Milpitas Threatens Lawsuit Over HomeKey Project

Milpitas Mayor Rich Tran has threatened to sue the state and Santa Clara County over a $29.2 million plan to turn an Extended Stay America hotel into permanent homeless housing.

Santa Clara County was awarded the funding last month as part of Project HomeKey, which helps local governments turn hotels and motels, vacant apartments, and rehabilitation facilities into long-term housing for the homeless. Under AB 83, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in June, the project is exempt from local zoning and planning rules. This allows it to move forward at a much faster pace. Tran and some Milpitas residents say it is being rushed through without proper input or study.

“A lot of folks here in Milpitas, we feel kind of left out in the cold,” the mayor said, as quoted by the Marin Independent Journal. “The more folks in town are getting into this fast-moving process, the more we’re concerned about not having a voice.”“We’re seeking litigation, and we’ll take a vote on it,” he assured residents. “We’re going to put Milpitas first.”