NBA star Stephen Curry and his wife, Ayesha, live in a mansion valued at over $31 million in Atherton, California. They have recently expressed strong opposition to a proposal to transform nearby single-home acreage into a property that could house dozens of less fortunate families — families whose relative wealth may have been eaten away by inflation during President Joe Biden’s tenure or diminished in the FTX crash.
Curry, who endorsed Biden in 2020 and promoted FTX as part of his “long-term partnership,” noted in a letter to the town of Atherton that he hesitated “to add to the ‘not in our backyard’ (literally) rhetoric,” but nevertheless suggested that the possible construction of 16 three-story townhomes nearby would generate “major concerns in terms of both privacy and safety.”
What are the details?
Atherton seeks to rezone a 1.5-acre property at 23 Oakwood Blvd., where there now stands a single-family home, reported the Almanac. The owner, David Arata, wants to put up 16 townhouses.
These units won’t be purposed for very-low or low-income housing — to the reported pleasure of the Currys and their neighbors — because, per council member Rick DeGolia’s suggestion, land is worth approximately $8 million an acre in the area. However, modest and more affordable housing options would be possible on the location.
Arata, who initially sought to put up 30 units, some of which would have catered to lower-income families, told the Almanac that the townhouses would resemble a “little village” contra a housing project.
The Currys sent a letter on Jan. 18 expressing their opposition to the proposal to generate more housing opportunities nearby for those without $31 million in reserve.
The former FTX rep suggested in his letter that should the opposition to the townhomes fail, he and his wife want the town to commit “to investing in considerably taller fencing and landscaping to block sight lines onto our family’s property.”
The Currys are not the only ones in Atherton apparently having troubles imagining lower-income families living nearby.
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Atherton must adopt a suitable Housing Element by month’s end, to the satisfaction of state authorities, otherwise California state authorities might end up making the determinations on the town’s behalf.
Atherton was supposed to plan for 348 new units across various income levels.
The Almanac suggested that uber-wealthy residents and council members alike have described the process of trying to determine where to place the lower-income housing as a game of “whack-a-mole,” since every time a space is proposed, someone nearby has objected.
Despite the ongoing “whack-a-mole,” some residents penned a letter claiming “we all benefit by welcoming neighbors of diverse income and cultural backgrounds, and that there is room for more here in Atherton.”
The Currys’ letter made clear they would not benefit from new neighbors and would prefer for them to be out of sight and out of mind.
When joining the nonprofit NinetyToZero in 2021, Curry stated, “Bridging the racial wealth gap is one of the biggest challenges of our generation,” adding that “uncovering solutions and creating opportunities is something I’m profoundly committed to.”
Chicks on the Right tweeted in response to news of Curry’s letter, “They never mean for their policies to affect them PERSONALLY.”
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