HUNTINGTON BEACH : Housing Task Force Recommendations

A task force on affordable housing has made several recommendations to the city government, among them one that “granny units” be allowed without conditional-use permits.

“Granny units” are small houses built on the property of an existing single-family home. The name refers to the fact that elderly relatives such as grandparents often live in the secondary housing unit. But “granny units” also are used by lower-income families of all ages.

The Huntington Beach Affordable Housing Task Force issued its report to the City Council on Monday night. The council voted unanimously to have the city staff draft ordinances to implement the suggestions.

There was no council debate on the recommendations, but discussion and disagreement are likely when the council later considers proposed ordinances to implement each suggestion.

The report says that Huntington Beach has a growing number of low-income families but that there are few places to house them. The report also says that even moderate-income families have “very limited” chances to buy a house in the city.