Three running in first council district election
In San Rafael’s first districtbased City Council contest, three candidates are running this fall for the District 4seat. The dstrict is the only seat that has drawn multiple contenders.
Three candidates running for San Rafael City Council this fall are vying for the District 4 seat, representing an area that is grappling with the future of the Northgate mall.
The Nov. 3 election is San Rafael’s first district- based City Council contest, and District 4 is the only seat that has drawn multiple contenders. The district comprises the northwest portion of the city, including the Terra Linda, Smith Ranch and Mont Marin neighborhoods. It has the largest population of the city’s four districts, with about 14,822 residents.
Breathing new life into the struggling Northgate mall, which is the district’s major commercial center, tops the list of priorities for each of the three candidates.
“Northgate is a huge asset to the city, and we need to put our utmost focus on moving it into its next phase,” said John Gamblin, the only incumbent running for the seat.
Gamblin, a 52-year- old financial adviser, was appointed to the council in 2014 to replace Damon Connolly and ran unopposed the following November for his first full term. He said his vision for Northgate, where he worked his first job as a teenager at a shoe store, includes housing, restaurants, art and live entertainment.
Gamblin said the vision that Costco has floated for a new store in the former Sears building “isn’t the right fit for Northgate.” But he stopped short of opposing a Costco store at the mall, saying that as a sitting council member, he doesn’t want to “prejudge” the idea before the company has submitted a formal application to the city.
Costco, in partnership with mall owner Merlone Geier Partners, submitted pre-application documents to San Rafael officials last year and presented the idea for a store with a 30-pump gas station to the city Planning Commission and Design Review Board for feedback. The proposal has become a divisive issue for San Rafael residents, with many Terra Linda locals in opposition.
Candidate Rachel Kertz, a 53-year- old coordinator for the Central Marin Neighborhood Response Group, isn’t shy about her stance on Costco.
“Tome is a non-starter,” she said. “It’s not a location for a big box store.”
Kertz, who is a San Rafael Board of Education trustee, said she wants the next iteration of Northgate to include “a combination of shopping and services and housing.” Although the coronavirus pandemic could make it more difficult to attract new tenants to the mall, she said it’s important to think beyond the immediate health crisis in planning the area’s commercial hub.
“The Northgate mall really is about developing a neighborhood and the right neighborhood feel,” she said.
Candidate Greg Knell, who is also a San Rafael Board of Education trustee and runs a printing business in San Rafael, said he opposes the Costco proposal. He said a revived Northgate could be central to San Rafael’s economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, infusing tax dollars into the city’s coffers.
“Themall concept is outdated,” he said. “Big box stores have no role here.”
Knell, 71, said his vision for Northgate includes another central piece in his campaign: affordable housing. He said he wouldn’t support any housing projects in San Rafael that don’t include affordable homes or “workforce housing.”
Knell opposes a plan that the City Council is considering to loosen the affordable housing requirement. Under San Rafael’s current policy, 20% of homes must be sold or rented at belowmarket rates in developments with 21 or more residences, 15% in projects with 11 to 20 homes and 10% in projects with 10 or fewer homes. But the new proposal would lower the affordability requirement to 10% of units in all new housing projects, with options for developers to pay fees to the city in order to dodge some of that requirement.
“I think 20% is a minimum, and it should be higher,” Knell said.
Gamblin said he’s “struggling” to make up his mind on lowering the requirement.
“The way it is right now is an admirable goal, but in reality it’s not working,” he said.
The City Council agreed to move forward with the change last month and asked city staff to create a draft ordinance that would codify it. But the ordinance will require further approval from the council. Gamblin said he’d like to consider lowering it to 15%, rather than 10%.
Ker tz opposes the change.
“In reality, I think it really increases developers’ profits and doesn’t address the problem,” she said. “I think we need to continue looking at other options.”
Kertz is also an advocate for more affordable housing in San Rafael, and she places equal focus on creating housing for people who work in San Rafael, which she said would help alleviate traffic in the city.
“We need to be more active and deliberate in supporting the need for housing,” she said.