Advocating for MORE housing of all kinds! 
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Because a few people commented yesterday that they were just hearing now about the Vallco project, we're having another long review of "the most extensive outreach we've ever done."pic.twitter.com/x8PqfPjP6G
"One citizen described to me that it was like disclosing if you were pro-Donald or pro-Hillary." Planners describe that some folks wanted to give feedback without being outed as supporters or opponents.
With all these concerns about jobs/housing balance, Cupertino City Council could decide to eliminate exclusionary zoning, upzoning to a minimum of 4 units everywhere and set off a missing middle building boom! I'm sure they'll do that.pic.twitter.com/I9kkHNgMTO
City Council member talks about how he didn't like how nasty some folks got last night, encouraging a civil discourse. No public comment tonight, but you might still want to pop the popcorn.
So, how did we get here... The entitlement process was becoming a nightmare, when suddenly SB 35 became an option. Suddenly Cupertino was on notice that they had a countdown clock before they had to hand out permits.
Faced with this, the city started to scramble. Hence the sudden embrace of a Specific Plan option.pic.twitter.com/cbVKOuapWD
With the Tier 2 Specific Plan, "what we don't want is for a project to come in...then the developer uses state law to get an additional density bonus and gets waivers and concessions. ...in order to achieve that, we had to go ABOVE the state density bonus."
"What is the functional limit on adding housing ...before we need to go back and have another process?" "...the functional limit on this site is 2668." "Why can't we add another hundred?" "...process." (whispers, they'd likely have to redo the EIR - aka a fucking nightmare.)
"One of the motivating factors behind SB 35 was to create an opportunity for qualifying projects that provide high levels of affordable housing to streamline their approval process and fasttrack the production of those units."
Thanks @NancySkinnerCA, @Scott_Wiener, @DavidChiu!
"If anyone sues with any of these proposals, there is a cut in benefits. How are we supposed to control that? ...I mean, you can sue for any given reason! If someone sues we can lose millions of dollars in benefits?" Well, maybe don't take years to allow housing?pic.twitter.com/VhspvuL4bW
"A lot of money has been spent, to no avail. ...ultimately the developer said we can agree to this package of community benefits, but only if we are successful THIS TIME." Delay costs the developer money, and they're passing it on to the city...pic.twitter.com/s3iRWt9szt
Mayor Darcy Paul, of the infamous the housing shortage isn't "dire" quote, is spinning out a hypothetical where the developer might sue itself in order to cut the benefits package. Are they talking themselves into the SB 35 option?
"Anyone could sue. ...I would personally like to take this out of the development agreement, I think it's onerous," says Councilmember Scharf who totally isn't going to help Better Cupertino sue this project...pic.twitter.com/NkySduHTrm
"Does our economist have an estimate of carrying costs?" "we see flat prices, flat rents in the past year, while construction costs continue to escalate. ...every day of delay is a cost to this project." City economist thinks the estimate of carrying cost is high, but not cray.
Mayor Paul is starting to slam the project on having more office and retail than would be ideal. Um... in order to pay for all the extra benefits Cupertino demanded!
"If we don't deliver enough housing to meet those jobs, then those employees are going to be living somewhere else." Ok, you're close to understanding why you should allow housing in all of Cupertino and eliminate exclusionary zoning...
It's really breathtaking that we're sitting through a presentation on jobs-housing balance from the mayor of a town that once declared the shortage isn't dire, and isn't meeting their Regional Housing goals. https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/02/05/cupertino-mayor-says-housing-shortage-isnt-dire-local-activists-disagree/ …
"We need to send a clear message that we've very dedicated to balancing out the number of housing units and jobs." Dude, you literally had years to have an all-housing project get permitted. Years.pic.twitter.com/iIWrCj86IU
"We're in a significant housing crisis. Yes, we need to be going long on housing." So... you're going to speed up housing production all over Cupertino? Yes?pic.twitter.com/d7Uz1fLQPZ
"I think we left too much on the table." Mayor Paul thinks we should be demanding more from developers, who are already walking away from this nonsense to opt for SB 35. I'm sure he's equally committed to Prop 13 reform...
Councilmember Chang proposed a "thought experiment" last night of 9,600 units. Now he says he remembers it as 12,000 units. We do not hate this thought experiment.pic.twitter.com/JmP4Fj3bZS
"If we allow for 12 stories, 25 acres would be available for roads, open space, parks..."pic.twitter.com/wZKq1ZxUNc
This would have been super fun maybe like 3 years ago. Right now, it's pure hail-mary-please-don't-make-us-do-anything nonsense.
Chang talks about the time that went into all of these negotiations. Paul thinks he could have negotiated a better deal. Chang says many people think they can just demand a deal and get it, coughtrumpcough, but that's not how it works.
Paul makes it clear that he was counting who was a "nonresident" speaking, 24 RESIDENTS came to oppose. "Cupertino has 65,000 residents... So, you want to make a decision based on 24 residents or 65k?" says Chang.pic.twitter.com/OfZbAVMLPQ
"Whether or not Vallco ever gets built...and this will take years and years and years... we know what's happening in other cities... they're building more and more. ...If we don't get mass transit solutions, we will suffer the consequences."
Councilmember mentions, "You can read about projects in San Francisco where the entitlements are being sold." (The pipeline in SF is completely dead, btw. Alert Alert Alert.)
"We are a transit-starved city." Good conversation about how transit must be improved no matter what happens here tonight. Regional transit solutions are needed!
"I think we're losing ground on what we SAY we all want. Construction costs are going up by about 8% a year...incomes from the low and medium incom people aren't keeping up...projects just aren't getting built...people are just walking away..." says Councilmember Sinks.
Mountain View is telling the councilmember, they're "having to waive some of our mitigation fees just to get affordable housing built." (Will SF be as brave as ... Mountain View?)
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