Politicians scramble for low-density identity

One ever-present issue in Yorba Linda involves residential density, as measured by the number of houses, condominiums and apartments permitted per acre, with city politicians scrambling to position themselves as low-density advocates and label adversaries as pro-moters of a developer-friendly urbanized environment.

Longtime residents might remember a main reason the incorporation vote won in 1967 was community members wanted to wrest development decisions from county officials they saw as approving too many apartments and gasoline stations.

And many of the early city's heated arguments focused on appropriate density levels, with some factions contending for no more than 2.0 units per acre and others who were just as adamant that 2.5 fit the semi-rural identity they desired.

Now, of course, the figures have shifted, with voter-approved densities ranging from 10 to 30 units per acre on several properties, mostly on the westend, to meet state mandates to allow opportunities for lower-cost or “affordable” housing.

The current density debate will only get more vocal as individuals and groups emerge to contest a City Council election for two seats on the five-member body just a year ahead.

Already the city's density numbers and housing allotments are bandied about without context or full explanations, and sometimes with misrepresentations, so let's examine city- and state-prepared documents with a focus on the most relevant numbers.

The state's Regional Housing Needs Assessment report says Yorba Linda must plan for 669 housing units at all income levels in the new 2014-21 time frame. This time the city has been given a longer, eight-year planning period because an October deadline was met.

Of the 669 units, nearly 60 percent (396) are specified for “moderate” incomes (126) and “above moderate” incomes (270). “Moderate” incomes are from 81 to 120 percent of the state-defined area median income and “above moderate” incomes are above 120 percent.

The state's 2012 figures for the “above moderate” income category start at $71,651 for a one-person household; $81,901 for two; $92,101 for three; and $102,501 for four. The “moderate” category starts at $53,951 for one; $61,651 for two; $69,351 for three; and $77,051 for four.

Lower income units total 273, 160 for “very low” and 113 for “low” income households, with “very low” up to 50 percent and “low” at 51 to 80 percent of the area median, and actual numbers ranging to the starting incomes cited for the “moderate” category.

Due to the zoning density opportunities developed for non-market rate units during the prior five-year planning period, including property rezoned in the June 2012 election, the city has “a site capacity buffer of 623 units for the 2014-21 time period,” noted an October report from Community Development Director Steve Harris.

The buffer means the city now exceeds state requirements through 2021 and would allow recently rezoned properties to include market-rate, not just lower-cost housing.