FAQ

​

Who is Friends of Hauke Park (FOHP)?

• FOHP is an unincorporated nonprofit association initially formed by neighbors in Enchanted Knolls and surrounding neighborhoods.

• FOHP was formed to safeguard the interests of the neighborhoods and surrounding recreational areas, in response to the City’s push to build a 4-story, 40+ unit big-box structure in a single family home neighborhood with limited parking and poor access to public transportation.

​​

What are our goals?

• Our goal is to downsize the proposed project, reduce the height of the structure, and scale back the proposed number of units, preserving the low-density character of the neighborhood.

• We are strongly advocating to preserve the popular Hauke Park recreational fields, Bayfront Meadows and community garden for the enjoyment of all.

• The location presents major safety concerns for children crossing an already unsafe Hamilton Drive at Hauke Park.

• Developers have proposed using land from heavily used Hauke Park/ open space for the development’s parking lot.

• We will hold the City accountable to their goal of ensuring new development is compatible with our small town character.

• We ask for genuine input into the design so that future affordable and private housing developments are integrated into the neighborhood in a positive way.

• We are not trying to prevent affordable housing at the site. We support more equity, diversity and inclusion in Mill Valley. Creating affordable housing is an important goal for our City that requires well thought out planning.

• The immediate neighborhoods around Hauke Park are already more diverse (See Footnote 1) than the rest of Mill Valley, and have welcomed its share of affordable housing. We will continue to do so, but the density must be in keeping with the surrounding neighborhoods.

​

FOHP is asking the City that the proposed housing meet the following:

Low Density

• Density should comply with the existing/approved MV General Plan, adheres to the Mill Valley Design Guidelines and Development Standards document (See Footnote 2), and the City Planning Commission’s approval process.

• Development proposed is basically DOUBLE the number of units allowed by the City’s own plan.

• Mill Valley Design document specifically sets a

- Maximum of 21.75 units per 0.75 acre.
- The proposed development describes 40+ units per 3⁄4 acre.
- This exceeds the MAXIMUM allowable units by at least 18 units - exceeding the maximum by 83%!!

​

Fits into size of Community

• Development should blend into the neighborhood’s 1 and 2-story buildings.

• Neighborhood has a history of supporting/welcoming affordable housing (Shelter Hill, The Redwoods & Mercy Center, Mill Creek Apartments & special needs housing).

• Average density across Mill Valley is 7 units/acre.

• Our neighborhood’s Shelter Hill development is low density with 11 units/acre.

  ​

Save Hauke Park

• Maintain the current usage of Hauke Park and the Bayfront Meadows.

• No encroachment on recreational/ sports fields, open space, community garden, walking/bike paths, playground, maintain rest rooms & charging station.

• No usurping of open/recreational space for creation of parking spaces!

  ​

Provides adequate parking

• Maintain/enhance parking for Hauke Park users, who come from different walks of life. For instance, many families with young children across Mill Valley & S. Marin prefer Hauke Park because of its easy parking (compared to other MV parks with insufficient parking). People with mobility issues rely on easy, adequate parking to enjoy Hauke Park and its surrounding beauty.

• Realistic parking needs assessed for development. The City suggested people living in proposed development will "walk" or only use public transit and not have cars. EAH development Shelter Hill has many cars, residents already overflow park on neighboring streets and parking is severely limited for visitors.

• No parking waivers. The City currently requires 2 parking spaces per dwelling unit plus 1 guest parking space per 4 units.

• Reduce need for overflow parking into neighborhoods.  

​

Walkability

• As of Sep 2021, Walkscore ranked 1 Hamilton as car-dependent, which is a more accurate representation of the neighborhood's poor accessibility to public transportation over steep hills and via unpaved sidewalks.  Since then, the walkability score has changed (while no other surrounding factors changed), and Walkscore simultaneously acknowledges that it does not have the ability to factor in elevation or road quality for its scores and bases most of its calculations on the travel distance and overall density of amenities available.

​​

Fosters children's safety

• Traffic next to the park should be minimized.

• As Hauke Park's daily-use includes children’s soccer, lacrosse, softball and volleyball practices, child street crossing and road safety must be paramount.

• Park use is high with approx. 90-120 people per hour using just the fields

  between the kiddie park and the firehouse during sport practice times. Game and camp days are even busier.

• Area includes Safe Bike Routes to primary, secondary and high schools which must be protected. (Mill Valley Middle School, Tam High, Edna Maguire, Park).

​

Community Input not ignored

• Community is informed of meetings and feedback opportunities and are allowed ample time for response.

• Done in a well thought out process that includes community input at every step.

​

Environmental impact

• Environmental concerns must be vetted in a transparent and public process.

• Take into consideration sensitive marshlands & Bayfront Meadow.

• Any proposed waivers must be very carefully considered.

​

Water use impact

• Increasing water hook ups in a time of extreme drought doesn’t make sense while severe water restrictions are being imposed on residents.

​

Traffic impact studies

• Must be made public and reviewed in a formal process.

​

Let’s set the example

• Other Mill Valley neighborhoods will be experiencing the same proposed

  development projects soon.

• The City Council clearly indicated that they are looking to other neighborhoods for future development sites (See Footnote 3).

​

Site Size

• City Council meeting (June 21, 2021) described the 0.75 acre site size as “fluid”.

• No clarification of “fluid” has been made. 1 Hamilton was conceptually designed at 0.75 acres.

• What are the City’s intentions? The community is entitled to know about future

  intentions for this site.

​​

Legal Questions

​

Why have you sought legal representation?

• We raised significant issues about: building height, density, impact on Hauke Park, parking, traffic, safety, inclusiveness, alternative sites, water use, accessibility, walkability, proximity to public transit, and environmental impact. We also raised procedural and fairness concerns about the site selection process.

• We have engaged in the democratic process, including:

- over 300 comment letters sent to the City Council opposing the scale of the project,

- over 1000 signatures on our Change.org Petition,

- dozens of speakers at Committee and Council meetings, and meeting with members of the City Council.

• The City Council voted unanimously to proceed, and all of these issues remain unaddressed.

​

Why did you select an attorney from Sacramento rather than Marin?

• We were advised by local land use attorneys to look outside the immediate area to minimize conflicts that could preclude representation,

• To address concerns attorneys might have in taking positions adversarial to local officials.

​

Who will monitor the work of the attorney?

• Our attorney is Patrick Soluri of the law firm Soluri Meserve.

• The FOHP Advisory Committee will stay informed through regular updates by Paula Weaver and Jeralyn Seiling, who are designated as the initial contacts with the law firm.

• Although Paula and Jeralyn are themselves attorneys, they do not represent FOHP in any legal capacity. Neither of them is a land-use attorney.

• FOHP will provide regular updates to the community, but please note that

  sensitive matters (such as legal strategy) may not be shared in order to avoid compromising our position.

Why aren’t you a 501(c)(3)/non-profit?

• It takes a significant amount of time and money to form a 501(c)(3) organization.

• We need to assure input at early, critical stages of the process.

​​

Footnotes

(1) https://statisticalatlas.com/place/California/Mill-Valley/Race-and-Ethnicity#figure/neighborhood

(2) City of Mill Valley Multifamily Residential, Downtown Residential & Mixed Use Design Guidelines and Development Standards

(3) https://cityofmillvalley.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.phpview_id=2&clip_id=1659 (47th minute)