Tennyson Development And TOSAs
In Which: The Planning Commission discusses shadows and trees, HUSD has a LGBTQ+ Communication Plan, And everyone is concerned about who will lead it.
Up-zoning Continues in Tennyson Neighborhood
A property located at 477 Harris Road is going to be up-zoned from a single family home to a set of three-story townhomes after receiving the blessing of the Planning Commission last Thursday. The three units will all have 4 bedrooms and be between 2,458 and 3,391 square feet in size. All units will come with a 2-car garage and there will be an extra uncovered parking spot for guests.
The reason for coming to the Planning Commission is a technicality. The lot is zoned as Low Density Residential, even though it is surrounded by medium-density residential units on almost 3 sides. The City’s General Plan designates it as Medium Density Residential, but according to Staff this is just a vision for how they City wants this area to develop.
The only thing that prevents it from avoiding the Planning Commission entirely is that it’s three stories, and the Low Density only allows two—even though it’s shorter than a Low Density home is allowed to be. The building meets the new Residential Design Standards that the Planning Commission passed in 2023, achieving 80 points when only 50 are needed.
Trees, Shadows, And Parking
Commissioner Haman, formerly from the Keep Hayward Clean and Green Task Force, asked about the claim that the development was not likely to cause substantial environmental damage. “Is there any proof?” he asked. Staff said that the environment of every plot in Hayward was examined during the General Plan and that “there is very little likelihood of habitat because it was developed already.”
Multiple Commissioners asked questions about the trees, a recent favorite topic amongst the Planning Commission. Commissioner Lowe said “I want to ask about the trees.” She specifically asked about a sycamore tree and why it was valued so low by the arborist, but Staff wasn’t sure of the details. Commissioner Hardy asked why the report wasn’t included. Staff said the original report was conducted in 2020 with a previous building orientation, so they didn’t include it to avoid confusion.
Commissioner Meyers asked what the in-lieu fees were being used for and the size of the fund balance. Staff explained that the money is handled by a different department—Development Services and Housing, not Planning—so they don’t know what the balance is at the moment. However, once the funds reach a sufficient size, the City alerts nonprofit developers and uses it to help complete projects already in the works. “I’m trying to continually get my head around the effectiveness and efficiency of that in-lieu fee system,” Commissioner Meyers said.
Commissioners Hardy and Meyers openly smiled at the inclusion of two parking spaces for each unit. “I, too, really appreciated the parking additions that were made to this,” Commissioner Hardy said. The Planning Commission has often bristled at parking requirements for developments located near public transit. This lot is at least two city blocks from the nearest bus stop, so does not have the same conditions.
Commissioner Haman expressed concern about shadows and asked if a shadow study had been conducted for the homes to the west. “The City of Hayward has no shadow study requirement… we don’t have any regulations related to that,” Staff said. The building had already been flipped so that the setbacks are largest to the west to mitigate shadows as much as possible.
HUSD Discusses LGBTQ+ Communication Plan
In February of this year, the HUSD Board of Trustees passed an LGBTQ+ Sanctuary Resolution which directed Staff to develop a communication plan within 90 days of its adoption. Staff returned to the Board to show the outlines of the plan, which includes three goals across multiple outreach and engagement efforts. However, the loss of a Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA) who had spearheaded the effort, Hidie Reed, caused concern from many Trustees who feared it would not be carried forward without a lead.
A Plan With Many Goals
The Communication Plan has three primary goals, each with several action items that should help meet the goals.
Goal 1: Proactively communicate what current resources exist within HUSD to support our LGBTQ+ youth.
Goal 2: Proactively communicate to families, and support staff members in responding to questions or concerns about LGBTQ+-inclusive student support or curriculum.
Goal 3: Support our LGBTQ+ students and allies to have access to safe spaces at school.
Supporting these goals will be an information campaign directly to families, students, the public, and school staff; a new FAQ page for the public; a resource guide; training; listening sessions; and resources for administrators. Most of the work should take place over the next school year.
According to Staff, much of the work has already been done—for example, there are already resources available for many, if not all, of the topics—but the problem has been that nobody knows about them. This is a frequent issue with government institutions, especially academic institutions.
Confusion and Concern
Trustee Rawdon pointed out issues with the how the current resources are organized on the District website. “I don’t know that I would know to look under Safe and Inclusive Schools Program,” he said, “Call it Bullying Prevention to find it.” The bulk of the plan appears to be sharing out and making accessible the resources that are already available.
Trustee Bruckner-Carrillo was nervous about the topic, which was surprising considering he is a vocal supporter of change in support of LGBTQ+ youth. “Parts of this discussion today make me a little nervous,” he said. “Hayward Unified is primed for groups like Moms for Liberty to come in.” It’s possible he was shaken by the presence of former Trustee Joe Ramos—a vocal advocate against LGBTQ+ rights—in the audience.
Trustee Bruckner-Carrillo specifically cited district elections as a cause for concern. However, The Center for Effective Government notes that, while partisanship and diversity of viewpoints grows under district elections, there are multiple positive outcomes for diverse cities like Hayward—especially students of color.
It’s possible that Trustee Bruckner-Carrillo is conflating the large Latine population with anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment tied to the Catholic Church—this is something Trustee Ramos himself often did during his comments. However, it’s unclear how concentrated anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment is within a single district.
To highlight the necessity of the actions, Trustee Bruckner-Carrillo asked Staff about both the cost for implementation to the District and the legal requirements. “Any cost to the District is incredibly minimal,” Staff said. “Ensuring our LGBTQ+ students are well-protected is required by law… it’s not something you can opt out of.” They stressed that all materials are age-appropriate and are available to be viewed by parents if they desire.
Someone Has To Lead This
Trustee Oquenda focused on the reality that the person who had recently been spearheading this work—Ms. Hidie Reed—would no longer be in her position as a Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA). “Miss Reed will not be in her position next year,” Trustee Oquenda said, and asked how the work will be done. Staff said that the work would be distributed between Educational Services and Student Services staff.
But the answer did not satisfy Trustee Oquenda. “I want someone overseeing this plan,” she said. She asked if any grants had been explored to fund such a person. Staff explained that they have been looking for grants for all of the lost positions, but the changes in Federal Administration have seen many grants dry up.
Trustee Bruckner-Carrillo continued to press for specifics. “I need a name or an [organizational] chart of who is doing this work in our organization,” he said. He said he was concerned that the plan “sits on a shelf and dies.” President Bufete agreed with the need to have a point person. “Be assured that the work continues,” he said.
Trustee Prada agreed that a lead was necessary, however she also tied it to a broader desire to see a full FY 26 budget. “We need to see a plan of what 25/26 looks like with less,” she said.
Fearing Lightning That Doesn’t Strike
Although there were many people in the audience, those who spoke during public comment were universally supportive of the communication plan. However, they were also universally concerned about the removal of Ms. Reed from her position as TOSA and what that means for implementation.
“There is no real plan before you,” President of HEA Mercedes Faraj said during public comment, “You do need the refinement of who and when.” Multiple teachers and HEA members spoke in support of Ms. Reed and urged the District to consider either reinstating her role or finding some other point person to lead the way.
But once the discussion of reinstating TOSAs began, it opened the door for other asks, as well. Araceli Orozco, who ran for HUSD School Board in past years, supported the plan while also highlighting the issue of not having a person responsible for it. However, she then pivoted to asking for a TOSA for the Special Education Program, alleging that they had been under-supported for years. A second parent caller felt similarly as Ms. Orozco.