Millbrae residents feeling blindsided

There are a variety of concerns expressed by opponents ranging from the eventual financial cost of the move to the city and to fears of negative impacts caused by future hotel residents.

Millbrae officials themselves are not pleased at all. They released a statement to that effect earlier this month. One of their salient gripes is that the county’s leadership, operating in heavy-handed fashion, did not keep Millbrae in the loop prior to the issue flaring into the public domain.

The county’s message for much of the process was, basically, “We’ve decided; it’s a done deal; like it or lump it.” Not a lot of room for discussion. The consequences have been most unpleasant.

Looming over this divisive issue is a factor that’s rarely discussed: the often confusing and misunderstood nature of the county’s authority — and, specifically, that of the Board of Supervisors — itself.

The good citizens of Millbrae, who are just now coming to grips with all of this, have a point. How and why do the supervisors, none of whom live in Millbrae, have the power to order a separate, self-governed city to accept a stark and undesired (for some) change in the use of a key property along its main drag?

But, that’s the reality, and it’s part of the governing structure of the state of California. Millbrae denizens, more than most in the county, find themselves buffeted by outside forces, often faceless and well beyond their control.

It’s not just the supervisors who exercise authority over key aspects of Millbrae life. Let’s look at some prime examples. Here goes:

• BART. The massive transit station and its operations, shared with Caltrain, dominate a southeastern quadrant of the town. Development of that prime property has had major impacts, not all of them good.

• SFO. The busy nearby international airport, located on the Bayfront on the east side of Highway 101, and its related support services are more like a city within a city by any reasonable definition. It is controlled by the city and county of San Francisco.

• The aggressive state of California itself. Led by some of our own local politicians, the state has altered long-standing laws and regulations governing the zoning of properties, taking control away from municipal officials and their constituents.

All in all, it’s easy to understand why a lot of Millbrae residents, homeowners in particular (along with some business interests), are feeling growing pressure from entities outside their community with little or no recourse in the bargain.

By essentially springing the notion of buying the La Quinta Inn on the Millbrae citizenry without carefully preparing the way by being proactive in communicating what was coming down the pike, the county set itself up for controversy and outrage.

Maybe it wouldn’t have mattered when, or how, the county had gotten out the word on the future of the hotel. It’s entirely possible that, no matter what the county did on this issue, a sizable segment of Millbrae’s population would have objected — and loudly.

We’ll never know. What we do know is that too many living in Millbrae believe they have been blindsided by too many authorities from outside the town. Considerable fence-mending should be in the offing. Whether that will bear fruit remains to be seen.

JERRY COLEMAN PASSES AT 86: It is with sadness that we learned of the death of Jerry Coleman, a public servant here in San Mateo County for a combined three decades in the County District Attorney’s Office and later as Burlingame’s city attorney. His tenures here were marked by a calm, professional demeanor and a gentle sense of humor that helped to defuse potentially divisive situations. He passed away last month at the age of 86 in Sebastopol. 

Email John Horgan at johnhorganmedia@gmail.com. His new book, “Cradle of Champions — A Selected History of San Mateo County Sports,” is available via https://historysmc.org/online-store/. All proceeds benefit the San Mateo County Historical Association based in Redwood City.