CBS Bay Area: Work begins on controversial housing project in Marin County

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The tops of two cranes with the blue sky in the background

MARIN CITY — A Marin City community said it is worried a housing project will accelerate gentrification and push out people of color.

Bettie Hodges’ parents migrated to Marin City during World War 2 to find work in the neighboring shipyard. Now, she’s fighting to stop an approved 74-unit apartment complex from being built across the street from her childhood home.

“People came here from the South looking for opportunity. They didn’t realize they were going to have to fight for their rights to remain here,” said Hodges.

Senate Bill 35, which became law in 2018, makes it easier for certain housing projects to be approved in urban areas without public input or environmental review, leaving the Marin County Community Development Agency no other option.

“We’ve had a few years of the tool, and we’ve seen where it works. We’re seeing where there’s some discomfort. How can we make it better,” said Abram Diaz.

Diaz of the nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California said an amendment to the law through SB 423 will allow for communities of high segregation and low resources in the future to have a stronger voice.