CUPERTINO — Fearing there’s a move afoot to sabotage the proposed redevelopment of the Vallco Shopping Mall, a state senator and the center’s owner have fired a broadside accusing the city of possibly violating state law and trying to prevent any homes from ever going up there.

“This most aggressive step to date by Cupertino’s anti-housing Council is akin to ripping an approved project out of the ground, then salting the earth to ensure nothing else can ever grow there,” Vallco developer Sand Hill Property Co. said in a written statement issued Monday.

State Sen. Scott Wiener began sounding the alarm on Friday when he tweeted that a Cupertino City Council study session scheduled for Tuesday is “an effort to kill Vallco development” and that city officials are “proposing to violate state law by down-zoning the site.”

At that study session, the council is to discuss whether to possibly amend the city’s general plan to exclude housing and office space uses at the mall site. Even if it decides at a later date to make the change, however, the city can’t block Sand Hill’s current redevelopment proposal if a judge ultimately upholds it.

Sand Hill wants to build 2,402 apartment units — half of them below market rate — as well as 1.8 million square feet of office space, 400,000 square feet of retail and a 30-acre rooftop park at the defunct shopping mall.

Under a new state law known as Senate Bill 35, which Wiener authored, cities must approve housing developments such as Vallco’s as long as they include affordable homes and meet zoning and planning rules.

The current and previous mixed-used proposals for Vallco have long drawn fire from a vocal group of residents called Better Cupertino, who would prefer to see the site remain mostly retail and believe plans submitted to date have been too big and dense for the city.

After two people affiliated with Better Cupertino won seats on the council in the November election, the council majority swung against the project. Meanwhile, Better Cupertino has filed a lawsuit against the city and Sand Hill to block Vallco’s redevelopment, arguing the city’s approval of the project under SB 35 is invalid.

“While Vallco already has its streamlined permit, the permit is being challenged in court by opponents. If they manage to prevail, this move could prevent other housing development at the site,” Wiener tweeted.

Tuesday’s study session follows the council’s vote last month to revoke the Vallco Specific Plan, a document that set standards for a redevelopment plan forged by some residents as an alternative to Sand Hill’s proposal. That specific plan had called for more housing units but required fewer affordable units and committed the developer to pay for additional community benefits such as school impact fees and a community shuttle.

The city says any proposed changes to development standards for the site would not affect Sand Hill’s proposal if the developer prevails in court. However, the changes would affect any plan that follows should Sand Hill drop its proposal or see it tossed by the court.

“If the SB35 project doesn’t go forward, we want to make sure that there’s standards in place that are in the city’s best interest,” City Attorney Heather Minner said.

“@Scott_Wiener seems to have misunderstood City of Cupertino’s recent discussions re Vallco site. Cupertino City Council is not proposing ANY change to the approved SB 35 Vallco project,” the city’s official Twitter account responded to Wiener. “Any discussion relates to possible alternative proposed uses for the site.”

The council has suggested Sand Hill should voluntarily drop its development plan and go back to the drawing board.

“The city still hopes it can work in partnership with the property owner to develop an alternative plan to better meet their objectives and something the city would support,” Minner said.

Wiener’s spokesperson, Victor Ruiz-Cornejo, clarified in an email that the state senator believes the city’s actions would violate the state law that requires local governments to adequately plan for housing for everyone in the community.

And Sand Hill insists the city, under the direction of a council opposed to its project, is trying to undermine its own approval of Vallco’s application in court.

“The City’s statements are designed to encourage the Court to overturn the SB 35 approval and stop the 7-million square foot residential mixed-use, mixed-income neighborhood revitalization project from proceeding,” according to the company’s statement.

Minner said the city is seeking to stay neutral in the lawsuit.

“The validity of the (SB 35) approval is now in the court’s hands to decide,” Minner said.

Reed Moulds, managing director of Sand Hill, said it’s hard to believe that the city wants to work for a project alternative when it is discussing eliminating office and residential uses from Vallco.

“Should the court not uphold the project’s approvals under SB 35, the vacant mall will effectively remain a 51-acre void in the heart of Silicon Valley, and Cupertino’s affordable housing crisis and its repercussions will become even more dire,” Moulds said. “If this isn’t a border wall being built, I don’t know what is.”

Contact Thy Vo at 408-200-1055 or tvo@bayareaanewsgroup.com.