There are currently no plans to resuscitate a proposition to turn Millbrae’s La Quinta Inn and Suites into housing for formerly homeless families and seniors, County Executive Mike Callagy said, and a lawsuit around the project ended in November 2025.
The county hoped to fund its plan to turn the La Quinta into housing via Project Homekey, a statewide investment in housing solutions for the homeless through the purchase of hotels, multifamily apartments or other buildings to create transitional or long-term housing.
However, the county didn’t receive Homekey funding for the project in August 2024 because “they did not have site control,” a representative for the Department of Housing and Community Development said previously. County Executive Mike Callagy previously said the project did not receive funds because the state didn’t believe the county would be able to occupy the site in a timely manner due to its ongoing litigation with the city of Millbrae.
Because no funding to buy the hotel is available, the county is not currently considering it as a viable housing project at this time, Callagy said.
“There’s no funding available for it and no plans on it right now,” he said. “Never say never but no plans at all.”
The hotly contested project generated both resident outrage around public safety concerns and significant loss of revenue as well as a lawsuit. Millbrae’s legal team argued the purchase would violate Article 34 of the California Constitution, which makes it so any public agency looking to develop or acquire low-income housing must gain the approval of a majority of voters to do so.
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Project Homekey is currently exempt from Article 34 under state law, and Superior Court Judge Nancy Fineman dismissed the city’s lawsuit on the grounds that because the county has yet to legally specify the purchase will be used for low-income residents or receive Project Homekey funds for the project, the issue was not yet “ripe for determination.”
Millbrae filed an appeal against that ruling, but dismissed it on Nov. 20, 2025, San Mateo County Chief Deputy County Attorney Brian E. Kulich said in an email.
“At this point, we do not anticipate any future legal action,” he said.
Millbrae Councilmember Anders Fung declined to speak to the lawsuit, but said that the city was ready to work on permanent supportive housing projects.
“From my personal, City Council perspective, I’ve said it before and I will say it again, we’re ready to work with any and everyone who sees us as an equal partner in this,” he said.
Why does the SMDAILYJOURNAL withhold information they know to be true. Newsom's Project Homekey is dead in the water or should be. Too much fraud, waste and abuse. It has been in the news.
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Why does the SMDAILYJOURNAL withhold information they know to be true. Newsom's Project Homekey is dead in the water or should be. Too much fraud, waste and abuse. It has been in the news.
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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.