In 2022, the Orange County Council of Governments (OCCOG) commissioned ULI Orange County / Inland Empire (OC/IE) to complete two technical assistance panels (TAP) on the topic of planning for housing production. The first TAP was conducted in June 2022 and focused on the selection of existing commercial or office sites that could potentially be redeveloped to residential to satisfy RHNA obligations. This second TAP was conducted in March 2023 and is the summary of that effort, focusing on the technical, practical, and financial considerations of converting or infilling commercial properties with residential uses. The goal of this TAP was to explore the fiscal implications of converting commercial properties into housing to increase the supply of housing.

The report focuses on successful examples of retail to residential and office to residential conversions as well as mixed use development projects in Orange County and in California more broadly, analyzing the fiscal impacts of such conversions. The panel looked at design factors for consideration when developing mixed-use or residential developments, using metrics such as walkability, access to public transportation and reliable shared parking lots, public spaces, quality of design, and safety and security as indicators of success. The panel also includes information on recent state laws in the report, however stakeholders have not noticed an impact on redevelopment of commercial centers in light of new legislation.

The panel developed a formula intended to aid OCCOG and jurisdictions in quickly determining the fiscal impact of converting a specific site from commercial to residential or mixed use. Read about the formula and its implications and access the full report here.