California, Housing

A judge has ruled against parts of SB 1818, a density bonus law that allows taller building limits in exchange for affordable housing units.

An antiquated set of zoning laws has been at the heart of a debate between preservationists and developers in Oakland for years, though a compromise in the form of new zoning rules may be in the city's near future.

William Hudnet, former mayor of Indianapolis, now with ULI, spoke at a gathering in Sacramento on the inevitable wave of urban infill, less auto-dependent development to come due to state climate protection laws AB 32 and SB 375, and regional plans.

Los Angeles has begun using its $33 million in funds from the Neighborhood Stabilization Program to jumpstart neighborhoods blighted by foreclosure. HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan visited a South Los Angeles neighborhood Wednesday.

High Country News reports on Fresno's infamous Taco Flat in this 4-pager. Seattle's Nickelsville and Portland's Dignity Village are held up as better examples of squatter settlements. Architecture and 'informal urbanism' of tent cities is examined.

A prominent developer predicts that all hi-rise housing will cease in the San Francisco due to the credit crisis. The result, says an urban think tank director, will be more sprawl development in the Bay Area as it presents the least financial risk.

This piece form the Modesto Bee looks at the growth and housing bust that has dramatically affected California's San Joaquin Valley -- home to some of the nation's highest rates of foreclosure.

California's Inland Empire's status as one of the nation's leader in foreclosures has fleeing retail as proof of it. This article offers a glimpse in this "land of extremes."

As foreclosures spread throughout California's Inland Empire, empty homes need to be cleaned and maintained. To meet the demand, an industry is rapidly expanding.

Fifty years ago, Kenneth E. Norwood placed a time capsule and his predictions for Burbank, CA in a newly constructed bridge. According to the planner, monorails and "multi-unit garden apartments" were the waves of the future.

A tent city is burgeoning in Sacramento, Calif., prompting local officials to consider whether such an encampment should be made permanent, with plumbing and all.

California is now offering buyers of new housing units a $10,000 tax credit. The tax break was pushed hard by homebuilders, who say the measure should boost housing starts.

Thousands of homes in development are being halted and thousands more vacant new homes are being foreclosed across California, leading to crime, looting and squatting.

John King of the San Francisco Chronicle trumpets the work of Bridge Housing in increasing the availability of quality affordable housing in the Bay Area. But is it enough? New studies say affordable housing is an uphill battle.

Architect Teddy Cruz is creating new models of affordable housing using the shantytowns of Tijuana as his inspiration.

Last week, a Santa Barbara apartment community, The Garden Center, opened to 38 new residents. The apartments were specifically designed to combat homelessness through housing and mental health care all at once.

Huntington Beach is one of a few cities that is weighing the option to purchase its own foreclosed properties, and eventually making them affordable housing.

Local and regional governments in Riverside County, California, have assembled a "Red Team" task force to mitigate the impacts of the foreclosure crisis in the fastest growing region in the state.

The two owners of a traditional 8-acre strip, big box retail center in San Francisco have asked for an amendment to the neighborhood plan (undergoing revision) to allow them to add housing on top of their stores, thus doubling the height limit.

Measure B would have allotted $30 million to lower-income residents who currently can't afford to live in San Francisco.