In a deliberate and measured approach to address San Diego's housing shortage, Mayor Todd Gloria's administration has reportedly achieved significant milestones in issuing permits for affordable housing projects. An executive order signed on Jan. 11, 2023, has effectively expedited the review process for 100% income-restricted housing developments, leading to permits for 27 projects encompassing 2,834 homes in less than a year and a half since its inception. According to an article from the city's official website, the order has streamlined the bureaucratic process, demanding reviews be completed within 30 days or fewer, a benchmark the city has consistently exceeded.
With a new, interactive website to display its progress, the projects funded are distributed across eight of the nine City Council districts in San Diego. "These 27 projects totaling more than 2,800 homes are just the beginning", Mayor Gloria told the official city website. His commitment echoes the larger goal of addressing affordable housing citywide. The Development Services Department (DSD) has been spearheading this initiative under the Affordable Housing Permit Now program, which incentivizes and ensures swift and thorough project reviews.
Last year's performance indicators suggest that these administrative efficiencies have borne fruit: 9,700 new homes were permitted in 2023, an 82% increase from the previous year and the most since at least 2005. In a statement obtained by the official city website, Keely Halsey, Assistant Director of DSD, expressed pride in the department's adaptability and resolve to continually enhance its services to align with the mayor's housing objectives.
Further bolstering these achievements, the City Planning Department's Annual Report on Homes highlighted a quadrupling in income-restricted homes, with 42% processed under the Mayor’s executive order, averaging an impressive seven-day processing time. "The new executive order permit process has been very successful," Julie Hattler, Director of Development with Wakeland Housing and Development, said in an interview with the city's website, emphasizing the efficiency gains realized under the new system.
Building on the successes of the initial order, Mayor Gloria initiated a second executive order early in 2024 to encompass housing projects near public transit. Since its launch in March, the Complete Communities Now program has approved 10 projects totaling 625 homes.
