Builder's Remedy

California Government Code § 65589.5(d)(5) of the Housing Accountability Act (HAA), provides that a local agency shall not disapprove a housing development project for very low-, low-, or moderate-income households, or an emergency shelter, or condition approval in a manner that renders the housing development project infeasible, based on the project’s inconsistency with zoning and General Plan standards, if the local agency had not timely adopted a “substantially compliant” housing element.

What are the minimum requirements for a project to qualify for the “builder’s remedy”?

In order for a project to qualify for the Builder’s Remedy, a housing development project must be either 20 percent affordable to low-income categories, or 100 percent affordable to moderate-income categories (Government Code section 65589.5(h)(3)). The HAA defines a “housing development project” as one of the following:

Residential units only
Mixed-use developments with at least two-thirds of the square footage designated for residential use
Transitional housing or supportive housing (Section 65589.5(h)(2)).

Are Builder’s Remedy projects exempt from environmental review?

A builder’s remedy project is not exempt from environmental review pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

Has the City received any project applications which assert to be filed under the Builder’s Remedy?

The City has received two formal development applications which assert to have been filed under the so-called “builder’s remedy.” The project details for each of the projects are available on the below project webpages: