Blumenfield Motions for Inclusionary Housing in Warner Center

Last week, L.A. City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield formally called for inclusionary housing in Warner Center, according to Urbanize.LA. Blumenfield has requested the Planning Department and Housing and Community Investment Department to report on the pathway to embedding affordability requirements into the Warner Center 2035 Plan. Blumenfield is calling on provisions for moderate-income and workforce housing. He is also exploring how incentives and requirements could work with the Affordable Housing Linkage Fee ordinance, which will go into effect in June. Back in October 2015, Mayor Eric Garcetti had proposed a linkage fee on new commercial and residential development to generate an affordable housing funding source, known as the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Blumenfield’s motion now goes to the City Council’s Planning and Land Use Management Committee, where it must receive consideration prior to a City Council vote. In a March conversation with the Business Journal on the Warner Center 2035 Plan, Blumenfield strongly advocated for developers building in the Warner Center to address a citywide housing shortage and incorporate more moderate-income and affordable housing into their multifamily plans. Those developers include Canoga Park-based developer California Home Builders, a company with five mixed-use buildings on the horizon; Pasadena-based Panoptic Development, which has 154 units in progress at 6801 Canoga Ave. at Vanowen Street; and Mall of America creator Triple Five Group, which has purchased 47 acres of former Rocketdyne land that may include housing. Adopted five years ago at Blumenfield’s behest, the 2035 Plan has become the blueprint for transforming Woodland Hills’ commercial district into a downtown for the San Fernando Valley.