Planning commission hears mid‑cycle housing update and legal briefing after Redondo appellate ruling

Hermosa Beach’s Planning Commission on Nov. 18 received a mid‑cycle implementation update on the city’s sixth‑cycle housing element and a legal briefing on a recent California Court of Appeal decision that decertified Redondo Beach’s housing element.

Community Development Director Lisonbee Becker reviewed progress across five program areas — conserving existing housing, supporting affordable production, reducing development constraints, expanding ADU accounting, and land value recapture — and said the city’s regional housing needs allocation (RHNA) for the cycle is 558 units. Becker said the city currently shows 384 units in various stages of the pipeline, with 116 completed at mid‑cycle, but that Hermosa is underperforming in very low, low and moderate income categories and needs better unit accounting for ADUs and inventory tracking.

The legal briefing by Interim Assistant City Attorney Sarah Laughlin focused on the appellate case New Commune DTLA v. Redondo Beach. Laughlin summarized the court’s holding: certain overlay sites in Redondo retained base nonresidential zoning without a residential requirement, so they failed to meet state minimum residential density and the 50% residential‑only threshold for lower‑income sites, and the court decertified Redondo’s element despite prior HCD certification. “The appellate court found that the City’s housing element was not compliant with State housing element law, as of today,” Laughlin said, and added that courts may review a certified element and find it out of compliance.

Laughlin stressed three takeaways: (1) sites that keep nonresidential base zoning within overlay areas may need rezoning to require residential development; (2) state law requires either a residential‑only balance for at least half of lower‑income sites or mixed‑use sites where at least half of the floor area is dedicated to housing; and (3) a court may reject an HCD certification if it finds a housing element inconsistent with state law. She said Hermosa’s housing element remains certified but recommended staff evaluate the city’s overlay inventory and consider rezoning or other changes where necessary.

Commissioners pressed staff on whether the pipeline production counts are net new units, how much buffer remains in each income category, and whether the city can compel owners on inventory sites to build the types of units assigned in the housing element. Becker said the city reports the numbers as net new to HCD, acknowledged shortcomings in record‑keeping and promised efforts to improve ADU counting, track site conversions more closely and to bring more city‑owned land forward for development as a concrete step the city controls.

Public commenters — including local residents and housing advocates — urged more transparent, site‑by‑site reporting and stronger, earlier contingency planning in case the Redondo holding prompts statewide guidance or further litigation. Several commissioners asked staff to provide annual updates timed to the city’s APR submission to HCD and to accelerate zoning code updates in 2026–27.

The commission voted unanimously to receive and file the mid‑cycle implementation status report; staff will prepare follow‑up work including improved tracking, potential rezones and recommendations to council if changes are warranted.

What happens next: staff told the commission it will continue to review the city’s site inventory and the legal landscape and will return with any recommended rezoning or policy changes that would help preserve certification and make assigned sites realistically buildable.