Paramount planners warn SB 79 could override local zoning near planned stations
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Summary
Planning staff told the city council that Senate Bill 79 (SB 79) allows state-defined transit station areas to be built at densities and heights well above current local zoning, and they outlined limited options to defer applicability while staff prepares ordinance language and awaits regional maps.
Planning and building staff warned the Paramount City Council that Senate Bill 79 (SB 79) will limit local control over zoning in areas the state and regional agencies designate as transit-oriented development (TOD) zones.
John King, the city’s planning and building director, briefed the council on SB 79’s two-tier structure and said the law “overrides local zoning requirements” in affected areas. He said the state’s definitions create three concentric zones around planned stations: an adjacent area (about 200 feet), a quarter-mile radius, and a half-mile radius. Under the bill’s tier 2 rules (applicable to light-rail station areas), the adjacent zone can permit building heights up to about 85 feet (roughly eight stories) and densities up to about 140 units per acre; the quarter-mile band can allow roughly 65 feet and 100 units per acre; the quarter- to half-mile band can allow about 55 feet and 80 units per acre. King told the council those levels are “a lot higher than what we would allow otherwise.”
Staff noted Paramount is included on regional plans with two planned stations (Paramount and Rosecrans) and that final station-area maps from the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) are still pending; staff expects SCAG maps to be released around March. King said the state’s maps and definitions — not the physical presence of running trains — trigger SB 79’s rules.
City staff described a limited path to delay SB 79’s local effect by adopting an ordinance that documents findings and requests a deferral to the state or to the reviewing agency (the Department of Housing and Community Development). That path can delay applicability up to one year after the next regional housing needs allocation/housing-element cycle, a potential delay staff estimated could push local applicability toward the 2030–2031 period, but King emphasized deferral requires substantial analysis and HCD review.
Council members raised concerns about the bill’s effects on single-family neighborhoods, traffic and on the character of downtown Paramount. Several members criticized what they described as a “cookie-cutter” statewide approach and noted that some communities received carve-outs during the legislative process. City staff said they will pursue coordinated next steps: produce a detailed analysis of affected parcels, work with the city attorney on ordinance language to seek deferrals where eligible, and return to the planning commission and council once SCAG releases final maps.
Next steps: staff will prepare ordinance options, supporting analyses and map-based exhibits for future planning commission and council review and said it will pursue additional outreach to regional and state legislators.
