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On Wednesday, Jan. 29, the city of Menlo Park released a request for qualifications to seek potential developers to build affordable housing across three parking lots in the city’s downtown. The RFQ is the first step in the process that the city will use to select a developer.
The council opted to release the RFQ following a heated Jan. 14 meeting where over 250 people attended to voice their opinions on the prospect of converting the parking plazas to housing. While many advocates of affordable housing rallied in support of the project, a large contingent of business owners and residents expressed concerns about the potential loss of parking and the disruption that may be caused during the construction of the buildings.
Following four hours of public comment and two hours of discussion on the topic, the council decided to compromise by releasing the RFQ, but waiting to declare the parking lots as “exempt surplus land.” Declaring the lots exempt surplus land is a necessary legal step that must be taken before the properties can be handed over to a developer.
The council hoped that by not taking the legal step of declaring the lots as exempt surplus land, those who expressed concerns about the project would feel that their concerns were taken seriously. However by releasing the RFQ, the city would still still advance the project on the timeline promised to the California department of housing and community development in its housing element plans.
The RFQ outlines the city’s objectives for the downtown parking lot development and key requirements for potential developers.
At a minimum, the city requires that developers create at least 345 units of housing that are affordable at the very low-income level across the three plazas, provide replacement public parking spaces for those lost due to redevelopment and comply with all applicable development standards. Additionally, the city is encouraging but not requiring developers to consider including the following elements in their proposals for the lots:
- Strategies to maximize the number of affordable units through utilization of the site’s zoning, affordable housing overlays, state density bonus laws and other applicable state legislation
- More units that are affordable at the extremely low income level
- A diverse mix of unit types with an emphasis on multi-bedroom units that can house families
- Housing types that prioritize special needs groups, including units set aside for people with special needs or disabilities
- Innovative parking management strategies that would keep replacement parking spaces available for general downtown public parking and not utilized by residents of the new development
- Sustainable building design
- Publicly accessible open space such as pocket parks
- Publicly accessible ground floor uses such as commercial space that does not detract from the primary affordable housing goals
- A timeline to complete the project by 2027, as promised in the city’s housing element plans
- Plans to phase construction to minimize impact to businesses and downtown patrons
The city also asks developers to provide a community engagement plan and provide past examples of successful community engagement on similar projects.
The RFQ reveals that the city will transfer the parking lots to the selected developer through a 55-year-long ground lease for a base rent of $1 per year, with additional rent as needed from insurance and operational costs.
In the RFQ, city staff wrote that development of the downtown parking plazas presents an opportunity to advance downtown enhancement and vitality goals while addressing the city’s housing needs.
“The city envisions development on the parking plazas serving as a catalyst for downtown enhancement,” the RFQ reads.
Applications from developers are due by Monday, March 31, by 5:30 p.m., and the council is anticipated to review the applications at a meeting in late spring or early summer, and to make recommendations on next steps at that time.
The complete RFQ is available at menlopark.gov/downtowndevelopment.
Joan Lane, trailblazing volunteer and Stanford’s go-to for ‘sticky problems,' dies at 97March 25, 2026 3:23 pm
“In the RFQ, city staff wrote that development of the downtown parking plazas presents an opportunity to advance downtown enhancement and vitality goals while addressing the city’s housing needs.
“The city envisions development on the parking plazas serving as a catalyst for downtown enhancement,” the RFQ reads.”
So far, the City has (1) not explained why it believes the housing will “act as a catalyst for future downtown enhancement, (2) not explained how downtown could possibly survive at least 3 years of construction, and (3) not undertaken a City planning effort to invest in improving downtown NOW.
The words in the RFQ are simply meaningless, window-dressing.
Finally, there is NO CHANCE this project will be completed in 2027. So, why pretend? To justify the City’s rushing decisions?