San Rafael, CA – A public meeting is set for March 29 to collect and record comments for the environmental review of the Marinwood Plaza project, a neighborhood shopping center that is targeted for significant mixed-use renovation.
The meeting will be from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Lucas Valley Community Church, 2000 Las Gallinas Ave. Oral and written comments on environmental concerns with the project will be accepted by staff members of the Marin County Community Development Agency, which is overseeing the planning process and including all relevant feedback in the environmental impact report (EIR). At such scoping sessions, only feedback relating to environmental concerns will be collected, not whether the overall project has merit.
The shopping center at 187 Marinwood Ave. in the unincorporated area just north of San Rafael is home to Marinwood Market, a small liquor store and several vacant commercial locations. The center also is home to a year-round farmer’s market in the parking lot. The market, liquor store and farmer’s market are part of the future plans as well.
BRIDGE Housing Corporation of San Francisco has submitted papers on behalf of the property owner, Marinwood Plaza LLC, to develop the northern and southern portions of the site with residential, commercial and mixed-use buildings. The total building area proposed is 124,302 square feet, including the portions of the commercial building proposed to remain and the proposed carports. Businesses and market-rate apartments would be developed on the northern lot, while the southern lot would be developed with buildings with affordable apartments.
The County is preparing an EIR in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Public comments on the scope of issues to be evaluated in the EIR are encouraged and accepted until 4 p.m. on Monday, April 7. Comments can be submitted via email to envplanning@marincounty.org or mailed to the Community Development Agency, 3501 Civic Center Drive, Suite 308, San Rafael CA 94903.
Details of the proposed project are online and on file with the CDA office. Hard copies are available for public review from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays in Suite 308 of the Marin County Civic Center.
Materials prepared for the public meeting are available on the Community Development Agency’s Environmental Planning webpage and will be available at the meeting in hard-copy form. The best way to stay informed about the Marinwood Plaza plans is to subscribe to the page and receive emailed updates.