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Chamber Remains Active in Regional Coalitions to Promote New Housing for Employees of Monterey County Businesses
A "Housing Summit" was hosted at CSUMB this morning (Tuesday, June 27, 2023) by Monterey Bay Economic Partnership (MBEP) in conjunction with the release of a new housing policy paper.
Practical Housing Policy: Increasing Supply and Affordability is MBEP's successor report to a 2018 report entitled What Realistic Policy Changes Could Improve Housing Affordability in the Monterey Bay Region? Local governments throughout Monterey County and the Central Coast ended up enacting various policy proposals in that influential 2018 report.
The new 2023 report classifies its policy recommendations into five categories: (1) streamline permitting & reduce discretionary reviews, (2) increase allowable densities, (3) reform impact fees, (4) increase funding sources for affordable housing, and (5) optimize inclusionary housing ordinances. These ideas will be important items for local governments to consider as they attempt to devise housing elements of their general plans that allow for new housing that meets the state-mandated Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) numbers. For example, the City of Monterey will be required to permit 3,654 new residential units in the next eight years after only granting permits for 150 new units in the last seven years (Note that permits for construction do not always end up as built and occupied units).
Your Chamber’s Government Affairs Liaison was one of the panelists at the Housing Summit. Chamber members were in attendance at the sold-out event.
Your Chamber has also developed nine "Policy Principles for Housing Projects and Housing Policy Creation," with five of the nine incorporated from housing principles of LandWatch Monterey County. While the Chamber does not agree with every position of LandWatch, we recognize numerous areas of common ground for advancing housing that’s affordable for ordinary households in Monterey County.
Obviously there are many different views in our region about increasing the amount of housing, including the position that no additional housing should be built. If you have comments or questions about the plans for future housing development in Monterey County, please contact President & CEO Monica Lal at (831) 648-5350 or at monica@montereychamber.com.
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