Redwood City making plans for future housing

City staff have begun planning for the state’s next Housing Element cycle, an eight-year span in which cities are required to build a specific number of homes at varying affordability levels. Numbers have yet to be formalized but Redwood City will likely be required to build nearly 4,600 new homes, about double its current goal.

Preparing for the new Regional Housing Need Assessment allocations, the city will need to provide the state with areas where homes could potentially be built, a difficult issue for many cities with limited land resources, noted commissioners.

“The biggest thing we’re worried about right now are … housing opportunity sites,” O’Dell said. “It’s a very technical process in terms of determining whether you can call a site an opportunity site.”

Building on staff ideas for potential new corridors for development which include increasing residential caps in the city’s downtown and building along Woodside Road, Commissioner Kevin Bondonno suggested Veterans Boulevard be considered.

Chair Nancy Radcliffe also noted the seaport area as a potential location worth robust conversation. The area currently has the road infrastructure to accommodate additional development but could likely be an ideal location for biotech development, she said.

Focusing on the jobs housing imbalance, Vice Chair Rick Hunter echoed sentiment shared by Mayor Diane Howard during an April 26 study session in which she suggested developers be pressured to address their own contributions to the imbalance.

Hunter said the city could likely add to the housing crisis while successfully meeting its RHNA goals when permitting large office space developments in the city.

“In my mind, the jobs/housing imbalance is one of, if not the main cause of the housing shortage,” Hunter said. “I can see a perverse tension between meeting our RHNA goals and doing the work to solve the housing crisis. … That is something we need to consider when we’re doing this.”

Hunter also highlighted the city’s need for preserving existing housing which he said would be a much cheaper option than building new units. Considering the housing already built, he suggested the city consider ways to recategorize unrented units into different affordability levels.

Similarly, Radcliffe said units nearing the end of their deeded affordability should also be a focus. Many units are only required to remain affordable for 30 to 50 years, she said.

“I don’t know what that would look like but it could be interesting,” Radcliffe said, also requesting additional information on what units are actually being rented out versus left vacant.

Commissioners also shared interests in encouraging development of duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes across the city, referring to the structures as missing middle housing. While eager to see additional housing brought to the city, Commissioner Elmer Martinez Saballos raised concerns for potential displacement. He suggested the city consider using funds to help nonprofit developers build while also subsidizing some units at a deeper level of affordability.

Aware of the concern, staff said they plan to return in the fall with ideas on how to prevent displacement.

New to the Housing Element is a focus on environmental justice that aims to increase quality of life for underserved residents. The city could either weave environmental justice throughout its general plan or create an independent document.

Staff suggested the first option, which commissioners supported but noted they’d like to learn more about the benefits of each approach before formally deciding. Staff is also working with Briana Evans, Equity and Inclusion officer, to research the best approach.

“Obviously the city has work to do to include equity in our engagement efforts,” O’Dell said. “And there’s always more that we can do.”

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