Conversion rules stiffen for condos

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Conversion rules stiffen for condos

By Lori Weisberg
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

January 25, 2006

Regulations governing the conversion of apartments into condominiums were tightened yesterday by the San Diego City Council, but the most controversial reforms will not be heard for months.

Yesterday's action follows nearly a year of discussions by council members and city planning commissioners on how to deal with the thousands of apartments, many of them in older buildings, that are being transformed into condos for sale throughout the city. Many of the complexes typically house lower-income residents who cannot afford to buy the refurbished units.

The regulations approved yesterday are designed to ensure full disclosure of a complex's conditions, such as roofing and plumbing and electrical systems. In addition, condo converters will be required to replace any building component, including roofs and heating and ventilation systems, that has a remaining life of five years or less.

Although a report on building conditions is required in some cities in the county where condo conversions are occurring, no such requirement has been in place in San Diego, where hundreds of projects already have been approved. Currently under review are more than 270 projects accounting for 8,350 apartment units targeted for conversion.

The new regulations, once they go into effect after the council gives its final approval in two weeks, will apply to projects in the pipeline, according to the City Attorney's Office.

The regulations came on the same day that the council approved two conversion projects totaling nearly 1,000 units - including a 736-unit complex in Mission Valley.

Some council members said they were troubled by the time it has taken to hear the more substantive condo conversion regulations that have been discussed for the past year. In council committee and planning commission meetings, there has been talk about beefing up relocation assistance for tenants and making condo converters comply with today's parking standards, which in some cases are tougher than what was in effect when many of the older apartment complexes were built.

Yet another proposal would require developers of condo conversions to set aside a percentage of their units for moderate-income households. Under a citywide ordinance that applies to all new housing, converters have the option of paying an affordable housing fee as opposed to making the condos in their complexes affordable.

Councilman Jim Madaffer, who heads the council's Land Use and Housing Committee, said the remaining proposals may come before his committee in March.

"As we sit here and discuss this, hundreds of units are being converted," said Councilwoman Toni Atkins, who suggested that it may be time to halt conversions. "I've supported them, but at the same time we may have gone a little too far."

After the meeting, Atkins said she is unsure there is a council majority willing to take a more aggressive stance on condo conversions.

San Diego is facing lawsuits filed on behalf of two activist groups, which contend that state law requires the city to analyze the cumulative environmental effects of condo conversions.

Cory Briggs, one of two attorneys representing the groups, has agreed to delay proceeding with the lawsuits as long as the city undertakes a less formal survey looking at what the consequences have been of conversions. The City Attorney's Office has been holding informal discussions, including with developers and affordable housing activists, to finalize such a study.

Still, Briggs seemed discouraged by yesterday's meeting.

"It's difficult for me to believe they're interested in addressing the adverse impacts of condo conversions when they approve 1,000 units," Briggs said. "The council members are willing to talk about this, but they're not willing to do anything about it."