Support affordable homes and tenant protections in the Menlo Park housing element!
The following open letter and associated signatures will be used to support more affordable housing and tenant protections in Menlo Park's new draft housing element:
I am writing today to support the city’s efforts to create a legally compliant housing element that plans for the housing needs of all residents. While Menlo Park has made great strides to promote housing in the last ten years, our city still has significantly fewer affordable homes than necessary 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, 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 Menlo Park updates its housing element, 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 city to
- Remove unrealistic sites from the inventory, such as the Sandhill venture capital sites, and increase densities on other locations that are actually realistic for affordable homes (like the Flood School Site).
- Firmly commit to protect tenants by extending just cause for eviction protections to all tenants regardless of tenure and increasing relocation payments.
- Implement strong policies and programs that commit to removing constraints on a clear timeline, with specific goals for affordable housing production and preservation.
Taking these steps will not only ensure that our city’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 or visit https://www.menlotogether.org/sign-up-for-mailing-list/.
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.
