A Wealthy California Suburb Wants to Cut its First Affordable Housing Development by Two Thirds — and Could set a Precedent

A small Bay Area town is at the center of a heated battle over housing density in California, reports Ben Christopher in The Mercury News.

In January 2023, Los Altos Hills, which historically only allowed single-family homes on one-acre lots, voted to allow some apartment buildings within town limits. After residents opposed a proposed development that includes affordable units, the town council voted to reduce the number of units in the proposed project by two-thirds, arguing that the density of the original project would increase local traffic, pose a threat to wildlife, and impede emergency access.

Twin Oaks was originally slated to have 598 units, a number that was later cut to 334 single-family modular homes. The town’s updated housing element would only permit 92 units, which Los Altos Hills officials argue is the “realistic capacity” of the area. “Town officials and many local residents say the proposed changes to the municipal land-use blueprint, known as a housing element, still meet the letter of the state’s planning requirements while capping would-be development at a scale better suited to the town’s rural character and consistent with the intent of the original plan.” 

Since the town approved its housing element two years ago, three sites were identified for potential development. One is the Twin Oaks site, and “ the other two sites identified as possible multifamily developments — campuses of the Saint Nicholas Catholic School and Foothill College — never looked especially promising.” The Diocese of San José, which owns the sites, has no plans of selling or developing them.

How state officials decide to respond to the city's changes could have significant impacts in other California communities.