Tom Wheeler (EPIC) and Colin Fiske (CRTP)
Housing is an environmental issue. The failure to provide enough housing in our urban cores means that housing pressure will be relieved by converting farms and forests in suburban and rural areas. By redirecting housing development to the periphery—away from jobs, work, grocery stores, and the like—we are worsening the climate crisis by increasing travel demands.
Housing is also a human rights issue. When we fail to produce enough housing, the pain is felt primarily by those in the lower economic classes who either lose more of their paychecks to rent and commuting costs, are forced to live in suboptimal housing conditions or, in the worst cases, are driven to homelessness. Over 1,400 people in Humboldt County were unsheltered, as counted in the last “point-in-time” count in 2019. As local advocates for people experiencing homelessness will tell you, housing costs are a prime driver of homelessness locally and in California more generally.
The failure to produce sufficient housing is not just a local problem. California, as a state, has failed to produce enough housing to keep up with population growth. One of the obstacles to housing creation is the use of local government control to stop housing development. In reaction, the legislature has started to remove discretionary authority from local governments over many issues related to housing, with laws allowing for homeowners to have the right to add accessory dwelling units to their property and to subdivide their lot into small parcels that have often been prohibited under local zoning ordinances.
In Humboldt, we see a microcosm of the struggles of our larger state to produce enough housing in appropriate areas.
Eureka
In 2018, Eureka’s urban planning outlook went through a seachange, from encouraging sprawling, auto-centric development (think Broadway)to encouraging dense, infill development in its downtown core (think the multi-storied buildings of Old Town). Eureka committed to repurposing parking lots to create affordable housing and has enjoyed some success: three parking lots have been awarded to a low-income housing developer to produce 107 housing units. Eureka is also proposing to construct a transit center with associated housing.
There have also been hiccups. Each parking lot that has been up for consideration as potential housing has drawn a panoply of opposition from people opposed to conversion of parking lots to housing. In 2020, the city retreated partially from its original plans. In a deal facilitated by Redwood Capital Bank and motivated by concern over loss of parking, the city swapped three parking lots for vacant lots elsewhere in the city. This move was opposed by environmental groups because of concerns that this would construct fewer housing units and set a bad precedent of prioritizing parking over housing.
The city is at an inflection point. Because of the swap, it must redo its Housing Element, a planning document required by state law to ensure jurisdictions plan for enough future housing. Will the city stick by its plans?
Arcata
Arcata is moving in the right direction. The city has begun work on revisions to its General Plan, which will include densification of some existing neighborhoods, most explicitly the “Gateway Area,” the roughly southwest edge of the city currently dominated by light industrial uses. Because of the low land value and the proximity to downtown, the area is prime for infill housing development. Planning for the Gateway Area is currently underway and, as it stands, would allow for tall, multi-family apartment or condominium buildings which could help open up some of the single-family homes currently rented out by groups of students. Predictably, there is pushback, with all manner of arguments employed against the project. The Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, Humboldt Baykeeper, the Northcoast Environmental Center and EPIC all stand in favor of reconceptualizing this neighborhood for more housing and more environmentally friendly modes of transportation.
Humboldt County
Humboldt County’s housing policy is regressive, a product of the conservative takeover of the Board of Supervisors—a takeover that was a reaction to, in part, attempts to restrict residential development in “resource” lands, like Timber Production Zone or Ag Exclusive zonings. Accordingly, the county’s planning encourages rural greenfield development through easy subdivision of large lots and scant protections for farms and forests. Developing rural estates yields higher profits for developers, who continue to pitch new cul-de-sacs into the forest, like the North McKay project, which was approved by the Planning Commission in January. Meanwhile, the County has lauded development standards for infill development with excessive parking requirements that make development impossible by, in many instances, requiring more space be devoted to parking than for housing.
McKinleyville
An alternative approach to housing development in the unincorporated county is starting to take shape in McKinleyville. Local residents have long decried the lack of any real town center or sense of place, which is the direct result of the county’s auto-oriented rules which effectively prohibit dense, infill development. Now, after decades of pressure, County planning staff and the McKinleyville Municipal Advisory Committee are finally developing more modern development standards to apply to the designated “town center” area. Draft rules proposed to date would allow denser housing and mixed-use development, create more walkable streetscapes, and reduce the amount of parking required. However, there continue to be loud voices opposing these changes in order to preserve the current sprawling character of McKinleyville, so the final outcome of the planning process is still unknown.
The way we move forward with housing policy will have a profound effect on the environment and the climate. Will we move towards dense, walkable, people-centered development or continue to develop car-centric subdivisions that encroach into forests and farmland and maintain our reliance on fossil fuels? One thing is certain: our current need for housing is high and is only going to grow. Now is the time to envision how we want our communities to look in the future and start making the changes that take us in that trajectory. Future generations of Humboldt County residents are counting on us. Sign the petition calling on local governments to build people-friendly, climate conscious housing at rccer.com/take-action.