Developers seeking to build new housing or renovate existing apartment complexes in Marina del Rey will need to provide more affordable units moving forward, following a vote taken by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

On October 17, the Supervisors voted to move forward with an update to the Marina del Rey affordable housing policy, establishing a new requirement that developers seeking approvals for major renovations of existing apartment complexes must set aside units for lower-income households moving forward. The requirement will apply to new leases or new development projects, rather than to entities that currently lease land in the Marina from Los Angeles County. However, should current lessees seek discretionary entitlements subject to County approval, they may find themselves subject to the new policy.

Major renovations or replacements of structural, electrical, plumbing, and mechanical systems which require that three or more tenants must vacate a rental unit for at least 15 days would qualify as a "substantial rehabilitation," under the policy. However, cosmetic improvements such as painting or rehabilitation work required by government code would not apply.

While the motion which precipitated the update in 2020 had called for increasing the amount of on-site affordable housing in eligible projects from 15 to 20 percent, the end result goes a step further, calling for 30 percent of all residential units in newly-built and rehabilitated projects to be set aside at below market rates. Of the restricted affordable units, two thirds would be reserved for very low-income households, while the remaining one third would be set aside for a combination of low- and moderate-income households.

Hunter Kerhart Architectural Photography.

That new 30 percent figure is higher than those imposed in other coastal jurisdictions in Los Angeles, such as Santa Monica, where the affordability requirement varies between 20 and 25 percent in its Downtown Community Plan area. Likewise, it outstrips the inclusionary housing requirements of the new Downtown Community Plans, which range from 8 percent to 16 percent depending on income level.

The update to the affordable housing policy also includes a new requirement that covenanted affordable units in Marina del Rey shall be distributed based on centralized waiting list maintained by the L.A. County Development Authority, as well as procedures and regulations for replacement of existing housing lost to redevelopment.

A staff report to the Board of Supervisors indicates that the County will likely see less rent revenue in the future, as market rate units would be converted to affordable units, and the County would need to provide credits or subsidies to lessees to make leases economically feasible.

The change to the Marina del Rey affordable housing policy comes at a time when the County has sought to revamp the community's vision statement, while also attracting new affordable housing developments to the remaining parking lots which surrounding the waterfront.

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