City of Palo Alto | New Bay Area Development Projects #2 - a podcast by Spencer Hsu, MBA Tech Realtor
from 2023-12-14T09:44:00.261018
Welcome to my new series! We will be reviewing what developments are happening in every city across the Bay Area. Many of you that are local here see projects and construction happening but did you know that most cities have plans to redevelop areas over the next 15 years?
Let’s learn about how Palo Alto is set up right now. Palo Alto comprises 16,627 acres, or about 26 square miles. Approximately 43 percent of this area is in parks and preserves and another 15 percent consists of agriculture and other open space uses. The remaining area is nearly completely developed, with single family uses predominating at about 21%. 0.5% of the city has vacant land.
There are 35 neighborhoods in Palo Alto. Neighborhoods built prior to the mid-1940s generally have a traditional pattern of development with relatively narrow streets, curbside parking, and street trees between the curb and sidewalk. Many homes are oriented to the street with parking often located to the rear of the lot.
Many later neighborhoods were shaped by Modernist design ideas popularized by the famous builder Joseph Eichler. The houses are intentionally oriented towards private backyards and interior courtyards, where expansive glass walls “bring the outside in.” Curving streets and cul-de-sacs further the sense of house as private enclave.
So what are the plans for Palo Alto over the next decade? There are several key developments.
The key developments happening in Palo Alto are around the California Avenue Caltrain station. The area between Oregon Expressway, Alma Street, and El Camino Real are going through changes where they are creating live/work spaces, and a lot more mixed use opportunities. You can see through the map the plans in place.
The bigger areas of change are for future affordable housing projects. These are always very difficult because developers do need incentives to build these types of lower income properties. So how does a city help assist with this? Outside of giving the developers money, they will rezone specific areas which you can see is mostly around El Camino Real and the Cal Train stations, and increase the density, maximum building size, and reduce the amount of parking ratios. However, these are not guarantees that developers will want to build as it’s a math equation for them. Will they still be profitable after these changes? If not, these types of projects won’t happen. However, the plan is to create roughly 2,000 units.
I hope this was helpful to see what is coming down the pipeline in the beautiful Palo Alto. Leave a comment with what you think and if there are any cities I should cover next!
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My Background: Born and raised in the Bay Area, I spent 11 years as Technology Sales Manager before becoming a Realtor. Having personally invested and done renovations through house flips in the Bay Area, I wanted to help busy professionals in the Bay Area tech industry find their dream home by leveraging tech, data and local insights. Our team specializes in creating trusted frameworks of buying, selling, and investing in the Bay Area. In 2022, we are thrilled to share that we have helped 80 clients in the Bay Area with their moves, which positions our team as the Top 1% groups in the country. Looking forward to helping you into your next home and save/earn you more money!
Spencer Hsu, MBA, Realtor
408-547-4590
EXP Realty DRE #02077253
https://www.homesbyspencerhsu.com/
#BayAreaRealEstate
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