Four jurisdictions across the Bay Area still do not have certified housing elements, almost three years after the January 31, 2023 deadline–and two of them are in San Mateo County. The County itself and Half Moon Bay both remain out of compliance with state law, each for different reasons. 

Both jurisdictions face growing pressure from the state Department of Housing and Community Development, which has sent letters urging faster completion. Their cases each illustrate different challenges jurisdictions face meeting local housing needs. 

San Mateo County has a conditionally certified housing element, but the County has not yet completed legally required rezonings for denser housing in Unincorporated Colma, Broadmoore, and El Granada. Until it completes its rezones, the County will remain out of compliance with state law. 

While other jurisdictions completed their rezonings concurrently with housing element adoption, San Mateo County spent over a year deciding which areas to rezone without simultaneously drafting the new zoning. Some areas, such as El Granada, require additional review under the Coastal Commission, but most parcels slated for denser housing have no such constraints.

Having already begun its housing element process late, the County is now far behind. In September, the state Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) sent the County a letter urging faster completion of the necessary rezonings. However, the County doesn’t plan to complete its rezones until the middle of next year at the earliest.

Half Moon Bay has been reluctant to remove constraints to housing, particularly voter-approved Measure D–a growth cap ordinance implemented by city voters that effectively limits the number of homes that can be built within the city on any given year to approximately 70. HCD maintains that accessory dwelling units should not count toward the Measure D growth cap; the city maintains it cannot change the classification of ADUs entirely without a new voter measure. 

Furthermore, Half Moon Bay’s City Council has moved slowly on final approval of a land lease with Mercy Housing to complete 555 Kelly, a proposed 40-home farmworker housing development–and an essential part of the city’s housing element. Though the project is theoretically entitled, it cannot move forward without approval of the land lease. 

Both cities face consequences for noncompliance with state law, particularly loss of funding for basic infrastructure and road maintenance. Cities without certified housing elements are ineligible for the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program and Caltrans Sustainable Communities Grants, both major sources of infrastructure funding.