Owning a single-family home in San Mateo County was an obtainable dream for decades, but home prices soared, the cost of living continues to skyrocket, traffic congestion worsened and the community is changing its expectations.
Marla Perego, president of the San Mateo County Association of Realtors, said communities are finding it more convenient and enjoyable to have amenities around them and within walking distance. A National Association of Realtors survey showed 79% of people surveyed said living near shops and parks is very important. Of those, 78% said they would be willing to pay more to live in a walkable community.
“That the old adage of having a single-family home is an idea most were raised trying to reach, but now I see more younger families wanting to live in townhomes, and condominiums,” Perego said. “So, we need housing that makes more sense for the average family. Single-family homes take up a huge blueprint, it’s not the most efficient way to live.”
The survey results also revealed 56% of people said they would prefer a home with a small yard and places to walk versus 44% of people who would prefer a large yard but would need to drive most places.
Perego believes the issue is that many in the Bay Area are no longer living a sustainable life. Yet, she believes cities in the county are taking strides to set the foundation for transit-oriented living.
One example she gave, the Bay Meadows neighborhood in San Mateo, has amenities like the Hillsdale Shopping Center and the nearby Whole Foods around it. It also has plenty of office spaces and businesses, restaurants and parks.
“You have everything around you, and a sense of community and I think things will start changing and it’s for the better for our future,” Perego said. “We need to be more cognizant of what we need to do in this time, we are in a different space where we need to think about sustainable goods, electricity and water, and how it affects all of us.”
Cities around the county are addressing the need for transit-oriented development. For example, Belmont identified 144 sites for potential mixed-use housing and affordable housing near and around the Caltrain Station, along El Camino Real and Old County Road. San Mateo identified 4,400 units combined around the Hillsdale Station South and near the Highway 101 and State Route 92 interchange, which is near the Hayward Park train station. Redwood City has approved multifamily housing along El Camino Real, and zoned for more density in its downtown and along Woodside Road and Veterans Boulevard. And South San Francisco planned for housing in Lindenville, near the downtown and Highway 101, and El Camino Real. The city is zoned for mixed-use developments around its Caltrain station with the intent of providing future biotech employees the ability to work and live near transit stations.
This is a trend for most cities on the Peninsula, however, Perego believes there is still more work to do.
“We are so underhoused and need to alleviate traffic and in order to function more
efficiently, we need to build homes around transit areas,” she said.
Jeremy Levine, Housing Leadership Council policy manager, echoed some of those comments by saying the survey reflects the HCL’s intuition that people like to walk and want to be close to downtowns.
“Traffic is a serious issue in the county. And so putting more housing near transit, near businesses and jobs would make more sense,” Levine said. “And more people living near businesses would mean more people are likely to use its services.”
Even though people want to live in multiunit buildings, Levine said there aren’t enough of those types of units available. By allowing more multifamily units, people can live a lifestyle they want, he added.
(2) comments
People absolutely love real walkable/bikeable neighborhoods, that doesn't require a survey. But trying to make the case that San Mateo County knows what they are doing is funny.
Calling Bay Meadows a great example for Transit-Oriented-Development is a joke. It's 0.5-1 miles from Bay Meadows to Hillsdale Shopping center, which means it's already in bicycle distance. And yet there are no bike lanes on Hillsdale Blvd, nor 28th, nor 31th Ave. Just looking at 31th Ave. There are 5 lanes for cars, 0 lanes for bikes and 2 sidewalks without any shade. Who would call this a "walkable neighborhood"? These are very new grade separated streets - and no bike lanes? Nobody who gets a survey tells them they like this: https://goo.gl/maps/fTiSTqkDGcJdzFKX7
Also this happened in Bay Meadows - a "walkable neighborhood" doesn't require crosswalks nor flashing beacons, nor do you get run over by a car: https://youtu.be/AAESauItRb8
How many mushrooms do I need to eat until I find Bay Meadows great or "walkable/bikeable"?
Redwood City is planning 2 TODs like this - none has transit close by and none has bike lanes to get there. If they are transit-oriented, where are the bus lanes?
No bike lanes, no bus lanes, horrible sidewalks. That is as car centric as it gets.
I’d like to believe the conclusions being made but I’d need more information on the survey itself… Who was surveyed? What age ranges? Were the survey questions written in such a way to reach a desired conclusion? Was the survey for San Mateo County or country-wide? How much is “more” when they report “willing to pay more to live in a walkable community”? Did the survey ask if people were willing to live in multiunit buildings to live in a walkable community? And so on…
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.