Inclusionary Housing Ordinance

NEW – State-Mandated Inclusionary Zoning

Pursuant to Government Code section 65583.2(c) and (h), housing developments on certain parcels identified in the Housing Element Sites Inventory or Rezoning Program must provide a 20 percent affordable housing set-aside for lower-income households. Specifically, the State-mandated inclusionary zoning applies if a rental or for-sale housing development is located on a parcel that is one of the following:

Nonvacant, identified in the Sites Inventory to accommodate very low- and/or lower-income units, and was included in the previous 2014-2021 Housing Element;
Vacant, identified in the Sites Inventory to accommodate very low- and/or lower-income units, and was included in both the 2008-2014 and the 2014-2021 Housing Elements; or
Identified in the Housing Element Rezoning Program to accommodate very low- and/or lower-income units.

As described in Program 9: Inclusionary Housing Feasibility and Implementation and Program 17: Adequate Sites for RHNA of the Housing Element, the County will implement the rezoning and codify the state-mandated inclusionary zoning in the County Zone Code through various community-based planning efforts, such as the Gateway Planning Area Rezoning Program. The state mandated inclusionary zoning supersedes any contrary County’s inclusionary housing requirement on affected parcels.

On November 10, 2020, the Board of Supervisors adopted the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance, which ensures the production of affordable units in new development by establishing affordable housing set-aside requirements on residential projects that meet certain criteria. These requirements are set at a level that can be supported on a financially feasible basis, as determined through an economic feasibility study.

In approving the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance, the Board of Supervisors directed DRP to report back on entitlement and building activities, including substantial renovations of existing units, and study whether inclusionary requirements could be applied more broadly, including to project types in communities where they were not initially found to be feasible. A market conditions update concluded that changes in market conditions support conducting a new economic feasibility study at this time.

Inclusionary Housing Ordinance (Effective on December 10, 2020)

Click here for the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance Archive page for historical information about the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance hearings and previous versions of the ordinance.

Please note the Governor’s Executive order modifying some noticing requirements related to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).