Designing Cities with Birds and Stargazers in Mind
Cities across California are adopting measures to ensure buildings do not pose threats to bird safety, often pairing these measures with those that reduce sources of nighttime light pollution.
Optimizing the Siting and Design of Distributed Energy Resources
Utilities provide integration capacity maps that can help customers and developers optimize the placement of distributed energy resources like solar generation and electric vehicle chargers. The California Public Utilities Commission recently decided to require improvements to the maps, which will unlock new uses that can aid public agencies’ decarbonization efforts.
When Does Civic Discourse Cross the Line to Harassment?
Public agencies must walk a careful line in trying to police expressions of public opinion, even when members of the public target officials and employees as proxies for their frustration. This article discusses how to keep civic engagement constructive while protecting officials and employees from harassment.
Successful Short-Term Rental Regulations: It is Possible!
December 2020 Short-term home rentals have become increasingly popular in recent years, and have continued to thrive even during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, many local communities report an increase in short-term rentals in the last six months, presumably as people seek safe vacation options close to home and take advantage of the ability to […]
5 Considerations for Preparation of Administrative Records
December 2020 The administrative record is the heart of any administrative mandamus proceeding, including under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Because the administrative record generally comprises the entire universe of evidence, the contents of the record are critical. Accordingly, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District’s recent decision in Golden Door Properties, LLC v. […]
Using Solar & Energy Storage To Build Resilient Communities
December 2020 In the late summer and fall in recent years, the power has been going out more often in California. Utilities are turning off residents’ power preemptively in unprecedented numbers. Energy storage systems owned by residents and public agencies, including those that are paired with solar generators, have the ability to safely provide power […]
Is local control of affordable housing development dead? The answer is unclear.
In the early 1980s, the Legislature enacted the Housing Element Law (Gov. Code § 65580 et seq.) and the Housing Accountability Act (“HAA”, Gov. Code § 65589.5), citing the lack of housing as a paramount state concern. Since then, the Legislature has passed multiple laws limiting the discretion of local agencies to disapprove or condition housing […]
Navigating the Challenges Posed by SB 35
Since its passage in 2017, Senate Bill 35 (SB 35)—a state law requiring local jurisdictions to streamline approval of certain affordable housing projects—has been controversial, to say the least. Over the last few years, SB 35 has been the subject of much litigation, as discussed in Benjamin Gonzalez’s and Andrew Schwartz’s article, “Is local control of affordable housing development dead?” in this issue. But because none of […]
Down Payment Assistance Programs: Building a Bridge to Home Ownership
Costly down payments are a major barrier to home ownership for many Americans. Medium and even some low-income workers and their families may earn enough to afford monthly mortgage payments, but often struggle to save enough for a down payment. According to a recent Urban Institute report, high housing costs fall hardest on Black families, who […]
Streamlining Agency Operations with Electronic Signatures
Does your agency require “wet-ink” signatures on contracts, resolutions, or permit applications? In California, use of electronic signatures has been valid since 2000. With public agencies increasingly conducting business electronically during the COVID-19 pandemic, more are accepting and using e-signatures for certain official documents. Read on for an overview of the laws surrounding electronic signatures and for […]