Comment on Woodside’s latest housing element draft by March 13 | News
After deciding not to adopt a residential element in late January, the City of Woodside has released an updated draft that provides more information on proposed site restrictions and City Council recommendations for future development. The comment period for the latest document began March 7 and ends Monday, March 13, when the city submits the draft to the state.
The draft incorporates the January 31 guidance from Woodside Town Council and feedback from the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). The deadline for submitting the eight-year housing plan to the state was Jan. 31, but many of the council members asked staff to do more research first because building at the multi-family sites in the plan is difficult due to the city’s lack of sewerage, high fire hazards and sloping terrain Terrain.
The city must plan 328 units to be developed over the next eight years as part of the 2023-31 regional housing needs allocation.
“This Cycle 6 Housing Element will expand the Woodside community to diversify its housing stock and increase affordability,” the design element reads. “The Regional Housing Needs Analysis (RHNA) Cycle 5 allocation was 62 units, which was achieved through the construction of ADUs and single-family homes. Cycle 6 RHNA allocation is 328 units. However, this presents a challenge in an environment where land and construction costs are high and also creates an opportunity to increase inclusion in Woodside.”
Woodside’s design calls for: 75 housing units at Cañada College; 120 Backyard Additional Housing Units (ADUs); 106 vacant plots of single-family homes; 16 units at 773 Cañada Road; 46 individual non-vacant single-family home locations; 16 units at a city-owned High Road site; and 17 units at another city-owned location on Raymundo Drive.
The pages:
Canada College
The feasibility of the 75 residential units at Cañada College shown in the plan is questionable due to a lack of funding. The district has indicated that 75-80 units at Cañada College is a reasonable assumption, the city said.
The 2022 state budget provided $2 billion (over three years) to fund grants to support the development and expansion of affordable community college and university housing in the state. Half of the funds were earmarked for adult education centres.
The state Treasury Department failed to provide the San Mateo County Community College District with a $98.5 million housing benefit last year when it attempted to build a new 144,000-square-foot student housing development at the College of San Mateo (for Skyline College students ) and also Cañada College), according to a staff report for a district board of trustees meeting on Oct. 26, 2022. The state awarded the district a $200,000 planning grant for housing.
“Given the high cost of housing in San Mateo County, providing our students with affordable housing is a high priority,” Richard Storti, executive vice chancellor of administrative services, told the board in October.
The district applied for a state grant in January to support housing on the College of San Mateo campus. This year’s plan has 450 beds, fewer than last year’s plan, but more units will be apartment-style, Storti said. Rents would range from $400 to $700 a month, which is “unheard of in this area,” he said.
If this year’s scholarship is successful, the district would move into a second phase to receive scholarship funds to support student and family housing at one of its other two campuses, including Cañada College. But Storti told The Almanac that the district intends to pursue that grant application, due in July, at Skyline College in San Bruno, not Cañada. The district should find out by mid-May if it will receive the grant, he said.
Woodside advisers recommend the city add the fact that in July 2022, the San Mateo County Community College District approved the districtwide 2022 Facilities Master Plan, which includes plans for housing at Cañada College. The district seeks funding for student and family housing on its campuses.
“The city will assist the district in obtaining local nonprofit, state and/or federal funding to make a portion of the units affordable for the very low-income (50 units) and low-income (25 units) people,” reads it in the item. “The exact timing of this support and program will be determined with the district based on the district’s Facilities Master Plan implementation timeline, but will be within the RHNA Cycle 6 planning timeline.”
773 Cañada Street
The housing element notes that the 773 Cañada Road site, intended for 16 units, requires a connection to an existing sewer area.
The estimated cost of installing sewerage for 773 Cañada is $125,000, according to the city, low cost for a development estimated at $16 million (estimated development cost is $500 per square foot, excluding the land price).
For the ancillary units expected at the site, the infrastructure serving the existing residence will also serve the ADUs. The cost of expanding a septic tank or scour field to accommodate ADUs varies from package to package.
country road
Potential constraints on the construction of 16 units on the city-owned 1-acre High Road site include topography, drainage and soil conditions, according to the plan.
Its irregular shape can limit the flexibility of settlement types, the city notes.
Raymundo drive
According to comments submitted by the City of HCD, the Raymundo Drive site has potential seismic limitations that will affect the project design but may not reduce the number of units that could be developed.
Raymundo Drive has an estimated cost of $2.6 million to connect to the sewage system, which may reduce the property’s value but does not preclude development of the 17 units claimed on the site, according to the city.
“Given that the city owns the land, the cost of the land is not a barrier to housing development,” the city said. “Utilities have an obligation to prioritize service for developments that provide affordable housing.”
The City-owned High Road and Raymundo Drive lots have been identified as candidates for redevelopment with affordable housing. The city plans to seek a partnership with a nonprofit developer for workforce building
Housing to meet the needs of low and middle income households in Woodside.
How to Submit Comments
Send comments on the draft to City Hall, 2955 Woodside Road, Woodside, CA, 94062; or send an email to Planning Director Sage Schaan at [email protected]
According to the city, HCD has up to 60 days to review the dwelling element design.
Visit the city’s website for more information.