July—Housing’s Summer Series

There’s nothing quite like a Southern California summer. Granted, the extended June Gloom was a bit much to endure, and all reports show we are headed into a significant El Nino fall. However, we have a brief respite to realize why we live in the greatest area of the country.

Living in Southern California is a definite privilege—yes, we pay a high price for the privilege. However, as we look to the summer, let’s also look at a few of the great celebrations in our communities—and where there are opportunities to share our love of SoCal summers. With a little look we can also see what is being done to provide housing and thereby expand and share these privileges with others.

City of Orange… 3rd of July Celebration

The city of Orange has a unique tradition—it’s 3rd of July community celebration and fireworks show. Held at Grijalva Park, just a stone’s throw away from Fred Kelley Stadium and El Modena High School, this annual event draws thousands of Orange residents (and others from surrounding cities) to enjoy a great kick off to the Independence Day holiday—with one of the best fireworks displays to boot… and then people make their way over to the adjacent city of Villa Park to buy their own fireworks since they are prohibited in Orange.

Orange also has another unique situation—the opportunity to redevelop The Village at Orange (formerly known as The Orange Mall) on Tustin and Taft—right off the 55 Freeway. And there are several housing proposals that would bring new units to Orange and really invigorate a part of town that could use some life—desperately.

When you look around us—Main Place new multifamily development is Brea. And each July 4th the city of Brea hosts it Country Fair in its downtown—with live bands, car show, contests, games, rides, food booths, exhibitors, and arts and crafts. It’s a fun mid-day event that is enjoyable for all ages.

Santa Ana has used this as a strategy to bring new residents, shoppers, and businesses to an older part of town with the new developments along the 5 Freeway. Additionally, at the last city council meeting in June, Buena Park councilmembers approved a proposal to replace the former Sears site at the Buena Park Mall with new housing.

Laguna Beach…

July 5th–September 1st Festival of Arts / July 7th–September 1st Pageant of the Masters

Pretty much all the Laguna’s have been having housing related issues— from the discussions around redevelopment at the former Laguna Hills Mall which caused consternation in the city to Laguna Niguel and Laguna Woods struggling with their Regional

Whatever happens with these projects, we are likely to see new opportunities for people to enjoy this Southern California summer with us.

City

of

Brea… July 4th Brea Country Fair

Another city with a mall (and a former Sears site) that is considering

Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) allocations—but Laguna Beach has had a number of issues ranging from Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) to rent control discussions, to Inclusionary Zoning mandates coupled with ballot box zoning issues.

Mesa that is almost as interesting.

A few years ago, the city of Costa Mesa passed what is called a “Ballot Box Planning” initiative, which effectively meant if you were planning to build anything in the city that was not 100% in alignment with the city’s General Plan, you had to get citywide voter approval for every variance your project would require.

Anyone who has ever developed anything can tell you how rare it is to have every component of your project meet 100% of the General Plan. Variances are almost expected in projects.

Then, in 2022, city voters approved Measure K which opened the city to more opportunities—however, to date, there haven’t been many applications for new projects. AAOC has spoken with the city to help further identify opportunities and options, as well as to bring forward some ideas, but it highlights two key takeaways:

Watch — continued on page 12

The idyllic Orange County beach town is one that presents some of the greatest reasons why we love Southern California life so much, and also why we can’t give up on the needs of our residents. Pushing away housing and expecting other cities to pick up the slack—or attempting to impose arduous fees on housing as an attempt to dis-incentivize its development – is the exact opposite of what we should be looking to as solutions for our longterm housing needs here in California.

Costa Mesa… July 14th–August 13th Orange County Fair

Just a week after the Pageant of the Masters starts in Laguna Beach, Costa Mesa, just a few cities up the coast, celebrates the opening of the quintessential Orange County summer festival — the Orange County Fair. Costa Mesa is the home to our county fairgrounds. And, as a former Orange County Fair Beef Jerky making champion (get jealous), it holds a place near and dear to my heart.

Once you’ve recovered from the revelation that I make the best beef jerky in the county (and I have the awards to prove it), we can take another look at one of the best components of Costa planning with it. No doubt they will be able to accommodate the growth necessary, but their approach has been one of deliberate consideration—which takes time. In the meantime, they have been approving projects as they come in... Which fits with how San Clemente is addressing the Ocean Festival gap— by having the Ocean Games—a one day competition on July 15, 2023.

When cities implement ballot box planning, builders turn away from the city, and getting them back is a significant, uphill effort.

When cities come up with their planning efforts, they need the seek input from stakeholders like you.

Huntington Beach is pushing back on those mandates.

Rather than addressing whether the city will be successful in fighting back against the state, let’s look at the impact it is having:

• Fewer applications for new projects are being filed.

• Housing costs continue to soar.

San Clemente… July 21st & 22nd—2024

San Clemente Ocean Festival

Typically, “The Greatest Show on Surf” is one of the greatest competitions for ocean/ beach-related efforts and it comes at the end of July. Unfortunately, it has been postponed for a few years, with a plan to return in 2024. And they’ve done so to make sure the program—when re-introduced—meets the expectations of the community.

Similarly, San Clemente has been struggling with its growth and how they are

Huntington Beach…

July

29th–August 6th —U.S. Open of Surfing

Is there anything more fundamental to the Southern California experience than surfing?

• Demands for services, such as public transit, continue to increase

• The public’s view of Huntington Beach’s governance is diminishing greatly.

Let’s also look at another impact…

Well, maybe—California’s predilection to going against the grain.

Huntington Beach has long been the epicenter of both. Before “Toes to the Nose” Corky Carroll was winning championships in the 1960s, Huntington Beach was the resistant beachside town that became the focus of movies, surf culture, and yes, housing.

Have you been to Garden Grove recently? The city is booming with new projects, new developments, and a city manager who is looking for opportunities to bring in new jobs, new housing, and new retail. Long gone are the days of “Garbage Grove” or Register articles about how rundown Garden Grove Blvd. and Trask Avenue look to an outsider—now there are specific plans that make it possible to bring in solutions to our problems here in Southern California.

Conclusion

However, the world has been turned upside down when it comes to housing. California has been under-building housing units for more than 20 years, leaving us millions of housing units in the hole. Rather than addressing the issues that inhibit housing development, however, or looking to new areas to build communities, the state of California has imposed the responsibility on the local government.

Southern California is great. Summer here is unmatched. But how we are managing it and ensuring its long-term viability as a region—is broken. However, we also have the solutions playing out in our communities.

Let’s take a moment.

Plan correctly.

Address the problems.

And be more deliberate in our approach.