Help Protect Marin Community Plans

Louis Nuyens
Louis Nuyens • October 27, 2024

MARIN COUNTY UPDATE: 

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS MEETING THIS TUESDAY WILL DECIDE THE RELEVANCE OF COMMUNITY PLANS. 

COMMENTS DUE MONDAY (tomorrow) AT NOON.

 

If you signed the petition you have already received this notice! 

Apologies for duplication. 

 

If you haven’t signed the petition, it’s still up until tomorrow at 11am.

 

Petition · URGENT! — SAVE COMMUNITY PLANS! — PLEASE SIGN ASAP! - United States · Change.org
—> https://www.change.org/p/urgent-save-community-plans-please-sign-asap

 

SHORT NOTICE: The Board of Supervisors is meeting (under pressure) to decide whether community plans retain any significance

 

“Community and Area Plan policies are communities’ guidelines for the safety of residents’ homes and properties, policies arrived at by the people most familiar with, and affected by, what happens at these sites. Land control by abusive mandate is a growing, statewide controversy. Subordinating, thereby effectively killing, Community and Area Plans effectively blocks residents from the decision-making table. That is a call to action.” — Marin resident Garril Page, in her letter to BOS

 

WHEN: Tuesday, October 29th. Meeting starts at 1:30. This item is #13

 

WHERE: Board of Supervisors Chambers, Room 330, Civic Center

 

EMAILS: MUST BE RECEIVED BY MONDAY 10/28 AT NOON 

 

SEND TO: BOS@marincounty.org  Use the header: Revised Housing Element Item #13 — if you previously sent an email, you can check here to see if it’s in the file. Some are missing:

 

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This is the original petition letter:

 

We, the undersigned, strongly support the Planning Commission’s reasoning and decision that simply restores the relevance of community plans, as per court order, without staff’s unnecessary language that further complicates interpretation of our Countywide Plan. We ask you to end this contentious chapter by following the recommendation of your expert Planning Commission, and simply remove the precedence clauses. 

Amy Kalish,
Director, Citizen Marin
Chair, Tam Design Review Board (signing as an individual)

 

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Here is my sample letter written after the 10/21 Planning Commission meeting:

 

To the Marin County Board of Supervisors,

 

Our community plans have been under attack since the beginning of the Housing Element process. Staff’s unlawful language regarding precedence clauses has been rejected by the Court, and option B satisfies the Court order. 

 

The Planning Commission and the public were blindsided by staff taking their language first to HCD before presenting it to the Planning Commission, thus prejudicing the HCD to expect it. The process has been abused by staff, and power and respect needs to be restored to the Planning Commission. 

 

Giving staff the power to “weigh and balance” between community plans and the Countywide Plan will always result in the same outcome: ignore community plans. This considerable power, if it is to be given, needs to be in the hands of a trusted authority, namely the Planning Commission. 

 

If our community plans need updating, let’s approach that issue separately, as a community. That should satisfy the HCD, as our Housing Element is already compliant, and the County has been working to satisfy our stated AFFH goals and RHNA. 

 

Sincerely,

 

——

 

BOTH PLANNING COMMISSION MEETINGS ARE WORTH WATCHING 

 

Planning Commission Meeting

9/23/24  In its entirety, especially Commissioner Desser
https://marin.granicus.com/player/clip/12348?view_id=3&redirect=true

 

Planning Commission Meeting 

10/21/24  Minutes 7-20
https://marin.granicus.com/player/clip/12384?view_id=3&redirect=true

 

Marin Voice: Supervisors should follow commission’s lead on court order – Marin Independent Journal 

My Marin Voice in the IJ after 9/23/24 meeting
https://www.marinij.com/2024/10/09/marin-voice-supervisors-should-follo…

 

'Insulting': Marin commissioners rebuke planners over housing control 

IJ article after 9/23/24 meeting 

https://www.marinij.com/2024/09/27/insulting-marin-commissioners-rebuke…

 

Civic Engagement