Council Requires Parking With SROs

An emergency ordinance aimed at curtailing the construction of single-room occupancy (SRO) hotels in the trendy Hillcrest-Mission Hills area was enacted Monday by San Diego City Council members, who voted unanimously to require developers to build one parking space for every hotel room.

Until recently, most of the SROs have been concentrated downtown as an inexpensive housing alternative for elderly and low-income people. Smaller than the usual apartment, an SRO unit often requires the sharing of bathroom and kitchen facilities.

City officials, eager to preserve the stock of SROs, have agreed to waive parking requirements that otherwise might be imposed on developers of conventional apartment complexes.

Councilman Ron Roberts said that provision has become a “loophole” for developers who are now trying to build SROs in the Hillcrest-Mission Hills area, where parking is at a premium.

Roberts’ colleagues on Monday agreed to require each SRO developer to provide one parking space for every room. The ordinance applies only to project developers seeking building permits after Feb. 1, and it will expire in one year.

Last week, the council did not adopt the ordinance, as reported in The Times, but rather asked the city attorney’s office to draft the measure for adoption on Monday.