It's election season. And today we're going across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito, the touristy 7,000-person town where a new ballot measure about an aging waterfront raises questions for all of us about the meaning of preservation, progress, and a vote.
KALW reporter Julia Haney has been talking to Sausalitans for and against the measure, and she joins me now.
Interview Transcript
HANA: Hi, Julia.
REPORTER: Hi, Hana.
HANA: So Measure X is causing quite a stir over in Sausalito. What is it about?
REPORTER: Yeah, Hana, it's really been divisive to say the least. On Nextdoor, of course, but also everywhere you go in town it's common to see people wearing “yes” or “no” pins. And so many homes have political signs in their windows or their lawns, that the ones without them are actually kind of starting to stand out.
I'm also hearing daily about signs getting stolen. The police recently posted a video of one thief.
HANA: A thief?
REPORTER: Yeah, that's right. And I mean, this is not the kind of thing that we want to see in our local elections, signs being stolen, but apparently it's kind of happening a lot. The campaign leader for the yes side said that about 25% of their signs have been stolen overall and every day they're out having volunteers put them back in the ground. Many businesses also have signs, though some are a little bit more wary of taking a side.
HANA: Right. Right.
REPORTER: I asked a few without signs posted why not, and they kind of looked at me like I had three heads. The measure is just so controversial that they don't want to be associated with it. At a packed forum on the issue, Sophia Collier, who is leading the charge against the measure, framed it this way...
Sophia Collier: This debate is about one of the most important things this community has faced in more than a generation.
HANA: Okay, those are big words.
REPORTER: Yeah. It's become the biggest issue dividing the city council candidates' campaigns too. And they've been out and about. They've been busy. They had dueling booths at the town's chili cook-off.
Jill Hoffman: This is some good chili. We're not messing around here in Sausalito at our chili annual cook-off.
REPORTER: That's Jill Hoffman. That event featured a hot pepper eating contest. The candidates have also been at farmers markets. They're showing up at forums and local events.
Adrian Brinton: If you don't see me in the water, you gotta vote for me.
REPORTER: Candidate Adrian Brinton even invited supporters and opponents to dunk him at a local boat show.
Announcer: Step right up to the dunk tank. We're about to see our first contestant. Adrian is in the water.
REPORTER: Brinton actually helped draft Measure X. And the other three candidates, Jill Hoffman, Joan Cox, and Nastassya Saad, all firmly oppose it.
HANA: So, wow, Julia, lots of excitement. I believe the hype, but what is this Measure X that everybody's so excited about?
REPORTER: So, Hana, you might not have guessed this, but Measure X is a zoning measure.
HANA: This is about zoning?
REPORTER: Yeah, I know that might sound boring, but I promise that it's not. Before we get there, the headline is that Measure X would change zoning rules in the Marinship neighborhood specifically to allow for larger buildings and a simpler process for businesses and property owners who want to make zoning changes in the future.
HANA: So only one of four candidates, who are running for local office, is supporting Measure X. Why is he for it?
REPORTER: So Brinton and the other yes supporters say that this measure will breathe new life into that Marinship neighborhood that I mentioned. So the neighborhood was created in 1942 on bay fill during World War II. Liberty Ships, fleet oilers, tankers were all built there. It's an industrial part of town with a few businesses, like Heath Ceramics. There's a kayaking place. There's some restaurants.
And Measure X supporters like Brinton say that a lack of development in the area has led to decay and a lot of underutilized space. Here's Sharna Brockett, the campaign leader for the yes side.
Sharna Brockett: We have weedy lots. We have office buildings that are half full. We have a lot of personal storage. We have an area that's full of just RVs, some of which are rusty and decaying. We have major flooding.
HANA: Okay, that's a lot.
REPORTER: And they say that the current zoning rules are so restrictive that new businesses can't move in and existing ones can't expand.
HANA: What are they saying that is so restrictive about the current rules?
REPORTER: So like I said, the area is zoned mostly industrial and waterfront, and so if a business wants to move in and sell, for example, plants, as one local business owner would like to do, they can't, because with some exceptions, retail isn't allowed.
Other businesses are considering leaving Sausalito because they can't expand, like Heath Ceramics, which has been there since the '50s. And also, Measure X supporters point to a lot of needed tax revenue that's being left on the table. They say if new artists and makers could expand into underutilized spaces, and also new kinds of businesses like art galleries and coffee shops could open, then it would bring in money to support what is $100 million in infrastructure repairs that Sausalito needs to make.
HANA: Okay, so Julia, going back to that business owner that you mentioned who wants to open a plant shop, so under the current law she couldn't do that?
REPORTER: Well, theoretically it's possible, but it involves a lot of red tape, and this is the part that has everyone talking. Measure X would allow Sausalito’s City Council to review zoning change requests without voter approval. Currently, these requests need to go to voters to approve, and this has been the rule for 40 years.
HANA: Voters getting the power to weigh in on these kinds of zoning changes seems unique, right?
REPORTER: Yeah, so the rule that voter approval is required is pretty unique, and actually both sides agree on that. Here's Collier on the no side again.
Sophia Collier: Right now, Sausalito residents have a precious right which few communities have. Before the city can allow bigger buildings in our commercial areas or along our waterfront, it must be approved by a vote of the people.
REPORTER: And residents in Sausalito really value the power of their vote. They say that it's precisely this right that has kept the town so special. It's a small town where people can preserve their views, where there really hasn't been much development. They say that uniqueness is at risk if Measure X passes, because bigger buildings could come in, and they could block views and bring traffic.
And they see Measure X as a win for developers, a loss for the small town. Here's Candidate Saad speaking on the no side at a forum.
Nastassya Saad: If you're going to allow significantly larger buildings with significantly more massing out the gate, our look and feel and our characteristics are gone.
HANA: So Julia, this feels like it's also about a vibe and style of the area. The people who are against Measure X sounds like are really worried about losing their right to say what can and can't be built in the town, and they don't wanna see it change, huh?
REPORTER: Yeah, I mean, if there's one thing that people in the town can agree on, it's that there has not been much change in Sausalito in the last several decades. And whether that's a good or bad thing is kind of an indicator of which side you might fall on, on this Measure X debate.
So yes, right now, the people on the no side want to keep their vote, and they say that once they give it up with Measure X, it's gone forever. They also say that they're actively exercising this vote, including last year. So last year, Sausalito voters passed a measure to rezone parts of town to build housing. And that was in an effort to comply with state law. But that was a bit of an outlier, because the thing is, it's never actually happened that a property owner or a business owner has put a request on the ballot.
HANA: It's never happened? So they want to preserve this sacred right to vote, but they've almost never had the chance to do that in 40 years?
REPORTER: Right. And that's mostly because there are so many hurdles to open a business and ask for new zoning rules or expand an existing one beyond current zoning rules that it's just not really financially viable for businesses. Here's John Fredericks, who's a resident I met at the farmers market. He's for Measure X.
John Fredericks: Without Measure X, there will never be a developer who will put the money into putting together a project knowing that it has to go for voter approval. Development just costs too much money to then take the risk.
REPORTER: Yeah, so Fredericks and others on the yes side say that the voter rule is costly, complicated, and impractical for businesses in town, especially in the Marinship. And they think it should be the government that makes these kinds of decisions. And they also say that new proposals would still need to go through a thorough review process that exists everywhere with environmental review, opportunities for public input, planning commission design review, all of that kind of stuff, which in Sausalito can take some time.
But the no side says that the voter rule is protective of the town. It protects it from big development that could displace artists and artisans who are working in the Marinship. They're really worried about voters losing control without the right to weigh in on what's being built near them.
HANA: So it sounds like the current system is discouraging development, but the two sides are disagreeing on whether that's a good thing or a bad thing.
REPORTER: Right. I mean, this is one of those other things that people do agree on: that the current rule is limiting development. Here's Collier again from the “no” side.
Sophia Collier: Proponents say this 40-year law is holding us back. Yes, it is holding back large new commercial buildings that would block our views of the water, and thank goodness.
REPORTER: This law was originally put in place to preserve the Marinship's character and history and industry and prioritize resident-serving rather than tourist-serving uses. And in Sausalito, where there are a lot of tourists, this is kind of special. It also was an effort to protect views, protect commercial fishing.
And the “No” people really do agree that the Marinship needs help, but they say that this measure is too heavy-handed, that the shoreline is too vulnerable a place for development. And they also note that Measure X touches some other commercial areas in town beyond the Marinship, so they think it's too expansive.
HANA: So what about housing, like large apartment buildings or condos? Would Measure X bring more housing?
REPORTER: So not explicitly, but this is part of the conversation because it would mean that the city council could decide to rezone areas to residential in the future.
HANA: So let's sum up: Measure X expands uses of buildings and lots in the Marinship, and it makes the city council responsible for reviewing any future changes, not Sausalito voters, right?
REPORTER: That's right, and that second change applies beyond the Marinship to some other commercial areas, too.
And while the vote piece is unique to Sausalito, communities around California everywhere are fighting about development and preservation: what should get built and where, and what should be protected.
And this debate also poses another question, which is, what kinds of issues should people be voting on directly versus the ones that they should send to their elected officials? Here's Ian Sobieski, who is a city council member. And he's also on the “yes” side.
Ian Sobieski: What sense does it make to tie the hands of government to do its job and then wonder why the job isn't being done? How much of our frustration in town about the way things are is actually because we created a system so burdensome and so opaque that the actual makers and doers and the creatives don't wanna play ball?
REPORTER: I talked to all of the candidates including Jill Hoffman, who after a candidate forum spoke to me outside. And she described the town as an amphitheater with every window just above the neighbor's roof.
Jill Hoffman: So if you turn around, we're standing at Spinnaker right now, and it's nighttime, but if you turn around and you look at Sausalito, you can see all the lights of our town, and it's absolutely spectacular. And you can see the outline of, you know, the sun going down against our hills, and that's one reason why Sausalito is cherished and loved. That is why I am against Measure X, to preserve Sausalito, not just for me, but for future generations and how we view our town. This is why we're here.
REPORTER: So in summary, Hana, in Sausalito, the folks against Measure X are motivated to safeguard their vote and preserve what makes the town special. And the folks in favor of it are motivated to make the system work better and are dreaming about what the town could be.
HANA: All right. Thank you, Julia, for taking us to Sausalito today.
REPORTER: Thank you so much, Hana.
