RHNA & Housing Mandates — A Town Built to Resist Density
active• hillsborough
Hillsborough presents one of the most philosophically pure versions of California's housing mandate conflict: a town explicitly designed around large-lot single-family homes, with no commercial corridor, no transit of its own, and no tradition of density — now required to plan for hundreds of new units. The Town's RHNA allocation for the 2023–2031 cycle was larger than neighboring cities, driven by ABAG's methodology which accounts for jobs-housing balance and regional equity — a calculation that effectively penalizes high-income, low-density communities. The town adopted a Housing Element identifying potential sites, primarily along its edges, but production has been minimal. While Hillsborough does not have a Caltrain station within its boundaries, the nearby Hillsdale and San Mateo stations create SB 79 spillover pressure on adjacent parcels — and the town's own vulnerability assessment process, listed in its 2026 work plan, will need to grapple with state housing law as a primary risk factor.
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Related cause: Housing Affordability
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