San Mateo's Concar Drive redevelopment plans change

The area also houses a Trader Joe’s and 7-Eleven store, as separate structures, which will be relocated to either side of the site once completed. The rest of the commercial center between South Grant and South Delaware streets will be demolished to make room for 869 residential units, 731 of them multifamily units across three six- to seven-story buildings, and the rest will be townhome units. 

“We’re in the early stages of working with the City of San Mateo to reinvigorate the Concar Drive project. Our preliminary plans respect and improve upon the previously approved project to bring much-needed new housing, open space and neighborhood serving retail to the site, including substantially more affordable housing. We think this a great location and we’re excited to take the next steps in the review process,” Josh Roden, president of Brookfield Properties Development of Northern California Land and Housing, said in an emailed statement. 

Formerly called Concar Passage, original plans called for about 900 housing units, with 73 of those were allocated for affordable housing, but the recent project plans as of Feb. 14 show a higher share of low-income units. The Ballet Theatre was also going to remain on the site, albeit in a different location, though its future relocation plans are yet to be determined. The 14.5-acre site would have also included a daycare center and 3 acres of open community space per original project plans. Two years ago, the developer asked for a two-year extension on the plans citing the state of the economy.

The application was submitted using the Housing Crisis Act, which helps streamline approval of housing developments that plan to construct a certain number of units. 

The new proposal comes on the heels of another large-scale development at the Hillsdale Shopping Center that includes a mix of office, retail and multiunit developments would replace what is now the main 1.5 million-square-foot shopping center with more than 2 million square feet of new retail, office and garages, and 1.9 million square feet of residences that will extend to the current retail area south of Hillsdale Boulevard as well.

And at 1650 S. Amphlett Blvd., just north of the Concar development, a plan was submitted to demolish seven three-story office buildings to make room for 192 condominiums and 94 single-family homes.

Correction: The initial story included incorrect new unit totals. The updated project plan calls for a total of 869 new housing units, across both townhome and multi-family units.