Cupertino is on the verge of missing the deadline for a compliant housing element plan, after the Silicon Valley city was one of the last Bay Area cities to release its plan to reach state-mandated development goals, The Mercury News reported.
All California governments are tasked with creating an approved housing element plan by Jan. 31. The element is a roadmap of how cities expect to meet state-mandated housing goals for an eight-year cycle. Cupertino is required to build 4,588 new units of housing from 2023 to 2031.
Failure to meet the deadline opens up localities to penalties, including loss of state construction funds, with one of the most severe penalties the loss of control over land use decisions. “Builder’s Remedy” is a provision in state law that came into renewed focus when a developer submitted applications for almost 4,000 units spanning 12 projects after Santa Monica failed to meet its deadline in October.
“I think it will, unfortunately, create a lot of areas of concern, especially if we start to see large numbers of applications,” Councilmember J.R. Fruen, who took office after the housing element draft was released, said. “Especially if they’re in places that would not be places where you would typically see larger buildings, or if they are, they’re not in forms that people would ordinarily expect.”
Cupertino’s draft element not only came later than desired; it also faced criticism from residents and housing advocates for lacking specificity and for unrealistic goals.
“It’s only a couple pages, and it’s super vague — it’s more of a statement of values than anything,” Neil Park-McClintick, president Cupertino Matters, said. “It doesn’t really articulate actionable timelines or actionable approaches. … It’s really hard to critique the merits of it and address the technical aspects of it.”
The state could potentially take months to review Cupertino’s housing element plan. With serious doubts about the city’s ability to meet the deadline, builder’s remedy could become a reality.
“We’re going to find out in 2023 for sure,” Park-McClintick said. “The builder’s remedy is not new — it has been around for a while — but it hasn’t really ever been used.”
“I feel like if you’ve gotten used to having things done a certain way in terms of local control, it’s hard to imagine that you could potentially lose all of it,” he added. “It just doesn’t seem real. … But the reality is, this is what’s going to happen. It’s already happening across the state, and this is our fate.”
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YIMBY Law readies Bay Area residents, developers for builder’s remedy