Public Policy Group Calls for Penalties for Cities That Don't Grow Housing
If Bay Area cities don't build enough housing to handle growth, they should lose their authority over approving development projects, the Bay Area Council says in a new report.
The council, a business-sponsored, public policy advocacy organization focused on the nine-county Bay Area, says infrastructure, transit and housing are issues that need regional solutions, the San Francisco Business Times reports. If cities don't work toward those goals, the state could allow more projects to be automatically approved once they meet zoning and building codes without further city review, the report says.
Other remedies the report suggests include "super agencies" to oversee, approve and fund projects; allowing some home construction to skip environmental review; and region-wide caps on impact fees for housing developments. [SFBT]
