Council approves 100% affordable teacher housing at 3265 El Camino Real

The Palo Alto City Council on Monday approved rezoning and land‑use entitlements for a 55‑unit, 100% affordable rental project at 3265 El Camino Real that the developer and local unions said is intended primarily to house Palo Alto Unified School District (PAUSD) teachers and staff.

The project will replace a vacant parcel with a six‑story, 55‑unit building that includes 32 parking spaces (mostly stacked lifts), a rooftop tenant deck for open space, bike lockers and shared e‑bikes, and a package of transportation demand management measures including free VTA passes for tenants. Council members voted 7‑0 to adopt the ordinance rezoning the site from Commercial Service (CS) to a Planned Community district and to approve the required record of land‑use action.

Council approved several conditions requested during the review process, including: prioritized outreach and a right‑of‑first‑refusal window for PAUSD employees before units are offered on the open market; a regulatory agreement that will specify how tenants’ moves are handled if their household income later exceeds income limits; and a parking pricing structure that scales with the affordable rent level. The developer also agreed to limit certain tight lift spaces to midsize vehicles and to add high‑speed garage doors and driveway adjustments to limit queueing onto El Camino.

Why it matters: Palo Alto leaders, educators and labor representatives said the project is a targeted response to a shortage of housing affordable to educators and school staff, groups the city says are essential to local schools and to the broader community. Supporters argued the location on a frequent bus corridor and the TDM measures will reduce car dependency and commute mileage for residents.

What the council heard: Chantal Cottongains, deputy city manager, and Jonathan Leight, director of planning and development services, gave staff presentations about the application, the project’s deviations from underlying CS zoning, and the eligibility and rent calculations used to set affordable rents. The staff report and city consultants explained that the developer proposed to target 25% of units at the lower “low‑income” band and 75% at the moderate band, and that the applicant reduced how those rents are calculated so the effective rents are roughly 10% lower than what the project proposed at pre‑screening.

Developer Jason Matloff and architect Isaiah Stachos described design revisions made after earlier hearings, including the addition of units and parking stalls, widening of the driveway, more daylighting and the addition of rooftop open space. Matloff said the project prioritizes educators and noted union agreements in place with the Palo Alto Educators Association and California School Employees Association chapter 301.

Union leaders and community groups were prominent among public speakers. Terry Baldwin, president of the Palo Alto Educators Association, said many teachers commute long distances and that housing close to school sites would allow teachers to attend after‑school events and reduce commute burdens. Meb Steiner of CSEA described classified staff who also would potentially benefit. Other speakers included the executive director of Palo Alto Forward and local nonprofit leaders who offered transit and bike program partnerships.

Council discussion focused on ensuring the units would go first to PAUSD employees, on how to handle tenants whose incomes later exceed program limits, and on circulation and impacts to El Camino. Council asked staff and the applicant to include clear regulatory terms that prioritize PAUSD applicants during an initial offer period, that allow reasonable transition time (for example, through the end of a school year) before a household would be required to vacate if it no longer meets income limits, and that require ongoing reporting on tenant composition and TDM performance.

The decision: The council vote was unanimous (7‑0). The record of land‑use action and ordinance include conditions that require a regulatory agreement with those implementation details, parking management rules, and TDM monitoring. The applicant and unions will finalize the operations and outreach in the regulatory agreement before building permits are issued.

What’s next: The developer will proceed to building permit review after the regulatory agreement is completed and recorded. Staff will implement the required TDM monitoring and the regulatory agreement will include enforcement and reporting steps.