One way to clear a room is to start talking about general plans, housing elements and city planning in general. Start talking about inclusionary zoning, regional housing need allocations or floor area ratios if you ever want to clear out any stragglers.
But it’s that kind of talk that is incredibly important in how a city plans for its future. And isn’t nerding out on super detailed and important things cool these days?
The city of San Mateo last updated its General Plan to run through 2030 and is now planning for 2040. That may seem pretty far away and it’s hard enough to plan for next week, yet, this is the stuff that shapes what the city will be, which, to my mind, is pretty darn important.
For instance: How much housing do we want and where? There’s nothing like finding out a new tall building is being planned next door to you that was allowed by a process you ignored. Or finding out the city missed out on a huge opportunity to place some housing in a spot you thought would be excellent but you didn’t find the time to tell anyone about it.
The city is already talking about zoning for anywhere between 10,000 and 20,000 new housing units, in part because of its Housing Element to adhere to new state-mandated Regional Housing Needs Allocation numbers, which is a pretty big jump no matter how you slice it.
So far in the General Plan process, we seem to have to two general groups, the housing advocates and the smart growthers. They have other nicknames, like YIMBY (Yes in My Backyard) and NIMBY (Not in My Backyard), but those can be seem as pejoratives by some.
To put it simply, the housing advocates want more housing of all kinds because they adhere to the economic philosophy of supply and demand, meaning the more supply, the lower the price. And prices are too high. The smart growthers like the suburban character of San Mateo and don’t want it urbanized because of traffic and congestion. They also want to retain the quality of life they have enjoyed for years. This is not unique to San Mateo. Too many jobs were added without the requisite housing. Prices went up.
So far, the two sides are like the Sharks and the Jets, the Montagues and Capulets, the Hatfields and McCoys. And their feud wasn’t helped by the contentious Measure Y campaign, which retained the city’s height limits. At the Zoom meetings for the General Plan or Housing Element so far, word is that they were fighting in the comment section like it was an extension of Twitter or Nextdoor, and all the delights that come with that.
After years of this, the City Council knows their points of view. What they don’t know is the point of view of average folk who may not participate or care to participate. But this is the point of view the council needs.
Right now, the city is near the end of the first stage of the General Plan and Housing Element process, and there are quite a few more stages. Certification of the Housing Element, which is a process to see where housing would be allowed, is slated for January 2023. The final General Plan and environmental impact report, which is sort of the city’s master plan for all it does from housing to transportation and public safety to parks and recreation. There have been a few workshops and the City Council is getting a General Plan Status Update May 17. That could be a key meeting as the city starts to decide which road it wants to take in the planning process. Look for updates and information about how to attend this and other meetings in our paper.
So far, the city has identified 10 areas of the city to study. Most of those are near transit. Do you think that’s right? Are there other areas that could be studied as well?
Now is your chance. Go to strivesanmateo.org/meetings for more information about the variety of upcoming meetings. There is also a way to sign up for notifications at the bottom. As the city proceeds along this process, it would benefit from the input of regular folks who don’t veer into excess zeal. And heck, nowadays, you can even participate in a meeting on your porch with a laptop and a glass of your favorite beverage.
The city needs new ideas, new perspectives and those willing to listen, learn and brainstorm with others for the betterment of all. And maybe you can be the one to lend some positive excitement to the process rather than clearing the room.
Jon Mays is the editor in chief of the Daily Journal. He can be reached at jon@smdailyjournal.com. Follow Jon on Twitter @jonmays.
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(1) comment
These ‘areas’ should be the bullseye with layered levels throughout the rest of the city…a Venn Diagram where the intersects would be the bullseyes
There should be NO area excluded from consideration.
This is a change from a personal point used to pitch…San Mateo is a small town USA in look and feel. Still feel that, but in a much muted way. What drove that change has to do with the Progressive Boomers push to only change in lower income areas and deny via impediments to growth in our, already designated high density & TOD areas….AKA Measure Y
San Mateo is land locked and is NOT an island. As the rest of the SF BayArea & Peninsula is getting that there is a need to change and accept growth as the required metric in our society.
Acceptance and smartly managed growth is the best…only way to move forward.
Bedrooms are in a very short supply here on the West Bay side. So much so, a near monopoly where supply can demand most any price they wish…as that is also driven up by those lucky enough to have the funds (includes income level) to bid most every bedroom pricing up.
Also, I took +100 years of automobile centric design of our cities during the 20th Century (suburbs that require drive everywhere and that the citizens base their life on driving), that it will take a few more decades to move into the 21st Century metrics…even though we are 21 years into the 21st century.
Since Measure Y limited the city from the levels of growth needed in our designated high density & TOD areas…there are two routes.
The state legislature understands these issues and their SB & AB laws working their way though or already approved, will override local measures.
Other is that local municipalities will find was to increase required numbers of bedrooms.
Repurposing existing land (rejoining) and ADU’s.
For without growing bedrooms (tax base), city managers will need to increase existing taxes to keep up with inflationary everything they need to spend money on. Salaries, pensions, consultants, city fleet of vehicles (fuel and maintenance), etc, etc
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