Dear Members of the City Council and Staff.
After reviewing the alternative proposals layed out in the Staff report, I support the last option: land donation direct to Eden Housing. Jurisdictions all across the Bay Area are building in flexibility to their housing policies. Land donation as alternative means of compliance is a promising solution. This structure offers distinct benefits as it addresses many of the timing issues that these projects face.
Projects like what Eden is proposing demonstrate the power local jurisdictions have to leverage their limited resources. By setting this up as a land donation and loan, this project would be able to apply for additional public funding. The magic of this way of deploying City resources is that instead of seeing 2 units built, the investment would facilitate more than 10x that. I also want to mention the caliber of the Affordable housing sponsor, Menlo Parks Housing Element obligations, and the quality of the site being contemplated, all as rich areas of discussion that influence my recommendation.
Thank you for considering Land Donation as the path forward.
Please feel free to reach out with any questions.
Thank you,
Nevada
