April News: Middle Housing Mtg Postponed, Ohlone Park Mtg & More

Hi Neighbor,

It was uplifting to see so many of you at the Hands Off! protest at the North Berkeley BART Station last Saturday. I felt inspired to stand with you, and I feel confident that our City Council will do everything we can to defend democratic values and human rights in these times of uncertainty and fear.

As we call attention to injustices perpetrated by the federal government, I believe we also have to be laser focused on the housing injustice right here in our community that is directly within our power to redress.

Over a century ago, our city pioneered exclusionary single-family zoning—explicitly designed to segregate people by race and class. For generations, single-family zoning has imposed artificial scarcity in our residential neighborhoods, gatekeeping our city so that today only the wealthy can afford to buy at the median price tag of $1.4 million. The data show that the average household income for a detached single-family home in Berkeley is $196,000, whereas the average household income for a home in a two- to four-unit building is almost half as much at $104,000, according to Census data analyzed by my friend Darrell Owens. These stats tell us that we can embrace greater diversity, equity, and inclusion simply by lifting our City’s ban on small multi-unit homes. Right now, there aren’t enough multi-unit housing options available for middle-income families. This housing scarcity imposed by our zoning code forces our teachers, nurses, first responders, seniors, and young adults who grew up here to move away. A thriving City needs to make room for the workers who power our schools, hospitals, and fire stations. For more on the proposed Middle Housing Ordinance, I highly recommend reading Councilmember Mark Humbert’s recent newsletter.  

The Middle Housing Ordinance and staff report has been published and are available HERE. A public hearing had been scheduled for next Tues., April 29; however, the meeting has been canceled. Here’s the message from the City’s Planning Department explaining the reason for the cancelation:

In this newsletter:

• Ohlone Park Encampment Community Meeting: May 22
• Middle Housing Frequently Asked Questions and Answers
• Corridor Zoning Update: May 1
• Gilman District Street Fair: April 27
• Interstate-80 Gilman Interchange Improvement Project Ribbon Cutting: April 28

Finally, I want to let you know that the Mayor has called a Special Council Meeting to consider a Ceasefire Resolution for the Gaza Conflict on April 28.

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Ohlone Park Encampment Community Meeting: Thurs., May 22

Thurs., May 22, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave. (Aspen Room)

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Middle Housing Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

Below, I want to address some of the common questions I have received about the proposed Middle Housing Ordinance.

Q: What community engagement has occurred related to the proposed Middle Housing Ordinance?  

A: Work on the concept of “missing” middle housing began in 2019 when then-Councilmember Lori Droste requested that our City Planning Department study the idea. Mid-sized apartments like triplexes, fourplexes, and bungalow courts are sometimes referred to as “missing,” because they are no longer permitted by our zoning code. However, these housing types—built before our zoning code became more restrictive—blend into the fabric of our neighborhoods, providing “naturally occurring” affordable housing when compared to single-family homes because they tend to be smaller in size. The Planning Department initiated community input related to developing middle housing development standards beginning in 2021 as part of our City’s Housing Element Plan and more than 40 community meetings, events, and briefings have taken place since then. You can find the full list of events beginning on p. 203 of the Council item. You can also review materials associated with a number of these meetings on the City’s Middle Housing Zoning Changes webpage.  

Q: Will middle housing fit the look and feel of my residential neighborhood?

A: To ensure new middle housing blends in with our existing residential neighborhoods, the proposed ordinance includes the following key features:

• The maximum building envelope can be no more than three stories tall, as is fairly common in our residential neighborhoods. 
• To promote sunlight, middle housing is required to step down from three stories to two stories within 15 feet of the rear property line. Developments would also be required to have a combined total of a 20-foot setback in the front and rear (with a minimum of at least five feet in front and in back), four-foot side setbacks, and at least 40 percent of the lot maintained as open space. If a parcel is too small to accommodate these standards, then it would not be eligible for a middle housing development with streamlined review.
• To give neighbors greater certainty about what to expect from a middle housing development, the Council reintroduced the concept of a maximum number of units (previously removed by the Planning Commission), which can range depending on the size of the lot and the residential zone (i.e., R-1, R-1A, R-2, R-2A, or MU-R). The current proposal would allow a maximum of 5-7 units, depending on the residential zone, on a typical 5,000-square-foot lot. A lot of a smaller size would be limited to fewer homes.
• To promote homeownership, I introduced a Council item in January that requests that our Planning Department make it easier to subdivide parcels that use the Middle Housing Ordinance. This means that a homeowner could, for example, choose to subdivide a large backyard into two separate parcels to create two backyard cottages as ownership units. This flexibility would enable entry-level homeownership opportunities for middle-class families that are out of reach today. 

Here are two examples of middle housing that already exists in Berkeley:

Q: Will middle housing be affordable?

A: Middle housing will be more affordable by design compared to single-family homes because the units are more likely to be smaller in size than the typical single-family home. Moreover, middle housing developments will be required to pay an “inclusionary fee” into our Affordable Housing Trust Fund to help create deed-restricted below-market-rate affordable units elsewhere. I have read some e-mails suggesting that a middle housing development could take advantage of the state density bonus by creating a below-market-rate unit(s) on site; however, this is not financially feasible. Our City Planning staff are not aware of any mid-sized project—similar to the kind contemplated by this ordinance, which are allowed in some parts of our City—utilizing a state density bonus. Our City staff have also conducted developer interviews in which they learned that the cost and administrative requirements of maintaining a below-market-rate unit(s) in a mid-sized project would be financially infeasible. Finally, it’s important to keep in mind that developments that exceed three stories must rely on the California Building Code (rather than the California Residential Code), which applies stricter and more expensive building standards that make a density bonus project even less likely. Any reference to the possibility of a middle housing project using a density bonus is simply not a fact-based argument, and individuals making this argument have never presented any financial data to back up their claims.   

Q: Will middle housing lead to displacement and rapid change to my neighborhood?

A: Existing city policies have strict rules about providing tenants with relocation expenses and the offer of a replacement unit at a similar rent level in the event that their unit is demolished. These rules would continue to be in effect, and any demolitions that would affect existing rental housing units would not be entitled to streamlined review. Therefore, the proposed Middle Housing Ordinance would not in any way increase the risk of displacing sitting tenants from Berkeley or remove existing tenant protections. Middle housing offers opportunities for incremental change, similar to the way in which certain households are creating an accessory dwelling unit (i.e., backyard cottage) to fill a family need. All residential parcels have the ability to create an accessory dwelling unit (ADU), but only about 100 ADU permits are issued annually in our City. Rather than a sudden transformation, the Middle Housing Ordinance will lay the groundwork for a “trickle of projects” over time, as our Planning Director Jordan Klein described during a City Council meeting on middle housing last July. The City’s Environmental Impact Report estimated no more than 1,745 units over eight years (or, a little more than 200 units per year). The actual number of projects per year are likely to be less. A recent study commissioned by the City found that only ownership middle housing was financially feasible at this time, such as small-lot single-family homes created by subdividing a larger parcel or a fourplex condo/townhomes.

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Corridor Zoning Update

The City of Berkeley is embarking on a Corridor Zoning Update to shape the future of North Shattuck, College, and Solano Avenues. These corridors, designated as priority areas in the Housing Element 2023-31, are vital hubs for housing, commerce, and transit. This initiative aims to increase housing capacity, address development challenges, and promote equity while preserving the unique character of each corridor.

This is an effort that I pushed to include in our City’s Housing Element Plan in order to ensure that Berkeley meets its obligation to affirmatively further fair housing by planning for more affordable homes in higher-income neighborhoods. I believe that every neighborhood should have an equal opportunity to address our housing shortage.

Please join me at an upcoming Virtual Community Workshop on May 1 | 6:30-8:30 pm on Zoom (Passcode: 939786) to share your input. At the initial workshop, the project team will provide an overview of the project and most importantly, gather your ideas around housing along these important corridors. 

RSVPs are strongly encouraged, though not required. Let the team know you’re coming by replying HERE. 

This first community workshop will provide an overview of the Corridor Zoning Update and gather community input on how to shape these vital commercial areas.

Why Attend?

• Learn about the zoning update process and its impact on housing and businesses.
• Share your ideas on how these corridors should evolve.
• Help shape policies that accommodate growth, while improving accessibility and neighborhood quality.

For more details, please have a look at the Project Webpage, Corridors Fact Sheet, and Mailing List Signup.

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