2021-2029 Housing Element Update

The City held a public workshop Oct. 22 via Zoom for residents interested in learning about the process to incorporate the state’s new housing requirements. Please review our workshop recording below. A copy of the presentation is also available in the documents section of this site or by clicking here.

During the video recording there were live polling questions available. The polling is now closed.

In addition to the workshop, a community survey was available from Oct. 22 to Nov. 22. Thank you for your participation! Results can be viewed in the documents section of this website or by clicking here.

The Housing Element is a state-mandated and city-initiated policy document included in the City of Coronado General Plan. The Housing Element identifies policies and programs to meet existing and projected future housing needs for all economic segments in the City. The Housing Element update will identify specific actions to be taken over the 2021-2029 planning period related to housing.

The City’s current Housing Element, its 5th Cycle, was adopted by the City Council in February 2013 and certified by the state Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) in March 2013. The adopted Housing Element covers the planning period from January 01, 2013, through April 30, 2021.

The City is currently implementing the current Housing Element’s goals, programs and actions. To comply with state law, the City’s Housing Element must be updated to ensure Coronado’s policies and programs can accommodate the estimated housing growth need identified in the San Diego Association of Governments' Regional Housing Needs Assessment allocation for the 2021-2029 planning period. The 6th Cycle Housing Element will require state review for compliance with existing law. The updated Housing Element must be adopted by the City Council on or before April 15, 2021, to comply with state law.

Notwithstanding the City’s legal challenge to address a housing allocation that assigned Coronado an 1,800% increase from its prior housing allocation cycle, the City is statutorily required to move forward with the Housing Element update.

To learn more, this website includes links to relevant documents. Please continue to check this site for future updates.

In January 2020, the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) distributed its allocation of 171,685 planned housing units under the regional housing needs allocation to Coronado and other San Diego County cities. Coronado was assigned a stunning 1,001 new housing units, up 2,000 percent from the previous cycles.

Appeal of SANDAG Draft RHNA Allocation

The City has appealed its share of regional housing proposed to be allocated under the Regional Housing Needs Assessment adopted by SANDAG.

SANDAG developed the methodology to create the assessment, which assigns housing units based on the amount of jobs and transit stops in each jurisdiction. SANDAG included active duty military jobs that have government-provided housing. This was not previously the case. SANDAG also failed to account for Coronado’s unique constraints to development, specifically 71% of the City’s total land area falls under the jurisdiction of agencies who have exclusive land use authority. Only about 1 square mile is available in Coronado to accommodate the new housing units and it is all 100% within the coastal zone.

The deadline for the City to appeal the San Diego Association of Government's draft of its Regional Housing Needs Allocation was Monday, Jan. 6. This is a public document. Here is a link to the appeal letter.

Comment Letter on Appeals of RHNA Allocations

On Feb. 20, the City sent a letter to the SANDAG board of directors. The letter supports three other cities in San Diego County who, like the City of Coronado, also have appealed their allocations. The letter also restates the reasons for the City’s appeal and reinforces the comments in our original appeal letter. Here is a link to the comment letter.

Allocation Appeal Video and Next Steps

The City prepared an eight-minute video to explain its position. Below is the appeal video, or you can watch it here. SANDAG voted 14 to 5 to grant the appeal. However, due to provisions of state law, the City of San Diego called for a vote based on the populations of all jurisdictions. The five jurisdictions that voted against Coronado won by 55% in the weighted vote, which overturned the previous vote and denied the appeals. Coronado's RHNA allocation was changed from 1,001 units to 912 units. Since then, the Cities of Coronado, Imperial Beach, Solana Beach, and Lemon Grove have filed a lawsuit challenging SANDAG’s RHNA vote. Here is a link to the press release.