering a plan where service hubs would be opened near the termini of the train lines in the Metro rail system. It is well-known that trains and buses in the Los Angeles Metro system are frequently used as places of shelter by homeless people and Metro allows these unhoused people to ride for free on buses and trains until they are taken out of service for the night.

Developer Scores $375 Million Financing to Develop Vons Site

02/07/2023 11:24 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The plans to redevelop the site on the southwest corner of Broadway and Lincoln Boulevard call for an eight-story, mixed-use building with 99,085 square feet of ground-floor commercial space that will house a new upgraded Vons.

The plan also includes 196 market-rate units and 84 affordable units for low- and moderate-income households, 354 parking spaces and 523 bicycle spaces in a two-level subterranean garage, a commercial gym and restaurant space with outdoor seating.

SMa.r.t. Column: To a Better Housing Element

02/06/2023 10:02 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

In the rush to get the Housing Element approved by the State, the City did not have time to study all the implications and adjust for secondary effects of such a transformation. Some obvious conflicts were noted for example, the traffic increases, or the inability to meet our water neutrality goals or the conflict with the State’s 2045 carbon neutrality goals, or the mystery of where all the wealthy renters and buyers of all this new housing would come from when the State lost more than half a million people between April 2020 and July 1, 2022 (the interval when the Housing Element was being prepared)? But with the fine-grain rewrite of the Zoning Code, we can see places where the Housing Element can be improved to mitigate those conflicts without altering its essential character.

Workplan Outlines City's Efforts Tackling Homelessness

02/06/2023 9:59 AM | Margaret Fulton (Administrator)

The workplan tracks everything from the number of persons reunited with family and friends (48) to the drug paraphernalia disposed of by park ambassadors (138) to the contacts made by the Police Department's outreach team (1,326).