Happy New Year! 

As we welcome 2023, we want to say THANK YOU. 

Because of your generosity and dedication to affordable housing, HLC was able to surpass our end-of-year fundraising goal with over $6,000 raised! 

We invite you to continue to stay involved and support housing year-round! 

Meet with one of your staff and learn more:

Policy and Advocacy:

Ken Chan, Senior Organizer: kchan@hlcsmc.org

Kiana Simmons, Organizer: ksimmons@hlcsmc.org

Housing Element: 

Jeremy Levine, Policy Manager: jlevine@hlcsmc.org

Fundraising and Events:

Fernanda De Velasco, Communications Manager: fdevelasco@hlcsmc.org 

Housing Updates & Events

✧YES!  I support the plan for a new Serramonte del Rey Neighborhood✧

The Jefferson Union High School District (JUHSD) has a vision to revitalize the current district office, turning the property into a thriving neighborhood with trails, shopping, and parks. JUHSD is the lowest-funded high school district in San Mateo County and needs help attracting and retaining educational staff. The master plan includes 122 units of faculty and staff housing (recently completed), 123 units of below-market-rate affordable homes, and 990 apartment homes. This neighborhood project is an innovative way to meet the needs of students and staff while raising consistent revenue for the school district. 

The apartments will provide much-needed rental homes and generate money for the school district’s general fund. The school district will use it to fund student support programs and competitive salaries to retain teachers and staff. In addition, JUHSD envisions this new community to be walkable, bikeable, family-friendly, and safe with double the open park space currently available to the neighborhood, a community garden, fitness trails, shopping, and Head Start– a free preschool with two classrooms, outdoor play areas, and parking.

Currently, the school district has built 122 faculty and staff housing units. The Daly City council vote is needed to construct the remaining homes. We expect the item will be up for discussion fall of 2023. 

With hundreds of homes on the line, it is imperative that these new homes get built, which is why we need you to add your name and say:

 YES! I support the plan for a new Serramonte del Rey Neighborhood!

Our whole community does better when everyone has good, safe housing options. And it is up to all of us to fight for it. Help us ensure these 1,000 + homes get built! Click here for more info.

✧Notice of funding availability for Below Market Rate housing funds - Menlo Park✧

The City of Menlo Park announced the availability of funds for affordable housing projects in Menlo Park and seeks responsive proposals. Approximately $1.5-2 million in Below Market Rate (BMR) housing funds are available under this Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) to support the preservation or production of permanently affordable housing. The funding is intended to fill the financing gap between the projected total development costs and other available funding sources.

Housing Elements Review

With housing elements due by January 31, cities across San Mateo are sprinting to the finish line–or so they hope. The state Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) has yet to certify any housing elements in San Mateo County. However, we suspect Redwood City is on track! RWC submitted a second draft of their housing element for review by HCD on October 5 but then withdrew their submission, made a handful of technical edits, and resubmit it early next week. Having supported  RWC’s housing element, for the most part,  Housing Leadership Council hopes HCD recognizes the city’s good work and certifies their housing element!

Other cities are in various stages of the housing element review process. In just the past week, Atherton, Colma, South San Francisco, San Mateo, San Bruno, Hillsborough, Menlo Park, and Brisbane have all reviewed drafts of their housing element in preparation for final adoption at the end of the month. 

Furthermore, since the start of the year, San Carlos, Brisbane, and Hillsborough all received comment letters from the department of Housing and Community Development. Brisbane and Hillsborough’s letters are some of the strongest HCD has yet written, with clear instructions for substantial changes to those cities’ housing elements. HCD instructed Brisbane to provide a coherent plan for development on the Brisbane Baylands site. The agency told Hillsborough “the element should identify further program actions … that will be taken to promote equitable quality of life throughout the community …, including zoning for multifamily rental housing.” 

Jurisdictions are taking a range of different approaches to complete their housing elements. At the county level, in December supervisors gave staff broad discretion to revise the housing element as needed and submit to HCD without further input from the board. That means the current board of Supervisors, with two new members, will not review the housing element draft at all before the county submits it to HCD for review. This is the most discretion any jurisdiction staff has yet sought from elected officials in order to complete a housing element. 

Most cities plan to hold 1-3 public hearings between now and January 31, the housing element deadline, to discuss and make further changes before adoption. Furthermore, these cities plan to adopt their housing elements with or without HCD certification, essentially declaring themselves in compliance with state law in defiance of the state itself. Those cities that pursue self-certification plan to continue working with HCD to receive housing element certification by the state at a later date, but hope to insulate themselves from potential loss of local authority in the interim. 

Subscribe to HLC’s Events Calendar to stay up to date on upcoming housing element meetings!

This past Tuesday, Redwood City held an informational meeting to discuss updates to the city’s Affordable Housing Ordinance (AHO). Redwood City’s AHO initiated a boom of affordable housing development in the city when first passed, but issues with the ordinance have caused the city’s entire pipeline of affordable housing projects to stall. Unless the AHO is reformed, a number of projects initially proposed pursuant to the AHO will fail. Affordable housing development in Redwood City would collapse as a result. 

Fortunately, Redwood City has clear direction on how to solve the unresolved: Since July, the affordable housing development community has requested a number of changes to the Affordable Housing Ordinance. Nonprofit housing developer MidPen sent the city a letter with recommendations in July; another nonprofit, Eden Housing, followed up with another letter elaborating on MidPen’s comments in December. These letters describe six major areas of the AHO requiring updates in order to make affordable housing feasible again in Redwood City. 

The city is currently considering revisions to two of the six areas in which the affordable housing development community has requested changes. Though a significant step in the right direction, these revisions do not adequately respond to the needs. Redwood City needs to hear from pro-housing voices that we want the city to fix its housing pipeline and make affordable housing development possible again. Email comments in support of a more thorough AHO update to rhorst@redwoodcity.org

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