Downtown Novato could soon be home to 227 new low-income households, provided the application by developer AMG & Associates goes through. Is this a good project? And does it have a chance?
The proposal and context
AMG & Associates wants to build a 75-foot (6-story), 227-home building at Fourth and Grant in downtown Novato. [1] According to the project proposal, the homes would all be one-bedroom or studio homes, limiting the impacts on local schools, and would be restricted to people making between 50 percent and 80 percent of the area median income. The project would also incorporate 8,190 square feet of ground-floor retail in 3 shops. There would be an outdoor grilling, gardening, and common area on the second floor. The whole thing will have 51 car parking spaces and 80 bicycle parking spots. [2]
Image from AO Architects
AMG believes this will qualify for expedited review under SB 35 [3] (the city’s initial review disputes this [4]) and has filed to proceed under those guidelines rather than the more traditional discretionary process, which gives the city council veto authority over development projects. It draws upon a constellation of state laws to justify its size and low parking count: while the city allows buildings to only have a floor-area ratio of 2.0 (that is, the building’s square footage can be at most 2.0 times that of the parcel it sits upon), the project claims 3.6 under state density bonus law (and will build to 3.49); while the city requires a project of this size to build 237 parking spaces because the project is within a half-mile of public transit it is exempt from this minimum parking requirement under state law; while the city has a height limit of 45 feet here, AMG claims that because it cannot build to its allowed density under such a height limit and under state law is therefore exempt from that requirement. It claims similar exemptions for the lack of a 10-foot setback on the upper floors and less than 150 square feet of common area per home. [5]
Because of all this, the project is complex from a legal standpoint, and the city’s planning office is still reviewing all these claims. I am not well-versed in state housing law to say whether it is right to all these claims, but if so it could mean remarkable things not just for Novato but for cities on the Peninsula where the housing shortage is far more acute.
Reviewing the project
On its face, the project is extremely ambitious for Novato. It would be the city’s tallest building – though San Rafael has plenty of buildings that tall – and would be a massive boon to downtown business. Almost half of downtown Novato’s housing pipeline is in this project: 227 homes out of 487. If the city can absorb that many homes, it would presage more like it.
Aesthetically, the building is interesting. The articulated façade facing Grant helps break up the massing. I’m always a fan of balconies, so the lack of balconies seems like a missed opportunity. I’m also not a fan of large buildings rising over short residential neighborhoods, but these things have a way of becoming less noticeable with time. A city should be built for a century, not just for a year, after all.
It replaces a low-slung medical office building with a large surface parking lot, so it will serve to enhance the streetscape of Grant. While the blank walls facing eastward on Grant will be less attractive, they create an opportunity for murals and other artwork while also anticipating similar projects to come.
The Novato requirement for common space is not good policy. It allows people to remain in their own building rather than engaging with the city’s parks and businesses. Nevertheless, I’m unsure if the city’s requirements can be shirked. The building is planned to provide just 11,405 square feet of the 33,900 square feet required, but it has a roof area of around 26,700 square feet. If the building’s rooftop were also common space, it could provide for the rest of the requirement without much of an issue.
From the perspective of business and municipal finance, Grant and Fourth will be a major boost. The 174 studio apartments especially will mean much more traffic at the city’s cafes, restaurants, and bars. The project is a 13-minute walk from Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s and a 10-minute walk from Safeway, meaning downtown could see significant foot traffic from building’s residents.
Where things get tricky is parking. The building is ideally placed to encourage people to live a car-light lifestyle and allow people to give up car ownership – even if they still need to drive at times. To do this, AMG and whoever ends up managing the building will need to undertake aggressive transportation demand management (TDM) measures beyond simply limiting parking.
Living car-light in the exurbs
Unlike most of the Bay Area’s exurbs, like Danville or Brentwood, downtown Novato is relatively dense and walkable. Grant and Fourth has a walk score of 89, [6] meaning it’s within walking distance of most everything a person would need on an everyday basis. While Novato isn’t particularly bicycle-friendly (thought it certainly could be), a bike would allow the whole of the city to be within a 15-minute travel distance. In other words: a typical downtown resident doesn’t need to drive for typical errands, like haircuts or groceries.
For atypical errands, socializing, and some commutes, driving is going to be useful. This is where TDM comes into play.
TDM is a grab-bag of policies meant to encourage or incentivize people to do something other than drive and to forego car ownership. If done well, it can dramatically reduce the number of car trips made from the project and reduce the demand for parking. [7]
One of the most effective TDM measures is simply separating apartment rent from rent for a parking space. Given the small number of spaces in Grant and Fourth, I suspect this is part of the plan.
Another is providing car share in the building’s parking garage. This might be a building-owned vehicle, but most commonly this is an independent car-share company like Zipcar. This allows people to have access to a pickup truck, van, sedan, or whatever other vehicle they might need for a given trip without them needing to own the vehicle themselves. If the building subsidized the membership, that would have an even bigger impact on how many people would take advantage of the program.
Subsidizing transit can also make a difference. While many trips in Marin need a car to be convenient, not all of them do. People tend to form new travel habits when they move. Giving people an easy way to start forming travel habits by transit before they get used to driving everywhere might help encourage them to sell the car and use a combination of transit and car share to get around the city.
Does it have a chance?
The City, on initial review, does not think Grant and Fourth qualifies for the SB 35 approval process. [4] If the project cannot qualify for SB 35, then the project is effectively dead as described. I don’t believe anything this ambitious could survive regular approval.
If, however, it does go forward, would be a transformative project for the city. It would bring new shoppers and a new vibrancy to the city and will show that infill development around Marin is possible. It could also serve to revive old anti-development feelings within the community, which may have further implications for the City Council and for pro-housing development in the state legislature.
Nevertheless, this is an unabashedly good project. I look forward to seeing how it evolves.
Works Cited
[1] Amanda Locke, ‘Project Description and Application Submittal: Grant Avenue Mixed Use Project’ (AMG & Associates, LLC, 5 June 2020).
[2] AO Architects, ‘Design Review Submittal Grant Avenue Mixed Use’ (Orange, CA: AMG & Associates, LLC, 5 June 2020).
[3] Amanda Locke, ‘SB 35 Streamlined Ministerial Process Eligibility’ (AMG & Associates, LLC, 5 June 2020).
[4] Steve Marshall, ‘Fourth & Grant Mixed Use Project Completeness Review & Missing Applications’ (City of Novato, 7 July 2020).
[5] Amanda Locke, ‘Request for Density Bonus, Concessions, and Waivers’ (AMG & Associates, LLC, 5 June 2020).
[6] ‘1020 4th Street, Novato CA’, Walk Score, 12 July 2020.
[7] Victoria Transport Institute, ‘Online TDM Encyclopedia’, accessed 12 July 2020.