The Oakland City Council this week adopted the Construction Innovation Ordinance.
Annie Sciacca reports for The Mercury News on the Oakland (California) City Council's adoption this week of a "package of ordinances that allow RVs, mobile homes, manufactured homes and tiny houses to occupy residential properties throughout the city."
The change effects a change to the city's zoning and building codes that required all residential units to be built on a permanent foundation, according to Sciacca. The code changes now allow "vehicular residential facilities" and expands rent control to RV and mobile home units in the city.
Sciacca provides more detail on the ordinance, relaying information included in a city memo:
The amendments to city codes will allow people to legally park their RVs and mobile homes on private properties in all residential areas if they comply with tenancy and habitability codes, including a requirement that the units be “structurally sound, protect occupants against the weather, include permanent provisions for living and sleeping, include heating and lighting, and provide occupants with 24-hour on-site access to potable water, a kitchen, and clean, lighted, code-compliant toilet, bathing facilities, and lavatory sink under the occupants’ control,” according to a city memo.
A press release published by Mayor Libby Schaaf and Council President Pro Tem Shang Thao on November 2 refers to the package as the Construction Innovation ordinance. The press release claims the CIO was necessary in light of housing construction costs more than doubling in the last decade in the city.
"Today’s approval embraces cost-saving innovative construction practices, updates outdated regulations and redefines what literally makes a 'home' which, ultimately, will bring down the cost of housing for our residents," the press release adds.
The source article, linked below, provides more detail on the CIO, in addition to soundbites from the politicians behind the CIO and describes state of the housing market in the city and region. Mobile home parks have proven a flashpoint for housing policy controversy in Oakland, as exemplified by an article picked up by Planetizen in April 2021.
FULL STORY: Oakland to allow RVs, mobile homes on private property under new ordinances

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths
Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall
A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle
Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Jefferson Parish Government
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont