A bill passed by the state senate would ease the permitting process for office conversions in central city neighborhoods.
A California law that would fast-track the adaptive reuse of office buildings was passed by the state Senate and awaits Governor Newsom’s signature, reports Jack Rogers for Globe St.
The measure mandates by-right approval for office conversion projects in city centers. “Under AB 3068, adaptive reuse projects will be eligible for a streamlined, ministerial review process, regardless of the zoning of the site, provided that at least half of the square footage of the project is dedicated to residential uses, according to a posting of the bill on CalMatters.”
The bill exempts adaptive reuse projects in “urbanized areas” from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) reviews and sets affordability requirements for housing units created under the program. It also requires the preservation of historic facades.
“While the demand for living downtown is at an all-time high, many urban centers simply lack the available housing. If we are serious about jump-starting the economic engine of our cities, we need to remove the red tape that makes office to housing conversions nearly impossible,” said Matt Haney, the assembly member who authored the bill.
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