Residents can thank Berman, Weiner and Newsom for this monster Builders Remedy development project. Classic ask whereby the developer goes beyond zoning norms with regards to height etc.
The statue of Liberty is weeping as our democracy has been eroded to benefit investment firms, developers, real estate
concerns and construction lobbies. The lovely Sunset space could have some residentiol housing mixed with a generous green space. Sadly Menlo Park will get an eyesore from hell thanks to the bought representatives in Sacramento.

These towering monstrosities sound very ugly. Do we know for sure that people will want to live in them? The last thing we want is for them to remain empty in 5 years' time.

Menlo Park’s population decreased by 4.4% from April 1, 2020 to July 1, 2022 according to estimates by the United States Census Bureau.

Web Link

It's inaccurate to blame the current city council. Over last 33 years since this builders remedy was enacted in 1990, city council members have been doing exactly what their constituents want: blow off state law. We may have kicked the can down the road one time too many.

Note that most peninsula cities also still lack a state approved housing element. Hopefully Menlo Park's third draft will be approved, and this builder's remedy monstrosity won't be built. At the very least, seems like the kind of thing that gets tied up in lawsuits from every direction for several years.

[Portion removed.]

Many events at this location were beautiful and memorable - Sunset put on great events. How much better if this property was donated to the National Trust - like Filoli - with it's beautiful gardens and building layout. An opportunity missed here. This would be a high class tourist location for the current beautiful buildings and grounds.

Just what we need. Another shopping center the size of Stanford Shopping Center and the size of 42-- forty-two -- midtown Safeways/

How wonderful that Menlo Park had the foresight to reduce the numbers of lanes ion Middlefield and that Palo Alto stuck all that road furniture on Middlefield just south of the Menlo Park border.

All the better to create gridlock while Casti construction backs up Embarcadero and the likely closure of Churchill makes it impossible to cross El Camino.

What a great way to get us out of our cars. Kudos to our leaders and planners.

Developers....Dallas,Texas.....

We do need to remove from office those politicians that signed on to SB 330, builder’s remedy. None of these politicians - Newsom/ Weiner/ Berman will have a project built adjacent to their properties.

People are leaving the state, Menlo Park population has declined, office space is going unrented, there are empty apartments so let's build a 30 story monstrosity. I question how the politicians benefit from these projects?

How is it that the Builder's Remedy can be used for anything other than creating housing? Housing was the entire point of it, as I understood it.

I pass through that intersection frequently on my way to Menlo Park. It is already congested. Adding this development will plug it up. This will reduce the number of trips to shop in Menlo Park for anyone in Palo Alto. Next, you might take out the bridge.

Web Link
Web Link
Web Link
Web Link

Above are a few of the many online info sources for Cliff May, noted architect of this historic building. The Sunset building is a stunning example of California architecture by May, who is recognized as the father of California Ranch house design. The one-story building was thoughtfully designed to be in keeping with the local residential neighborhood so as not to disturb the existing aesthetic. Needless to say, the proposed buildings would create an atmosphere that would be just the opposite. Other business establishments along Middlefield Road are low profile and respective of their surroundings. Locally, quite a few historic buildings have been saved and/or repurposed in sensitive ways. These building should become additions to this list.

We need a Remedy from Berman.

Some discussion here of the builders remedy. Web Link

I don't see any mention wherein the builders remedy does not operate due to environmental or historical or aesthetic concerns.

Palo Alto also pinched down Middlefield lanes at Willow. It's fairly common for cities to reduce lanes at their borders.

"Residents can thank Berman, Weiner and Newsom for this monster Builders Remedy development project." - This is such a factually inaccurate statement.

Years of local City Council and resident resistance, to what would have been moderate changes within the bounds of local zoning regulations, have created an environment where the state legislators needed to step in to manage a whole range of issues those behaviors created. Don't get me wrong - I think the scope and scale of several proposals we see proposed under the Builder's Remedy legislation are tragically inappropriate. I believe they are far beyond what anyone likely anticipated. Now that we are witness to the potential, I'm hopeful some control can be created so an outrageously oversized development like the one described here can be constrained to a more contextual proposal. Regardless, responsibility for the genesis of the situation is not so challenging to understand.

I grew up in Menlo Park and Graduated from Menlo Atherton High School.
I went to school with the influencer kids. Early businesses and educators.
Everybody has spread out and or died off.
The neighborhood needs a modern updated change. How about incorporating Oldness with new? They already allowed the changing partially that religious Sanctuary into an expensive housing glorification, for those that want the MENLO PARK/Atherton address. Life dies. Then everything should be off the table. I Loved passing "Sunset". I loved those orange caramel Roses. (I'd like to get a plant before they destroy them.?)
I loved their magazines, that educated me. A lot of our residents were featured in the magazine.

Gone are the days of maintaining Traditions & heritage. Get used to it. Times are changing. Our Neighborhoods have changed Into International Havens for Immigration and Immigrants with MONEY and influence. The powerful Corporations from heaven's nowhere? Walking through Old Neighborhoods is like walking through a maze of a parallel World. Gone is the "Frosty Freeze" the stationary stores and other Small Businesses that built the City. Let's welcome in those that don't give a darn. They are the Job creators and profiteers. Welcome. Bye Old "Happy Days".

28 stories aren't so bad if they would just incorporate the old, current with the new. Hands down!

How about a sanctuary on top (like Sales Force).

Exit Strategy isn't clear? Making a deal with Palo Alto, in directing the traffic out toward 280 is the key. Traffic should have been diverted off & onto the Dumbarton Bridge via Embarcadero Rd decades ago. Going down Little Willow Rd would and is just too much. They'd have to take homes away. Like they did on Oregon Expressway. Expensive much.

Wow, what a monstrous idea! I’m pretty sure that the Lane family will be aghast at this proposal. Mayor Lydia Kou of Palo Alto is running for office against Marc Berman. She has been opposed to all of the state housing bills that have forced our local communities to create massive developments that don’t even include affordable housing. This is her main reason for running against Marc Berman, who has supported these housing bills that favor developers. I plan to vote for Lydia Kou. She is also a very strong environmentalist.

I'm pretty sure Josh Becker voted for these undemocratic "take local control away" laws as well. Let's vote him out too.

I grew up with Sunset as my dad was the editor of Sunset books. It was such fun visiting him at the office as one never knew what creative ideas and projects the staff was coming up with next, from interesting recipes to books like the Sunset Western Garden book, Western Ranch Houses or The California Missions. Ideally one of the Sunset buildings could be turned into a kind of museum of the West. The proposed project is just too enormous for that spot. It most probably will be defeated on environmental grounds, as the 300 ft building would be too near San Francisquito Creek, Let’s hope so.

@We Told you So. Have you attempted to get to the apex of the Sales Force Tower? It is closed to the general public unless you have reserved a hard-to-obtain spot in a tour group. You will be waiting for months...or a year. Try to get a place in line via their web site and cross your fingers...

The senate vote on sb 330 was 30-4 and the assembly vote was 67-8.
Sb 330 is not the builders remedy law that was passed decades ago,
The way to avoid builders remedy is pass a Housing Element approved by HCD. Menlo Park submitted their 3 rd draft in June. PA is waiting to hear about their 2nd draft. I expect we will be asked for a third try.

If you think this is stupid and other huge buildings that are destroying your city are ugly, join one of the thousands of "Our Neighborhood Voices" groups throughout the state. Web Link

It is time for zoning control to return to local communities rather than letting developer funded state representative continue to let them make massive profits by polluting our cities.

It's time for cities to band together and push back against the runaway and legally unproven changes HCD has made. Cities are paying the cost for the slow responsiveness and moving goalposts of HCD as it is now requiring cities to modify their housing element submissions through multiple rounds.

Cities need to say we're going to stop playing this game and threaten legal action that their housing elements are legally complaint whether HCD agrees or not. Cities engaged with HCD for the last two years while working on their elements in good faith. Cities paid consutants and staff lots of money. They engaged residents. And they created their housing elements with plenty of documentation. HCD had an opportunity to provide a round of feedback. They should not be asking for additional things at this late juncture and be held to their initial requirements and communications they had during the last two years of what cities needed to do. HCD and Bonta are zealots who are looking to make examples of cities - someone needs to call them out.

HCD wants assurances that housing will actually get built even though the cities themselves don't build housing (devlopers do), the state isn't providing anywhere near enough funding for low income housing they are demanding (and funding is required for these projects to get built), and macroeconomic conditions (interest rates, demographics, workforce, supply chains) have huge impacts on production.

No more! Menlo Park join with other cities and take them to court. Make them prove you are not substantially compliant and that "builders remedy" is legal under the US constituion and the right of a city's local control. I think you'll find many cities and individuals willing to support your effort!

"M"

From PA posted the following:
"We need a Remedy from Berman."

M, We do have a remedy, Lydia Kou is running against him!!

Is it possible that the Sunset facility can be added to the historic register for both the state and Fed? Filoli is part of the National Trust so maintenance and upkeep is by individual membership and the government budget. Surely the Sunset facility with all of it's great attributes would be a great addition to the National Trust - or the California Historical Society and any other equivalent organization.

""Residents can thank Berman, Weiner and Newsom for this monster Builders Remedy development project." - This is such a factually inaccurate statement. "

Don;t forget Attorney General Bonta who insists that change doesn't matter because nothing will change or can have changed in the 8 -- EIGHT -- long years between when the housing targets were established and when they can be reconsidered in light of changing and changed realities.

@Duveneck
I urge people to educate themselves about Cliff May, the Sunset building architect, and Thomas Church, the landscape architect, with the links you provided. Thank you! These are historically significant structures and gardens. The rush to destroy our history is appalling.

Excellent news! California in general and SF Bay Area in particular need far more housing. The NIMBY lobby has been allowed to thwart new development for too long. It's high time for some change. If Menlo Park and Palo Alto don't want such mega developments, they should come up with a housing element acceptable to the state.

Remember this project the next time a Palo Alto slow-growther tells you the reason why we don't produce enough housing is construction costs, as opposed to zoning. And Berman isn't the guy who's been submitting noncompliant Housing Elements to HCD.

ALB - the very first poster - knows exactly what’s up in California.
State legislators have illogical schemes with respect to housing.

Re-developing that section of Middlefield was just a matter of time once Sunset vacated the location. We should expect that whole stretch between Willow and Ravenswood to see expansion and re-development.

300 feet ? What else is that high on the peninsula? It would be the tallest building for miles.

This location is in the trans=pacific flight path for incoming planes to SFO. Just imagine people in the tower watching the planes go by. They come over the hills and make their turn to get in the que for landing. And if directed due to lack of an open bay have to circle and get in the que again. Those in the second attempt to land are at a much lower altitude. Is there any higher power in this bay area location to monitor for flight interference?

It would be a shame to see the former Sunset Magazine grounds turned into another highrise building.

Haven't our civic leaders finally realized that the midpeninsula is overbuilt?

Or are they in cahoots with the developers?

Since various advocates are promoting the notion that all communities regardless of affluence contribute to ease the housing crisis, maybe the entire Middlefied Road section from Willow Road to Fifth Avenue in Redwood City can be lined with highrises with exceptions being made for Menlo Atherton High School and the Menlo Park Fire Station.

If the price was right, we would sell because who would want to live in this area anymore except for clueless newbie residents?

From today's Daily Post:

"The son of Russia's former Energy Minister under President Vladimir Putin controls the LLC that owns the former Sunset Magazine property in Menlo Park where the massive towers have been proposed."

Even San Francisco managed to unanimously reject the huge tower planned for the Sunset

"Plans for skyscraper in the Sunset District fail

San Francisco’s Board of Appeals on Wednesday evening unanimously blocked a controversial proposal for a 589-foot apartment tower in the Outer Sunset after a two-hour hearing. The proposal was first unveiled in April after San Francisco’s Planning Department questioned an earlier proposal for a building a quarter of the size. The agency quickly rejected the new plans, calling them “categorically out of compliance with both state and local laws.”
2700 SLOAT
Project developer CH has submitted plans for a 50-story tower at 2700 Sloat Blvd.,


Let's see the Peninsula do the same with the humongous rower that's the size of Stanford Shopping Center and/or 42 buildings the size of Midtown Safeway due to be built in a residential neighborhood where they've removed lanes of traffic.

Time to repeal the 1990 builder’s remedy law! It’s a disaster. Bad laws can be changed.

Ocams's Razor, the politicians benefit from these projects because the developers donate to their campaigns so they can get elected.

M - The remedy from Berman is to elect Lydia Kou who is running against him.
www.lydiakou.com

@Pat Markevitch, absolutely. I always make it a point to check who's donated to whom and how many of the donors are outsiders because that's the best way to tell who's more interested in the community than selling that community s a commodity to the highest bidders.

Reality check here - San Andreas Fault; proximity to the bay- water table is high; the utility system and water required is in excess of what is available or achievable in that location. You can't get there from here. [Portion removed.]

Bottom line is that this is not going to happen. As soon as he gets an engineering firm in here the whole thing will be categorically reduced to some achievable end result. But it still will not be a good result.

Q: where's the "Environmental Voice" in these discussions about development?

It's no surprise that the Sunset property is slated for redevelopment; far too prime a location for it to remain vacant. Some lovely ideas about a Museum of the West or adding it to the National Trust have been mentioned, but those are just ideas and the property owner is clearly not thinking along those lines. I don't know where around here would be a reasonable location for a 300' tower, but it sure as heck isn't this Menlo Park location. If it goes in it will stand out as poorly as the Salesforce Tower does in SF, which is the equivalent of a raised middle finger. I hope this proposal is denied or at least cut back significantly.

Online Name raises some interesting points about traffic. I kinda doubt people moved to Lindenwood or other parts of Atherton thinking they'd be hemmed in by gridlock, but if this project is approved, that's what's coming.

And I've noticed that ALB often has informed comments about development, developers, and the pols who promote bills that benefit them. Truer than ever: follow the money.

Menlo Park submitted their 3rd revision in June the same time PA submitted our 2nd draft. Both should hear from HCD shortly. The only way to avoid builders remedy projects is to get your HE approved by HCD. Complaining won’t do the trick. There are increasing penalties and legal jeopardy from non compliance. Again, complaining won’t make them disappear.
You can try and change laws that were approved by massive majorities but until then complaining will not be as effective as compliance.
I do not think a 300 foot tower is appropriate for this location which is why I favor compliance.

@Stephen Levy, since housing is supposed to be the tail that's wagging the dog in all this development, maybe you can explain why this huge development has so many jobs and so many hotel rooms at a time when Silicon Valley office vacancies were reported to have reached historical levels just today?

Web Link
Silicon Valley office vacancy climbs to “historic high” as tech retrenches
Huge vacancy rates besiege several South Bay office markets

And won't all these new jobs in all these new offices just increase competition for housing which will push real estate prices even higher and thus out of the range of the "low income" families you claim are so well-served here in Palo Alto?

Happy to do so Online Name after you explain why you want PA to be subject to builders remedy by not getting our HE approved by HCD. Saying it is not fair does not relieve the legal obligation or penalties.
And are you willing to cover my share of the legal costs you seem to want us to incur.

More questions for Mr. Levy:
1. How many people work for HCD?
2. Does HCD have enough people to timely review a states-worth of HE?
3. What is the typical turn-around time?
4. What is the typical # of times a City's plan is re-submitted?
5. How often is a plan approved following the initial submittal?
6. How is that our Planning Dept. submitted a non-compliant plan?
7. What is the check and balance assuring that HCD does its job timely?

Builder's Remedy is pretty much a bureaucratic "gotcha". Our Planning Dept. is supposedly top tier, so one can assume they knew what was required to comply. We know the department is pro-developer and development. Were they cavalier about compliance? Worse, could they have been deliberate about non-compliance?

HCD has final say on compliance. Are they so pro-developer/development that they drag their heels, putting cities in the crosshairs of developers who care little about the communities in which they want to build over-sized projects but quite a lot about the money they can make off behemoth projects?

The proposals using builder's remedy are so "ready to go" that it almost seems they were ready and waiting for this opportunity. HCD should not be helping any such opportunity along. One thing's for sure, residents of CA communities are not in charge of preparing or approving the plans, so if there are issues, as there appear to be, responsibility for those rests with either the submitters (City Planners) or the approvers (HCD).

Fair questions. I will get back to you after we end time with grandkids.

I won't attempt to answer all of Annette's questions but I will link to this Chronicle article which shows the status of all Bay Area jurisdictions as of April.
About 15% of them were in compliance by that time.

It was possible to make the deadline, but in cities where the councils and task force members were virulently opposed to following the law, it made the negotiations involved in preparing the element very time consuming and counter productive.
If a city hired a consultant and followed its recommendations, the plans could have been filed on time. However, the politicians would not have been able to tell their constituents that they fought it every inch of the way.

"Happy to do so Online Name after you explain why you want PA to be subject to builders remedy by not getting our HE approved by HCD. Saying it is not fair does not relieve the legal obligation or penalties.
And are you willing to cover my share of the legal costs you seem to want us to incur."

Gee, Mr. Levy, did I say I wanted to be subject to builders remedy?? Never said that any more than I want to be subject to the YIMBY suits against municipalities like Palo Alto that they know have already filed their HE plans when those suits are merely a transparent pr move to grab headlines and to fund-raise for their future lawsuits.

I still wish that Palo Alto had sued YIMBY Action for wasting our time,

So now that we know that of course I oppose the Builders Remedy, I repeat my question for you:

"@Stephen Levy, since housing is supposed to be the tail that's wagging the dog in all this development, maybe you can explain why this huge development has so many jobs and so many hotel rooms at a time when Silicon Valley office vacancies were reported to have reached historical levels just today?

And won't all these new jobs in all these new offices just increase competition for housing which will push real estate prices even higher and thus out of the range of the "low income" families you claim are so well-served here in Palo Alto?"

Lookibg foeward to your responses to my questions and to Annette's.

Annette,
I do not know how many people work at HCD.
The regional RHNAs are staggered.
My memory is that SD was first then Sacramento region, SoCal was 18;months ahead of Bay Area. You can look up schedule on HCD website.
So staff does not do the whole state at once.
The first round review is due back 3 months after submission, next rounds due 2 months after submission.
I know of no instance when HCD was late.
All delays are caused by cities.
Some cities take only 2 rounds but the majority take 3 rounds. I do not know of anyone who took only 1 round.
Non compliance is nearly always the result of vocal residents and council arguing for and submitting wishes that do not pass the smell test or are economically feasible.
Our staff is competent but must follow council’s direction.
If we get rejected again responsibility rests with council.
Cities that actually want to comply have an easier time.
HCD wants to help cities comply but they have to meet the clear requirements.
We can continue this discussion next week when we see the HCD letter due by August 4.

Whose "smell test"?

Still eagerly awaiting your response to the rest of Annette's questions and to mine now that you know my position on the builders remedy which forces atrocities on communities.

Thank you, Stephen Levy, for those answers. I think your "smell test" comment can apply to the assertion that our staff is competent but must follow council’s direction b/c for years now the CC:Staff dynamic has been one of the tail wagging the dog. It's curious that for something as consequential as the Housing Element, city Staff - especially the CM and Planning Director - would shift gears and put the burden of timely and compliant completion on City Council. It was Staff's job to prepare a compliant HE and make sure it got done on time. If CC needed to be pushed on that, they should have been.

Said differently, Staff can't have it both ways and cherry pick when it is that they take responsibility. I think they let us down on this - teeing us up to be vulnerable to the Builder's Remedy. Hopefully, we will soon learn that the HE is deemed compliant and the city is out of jeopardy.

If you want to understand why Housing Elements have been taking so long to approve, I'd suggest starting by reading ours ( Web Link ).

The targets were much more aggressive than in previous cycles, and the easy opportunities were already gone. The requirements for Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing were new, challenging, and not well-understood. Some legal issues (including Builder's Remedy) were unresolved. The affordable housing goals were infeasible without subsidies, which the State didn't provide and which were beyond the capabilities of individual cities. HCD's requirements were not clear (and some are still not clear), which is why so many cities submitted Housing Elements that they believed were conforming only to have HCD ask for more. All of this has been discussed in public hearings. It doesn't surprise me that good-faith efforts by most cities took longer than either those cities or the State hoped.

In the case of Palo Alto, I haven't seen evidence that Council, Staff, or any of the other groups responsible for the plan were obstructionist. On the contrary, I think the Housing Element Working Group and Staff in particular did exemplary work under brutal time pressure.

As with any compromise, those on the extremes are unhappy with the outcome, and that's to be expected. It doesn't help to push narratives that demonize other groups, though.

[Speaking only for myself as a citizen here, not for any part of the PTC.]

Palo Alto submitted its first draft in December, when the deadline to *be* in compliance was Jan 31. HCD had 90 days to review. That's not very long for documents of this length, but they consistently get it done.

As Steve mentioned, the regions are staggered. San Diego was first this cycle. They took it seriously, got their first draft in way early, and got approved on the second. Then most of the rest of Southern California, which went rockier for a lot of suburbs that weren't as proactive. Point is: no one should have been surprised at the standard of review when ABAG's turn came up.

Alameda is a good example. They had a solid Element ready to go, and their first draft was approved before the deadline. But a lot of Bay Area cities turned in Housing Elements that obviously didn't reflect the new reality, and many turned them in so late that noncompliance was guaranteed.

I watched all the Housing Element Working Group meetings and most of the Council ad hoc (oversight) meetings. I distinctly remember at one point CM Tom Dubois pushed back on some modestly pro-housing detour the Working Group was on track to make, with a comment like: "I just want to make sure that what comes before Council is something the Council can support."

Well... he got his wish. I'm not claiming that one issue was the difference between compliance and noncompliance, but the priorities were clear. He wanted an easy vote more than compliance, and now our zoning code has been unenforceable for about half a year.

@Scott
The problem isn’t any one particular city council or city staff, the problem is the builder’s remedy law. We need new representation in Sacramento to repeal, or at least modify, it.

One more reason to vote out Newsom.
Overreaching bills, where on the surface is appealing to the left housing extremists as it appears to advocate for more housing, but there is little fore thought or understanding of the real consequences on neighborhoods, cities, or property owners.
Election time: Vote them out.

What makes you think the housing extremists care about the communities when the politicians they back only seem to care more about getting more campaign contributions from their big money backers?

Speaking if which, I'm still waiting for Mr Levy's response to my question about why the historically high office vacancy rate isn't reflected in revisions to the housing targets.

Speaking of Mr Bernan, he couldn't even be bothered to read the housing bills because he was too busy and then the next day voted for them.

As always, check the endorsements for and donations to the politicians to ensure they see us as a community and not as a commodity to be sold to the highest bidders.

Lydia's got my vote. She cares about our community whereas Berman's main achievement 8s commissioning a pamphlet on gun safety which we know people with guns are dying to read.

How can Menlo Park be non-compliant? There are three new, huge buildings on ECR across from the Safeway. The Government buildings on Middlefield have been emptied and are now ready for housing. Meta/ Fb is going to build a "Village" on Willow. So why is this city non-compliant?

I have watched the excavation for the three new building on ECR and those were huge, deep holes. How do you do that type of excavation next to the Creek? You will tear that whole section apart and create a downward problem for EPA - flooding

This effort is functioning in defiance of common sense, all of the water laws, environmental laws, and every other law out there except the "gotcha"law.

This whole mess seems to boil down to this: we have a problem with homelessness and affordability that the State clearly cannot solve. So it churns out housing legislation that includes incentives if affordable housing is part of a project. And it turns to cities and counties and imposes the HE exercise that cycles every 8 years. But offers no money. So cities and counties throughout the state are creating HE that identify where housing can be built. And HCD is reviewing all those HE. And tax dollars are paying for all this busy work. But the State isn't funding the housing mandate. Without State reimbursement to actually build the housing that is being planned (sort of) isn't this just a meaningless administrative exercise? And doesn't this mean we are going in circles, wasting time and money? Meanwhile, builder's remedy and bills like SB9 and SB330 loom over communities. Kudos to those cities that submitted a compliant plan in time to avoid jeopardy.

Palo Alto has long been a favored place for developers. They have money to build and the housing legislation is a boon for them. Let's do as Diana Diamond suggests, have an audit and check our progress. I think it makes sense to continue only what is having a positive impact on homelessness and addressing affordability. I also think it makes sense to ask if we really need the various bureaucratic entities associated with all this. Like ABAG and HCD.

About "Affordable housing" -- the system that lives under the acronym, LIHCT, translated, means Low Income Housing Tax Credits.

At this website, Web Link you can see the advantages to developers who receive tax credits if even a single unit is rented through that mechanism.

"The federal government issues tax credits to state and territorial governments. State housing agencies then award the credits to private developers of affordable rental housing projects through a competitive process. Developers generally sell the credits to private investors to obtain funding. Once the housing project is placed in service (essentially, made available to tenants), investors can claim the LIHTC over a 10-year period."

The state treasury also reminds renters that "The only federal LIHTC requirement for rent increases is the owner cannot charge rent exceeding the maximum gross rent limit unless the tenant is receiving at least $1 in Section 8 rental subsidy. Additionally, in California, the owner must provide the tenant proper notice before increasing the rent."

That seems to indicate unlimited increases for section 8 renters who will be unable to afford them not long after signing a lease. The only rule is they have to give those tenants notice before increasing the rent by however much they want to raise it for the first 10 years.

Menlo Park is not a tourist area, and this behemoth proposed project won't even be noticed by people who are on their way to ECR.

The things I miss about Menlo Park: Shaw's, Mon Petit Chou, and the original Kepler's location. I would have also likely missed the Snoopy Ice Cream shop that never lifted off in Menlo Park. Probably other things too, but those stand out the most. It used to be walkable, but now it's dangerous walking along streets where the building setback is barely enough to accommmodate a wheelchair (minimum legal width).

Is there an organized effort to oppose this development? If so, appreciate if someone can post a link or contact.

I recommend voting for Lydia Kou for CA State Assembly. Please read her website lydiakou.com.
I am not affiliated - except for being a supporter of Ms. Kou and agreeing with her common sense.
Vote for representatives who represent us much better, like Ms. Kou.

"Is there an organized effort to oppose this development? If so, appreciate if someone can post a link or contact."

Web Link holds regular briefings on their efforts to lobby for local control.

" I also think it makes sense to ask if we really need the various bureaucratic entities associated with all this. Like ABAG and HCD. "

Annette asks an excellent question, especially when ABAG ad HCD support the "builders renmedy" as a protection racket that would make The Sopranos proud.

Let's have a vote on whether to get rid of these unelected dictators so insistent on destroying our communities while making it illegal to reconsider their fiats for 8 -- EIGHT -- years! m

Reality changes every year and what once was a huge state budget surplus is now a huge budget deficit so there's no state money for affordable housing. Of course "affordable housing" was only a talking point for for all the developer-friendly lobbyists and the politicians doing their bidding.

WE have a bigger problem here. All of the local news publications are reporting on this issue with different pieces of information. They are creating a more filled out detailing of this builder's remedy transaction. What we know now is that the lawyer for the new owner LLC has a whole collection of future efforts which will be implemented via the current builder's remedy strategy. The current strategy depends on the local agency to delay approval of plans by city. That delay sets up the whole set of legal transactions which we are discussing relative to Menlo Park.

Does each city have a listing of these future sites which are in the que? Is there behind the scenes discussions which prompt the delay in approval of projects so that any city is in continual delinquency regarding their city approvals?

Sorry to say that the appearance of culpability is now becoming more apparent. Who is involved in these delays? Who is involved in these "approvals"?

Why does the local government legislators keep approving these bills which progressively strangle the individual cities? They all have individual desires to expand their political rise in the government agencies. Newsome wants to be President. Bonta wants to be governor. The Weiner wants to be a senator/congressman. But these moves are going to come back to bite them big time. They need votes. AS the city of SF deteriorates further they will not overcome using this strategy.

Sunset Magazine was a classy publication with a wonderfully suitable campus. If Menlo Park can do anything to stop this generic eyesore plan from people who already live in an eyesore location, DO it please.

I frequently drive by the Sunset building. During the evening commute Willow Road east of Middlefield Road is often at capacity.