A four-story condo development in Mountain View largely sailed through a City Council meeting, despite some opposition from residents who said the project was not a good fit for the neighborhood and did not provide enough parking.
In a 6-1 vote, the City Council approved a 47-unit condo development at 266 and 272 Tyrella Ave., just down the road from a controversial 7-story builder’s remedy project. Councilmember John McAlister cast the dissenting vote at the Sept. 23 meeting.
Councilmembers praised the project for providing ownership condos, including five condos set aside for very low-income households, a rarity in Mountain View.
“I’m really pleased to see this particular project because we’ve had experience with this builder, and we know that they do really good quality work,” said Councilmember Pat Showalter, adding that the developer had modified parts of the project in response to community input.
But councilmembers also expressed concerns about the cumulative impact of adding more housing in a low-density neighborhood, given the project’s proximity to a recently approved 80-unit condo development at 294 and 296 Tyrella Ave.
Combined, the two projects will add 137 housing units to a street that currently consists of single-family homes and 2-story apartments.
“The quality of life or the impact on existing neighborhoods always has to be reviewed and looked at, and unfortunately we got two projects,” McAlister said, expressing particular concerns about parking, traffic and walkability issues.
The developer is proposing 47 parking spots for the project, one space per condo, in a one-level underground parking garage. Under state law, the project is not required to have any parking, as it is located within a half-mile of major public transit stops, the Whisman Light Rail Station and Mountain View Transit Center, according to the council report.
The prospect of adding a lot more vehicles on the street, in addition to concerns about the building’s height and density, prompted several Tyrella residents to speak out against the project at the council meeting.
“There have been a lot of apartment buildings that’s been built on Shoreline, on West Middlefield, on Moffett and Castro, just around the area,” Tyrella resident Lan Pham said. “These are four, six, seven stories high. But the difference is that the streets are much bigger.”
Pham added that many apartment buildings in the city also have vacancy signs out in front, which she said indicated they are not affordable for most people.
While in support of the project, Councilmember Emily Ann Ramos raised concerns about the displacement of existing tenants. A single-family home and two duplexes currently sit on the properties. Tenants living in the duplexes earn below 30% of the area median income, the council report said.
Under state law, the developer is required to replace the duplexes with housing units of equivalent bedroom count and affordability. The law also stipulates relocation benefits for low-income tenants and gives them the opportunity to return to redeveloped properties at an affordable rent or sale price.
Ramos expressed concerns that the residents living in the duplexes were not fully informed of their tenancy rights, including access to relocation assistance.
“One of the things that we need to make sure is the actual implementation is done correctly, that they aren’t falling through the cracks,” Ramos said. “I really hope that as we look at this project, this is an opportunity for us to move forward on our goals to prevent displacement while providing the housing that we need.”
This story originally appeared in the Mountain View Voice. Emily Margaretten joined the Mountain View Voice in 2023 as a reporter covering City Hall.
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