Plans for Menlo Park apartment complex submitted under developer loophole

A developer is looking to use a legal workaround to advance plans for a 140-unit apartment complex in Menlo Park.

Located at 104 Constitution Drive less than two miles away from Meta’s headquarters, the 92-foot building would measure eight stories and include 151,000 square feet of residential space. Greystar, the project’s developer, aims to construct the building on a portion of the land allocated for Vasara — its ongoing project at Constitution Drive that includes a 335-unit apartment building that recently opened. The new 140-unit complex would replace a 34,499 square foot office and commercial building that was originally approved at the site.

Greystar submitted the project proposal earlier this year under the “builder’s remedy,” a strategy that has gained traction among developers.

The provision allows developers to seek streamlined approvals of projects of virtually any size — so long as 20% of the units are deemed affordable — in cities without a state-certified housing plan, also known as a housing element. The state gave its stamp of approval on Menlo Park’s housing element in March, but Greystar had already submitted its application.

Tenants in San Mateo County qualify for affordable housing if their income falls at or under 80% of the county’s area median income (AMI). In May, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimated that 80% of San Mateo County’s AMI for a family of four works out to an annual income of $156,650. Greystar plans to allocate 28 units — 20% of the 140 — for affordable housing.

More than 360 of California’s 539 local jurisdictions hold state-certified housing elements, according to data from the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). Slightly more than 30% of the jurisdictions do not have state approval and may have to comply with builder’s remedy proposals.

Menlo Park is one of 11 jurisdictions with state-approved housing elements in San Mateo County. Five others remain under review, while HCD found housing elements in four jurisdictions noncompliant.