Board approves agreement to split 74-unit Marin City project; 32 units proposed for 150 Shoreline in Tam Junction

The Marin County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 11 authorized an "alternative project agreement" with the developer of 825 Drake Avenue in Marin City, formalizing a multi-step plan to reduce the previously approved 74-unit project at Drake to 42 units if the remaining 32 units can be developed at 150 Shoreline in the Manzanita/Tam Junction area.

The board also authorized the president to execute a professional services agreement with Secular Environmental Consulting for a not-to-exceed $99,544 contract to prepare an addendum to the countywide housing element environmental impact report for 150 Shoreline, and approved related budget adjustments. The motion to authorize the agreement was moved by Supervisor Stephanie Molton Peters and seconded by Supervisor Rodoni; the board approved the actions unanimously.

Staff from the county's Community Development Agency (CDA) and County Counsel described the agreement as an unprecedented compromise reached after neighborhood concerns, litigation and state housing laws intersected. The 825 Drake project, approved under state density bonus and Senate Bill 35 rules in 2020, received ministerial approvals that limited local discretionary review at that time. Following strong community objections, the county and developer negotiated prior letters and a term sheet to explore reducing the project's size and moving a share of units to another site.

CDA Director Sarah Jones said the 825 Drake site is a one‑acre parcel amid residences and immediately adjacent to the Village of Dutuwa senior housing. "The agreed path is to reduce the Drake building to a smaller footprint and relocate 32 units to a site in Tam Junction," she told the board, stressing that this item formalizes the process rather than approving either site's development today.

Chief Deputy County Counsel Brandon Halter warned that the agreement is a process commitment and does not rezone 150 Shoreline or approve construction there. He said the agreement does not rely on contested precedence clauses described in recent litigation and that subsequent entitlements and environmental review will follow standard county processes.

Under the revised plan presented to the board, 825 Drake would be reconfigured to 42 units with 45 parking spaces (an increase from the 23 parking spaces previously permitted). The developer has purchased 150 Shoreline and submitted an application for design review for 32 units there; that site is lower-lying and subject to flood risk and would require an addendum to the county's housing element EIR. CDA staff said the proposed development at 150 Shoreline would need design review and could seek density-related waivers under state law; it would not be administered under SB 35 ministerial approval.

Speakers at the public hearing were sharply divided. Residents and the community group Save Our City Coalition urged the board to stop the Drake project entirely and said the county had not adequately considered historical inequities, construction impacts on neighboring senior residents, and flood risk at the Tam Junction site. Counsel for Save Our City, Tom Whitby, asked the county to reconsider earlier housing trust fund loans given the court's prior decision invalidating the TEFRA resolutions tied to the project's bond financing.

Supporters of the agreement — including supervisors who had pressed staff for a smaller project in Marin City — described the deal as the most feasible path available given state housing law, prior approvals and the project's financing. Supervisor Damon Lucan and others noted county constraints but said the alternative agreement reduces the concentration of units in Marin City while preserving the total affordable unit count across two sites.

The board's vote authorized the County Executive to sign the alternative project agreement with Pacific West Builders/TPC, authorized the president to execute the environmental consulting contract with Secular Environmental Consulting (not to exceed $99,544) to produce an addendum to the housing element EIR, and approved the budget adjustments described in the staff report. Staff said if 150 Shoreline approvals do not proceed the developer could revert to the previously approved 74 units at 825 Drake.

Next steps include design review and environmental review for 150 Shoreline, future planning commission hearings as appropriate for design review, continued monitoring of construction impacts at 825 Drake (which is currently under construction with foundations in place), and follow-up reporting to the board. County staff also said they will propose enhanced construction management rules and greater archival access and community outreach as part of improvements prompted by the project's controversy.