Belmont housing element

Mayor Julia Mates illustrated the importance of planning for more housing. “We have some really wonderful community members who are not able to stay here, and so that’s what we are hoping this aspirational document will address,” she said.

Thousands of Peninsula residents have left due to high housing costs. The California Department of Finance released population estimates last month showing that the population loss from net domestic migration (persons moving here from another state minus those moving out) from July 1, 2021, to July 1, 2022, was nearly 407,000 people, the major reason for the state seeing its third consecutive year of population loss (nearly 211,000). The state population estimate is 39,028,571.

San Mateo County had the Bay Area’s third highest percentage of population loss, 1.08%, after Marin and Napa counties. The numeric loss was 8,081 people. Only seven counties in the state saw a higher loss.

Councilmember Robin Pang-Maganaris observed how the housing shortage affects all of us. “I watched some of our finest teachers leave the area because they could not afford to live here,” she said.

Councilmember Gina Latimerlo noted in the final sentence of the article that the housing element “will work for current and future Belmont residents.” That’s the definition of sustainability. Kudos to Belmont for planning for its future residents.

Irvin Dawid

Burlingame