AgdaPkt 2021.02.08 Joint SA PFA - Laserfiche WebLink

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From: Raayan Zarandian Mohtashemi To: GRP -City Council Subject: Feb 8 Council Meeting - #7a Date: Monday, February 8, 2021 1:47:33 PM CAUTION: This email originated from outside your organization. Exercise caution when opening attachments or clicking links, especially from unknown senders. Sequoia Station #7a Honorable Council Members, My name is Raayan Mohtashemi, and I'm a housing and transit advocate who lives on the peninsula. In 2015 and 2016, 1 was an intern for the San Mateo County Department of Public Works at Grant Yard, and also for the San Mateo County Department of Building and Planning downtown. I took Caltrain to Redwood City's Sequoia Station as part of my daily commute. Regularly seeing the benefits of transit - oriented development in this area was crucial in shaping my path as an advocate. My experiences commuting to the station area have prompted me to write with regard to the Sequoia Station item on this evening's agenda. I want to highlight that the transportation elements of this project are a once in a century opportunity. Analysis from Caltrain's Business Plan shows that the four -track station that would be enabled by the development would be the single biggest improvement to Caltrain service and ridership over the next 20 years. The passing station will allow express trains to pass local trains, which allows Caltrain to run more frequent service, providing higher capacity and greater traffic relief, with a more predictable schedule and better connections. In addition, the grade separations required by the passing tracks would separate the Caltrain tracks from the downtown cross streets, improving crosstown connections. The options that provide more permeability are better (not #4, Whipple only), because people walking and bicycling benefit from shorter distances rather than to take longer detours if streets are blocked off. This proposed project would provide hundreds of affordable units, importantly including deeply affordable homes as well as larger affordable homes appropriately sized for families. I urge the Council to maximize housing on this site as economically feasible. Furthermore, advancing this project will require a significant obligation to enable more housing in the city, using strategies like increased height and density, reduced or eliminated parking minimums, rezoning obsolete low-density commercial land for residential, and re -legalized middle class, multi -family homes citywide. More robust tenant protections will be important to address displacement pressure from redevelopment.