Silicon Valley REALTORS® learned from Palo Alto city officials that the city is experiencing the best of times, but also facing challenges due to unintended consequences of its success.
At a local REALTOR® meeting Mayor Nancy Shepherd and city director of Planning and Community Environment Hillary Gitelman reported on the state of the city, updating REALTORS® on the latest developments, including the 2030 Comprehensive Plan update planning process.
Shepherd told members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) in many ways, Palo Alto is experiencing the best of times. Some of many accolades the city has received include a survey noting 91 percent of residents rank the quality of life in Palo Alto to be good to excellent; 99 percent consider Palo Alto a good place to work; ranked #1 most livable city of its size in America 2014; named #1 Digital City for cities under 75,000 by the Center for Digital Government; the Beacon Award for statewide leadership in advancing climate change solutions and greenhouse gas reduction.
In addition, home values in Palo Alto have increased 46 percent in the last five years; commercial vacancy rates are at all-time lows and values have soared between $900-$1,100 per square foot; city revenues are increasing to normal after the Great Recession; and many long overdue projects on the city's aging infrastructure repair list are getting fixed with a major infrastructure funding plan under consideration.
Palo Alto is the envy of many cities. "They want to be us and have everything we have," said Shepherd. She added many choose to build in Palo Alto because "they have the assurance that if you build it will work."
With all the success come challenges, said Shepherd, "the unintended consequences of success that are challenging the quality of life." Some view the city as experiencing the worst of times because of increase in regional traffic, local parking problems, disappearing opportunities to live in Palo Alto because of rising home prices, loss of small local businesses to upscale trendy restaurants and shops.
Shepherd said change, real and perceived, seems too much, too fast, and has brought much anxiety to neighborhoods. Rising home affordability concerns for the next generation has parents question, "Can my kids live here when they grow up?"
Palo Alto finds itself wrestling with being global city, yet trying to maintain the local, small town feel it is known for. From 2000 to the present, the city's population has increased 13 percent, making it the third largest growing city in Santa Clara County.
Gitelman said the city has to follow state-mandated regulations for housing. She indicated there is zoning for housing in the city's Comprehensive Plan, which will be reviewed in the Comprehensive Plan update. The city is conducting a series of public meetings as part of the 2030 Comprehensive Plan update planning process and is seeking input from residents. The city hopes to arrive at a collective vision for the future of Palo Alto within18 months.
Parking, however, is a major problem which the city hopes to have a solution by the end of the year, so implementation can take place in 2015. The officials pointed out that many homes in Palo Alto do not have garages, so the problem is not just confined to downtown. The city is actively looking at all options from prioritizing parking lots, working with city-owned lots, satellite parking, to improving garage parking technology, providing a shuttle service to downtown, and residential permit parking.
Other topics city officials touched on included the procedure for the design process, specific development projects taking place, historical preservation resources, the homeless, the unmet need for multifamily housing, the value of walkable neighborhoods, and the city's business registry, which they explained is not a tax, but a way the city can identify who is doing business in Palo Alto.
The Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 4,000 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.
Variations of this article have appeared in local area newspapers.
For further information, please email or call the SILVAR office at (408) 200-0100.