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Meta representatives have declined to provide new information to Menlo Park’s Planning Commission about the future of Willow Village, the office and housing development in Belle Haven that Meta announced it was halting earlier this month.
Even with its suspension, the project remains in compliance with the terms of the development agreement between Meta and Menlo Park. On Monday, commissioners unanimously adopted a resolution that Meta had demonstrated “good-faith compliance” with the agreement’s provisions. With the terms of the agreement conditional on construction of the project, most items are not applicable at this time, the staff report stated. The agreement remains in effect until 2032.
If the project had been completed as planned, it would have brought a projected $188 million in community amenities, including a grocery store, pharmacy and bank. It was also projected to bring about $6 million in new tax revenue for the city. In a public comment on Monday evening, Belle Haven community member Pam Jones said she wanted to hear about Meta’s intention for the Willow Village property, which spans 59 acres in Belle Haven.
“We still need housing, particularly senior housing and lower income housing. And as we all know, it is a well-documented food desert,” Jones said of Belle Haven. “I’m looking forward to the conversations about how Meta will support the planned housing, the grocery store and neighborhood serving retail.”
Commissioners repeatedly asked Meta representatives for more information about the future of Willow Village.
“I think a lot of people in the community are wondering what’s going to happen with that land,” said commissioner Katie Behroozi. “What can you let us know? What can you share with us?”
Eric Morley, of Signature Development Group, the developer for the project, responded to commissioners’ inquiries.
“We don’t have a timetable to share with the commission,” Morley said. “We also don’t disclose occupancy due to safety, security and liability for both our buildings and employees. So, (we are) not in a position to share that at this time. We’ll certainly keep the city up to date.”
Commissioners briefly highlighted concern about what the project’s cancellation would mean for Menlo Park’s Housing Element, a state-mandated plan that articulates how Menlo Park will meet its share of regional housing needs by 2031. Commissioner Misha Silin said that Willow Village’s housing units were a major component of the city’s housing element pipeline.
He added that, at the commission’s March discussion of the 2025 progress report, “We said everything has to go perfectly in order for us to meet our goals. Now clearly that’s not on track.”
“I encourage us as a community to come together and figure out what we can do as a city,” Silin said. “And perhaps not rely so heavily on third parties that are acting in their own best interest.”
The Housing Element discussion was largely outside of the scope of the commission’s discussion for Monday’s meeting. It was focused on the annual review of Willow Village and three earlier Meta projects that required a development agreement.
As part of the Willow Village development agreement, Meta would have had to complete 30 requirements that were tied to phases of the project and subject to the commission’s annual review.
Twenty-four of the 30 terms of the Willow Village development agreement were listed as conditional or requiring no action, according to the staff report. Two requirements were listed as in progress or ongoing, and four were listed as completed.
In a letter to Menlo Park City Manager Justin Murphy, Meta’s Global Head of Real Estate Brian Zubradt wrote that the pause does not reflect the quality of the project or lessen the value of collaborative efforts. He wrote that Peninsula Innovation Partners, a Meta-controlled LLC, remains in full compliance with the existing Willow Village development agreement, and the company intends to continue certain community programs currently underway through the time period outlined in the agreement.
“Meta’s multi-million dollar investments in Menlo Park over recent years have
supported vital initiatives such as the Belle Haven Community Campus, local job training,
healthy food access for families, and teacher housing subsidies,” Zubradt wrote. “Our dedication to Menlo Park and the community partnerships remains steadfast.”
According to Zubradt’s letter, the community programs that Meta will continue are the local workforce training, career development workshops, job fairs, volunteer engagement, community organization fairs and career experience programs.
The three other projects that commissioners reviewed were the East Campus project that was approved by City Council in 2012; a West Campus project approved by council in 2013; and a campus expansion project approved in 2016. Most of the terms for these three projects were marked as completed for this year’s annual review.
