The Weekly Newspaper of Inglewood
Daily News on a Weekly Basis - Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - November 9, 2017
Waters Receives 2018 Legacy
Award for Veteran Support
Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-43rd District that includes Inglewood) was honored last week by New Directions for Veterans during the 25th Anniversary Veterans Canteen event last week. She received
the “2017 Legacy Award” as a champion for veterans and military families. In the photo, left to right: Rudy E. Grimaldo, NDVets Board Member; Mark Robeson, Treasurer of the Board; Elijah Adams,
NDVets Board Member; Larry Williams, Co-Founder of NDVets; Sam Meites, NDVets Board Member. Front row from left, Jennifer Kim, Vice Chairman of the Board; Congresswoman Maxine Waters; Col.
(Ret.) Yvette Kelley, CEO & President of NDVets; David Baylor, Chairman of the Board; and Parris Wells, NDVets Board Member. Photo provided by Congresswoman Maxine Waters’ office
Affordable Housing Authority
Stays Under City Council Control
By Rob McCarthy
dramatic affordability crunch.”
The nation’s high court sees no legal problem
No more than 30 percent of a household
with California cities and counties requiring
or individual’s monthly income should go for
builders to make some houses and apartments in
housing, according to Habibi. Yet, almost onethird
new developments affordable to people who’ve
of renters in the state spend half of their
been priced out of the market. The justices rejected
take-home pay on rent, according to findings
a Southern California developer’s argument that
from California Department of Housing and
affordablehousing quotas are unconstitutional.
Community Development.
In a case pitting California cities and counties
Local households would need to receive a
against developers, justices last month refused
50 percent raise to $96,000 per year to reach
to take up a West Hollywood developer’s
the 30 percent requirement for a median-priced
challenge to inclusionary zoning. This type
home, Habibi said. A 14 percent raise would
of zoning gives city councils and boards of
cover a median-priced apartment.
supervisors the authority to adopt ordinances
South Bay’s median home prices sold in
and set policies that force new developments
August ranged between $470,000 in Carson to
to include some affordable homes for sale and
$2.23 million in Manhattan Beach, according
apartments for rent. Inclusionary zoning is
to a pricing listed at Torrance Real Estate.com.
considered by urban planners and government
The most affordable communities continue to
agencies an effective tool for adding to the
be Gardena, Hawthorne, Harbor City, Lawndale,
limited availability of affordable housing units.
Playa del Rey and San Pedro--with homes
“People shouldn’t have to the leave the state in
priced under $500,000, based on the August
order to find affordable housing or achieve the
sales report.
American dream of home ownership,” said State
Fully aware of the looming housing crisis
Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena.)
facing the state’s workforce, Governor Jerry
The zoning power gives local officials the
Brown and the Legislature passed into law this
dual powers to approve new developments while
year 15 bills, including one that restored the
extending some rent relief to a small number
authority of South Bay cities and the county to
of residents and families with low or moderate
demand that developers do their part. State and
incomes. The U.S. Supreme Court gave a thumbs
L.A. leaders also say that homelessness must
up to state law governing affordable housing
be addressed, and they link the high homeless
requirements on new homes and apartments.
population to a lack of affordable apartments
No one expects the court rulings--or newly
for displaced individuals and families.
signed California laws--to solve the region’s
One of the new laws, authored by
housing crisis, which is growing as the median
Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica,
price of a home countywide hovers above a
allows cities and counties to require that 15
half-million dollars, according to a June real
percent of units in market-rate housing be set
estate survey. CoreLogic said the median price in
aside as affordable to low- or moderate-income
May was $560,500 across Los Angeles County.
people. In in an op-ed piece published on the
“Affordable housing is being addressed to some
website BisNow.com, Habibi suggests that
extent, but we have a huge supply constraint in
South Bay city leaders and the L.A. Board of
Los Angeles that’s driven by multiple factors,”
Supervisors green-light more types of workforcespecific
said Paul Habibi, a lecturer in finance at UCLA.
affordable housing. Rents and home
“But the long and short of it is we have more
demand than we have housing supply. It’s driven
up the cost of housing and it’s created a pretty
prices are linked to the limited supply of new
construction, the UCLA lecturer said.
The state needs 180,000 additional price
reduced housing units each year, according
to the Housing and Community Development
Department. The need far outpaces the 80,000
new units per year that local governments have
approved over the past decade, according to
Habibi.
Los Angeles County needs nearly 500,000
more units that are affordable to lower-income
households. However, current new construction
meets just three percent of that need, according
to the California Housing Partnership Corp.
Governor Brown on September 29 signed
into law 15 legislative bills to help increase the
supply and affordability of housing statewide.
The measures provide funding for affordable
housing, reduce regulations, boost construction
and strengthen existing housing laws, according
to the Governor’s office. Several are targeted at
slow-moving cities that tie up affordable housing
projects in red tape and refuse to approve the
badly needed projects.
SB 166 ensures that cities maintain an ongoing
supply of housing construction sites for residents
of various income levels. SB 167 and AB 678
raise the standard of proof required for a local
government to justify a denial of low- and
moderate-income housing development projects.
AB 72 strengthens the state’s ability to
enforce laws that require local governments to
achieve housing goals. SB 540 streamlines the
environmental review process for certain local
affordable housing projects. AB 73 gives local
governments incentives to create housing on
infill sites near public transportation.. AB 879
authorizes a study of local fees charged to new
residential developments that will also include
a proposal to substantially reduce such fees.
Senator Bradford co-authored AB 1505,
also signed by the Governor, which empowers
local city councils and L.A. County supervisors
to deny new homes and apartment projects if
the developer refuses to keep a portion of the
new units affordable for low- to moderateincome
residents of South Bay cities and
unincorporated areas. •
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Professionals.......................5
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Looking Up...........................7
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Politically Speaking............4
Seniors..................................2
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