Dear KarenOn my way to the City Council meeting Monday evening my heart monitor went off; a kind passerby took me to the hospital
and I spent several days without my computer or phone My. housing idea is original, but follows along the council's line of
thinking, and PAHC's; it gives the developer everything he wants and costs him nothing; it aids the missing middle without taking
away anything from the low low income, and it pays for itself, providing an income stream for PAHC.
It started as a "for instance". I was admonishing Greg Scharff that wealthy hotel guests are not unlimited and every patron
President could attract would be at the expense of the existing hostelries of Palo Alto, particularly tactless at the same time as
Proposition E, that it was biting the hand that feeds you therefore it wouldn't be a good idea to add a another five star hotel,
even if the President Residents miraculously disappeared,for instance if somebody built a brand new hotel for them, which suddenly
struck me as not all that far-fetched. How often do you get a cohort of a couple of dozen tenants ready and willing to pay $2,300
a month for a 275 square foot suite?
You could cut a deal with the San Antonio/Leghorn developers for a zoning change, and yes. it would be spot zoning,but isn't that
what pc was? Anomalous use sweetened by a desirable public purpose? PC got its bad name only because developers were leading the
council members down the garden path. The zoning change, which, unvarnished, will be ▒▒▒▒ to pay,44 more million dollar condos,
with a 8 measly low income sweeteners--, and in exchange for their adding a fourth floor,-the top floor could be stepped back a
bit to vary the facade-- that entire ground floor would be a single multi-unit rental condominium, just like the rest of the
building, allowing the investors to take their money and run, consisting of a couple of dozen 300 square foot bedroom/bathroom
units, all giving out on the back facing a garden with a hot tub. and a lap pool and playground. to be shared with the
neighborhood. The rentals would befor $1500/month, some 200 square foot units renting for $1000/month, exclusive of garage, extra
storage space, that fitness center and the two University Avenue restaurants
bus or van garage and some goodies for Greenmeadow, a childcare center and maybe a little ice rink or computer center , bakery or
greengrocer facing the street, and thensold the multi-unit condominium en bloc to the PAHC for a pro rata share of he cost of
construction. (The land being already 100% paid for by the market-rate housing. Isn't that what PAHC wanted with Maybell? No
affordable housing or in lieu fees charged to the developer.. That's a pretty good deal all around.
Stephanie Munoz
