Senior and farmworker housing proposed for 555 Kelly Avenue, Half Moon Bay

New renderings have been published for a five-story affordable housing infill at 555 Kelly Avenue in Half Moon Bay, San Mateo County. The project will replace a single-story structure and parking with 40 homes and new space for ALAS, a Latino-centered nonprofit organization providing the Coastside community with cultural and social services. ALAS and Mercy Housing are jointly responsible for the application.

The 59-foot tall structure will yield around 50,210 square feet, including 6,390 square feet for parking and approximately 2,000 square feet for ALAS. The ground floor will include the parking, ALAS resource center, and management offices. Housing will start on the second floor, with an L-shaped floorplate around an open-air courtyard with access to the community room and laundry. Unit sizes will vary, with eight studios, 27 one-bedrooms, and five two-bedrooms. Parking will be provided for 18 cars and 18 bicycles. While the plans include removing 18 parking spaces in the county-owned property, the future site map consists of the construction of 17 or 22 new parking stalls within the existing parking lot.

ALAS, whose full name Ayudando Latinos A Soñar translates to ‘helping Latinos to dream,’ was founded in 2011 by Belinda Hernandez-Arriaga, as a grassroots organization “born from a desire to help children and their families to feel proud of their identity and culture and amplify their voices.” Most recently, ALAS was recognized by San Mateo County’s State representatives, State Senator Josh Becker, and Assemblyman Marc Berman, as the county’s 2023 Nonprofit of the Year. In a statement, Becker shared that “ALAS has been at the forefront supporting farmworkers and families, not only highlighting concerns like living conditions, mental wellness, economic prosperity, and broadband access, but also providing solutions.”

Van Meter Williams Pollack is the project architect. The development will fit into the low-rise city with setbacks, facade articulation, and three-story bay windows. Exterior materials include vertical board and batten fiber cement siding, wood-look shingles, and stucco. Additional decoration will consist of decorative tiles framing the ALAS entrance. Illustrations show two potential mural spaces, each three floors tall, overlooking the second-floor deck.

The property is located along Kelly Avenue between Church Street and Highway 1. Future residents will be next to the Shoreline Station shopping center, which hosts the Half Moon Bay Farmer’s Market on Saturdays. Manuel F. Cunha Intermediate School is directly across the street, and the busy Main Street is just two blocks away. Francis Beach is 12 minutes away on foot.

The City of Half Moon Bay has owned the 1943-built property at 555 Kelly Avenue since late 2017. Initially, without a plan for using the 0.14-acre parcel, the city published a request for offers in early 2022 to develop affordable housing. Mercy Housing and ALAS submitted together plans that were reviewed in July 2022. Now that the project plans have been reviewed by the Architecture Advisory Committee this June, Mercy expects to work towards receiving approval by Summer next year, at which point the developer will start applications for funding.

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