A roundup of news and multimedia from the Unfamiliar Terrain team: San Francisco - San Francisco Family Zoning Plan Updates (SF Planning): As of late July, the Planning Department has updated the draft zoning height...more
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie announced on September 2 a legislative package that he promised would put an end to certain antiquated permitting requirements. The package represents the latest pieces of Permit SF, a larger...more
2025 saw a number of Growth Management Act (GMA) and housing related bills in Washington, which are particularly relevant as planning counties and cities are in the middle of preparing their comprehensive plan updates and as...more
The National Zoning Atlas (NZA) team is digitizing, demystifying, and democratizing information about zoning conditions in more than 33,000 jurisdictions in the United States. Fully comprehending the zoning conditions of a...more
Assembly Bill (AB) 130 and Senate Bill (SB) 131, which became effective on June 30, 2025, are designed to bring sweeping change to California housing and infrastructure development across the state. Key provisions in the...more
PHILADELPHIA—Waymo to Begin Testing Driverless Cars This Summer -Waymo is launching manual test drives of its autonomous vehicles in Philadelphia to familiarize its technology with the city. While public rides are not yet...more
California stands at a pivotal juncture in 2025, confronting an array of environmental and housing challenges. As usual, the California State Legislature is considering numerous strategies to address these issues. This year’s...more
Various state housing bills are currently making their way through the California State Legislature that are expected to benefit mixed-income multifamily housing developers. The following summaries reflect the status of the...more
For property owners in California’s coastal zone hoping to rebuild after the wildfires in the Los Angeles area, including the Pacific Palisades and Malibu, obtaining building permits from their local government may not be...more
The San Diego City Council voted on March 4, 2025, to begin the process of revising its Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) Bonus Program (ADU Bonus Program or Program), which has served, to date, as one of the state’s most...more
The Maryland General Assembly’s 2025 legislative session saw the introduction of over 3,200 bills, with several new and impactful laws passing that will affect community associations....more
As discussed in previous Holland & Knight alerts on Dec. 10 and Dec. 18, 2024, New York City recently made comprehensive changes to its Zoning Resolution, known collectively as City of Yes for Zoning for Housing Opportunity...more
In part two of the Housing New Laws series, Best Best & Krieger LLP (BBK) attorneys provide key analyses of new housing legislation in 2025 addressing governing urban lot splits and two unit projects, accessory dwelling units...more
Governor Gavin Newsom stepped up his intervention on the California Coastal Commission last Monday, chiding the agency for providing “legally erroneous guidance” that threatens to create confusion and delay the rebuilding...more
On August 6, 2024, Governor Maura Healey signed into law, the Affordable Homes Act, (H.4977) authorizing nearly $5.16 billion in spending over the next five years with approximately 49 policy initiatives to counter rising...more
The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) posted its draft of 760 CMR 71:00 “PROTECTED USE ACCESSORY DWELLING UNITS” Regulations for comment in December 2024. The public comment period for the...more
New York City has taken what it intends to be a significant step toward addressing its housing crisis with the City Council’s December 5, 2024, approval of the third, and final, element of Mayor Adams’ City of Yes housing and...more
City of Yes for Housing Opportunity Approved by the Council - On December 5, 2024, the New York City Council approved with modifications the NYC Department of City Planning’s (DCP) City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, the...more
On December 5, 2024, the New York City Council approved with modifications the NYC Department of City Planning’s (DCP) City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, the third and final of Mayor Adams’ City of Yes initiatives. The new...more
Jessica Tisch Appointed NYPD Commissioner - Last Wednesday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the appointment of Jessica Tisch as the new Commissioner of the New York City Police Department. Tisch takes over from...more
As in previous years, California saw a significant volume of new housing legislation emerge from Sacramento in 2024. (See Holland & Knight's previous annual recaps of California Housing Laws in the final section below.) This...more
Two new candidates have entered the field for NYC Mayor: Zohran Mamdani, New York State Assemblymember, and Jim Walden, New York attorney. Mamdani, who is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, has called on Mayor...more
Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a controversial bill – Assembly Bill (AB) 98 – that will impact all warehouse developments, regardless of whether there are any sensitive receptors near the potential warehouse site....more
In recent years, the California Legislature has enacted bills that reduce local control over the development of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and junior accessory dwelling units (JADUs). Recent examples include legislation...more
Attention Multifamily Owners: SB 1211 (Skinner) was just signed into law last Thursday, September 19, 2024, which significantly expands multifamily ADU opportunities, effective January 1, 2025....more