Comments by Steven Hyman

Coastal Commission votes unanimously to oppose Beachwood settlement bill

I was wondering which one of the Friends of the Coast would be the first to try and kill the bill. It won't be long now till the others add their 2 cents. It still remains to be seen how this will play out in Sacramento. Its probably too much to think that common sense will prevail. As a result, HMB may be one of the first towns that can have a $23 million Wetlands Theme Park (which includes the $5 million down payment made to the lawyers). I envision a Disney type ride going through the towering…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

Ken, Not that it matters but I thought it would have been cheaper but probably more complicated to rebuild Cunha on its current site since the School District already owned the land. I think the argument at that time was the school needed a bigger parcel 25 acres versus 17 or so for the current one. My point was that so many projects here take sooo long. The bond measure was approved in the late 1990's and we just broke ground last year.

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

Ken, The $5 million was for money paid out to defend the case to the previous attorneys.

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I think its great when you can stand on principles. You also have to be able to back it up with your wallet. Assuming the new law isn't passed, the City will be paying $23 million ($18 million settlement and $5 million for lawyers) for a piece of dirt that's actually worth a fraction of that. And they will almost bankrupt themselves paying off the debt. There probably won't be another lawsuit like this again because the City won't have the resources to wage another battle. They'll be forced to fold…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I try not to play the blame game. In hind sight, I think poor decisions were made a while ago and we are paying for it now. What I find most frustrating about our beautiful community (and I truly love it here) is that nothing ever seems to get done. Beachwood was a 20 year fight and so was Pacific Ridge. North Wavecrest and the new school were a 15 year battle. North Wavecrest probably angers me the most cause my son was supossed to be the first graduate of the new middle school. He's now a junior…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I sense the frustration of many here who whould rather have seen the City Council fight this lawsuit all the way to the Supreme Court, costing HMB $50 million + and spending the next 10 years making lawyers rich. As someone who deals with negotiations all the time, its interesting to see how things play out. I could envision at the first meeting the City telling Keenan that we won't pay you a dime. And he responded by saying you owe me $40 million now and it will be $50 million in 3 years. And since…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

Hi Dennis, I guess we see things a little differently. The judge didn't cause HMB's problems, the City did this to themselves. The City thought enough of the judge's ruling that they decided to settle the lawsuit rather than appeal it. That probably makes the judge more right than wrong. And for your other question. I've lived here now for over 25 years and I've seen a lot of changes. Many new neighborhoods were created during that time. I would expect that all these neighborhoods would be challenged…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I know its so easy to blame all our problems on George Bush, Dick Cheeney and Ronald Regan but to be honest you don't have to look any further than Main Street HMB for the mess we are in. Dan, I really think you hit the nail on the head with your comment of "Spend money like crazy. Empty the Treasury and transfer the People's wealth to corporations". With the advice of lawyers and anti-growth supporters, that's exactly what our City Council did. We have foolishly wasted millions of dollars on frivilous…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

In the event that the proposed state law isn't passed, the City should consider selling some of their assets to minimize the amount of money they will need to borrow. If the Beachwood parcel includes water connections, they are worth their weight in gold. Going price for a water connection alone is around $40,000+ It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to develop a contingency plan in the event the law isn't passed so these assets can be hold in an orderly manner and get top dollar. Raw land isn't the…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I know the real estate community has been very concerned with the City's judgment. I can't speak what statements other brokers make but I disclose this problem to every prospective buyer. Up until last week, I made the letter from the Mayor about this as a disclosure item. I'll disclose the new settlement although I may leave out the cartoon. The good thing about this being resolved, sort of, is that the uncertainty is over. People can make informed decisions about what's known. Having the appeal…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

The way I see it is that the City agreed to give Mr. Keenan 129 building permits by a certain date by having a state law passed or pay him a cash settlement of $18 million by a date further in the future. This settlement was predicated on stopping all litigation. I think the options facing HMB were between bad and worse. At least with this settlement, there will be a few years grace period before they have to start paying for this.

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

The City has to have had an estimate of the likelihood of passing the bill. And as far as the City dropping the appeal goes, they can't have a settlement agreement and keep the appeal option open. Either you settle or you sue.

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

Even before Yee did his John Kerry flip-flop, I had my doubts about this bill flying. It would be cheaper than borrowing money. We'll all just have to wait and see how this plays out. My guess on the larger number of homes granted was that the City was at fault and had to remedy Mr. Keenan. Plus with the wetlands on his property, how could he get his 83 homes? And for those who feel $18 million is too much, a loss in court would have been closer to $50 million with interest and attorney fees.

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

I think you have to look at the deal the City made as a realistic assessment of their case and their take on the outcome should they have decided to continue on with the multi-year appeal. I know many people are horrified that someone can build a home or series of homes on sacred wetlands. But let's look at this property objectively. Its a big flat infill lot fronting HWY 1 that is sandwiched between 2 neighborhoods a few hundred yards from a McDonalds. This is a far cry from something like the Pescadero…

HMB settlement gives Keenan 129 houses on Beachwood and Glencree—and more

This settlement is a welcomed relief to many and ends the short-lived nightmare facing HMB. I know there are many who feel that the City folded but this settlement probably reflects how poorly they thought of their case in the first place. And playing out for years a loosing hand is only going to make the settlement bigger. As far as why Keenhan got more homes, its probably cause HMB damaged him. It will also be interesting to see if the State actually passes these new laws to save HMB. Personally,…

CUSD spending per student is near the bottom of San Mateo County

Let's not forget that schools receive a lot of their funds from property taxes. And when you have very affluent towns like Woodside, PV, etc where the average home price is more than twice of the Coast, you'd expect these schools to benefit more. Steven Hyman

Montara and Moss Beach homeowners with wells have no other options

I can't speak for all Realtors but I tell prospective buyers of either vacant lots or homes about the community water or sewer system in the respective towns. All I can tell them about what is the case today. Nobody can make any guarantees about what ordinances any particular city or county will make in the future. As far as what county would consider uninhabitable, I would venture to say that depends on the individual circumstances and probably varies by town and county throughout the state. Very,…

Montara and Moss Beach homeowners with wells have no other options

Its really too bad that both water companies that supply the coast don't have adequate supply to meet the needs of the public. But that's the way it is and that's mostly likely the way it will remain. That's also why water wells started being drilled here in the mid 1980's. Its interesting in that water output from wells varies so much throughout the coast. Alsace Lorraine and Miramar have very strong wells. The wells in El Granada are better in the lower parts than in the hills. Moss Beach is kind…

Is the HMB police budget out of line?

One of the things I've noticed over the past month is an increase in tickets being issued. I have seen an increase in frequency in ticketing cars on Main Street, even in the less traveled section like the 700-800 blocks. I have also seen the motorcycle cop looking to trap people for frivolous things like not coming to a full stop at Main and the Ford dealer or laying in wait at Poplar on HWY 1 getting people who don't cut their speed within 200 feet of the lower speed sign. If the Police Department…

Video Column: Right Here In the Middle

Hi Neil, Its really hard to know from a realtor's point of view who are buying these lots and what their exact plans are, especially if they are not our clients. The vast majority of lots I've sold recently are to individuals. Some people are single and others have large families. Their lifestyle will effect what they want to build. I'm selling a lot to a single man who wants to build a 1300-1500 sqft single story home cause that all he needs even though the house next door is over 2500 sqft. These…

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