HUNTINGTON BEACH : Supervisor Backs ‘Single-Room’ Idea

Supervisor Roger R. Stanton on Thursday praised the concept of building one-room residences for the working poor and urged cities, particularly Huntington Beach, to help get these structures built.

Such projects are known as SROs, for single-room occupancies. Huntington Beach is now considering changing its zoning laws to encourage developers to build SRO projects. The change to pave the way for an SRO would be a first for an Orange County city.

“SROs are very affordable housing for people with marginal income,” Stanton said. “They’re not shelters for people who are totally indigent. These are residences for folks who are trying to grasp the first rung of the (housing) ladder.”

Stanton was among speakers at a forum sponsored by the Huntington Beach-Fountain Valley Board of Realtors. The forum, held at Seacliff Country Club in Huntington Beach, focused on “Creative Solutions for Affordable Housing.”

Stanton was co-chairman last year of a countywide committee that studied single-room housing. The committee, after an extensive study of such housing in San Diego, enthusiastically endorsed it as a major way to help the working poor in Orange County.

SROs are something like hotels. The buildings are operated by a management firm that keeps the rooms clean and safe. Residents live in rooms that have bathrooms and kitchenettes that rent for about $300 a month.

“The rooms are small and Spartan,” Stanton said.