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As the peninsula faces a severe housing shortage, San Mateo County is exploring where to plan for growth and ways to expand and protect the supply of affordable housing over the next decade.
The final plan will help shape the region's future, the county said in a statement, as communities that long relied on relatively affordable housing to attract new residents and drive economic and job growth can no longer count on that advantage.
The County has released for public review a draft Housing Element outlining the expected housing needs for the next eight years, from 2023 to 2031, which incorporates strategies to create up to 3,414 new housing units of various types in unincorporated areas.
The draft Housing Element 2023-31 covers the unincorporated areas of the San Mateo County, that is, the half of the county that is not within the limits of a city or town, including Pescadero, Montara, Broadmoor, Emerald Lake Hills, North Fair Oaks, and unincorporated Colma.
The main focus of the project is to ensure decent, safe, hygienic and affordable housing for current and future residents of unincorporated areas, including those with special needs.
Key goals also include protecting existing affordable housing, supporting housing for extremely low- to moderate-income families, and promoting housing near employment and transportation centers.
It is noteworthy that the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors will hold a hearing on the Housing Element Project at its regularly scheduled meeting on December 6, 2022.
The draft notes that “housing costs remain unaffordable for the majority of county residents, and many households… are overpaying for housing.”
In 2019, more than half of renter households paid more than 30 percent of income for housing, and about a third paid more than 50 percent, with the vast majority of renters being of Hispanic and/or Latino heritage or other communities of color.
The county noted that these renter households are much more likely to experience overcrowding, with some areas experiencing 20 to 30 percent of renters living in such circumstances.
State law requires the County, like all local governments, to update the Housing Element every eight years, while assigning a number of housing units to be planned during that time.
Key strategies to achieve the goal of creating up to 1,414 housing units include identifying all available housing sites, rezoning industrial areas for additional housing, incentivizing the creation of accessory dwelling units, protecting mobile home parks from conversion, and reducing barriers to housing production throughout the county.
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