Single Family Homes Should Not Be Demonized And We Can Build More Housing Without Destroying Our Neighborhoods

THE FACTS

Over 30 people attended the Cupertino City Council meeting in Community Hall on July 16th to raise awareness for an injustice to their property rights, and express deep concern for an invasive 23-unit multi-story project in the middle of a single-family neighborhood one block from Faria Elementary School.  During Oral Communications, 24 residents spoke out to express their concerns.

At issue is an SB330 “builder’s remedy” project haphazardly placed in the middle of a single-family housing neighborhood on 20739 Scofield Drive, Cupertino, CA 95014.   While this project is severely out of character for the neighborhood, residents who have worked hard to buy into the neighborhood and value their suburban quality of life will be negatively impacted if this project is approved and built. Several of the residents are retirees with fixed incomes, and unable to move if the neighborhood changes.

The area known as Scofield Drive already faces massive traffic during the school drop off and pick up hours, with cars lined up out to DeAnza Boulevard.  Residents and parents worry about student safety as children navigate automobile traffic into the school, and residents attempt to leave their dwellings for work, including some healthcare workers attempting to get to patients.  The Faria Elementary School drop off is exacerbated as parents are not allowed to park in the parking lot.

Moreover, there is no sidewalk for a long stretch of Scofield Drive. How will kids (5-12 yrs) navigate traffic in both directions? The proposed development is at the intersection of three roads. Backups will lead all the way to DeAnza, causing congestion on this major arterial road. It is already difficult for residents to exit their driveways to take their kids to schools on time. In addition, all the idling cars will cause excess pollution to kids and residents.

The application for the SB 330 project was filed in April 2024. The SB 330 state law is backed by developers and housing activists. It disregards zoning rules and allows for out-of-place projects, for example in this case, in single-family neighborhoods.

Given that this is Oral Communications and not an item “Agendized” by council, no action can be taken, however, the city promised to provide a response to residents in two weeks.

Residents interviewed outside of the council chambers after the meeting expressed their doubts.

The project owners have until September 2024 to file their application for the city to ministerially approve the project.  The city has repeatedly told residents that the project is in application phase, and not to be concerned.

My Point of View (MyPOV)

We should preserve the opportunity for everyone to achieve the American dream of owning a home with a front and back yard.  Reducing the stock of single-family homes takes away opportunities for all residents and future residents.  Single family homes are our most precious assets and as a city we should protect them with every tool that’s available in the city’s legal authority.

Let’s be honest. Single family homes should absolutely not be demonized. There is a time and place for a wide variety of housing choices, and we need to think about inventory with regard to what makes sense, and where. The problem with the current lobbyist-driven and profit-mongering corrupted approach is that it does not encourage actual solutions.

We need places where families want to go, where our innovators have space to innovate, and where different parts of the tech economy which grew precisely in this type of area can be preserved. At the same time, yes, absolutely, there is growth required. But getting rid of local input and environmental protections to do that, and punishing those who read and ask questions, is simply the wrong approach.

We can and should build both affordable housing and dense options in commercial areas using mixed-use zoning to improve the inventory of housing options, while maintaining our single-family homes.  Building more housing and preserving single family neighborhoods should not be a mutually-exclusive decision. We can do both with proper planning, and we should work closely with developers who share these values.

Unfortunately, the majority City Council has been promoting these types of projects under the guise of affordability. Many of these misguided state housing laws are the root cause of these problems. Scofield is, sadly, a builders’ remedy project. This is squarely within the consequences of what happens when people who take money from profit-mongering developers then write laws putatively to solve the housing crisis. The economy tanks, and we are left with projects that make no sense because people that enacted the laws are accountable to lobbying for profit-seeking interests, rather than focusing on the complex work of engaging local communities.

City Council has a role in protecting our residents and their single-family homes while observing state laws and making long-term planning decisions.   Unfortunately, the lack of a resident focused council majority has led to this travesty.  We currently only have two members, Liang Chao and Kitty Moore (up for re-election) that take the time to study the policy implications and listen to a wide range of view points before deliberating. We need more council members and commissioners who do the homework and are not afraid to ask questions.

In my preliminary research, residents of Scofield Drive should quickly register the three oaks in the backyard of 20739 Scofield as Heritage Oaks. From my understanding, these trees may not be removed under CEQA Environmental protections are still applicable to SB 330 projects Based on my experience as the Planning Commission Chair, this would also be in line with Cupertino’s Municipal Code.

In addition, should this project be approved by council, the impact to student safety and the increased traffic will emerge as a gross negligence. Residents should file a legal action and notice to preserve their rights in case a child is injured as a result of this project and the increased traffic risks.

Our elected leaders need to do their homework when such projects are proposed. This requires extensive community input, dialog, deliberation, and good governance.

Cupertino residents should support these Scofield residents as this could happen to their neighborhoods.  The city council and staff need to do the work and research to help residents as well as other stakeholders.

City Council should consider this in planning and in their agenda,

Unfortunately, this City Council majority has cancelled more than 30 scheduled meetings (City and Commission)  this year including  8 planning commission meetings already this year, more than half of the normally scheduled meetings.  The planning commission normally meets twice a month to investigate, research, and study such issues. They have punitively canceled the Economic Development Committee that was ready to do the real work of engaging the entire spectrum of local business concerns.

This council majority deliberately threw Cupertino to wolves by not acting on housing element in a timely manner. The previous administration had everything ready for them to approve. In fact, the builders remedy and YIMBY law suit is of this council’s making and their failure to responsibly act led us to this point.

Please take the time to support Scofield residents and support thinking solutions by emailing your concerns to City Council. This could happen to any single-family neighborhood in Cupertino if we’re not all careful. We need to encourage, not destroy, what makes us successful.

We are willing to work together. But as you have seen, unending political attacks and maneuvering from old and self-interested ways of doing things have created conditions that we now are forced to fix.

© 2024 R “Ray” Wang For Cupertino City Council 2024