Stanford outlines preliminary plans for new Belmont campus

Stanford University is moving forward with its goal of launching a new campus in Belmont, filing preliminary plans to redevelop the property and add up to 200 housing units.

Last year, the university agreed to potentially purchase the Notre Dame de Namur University’s Belmont campus. Stanford has now submitted an application to the city to start the approval process.

The application, filed last month, provides an overview of the university’s 30-year redevelopment plan, including expanding academic space and adding between 50 and 200 housing units for students and staff. Three historic buildings would be preserved.

“Establishing a Stanford Belmont campus presents exciting potential opportunities for our educational mission as we pursue … more purposeful engagement with the region,” Provost Persis Drell said in a statement.

The campus is off Ralston Avenue, west of El Camino Real, on 46 acres of valuable land in the middle of Silicon Valley. It has two dozen structures, including two academic buildings, four residential halls, three apartment buildings, a library, recreation center, dining hall and chapel.

If the purchase is finalized, it will become Stanford’s second significant expansion beyond its main campus in recent years. In 2019, the university opened a 35-acre Redwood City campus as administrative offices for university employees.

That move came as Stanford dropped a massive 3.5-million-square-foot expansion plan at its main campus next to Palo Alto following planning disputes with Santa Clara County officials over traffic and housing concerns — a surprise move that threw its plans for future growth into question.

Last month, the university purchased a 759-unit apartment complex on Sand Hill Road in Palo Alto for academic housing.

For the proposed campus in Belmont, city officials will now process Stanford’s application and begin an environmental review of the plan before public hearings and possible consideration by the city council.