New Land Use Laws One Step Closer to Reality

Menlo Park City Council voted Tuesday to approve amendments to the city’s general plan that would rezone areas of town and enable developers to create new residences. 

The amendments given the first green light out of two required for ratification included one that rezones land in the Belle Haven neighborhood to allow for higher density housing. Generally speaking, this means apartment complexes.  

Many of the sections that were rezoned allow for low-income housing developments, a fact that does not sit well with everyone. 

Bishop Teman L. Bostic Sr. preaches at the Mt. Olive Church and lives on Hamilton Road in that neighborhood.  He told City Councilmembers on Tuesday that these new land use laws could invite developers to create a situation that will deteriorate the quality of life in his neighborhood.    

“This will devalue our properties and create unending crimes,” Bostic said.  “And I don’t care how close the police are located on Hamilton, it would cause the crime to go to wazoo,” he said, referencing recent discussions among law enforcement officials to install a police substation on Willow Road. 

The City of Menlo Park was tasked with updating the Housing Element of its general plan, which details how land can be developed within city borders, after affordable housing advocates threatened to sue the city for not having enough housing to accommodate the people who are employed in town. The state mandates that as a city welcomes new businesses into town, it must at minimum rezone land to accommodate housing for the employees who will work there.  

Menlo Park had not done so since 1992.  If the lawsuit had gone to court, the state could have frozen all building permit distribution, which at the time would have included the permits for Facebook’s new campus in the Belle Haven neighborhood.  The city settled and agreed to update its general plan.  A city advisory board has been working on rezoning land for the past year and a half to find land to rezone for residential use. 

After a six and a half hour meeting last night, City Council approved the resolutions presented to them, except for item number nine, which describes secondary dwelling unit development restrictions.   

The council will revisit that for a first reading and discussion on June 4th, 2013.   It will revisit the amendments from Tuesday's meeting again on June 11 for a second reading and further discussion.  They will likely be on the consent agenda.  

To read what was approved Tuesday in detail, take a look at the .pdf of the report prepared for Tuesday’s meeting by city staff.  It is next to the image of the map that shows the areas in Menlo Park that are being assessed and possibly rezoned.