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Will Huntington Beach concede defeat in state housing feud?
The state wants Huntington Beach to make room for more homes, and the city has balked at being told how to do that.
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Allen J. Schaben
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Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
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Huntington Beach will consider a citywide plan for more housing at its June 16th meeting after a yearslong battle against the state that resulted in a court order.
The backstory
State law requires California cities and counties to plan for enough housing to meet the expected demand over an eight-year period, including for low-income housing. They don’t have to actually build the housing, they just have to make sure their local zoning can accommodate it.
Huntington Beach was told to make room for some 13,000 new homes. The city fought the allocation all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, which declined to review the case last year.
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Mayor Casey McKeon estimates the city would actually have to plan for close to 40,000 new units to meet the state mandate, since most new developments include only a small percentage of affordable homes.
Where things stand now
A San Diego court recently told Huntington Beach it must come into compliance, or pay $50,000 for each month it fails to do so. The city responded by posting a revised housing plan on its website and asking residents for comment.
Wider pushback
The Orange County Grand Jury dropped a new report last week that is highly critical of the state’s methods of forcing cities to plan for housing at all income levels. The report said the state’s efforts have led to “growing tension between state directives and local realities” and had “led to minimal housing being built.”
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What’s next?
The City Council was scheduled to vote on the housing plan at its June 2 meeting, but the issue was moved to the June 16th session. The state could still order the city to make revisions to its current plan. "We await their adopted plan next week," Alicia Murillo, a spokesperson for the California Department of Housing and Community Development, said in an email to LAist.
How to attend Huntington Beach City Council meetings
- Huntington Beach holds City Council meetings on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 2000 Main St.
- You can also watch City Council meetings remotely on HBTV via Channel 3 or online, or via the city’s website. (You can also find videos of previous council meetings there.)
- The public comment period happens toward the beginning of meetings.
- The city generally posts agendas for City Council meetings on the previous Friday. You can find the agenda on the city’s calendar or sign up there to have agendas sent to your inbox.
Updated June 3, 2026 at 3:26 PM PDT
This story was updated to reflect that the discussion was moved from the Huntington Beach City Council's June 2 meeting to it's June 16 meeting.
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
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