40 Main Street, Los Altos, CA 94022
40 Main Street is a 6,950-square-foot downtown lot in Los Altos where brothers Ted and Jerry Sorensen, through 40 Main Street Offices LLC, proposed a five-story, 66-foot building with ground-floor offices and 15 apartments, two of them affordable to low-income households, over two underground parking levels served by a car lift. They applied for SB 35 streamlined ministerial approval on November 8, 2018. City staff found the project ineligible in letters dated December 7, 2018 and February 6, 2019, citing parking, the residential share of the building, height and an incomplete application. The downtown height limit is 30 feet; the project reached 66 feet with a 35 percent density bonus and an 11-foot local increase. The council upheld the denial on April 9, 2019. The California Renters Legal Advocacy and Education Fund (CaRLA, now the California Housing Defense Fund) sued on June 12, 2019, and the case was consolidated with the owners' suit. On April 24, 2020, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Helen E. Williams ruled that the city had violated SB 35, the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act and ordered it to issue permits; the owners' attorneys said the court also found the city acted in bad faith. The council voted to appeal, then dropped the appeal after the court required a $7 million appeal bond, and in September 2020 it rescinded the denial. In November 2021 the city approved a $1.2 million settlement. The old building was demolished in summer 2025, and construction was underway in May 2026. Disclosure: Los Altos Town Crier co-publisher Dennis Young, whose paper is a source here, is an investor in the project.
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Ted and Jerry Sorensen apply for SB 35 streamlining for 15 apartments over offices; an earlier plan for the site was all offices.
Mountain View VoiceStaff cite an incomplete application, parking, the residential share of the building, and height and density. A second letter follows on Feb. 6, 2019.
Mountain View VoiceCouncilwoman Neysa Fligor urges colleagues to "disregard" HCD's guidance on parking. The council adopts Resolution 2019-13 on April 23.
Mountain View VoiceCaRLA sues, arguing the city did not identify objective standards within SB 35's 60-day window. The case is consolidated with the owners' suit.
Mountain View VoiceJudge Helen E. Williams finds violations of SB 35, the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act and orders the city to issue permits.
Holland & KnightThe city calls the project oversized and the single car lift a safety concern.
City of Los AltosThe court sets a $7 million bond for the city's appeal.
Holland & KnightResolution 2020-33, rescinding the 2019 denial, follows on Sept. 22.
Holland & KnightThe deal offers about $800,000 in fee waivers if the owners switch to a four-story design; they keep the five-story plan.
Los Altos Town CrierThe old building on the site was demolished in summer 2025.
Los Altos Town CrierAn April 9, 2019 email from HCD's Melinda Coy said resident parking counts as residential use under SB 35.
Sued on June 12, 2019. Dylan Casey: "We're mainly just trying to get the city to follow its own development standards."
"We are proceeding with construction drawings for the approved building." (November 2021, after the settlement)
Represented the Sorensens in the consolidated suit, arguing the city violated SB 35, the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act.
"The judges and the communities have allowed them to flout the law." (July 2019)
At the April 9, 2019 appeal hearing, urged colleagues to "disregard" HCD's guidance on the parking question.
Staff found the project ineligible for SB 35 (Dec. 7, 2018); the council upheld the denial (April 9, 2019) and voted to appeal the ruling (July 2020). City statement: "The City is open to working with the developer on an alternative project that is better suited for the site."
Ruled April 24, 2020 that the city violated SB 35, the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act, and ordered it to issue permits.
Staff and then the council denied SB 35 streamlining, citing parking, the residential share, height and an incomplete application. The court found the denial unlawful in April 2020, and the city rescinded it in September 2020.
Staff cited height. The downtown limit is 30 feet, and the project reached 66 feet with a 35 percent density bonus plus an 11-foot local increase. The court ruled for the owners.
Each row is a dated action by a deciding body, taken from the minutes, agenda packet, video, or ruling linked in the source column.
| Date | Body | Action | Vote | Staff recommendation | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 9, 2019 | City Council | appeal rejected Upheld the staff denial of SB 35 streamlining; Resolution 2019-13 was adopted April 23, 2019. | — | Unknown | Mountain View Voice |
| June 12, 2019 | Court | lawsuit filed CaRLA sued in Santa Clara County Superior Court; the case was consolidated with the owners' suit. | — | Unknown | Mountain View Voice |
| April 24, 2020 | Court | ruling issued Ruled that the city violated SB 35, the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act and ordered it to issue permits. | — | Unknown | Holland & Knight |
| July 8, 2020 | City Council | appeal filed Voted to appeal the trial court ruling. The appeal was dropped in September 2020. | — | Unknown | City of Los Altos |
| September 10, 2020 | City Council | approved Dropped the appeal and voted to issue the permit; Resolution 2020-33 rescinding the denial followed on Sept. 22, 2020. | — | Unknown | Holland & Knight |