San Mateo townhome plan gets first look

Commissioner John Ebneter voiced support for the proposed development — which will require a special use permit to build residential units on land zoned for office space — as well as the developer Harvest Properties’ plan to designate 10% of the homes as affordable for low-income households. But he was also empathetic to its impact on those living near the site, where two of the six existing office buildings will remain once the project is complete.

“I think it’s a great move and one that the city desperately needs as we are struggling horribly with ... housing deficiencies here in the city,” he said, according to a video of the meeting. “This still is an awful lot of work right in people’s backyards, so there’s going to be some friction, there’s going to be some issues and I would hope that most of them could be avoided so you can have a nice project and happy neighbors.”

Situated south of single-family homes in the Verona Ridge neighborhood, west of homes in the Beresford neighborhood and north of the Laurelwood Shopping Center and the Oak View Apartments, the project drew concerns about its impact on traffic, privacy and the capacity of local schools to take more students at a neighborhood meeting held earlier in October, said City Planner Rendell Bustos.

For lifelong San Mateo resident Laura Duncan, concerns about whether nearby schools would be able to accommodate more students loomed large. Though she acknowledged the city’s need for housing, Duncan worried about the size and density of the project near neighborhoods where many families live. Though Bustos confirmed the developer has been working with the San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department to ensure an access lane connecting Campus Drive to 26th Avenue would be open only to emergency vehicles, Duncan was joined by other residents in wondering whether the access road would remain closed in the future.

“I am concerned that Waze or perhaps Google maps-type apps will show it an alternate route to impacted [State Route] 92 and make our already narrow, congested residential streets into a boulevard of backed-up traffic,” she said. “I have serious concerns this will have a negative impact on our community.”

In response to those concerns, Commissioner Margaret Williams suggested officials include a condition of approval requiring the access road be closed to the public so any changes to the requirement would have to go before the City Council.

Commissioner Ramiro Maldonado was joined by his fellow commissioners in encouraging the developer to keep the some 3.4 acres of open space in the plans, and advocated for Harvest Properties to consider including outdoor recreation facilities like basketball courts and play structures in addition to pocket parks planned for the site. Because the developer is open to considering a different mix of unit sizes, Maldonado was hopeful they could offer units at a variety of affordability levels.

“I’m encouraged … on hearing that they are open to looking at the building density and seeing if they can provide various sizes of units,” he said.

Acknowledging the city’s housing shortage, Vice Chair Ellen Mallory felt the proposed density of the project was appropriate for the site, noting that if the project were proposed for a site close to a transit station it might make sense to increase the density.

“This is not near public transportation, so I like that this is not as dense, I like that when people will look up at that area … they’re going to see something that melds in with the hillside, that doesn’t stick out, that doesn’t look awkward,” she said. “I was very pleased to see a development go in there that was not overly dense.”

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