The Hidden Stairways of the Sunset
In San Francisco, we’re lucky to have so many outdoor options within such a big city. In the Sunset alone, we have Golden Gate Park’s trails to wander and open fields to frolic in. And we can’t forget the soothing waves of Ocean Beach. But one gem that may not be quite so obvious in the Sunset is its hidden stairways. Walking the district in search of these unique stairs is a… Read More
Trails Open but Doors Closed at Sonoma Developmental Center
Last year we were thrilled to learn that more than 700 acres of open space and wildlife habitat at the now-closed Sonoma Developmental Center (SDC), near Glen Ellen in Sonoma Valley, were being prioritized as open space in a new $40 million planning agreement between state and county officials! Since then, Greenbelt Alliance joined several hundred people to share visions for the future of the beautiful oak-studded lands and campus at a… Read More
Where Should We Build as a Region?
The RHNA HMC (Regional Housing Needs Assessment Housing Methodology Committee) can sound like a jumble of jargon. Yet this committee is grappling with some of the biggest questions in the region around how and where we grow. California state law recognizes that local governments play a vital role in developing affordable housing and mandates that cities plan for new homes. The RHNA process identifies the number of new homes the Bay Area… Read More
Climate & Wildfire Resiliency Update
As we face another dry winter and a long wildfire season ahead, Greenbelt Alliance is delving deeper into the ways that we can help our growing communities become more climate and wildfire resistant. Greenbelt Alliance has been advocating for climate-healthy growth within existing cities and towns and the protection of our greenbelts for decades. We are now entering an era when the climate crisis makes this solution a matter of life and… Read More
Urge Concord to Support Affordable Homes
For over a decade, Greenbelt Alliance has worked to protect 2,200 acres of the East Bay’s former Concord Naval Weapons Station—an area double the size of Golden Gate Park—while encouraging a long-planned 13,000-unit housing development. The development will provide 25% affordable housing, making a dramatic impact on our regional housing crisis. But all of this could disappear this week if the Concord City Council is not able to finalize a project proposal… Read More
Mixed Election Results Tell Us It’s Time to Get Creative
Here at Greenbelt Alliance, election day is always hotly anticipated, even when it is not a presidential primary. We’ve been working on local land-use ballot measures since the 1960s and have seen great success (and a few heartbreaking losses) in locking in Urban Growth Boundaries around our cities, stopping sprawl development from taking over precious natural and working lands, and securing much-needed funding for permanent protection of open space, increased public transportation… Read More
Housing on the Way in the North Bay
Around the Bay Area, more homes are getting built every day. It will take time to fill the need for homes that everyone can afford, but there is relief on the horizon. Here in Sonoma County where I do most of my work in the North Bay, more than 18,000 new places to live are in the pipeline within existing cities and towns — not including the rebuild of 5,000 homes lost… Read More
Greenbelt Alliance Endorsed: Mountain View’s East Middlefield Road
Greenbelt Alliance is excited to endorse the East Middlefield Road project! East Middlefield Road is a 460-unit residential development by SummerHill Housing Group in Mountain View’s East Whisman Changes Area, comprised of for-sale condominiums and rental apartments. This residential development will include 15% affordable homes and a mix of different residential product types — 36 town flats, 154 condominiums, and 270 rental apartments — with an average residential density of 76 units… Read More
A Win for Affordable Homes: Caltrain Adopts 30% Affordable Housing Policy
On Thursday, February 6, 2020, the Caltrain Board of Directors unanimously approved a highly anticipated policy requiring at least 30% of homes built on Caltrain land—not used for railroad operations or improvements—to be affordable. It also mandates that housing developments must be built at a minimum density level of 4 stories at 50 units per acre. This win is a culmination of more than 3 years of work from Greenbelt Alliance and… Read More
Greenbelt Alliance Endorsed: Terraces of Lafayette
Greenbelt Alliance is proud to endorse the “Terraces of Lafayette” project, a 315-unit residential development by O’Brien Land Company in Lafayette, CA. Every city in the Bay Area must play their part to increase their housing stock to make sure the local workforce can live and work in their community — improving the social fabric of our communities and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Terraces will provide 315 homes with 20% allocated… Read More