Editorial: Push for Northgate housing consensus is appreciated

The owners of San Rafael’s Northgate mall, one of Marin’s oldest and largest shopping centers, got a dose of public reaction to their long-range plan to overhaul the property.

To its credit, Merlone Geier Partners, opened the door to the community to air thoughts and concerns about plans to turn the property into a large housing complex with a retail mix.

The company set the stage for the dialogue when one of the company’s spokespersons declared: “Retail as an enclosed mall is dead.”

In the exchange, it got mixed messages, but heard a lot of support for building affordable workforce housing and creating the opportunity for a large community plaza.

Merlone Geier adds that there is also general concern whether the center has enough parking for some 1,300 homes and retail space proposed by the developer.

It is a prominent piece of property in line for significant change — change that reflects significant shift in retail and Marin’s need for housing.

Add to that the state’s big push that counties and cities step up housing construction and Northgate’s redevelopment appears to be perfectly timed. In a county where the opportunities to meet the state’s quotas are few, revamping Northgate is a prime opportunity.

There likely will be questions about design and going up to five stories. There has been a call for the redevelopment to include a large community plaza, possibly creating sort of a town center for the Terra Linda neighborhood.

Certainly, over its 60-year history, the mall — at times — served as a community center. That role was more accommodating when it was an outdoor mall with wide walkways. But while switching the mall to a covered shopping center made sense at the time, the redesign was less inviting for public gatherings.

Housing makes sense and it is a location that is perfect for helping fill that pressing need. It is close to Highway 101, within one of Marin’s largest job centers, and public transit and shopping are nearby.

Support from the community for that use is a seismic shift from the usual not-in-my-backyard politics that often greets such proposals.

Architecturally, this property has the opportunity to be a prominent addition to Marin’s landscape.

We encourage Merlone Geier’s architects to seek a design that fits its setting — in size and scope — and to steer clear of generic, could-fit-anywhere buildings. This is an opportunity for signature architecture that reflects the valley’s history and complements its setting.

Taking advantage of redeveloping the site to meet the community’s need for affordable workforce housing makes sense. Phasing in that housing over 20 years also makes sense in terms of adjusting for potential changes in transportation or trends in commerce and jobs.

It is Merlone Geier’s property and investment, but it is the community that will live, day in and day out, with what is built there.

Given neighborhood opposition to Merlone Geier’s original plan to add a Costco to the property, housing may be winning support as a preferable alternative.

Merlone Geier’s approach to seek a community-based common ground within those two perspectives is laudable.