https://www.almanacnews.com/blogs/creating-a-more-vibrant-menlo-park/2025/07/20/sign-the-petition-for-the-downtown-parking-plaza-initiative-today/
Menlo Park City Council should view the current petition for the Downtown
Parking Plaza Initiative NOT as a challenge to either its civic
responsibilities or legal authority but rather as an extraordinary
opportunity for the Council to BOTH (a) adopt a much more promising course
for meeting the Citys current affordable housing obligations using other
public land for housing sites and (b) demonstrate it would not support
affordable housing developments that would sacrifice the future *economic
health, physical characteristics, and general desirability of Downtown*.
.
A large and growing percentage of our community feels their interests have
been ignored and now deeply distrusts the capabilities and motivations of
both the Council AND the city planning staff. And many fear that once the
City selects a developer, it might sacrifice convenient public parking for
more housing IF this trade-off were available.
And there is NO guarantee that an *acceptable* development could actually
provide 345 housing units AND 556 public parking spaces. *These are simply
aggressive, untested City objectives.*
.
Like many others, I am alarmed by the Councils...
- Failure to simply acknowledge the high risk that this project could
significantly damage Downtown both during construction and after it is
completed.
.
- Lack of a credible contingency plan, something the state Housing And
Community Development department would require IF the City were to
acknowledge that Downtown *is not a feasible site for 345 housing units *due
to community opposition, a prolonged legal challenge, and a successful
ballot measure petition.
.
- Complete lack of community engagement, e.g., no two-way
communications, no actual participation in City planning efforts.
.
- Unhealthy dependence on a planning staff that clearly does not
understand our community and often has provided poor guidance to the
Council.
.
- Building a 556-space, public parking structure might cost the City and
voters at least $40M.
.
- Willingness to provide four acres of "free public land" - a $38M+ land
subsidy - without first considering alternative public land uses and
gaining broad community support for a very large, "below market" housing
project.
Important Note:This ballot measure *would* still let voters decide to add
affordable housing in Downtown parking lots. They could determine both the
amount and location. For example, less housing and a smaller public parking
garage could be constructed in Plaza 3. And additional housing could be
located near the Civic Center.
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Where To Sign Petition Or Help Out
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