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File Number: 14-410 <br />hearing, and public input is being solicited. <br />Tonight's presentation will focus on Chapter 6 of the Housing Element as it is the most critical <br />section. Chapter 6 outlines the goals, objectives, policies, and action programs for the next <br />eight years. Chapters 1 - 5 primarily provide background information and data, while Chapter <br />7 serves as an executive and implementation summary. <br />Housing Element Overview <br />The Housing Element Update is part of a 2'/z 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 />Housing is one of the seven mandated elements of the general plan in California. The <br />Housing Element contains each city's policies for new housing development, affordable <br />housing, housing for people with special needs, housing conservation, and other <br />housing -related issues. The content and organization of the element are defined by the <br />California Government Code, and the Housing Element itself must be certified by the State <br />Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The Housing Element must <br />include: <br />(1) An evaluation of implementation progress of the previous Element; <br />(2) A housing needs assessment; <br />(3) A housing sites inventory; <br />(4) An assessment of housing constraints; and <br />(5) Goals, objectives, policies, and actions indicating the specific steps the City will take <br />following Housing Element adoption. <br />The key factor in determining if a Housing Element is compliant is the City's ability to provide <br />its "fair share" of the region's housing needs over the next eight years. The Association of <br />Bay Area Governments (ABAG) has determined that San Leandro's "fair share" is 2,287 units, <br />including 774 that are affordable to low and very low income households. Cities are not <br />required to construct the units. Rather, they must show that they have appropriately zoned <br />land, development regulations, and programs to facilitate the construction of this quantity of <br />housing by the private and non-profit sectors in the next eight years. <br />San Leandro last adopted a Housing Element in April 2010, which covered the period of <br />2007-2014. The State HCD certified the Housing Element in 2011. State certification is <br />important to ensure legal adequacy of the City's General Plan. It also improves the City's <br />eligibility for a variety of grants and external funding sources. <br />Streamlining and the 2015-2023 Housing Element <br />To expedite review and processing of Housing Elements, HCD has established "stream -lining" <br />provisions for the 2015-2023 Housing Element Update. These provisions recognize that <br />much of the information in the Housing Element has not changed since the last Element was <br />adopted. The streamlined state review only evaluates those parts of the Element that have <br />been added or modified to comply with current housing law. <br />City of San Leandro Page 2 Printed on 9130/2014 <br />