Oak Hill Village housing proposal worthy of support

In a Nov. 3 letter to the editor, Frances Coya objects to Oak Hill Village, the 230 homes proposed for lower-income teachers and others above Sir Francis Drake Boulevard near San Quentin. She believes the project will cause overcrowding and segregation in East San Rafael, particularly in the Canal.

Her concern is misplaced. Oak Hill Village will not be in San Rafael. Rather, it is located more than a mile southeast of the intersection of Bellam and Kerner boulevards, the main entrance to the Canal neighborhood. Its location is within Larkspur’s sphere of influence, according to the local agency formation commission, and its residents will enter from Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

I share Coya’s concern about segregation in Marin — the most segregated county in the Bay Area. Oak Hill Village is a chance to address equity by providing housing opportunities in a neighborhood that is not segregated by either income or ethnicity. Oak Hill is ultimately an opportunity to further diversify the area generally known as Larkspur, though it currently is within unincorporated Marin County.

Coya is worried that the Oak Hill Village proposal reflects a loss of local control. This is incorrect. The property is owned by the state. As such, it has never been subject to local control by Marin County, San Rafael or Larkspur.

While Coya thinks representatives need to protect the citizens there now, I suggest that our representatives should be supportive of a proposal to provide 230 badly needed, wellmanaged apartments for lower income folks and local teachers in a neighborhood that is already home to people from a variety of backgrounds and incomes.

Oak Hill Village is part of the solution to the problems Coya is worried about.

— Bob Pendoley, San Rafael