UrbDeZine Los Angeles

Urban Planning + Design + Architecture + Historic Preservation

WCAG 2.0 (Level AA)

pasadena

Pasadena Accessory Dwelling Unit Ordinance: We still have work to do (open letter to the Planning Commission)

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On Wednesday, May 24, 2017, the Pasadena Planning Commission will hold a public hearing to consider an amendment to the Accessory Dwelling Unit ordinance.

Dear Pasadena Planning Commissioners,

We’ve come a long way from Pasadena’s 2004 second dwelling unit ordinance that effectively codified irrational NIMBYism in the Zoning Code. The proposed amendment to the accessory dwelling unit (ADU) ordinance before you at the May 24, 2017 hearing represents a significant improvement; it came about as a result of the relaxed standards for ADUs by way of AB 2299 and SB 1069, as well as the passionate testimony of residents and housing advocates in public hearings and community meetings. However, a few points of contention remain – some of the “poison pills” and class-based inequalities carried over from the original ordinance – while other points merit highlighting for this latest public hearing. I ask you to take these comments under consideration as you evaluate the amended ADU ordinance for recommendation to the Pasadena City Council.

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An Open Letter to the Pasadena City Council Urging a Comprehensive Overhaul of the Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance

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Pasadena ADU reform
On January 30, 2017, the Pasadena City Council will hold a public hearing to consider an amendment to the city’s Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance to comply with new standards codified in AB 2299 and SB 1069.

 

Dear Pasadena City Council Members,

A long overdue update to the Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance is before you at the January 30, 2017, City Council public hearing. With the passage of AB 2299 and SB 1069, all local jurisdictions are obligated to amend zoning ordinances to facilitate easier pathways to building accessory dwellings units (ADUs). As the staff report notes, the new state laws came about in response to a statewide affordable housing crisis. We see it in Pasadena. It’s rendered in the presence of homeless encampments, occupied vehicles on city streets and parking lots, and the existence of unpermitted housing on private properties across the city.
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An Open Letter to the Pasadena Planning Commission Urging a Comprehensive Overhaul of the Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance

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On December 14, 2016, the Pasadena Planning Commission will hold a public hearing to consider an amendment to the city’s Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance to comply with new standards for accessory dwelling units codified in AB 2299 and SB 1069.

 

Dear Pasadena Planning Commissioners,

A long overdue update to the City of Pasadena’s Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance is before you at the December 14, 2016, Planning Commission public hearing. This will be the first of many hearings in response to the passage of Assembly Bill 2299 (AB 2299) and Senate Bill 1069 (SB 1069) and the upcoming Housing Element Implementation Program. At this juncture, I see three compelling reasons for your Commission to advocate a comprehensive overhaul of Pasadena’s Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance. [Read more…] about An Open Letter to the Pasadena Planning Commission Urging a Comprehensive Overhaul of the Second Dwelling Unit Ordinance

Urge Pasadena to Approve the Measures to Address Homelessness

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Homeless Pasadena photo 1
Photo 1: A homeless man at Colorado Blvd and Altadena Drive in Pasadena.

Where are we now on homelessness in Los Angeles?

Much has happened in the three months since my UrbDeZine colleague Michael Russell unpacked the arc of the homeless crisis in Los Angeles. In early 2016, both the City of Los Angeles and County of Los Angeles approved comprehensive plans to tackle homelessness within their respective jurisdictions. Largely thanks to Home Rule, inter-cooperative city/county policy making has never been a regular trait of L.A. politics. But with L.A.’s homeless crisis reaching a state of emergency across jurisdictional boundaries, the old “policy making in silos” approach simply wouldn’t work here. Even the New York Times took note in a story highlighting collaboration between the two governments on Los Angeles’ homeless crisis response. The million dollar question remaining for Los Angeles City and County is, “How do we pay for it?” [Read more…] about Urge Pasadena to Approve the Measures to Address Homelessness