A 21-story senior housing tower proposed for 910 Marshall St. in downtown Redwood City has cleared a key design hurdle, with the city's Architectural Advisory Committee recommending the project's site plan and building design to the Planning Commission. If ultimately approved, the 258-foot tower would become by far the tallest building in Redwood City, rising well above anything currently standing downtown.
The project, pitched by developer R&M Properties, now needs sign-off from one more governing body before construction can move forward, according to the San Mateo Daily Journal. The revised 21-story application includes 222 senior housing units, 19 assisted living units and 15 memory care units, and committee members described the design as easing the visual impact of introducing such a massive structure to the city's low-rise downtown core. The project has been discussed at multiple public meetings and is expected to change the character of downtown Redwood City, with one description calling it an icon that is ambitious in scale but contextual to the city around it.
A Tower That Shrank Before It Grew Tall Again
This isn't the first version of the proposal. R&M Properties originally submitted a 30-story, 345-foot tower with 313 units for the same site in September 2024, a plan that would have made it the tallest building in San Mateo County, as reported by SF YIMBY. The developer temporarily withdrew that plan in February 2025 to adjust financial and design parameters, a move Hoodline covered at the time in its piece on the tower's temporary shelving. The current 21-story design, nine stories shorter than the original, is the one now headed toward the Planning Commission.
Even scaled back, the tower dwarfs its surroundings. At its planned rooftop height, 910 Marshall Street would surpass the 224-foot Oracle office tower in Redwood Shores and current downtown landmarks such as the 10-story Box headquarters and Indigo apartments, SF YIMBY's reporting notes.
How State Law Lets the Project Bypass Local Height Limits
The project invokes California's State Density Bonus Law and is seeking density bonuses and waivers from local zoning limits, including height restrictions. The current plan includes no identified affordable units, the Daily Journal reported.
The building's footprint reflects its scale. Architectural plans show a 440,500-square-foot complex with 258,400 square feet of residential space, 33,420 square feet of amenities, 1,210 square feet of ground-floor retail at Marshall and Walnut streets, and a 95-space valet parking garage spanning the first two levels, according to SF YIMBY. Designed by architectural firm HGA with landscape architecture by SWA, the building includes a third-floor outdoor terrace with gardens and an open meadow, along with interior amenities such as a swimming pool, movie theater, yoga studio, library, dining room, bar lounge and golf simulator room.
Proximity to Kaiser Triggered Federal Review
Located one block from Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center, the project required a Federal Aviation Administration hazard evaluation because its height exceeds 200 feet near flight paths for San Francisco International Airport, as reported by The Real Deal. The project's backers point to demographic pressure as justification for the tower's density: developer filings note that San Mateo County's population of residents aged 75 and older is projected to more than double over the next 20 years, driving demand for specialized senior care facilities.
Locally, nearly 19 percent of San Mateo County residents are 65 or older, 2.4 percentage points above the California state average, while 5.5 percent of seniors in Redwood City live below the poverty line, The Real Deal reported.
What Comes Next for the Tallest Building in Town
The Architectural Advisory Committee's approval of the site and building design marks a significant hurdle cleared, but it is not the final word. The tower still requires approval from one more governing body before it can proceed. Architectural Advisory Committee member Dawn Jedkins described it as the next step in development of the site and the first really tall building in downtown Redwood City. Supporters have called it a transformative addition to the city, even as questions remain about traffic near the Kaiser medical center and the absence of any designated affordable senior units in the current plan.
