HOUSING ELEMENT
2022 UPDATE
Resources
Initial Draft Housing Element “v1”: For the Initial Draft “v1”, the City conducted a 83-day public comment period between May 12, 2022 and August 2, 2022 and spent 25 business days between August 3, 2022 and September 7, 2022 incorporating revisions based on feedback received. On September 7, 2022, the City of Chico submitted its Initial Draft Housing Element “v1” to the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for a 90-day review concluding on December 6, 2022 and received preliminary comments from HCD on November 10, 2022.
Revised Draft Housing Element “v2”: In response to the preliminary comments from HCD, the City posted a Revised Draft Housing Element “v2” on the City’s Housing Element website on November 22, 2022 and sent an email to all Chico Housing Element subscribers to solicit comments between November 22, 2022 and November 30, 2022 (7 days). Edits to the initial draft “v1” are shown in track changes in “v2”. The Revised Draft Housing Element “v2” was not adopted by the Chico City Council. The purpose of this draft was to respond to HCD’s requests within the initial draft 90-day review period.
Revised Draft Housing Element “v3”: After its review of “v2”, HCD sent a letter to the City on December 5, 2022, in which it requested further edits to the document. In response to these comments, the City posted a Revised Draft Housing Element “v3” on this website on April 6 2023 and sent an email to all Chico Housing Element subscribers to solicit comments between April 7, 2023 and April 13,2023 (7 days). The City received preliminary comments from HCD in May 2023. Revised Draft “v3” was updated in response to these comments. The City sent an email to all Chico Housing Element subscribers to solicit comments between June 15 and June 22, 2023. Edits to the revised draft “v2” are shown in track changes in “v3”. The Revised Draft Housing Element “v3” was not adopted by the Chico City Council. The purpose of this draft was to respond to HCD’s December 5, 2022 letter and subsequent HCD May 2023 comments.
Revised Draft Housing Element “v4”: After its review of “v3”, HCD requested final minor edits to the document, with an indication that HCD would be ready to certify the document with these edits. In response, the City posted Revised Draft Housing Element “v4” on this website on August 15, 2023 and sent an email to all Chico Housing Element subscribers to solicit comments between August 16, 2023 and August 22, 2023 (7 days). In addition to the entire Housing Element document, a summary of the edits in “v4” are available to download at the links below. The City submitted “v4” to HCD on August 23, 2023.
Housing Element Adoption: The City received a letter from HCD on August 24, 2023 indicating that the “v4” draft Housing Element is in compliance with State Housing Element law and is ready for adoption. The City has scheduled a public hearing to adopt this version of the Housing Element on September 19, 2023 at 6:00 pm. The hearing will take place at the City Council Chamber, 421 Main Street, Chico. The final Housing Element document proposed for adoption and HCD’s letter can be downloaded at the links below.
Community Meeting #1
Resources
On February 10, 2021, the City invited residents to participate in a live webinar and discussion on housing challenges and possibilities. Community input and feedback gathered during this event will help define the priorities for housing in our City and influence future housing policies. Access the materials from the webinar and breakout groups here.
BCAG Regional
Housing Needs Plan
This document describes the methodology for the Regional Housing Needs Allocation for the 2022-2030 Housing Element Update (6th Housing Element Cycle). A major goal of the RHNP is to ensure a fair distribution of housing among the cities and county, so that every community provides an opportunity for a variety of housing affordable to all economic segments.
Current 2014-2022
Housing Element
The 2022 Housing Element Update planning process will perform an extensive update of the 2014 Housing Element’s policies to ensure that policies reflect current values, housing needs, and conditions. You can download the City's Housing Element for the period 2014-2022 here.
Housing Accountability Act
The Housing Accountability Act (HAA) establishes the state’s overarching policy that a local government may not deny, reduce the density of, or make infeasible housing development projects, emergency shelters, or farmworker housing that are consistent with objective local development standards.
Accessory Dwelling Units
ADUs are a unique opportunity to address a variety of housing needs and provide affordable housing options for family members, friends, students, the elderly, in-home health care providers, people with disabilities, and others. The State has published an ADU Handbook to assist local governments in encouraging the development of ADUs that you can download below. The City of Chico has developed resources to aid in the development of ADUs that can be found on their website: www.chico.ca.us/adujadu-information
Understanding the Cost of Developing Affordable Housing
This interactive tool from the Urban Institute puts you in the driver's seat of an affordable housing development to explore the variables that affect its development, and better understand why government subsidies are needed to create, preserve and operate affordable housing.
Community Meeting #2
Resources
On August 11, 2021, the City invited residents to participate in a live webinar and discussion on housing goals and activities. Community input and feedback gathered during this event will help define the priorities for housing in our City and influence future housing policies. Access the materials from the webinar presentation and breakout groups here.