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Mayor says California withdrew Fresno’s pro‑housing designation; city outlines steps to regain status
Summary
Mayor Jerry P. Dyer told council May 22 the state rescinded Fresno’s pro‑housing designation for missing deadlines and that the city has met 26 of 33 agreed criteria. The mayor said most outstanding items will be before council by June and pledged to pursue reinstatement because the designation helps secure state funding for housing projects.
Mayor Jerry P. Dyer told the Fresno City Council on May 22 that the State of California has withdrawn Fresno’s pro‑housing designation because the city “has not met the requisite deadlines and criteria.” The mayor said the governor’s office contacted him and that the city can reapply once commitments are met.
“I'm ashamed of that as a mayor of this city,” Dyer said in Council Chambers, adding staff and council will act quickly to meet outstanding criteria. He said staff had completed 26 of 33 agreed items with the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD); the remaining items include text amendments and other regulatory changes such as allowing residential uses in office zones, establishing pre‑approved plans for missing‑middle housing types, permitting tiny homes on wheels as primary residences, and by‑right missing‑middle development in certain single‑family districts.
City staff and councilmembers said many of the remaining items are already in process and several will be brought to council in coming weeks. The mayor said the pro‑housing designation materially helped Fresno’s ability to secure competitive state funding such as an IGC grant and that regaining the designation is a priority for the city’s housing goals.
Why it matters: Pro‑housing designation provides points and eligibility that improve the competitiveness of local affordable‑housing funding applications and, in some cases, is a prerequisite to apply for specific statewide grants. Dyer stressed the designation’s importance to projects already in development, including planned downtown housing and other affordable developments that depend on state subsidy.
Council direction: Council members pressed staff for a breakdown of which items remain and the points associated with each so the council can prioritize required actions; staff agreed to provide the point allocation and to return with the necessary text amendments and policy actions.
