Berkeley Weekly Update - 4/2/24

Housing Element Annual Update

Housing stock is on the rise in Berkeley, with thousands of units in the pipeline.

Last year, the City adopted its updated Housing Element, which has a target of building nearly 9,000 new units of housing across all income levels by 2031. As required by State Law, and to monitor the progress, an annual report has been submitted showing the work that has been done to reach these goals. In 2023, there were:

2,224 units submitted
2,093 units entitled
431 units permitted
716 units completed

These numbers do not reflect the 739 units that were proposed in February 2024 for the North Berkeley BART site, half of which will be at below market rate.

The Housing Element is updated every eight years to reflect the new cycle of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA). Projects that are permitted as of June 30, 2022 are counted towards the current RHNA cycle, bringing the total number of units permitted to date at 923, or just over 10% of the goal. With thousands more units proposed or expected to enter the pipeline soon, we are on track to achieving RHNA goals. During the last RHNA cycle, Berkeley built 4,283 units, 145% of the goal of 2,959 units. The entire Bay Area met 116% of its RHNA goals for the last cycle, with rent prices beginning to decline throughout the Bay Area.

Arts, Culture & Creativity Month

The arts are a major part of Berkeley's identity and culture.

April marks Arts, Culture & Creativity Month in the State of California. Coinciding with National Poetry Month, the Berkeley Public Library will be hosting a poetry reading and discussion featuring Berkeley’s Poet Laureate, Aya de León, and Berkeley’s Youth Poet Laureate Julia Segre and Vice Youth Poet Laureate Serena Griffin. This event will take place on April 22 at 6pm at the 5th floor of the Central Branch library.

The State began Arts, Culture & Creativity month in 2019 to help raise visibility and awareness on the positive and empowering impact the arts have on our community. This is especially true in Berkeley, which is home to over 150 arts and culture nonprofits and generates an estimated $165 million in economic activity.

IRS Launches New Free Tax Filing System

Tax Day is on April 15, and this year qualified individuals have a new tool they can use to file federal taxes. On March 12, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) launched Direct File, a free online tool that supports simple tax needs currently available in 12 states, including California. As a pilot program, it currently files W-2 income, SSA-1099 (Social Security), 1099-G (unemployment compensation), and 1099-INT (interest, if less than $1,500). Direct File will connect people to California’s CalFile and pre-populate some information to make state filing easier.

Direct File is designed to be simple to use from a computer, tablet, or smartphone, and can be completed in as little as 30 minutes. Live chat and customer support is available in both English and Spanish. To find out if you qualify, click here.

Council Spring Recess

The City Council is currently on Spring Recess, but offices remain open to handle constituent services. The Spring Recess will end on May 7, the date of the next regular Council Meeting. We will be pausing the Weekly Update, with the next one to be released on April 30th. But stay tuned for an upcoming newsletter on the Climate Action Plan and the environment, to be published next week.