If you saw Cordary Avenue on a Hawthorne City Council agenda and wondered whether state housing money was tied to the site, the answer is yes. A city staff report connects two Permanent Local Housing Allocation awards to a city-owned parcel immediately south of 14115 Cordary Avenue, identified as APN 4051-030-902.
The proposed action was an amendment to the funding plan. It was not approval of a development, and the agenda bill does not provide a unit count, rents, building size, developer or construction date.
As of November 3, 2026, the outcome of the October 27, 2026 meeting is not confirmed because minutes verifying the Council’s action were not posted.
This is general information and not legal advice.
What was on the October 27 agenda?
Resolution 8638 was on the October 27 agenda so the Council could hold a public meeting and consider a PLHA plan amendment.
According to Agenda Item No. 5, staff recommended that the Council open the meeting, accept comments, close the meeting and adopt the resolution authorizing the application and amendment. Notice was posted 72 hours ahead under the Ralph M. Brown Act.
The agenda shows what was scheduled; later minutes would show what the Council did.
The agenda bill does not say a housing proposal for the parcel has land-use approval. That is different from a proposal such as the one covered in Hawthorne Boulevard streamlined housing, which follows its own process and record.
Why did staff recommend changing the plan?
Staff recommended the amendment because the state clarified that the Cordary project belongs under Activity 1 rather than Activity 2.
Hawthorne had previously understood that multifamily rental housing could qualify under Activity 2. The California Department of Housing and Community Development, which administers PLHA, later clarified that Activity 2 is intended for projects with four units or fewer. The agenda bill says the Cordary project is eligible under Activity 1.
Activity 1 can cover predevelopment, development, acquisition, rehabilitation and preservation of multifamily housing, residential live-work housing and rental housing affordable to specified income levels. It can also include operating subsidies.
Activity 2 covers affordable rental and ownership housing, including accessory dwelling units, for a growing workforce at a state-set income limit. HCD says the activity is intended for projects within the four-unit limit, which is the reason given for moving the two Cordary allocations.
The change is therefore about putting the planned use into the activity category HCD says applies. It does not tell you the form the future project would take.
Which allocations would change?
The amendment would move Hawthorne’s 2022 and 2023 PLHA awards from Activity 2 to Activity 1.
The first five-year PLHA cycle, covering 2019 through 2023, granted Hawthorne $3,541,577. The original plan divided that amount by award year and activity.
The 2019 award was $612,819 for Activity 6. The 2020 award was $952,511, also for Activity 6. Both were drawn down and expended. Activity 6 can assist people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.
For 2021, the award was $1,048,208 for Activity 2, and it was drawn down and expended. That year would remain under Activity 2.
Neither of the two later awards had been drawn down or expended. The 2022 amount was $525,365 and the 2023 amount was $402,674. Both were originally assigned to Activity 2. Under the amended table, both would move to Activity 1, while the earlier years and their activities would stay the same.
Together, the two affected awards total $928,039. The agenda bill also identifies an administrative budget of approximately $46,402.
What does the Cordary reference tell you?
The Cordary reference tells you where staff intended to use the two later awards, but it does not describe a development plan.
According to the agenda bill, the 2022 and 2023 allocations had historically been intended to support housing development on the city-owned property immediately south of 14115 Cordary Avenue. The parcel is identified as APN 4051-030-902. The city would continue using those funds for the Cordary project as previously planned, after accounting for the allowable administrative allowance.
No developer, project application or construction schedule is identified. Those questions require records beyond this funding amendment.
We were discussing the Cordary Avenue site with a Hawthorne resident who believed the PLHA plan amendment was the final approval for construction. Her questions were about the building itself, but the city action concerned how housing funds were planned for the site. We explained that a funding-plan amendment and the land-use approvals for a project answer different questions.
Where does the $75 recording fee fit?
The agenda bill describes the $75 recording fee as the state funding source behind PLHA.
It says state law, SB 2 of 2017, established a $75 recording fee on documented real estate property transfers. The bill describes the revenue as dedicated funding for local affordable housing-related projects and programs addressing unmet housing needs.
That statement does not explain what happens in any one sale, and the agenda bill does not say who pays the fee. It also does not provide transaction-specific instructions. If a recording charge appears in your paperwork, ask the person handling the documents to explain what it covers rather than assuming it is the same as the PLHA allocation discussed here.
Keep this recording fee distinct from California documentary transfer tax. They are different subjects, and the documentary transfer tax guide explains the latter separately.
Does this create a Hawthorne homebuyer program?
The proposed amendment does not create or identify a Hawthorne down payment assistance program.
The agenda bill lists ten activity types allowed by the first-cycle PLHA guidelines. Activity 9 includes homeownership opportunities, including down payment assistance. That is a state list of possible uses, not a statement that Hawthorne selected every listed use.
Hawthorne’s table uses Activity 6 for the 2019 and 2020 awards, Activity 2 for 2021, and proposed Activity 1 for 2022 and 2023. Activity 9 does not appear as the planned use for any of those years.
A homebuyer should not read the state activity list as an offer of local assistance. Another city’s program, such as the Covina first-time homebuyer loan, is an example of a separately identified city program. No equivalent Hawthorne program is described in this agenda bill.
What can you check next?
You can check Hawthorne’s agenda records and contact the City Planning Department for records that clarify the meeting outcome or any later Cordary proposal.
Start with the October 27 Council agenda and Agenda Item No. 5. The agenda bill is the source for the funding amounts, activity changes, parcel reference and staff recommendation described here.
For the Council’s decision, look for approved minutes or another city record that confirms the action taken on Resolution 8638. Because the posted agenda only establishes that the item was scheduled, it should not be used as proof of adoption.
For the parcel itself, ask Planning whether there is a later application, staff report or hearing notice. A later document may answer questions the funding bill leaves open, such as the number of units, building size, rent levels, developer and timing.
The short version
Hawthorne staff recommended moving the 2022 and 2023 PLHA allocations from Activity 2 to Activity 1 so the city could draw down the funds for the Cordary project.
The two awards are $525,365 and $402,674. HCD’s clarification about Activity 2 projects having four units or fewer prompted the proposed category change. The funding remains tied in the agenda bill to city-owned property south of 14115 Cordary Avenue.
The document does not approve a development or state how many units might be built. Check the Council’s records for the resolution outcome and the Planning Department for any later project documents.
If you are also preparing to sell, start with the home value tool.
Common questions
Did Hawthorne approve Resolution 8638?
The outcome has not been verified. As of November 3, 2026, minutes confirming what happened at the October 27 meeting were not posted.
What would the PLHA amendment change?
It would move Hawthorne's 2022 and 2023 PLHA allocations from Activity 2 to Activity 1 while keeping the money intended for the Cordary project.
How much money is involved in the amendment?
The two affected allocations are $525,365 for 2022 and $402,674 for 2023, a combined $928,039 before the allowable administrative allowance.
Does the agenda bill describe the proposed Cordary development?
No. It does not provide a unit count, building size, rent levels, developer, construction schedule or project application.
Does Hawthorne's PLHA table include down payment assistance?
No. Homeownership opportunities are among the state's listed eligible activities, but Hawthorne's plan table does not use that activity.
