Tara - Opposition of SB 827

From: Tara S

Date: Tue, Mar 6, 2018 at 2:15 PM
Subject: Opposition of SB 827
To: Cupertino City-Council <citycouncil@cupertino.org>

Dear Mayor Paul and Councilmembers,

I'm writing to urge the Cupertino City Council to affirm its opposition of SB 827.

While we can all agree that it makes sense to build housing near transit, it should not be to the detriment of our communities. SB 827 is an extreme proposal that could intensify displacement – it is a sledgehammer approach that threatens existing communities.

SB 827 strips local government officials and community members of their ability to appropriately plan for future development. Instead, SB 827 gives developers, who are unaccountable at the local level, the power to exempt themselves from locally developed and adopted building height limitations, densities, parking requirements, and design review standards.

It is important to note that under existing law, cities are already required to zone for densities at levels necessary to meet their entire Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA).

The City of Cupertino’s General Plan promotes walk-able and bike-able communities as we move towards building transportation infrastructure that doesn’t require single-occupancy cars. Planned Development Areas (PDAs) account for 80% of our future housing needs and include properties within a quarter mile of Stevens Creek Boulevard from Highway 85 to its eastern border and a portion of North and South De Anza Boulevards which currently allow for 25-35 units per acre.

Some in our community are worried that transit agencies risk influencing land use decisions by adding or changing bus routes either intentionally or unintentionally. 

SB 827 allows private for-profit housing developers to determine housing densities, parking requirements, and design review standards within one-half mile of a “major transit stop,” or along a “high-quality transit corridor” which could be miles away from an actual bus stop.  Additionally, housing developments within these areas can range in height between 45 feet and 85 feet depending on the desire of the developer.

This bill threatens local land use plans that cities work so hard to encourage while also not addressing our affordability crisis. SB 827 would undermine locally adopted General Plans, Housing Elements (which are certified by the Department of Housing and Community Development), and Sustainable Community Strategies (SCS). 

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Thank you,

Tara S