An open letter to Governor Newsom
By Christian Horvath, Councilmember, Redondo Beach / Olivia Valentine, Councilmember, Hawthorne / Drew
Boyles, Mayor, El Segundo
Supporting proposed legislation SB9 (Atkins), which effectively eliminates single family zoning statewide, is an
avoidable fatal flaw. We implore Governor Newsom to hear the outcry and acknowledge that this short-sighted
bill will have the unintended consequences of dismantling his goals to undo past inequities, expand the middle
class, and provide truly affordable housing with upward mobility opportunities to all.
The pandemic has been a case study proving that many people want space and the option of working off-site if
their job permits. Adding density with broad strokes to neighborhoods effectively lowers quality of life for many
communities, particularly if legislation doesn’t adequately address the issues described below.
Housing Affordability:
Overriding local government zoning cannot be the lone strategy towards achieving affordability, nor will it have
the intended outcome. Affordable housing development is attractive where land values are economical and
adequate financial subsidies are available. Data shows that, as of 2019, there were twice as many vacant units in
Los Angeles County than unhoused individuals. If each unhoused person had means, or the existing public aid
programs had access to these sites, they could have found housing more rapidly. The State could substantially
assist by letting a good bill like SB329 (Mitchell, 2019) work and house people immediately through housing
voucher expansion. Inadequately addressing the crisis by removing local zoning control only exacerbates public
skepticism about the sincerity of state government’s ability to address affordability in a meaningful manner.
Increasing Density with Broad Strokes:
Many cities are built-out with carrying capacity limits that should be clearly identified before assigning housing
targets. Regional housing needs assessments and legislation increasing density should be balanced by local
capacity assessments including parks in acres per household, school district capacity, sewer limitations, traffic
conditions, and water supply, to name a handful.
The State has also argued that density will allow families to live in “resource rich neighborhoods.” The question
left unanswered is how do we guarantee every community is, or will become, resource-rich? We agree, people
should not have to leave their own communities to seek opportunity. To get there, however, we must address
historic inequities to ensure all neighborhoods have sufficient ongoing public and private investment. The
Legislature should re-focus efforts towards programs that decentralize jobs while engendering city and state
collaboration on housing production, sustainable transportation, broadband deployment, and other key areas
that can support our communities and those in highest need.
Undermining Local Democracy & Existing State Mandates:
The State nullification of local zoning is an attack on democracy. California already requires citizen participation
for General Plan adoption, including housing elements, and for zoning ordinances or specific plans. Overriding
those policies undermines the very process our state mandates. The constant, year-over-year barrage of housing
legislation eroding local control impedes the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) and, importantly,
compromises the ability of local governments to meet the low/very low-income housing requirements.
Inclusionary zoning and density incentives under by-right policies are effectively eliminated with legislation that
creates density without affordability requirements.
The housing legislation tsunami complicates the job of both local planners and developers, creating confusion and
delays. It turns local planning departments into state policy administrators while the profession requires them to
guide jurisdictions into a sustainable and resilient future. As an example, cities have yet to fully comprehend the
