As San Mateo officials try to increase affordable housing opportunities for underserved groups amid housing shortages, the public is prioritizing more infrastructure spending, zoning incentives and tenant protections to help affected groups.
San Mateo faces a critical housing shortage that the city has made one of its most important goals to improve. Providing fair housing to underserved groups is a prime concern, as racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionately affected by higher poverty, lower household income, more overcrowding and homelessness, which affects housing. Renters face disparities versus owners, as half of the renters in San Mateo pay 30% to 50% of income for housing, while a quarter pays 50% or more income for housing, according to city staff. Residents with disabilities represent 9% of the population in San Mateo and experience higher unemployment. City staff said services providers have found people with disabilities face significant barriers to housing through discrimination or lack of accessibility in older buildings. Given the many disparities, San Mateo officials hope to create policies and actions to help those affected.
The city held a Jan. 13 fair housing meeting to get public input on fair and affordable housing for all groups and to gauge public priorities for city housing policies and actions. Those in attendance suggested outreach and education resources to help those looking for homes navigate the complicated process. Other possibilities offered were more affordable dwelling units and preserving diversity in neighborhoods. Several people suggested tenant protections with renter registries for property owners and disallowing zoning restrictions that don’t allow affordable housing, like creating an overlay zone or a more streamlined process to allow housing developments to go faster. An overlay zone would add a zoning layer over an area or neighborhood that incentivizes affordable housing. The city is considering streamlining aspects of large housing development applications at the Planning Commission level.
Geographic location and segregation can also play a role in fair housing. San Mateo Housing Manager Sandra Council showed a map from the Tax Credit Allocation Committee, a state organization that administers low-income housing tax credits, that demonstrated North Central and North Shoreview neighborhoods had access to only moderate resources compared to the rest of the city, which had a high amount of resources. She noted these areas have higher concentrations of overcrowding, with North Shoreview also subject to flooding, potential factors affecting housing.
“The neighborhoods in the city’s northeast quadrant do have the higher poverty. They do have lower education scores compared to the rest of the city, and they have lower economic opportunity scores,” Council said.
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To help combat infrastructure segregation and increase affordable housing, people recommended investing in infrastructure, transit and services in underserved areas while balancing potential gentrification. Others suggested allowing higher-density development in low-density areas and investing in lower-income areas through development impact fees.
San Mateo officials plan to use the public information in creating its 2023-2031 Housing Element, a blueprint for housing goals and policies updated every eight years. The Housing Element shows where housing can be built and the policies and strategies needed to meet community needs. The Housing Element also can factor into issues around fair housing like development, exclusionary zoning codes and disparities in resources. It will be prepared for review in spring 2022.
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