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Mountain View was the first city I called home when I moved to California in 2017. I didn’t stay long – I couldn’t afford to. Like so many people who work in and around this city, I got priced out and had to look elsewhere.
That experience is part of why I now work at the Housing Action Coalition, advocating for more homes at all levels of affordability. It’s also why I’m urging Mountain View’s City Council to approve the 323-home project at 555 W. Middlefield Road on March 24. The project would transform underutilized surface parking into a real neighborhood, one that would include 48 affordable homes.
A common fear with new housing is displacement. However, this project does not demolish existing apartments in order to add new housing, thereby protecting every single person currently living on-site.
AvalonBay Communities, the project’s developer, has also committed to maintaining the 1.34-acre park land donation and $2 million community benefit payment included in the previously approved project design from 2022, along with bike and pedestrian paths and street improvements along Moffett Boulevard. This is exactly the kind of community-minded, thoughtfully-designed housing Mountain View needs more of.
Some may wonder why the design looks a bit different from what was approved in 2022. The answer is simple: The 2026 redesign makes the project financially viable so it can actually get built.
The most significant change shifts from expensive underground parking to largely above-grade structures wrapped by residential units, keeping them out of public view from local residents. That shift eliminates most of the planned excavation – which means the air quality impacts that were of concern to some nearby residents will be significantly reduced, and the project can be delivered faster with less disruption.
The spirit of the compromises made with neighbors in 2022 are intact. This redesign builds on that foundation.
Teachers, nurses, firefighters and the people who keep this city running deserve to live here. Mountain View’s council has a clear choice on March 24: approve 323 new homes for the local workforce, or let an important opportunity go. I hope they choose to act.
Ali Sapirman is the advocacy and policy manager at the Housing Action Coalition, a statewide nonprofit that advocates for more infill housing at all income levels.
The Mountain View Voice accepts Guest Opinion pieces from readers on matters of local public interest. The Voice strives to publish a diverse array of viewpoints. To find out more about submitting a Guest Opinion piece, send an email to editor@mv-voice.com.
We are not saying “no” to housing.
We recognize the need for more housing in Mountain View and support responsible development. However, this project raises serious concerns about how it is being built.
The relocation of the Block C parking entrance to the end of a narrow dead-end street, the concentration of traffic from over 500 parking spaces, and the lack of transparency regarding fire safety and updated traffic data are significant issues that directly affect public safety.
This project has also changed substantially from what was originally approved, yet those impacts have not been fully re-evaluated.
In addition, building more does not automatically solve the problem.
A newly constructed building next to The Ameswell Hotel near the Moffett freeway entrance has remained without tenants for years after completion. This raises an important question about whether all new developments are truly meeting actual needs.
To be clear, this is not about stopping housing.
It is about ensuring development is safe, transparent, and thoughtfully planned.
It seems like you were fooled by the “air quality” argument. There is minimal impact to air pollution. We build holes in the ground all day long. Dirt is dirt. We are digging up dirt.
If a police officer or teacher changes their job, does that mean they deserve less to live here? This is silly. People move to cities for various reasons. They are more than welcome to live in Sunnyvale. Or any other city within 20 minutes. What’s wrong with Milpitas? San Jose? Our council members mostly don’t work in Mountain View, don’t they deserve to live in San Jose where their jobs are? Why don’t they move there? It’s cheaper!