Dear City Council,
I have lived close to downtown MP since 2006, and have been a business owner in downtown since 2008.
I have 3 teens, and they hang out and eat in downtown multiple times a week. My wife and I take walks to downtown almost daily, and we are regular customers of many businesses there. We love our downtown. Its unfortunate that so many storefronts are empty, but I dont think its for lack of people living closeby, but rather its because of online retail.
I oppose the downtown housing proposal. I dont see how the infrastructure can support the additional people. The streets are small. The city parking lots are completely full on weekdays from 11am-3pm. Traffic is very congested along Valparaiso, Oak Grove, and Menlo Ave, sometimes backed up from El Camino to University, from 3pm-6pm. Our Menlo Park streets were not designed to handle large volumes of cards.
I understand the City is under deadline pressure from the state to build affordable housing units. I hope the City can find a better location for new housing, rather than in the middle of our small downtown.
Thank you,
Justin Young
