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Andrew Talbot

@talboito.bsky.social

Berkeley. Lots of Housing and Bay Area Stuff.

179 Posts1063 Follower1626 Folgt
Aaron 🏗️🚲🌲🏀@aceckhouse.bsky.social · yesterday

SB 79 at one month: 1) Very encouraging signs of developer interest in actually using the law 2) New projects are all in high resource areas with exclusionary histories 3) We won’t see the full impact in most of the state’s biggest cities for another 5 year 4) Beverly Hills is on some bullshit

Aaron 🏗️🚲🌲🏀@aceckhouse.bsky.social · 2d ago

Most cities are doing their best to follow the law, but some are not. The worst is probably Beverly Hills, which is trying to use a shell game to disappear nearly 3,000 homes worth of zoned capacity. HCD should have nipped this in the bud, but there's still time for them to bring down the hammer.

Beverly Hills was the first city to propose a local TOD alternative plan, which are allowed under SB 79. The core logic of those plans is straightforward: The city can move some of the zoned capacity from one place to another; the alternative plans are then reviewed and certified as compliant by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). But Beverly Hills is trying a shell game by which they just make that zoned capacity disappear instead. A local alternative plan under SB 79, also referred to as an “Eckhouse Plan,” must maintain the same “net zoned capacity” as the state zoning standards. Net zoned capacity is calculated by subtracting the density & floor area of existing uses from the capacity allowed by the zoning. Since the law requires cities “maintain at least the same total net zoned capacity” between SB 79 and the local alternative plan, the city should do that on both sides of the ledger: subtract existing uses from SB 79’s capacity, and from their local plan’s capacity. Instead, Beverly Hills calculated net zoned capacity from SB 79, and then compared that to the total zoned capacity of their local plan. The result: overcounting their local plan’s capacity by nearly 3,000 homes, or 15% of the total capacity. Most troublingly, HCD did not address this problem in their initial review of the city’s alternative plan. We will continue to work with HCD and other stakeholders in Beverly Hills to ensure that their final Eckhouse Plan is compliant with the letter of the law.
Aaron 🏗️🚲🌲🏀@aceckhouse.bsky.social · 2d ago

SB 79 has been in effect for a month now, so I wrote my take on how implementation is going. Pretty well, I think! But there are some important tests coming for HCD @cayimby.bsky.social cayimby.org/blog/sb-79-o...

SB 79, One Month In: Taking Stock of California YIMBY’s Signature Bill

SB 79, California YIMBY’s signature legislation that legalized apartment buildings near transit stops throughout California, went into effect on July 1, 2026. Under the law’s provisions, jurisdictions...

cayimby.org

Megan Steffen@meganas.bsky.social · 2d ago

Over the next few months, we’re about to hear a lot about what El Cerrito is doing wrong, so I decided to make a video about something I think El Cerrito does really well: our public park bathrooms. What else makes you feel lucky to live in El Cerrito (or jealous you don’t live here)? #elcerrito

Grant Marek@grantmarek.bsky.social · 2d ago

🚨 Journalism Jobs Alert 🚨 @sfgate.com, the largest media site in Calif., is once again HIRING! Looking for: - ✍️ Deputy Managing Editor, News Division - 🌲 North Coast Contributing Editor (part-time) - 📹 Social Video Producer (part-time) Quick 🧵 on what we're looking for 👇

Jake Berman@lostsubways.com · 3d ago

this is not true. there was no conspiracy. it didn't matter whether the streetcars were publicly owned (seattle, detroit) or private (los angeles, atlanta). a thread (because i wrote a whole-ass book on this): 1/?

David Ho@davidho.bsky.social · 3d ago

Is everyone aware of the General Motors streetcar conspiracy? In the mid-20th century, auto and oil interests bought up electric streetcar systems across the US and systematically replaced them with bus routes and paved roads, funneling commuters toward private cars.

Max Dubler 🏳️‍🌈@maxdubler.com · 4d ago

Absolute HEATER of an endorsement making the clear case that Jane Kim would be an unmitigated disaster for California’s insurance ratepayers. www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/arti...

Endorsement: Ben Allen for California insurance commissioner

OPINION: In a race with no Republican, some California voters may see an opportunity to take a chance on a radical candidate for state insurance commissioner. That would be a terrible mistake.

sfchronicle.com