Petaluma recognized for encouraging housing growth

The city of Petaluma was awarded a pro-housing designation earlier this year – a “coveted” distinction for its efforts to encourage housing development for all income levels – which comes with certain state funding incentives as well.

Although the recognition from the California Department of Housing and Community Development came in late January, its context is an ongoing “housing crisis” that is “decades in the making” as the state works toward a goal of building 2.5 million new homes by 2030, the state department said in a news release.

“This designation comes with funding incentives and additional resources to help speed housing production,” the release noted.

Petaluma is one of 37 communities to receive this designation from Gov. Gavin Newsom through California’s Prohousing Designation Program, which rewards jurisdictions that have made it easier to create additional housing whether through reduced development and construction costs or through its housing policies.

The Prohousing Designation Program was established by the 2019-20 Budget Act, which also established a package of “supports, incentives and accountability measures” related to housing production.

Incentives include “exclusive access” to grants, extra points in competitive housing scoring, community development, and infrastructure funding programs administered by the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development.

Petaluma received its designation by reducing fees for most affordable housing projects, directing certain fees to a trust fund for development and preservation of low-income housing, adopting permit-ready accessory dwelling unit plans, and adopting universal design standards. The city has been able to accommodate 244 percent of the current housing allocation requirement.

You can reach Staff Writer Jennifer Sawhney at 707-521-5346 or jennifer.sawhney@pressdemocrat.com. On X (Twitter) @sawhney_media.