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| California Today: Scott Wiener ‘Took to Heart’ Housing Bill Criticism | |
| (21 days later) | |
| Good morning. | Good morning. |
| (Here’s the sign-up, if you don’t already get California Today by email.) | (Here’s the sign-up, if you don’t already get California Today by email.) |
| I recently wrote about how California can feel like home to almost anyone. But even if it feels like home, it’s increasingly tough to afford living in the state. | I recently wrote about how California can feel like home to almost anyone. But even if it feels like home, it’s increasingly tough to afford living in the state. |
| Scott Wiener, a state senator from San Francisco, says he’s trying to fix that. He’s the legislator behind a divisive housing bill, S.B. 827, which died last year. The idea? Require cities to allow the construction of eight-story apartment buildings near transit stops, even if local governments object. | Scott Wiener, a state senator from San Francisco, says he’s trying to fix that. He’s the legislator behind a divisive housing bill, S.B. 827, which died last year. The idea? Require cities to allow the construction of eight-story apartment buildings near transit stops, even if local governments object. |
| This year, he resurrected the proposal, now called S.B. 50, and with some changes. I asked Mr. Wiener about how it addresses some of the concerns with the earlier bill. (The interview has been edited and condensed.) | This year, he resurrected the proposal, now called S.B. 50, and with some changes. I asked Mr. Wiener about how it addresses some of the concerns with the earlier bill. (The interview has been edited and condensed.) |
| Jill Cowan: How does the new version address concerns about displacement? | Jill Cowan: How does the new version address concerns about displacement? |
| Scott Wiener: I took to heart the criticisms that the geography of S.B. 827 disproportionately affected lower income communities. We worked intensely with housing equity advocates in L.A. and the Bay Area to address those criticisms. We’re still fleshing out the details. | Scott Wiener: I took to heart the criticisms that the geography of S.B. 827 disproportionately affected lower income communities. We worked intensely with housing equity advocates in L.A. and the Bay Area to address those criticisms. We’re still fleshing out the details. |
| But one of the changes is for neighborhoods that are at significant risk for displacement, we’re giving cities the option to delay implementation. The second piece is that many wealthier communities have kept transportation out but they’re job centers. We added a provision extending the bill into these communities that have strong access to jobs. The final piece is if a tenant has resided in a building for the last seven years, you can’t demolish the building and invoke this law. The bill will also have affordability requirements. | But one of the changes is for neighborhoods that are at significant risk for displacement, we’re giving cities the option to delay implementation. The second piece is that many wealthier communities have kept transportation out but they’re job centers. We added a provision extending the bill into these communities that have strong access to jobs. The final piece is if a tenant has resided in a building for the last seven years, you can’t demolish the building and invoke this law. The bill will also have affordability requirements. |
| You told CALmatters that there’s no way around taking some control from cities. How politically realistic do you think that is, given pushback from local governments? | You told CALmatters that there’s no way around taking some control from cities. How politically realistic do you think that is, given pushback from local governments? |
| More and more people understand with California’s current approach to housing, we’re shooting ourselves in our foot. City councils, mayors, county supervisors have come up to me and said: “We can’t say this publicly, but we need help. We need to be able to tell our constituents, ‘We have to approve this project because the state requires it.’” | More and more people understand with California’s current approach to housing, we’re shooting ourselves in our foot. City councils, mayors, county supervisors have come up to me and said: “We can’t say this publicly, but we need help. We need to be able to tell our constituents, ‘We have to approve this project because the state requires it.’” |
| Some have argued it’s counterproductive to increase density around transit because the state’s transit systems are already overused and underfunded. How would you respond to that? | Some have argued it’s counterproductive to increase density around transit because the state’s transit systems are already overused and underfunded. How would you respond to that? |
| I agree that we need to aggressively invest to expand the capacity and the reliability of our public transportation systems. I think we also have to understand that building housing is not what increases population. Our choice is, do we want to build enough housing so people can afford it, or are we not going to build housing so no one can afford it? | I agree that we need to aggressively invest to expand the capacity and the reliability of our public transportation systems. I think we also have to understand that building housing is not what increases population. Our choice is, do we want to build enough housing so people can afford it, or are we not going to build housing so no one can afford it? |
| (A note: We often link to content on sites that limit access for nonsubscribers. We appreciate your reading Times stories, but we’d also encourage you to support local news if you can.) | (A note: We often link to content on sites that limit access for nonsubscribers. We appreciate your reading Times stories, but we’d also encourage you to support local news if you can.) |
| • California has led the nation in reducing its prison population over the past decade through its controversial “realignment” process. Violent crime has increased during that time, but observers disagree about whether those facts are linked. Here’s an in-depth analysis. [The Marshall Project] | • California has led the nation in reducing its prison population over the past decade through its controversial “realignment” process. Violent crime has increased during that time, but observers disagree about whether those facts are linked. Here’s an in-depth analysis. [The Marshall Project] |
| • The tobacco giant Altria has agreed to pay nearly $13 billion for a 35 percent stake in Juul Labs. The all-cash deal connects Juul’s future growth to the industry it sought to transform, while Altria, the parent of Philip Morris U.S.A., can profit from its would-be slayer. [The New York Times] | • The tobacco giant Altria has agreed to pay nearly $13 billion for a 35 percent stake in Juul Labs. The all-cash deal connects Juul’s future growth to the industry it sought to transform, while Altria, the parent of Philip Morris U.S.A., can profit from its would-be slayer. [The New York Times] |
| • Thousands of migrant children who have been parked in shelters could soon be reunited with family members following policy changes related to sponsors, or the people a child goes to live with. [The New York Times] | • Thousands of migrant children who have been parked in shelters could soon be reunited with family members following policy changes related to sponsors, or the people a child goes to live with. [The New York Times] |
| • New internal Republican Party rules sharply limit the participation of House members who are under indictment, including Representative Duncan Hunter, the San Diego-area congressman who was recently re-elected despite being accused of misusing campaign funds. [The San Diego Union-Tribune] | • New internal Republican Party rules sharply limit the participation of House members who are under indictment, including Representative Duncan Hunter, the San Diego-area congressman who was recently re-elected despite being accused of misusing campaign funds. [The San Diego Union-Tribune] |
| • The Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which has paid out a record $740 million in settlements to victims of priest abuse, knew for 13 years that one of its bishops had been accused of sexual abuse and only disclosed it this week. [The New York Times] | • The Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which has paid out a record $740 million in settlements to victims of priest abuse, knew for 13 years that one of its bishops had been accused of sexual abuse and only disclosed it this week. [The New York Times] |
| • The cost to cross the Golden Gate Bridge could rise to almost $10 in the next five years, a more than 20 percent increase. [The San Francisco Chronicle] | • The cost to cross the Golden Gate Bridge could rise to almost $10 in the next five years, a more than 20 percent increase. [The San Francisco Chronicle] |
| • A rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base that was scheduled for Wednesday got delayed. It might happen tonight. [San Luis Obispo Tribune] | • A rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base that was scheduled for Wednesday got delayed. It might happen tonight. [San Luis Obispo Tribune] |
| • Sonoma County will pay $3 million to settle a civil rights lawsuit brought by the family of Andy Lopez, a 13-year-old boy who was shot and killed in 2013 by a sheriff’s deputy who thought the airsoft BB gun he was carrying was real. [The Press Democrat] | • Sonoma County will pay $3 million to settle a civil rights lawsuit brought by the family of Andy Lopez, a 13-year-old boy who was shot and killed in 2013 by a sheriff’s deputy who thought the airsoft BB gun he was carrying was real. [The Press Democrat] |
| • Nikko, a white-handed gibbon who had been moved from the Oakland Zoo to Santa Barbara because he was lonely, died just as he was starting to get to know his new companion, Jasmine, and her adopted daughter. Both Nikko and Jasmine had recently lost their longtime mates. [The Mercury News] | • Nikko, a white-handed gibbon who had been moved from the Oakland Zoo to Santa Barbara because he was lonely, died just as he was starting to get to know his new companion, Jasmine, and her adopted daughter. Both Nikko and Jasmine had recently lost their longtime mates. [The Mercury News] |
| As we head toward the end of the year, we thought it’d be nice to share some holiday traditions — the things Californians do or eat or watch when the time comes to reflect and relax. | As we head toward the end of the year, we thought it’d be nice to share some holiday traditions — the things Californians do or eat or watch when the time comes to reflect and relax. |
| I, for instance, can’t properly start the new year without a bowl of ozoni, a Japanese mochi soup that’s supposed to be good luck. It’s served on New Year’s Day, which is a big holiday for Japanese families. I plan to eat ozoni in quantities that leave me near comatose while half-watching football. | I, for instance, can’t properly start the new year without a bowl of ozoni, a Japanese mochi soup that’s supposed to be good luck. It’s served on New Year’s Day, which is a big holiday for Japanese families. I plan to eat ozoni in quantities that leave me near comatose while half-watching football. |
| So what are your traditions? Do you eat tamales? (If so, this L.A. Taco list is pretty great.) Do you do a polar bear plunge? If you’ve got a fun tradition, we want to hear about it, too. | So what are your traditions? Do you eat tamales? (If so, this L.A. Taco list is pretty great.) Do you do a polar bear plunge? If you’ve got a fun tradition, we want to hear about it, too. |
| California Today goes live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com. | California Today goes live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com. |
| California Today is written by Jill Cowan and edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from U.C. Berkeley. | California Today is written by Jill Cowan and edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from U.C. Berkeley. |