Berkeley City Council Meeting Summary 🏡🚴‍♂️🚶‍♀️

The Berkeley City Council recently held a meeting to discuss various policies affecting housing development, pedestrian safety, bike infrastructure, and parking issues. Here are the key points and decisions from the meeting:

Key Points of Discussion

• Rental vs. For-Sale Housing: The discussion highlighted that most rental housing types, except for group living accommodations, are not feasible under the current in-lieu fee structure. In contrast, for-sale options like townhouses were found to be more feasible but highly sensitive to changes in sales prices and construction costs.

• Current Fee: The in-lieu fee, a critical funding source for affordable housing, is currently set at $56.25 per square foot.
• Impact of Fee Changes: Increasing the in-lieu fee would not make housing prototypes more feasible due to high construction and financing costs. Smaller projects, in particular, struggle without the advantage of state density bonuses.

• Bird-Safe Building Requirements: These requirements marginally increase costs by 1-1.5%.
• Hard Hats Policy: This policy, which includes health insurance and training, significantly impacts mid-rise buildings (6-8 stories), increasing costs by 18-25%.
• Prevailing Wage Policy: This policy affects 18-story high-rise buildings but has minimal cost impact as these projects already use union labor.

• Maintain Current In-Lieu Fee: The council was advised to keep the fee at $56.25 per square foot but simplify the structure for smaller projects.
• Exemption for Smaller Projects: It was recommended to exempt the first 5,000 square feet of new projects to support smaller developments.
• Fee Indexing: The in-lieu fee should continue to be indexed to the construction cost index, with the next increase scheduled for July 1, 2025.

• Concerns on Hard Hats Policy: Both developers and labor unions expressed concerns, with developers worried about increased costs and unions emphasizing fair wages and health benefits.
• Calls for Delay: There were suggestions to delay decisions until more feedback could be gathered, particularly on the hard hats and prevailing wage policies.

Decisions and Actions

• Current Fee Maintained: The council decided to maintain the current in-lieu fee but will consider simplifying it for smaller projects.
• Exemption for Initial Square Footage: The first 5,000 square feet of new projects will be exempted to help smaller developments become feasible.

• Further Discussions Needed: The council acknowledged the significant impact of the hard hats and prevailing wage policies and suggested further discussions to ensure these do not hinder housing development.

• Holistic Planning Emphasized: While the meeting primarily focused on housing feasibility and fees, the importance of integrating pedestrian safety, bike infrastructure, and parking solutions into new housing developments was underscored. The council emphasized the need for holistic planning to create sustainable and livable communities.

Conclusion

The Berkeley City Council meeting provided a comprehensive analysis of the current housing market challenges and the impact of new policies on housing development. Key decisions included maintaining the current in-lieu fee while simplifying the fee structure for smaller projects. The council acknowledged the significant impact of the hard hats and prevailing wage policies, with further discussions planned to ensure these do not negatively affect housing feasibility. Integrating pedestrian safety, bike infrastructure, and parking solutions into new developments remains a priority for creating a sustainable urban environment. 🚴‍♀️🚶‍♂️🚗