Seen Those Building Renderings? Here's the Facts.
Dear Neighbor,
Big news! The County of Marin has validated our petition signatures and said that we were "significantly over the threshold" needed for the November ballot. We'll keep you posted on next steps.
As our momentum continues to build, you may begin seeing computer renderings of hypothetical buildings circulating online, on flyers or in your inbox.
They are presented as realistic possibilities. They are not.
Real buildings don't look like these computer renderings. Parking requirements, setbacks, lot coverage limits, fire code, public input, and environmental review all constrain what can be built on any parcel. These renderings ignore all of these real-world constraints.
Plus, Sausalito’s own discretionary review process gives the city discretion over what gets approved.
But don't just take our word for it. Here's a quote from the original builder of 28 & 30 Liberty Ship Way, the very buildings depicted in these renderings. It's just one of the many flaws in the renderings.
“Your analysis of the building fails to accommodate the required parking ratios in the municipal code. Your fictional 500,000 square foot building would require somewhere between 8 to 17 acres of parking and the parcel is sub 4 acres.”
What AIM allows is flexibility. If we don’t like how Sausalito is evolving over time, we can adjust the rules flexibly to adapt to what is being proposed. If we like it, we keep it; if we don’t, we change it.
Currently, our 40-year-old rules have frozen our waterfront in time and can’t be changed. This inflexibility has led to this:
AIM IS A FOCUS ON WHAT'S POSSIBLE
AIM is the first big step in decades to creating a waterfront that can adapt, grow and thrive.
Many of us have seen what thriving working waterfronts look like — in Port Townsend, Washington; Newport, Oregon; and Belfast, Maine, to name a few.
Towns similar in size to Sausalito that chose investment over decline. We want that here, but on our terms, in our own salty way.
As theMarin IJ editorial board wrote last week about AIM:
"Maybe it's time to focus on what can happen
at Marinship instead of what can't."
If you believe our waterfront deserves better than forty more years of decline — and you want to do something about it — please contribute to our campaign!
Warmly,
Adrian & Sharna
Sausalitans for a Thriving Waterfront
P.S. If you want to learn more, check out our FAQs at sausalitothrive.org/faq
