San Mateo County Planning Commission halts 60-acre subdivision

Since the 1980s, Steve Zmay, with Z Enterprises, has had interests in building homes on a 60-acre lot in unincorporated San Mateo. While previous proposals sought to build along Crystal Springs Road, in the proposal presented to the Planning Commission on Wednesday, the firm requested approval for subdividing the lot into three parcels which would later be developed with three roughly 2,500-square-foot homes fronting Parrott Drive.  

The proposal offered to dedicate nearly 49 acres of the land as a protected conservation easement and to upgrade a 203-linear-foot portion of the Billy Goat Hill sewer line “to offset system capacity for the project increase in service,” according to the staff report. 

Zmay’s son, Nick Zmay, argued that developing the land would also help prevent future landslides, an issue along the steep hill that caused structure damage to multiple nearby homes in the late 1990s. Nick Zmay’s claim is backed by multiple consultants including one from the county’s Planning Department. 

But neighbors weren’t sold on the idea, arguing during public comment that the studies conducted on the land fail to adequately prove it would be stable into the future and noting the necessary drilling studies needed to substantiate claims of stability had not been conducted. 

Liesje Nicolas, president of the Highlands Community Association, noted the proposed subdivision includes similar landslide hazards present in the previous landslide site along Polhemus Road, mapped out by the U.S. Geological Survey.

“Neighbors all remember the Polhemus landslide,” Nicolas said. “Residents expect both their government and representatives to safeguard both their lives and property.”

Echoing others against the subdivision, she suggested the developers consider building along the bottom of the lot instead.

Steve Zmay noted that three of the homes affected during the last landslide are still standing with an additional home having been demolished and rebuilt. However, Kim Ricket, a neighbor in the area, claimed those homes are still sliding. 

Steve Zmay also claimed former county planner George Bergman recommended the firm consider developing at the top of the lot off of Parrott Drive because developing driveways off of Crystal Springs Road as previously proposed would require substantial street widening and other land disturbances along the scenic route.

“We would have preferred to build down on Crystal Springs,” Steve Zmay said. “They want the least amount of disturbance so that the remaining amounts of land are kept in pristine state.”

Beyond the slides, neighbors raised concerns for future wildfire risks from continuing to build in what officials call the Wildlife Urban Interface where humans are building more into dense wildlife areas. 

Last year’s CZU Lightning Complex, a collection of hundreds of fires that raged across nearly 90,000 acres of land between San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties, was routinely referenced as an example of how conditions are increasingly endangering homes built in the WUI. 

Commissioner Kumkum Gupta ranked fire risks as a top concern, noting the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection has encouraged the commission to expedite other risk mitigation efforts like tree removal permits. 

“We have so many devastating fires going through our state today,” Gupta said. “And they are causing so much havoc. Homes are being destroyed so we want to avoid that kind of scenario and, with that in mind, I don’t see any homes being built in this particular area.” 

Commissioner Manuel Ramirez, the least decided on the matter, said he was not as concerned for landslides given the proposed improvements but was also alarmed by the fire dangers and sewer line deficiencies. 

Chair Lisa Ketcham said she disagreed with the conclusions outlined in the staff report which recommended commission approval and was unable to approve the subdivision. 

Both Hansson and Santacruz were compelled to immediately deny the request. Ultimately, the commission unanimously agreed to deny the request and directed staff to return at a future meeting with findings for denial. 

“We’re looking at a piece of land that for lots of reasons has not been developed when the rest of the Bayside has,” Hansson said. “There’s nothing that we really gain from it. We just increase our hazards and put more people at risk.”

sierra@smdailyjournal.com 

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