Up to 5,000 affordable homes could be built if a modest amount of land owned by faith-based institutions in San Diego were developed into multifamily housing, according to a new report from the UC San Diego Center for Housing Policy and Design titled The Housing Potential of Faith-Owned Land in the San Diego Region.
In 2023, Senate Bill 4, or the Affordable Housing on Faith and Higher Education Lands Act, gave faith-based institutions and non-profit colleges “by-right” approval to develop affordable housing on their land. “By-right” means the projects can be approved without review by local planning commissions and elected officials. This new report shows the impact this legislation could have on San Diego’s housing stock.
The Center found that in San Diego, faith-based organizations own 3,600 acres of land across 1,300 parcels. Further, the report states that:
- If just 10% of faith-owned land were developed at a moderate density of 40 units per acre, it would yield 4,916 new affordable units.
- The Unincorporated County and the City of San Diego contain most of this land, followed by Escondido and Chula Vista.
- Parishes of the Catholic Church own the greatest number of parcels, followed by the Seventh Day Adventists, and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
- Most faith-owned parcels are proximate to transit and green space.
Read the Full Report:
