In a 21-to-9 vote, the ABAG Executive Board at its January meeting authorized ABAG President David Rabbitt to sign the CASA Compact. The Compact is a set of policy recommendations to both state and local officials designed to help solve the Bay Area's longstanding housing-affordability problem by encouraging the production of more housing for people at all income levels, preserving affordable housing that already exists and protecting current residents from displacement in rapidly changing neighborhoods.
Outreach to Local Governments on CASA Continues
ABAG and MTC are stepping up their outreach to Bay Area elected officials and city and county staff to discuss the CASA Compact, answering questions and receiving input on the multi-pronged effort to solve the region's longstanding housing-affordability problem.
Staff already has met with officials from several East Bay cities as well as with the League of Cities, North Bay Division; the Contra Costa Conference of Mayors; East Bay League of Cities; and the Peninsula League of Cities Division. More meetings are scheduled in the coming weeks with the Napa Valley Transportation Authority, City Managers Group of Contra Costa, Solano City and County Coordinating Council, the East Bay Leadership Council's Housing Committee, East Bay Economic Development Alliance, Sonoma County Transportation Authority and the Sonoma Citizens Advisory Committee, among others.
The Bay Area's jobs/housing imbalance is at a critical point, affecting transportation, the economy and the ability of future generations to live and thrive in the region.
All interest groups are encouraged to participate in the upcoming CASA outreach meetings and to weigh in as the process continues. For more information about outreach meetings, contact Rebecca Long, Manager, Government Relations, (415) 778-5289.
About CASA and the CASA Compact
The CASA Compact is a 10-point set of policy recommendations to both state and local officials designed to help solve the Bay Area housing crisis by encouraging the production of more housing for people at all income levels, preserving affordable housing that already exists, and protecting current residents from displacement in rapidly-changing neighborhoods.-affordability problem. The 21-member CASA steering committee, consisting of representatives from a myriad of sectors met for 18 months to develop the plan, which forms a cornerstone for both ABAG's and MTC's 2019 state legislative program.