Sunday, September 6, 2015

[Marin County] Marin IJ Editorial: Corte Madera vows it will fix process


It is probably better late than never, but the Corte Madera Town Council is holding public meetings to explain mistakes made in its approval of a much-criticized 180-unit apartment complex on the old WinCup site.
The meetings follow a Marin County Civil Grand Jury report that takes the town to task for approving the large development in a planning process that diverted from traditional planning and, therefore, minimized public involvement in its approval.
Council members had said the size and design of the development was a mistake, and even a surprise to some. They also say that the council was forced into approving the development out of fear of a budget-crushing lawsuit, unrealistic housing quotas that were later deemed inaccurate and misleading advice from key town staff.
“A separate WinCup EIR would have placed WinCup in the public domain for a more comprehensive environmental analysis, a key process for citizen review and input,” the report says. “So, the WinCup owner saved money and avoided greater exposure and scrutiny by the public.”
Today, as construction of the Tam Ridge Residences apartments reaches completion, the Town Council is looking back and inviting “scrutiny by the public” as to what went wrong — or right.
The standing-room-only crowd at Wednesday’s meeting was a sign of the public’s interest, interest that might have been helpful if encouraged and heard before the development was approved.
The complex certainly has been scrutinized since construction started. It has become the poster child of anti-housing advocates. People have complained about its size and mass being out of scale with Marin.
Its contribution to helping Marin with its affordable housing needs is nominal given the project’s size.
There are worries that traffic generated by Tamalpais Ridge will snarl Tamal Vista Boulevard, which is already jammed when combined with traffic going to or leaving Redwood High School.
The Town Council is taking the grand jury’s recommendations seriously and is going the extra mile in inviting public discussion on this much-talked-about addition to Marin’s landscape.
Its public meetings are a step in the right direction, though too late for this development. But the review is not too late to make sure Town Hall sees the errors of its decision to deviate from a tried and true planning process on which the public has relied.
Town Council members are civic-spirited and well-meaning, but the process was a mistake — a big one, and one that is permanent.
Maybe time will mellow its impact on the landscape.
The council, in response to the grand jury and public comment, should adopt strong policies that make public review and involvement a priority and a requirement, and steer clear of short cuts that minimize community participation.
September 5, 2015
Marin Independent Journal

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