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File Number: 15-001 <br />All cities and counties in the Bay Area are statutorily required to adopt new Elements for <br />2015-2023 by January 31, 2015. Adopting the Element is a two-step process. The first step <br />involves completing a "Working Draft" and submitting it to the State for preliminary review and <br />comment. The City completed this step in October 2014. The second step involves <br />incorporating any comments or changes recommended by the State, reissuing the document <br />as an "Adoption Draft," and convening public hearings to adopt the document. The City is <br />now concluding this step. On December 18, the Planning Commission recommended City <br />Council approval of the Adoption Draft document. The City Council hearing of January 20, <br />2015 has been scheduled for that purpose. <br />Context for the Housing Element Update <br />The Housing Element Update is part of a 2'/2 year effort to update San Leandro's General <br />Plan. Due to statutory requirements, the Housing Element is the first Element to be updated <br />and is being adopted separately from the rest of the General Plan. Other parts of the General <br />Plan are anticipated to be brought to the City Council in 2016, following extensive community <br />input. <br />As required by State law, the Housing Element includes: (1) an evaluation of progress on <br />implementing the previous Element; (2) a housing needs assessment; (3) a housing sites <br />inventory; (4) an assessment of housing constraints; and (5) goals, objectives, policies, and <br />actions indicating the specific steps the City will take following Plan adoption. The full text <br />version of the Housing Element Update is attached as Exhibit A to tonight's related City <br />Council resolution (Agenda Item No. 2015-003) to adopt the Element. <br />The key factor driving the Housing Element is the Regional Housing Needs Allocation <br />(RHNA). The RHNA is a process established by the State in which each city is "assigned" a <br />number of housing units that it must plan for during a defined period. Cities are not required to <br />build the housing; however, cities must demonstrate to the State that the opportunity has <br />been created for the private and non-profit sectors to build housing (based on zoning, etc.). <br />The RHNA for each city in the San Francisco Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay <br />Area Governments (ABAG) using a computerized model that considers total population, <br />employment, land area, projected growth, environmental constraints, proximity to transit, and <br />similar factors. The total RHNA is further broken down by income category, with numbers <br />identified for very low, low, moderate, and above moderate income households. <br />San Leandro's RHNA for 2015-2023 follows: <br />Very low income units 504 <br />Moderate income units 352 <br />Above moderate income units 1,161 <br />Total units 2,287 <br />Through the Housing Element, the City has demonstrated adequate capacity for at least <br />2,300 housing units in the next eight years. <br />Housing Element Update Process <br />The San Leandro Housing Element Update was initiated in March 2014. Because the prior <br />Element was adopted less than four years earlier, a streamlined approach was taken. The <br />City of San Leandro Page 2 Printed on 1113/2015 <br />