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RESOURCES

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Housing and Wildfire Information Resources

 

 

October 1, Lucas Valley Elementary School Meeting PDFs:


Proposals for 1501 Lucas Valley Rd:


Marin County Community Development Agency
Information on planning applications by geographical area. One can subscribe to updates for the Lucas Valley area and/or to updates for a specific project development proposal - https://bit.ly/ProjectsByLocation

Fire Safe Marin
Extensive information on wildfire preparedness including defensible space, home hardening, plant lists, grant programs and videos - https://firesafemarin.org or email info@firesafemarin.org for a prompt response.

ReadyMarin
Wide range of information on emergency preparedness, including education and training opportunities - https://readymarin.org/ 

 

Evacuation Checklist:  Firesafe Marin website.

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Supervisor Sackett
Issues newsletters which include news and updates on housing development, wildfire safety and emergency preparedness - https://bit.ly/SackettNews
 

Housing Element Background

Marin’s Housing Element is part of its Countywide Plan and one of nine state-mandated plan elements.  Its purpose is to assure the availability of housing for all Californians. 

California requires all counties and cities to adopt a comprehensive long-range general plan for the physical development of the jurisdiction.  The Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR) provides guidance for the mandatory elements required in city and county plans.  OPR divides the state into regional planning districts; Marin is part of the nine county SF Bay Area planning district. 

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California’s Housing Element Law acknowledges that, in order for the private market to adequately address the housing needs and demand of Californians, local governments must adopt plans and regulatory systems that provide opportunities for (and do not unduly constrain) housing development.  As a result, housing policy in California rests largely on the effective implementation of local general plans and, in particular, local housing elements.  It is the most specific and directive of the mandated plan elements with detailed guidance and reviews.

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OPR works with the CA Dept. of Housing and Community Development (HCD) which has unique authority over the Housing Element.  HCD and develops housing unit allocations for each planning district. 

 

Each jurisdiction is required to revise its Housing Element on a specified schedule (currently every 8 years for Marin Co.).  HCD must review and certify the Housing Element for each jurisdiction.  All jurisdictions are required to provide OPR and (HCD) with separate General Plan and Housing Element Annual Progress Reports by April 1 each year. 

 

CA Dept. of Housing and Community Development (HCD) uses the Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA), a state-mandated process, to identify the total number of housing units by affordability level that each jurisdiction must accommodate in its Housing Element.  HCD identifies this total housing need for the 9 counties in the San Francisco Bay Area for an 8 year cycle (currently from 2023 to 2031). 

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The Assn. of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) develops a methodology to distribute the SF Bay Area allocation to local governments.  Local governments may appeal their allocations.  When a local government has received its final RHNA, it must revise its Housing Element to show how it plans to accommodate its portion of the region’s housing need.  

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