Senate Bill 2 (SB2)
About SB2
On October 5, 2022, the City’s housing staff and consultants published for public review and comment the next generation of Piedmont’s Design Review program, called the draft Piedmont Multifamily Objective Design Standards (MODS), to regulate construction in Piedmont’s commercial areas (Zone C and Zone D). Read the MODS here. Public comment can be sent to Piedmontishome@piedmont.ca.gov until November 21, 2022. The draft MODS program will be prepared for a public hearing by the Planning Commission tentatively in December 2022. The draft MODS program was funded by a State of California SB 2 grant. A program to encourage rent-restricted ADUs was also funded by SB 2. The draft ADU Incentives program will be released for public comment by November 2022.
California Senate Bill 2 (SB 2), the Building Homes and Jobs Act, was signed into law by Governor Brown on September 29, 2017 and took effect January 1, 2018. The law gives Alameda County the ability to impose a recordation fee on real estate documents. For the recordation of each real estate document, the County can impose a fee of $75 (not to exceed $225) to each parcel of the real property. As a one-time component of SB 2, 50% of the fees collected from all counties in 2018 were allocated to the SB 2 Planning Grants Program (SB 2 grants), to provide technical and financial assistance to jurisdictions, through a noncompetitive application process. The SB 2 grants were intended to help jurisdictions finance the preparation, adoption or implementation of plans that facilitate housing approvals or accelerate housing production. Grant recipients must complete new or modified policies and programs by the end of June 2022. Additional information on the SB 2 grants can be found on the program webpage:
http://www.hcd.ca.gov/grantsfunding/active-funding/planning-grants.shtml
On September 16, 2019, the Council approved the City’s application to participate in the State of California SB 2 grants program. The application included a scope of work, which outlined the tasks and activities that the City wished to pursue in order to accelerate the production of housing in Piedmont. The grant application’s scope focused efforts on the two main strategies in the existing 2014 Piedmont Housing Element: the construction of ADUs and Junior ADUs (JADUs) on residential properties; and development of mixed-use multifamily development in zones C and D. In 2020, the City’s SB 2 grant application was accepted by State of California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), and HCD awarded the City $160,000 in reimbursable funds to complete the project scope. On August 17, 2020, the City Council authorized a contract with Lisa Wise Consulting (LWC) to complete the SB 2 Housing Programs project. The scope of work for ADUs included the analysis of possible incentives for rent-restricted affordable ADUs, including consideration of state and regional grant opportunities, such as Measure A1 (2016).
On June 21, 2021, the Piedmont City Council adopted the following guiding principles for the City’s implementation of the current 2015 Housing Element:
1. Support equitable distribution of affordable units across the City. A diversity of housing choices, including new affordable multi-family housing, new mixed-income multi-family housing, new residential mixed-use development, converted units, ADUs, and Junior ADUs, should be considered throughout the City’s neighborhoods, corridors, and zoning districts.
2. Promote and enhance community design and neighborhoods. Infill development should be compatible with the neighborhood context. Development and design standards should ensure that new construction enhances the area in terms of building scale, placement, and design; and is sensitive to impacts on the neighborhood, including impacts related to sunlight access, privacy, and roadway access. Each building must exhibit high-quality design and play a role in creating a better whole.
3. Remove barriers to development and access to housing through clear and objective standards. Development standards and procedures should guide development that is equitable and feasible and that lead applicants through procedures that are transparent and predictable.
4. Facilitate the development of new housing units through strategic partnerships between the City and the broader community. Partnerships to facilitate development include striving to reach community consensus for desired designs; and achieving community support for new incentives, standards, and tools to meet housing goals.
5. Social equity. Work with the Community to proactively facilitate greater social equity by considering City incentives and programs that will enable new homes and apartments for a range of income levels, creating opportunities for all persons regardless of race, religion, ethnic background, or financial ability.
FAQ
The following is a ongoing list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) related to the SB2 project that will be updated throughout the project.
+ What is a feasibility study?
A feasibility study evaluates the costs of land, construction, and on-going operation and maintenance as compared to the expected rents that could be generated by a development proposal, as well as sources of gap-funding such as grants, credits, and state and federal funding.
+ What is the Zoning Ordinance and Zoning Map?
Chapter 17 of the Piedmont City Code is the zoning ordinance in Piedmont. The zoning ordinance must be consistent with the General Plan and serves as one of the tools by which the City implements the goals and actions included in the General Plan and its Housing Element. The zoning ordinance regulates development, including application processes, allowed building sizes, allowed land uses, signs, and aesthetics. The zoning map assigns a land use zone to each parcel in Piedmont. The land use zones in Piedmont are: zone A (single-family); zone B (public facilities), zone C (multi-family); zone D (commercial mixed-use); and zone E (single family estate). Visit the City webpage on zoning for more information and a link to the zoning map at:
+ What is the Piedmont City Charter?
The City of Piedmont has been a charter city since 1923. The City Charter is essentially Piedmont's city constitution and reserves specific topics, legally known as municipal affairs, to city governance. Provisions in the charter will sometimes supersede state law in areas where there are differences. Charter cities are not exempt from state laws regarding housing. The Charter was last amended in 2018. Pursuant to Section 9.02 of the Charter, a ballot measure passed by a majority of voters is required to reduce, enlarge, or reclassify a zoning district. A ballot measure is not required to amend the General Plan Map. The City Charter is available on the City website at:
+ What does “Multi-family” mean?
Multi-family housing means apartment buildings, including triplexes and four-plexes or more. Multi-family housing is permitted in zone C in Piedmont. Multi-family housing is also permitted in Zone D as part of a mixed-use development with ground floor commercial uses.
+ What does “Mixed-use” mean?
Mixed-use development means apartment buildings with ground-floor businesses, such as retail shops, offices, restaurants, banks, cafes, and other local-serving uses.
+ Does the SB 2 grant include new City policies?
City long-range planning policy is established in the Piedmont General Plan and its Housing Element. City policy is the result of open and transparent public processes that ensure that City policy is lawful, equitable, and does not break the public’s trust. The SB 2 grant is not intended to help the City develop new long-range planning policies and instead is intended to implement policies already mandated by the 2015 Housing Element.
+ What is meant by housing “programs” and ADU “programs”?
City programs are the public services that City staff provide to the community, including the regulations and procedures required to establish and implement the services. City programs are often mandated by the actions included in the General Plan. An examples of a City program includes Renew AC, an affordable housing program offered in Piedmont through the County of Alameda that funds repairs to low-income residences and constructs new ADUs within existing homes. Information about Renew AC is at:
Timeline: SB2
The following is a conceptual timeline representing the overall SB2 project process, major milestones and engagement opportunities.
Timeline of SB2 project with specific milestones mapped through summer 2022
