Three years ago, the Mountain View City Council approved Google’s plan to build 1,900 new homes at Middlefield Park that included a 2.4-acre land dedication to the city for affordable housing.

Scott Stewart’s yard is a mess. The large orange dirt patch situated on the corner of Massey Avenue and East Webb Street in Mountain View is dotted with shells of 8-by-16-foot to 8-by-24-foot ...