Preserve Affordable Housing in EPA

Opportunity to Purchase Act Second Reading-

December 5

During their November 7 meeting, the City of East Palo Alto's City Council voted 3 - 2 in favor of the East Palo Alto Opportunity to Purchase Act (EPA OPA) Ordinance.

The EPA OPA bestows the Right of First Offer to tenants, qualified non-profit housing providers, and the City when qualifying homes are listed for sale. It is groundbreaking because the EPA OPA encompasses both single-family homes and multifamily properties. Moreover, it grants the Right of First Refusal to qualified non-profits and the City in instances involving qualifying multifamily property transactions. Properties that qualify include homes that utilize public funding or financing. Adoption of this ordinance will help preserve existing affordable homes. 

We congratulate the incredible work of YUCA, the City of EPA’s housing department staff, and the countless community members who were active in passing the EPA OPA.

Mark your calendars for December 5 at 6:30 pm—that's when the Second Reading for the EPA OPA takes place. Groundbreaking housing policies demand our collective effort and support. Join us in standing with YUCA and the renters of EPA at this vital second reading for the EPA OPA. Your support makes a significant difference!

Join Us At Our Next SSF Community Meeting

Seeing new faces at our South San Francisco community meeting on November 15 was such a pleasure! Since our first meeting in July, South City residents have continued to come together on a bimonthly basis to discuss strategies to advance housing justice in their communities. We invite you to join the conversation at our next meeting on Wednesday, November 29th, at 6:30 pm via Zoom.

If you would like to attend, sign up to our SSF email list, and we will forward you the meeting information:

San Mateo Baywood Historic District

A New Exclusionary Strategy

A recent SF Chronicle article reveals how residents in the Baywood neighborhood of San Mateo are weaponizing historic preservation rules to fight new housing.

The Baywood neighborhood has submitted an application to become a historic district, which would exempt the area from several state housing laws. The backers of the Baywood historic district have arbitrarily declared 350 homes to be historic in their first application, with plans to run the same playbook in other San Mateo neighborhoods regardless of what the homeowners want.

Historic districts can impose a number of restrictions on the rights of property owners to renovate their homes or build new housing opportunities. State laws like SB 9, which empowers single-family homeowners to add up to 3 additional units on their property without onerous public approval processes, do not apply to historic districts. Furthermore, the city would be enabled to create a local unelected historic commission that could impose arbitrary new rules, ranging from restrictions on the ability to build an accessory dwelling unit for a family member to bans on replacing old single-pane windows with more energy-efficient double-paned ones.  

Blocking new housing in Baywood with a historic designation also risks perpetuating segregation. Baywood was developed in the 1920s and 30s with housing covenants that explicitly banned people of color from buying homes in the neighborhood. Since then, the neighborhood has become one of the most expensive in the city of San Mateo, characterized by large lots and exclusionary zoning. Today, Baywood is the City of San Mateo’s only segregated area of white wealth, as defined by the state. 

Neighbors who care about preserving property rights and promoting neighborhood diversity have created a petition to fight the historic district and a website with resources. We need your support to tell the city council and the state Historic Resources Commission that they should say no to the preservation of the history of segregation. 

Legalize Affordable Homes!

Housing Elements Review

This past May, Brisbane became the second city to receive housing element certification in San Mateo County—an impressive achievement for such a small city. Brisbane now has a new claim to fame, or infamy in this case: The first city in San Mateo County to miss a major housing element program deadline and risk falling out of compliance!

In order to earn certification, Brisbane’s housing element describes a clear timeline for the entitlement and development of the Brisbane Baylands, a proposed development likely to bring more than 2,000 homes to the area. As part of that timeline, Brisbane committed to release a draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) by October of this year in its housing element (p. 3-2). 

As of today, Brisbane has yet to release a draft EIR, putting the city’s housing element at risk of becoming decertified by the state's Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD.) The Baylands project, first proposed in 2002, has undergone extensive delays by the city. The city only achieved housing element certification because they committed to finally entitle the Baylands and allow it to move forward on a predictable timeline. 

HLC’s goal is to help cities achieve housing element compliance with realistic plans that they then implement in a timely fashion. As such, we are committed to working with Brisbane to get the Baylands back on track and fulfill their legal responsibilities before the HCD imposes penalties.

Cities throughout San Mateo County have committed to dozens of concrete deliverables and deadlines in their housing elements; we recognize that circumstances will sometimes require delays or changes to timelines. For the most significant deadlines, however, it is crucial that cities are transparent about any delays, with clear communication regarding the reason for delays and plans to get back on track. Brisbane needs to take prompt action to move the Baylands proposal forward, or else the city risks all of the consequences of housing element noncompliance, including loss of state funding, loss of control over land use, third-party lawsuits, and potentially court-ordered rezoning.

Opportunities