UC Davis Professor Critiques Davis’ Housing and Sustainability Efforts

Davis has the potential to be a global leader in climate action, sustainable urban planning, and equitable housing. But according to Stephen Wheeler, Professor of Urban Sustainability at UC Davis, the city is falling far short of that promise. “We just do not have a council or a staff that are really thinking outside the box and going for cutting-edge solutions,” Wheeler said in a recent interview with the Davis Vanguard. “So I hope that we get there.”

Wheeler, whose scholarship includes Planning for Sustainability and The Sustainable Urban Development Reader, has long advocated for cities to align land use, climate policy, and social equity. And as a Davis resident and educator, he sees both a laboratory and a cautionary tale in his own backyard.

His critique of the city’s housing and sustainability efforts is broad and scathing—not because the city lacks potential, but because it has repeatedly squandered it.

Wheeler points to several recent development and planning failures as evidence that Davis is stuck in the past. One glaring example: the redevelopment of University Mall, a site directly across from UC Davis and along a major transit corridor. “We could have had six stories of housing on top—hundreds of units,” he said. “But instead, it’s just another one-story mall.”

Why did this happen? Wheeler places the blame on the city’s outdated zoning code and lack of foresight. “City staff did try to work with the developer, to their credit, but there was no minimum height requirement in the zoning,” he explained. “So they had no leverage. And the developer didn’t really try very hard.”

Another missed opportunity was the city’s handling of the I-80 freeway widening. “The city went along with Caltrans,” Wheeler said. “It could have crafted a solution that would’ve made Davis a regional leader on both climate and housing—and it failed. We only had one councilmember, Bapu Vaitla, who was thinking progressively on that.”

So what would a bold, visionary Davis look like? Wheeler didn’t hesitate: it starts with comprehensive zoning reform, clear minimum density requirements for major parcels and corridors, and leadership willing to push past conventional politics.

“We need to redo the zoning code citywide,” he said. “We need leaders who really lead—who think long-term and outside the box, instead of just listening to whoever is the loudest in the room.”

Asked to define sustainable housing, Wheeler described it as development that improves both human and environmental welfare. That means zero-net-energy buildings, human-scaled neighborhoods, well-located density, and housing that reduces car dependency and carbon footprints.

“A more sustainable project puts people where they need to be, not out on the edge,” he said. “It gives them the lowest possible footprint on the planet.”

Wheeler emphasized the importance of infill and redevelopment along underutilized arterial streets and commercial parcels—gas stations, fast-food lots, low-density commercial spaces. “We do have seven-story buildings going in occasionally,” he said. “And we need to be at whatever the max is that builders can manage.”

He also dismissed the idea that increasing density would threaten the city’s character. “Davis is in no danger of sacrificing livability,” he said. “What’s far more dangerous is doing nothing—letting bad projects go forward, letting costs spiral, letting the climate crisis deepen.”

When the conversation turned to equity, Wheeler acknowledged the nationwide challenge of green gentrification—when sustainability upgrades lead to displacement and rising costs. But he argued that Davis has different, more urgent equity challenges. “Davis is too well-off to be gentrifying in the traditional sense,” he said. “But we still need to be creating a significant social housing sector—housing that’s not in the speculative market and is available to a wide range of people below market rate.”

The problem, Wheeler said, is structural. “Prop 13 and California’s other revenue restrictions have handicapped the public sector. And the cost of construction is so high that it’s hard for cities to mandate affordability without scaring off developers.”

Still, he proposed a number of local solutions:

• Differential impact fees that penalize sprawl and reward infill.
  
• Eliminating parking requirements, which inflate costs and encourage car dependence.
  
• Scaling fees based on unit size, to incentivize smaller, more affordable homes.
  
• Requiring electrification and banning new gas hookups, to align housing policy with climate goals.
  

Wheeler noted that Davis already has pre-approved ADU plans and has seen some success with small infill apartments and missing middle housing. But those gains, he warned, are not enough to meet demand or reduce emissions at scale.

Wheeler also addressed the massive funding gap facing affordable housing efforts in California. “In 2023, there were $3.5 billion worth of shovel-ready affordable housing projects in the pipeline—and only $576 million in state funding to support them,” he said. “It’s a drop in the bucket.”

One of his most provocative ideas is a state-level oil severance tax, which California—unlike every other oil-producing state—still does not have. “If we taxed oil extraction at Louisiana’s rate of 12.5%, California would raise $88 billion a year,” he said. “That could be transformative for housing, climate, and public infrastructure.”

Asked why the state hasn’t done this, Wheeler was blunt: “The fossil fuel industry is powerful. But the real problem is the centrist Democrats—the ones who say all the right things but won’t take the hard votes.”

Pressed to identify three top priorities for local action, Wheeler responded without hesitation:

1. Citywide rezoning, including an overhaul of outdated PUDs.
   
2. Minimum height and density requirements for key parcels and corridors.
   
3. Proactive engagement with developers, pushing them toward innovative, forward-thinking proposals.
   

He added that Davis must confront the reality that building more housing may not ease pressure on local residents unless it’s tied to regional transportation and affordability reforms. “We are going to attract people from Sacramento and the Bay Area who want to live in Davis,” he said. “That’s why tying land use to transportation and regional equity is so important.”

The I-80 widening, he argued, exemplifies the failure to think systemically. “Instead of just going along with Caltrans, we could have negotiated a climate and equity package that funded affordable housing,” Wheeler said. “We could’ve created a fund for greenhouse gas mitigation and low-income drivers.”

Instead, he said, Davis chose the path of least resistance.

In the end, Wheeler returned to a theme that had run throughout the conversation: the urgent need for leadership. “We need elected officials who will take risks, who will stand up to the loudest voices in the room, and who will look for win-win solutions that serve climate, equity, and livability,” he said. “We can’t keep doing business as usual.”

He remains hopeful, but clear-eyed: “Davis has the brains, the values, and the opportunity. What we need now is the will.”

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