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As Menlo Park prepares to take the next step in selecting a developer for its downtown housing project, opponents say they’ve already collected 66% of the signatures needed for a ballot measure that could block it. Save Downtown Menlo launched the campaign on June 4 and plans to expand its outreach in the coming weeks.
Despite a lawsuit and a potential ballot measure from the group Save Downtown Menlo, the Menlo Park City Council is continuing with its plan to build housing on some downtown parking lots. On June 3, the council voted to issue a request for proposals to several developers who had responded to an earlier request for qualifications. The proposals will require developers to provide more detailed plans for building affordable housing and replacement parking on three downtown lots.
The City Council asked six of the seven groups that submitted a request for qualifications to come back with a more detailed plan. The Pacific Companies and West Development Partners’ joint proposal was the only one excluded from the next phase.
The City Council specifically included Eden Housing even though it was the only developer to say it could not finance construction of replacement parking. Mayor Drew Combs advocated for including Eden so as to not punish a developer that could be providing an honest assessment.
“The mayor expressed a reasonable fear that this developer was the only one being honest, and if they proceed with the other developers, they may later also say that they can’t pay for the replacement parking,” Alex Beltramo, a Save Downtown Menlo organizer, said after the meeting.
The City Council told staff to request developers provide further details on how they plan to fund replacement parking. City staff will present a request for proposals to the City Council for approval later this summer.
A backup plan
With headwinds facing the downtown parking lot project, some are encouraging the City Council to pursue a backup in case the project does not pencil out.
Save Downtown Menlo has suggested the civic center as an alternative space for housing. However, when Menlo Park previously considered using green space for housing, residents attempted to force that to a vote as well. Save Downtown Menlo suggests using the civic center parking lot or buildings so as not to reduce green space.
The City Council held a study session on March 4 to consider whether to explore other sites as an alternative to the downtown parking lots. The City Council decided to wait until after it got RFQ responses to revisit looking at other sites. The city council has yet to address alternatives.
“I urge you to take a pragmatic approach: In addition to pursuing your current plan of leveraging the downtown lots, please advance a parallel ‘Plan B’ to explore housing at the Civic Center… The lack of alternative options puts the city at greater risk of another significant builder’s remedy issue, similar to what has transpired at the former Sunset Property,” Menlo Park resident and former planning commissioner Ben Eiref said in an email to the City Council.
In the event that the city’s housing element is deemed non-compliant, which could happen if the city does not make progress toward meeting its affordable housing goals, the builder’s remedy allows developers to bypass city rules as long as the development in 20% low-income housing or 100% moderate-income housing.
Menlo Park already explored the civic center as a potential option for housing as part of its housing element.
“The city’s analysis was not haphazard (and) was not flawed,” Councilmember Jeff Schmidt said about reviewing the civic center as an option for housing during the March study session. “We didn’t leave out some big hidden Narnia-like land that we should have considered.”
Ballot initiative
As of June 24, Save Downtown Menlo had collected 1,400 signatures for its ballot measure on the Menlo Park downtown parking lots, according to Beltramo, one of the proponents of the initiative.
The ballot measure would require a vote by residents before the City Council could change the use of the downtown parking lots. Save Downtown Menlo hopes to block the Menlo Park City Council’s controversial plan to build affordable housing on some downtown parking lots.
While Save Downtown Menlo is required to collect 2,104 valid signatures, Save Downtown Menlo hopes to “far exceed” the requirements. Some signatures are often disqualified after the San Mateo County Elections Office receives the signatures from the city of Menlo Park.
Only registered voters in incorporated Menlo Park can sign the ballot initiative. The collector of the signature must also say under penalty of perjury that all requirements have been met.
Once signatures are submitted, the county must review a random sample of 500 signatures or 3% of the total, whichever is greater. It then uses the percentage of valid signatures in the sample to estimate the total number of valid signatures submitted. If the estimated number is at least 110% of the threshold, the petition qualifies. If it is less than 95% of the required number, the petition fails. If the estimate falls between 95% and 110%, the county must verify every signature.
Save Downtown Menlo started collecting signatures on June 4 at Draeger’s Market in Menlo Park. Save Downtown Menlo plans to start collecting signatures at Sharon Heights Shopping Center in west Menlo Park. People can also sign the petition in several downtown businesses.
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This is typical of this city council, pushing ahead with a plan that is despised by the taxpayers that pay them. Of course, out of town advocacy groups are thrilled.
Completely agree. And on ND, the usual suspects drone on about making Menlo Park “inclusive.” If they get their way, it will certainly include a lot more traffic.
The City has NOT studied using land at the Civic Center for affordable housing. Instead, during the development of the current 2023-2031 Menlo Park Housing Element the City DISMISSED using this public land WITHOUT any rigorous evaluation. That means it can be revisited whenever the current Council wants. Interestingly, the Housing Element does include the eight Downtown parking lots but NO rigorous evaluation of the major trade-offs was performed at the time, and that was short-sighted and simply “kicked the can” down the street.
Menlo Park has a golf course at Sandhill and hwy 280, which is a lot of green space to build housing on and it would balance density through out the city.
Menlo Park does not “have” that… it’s a privately owned country club.
God forbid we revitalize the downtown! Half of the storefront’s are empty. Putting housing in the parking lots, with staggered construction, would bring in more customers. I recall drama for years over a similar development in San Carlos. It was ultimately built with a parking structure and the downtown is booming!
There is a ton of space at Flood Park….
Flood Park is owned by the county, not the city.
A ridiculous amount of surface area in downtown is reserved for cars. Downtown has been moribund for years, but the anti-housing crowd’s solution? Change nothing. Of course, they want housing, JuSt NoT hErE! Their idea? Put housing instead on city green space right next to the SRI housing development! Not sure folks who live near Ravenswood between Middlefield and Alma will love that.