Housing at Hillsdale makes a ton of sense

In the here and now, malls across the nation are suffering from a new consumer culture that is leading people online and away from large-scale shopping centers of yesteryear.

Sometimes it is a self-fulfilling situation in which retail, injured by online purchasing, makes cuts, which make the in-person shopping less satisfying and sends more people online.

Malls now seek new ways to draw people and keep them there. A case study in that would be the renovation of the Hillsdale Shopping Center North Block, which took an old Sears building and re-created a place where people could gather. There are restaurants and retail, and entertainment as well. It is a way for the mall to stay current. It seems to be successful.

Warranted or not, Hillsdale also holds a certain town square sensibility for the city of San Mateo. It’s a role typically suited for a downtown but, instead, it’s Hillsdale: it has the Easter Bunny, holiday celebrations, special events, etc. that create a sense of community. It is that idea that its ownership seeks to retain in the future. As part of its Re:Imagine Hillsdale process, its first community priority identified was to “celebrate Hillsdale’s legacy as a place to gather, socialize, celebrate and create new memories” while also continuing a retail tradition.

This sets the stage for a recent request by the shopping center management for zoning flexibility for its sections closest to the nearby Caltrain station. In its letter to the city, Hillsdale asked for up to 200 units of housing an acre next to the station and up to 99 units an acre of housing along the El Camino Real frontage with lesser density as it transitions to the neighborhood to the west.

Doing so would solve two problems. The state has become more aggressive with its housing requirements for individual cities, especially housing that is near transit. Housing near the train and El Camino Real will help the city meet its goals. It would also make the property more profitable and, honestly, more current.

As city planning evolves away from a car-centric society to a more walkable one, malls are seeking to reenvision themselves as pedestrian- and transit-friendly centers for the community to gather. Incorporating housing into that replicates the downtown spaces that malls largely destroyed in the middle of the last century. Now, it also turns out that new housing is also largely needed.

As the Hillsdale Shopping Center seeks to remain current, housing as part of its plans makes a ton of sense. It establishes its large property as a center of commerce and culture while allowing it to tap into a ready-made customer base living on the property who can mix and mingle with others seeking a community space.

Whether you like it or not, Hillsdale has created a place for the community to gather and find goods. Over the years, it has modified accordingly, whether it be shifting from an outdoor mall to an indoor one, or adding big block retail to its southern section and shifting the north block to a gathering place with entertainment, dining and retail. In its quest to stay current, it is shifting again with the times to create a new space that will remain profitable and add to the city’s financial and housing needs — all while likely creating a unique and interesting place.

Look to the north at the site of the Shops at Tanforan. San Bruno officials began last summer the process of exploring turning the shopping center into potentially 1,000 housing units, a biotech campus and possibly more. While that housing is needed, a biotech campus is not the first thing that comes to mind when it comes to building or retaining a sense of community. We will watch that process closely, of course, and there is an opportunity for some very real community benefits. In San Mateo, it appears the stage is set to retain retail and Hillsdale’s place as a community gathering spot.

The devil is in the details of course, and we look forward to a robust public planning process to see what will work best for the neighborhood, the city, the region and future residents.

Jon Mays is the editor in chief of the Daily Journal. He can be reached at jon@smdailyjournal.com. Follow Jon on Twitter @jonmays.