{"id":2156740,"date":"2024-01-23T10:37:07","date_gmt":"2024-01-23T15:37:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/city-challenge-to-newsoms-homeless-hotel-plan-risks-project-homekey-statewide\/"},"modified":"2024-01-23T10:41:19","modified_gmt":"2024-01-23T15:41:19","slug":"city-challenge-to-newsoms-homeless-hotel-plan-risks-project-homekey-statewide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/city-challenge-to-newsoms-homeless-hotel-plan-risks-project-homekey-statewide\/","title":{"rendered":"City challenges to Newsom&#8217;s homeless-hotel plan jeopardize Project Homekey statewide"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcity-challenge-to-newsoms-homeless-hotel-plan-risks-project-homekey-statewide%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2156740&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>A California City Challenges Governor&#8217;s Homeless-to-Homeless-Shelters Project in Lawsuit<\/h2>\n<p>The City of Millbrae\u2063 in California is taking\u2063 legal action against one of the governor&#8217;s Homekey\u2062 projects, arguing that\u2064 the state constitution mandates local residents to have a say\u2063 in publicly-funded <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/biden-banking-on-3-6-trillion-tax-increases-to-fund-agenda-plans\/\" title=\"Biden Banking On .6 Trillion Tax Increases To Fund Agenda Plans\">low-income housing<\/a> through voting. If the court rules in favor \u200dof \u200cthe city, it could\u2062 potentially halt billions\u2064 of dollars worth of \u2062projects across the state,\u2064 as they would be required to \u2063undergo \u200dcostly ballot measures.<\/p>\n<h3>The City&#8217;s Concerns<\/h3>\n<p>The City of Millbrae is specifically contesting San Mateo County&#8217;s planned $33 million purchase and \u2064conversion of a 100-room \u2062hotel into a \u200c&#8221;supportive housing&#8221; project. The city estimates that this \u2064project would result in a loss of half a million dollars per \u200cyear\u2064 in occupancy \u2063taxes alone, along with additional losses \u200cin sales tax, property tax, and other\u200b revenue streams. Under Project Homekey, which is funded \u2064by federal COVID-era funds and state general funds, \u2063over \u200c15,000 hotel rooms have been transformed into <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rising-crime-homelessness-leave-residents-of-san-francisco-and-oakland-on-edge\/\" title=\"Residents of San Francisco and Oakland are increasingly anxious due to rising crime rates and homelessness.\">supportive housing units<\/a> for homeless individuals, with an average cost of $200,000 per unit in state-directed funds.<\/p>\n<p>The city is using these\u200b potential revenue losses to \u200bsupport its lawsuit, which is based on\u200b constitutional \u2063grounds. It cites Article 34 of the California Constitution, which states that any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/fact-check-does-this-photo-show-a-new-low-income-housing-development-in-tampa-florida\/\" title=\"FACT CHECK: Does This Photo Show A New Low-Income Housing Development In Tampa, Florida?\">low-income housing project<\/a> must\u2064 be approved by\u200b a majority of qualified electors through voting before being developed, constructed, or acquired by a state \u2064public body.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Given the above, Article [34] guarantees Millbrae&#8217;s residents the\u200d right to vote on the project, and\u200b in so\u2064 doing weigh\u2062 the costs of the project on the community (namely, the loss of significant City tax revenue,\u2064 impacts on nearby businesses, and the \u200dloss of local jobs associated\u200b with the closing of the hotel), against \u200cthe obvious and \u2063pressing need for low-income housing,&#8221; wrote the city in its lawsuit.<\/p>\n<h3>Exemptions and Legal Challenges<\/h3>\n<p>However,\u2063 California Democrats have passed laws exempting Homekey \u200cprojects from the California Environmental Quality Act and \u2062Article 34. These exemptions have faced legal challenges, including a similar lawsuit in Marin County. In that case, residents argued that the exemptions did not apply to\u200b the specific project and failed to \u200dconvince the court.<\/p>\n<p>The Millbrae case takes a different approach, \u200bfocusing on the extent to which the legislature can make exemptions to the state constitution without obtaining approval from both the legislature and the majority of voters, \u200bas \u200crequired by the constitution.<\/p>\n<h3>Public Opinion and Future Developments<\/h3>\n<p>Voters in California have consistently rejected efforts \u2063to eliminate Article 34, with the most recent attempt\u200d in 1993\u2063 being rejected by 60% of voters. A measure to change \u2062the constitution will be on\u200b the ballot \u200dagain\u200d in the November 2024 general election. Additionally, Californians will have the opportunity to repeal limits on the government&#8217;s \u2064ability to impose rent control.<\/p>\n<p>The preliminary injunction for the Millbrae case is scheduled \u200bfor \u200dJanuary\u2064 24, 2024, with a trial to follow in the\u200b coming months.<\/p>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How\u200d does the City of Millbrae argue that the state&#8217;s \u200ddecision to fund and implement Homekey projects without local input violates the California constitution?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Losses as the basis for its lawsuit. It argues that the state&#8217;s decision to fund and implement these projects without local input \u2062is\u2062 a violation of the California constitution, which guarantees residents the \u200dright to vote on matters that directly impact their community.<\/p>\n<p>The City of Millbrae claims \u2062that it is not opposed to providing housing for the homeless or addressing the issue of homelessness in the state. However, it believes that the decision to use public funds for these projects should \u200dbe subject \u2062to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/boston-considers-allowing-immigrants-with-legal-status-to-vote-in-local-elections\/\" title=\"Boston may allow immigrants with 'legal status' to vote in local elections\">local decision-making processes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to the financial concerns, the city argues\u200d that the Homekey projects have a\u2063 negative impact on the local community. It claims\u200c that the rapid \u200cconversion of hotels into\u200c supportive housing units without proper planning or consideration for the surrounding neighborhood&#8217;s infrastructure, services, and resources creates problems for both the homeless individuals and the existing residents.<\/p>\n<p>The city asserts that by involving the \u2063local community in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/leftist-disinformation-police-pressure-meta-to-run-election-interference-on-new-threads-platform\/\" title=\"Left-wing 'Disinfo' Police Push Meta for Election Interference on New Threads Platform.\">decision-making\u2062 process<\/a>, these concerns can be\u200d addressed and potential negative impacts mitigated. It also believes that allowing residents to vote on the use of public funds for these projects ensures transparency and accountability.<\/p>\n<p>The Outcome&#8217;s Potential Impact<\/p>\n<p>If the \u2062court rules in favor\u2063 of the City of Millbrae, the implications could \u2062be significant. The ruling would establish a precedent that requires similar\u200d projects across the state to undergo costly and time-consuming ballot \u2063measures. This would not only delay the implementation of \u2063much-needed\u200c housing \u2064projects but could also result in the suspension or cancellation of many ongoing initiatives.<\/p>\n<p>Proponents of\u2062 the Homekey projects argue that the homelessness crisis requires urgent and immediate action. \u200dThey contend \u200bthat the use of emergency\u2063 funds and the\u2064 expedited\u200c nature of these projects are necessary to address the pressing needs of homeless\u2064 individuals. They also emphasize that the state has a responsibility to act swiftly in providing housing solutions and that local votes could delay or prevent the very \u200dassistance these individuals desperately need.<\/p>\n<p>Ultimately, the court&#8217;s decision will likely \u2062have far-reaching implications and shape the future of housing projects for\u2063 the homeless in California. It will determine whether the state has the authority to bypass local decision-making processes\u200d in the pursuit of addressing the homelessness crisis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Await voter approval for funding. The lawsuit argues that the state constitution mandates a vote for publicly-funded low-income housing projects. If successful, this could halt numerous Homekey projects in California, potentially impacting billions of dollars in funding<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2752,"featured_media":2156741,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2156740","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2156740","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2752"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2156740"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2156740\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2156741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2156740"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2156740"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2156740"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}