New renderings have surfaced for an affordable housing project to rise at 121-197 Marinwood Avenue in unincorporated land just north of San Rafael in Marin County. The project will bring over a hundred rental units to vacant land next to a grocery store in the Lucas Valley area. Tableau Development Company is responsible for the application.
The proposal will bring four structures, one on the northern side of the existing Marinwood Market grocery store. The new structures will yield a combined 108,640 square feet and reach a maximum height of 39 feet. The floorplan for Building D includes a 1,040-square-foot retail space where the developer is ‘contemplating a cafe’ according to the application. Residential services and amenities will be centralized in Building B.
Marinwood Avenue shingle-clad apartments, illustration by LPAS
Apartment types will vary, with 45 one-bedrooms, 48 two-bedrooms, and 32 three-bedrooms. Parking will be included for 189 cars, including 124 spaces for residents and 65 spaces for the existing grocery store. Additional space will be made for 125 bicycles split between Buildings B and D.
One of the 125 units to be constructed will be dedicated to an on-site manager. The remaining 124 units will be designated as affordable to households earning between 30% and 70% of the area’s median income. According to the city, “this equates to an annual household income of $53,000 to $98,000 for a family of four.” The developer has invoked Senate Bill 330 and the State Density Bonus program to streamline the approval process and increase residential capacity.
Sacramento-based LPAS is the project architect. Renderings show a familiar townhome-style design with the typical gabled roofing and articulated exterior massing. Facade materials will include the typical cement plaster, board and batten, and stone veneer, while wall shingles will add some local connection. The project application states that the project design takes inspiration from the California Craftsman Style by “incorporating sloped roofs and bay windows.”
Marinwood Avenue, landscaping map by Carlile Macy
Marinwood Avenue site map, illustration by LPAS
Carlile Macy is responsible for landscape architecture. Plans will remove around eight or nine of the 21 trees across the site today while introducing 128 new trees to shade surface parking and decorate the open space. The outdoor amenity space will include two play areas and a central courtyard between Buildings B and C.
Initial plans were filed with the city in late October of last year. Given the current pace, the project team hopes to break ground before the end of 2025, and construction will last approximately 18 months. Crews will preserve the existing market on the 5-acre site and remove surface paving across the development’s footprint.
Atlanta-based Impact Residential Development is the property owner, working with Tableau Development. Impact Residential is an affordable housing offshoot of Starwood Capital Group, a Florida-based investment firm with over a hundred billion dollars in assets founded by Barry Sternlicht.
Marinwood Avenue site outlined approximately by YIMBY, image via Google Satellite
Future residents will be close to a Freeway 101 intersection and bus stop. Downtown San Rafael can be reached within 34 minutes via public transit or bicycle.
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Great location for this project. Good architectural style for the area. The Affordable housing is actually for the working/middle class who find it hard to live in Marin. Hope it gets built without any delays.
It’s been a long time coming. There used to be a dry cleaners (and some other shops) to the south of Marinwood Market that had chemicals seep into the ground. Nothing could be built until that was cleaned/mitigated in some way. I haven’t noticed anything indicating that type of work, but assume it was done to allow this to move forward. Glad to see it.
From what I could tell they dug down and removed a ton of contaminated dirt from below where the old cleaners sat. Hopefully that won’t be an impediment any longer.
This site is on a toxic waste cleanup site. It is not safe for residential until fully remediated. It is positively immoral to provide “affordable housing” where pregnant women, childreen, elderly and immune compromised are particularly vulnerable. Please tell us why you think it is a good idea.
Having worked as chairman of the Cleanup Marinwood Plaza Oversight Committee for the past 12 years, I do not see the area being cleaned up for residential for 3-4 more years based on current activity. The area north of the market (the old Union 76 station) was declared by RWQCB not appropriate for residential development. RWQCB my succumb to allowing vapor barriers over the properties to expedite the process and rid themselves of the oversite. Personally, I would like to see it cleaned up to residential standards, but also have commercial development instead of or in conjunction with housing as proposed a few years ago, but killed by Hoytt.
So if they put a vapor barrier under the housing to be placed where the old gas station used to be does that push the vapors further into the existing marinwood neighborhood where I live? Doesn’t sound like a good plan for anyone, existing or new in the area.