Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the PQP Lands topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Task force defers citywide review of school and faith 'PQP' lands, staff cites SB 79 timing
Summary
Staff recommended pausing a citywide conversion study of public/quasi-public (PQP) lands — including school and faith properties — until the effects of state law SB 79 are clear; commissioners were split, with some urging a recommendation now and others urging caution and respect for institutional governance.
City planning staff told the General Plan Task Force they are not recommending a citywide push right now to convert public/quasi-public (PQP) lands such as school campuses and faith institutions to residential uses.
Staff rationale: planners said PQP lands are intended to preserve institutional and community-serving uses, and a thorough citywide analysis of which PQP sites could convert to housing would be a substantial undertaking. Given the July 1 implementation of Senate Bill 79 and the uncertain extent to which SB 79 will change allowable uses near transit, staff recommended waiting to see how SB 79 plays out before initiating a broader PQP conversion study. Staff said individual PQP owners (schools or faith institutions) who want to pursue housing could still come forward for case-by-case review.
Pushback and support: several task force members and members of the public urged action. Commissioner Young and others asked why staff would not recommend facilitating conversions now, especially given letters from SPUR and SV@Home urging citywide consideration; staff replied that many PQP sites sit outside SB 79 areas, that a citywide conversion study would be resource-intensive, and that the city must weigh losses of institutional land against housing gains.
Next steps: staff suggested the topic could be revisited in future meetings and be included in the next general-plan update; commissioners were invited to include PQP guidance in any recommendations sent to the Planning Commission and City Council.
The meeting produced no formal action on PQP lands; staff will continue to accept inquiries from individual institutions and may return to PQP analysis later in the general-plan timeline.
