---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Robert Menifee >
Date: Wed, Dec 18, 2024 at 4:15 PM
Subject: Proposed Affordable Housing Project
To: >
Our names are Robert Menifee and Julianne Curtis, residents on Oak Grove Avenue, and this is to object to the proposed housing development on the downtown parking lots. The reasons for objection are myriad and have been well stated by the many residents and merchants who have objected, but we wish to emphasize the following:
Misapplication of the Surplus Land Act: The Surplus Land Act is not applicable to this proposed project as the parking lots in question are being continuously used for the purpose for which they were intended: parking to serve the downtown area.
The Act authorizes the City to sell "land owned in fee simple by any local agency for which the local agencys governing body takes final action in a regular public meeting declaring that the land is surplus and is not necessary for the agencys use." Govt Code Sec. 54221(b)(1). The HCD Guidelines for implementation of the Act repeat this language and add that the declaration must be supported by written findings by the governing board as to why it is surplus.
The words in the statute have a clear meaning as found in the dictionary. Surplus is "the amount which remains when use or need is satisfied" and when used as an adjective "more than the amount that is needed" (Merriam-Webster).
The parking lots are being used for their intended purpose and the Council cannot make the necessary finding that the property is surplus, and to do so would be a legally unsupportable violation of the Surplus Land Act.
Parking: The existing parking lots are heavily used and provide convenient access to the commercial uses on Santa Cruz and Oak Grove Avenues. Eliminate the parking lots and you are left with a parking crisis. Whatever number of living units would be built, each would have at least one car and parking also would have to be available for visitors. The math is fairly straightforward: take the 555 spaces which would be eliminated (plus the on street parking spaces lost to new rules regarding parking near crosswalks), add the number of new spaces required for the new development and you have the parking deficit. The creation of such a deficit, which could only be made up by building large structures which would have negative impacts on both commercial and residential uses, would be a disservice to the businesses which have served the community for years and to residents of the area.
Traffic: Valparaiso, Oak Grove Avenue, and Menlo/Ravenswood currently are heavily congested, with frequent backups from El Camino to University. Menlo College, Sacred Heart, St Raymonds, and Hillview all generate significant traffic and all of these schools will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Adding up to 450 more living units in this compact area will lead to even more congestion which would be detrimental to both the residents and the commercial interests in the downtown area. A full study of these impacts should be completed before there is any consideration of future development.
Ambience: Downtown is an appealing and accessible place to shop, dine, do business, meet friends, and to simply stroll. By design, it has the feeling of a town, not a city, An attempt to eliminate the existing parking lots and to shoehorn in up to 450 living units in what necessarily would be 8 to 10 story buildings would forever change the character of Menlo Park, which unfortunately would not be fully recognized until it was done. The Council should not pursue the false choice of either this development proposal or failing to meet a state mandate regarding housing. The mandate can be met through proper planning regarding future development and an honest effort to identify sites, including portions of Civic Center, for affordable housing.
