Residents concerned over 14-story building proposal

A letter from San Mateo United, the group representing all the city’s neighborhood associations, said it hopes that the developer, Mecah Ventures, will assure residents that the “building will enhance — not overpower — our cherished skyline.”

Mike Field, owner of Mecah Ventures, who has also spearheaded numerous development projects in the city, said significant time and investment went into making sure the building design at 1 E. Fourth Ave. fit in with the downtown area.

“Architecture is always in the eye of the beholder. We spent an incredible amount of time trying to make this as fantastic of a project as we could while also helping it to fit into the area,” he said. “There isn't a building I’ve ever built where a small minority of our community didn't complain about our architecture.”

SMU President Thomas Morgan said he also hopes traffic and transit impacts are taken into account as well.

“If we put more housing closer to downtown or Hayward Park, it should be on the table that we match the [Caltrain] service to where the people are,” Morgan said. “It seems like public transit is unfortunately favoring jobs and not housing.”

But much of the neighborhood feedback will be at the developer’s discretion. Because of its proximity to a major transit station, the downtown Caltrain station, the site is exempt from some local requirements, including parking minimums. And to comply with its state-mandated growth targets — which stipulate it must approve 7,015 units between 2023-31 — the city put Measure T on the ballot last year, which voters passed. The new policy extends height and density limits in certain parts of the city, such as areas near Caltrain stops.

The letter also says SMU wants a higher share of affordable units than the 36 proposed.

“People want to see housing that works for teachers, first responders, tradespeople and young professionals, not just high-end luxury units,” the letter states.

Morgan said the proposal follows a concerning trend of housing development that isn’t centered on homeownership. All of the units in the new building would be rentals.

“With the mix of housing growth, with the General Plan, and Measure T, people were told that there would be more housing for the missing middle and for the teachers, police officers, public safety and trades workers,” he said, adding that the highest earners are easily able to outbid middle class for housing units. “They can pretty much pay whatever they want, and other people can't easily compete.”

Field countered that the lack of housing is a supply issue, which was exacerbated by cities constraining housing development. He added that the number of affordable units is double what is required by the city, and that the project is also targeted to single-family homeowners who want to stay in San Mateo but don’t want to, or can’t afford to, continue with additional property costs.

“Our target here is to free up single-family homes. In addition to that we are going to provide almost 40 [below-market-rate units, and all these units are larger floor plans,” Field said. “Measure T was designed to create inventory, to create housing, which will allow the ecosystem in San Mateo to work properly.”