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80 Willow Project Specifications

An Outsized Development

80 Willow Project Specifications

An Outsized Development

The proposed 80 Willow project is a development of unprecedented scale and significant implications for the community.

  • Massive Scale

    At 461 feet, the tallest tower will be the highest between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The project as a whole will total 1.7M sqft—surpassing the Salesforce Tower’s 1.4M sqft.

  • Hugely Commercial

    The project is hugely commercial, encompassing 530,000 sqft commercial, dedicated to offices, along with a 5-star hotel.

  • Exacerbates Housing Imbalance

    While projected to create 3,000 new jobs, the development offers a disproportionately low 665 new housing units, which is expected to worsen the existing jobs/housing imbalance.

  • increased Traffic & Poor Transit Access

    Despite being over a mile from major transit by road, the project includes only 40% of standard parking. It’s expected to generate 7,000 daily trips, adding significantly to traffic and vehicle miles traveled.

  • Counter to Menlo Park’s
Housing Plan

    The site for this project, 80 Willow Road, was specifically left off the Menlo Park Housing Element’s list for development due to historic, ecological, and safety reasons related to the adjacent creek.

Community Impact

What 80 Willow Means for Menlo Park

The 80 Willow project poses numerous adverse impacts on the Menlo Park community, affecting everything from housing and traffic to historic preservation and environmental safety.

Tree Illustration
  • Worsening Housing Deficit

    The imbalance of 3,000 new jobs versus only 665 new housing units will horribly exacerbate the jobs/housing imbalance, resulting in an additional deficit of 700 housing units in the Menlo Park.

  • Severe Traffic Congestion & Safety Risks

    The project will vastly increase vehicle miles traveled (VMT) and local traffic, which is likely to impact emergency safety vehicles at the adjacent fire station. Furthermore, it could potentially push 2,000 additional cars onto local neighborhood street parking.

  • Destruction of a Historic Asset

    The development threatens to destroy a state-registered historic asset: the former home of Sunset Magazine, which served as the “laboratory of Western Living”.

  • Environmental and Safety Hazards

    The project risks creek ecology and poses concerns for neighborhood safety due to its location in a creek liquefaction zone.

  • Undermining City Planning

    The 80 Willow project damages the Menlo Park city housing plan and destroys the balance of housing across the city, placing outsized burden on District 3.

Tree Illustration
Not a Normal Project

Understanding the “Builders Remedy”

The 80 Willow project is not a typical development. It stretches the limits of a state law known as the “Builder’s Remedy”,  which significantly limits local control and oversight.

Flagrantly Over-Exploiting a State Law

The developer is using the “Builder’s Remedy” in state law. This provision allows for outsized projects to proceed when a city does not have an approved housing plan. At the time of the application, Menlo Park’s housing plan had not yet been approved by the state, allowing this application to proceed.

Narrow Scope of Impact Assessment

The City can only consider the project’s impact against existing objective standards in just three areas: the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Health, and Safety

“Anything Goes” for Developers

Under the Builder’s Remedy, if a mixed-use project commits two-thirds of its square footage to housing and includes 20% below market rate (BMR) units, the developer “gets anything goes” – meaning no height or density limits are imposed.

Limited Local Review

The City’s ability to review and regulate this project is severely restricted. There will be only 5 public sessions for review.

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The Path Forward

Community Action & Project Review Timeline

Navigating the 80 Willow project requires a clear understanding of the ongoing review process and active community involvement.

Current Project Status

As of now, the City has deemed the application complete, an analysis for environmental, safety, and health impacts is underway, and an EIR consultant has been selected.
Public
Comment

EIR Scoping

Defining the scope of the environmental review.

EIR Preparation

Preparation of the detailed Environmental Impact Report (~ 17 months).
Public
Comment

Draft EIR Review

This stage reviews the draft report and considers possible mitigations or plan changes.
Public
Comment

Future City Council Votes

City Council holds a series of votes on whether to approve the Final EIR and on which mitigation measures will be required.

California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA)

Environmental Impact
Report (EIR) Process
(Anticipated 17 Months)

Detailed city checklist
and evaluation

The city evaluates all aspects of the project for
health and safety using objective standards.

Your Voice Matters

And with your help, we can shape the development of 80 Willow Road to ensure the future of our community reflects our shared values.

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