Support affordable homes and tenant protections in the San Mateo County housing element!

The following open letter and associated signatures will be used to support more affordable housing and tenant protections in the county's new draft housing element: 

I am writing today to support the county’s efforts to create a legally compliant housing element that plans for the housing needs of all residents. While San Mateo County has made great strides to promote housing in the last ten years, our county still does not have enough affordable homes to meet the local need. This causes a great hardship on local businesses, schools, government agencies, and other institutions that desperately need workers. Extremely low-income households, people with disabilities, farmworkers, and many other groups are largely priced out of our area. Many individuals that grew up here can not afford to stay near their family and community.

As every jurisdiction in the Bay Area updates their housing elements, we have an opportunity to implement ambitious new policies that will help meet the housing needs of our entire communities. Housing elements are not just an administrative process; every affordable housing development in the county has its roots in previous housing elements. Yet, despite efforts across our county, the housing crisis has continued to worsen, harming San Mateo County’s highest-need residents. 

In order to address the ongoing housing criss, I would like the county to  

1. Rezone areas outside of North Fair Oaks to higher densities to promote fair housing throughout the county. 
2. Strengthen tenant protections to support residents throughout unincorporated county, including improvements to the local just cause for eviction ordinance to extend just cause protections to all tenants regardless of tenure and increase relocation payouts for no-fault evictions.
3. Implement strong programs that proactively address the needs of those with disabilities, farmworkers, large families, and extremely low incomes, including increasing funding to support new affordable homes. 

Taking these steps will not only ensure that the county’s housing element complies with state law, but also that all members of our community have access to quality affordable homes. 

Thank you for your consideration,

Questions? Contact us at jlevine@hlcsmc.org

Note: If you provide your email, we will send you updates about opportunities to stand up for affordable housing in your city. Most of the time, we send one email per week. If you provide a cell phone number, you will opt-in to our infrequent text messages.