Dear Council Members:
Thank you for removing our parks and their infrastructure from consideration as sites for new housing in the current housing element cycle. More robust long term protection will still be needed at the appropriate time, though, to ensure they remain off the table in the future.
There are also other aspects of the housing element planning process that deserve scrutiny. I've posted a more detailed written comment on agenda item H2 for tomorrow's Council meeting, but I'd like to emphasize several key points in this email.
The sheer magnitude of the additional housing units mandated by the State will have a profound effect on the character of Menlo Park and we have the opportunity to ensure that the result will be a city we want to live in. Rather than simply reacting to the State mandates for additional housing and greater equity, the planning process should be guided by a vision of what we want the future Menlo Park to be. Some goals worth considering might include:
* A more livable city for all Menlo Park residents.
* Ensuring that the people who work in Menlo Park can afford to live here.
* Lower emissions and greater climate resilience.
The planning process for the Housing Element Update needs to be more holistic than it currently is. Cities are systems, not a collection of disjointed elements, and need to viewed as such. The large number of additional residents will require substantially greater capacity for services and infrastructure that needs to be taken into account upfront. And an economic analysis of the effect of the large increase in housing units on market prices would provide a clearer picture of affordability than current assumptions.
Putting new housing close to jobs and prioritizing mixed use development can help to create more self sufficient and sustainable neighborhoods in line with the "15 minute city" concept that is gaining momentum in America and Europe.
I urge the Council to adopt a clearly articulated set of goals for the future Menlo Park and to defer any decision on preferred land use strategies until the City Staff and involved Commissions have had an opportunity to a do a more comprehensive analysis of the various factors I’ve briefly outlined above, and any others that are relevant, and been able to define options that take them into account.
Sincerely,
Bob Dickinson
