Cloudy with occasional rain showers. Thunder possible. High 57F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%..
A few showers this evening with mostly cloudy conditions overnight. Low 47F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 30%.
Updated: February 11, 2026 @ 3:10 am
Editor,
On May 28, the Belmont City Council unanimously moved forward on the Firehouse Square proposal, which will include new homes with 80% of those homes being affordable. This is a continuation of the city of Belmont’s amazing leadership supporting a number of affordable homes in a walkable, transit-oriented location.
Belmont desperately needs new housing, especially affordable homes. At the Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo, we appreciate the leadership and thoughtfulness of the Belmont City Council on this critical issue. Unfortunately, one councilmember called for a change in the plan. While we understand that his motivation is to provide more homes overall, this plan has been agreed to by the council and community, studied in an environmental impact report, and part of the general plan that guides all development in the city. The change he is proposing would require years of work and study. With the current jobs to housing ratio being 12-1, we need to move forward now on the plan that has broad agreement.
With the Firehouse Square proposal nearing final approval, we would like to thank Belmont on its support of the development. We can’t wait to see such transit-oriented and equitable homes at groundbreaking by the end of the year.
Alex Melendrez
San Mateo
The letter writer is an organizer for the Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo County.
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(3) comments
I'm disappointed the council did not demand prevailing wages on this job. They are becoming pushovers to developers. They are not considering infrastructure, school impact, traffic, parking, and more.
Note that this author who would foist traffic and congestion problems on Belmont is from San Mateo. He overlooks the well documented statistic that Belmont's jobs housing ratio is below 1 - meaning we have more housing than jobs for residents - the exact opposite of our neighboring communities. Stop looking to Belmont to house the over-employment situation of other cities.
KDM - need you to come out then and support housing in other cities that are impacting you. It is easy to be against something. Being for something can be more difficult.
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