CITY OF SAN MATEO
CITY OF SAN MATEO
Agenda Report
City Hall
330 W. 20th Avenue
San Mateo CA 94403
www.cityofsanmateo.org
Agenda Number: 15 Section Name: CONSENT CALENDAR Account Number: 10-3134 File ID: 26-12684 TO: City Council
FROM: Alex Khojikian, City Manager
PREPARED BY: City Clerk's Office
MEETING DATE: September 22, 2026
SUBJECT:
High-Density Mixed-Use and Multi-Family Districts, and Zoning Code Updates — Ordinance Adoption RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt an Ordinance to make various amendments to Title 27 “Zoning” of the San Mateo Municipal Code to establish four new high density zoning districts consistent with General Plan 2040 and make minor revisions to various sections to update outdated language and correct inconsistencies.
BACKGROUND:
On September 8, 2026, the City Council introduced an ordinance amending Title 27, “Zoning,” of the San Mateo Municipal Code. The amendments establish four new high-density zoning districts consistent with General Plan 2040 and make minor revisions to update outdated language and correct inconsistencies. The Council also directed staff to remove floor area ratio (FAR) requirements from the R6 and R7 residential districts and to limit the application of FAR standards to only nonresidential portions of buildings in the MU3 District (Medium Density Mixed-Use) and the MU4 District (High Density Mixed-Use). These changes are reflected in the attached ordinance in both the clean version (Attachment 1) and the tracked changes version (Attachment 2).
If adopted, the Ordinance will become effective 30 days after adoption.
BUDGET IMPACT:
There is no budget impact for this Ordinance Adoption.
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION:
The proposed Ordinance is statutorily exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 21080.17 of the Public Resources Code and Section 15183 of the CEQA Guidelines. CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 provides a statutory exemption for projects that are consistent with a previously adopted General Plan, Community Plan, or Zoning ordinance for which an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was certified. The General Plan 2040 and Climate Plan Update Final EIR, finalized in January 2024, evaluated development impacts associated with approximately 19,764 residential units and 3,186,000 square feet of nonresidential floor area. The proposed Zoning Code amendments are intended to facilitate development capacity consistent with the General Plan and would support the development of additional residential units and nonresidential floor area within the growth assumptions already analyzed in the EIR.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
This staff report supports the Land Use and Housing initiatives.
CITY OF SAN MATEO
NOTICE PROVIDED
All meeting noticing requirements were met.
ATTACHMENTS
Att 1 – Proposed Ordinance
Att 2 – Proposed Ordinance with Tracked Changes
Att 3 – Public Comment
STAFF CONTACT
Chantal Eaton, Deputy City Clerk
[email protected]
(650) 522-7044