The City of South Pasadena has had years and a budget of over $1,000,000 to devise a thoughtful Housing Element that balances growth with preserving what we love about our city. They have failed. Instead, they are pushing a voter initiative that shifts the burden of meeting legal housing requirements onto the backs of South Pasadena’s most vulnerable residents: MEASURE SP. (For more information on the wording of the ballot measure and zones affected, read our summary here.)
While this measure claims to protect our small-town character, it actually reinforces exclusionary zoning practices that stifle diversity and weaken our culture of community. What the City isn’t saying is that this measure threatens to displace long-standing South Pasadena residents who rent their homes. The city claims that in order to achieve the required housing, the building height limits must be increased but only in neighborhoods where multi-unit housing already exists.
There are no vacant lots on Huntington, Fair Oaks, or Monterey Rd where eight- or ten-story buildings could be constructed. To make way for these tall buildings, the homes of potentially thousands of South Pasadenans would have to be demolished, leading to mass evictions! It isn’t possible to take away affordable housing, replace it with 90% market-rate housing and create more affordable options. It simply doesn’t add up.
You will hear proponents of MEASURE SP say that it will increase affordable housing. Here is the math: A building of 12 units of below market housing is sold to a developer, and the developer evicts all 12 households. Under CA state law AB1482, South Pasadena renters who are evicted only receive equivalent of one month’s rent when evicted for no fault just cause. Under California housing law, evicted tenants must also have the right to move back in the new units at the same rate. It could take two to five years to replace the 12-unit building with a 40-unit building. Where would those families go in the meantime? Would they have to leave the school district?
Developers are only required to building 10% of the total units as affordable housing. Thus a 40 unit building that replaces a 12-unit building of existing below market housing will only result in 4 affordable units. That’s a net loss of 8 affordable housing units and a gain of 36 market rate units. This short-sighted approach fails to address the need for equitable and sustainable growth that includes affordable housing for all income levels, preserves all neighborhoods, and protects our neighbors, friends, and classmates.
We believe that it is 100% possible to comply with state housing laws and avoid further legal action by pro-housing groups and developers without having to destroy 25% of our residential neighborhoods. We can expand multi-unit zoning for triplexes and duplexes citywide and keep the building height at three stories (45 feet) and not turn the historic core into Downtown LA or Culver City. If you love driving on Fair Oaks in the winter and seeing the snow on the mountains, you need to vote no on allowing developers to build 84 foot to 110 foot tall buildings all along Fair Oaks and Mission! THAT IS OUR SMALL TOWN CHARM! Once the 10 story building go up, South Pas can never go back.
We must prioritize inclusive policies that allow for responsible development while safeguarding the unique character of our community and the homes of thousands of South Pasadena renters. We are one neighborhood. We are all South Pasadena. We urge our fellow residents to vote NO and instead support efforts that benefit everyone.
VOTE NO ON MEASURE SP AND SAVE SOUTH PASADENA HOMES!