A better solution to Atherton’s housing crunch

Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom called out Atherton for its resistance to building new multifamily homes and resisting state requirements to meet housing targets set by the Regional Housing Needs Allocation.

The town’s RHNA mandate is to develop a credible plan for 348 additional housing units. The town’s first submission to the state was rejected. On Jan. 31, the town submitted a revised proposal that included a mix of solutions: additional accessory dwelling units, rezoning single-family homes for future multifamily developments and a 60-unit faculty/staff apartment building on the Menlo College campus. The state will be responding to that plan by the end of March.

Assuming the state accepts the proposal, however, a major hole remains: the lack of funding for that proposed apartment building.

Menlo College leadership would welcome the opportunity to build staff and faculty housing on campus — many members of the Menlo community are on waiting lists for the limited campus housing the college already offers. Additional housing on the Menlo College campus would allow the school to make a positive impact to the housing crisis by building affordable housing. This is not only a moral imperative, but it would also help Atherton align with state housing mandates.

The college has the land, but not the funding. Atherton residents need to step up to make it happen.

The 40-acre Menlo College campus includes several appropriate potential building sites that would allow for the construction of additional housing units on campus for members of the college community: faculty, staff and even students.

For this project to become a reality, the college needs the support of the Atherton community, particularly those who have been fortunate enough to achieve financial success. Wealthy homeowners in the area have a unique opportunity to contribute to this important project and, by doing so, they can help Atherton meet state housing requirements and ensure that everyone is doing their part to provide affordable housing for all.

Menlo College is a small, largely residential college that serves a diverse student population: the 800+ students hail from 45 countries. Menlo College is a federally-designated Minority Serving Institution two times over, as both a Hispanic-Serving Institution and an Asian American, Native American and Pacific Islander-Serving Institution. One-third of Menlo’s students are the first in their family to attend college.

Building affordable housing on Menlo College’s campus will have a ripple effect throughout Silicon Valley. It will create jobs and stimulate economic growth, while also allowing Menlo College to attract and retain talented faculty and staff who might otherwise be unable to afford to live in the area. If constructed, the additional campus housing would take cars off area roads, and free up existing affordable housing units throughout Silicon Valley that are now occupied by members of the Menlo College community. It would also improve Menlo College’s ability to support students in need, offering them entrée to the educational and career opportunities of the Silicon Valley ecosystem that together represent the opportunity for positive change to the trajectories of their lives.

Many deep-pocketed members of the Atherton community are loudly proclaiming their opposition to the changes they perceive the state’s mandate would bring to their town. To them I offer an alternative to protesting the inevitable: If you dig into your pockets and make tax-deductible contributions to Menlo College to cover construction costs, the school will build the apartments to bring the town into compliance.

The Silicon Valley town of Atherton has many assets. Graciously laid-out homes and an abundance of heritage trees offer a rarely-found combination of tranquility and sense of privilege. Those who call Atherton home are by and large fiercely protective of the lifestyle that Atherton offers. This plan would leave those advantages undisturbed.

While many of Atherton’s characteristics distinguish it from most other towns and cities in California, it shares the challenge of fulfilling the California housing element mandates. Unlike most other towns and cities, though, Atherton has a means to meet the California mandate that would preserve the characteristics the town prizes.

Melissa R. Michelson, Ph.D., is dean of Arts and Sciences and professor of Political Science at Menlo College. She is lead author of a textbook on California politics, Governing California in the Twenty-First Century (Norton, 2023).