Construction of new multifamily developments was banned inJanuary 1999, after some local residents and even city plannersbecame concerned that the area's growing number of apartment andcondo complexes would worsen traffic and drain the city's limitedfinancial resources. Only projects aimed at the retirement marketwere exempted from the local ordinance.

The moratorium allowed local officials to meet with regionalplanners at the Southern California Association of Governments todetermine how many multifamily units would be needed over the next20 years. As a result of those meetings, local officials were ableto rezone land previously planned for apartments to meet the area'sgrowing need for single-family residential, office and retailparcels.

Even though the city on Tuesday rezoned 430 acres originallyplanned for multifamily construction, there's still enough land tobuild 30,140 units. Area planners say the city will need about23,150 new units over the next 20 years to accommodate a populationthat's expected to swell to between 1.2 million and 1.5 million,more than four times the current figure.