Metro Offers Affordable Housing to Solve LA’s Housing Crisis (2021)

As the Los Angeles housing shortage continues to worsen, new development guidelines may potentially address this problem. Adobe Communities recently launched a project, known as La Veranda, which includes the establishment of 76 income-restricted and supportive units, along with 38 set aside for households earning less than 20% of the area’s median income and people without a home.

This project is being built in the Boyle Heights neighborhood under a Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority policy, which was updated in the past month, that directs the authority (the Metro) to build as much affordable housing near transit stations and stops as possible. By providing more affordable housing centered around transit, the Metro’s updated joint development policy addresses the severe housing affordability crisis in Los Angeles County.

The guidelines of the Adobe Project are part of a multipronged approach by California and local governments that includes public-private partnerships with developers, along with surmounting regulatory obstacles to plan and build further housing. In order to meet the demand from expected population growth over the next four years, California needs a projected 1.8 million new housing units, or 180,000 new houses annually. With dozens of train stations, parking lots, bus yards and other facilities, and adjacent land parcels, it is evident that the Metro is a major landowner in Los Angeles.

On June 24th, its board updated the joint development policy which prioritizes the development of 100% of income-restricted housing on unused Metro-owned land with a minimum of 25% of units set aside for households earning less than 80% of the average median income. In addition, projects where housing need is the highest and causes the greatest benefit can be achieved the fastest by receiving top priority.

The full article is available on CoStar News, titled "Transit Agency Becomes Affordable Housing Landlord to Solve LA's Housing Crisis" by Randyl Drummer.