California law expedites L.A. homeless shelter development
A new California law will allow city officials and real estate developers to build homeless shelters and certain housing in Los Angeles without undergoing environmental review, thus expediting the process, according to a report.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1197 on Thursday, Curbed Los Angeles reported Tuesday. The law went into effect immediately and only applies to Los Angeles.
The law exempts L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti’s “A Bridge Home” initiative – to improve the homeless crisis throughout the city – from regulations spelled out in the California Environmental Quality Act, "which requires developers to study, make public, and minimize a project’s impact on the environment, like noise, traffic, and views," according to the report.
It will also apply to developers for public housing funded through “Measure HHH,” a project that will provide approximately 10,000 units for homeless people, Curbed reported.
“This law will help us turn blueprints into buildings more quickly for the shelter and supportive housing that unhoused people need now,” Garcetti told Curbed.
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Any housing projects that fall within the set guidelines must file exemption notices through the county clerk and the Office of Planning and Research, according to the legislation.
CEQA requires that any development projects “must be evaluated for their environmental impacts," according to the Los Angeles Housing and Community Investment Department. The results of the examination must then be publicly disclosed.