March 28, 2024

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Stanford drops legal obstacle to Santa Clara County’s affordable-housing law | Information

Immediately after two a long time of litigation, Stanford University experienced dropped its obstacle to a Santa Clara County legislation that involves household builders to commit 16% of their new models to beneath-market-rate housing.

Stanford’s determination concludes a protracted lawful tussle among the county and Stanford above how much economical housing the college wants to present if and when it moves ahead with its campus growth. The university filed its lawsuit in December 2018, just as it was going forward with an formidable application for a new basic use allow, which would have permitted Stanford to assemble up to 3.5 million sq. feet of new progress, such as 2.275 million square toes of educational room.

Although Stanford withdrew its application for a new permit in November 2019, its litigation against the inclusionary-housing ordinance proceeded. In December 2019, a federal district court docket choose upheld the county’s ordinance and dismissed the suit. The ruling from U.S. District Courtroom Decide Beth Labson Freeman also allowed Stanford to file an amended petition to guidance its claim that it has been unfairly singled out by the county, in violation of the equal protection clause of the U.S. and California constitutions.

Whilst the county’s inclusionary-housing ordinance had to begin with utilized to Stanford land, the county Board of Supervisors approved on Oct. 6 a regulation that extends the policy to all land in unincorporated Santa Clara County. The county eventually plans to also generate an inclusionary-housing prerequisite for nonresidential advancement.

Jean McCown, Stanford’s associate vice president for federal government and group relations, mentioned that the county’s Oct determination to increase the regulation to land exterior of Stanford prompted the college to withdraw its lawful problem.

“The objection to the County ordinance in the lawsuit was that, as adopted beforehand, it utilized to Stanford by yourself, and not to other individuals in unincorporated county lands,” McCown instructed his information group in an email. “This slide, the County Board of Supervisors revised the ordinance so that it applies the exact same 16 p.c affordability necessities to all landowners through the unincorporated county. Because the ordinance no lengthier singles out Stanford, the events agreed the lawsuit was moot.”

County leaders lauded Stanford’s choice to withdraw its lawsuit. County Counsel James Williams said in the statement Friday that the county is “happy with Stanford University’s final decision to withdraw its challenge to the County’s housing restrictions.”

The county, he said, has an obligation to use the applications it has to relieve the housing and affordability disaster. He characterized the ordinance as a instrument developed to guarantee that the university “does its section to relieve the housing load within just its local community.”

“Stanford’s conclusion acknowledges the County’s authority to legislate to guarantee that the impacts of Stanford’s progress never negatively impression the neighborhood,” Williams mentioned in a assertion. “This is a get for the Stanford neighborhood and for all of us in the County combating for housing options.”

The county’s just lately authorised ordinance applies to all developments with at minimum 3 household models. It exempts certain varieties of projects, such as college student housing and accent-dwelling units and it permits builders to build reasonably priced-housing models off-web page. It also offers developers the choice of paying out the county an in-lieu price of $259,000 for each needed inclusionary unit rather than featuring the unit as reasonably priced housing.