Affordable housing eyed for downtown Affordable housing eyed for downtown (August 26, 2005)

Evelyn Ave. project intended to boost 'economic diversity'

By Jon Wiener

A downtown parking lot that was almost chosen as the site for the city's efficiency studios complex is next in line for an affordable housing project.

A majority of city council members at Tuesday night's study session supported the idea of leasing a piece of city-owned land on Evelyn Avenue to a nonprofit or other agency that would build the discounted units.

The move could be an expensive one. A city consultant estimated the lot, located behind the Tied House, could fetch as much $3.8 million on the open market if the city was willing to allow market value condos there.

But the potential hit was one worth taking for the good of the downtown district, said several council members, echoing members of the public who spoke Tuesday night.

"Poor folks don't live in downtown Mountain View," said Mayor Matt Neely, speaking in support of the plan. "There isn't a lot of economic diversity downtown, and we need to start thinking about how the city's going to stratify."

Council member Nick Galiotto told staff he would prefer to see apartments built for families, something larger than the 120-unit efficiency studios -- the 325-square-foot studios designed mostly for single occupants -- under construction at San Antonio Circle.

The lot is currently being used to accommodate overflow Caltrain parking. Existing zoning allows for 51 units, but exempts affordable housing projects.

The decision, which has yet to be formalized, was part of a broader discussion on the fate of three city-owned properties downtown. All three are zoned for residential use. A staff report said that, together, the three temporary parking lots could sell for as much as $12.4 million and hold 150 market-rate condominiums.

Council member Greg Perry, an advocate for increasing housing density, said selling the properties to the highest bidders would not be worth the loss of 430 parking spaces. He pointed out that the new downtown parking garage will cost the city $16 million to build about 405 spaces, only 300 of them new.

"We just spent $5.5 million for each 100 spaces we've got out of the garage," said Perry. "To sell a piece of land that can have more than 100 spaces for less than that, it seems backwards."

The council put off a decision on one property, a parking lot on Bryant Street between Mercy and California Streets, until after the garage is completed. Another lot at Villa and Franklin streets could come up for discussion again much sooner.

Laura Macias led a brief attempt to get her colleagues to consider using one of the sites for a day care center, even suggesting one as an alternative to the planned child care center at Rengstorff Park.
Tax program untouched

The council also decided not to change a city program that taxes new housing developments and sets aside the funds to help build affordable projects.

Planning staff had proposed several changes to the below market rate, or BMR, program. Several council members have criticized the program's failure to generate affordable units, as most developers opt to pay a fee instead of building the units. As a result, the city has collected $20 million in affordable housing funds, and at least so far, has not found much to spend it on.

Council member Matt Pear blamed the BMR program for driving up the cost of new housing. He said that city fees alone add between $50,000 and $100,000 to the cost of a new home.

The program requires developers to build a certain number of affordable houses or pay 3 percent of the total sale price of all the homes in their project. Most developers have opted for the second option since the program began in 1999.

Council members who didn't want to change the ordinance said this was not a huge problem, since it gives the city more flexibility to spread around the subsidy.

"When we were talking about this in 1999, people were saying 'this is going to kill housing in Mountain View,'" said Mike Kasperzak, the veteran among the seven council members. "Well, they're knocking down the doors, folks. They can't get in here fast enough to build housing."

But council member Tom Means said that it was unfair to place such a heavy burden on new homeowners. "We didn't kill housing," he said. "We just made it more expensive."

E-mail Jon Wiener at jwiener@mv-voice.com

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