On Monday June 18, 2018, the Coalition’s Marina Committee (Committee) met with the S.R. Community Development Department (CDD) and S.R. Dept. of Public Works (DPW) for our regular monthly review of the developments at The Village at Loch Lomond Marina (aka “The Strand”). The Bay Conservation & Development Commission (BCDC) was not in attendance. [NOTE: MVA below refers to Marina Village Associates, the owner and developer of this property]
The public is encouraged to communicate with the Marina Committee using the Contact the Marina Committee form to raise any issues or concerns so that they may be brought to the City’s attention.
[NOTE: The regular meeting for May was cancelled by agreement of all participants, so this meeting was the next one following the regular April 2018 meeting.]
No further construction progress has been made since the April 2018 meeting (and for some time prior to April, as well). This is a major concern for the City agencies as well as our neighborhoods and for the new residents of The Strand. There was extensive discussion as to the possible reasons for the MVA to have halted construction, but this was only speculation. The City has little leverage to demand construction progress beyond their power to deny permit extensions when they expire. In that case, MVA would have to apply for new permits, go through the approval process, meet any new code requirements since the previous permits were issued, and pay new permit fees. Clearly, that is something that most developers would want to avoid. More on permit status later in this summary.
The San Rafael City Council’s regular meeting on July 2, 2018 will take up two items related to this project. A special tax district (Mello-Roos District) has already been established which levies a property tax on the businesses and residents within The Village at Loch Lomond Marina to cover the cost of maintenance of the public access areas and infrastructure. This City Council meeting agenda item is to set and approve the annual adjusted tax amount for the next fiscal year.
The Council will also take up an extension to December 2019 of the Subdivision Improvement Agreement which is about to expire. This agreement, which covers the subdivision infrastructure work (roads, sewers, power, gas, electricity, etc.), is not fully complete, notably missing the flooding mitigation for the breakwater connector and the playground. MVA is requesting that the City accept some of the infrastructure work that has been completed and reduce the required bonds accordingly. There was extensive discussion regarding the nature and extent of this Agreement and related bonds, and whether any leverage exists to tie this extension to further agreements regarding project progress. However, it would seem that tying the bonds intended to ensure the completion of the infrastructure to that of the building construction is likely illegal and not within the power of the City.
This discussion ended with a suggestion that the City might want to escalate the issue of construction progress up the management “chain” from MVA to Woodridge Capital, the ultimate owner of the property. Paul Jensen, Director of the Community Development Department, said he would look into that possibility and our Committee will follow up as appropriate.
In addition to the previous issues, the following items were discussed:
Building Permits
The permits for residential construction on the existing foundation pads next to the completed residences and across from the marina green have lapsed as have the permits for the construction of the harbormaster’s office/restaurant between Andy’s Market and the Loch Lomond Yacht Club. MVA is now require to submit new permit applications, meet any new code requirements, and pay new fees for construction to commence.
Construction for the lots at the easternmost area next to the wetlands and across from the marina (currently covered with a mound of dirt) is required to begin by August 20, 2018 or it will expire.
The permit for the refacing of the yacht club building will expire in August 2018 if the work has not begun by then. MVA has submitted a request to revise the original, approved building design and CDD has stated that they will state their opposition to such a revision should it go before the Design Review Board. These actions are likely to result in the expiration of this permit.
The grading permit for the movement of the existing piles of dirt on the property to become surcharge on the old Andy’s Market and parking lot area has expired. A key reason is that the Regional Water Quality Review Board asked for additional sampling of the area that previously housed the dry cleaners. Those samples have been taken and the City is awaiting the results. The DPW has stated that they will extend this permit once the Water Quality Review Board issues its findings.
Parking
At the request of Jeff Moss, Commodore of the Loch Lomond Yacht Club, the parking situation at the project was reviewed and discussed. Signage has been erected in the parking lot next to Andy’s Market stating that this parking is for market-use-only with warnings of cars being towed. The permits and restrictions for this parking area (called Lot E) was reviewed. The restrictions state that this lot is for the market and the multi-use building only (the commercial tenants, not the residents on the second floor who will have their own parking area), not just the market, so the signs currently erected are not accurate.
However, there is a problem due to on-going construction that seriously impacts the yacht club. There is no parking reasonable close to the yacht club. Such parking won’t be available until the pile of surcharge dirt is removed, the Harbormaster’s office is built and the resultant open area is finally paved for parking. So, the domino effect of the construction delays is negatively affecting existing businesses. It is unclear what can be done in that regard without cooperation from MVA and some interim agreement among the existing businesses.
Flooding on Connector to Breakwater and Playground
MVA has not submitted any plans to BCDC for this mitigation. Since BCDC did not attend the meeting, it was unknown what demands or pressures BCDC is providing to get MVA to move on this item. Related to BCDC involvement, MVA has not provided the necessary permit requests for the kayak dock or the fuel dock, either. The Marina Committee, with the permission of CDD, intents to contact the BCDC representative to encourage action with MVA to get the resolution of these issues moving and to emphasis the community impact due to the lack of progress on these public access areas.
Commercial Signage
An application has been submitted by MVA to the City to erect a commercial sign for Andy’s Market and the other commercial businesses that will be on the property. It would be placed roughly where the exiting wood sign is located on Pt. San Pedro Road approaching the Loch Lomond Drive intersection heading east. It would be 15′ tall and lit in a way that would not interfere with neighboring residences. After initial objections from some residents at The Strand and further discussions with them, their appeal to deny the application was withdrawn. The plans will now go to the Design Review Board for approval and has the support of the Community Development Department.