Arent Fox Bay Area Land News - April 27, 2017
News you can dig.
Upcoming Event
On May 2, we will host President of the Bay Area Economic Institute Micah Weinberg to discuss the headline-grabbing results of the 2017 Bay Area Council Poll over lunch. Get your RSVP in now for this limited space event- reply here and get the full event information here.
US/California/Bay Area News
CityLab
Cities Can't Fix the New Urban Crisis
Not on their own, at least. To address the ever-more-complex problems afflicting cities, we’ll need a regional approach.
To read the full article, click here.
PRI
Government Policies Have Strangled State’s Housing Market, Made Housing Unaffordable, New PRI Issue Brief Finds
Big government policies and political constraints are the primary causes for rising California home prices and lack of supply, according to the findings of a new “California Ideas in Action” issue brief released today by the non-partisan Pacific Research Institute.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Chronicle
A bid to extend tenant protections to single-family homes
Wall Street investment trusts such as Colony Starwood and Blackstone have bought up thousands of single-family homes and are turning them into rentals — many in low-income, communities of color — driving up prices and displacing families.
To read the full article, click here.
Silicon Valley Business Journal
Who's better at real estate development: Stanford or Cal?
Each year, graduate students from Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley face off in an intense competition to see which school can come up with the better development proposal.
To read the full article, click here. [subscription required]
San Francisco News
San Francisco Chronicle
Skirmish at City Planning over vote on affordable housing rate
Critics say that Christine Johnson, one of four commissioners appointed by Mayor Ed Lee, should recuse herself because she recently took a job with SPUR, the urban think tank that mostly, but not always, takes positions favored by the city’s development community.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Business Times
With Central SoMa rezoning on the way, developer proposes 118 units
San Francisco-based developer Realtex Inc. is proposing to demolish an existing two-story office building and replace it with a 14-story housing complex at 650 Harrison St. in the rapidly changing Central SoMa neighborhood.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Chronicle
Housing for homeless may be built on SF parking lot
The parcel at 1068 Mission St., behind the landmark James R. Browning U.S. Courthouse that houses the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, could accommodate 250 housing units in two separate buildings, one of which would house formerly homeless seniors.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Business Times
Mission residents fight temporary homeless shelter on Lennar housing site
Hundreds of opponents and supporters of a planned temporary homeless shelter in the Mission gathered on Monday night in a heated debate where a real estate deal was characterized as "extortion."
To read the full article, click here. [subscription required]
San Francisco Examiner
Map of poorest SF areas — and communities of color — redrawn to net better transit
The SFCTA board voted to approve the redrawn map of San Francisco’s “communities of concern” Tuesday, which means grant dollars could soon flow to where they’re needed most.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Chronicle
SF to buy New Asia restaurant, turn it into affordable housing
In the year before her death in September, Chinatown activist Rose Pak developed something of an obsession with the New Asia restaurant on Pacific Avenue. She knew the property was coming on the market and thought the city should grab it for affordable housing.
To read the full article, click here.
SFHAC Blog
Brisbane Baylands: A Once-In-A-Generation Opportunity
In a geographically constrained region we need to get this right. And by “we”, we mean the Bay Area’s community.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Business Times
Will charter school backed by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan land in S.F.?
he proposed charter would be modeled on the Primary School, a private school that opened in August 2016 in East Palo Alto.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Chronicle
SF supe urges building affordable housing above fire station
In a dense neighborhood where available development sites are scarce, Peskin is proposing that the city take advantage of the property’s 200-foot height limit to build an affordable-housing tower above a new fire station.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Chronicle
Decade in the making, massive biotech project set to break ground in South S.F.
High demand for biotech space, especially in South San Francisco, and soaring rents are driving BioMed Realty to break ground on the potentially iconic Gateway of Pacific project, originally entitled in 2009.
To read the full article, click here.
San Francisco Examiner
SF recommits to urban agriculture during housing crisis
With the loss of the Little City Gardens commercial farm last year and a fast-paced development boom, San Francisco’s commitment to urban agriculture is being put to the test.
To read the full article, click here.
South Bay News
Silicon Valley Business Journal
High-speed rail agrees to consider Monterey Highway tunnel
The California High-Speed Rail Authority Board will choose its preferred alignment this summer, which will then be subject to more public comment and federal review before a final selection is announced in late 2018.
To read the full article, click here. [subscription required]
CurbedSF
Interview: Silicon Valley lawmaker says don’t build, ‘accept limits on growth’
Michael Goldman, a Sunnyvale councilperson, appeared at a Cupertino town hall meeting on housing on Sunday, arguing among other things that increased housing density won’t drive prices down. He went on to say that cities like Sunnyvale should encourage big employers to move new jobs elsewhere.
To read the full article, click here.
Mercury News
San Jose: Council approved exploring measure to curb housing voucher discrimination
The City Council on Tuesday mulled a new report that outlined barriers to housing in Silicon Valley, including discrimination against renters who use housing vouchers.
To read the full article, click here.
Silicon Valley Business Journal
What developers need to know about San Jose’s new Ellis Act law
Two new ordinances aim to help shift the balance of power between landlords and tenants and increase housing stability. But landlords and developers say the rules will have unintended consequences.
To read the full article, click here. [subscription required]
Peninsula News
Palo Alto Online
Elected officials urge feds to OK Caltrain funds
San Francisco and Peninsula elected officials on Monday called on the Trump administration to approve federal funding for a Caltrain electrification project that is expected to add capacity to the busy transit corridor.
To read the full article, click here.
The Almanac
Menlo Park: New east-west bike route trial moves forward
The Menlo Park City Council heard more than an hour's worth of contentious public comments stretching into the wee hours of Wednesday, April 19, before deciding shortly after 1 a.m. to move forward with an existing schedule for an east-west bike route in town.
To read the full article, click here.
Palo Alto Online
Concern rises over restrictions for grade separations
As the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority prepares to dole out the first portion of the $6 billion Measure B funds, Midpeninsula cities are raising concerns that the agency could be putting onerous restrictions on projects for Caltrain grade separations.
To read the full article, click here.
San Mateo Daily Journal
Burlingame gives OK to apartment complex: Officials favor regional need for housing over neighborhood compatibility concerns
“From my perspective, it looks like a building that is appropriate to push toward the goals of the plan, which is increased housing and increased density,” said Loftis, in reference to a meeting Burlingame city officials held recently discussing strategies for meeting the demand to live locally.
To read the full article, click here.
East Bay News
Mercury News
Just how unaffordable are Oakland and San Jose for teachers? A new report crunches the numbers
“The Bay Area and Oakland have so much to offer new teachers. We attract the brightest and most diverse individuals from all over the world and bring together people from all walks of life. But the issue has become: Is it sustainable for a new teacher to live and work here and continue their careers here, as they gain extended families?”
To read the full article, click here.