Bay Area Land News - February 19, 2019
US / California / Bay Area News
Opinion: Midwest cities lead fight for housing affordability
The Detroit News
Rising housing prices have become a defining issue for many large coastal cities such as New York, Boston, San Francisco and Los Angeles, which all have experienced double-digit price growth since the Great Recession.
Quest to leave Bay Area’s high prices and traffic grows
The Mercury News
High home prices, expanding rush hours and maybe the futile search for a cheap cup of coffee and affordable avocado toast adds up to one thing — the Bay Area is getting more popular to leave.
The Bay Area has more homes for sale, spelling relief for buyers
The Mercury News
In another sign that the Bay Area housing market is cooling, the number of homes for sale here has spiked — signaling more options for buyers, and potentially lower prices.
Google will spend $13 billion on U.S. real estate in 2019, expanding into Nevada, Ohio, Texas and Nebraska
CNBC
CEO Sundar Pichai said in a blog post on Wednesday that the company is building new data centers and offices and expanding several key locations across the U.S., spending $13 billion this year.
Tech company eyes Portland real estate sector
Oregon Business
A new app streamlines residential housing deals.
Amazon cancels plans to build New York headquarters
CNN Business
Amazon is ditching its plans to build a new headquarters in New York after facing backlash from members of the community.
Is California’s controversial bullet train still headed to the Bay Area?
The Mercury News
Gov. Gavin Newsom sowed confusion this week about the future of California’s controversial high-speed rail project, suggesting that the state must focus on a much-abbreviated Central Valley route instead of the long-heralded San Francisco-to-Los Angeles vision.
Stretching the Boundaries
The Mercury News
The hunt for cheaper housing is changing what it means to the in the "Bay Area".
Rising Bay Area rents hit communities of color hardest
East Bay Times
Rising Bay Area rents have taken the heaviest toll on minority communities, displacing more low-income black, Latino and Asian residents than poor white residents, according to a new study.
How Amazon Will Grow Without a New York HQ2
The Wall Street Journal
Amazon.com Inc.’s decision to abandon its $2.5 billion plan for a New York City headquarters could disrupt redevelopment and dash hopes for a surge in hiring in the neighborhood of Long Island City. One entity unlikely to suffer much: Amazon itself.
Google reaped millions of tax breaks as it secretly expanded its real estate footprint across the US
East Bay Times
Last May, officials in Midlothian, Texas, a city near Dallas, approved more than $10 million in tax breaks for a huge, mysterious new development across from a shuttered Toys R’ Us warehouse.
Gen Z needs to start saving early to afford a home at 30
The Mercury News
If you are part of the generation born between the mid-1990s and mid-2000s, a study shows you will need to save $304 every month for the next 12 years if you want to buy a median priced home with a 10 percent down payment, plus closing costs.
San Francisco News
Further inspections possible for SF’s Transbay Transit Center — no opening date predicted
San Francisco Chronicle
Exactly when the broken Transbay Transit Center reopens to commuters, park visitors and shoppers hinges on a painstaking examination of paperwork and possible inspections of the building for damage, officials said Thursday.
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New rail plan a big setback for future terminal under Transbay Transit Center
San Francisco Chronicle
Officials in San Francisco had planted their dreams in the empty concrete box beneath the Transbay Transit Center, calling it an end point for Caltrain commuters from the Peninsula and bullet trains zipping in from Southern California.
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Opinion: Peskin’s bill is San Francisco’s attempt to stop just about everything
San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin doesn’t deserve accusations of NIMBYism. His proposed legislation isn’t Not In My Back Yard, it’s BANANAs: Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone.
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'Monster in the Mission' battle grinds on as usual foes face off at hearing
San Francisco Business Times
For over five years, the developer has tried to push it through, while a group of about 100 local organizations called the Plaza 16 Coalition has tried just as hard to stop it.
South Bay News
Silicon Valley commercial property boom expected to persist: report
The Mercury News
Silicon Valley’s office market, powered by the boom in the tech sector that has gobbled up a growing amount of property, has enjoyed shrinking vacancy levels and steadily rising rents, according to a new report from Colliers International.
Job growth slowing in Silicon Valley
The Mercury News
The job market in Silicon Valley grew by 2.2 percent during 2018, the slowest pace of employment growth since the Great Recession ended a decade ago, according to a new report released Wednesday.
Santana Row developers eye launch of big new San Jose office campus this year
The Mercury News
Santana Row’s owners are actively studying a construction launch for the first phase of a vast new office campus that would sprout across the street from the iconic mixed-use San Jose complex, company executives said Thursday.
This City Told Amazon And Google: No Incentives For You
KUNR
A mayor from another city that tried to land big tech companies might be starting to look pretty smart after Amazon canceled its plans for a New York City headquarters. Activists and local politicians said New York had given up too much for too little.
Report: Inequality on the rise in Silicon Valley
Palo Alto Online
Despite a sizzling economy and an influx of wealth, Silicon Valley remains a bastion of inequality, with more residents now struggling to afford the growing costs of housing, child care and transportation, according to a newly released snapshot of the regional economy.
Peninsula News
Exclusive: Google to take another new Mountain View office as it gears up for North Bayshore shuffle
Silicon Valley Business Journal
The deal, confirmed by Google to the Business Journal, comes mere weeks after the company picked up another brand-new building in Mountain View's East Whisman area as the tech titan starts unveiling plans for larger redevelopments in the area.
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Menlo Park council splits on law to help displaced renters relocate
The Almanac
A proposed law to help renters forced out of their homes for no cause or because they cannot afford major rent increases received mixed responses from the Menlo Park City Council on Feb. 12.
Opinion: Teacher housing — an imperative task
The Daily Journal
Those of us who ply the political trade have many expressions about issues we encounter. One of those is: “While it’s all been said, not everyone has said it.” Keeping that in mind, here are a few more thoughts about teacher housing in my home school district.
Opinion: The concern about office construction
The Daily Journal
One of the realizations that came out of the tech boom of the past decade is that this area has a fairly substantial jobs-housing imbalance. The imbalance has been here for a while, but was less pronounced before 2010 when so many people started coming to participate in the new economic opportunity.
Palo Alto scraps downtown commercial space cap, opening door to more development
Silicon Valley Business Journal
Palo Alto elected officials voted to remove a key restriction on the city’s downtown commercial development, clearing the way for more office space to rise in the city’s central business district, though there are still strict limitations for new development in the city.
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Jay Paul's 1.3 million-square-foot Redwood City office project hits opposition
San Francisco Business Times
City officials voiced their reservations about the proposed project at a recent meeting.
Editorial: Council repeal of downtown cap is set-back for housing
Palo Alto Online
Monday night's 4-3 decision to repeal a decades-old downtown growth policy designed to trigger a one-year pause on non-residential development when a cap is reached, as it will be this year, is a setback for both housing advocates and those concerned about traffic congestion and parking.
A nature oasis opens in Google's backyard
Mountain View Voice
Next week, Mountain View officials will celebrate the completion of what might be called an oasis of nature tucked into the city’s tech center.
County seeks developer for new teacher housing project
Mountain View Voice
With five North County school districts now offering support and funds, Santa Clara County officials are seeking a developer to build a teacher housing complex in Palo Alto.
Overwhelmed by Need, 164-Unit Apartment Complex in San Mateo to Serve Missing Middle Market
The Registry
Developers in the San Francisco Bay Area are increasingly looking for ways to make their projects pencil, which has meant producing smaller units — and charging more for them — as labor and construction costs continue to soar.
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Move to district elections advances
The Daily Journal
After residents and officials submitted numerous draft district maps over the past few months, the council has whittled the list down to five — the latest step in the switch to district elections.
Burlingame in favor of residential builder fees
The Daily Journal
A proposal to establish fees paid by builders seeking to construct residential developments in Burlingame moved ahead under an effort by officials to combat the local affordability crisis.
East Bay News
Old fire station in Centerville needs to go, Fremont planners decide
East Bay Times
An old fire station in Fremont’s historic Centerville district should be razed to make way for a major retail and housing development that would reshape an entire block, the city’s planning commission decided Thursday night.