For many years in Belmont, we have tried to develop our last meaningful pieces of property owned by the former redevelopment agency. The properties include parcels located at Hill Street and El Camino Real, and the parcel known as Firehouse Square on Fifth and O’Neill avenues and Broadway. In a thrilling turn of events earlier this year, the city entered an exclusive negotiating agreement with LINC Housing for the development of a project including 100 percent affordable homes at the Hill Street and El Camino Real sites. Just last week, we learned of more exciting news. Sares Regis, which has a development agreement for Firehouse Square spanning several years, is working to form a partnership with MidPen Housing to develop a project featuring over 80 percent affordable units. This is a monumental leap forward for the project; previously, the term sheet included only 25 percent affordable units.
These developments represent a significant increase in affordable homes for our community. This is critical as our cities struggled to keep pace with demand for both affordable and market-rate housing for years.
Recently, the San Mateo County Housing Leadership Council — our local housing advocacy nonprofit — released a report reminding us of the severity of our affordability crisis. The report showed between 2010 and 2015, only one new home was built for every 19 jobs created. According to the same report, to purchase the median priced home in San Mateo County, a household would have to make an astounding $382,960 annually. Rentcafe.com, an online listing service, indicates the average two-bedroom apartment rents for nearly $3,500 locally.
This is not sustainable if we are to maintain a functioning local economy and avoid the displacement of more families — a driving force behind traffic congestion as many of these displaced workers continue commuting to Silicon Valley. Smart growth and innovative transportation solutions must be pursued. We must also work with the private sector to assure projects on private land include some affordable housing. Cities like Belmont, San Mateo, Redwood City and others have adopted inclusionary zoning ordinances ensuring affordable housing will be a part of these developments.
But local governments — the county, cities, school districts and transit agencies — also need to look to their land as part of the solution, just as we are doing in Belmont. The San Mateo County Community College District led the way locally in this regard. For years, both Cañada College and the College of San Mateo have offered high-quality, affordable homes to their teachers and staff. This helps ensure the district can retain and attract quality employees. As icing on the cake, these developments will eventually provide the district with a small revenue stream.
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Last week, we learned the Jefferson Union High School District Board of Trustees — under the excellent leadership of Board President Andy Lie and Vice President Kalimah Saluhuddin — successfully passed the first high school district teacher and staff housing bond. In a few short years, the vision of the board will allow the district to offer something no other high school district in the county can: affordable homes for district teachers and staff. This is a shining example of how government land combined with visionary policymaking can help make inroads in the fight against the housing affordability crisis.
Transit agencies are also embracing this concept. SamTrans land was used for housing with generous affordable housing components in both San Carlos and Daly City. The district continues looking for opportunities to use its land to help build housing. Caltrain has recently moved forward with a transit oriented development policy which will guide the use of its land.
Remaining redevelopment agency land is also a fertile ground for affordable housing. In San Mateo, officials approved a 164-unit Mid-Pen Housing development on former redevelopment land — half of which will be for those earning 60 percent of the area median income and the other half will be for households making 80-120 percent.
In a housing crisis of the magnitude, we must continue to utilize a variety of tools to ensure low- and middle-income earners have an opportunity to live here. One of those tools is the use of public land. I hope we see this trend not only continue — but grow.
Charles Stone serves is a current Belmont councilmember and former Mayor, the Chair of the San Mateo County Transit District, and also serves on the Caltrain Joint Powers Board. The views and opinions expressed herein are his own.
To Mr. Stone's comment concerning the number of jobs created versus the number of housing units built: why are local governments still approving projects that bring more jobs into this area?
I agree that 4 stories is too much. Three is more appropriate for that neighborhood. Look at Davey Glen. People have completely lost their views because of that new project. And this is after they were told they would not. All you can see is the new huge structure, which totally obliterates their much more beautiful homes. I fear the same will happen with people on 5th Avenue.
Four stories is not too much, it is too little! I would also add that the homes being more beautiful is subjective. I quite like the new building though I had hoped it would be taller. I must say I have a hard time in seeing why views are important when our crisis of housing persists as it does.
Should just give the whole project to Mid-Pen. Sares Regis is also dragging their feet regarding affordable housing on the Hayward Park Cal Train Station Parking lot. Regarding redevelopment lots (SM), property was transferred several years I don't consider this an accomplishment until the housing is built.
Fantastic news! Very glad to see our neighbors in Belmont both acknowledging and actually doing something about our housing crisis! I sincerely hope we see more cooperation among for-profit developers like Saris Regis and non-profit developers like MidPen in the near future here in San Mateo and all along the Peninsula.
It's a long overdue idea to use our city's public land to provide low to moderate housing. As our colleges and universities have been doing for years, our public school land should provide housing for our teachers.
However the devil is in the details.
The plan for Fire House Square (5th and O'Neil) can be up to 4 stories, similar in height and number of units to the ongoing Davey Glen and El Camino development. That kind of development is imposing and an out of scale development on our neighborhoods.
What Council member Stone also left out is that public land includes our city's precious open space! Belmont has approximately 350 acres of open space, composed of walking and biking trails and scenic views which previous city councils had wisely voted to set aside land for our future residents to use.
One former San Mateo County Board of Supervisor had even suggested for county to use its open space for more housing. That idea met strong opposition and finally died.
So a warning, fine to use our city's public land that is zoned for housing for housing, within reason. But leave our public open space alone for there will be strong opposition for that idea.
I think you have to weigh the supposed harm from an "out of scale" development with the (very large) benefit from giving 66 families an affordable place to live and protection from higher rents.
You can do the math on that if you want - let's say each family saves $1000 per month on rent vs. if they had to pay market rate, plus another $200 in gas because they don't have to commute from Pleasanton to get to work. That's about $1 million per year in benefits.
So, $1 million per year, to say nothing of the environmental benefit from putting homes near transit, the psychological benefit of preventing displacement, the benefit to construction workers from new buildings that pay prevailing wage, the benefit to younger Belmont residents like me, who are trying to buy a home and can't afford Belmont's $1.8 million detached single family homes.
Given this very large benefit to the community from new development - at $1 million per year - the harm caused by this "out of scale" development would be have to be pretty severe to overcome this. I find it difficult to quantify that in any way that compares.
Wow! Offering affordable housing for teachers! The only city in the country? How about tax payers forgoing one Starbucks frappawhatever a week and approving a tax increase to pay the people you entrust your child's life to a living wage. I know that three letter word goes against every brainwashing tactic the Republican's have shoved down your throats for the last 45 years but really? Here's your subsidized housing on the taxpayer?
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(9) comments
To Mr. Stone's comment concerning the number of jobs created versus the number of housing units built: why are local governments still approving projects that bring more jobs into this area?
I agree that 4 stories is too much. Three is more appropriate for that neighborhood. Look at Davey Glen. People have completely lost their views because of that new project. And this is after they were told they would not. All you can see is the new huge structure, which totally obliterates their much more beautiful homes. I fear the same will happen with people on 5th Avenue.
Four stories is not too much, it is too little! I would also add that the homes being more beautiful is subjective. I quite like the new building though I had hoped it would be taller. I must say I have a hard time in seeing why views are important when our crisis of housing persists as it does.
Should just give the whole project to Mid-Pen. Sares Regis is also dragging their feet regarding affordable housing on the Hayward Park Cal Train Station Parking lot. Regarding redevelopment lots (SM), property was transferred several years I don't consider this an accomplishment until the housing is built.
Fantastic news! Very glad to see our neighbors in Belmont both acknowledging and actually doing something about our housing crisis! I sincerely hope we see more cooperation among for-profit developers like Saris Regis and non-profit developers like MidPen in the near future here in San Mateo and all along the Peninsula.
It's a long overdue idea to use our city's public land to provide low to moderate housing. As our colleges and universities have been doing for years, our public school land should provide housing for our teachers.
However the devil is in the details.
The plan for Fire House Square (5th and O'Neil) can be up to 4 stories, similar in height and number of units to the ongoing Davey Glen and El Camino development. That kind of development is imposing and an out of scale development on our neighborhoods.
What Council member Stone also left out is that public land includes our city's precious open space!
Belmont has approximately 350 acres of open space, composed of walking and biking trails and scenic views which previous city councils had wisely voted to set aside land for our future residents to use.
One former San Mateo County Board of Supervisor had even suggested for county to use its open space for more housing. That idea met strong opposition and finally died.
So a warning, fine to use our city's public land that is zoned for housing for housing, within reason. But leave our public open space alone for there will be strong opposition for that idea.
I think you have to weigh the supposed harm from an "out of scale" development with the (very large) benefit from giving 66 families an affordable place to live and protection from higher rents.
You can do the math on that if you want - let's say each family saves $1000 per month on rent vs. if they had to pay market rate, plus another $200 in gas because they don't have to commute from Pleasanton to get to work. That's about $1 million per year in benefits.
So, $1 million per year, to say nothing of the environmental benefit from putting homes near transit, the psychological benefit of preventing displacement, the benefit to construction workers from new buildings that pay prevailing wage, the benefit to younger Belmont residents like me, who are trying to buy a home and can't afford Belmont's $1.8 million detached single family homes.
Given this very large benefit to the community from new development - at $1 million per year - the harm caused by this "out of scale" development would be have to be pretty severe to overcome this. I find it difficult to quantify that in any way that compares.
Wow! Offering affordable housing for teachers! The only city in the country? How about tax payers forgoing one Starbucks frappawhatever a week and approving a tax increase to pay the people you entrust your child's life to a living wage. I know that three letter word goes against every brainwashing tactic the Republican's have shoved down your throats for the last 45 years but really? Here's your subsidized housing on the taxpayer?
Belmont just voted yes on Measure K, a parcel tax that will provide funding for Belmont & Redwood Shores schools
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.