Friends of Downtown Menlo Park,

Last month, a council member made this remarkable claim about using the downtown parking plazas for housing:

“This really isn’t a discussion about downtown. It is also not really a discussion about affordable housing. We’ve made a commitment to the state. The previous Council made that commitment, as has every city across the state. We have to honor that.”

But that is not true.

Cities routinely amend their Housing Elements to adjust site selections. Menlo Park can do the same to reduce reliance on the downtown parking plazas.

It's also important to remember that the 2031 Housing Element deadline is a planning deadline, not a construction deadline. We have both the time and the flexibility to change course.

San Mateo is showing how. Last month, they submitted an amendment to their Housing Element after concluding that certain parking lots were not viable for housing.

Watch Our Short Video About This:

[On Instagram] or [On YouTube]

Please help us get this information out to the community. Share the above video, follow us, and consider donating to support our outreach.

At tonight's Dec. 2 meeting, Council will decide the next step for our Citizens Initiative. Whether they adopt the ordinance, place it on the ballot, or call a special election - this is a significant moment for democratic participation in Menlo Park.

You can send a quick email expressing support for the Citizens Initiative to city.council@menlopark.gov 

With your help, we will ensure that Menlo Park voters have a meaningful say in the decisions that will shape our downtown for decades to come.

Thank you,
Save Downtown Menlo

P.S. The "Next steps" below are for Change.org, not us. Instead, please visit savedowntownmenlo.org. 

Paid for by Save Downtown Menlo: A Coalition of Residents & Local Businesses, FPPC ID# 1481518