Public Outcry Forces San Diego To Revise Granny Flat Policy

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San Diego City officials have proposed rolling back recent policy changes after an overwhelming outcry against granny flat construction.

According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, critics are calling the city's granny flat rules too lenient.

Many were assuaged after Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera proposed a rollback on the policies, but they say it won't prevent some property owners from destroying neighborhood character.

Elo-Rivera is proposing complex adjustments to city granny flat rules that aim to prevent corporate investors from abusing the rules and increase their availability to low-income tenants.

These adjustments were prompted after backlash first emerged last spring in Kensington, Talmadge, Rolando, and other nearby neighborhoods in response to the new policy.

The policy was adopted last fall by the City Council and goes beyond state law by letting property owners construct extra granny flats on their property if they agree to rent restrictions on at least one of the granny flats.

What's really under fire is the policy's "density bonus" which says if the property is within a half-mile of an existing or planned transit line, the owner can build multiple bonus granny flats if they also build an equal number of rent-restricted flats, according to the Union-Tribune.

“Solving our housing crisis requires density,” said Elo-Rivera. “Housing must be created and it must be close to jobs and shopping, so ADUs need to be part of our policy."


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