The Los Altos City Council was scheduled at its Tuesday meeting to adopt a resolution declaring two downtown parking plazas “surplus land” in order to sell or lease the land for potential housing development.
The move is part of the city’s updated housing element, which provides a plan for meeting future housing needs. Los Altos is tasked with providing potential for 1,958 new units by the year 2031.
Results of Tuesday’s meeting were unavailable due to the Town Crier’s Monday evening print deadline. Watch for updates on losaltosonline.com.
“Parking Plaza 7 and 8 were first identified in the city’s adopted Downtown Vision Plan (in 2018), as opportunities for the redevelopment and inclusion of affordable housing,” according to a city staff report.
Both parking plazas 7 and 8 – located between First and Third streets, Edith Avenue and State Street – are each identified as 1.07 acres in size and used currently for surface-level parking.
“The first RFP (request for proposal) issued by the city for housing on either Parking Plaza 7 or 8 will be affordable housing and the city will commit to selecting the development proposal that maximizes public benefit in creating additional affordable housing in Downtown Los Altos,” the staff report said.
Prior to issuing the RFP, the city shall hire a third-party to analyze what the minimum financially feasible affordable housing production could be, based upon a minimum of 20 years of a zero-cost land lease and a commitment to provide a minimum 55-year lease.
According to the plan, the city will provide a “dedicated project planner” to facilitate an expedited project review process.
The objective is that the city will enter into a public-private partnership for development of housing “on at least one” of the city’s downtown parking plazas. The desired tenants would be “low-income residents, persons with disabilities, and/or seniors.”
In its July 16 “Notice of Availability/Offer to Sell Surplus Property in Los Altos,” city officials noted they seek “an innovative approach to connect the two surplus properties with underground parking below the public right-of-way between the sites to maximize the potential for critically needed affordable housing and public parking.
The city seeks replacement of existing parking spaces “up to approximately 226 parking stalls among the two surplus properties.”
The idea of removing above-ground parking spaces for more development doesn’t sit well with some residents.
Roberta Phillips was “shocked” by the offer of a 20-year “zero-cost land lease.”
“If the city approves this, who will pay to replace the 226 lost parking stalls?” Phillips asked in a letter to City Manager Gabriel Engeland and city council members.
Picking up on the city’s intent to replace existing parking with underground parking, Phillips asked: “Does this mean that a buyer or lessor of this public land would be responsible for paying for the replacement parking?
“At $90,000 per parking spot it would cost $20.34 million. … I find it difficult to believe that the state of California is requiring our city to give away our public land for affordable housing at no cost. It is critical that any deal we make with any potential buyer or lessor with the city of Los Altos ends up with no net loss financially or in loss of parking and that the burden does not fall on the taxpayers.”
In other news, the council was scheduled to hold a public hearing and declare the property of 4898 El Camino Real, Los Altos, a public nuisance and direct the city manager to “abate the nuisance.”
