Legislators killed SB 827 in a 6 to 4 vote during the first committee meeting Tueday April 24th 2018. SB 827 was an ambitious bill proposed by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) that would have drastically change zoning laws to increase construction of four and five story buildings near major transit/rail stations and frequently served bus stops. The bill was originally introduced in January and was immediately hit with opposition. Opponents of the bill claimed it would jeopardize the character of neighborhoods and lead to traffic and parking pains. The bill was targeted towards single family neighborhoods where dense development was prohibited. Wiener and pro-housing groups argued that the state had to intervene because decades of slow-growth policies by local governments have created a devastating housing shortage. The lack of affordable housing has formed into a huge problem bringing California into an extreme housing crisis but many thought this solution was a little too drastic. Although the bill was defeated many believe this is just the beginning of extreme measures to solve California’s Housing Crisis.
YIMBYS Defeated as California Transit Density Bill Stalls
SB 827 is Dead. But California still can – and should- build more Housing Near Transit