It is time Novato homeowners stood up, spoke out and took a stand for balanced housing in their community.
The Novato Homeowners Association has two main goals:
- To protect the value of homes in Novato.
- To protect the character of the city of Novato.
Novato is under assault by special interest groups: developers, advocates, and institutional investors/profiteers. Their goal is to make Novato the affordable housing solution for all of Marin at the expense of the the homeowners of Novato.
We want the clarity of our voices and message to be heard in Sacramento. We need to join together and promote an agenda where balanced housing is made a priority. Without balanced housing goals, city- and state-funded services will be negatively impacted due to lack of sufficient property and sales tax revenue. If Novato homeowners do not stand up and speak out, the special-interest groups will decide what is to be built, and we will pay for it for years to come.
There is no cost to join Novato Homeowner's Association (NHA). We need to show HCD that the homeowners of Novato are committed to maintaining a financially viable community whose taxes support the individuals and families that live here.
To join and show your support for the goals and mission statement, please log onto www.novatohoa.com and go to the upper right corner to the word register. Fill out the user registration form and you will receive an email confirmation.
What We Believe
Novato Homeowners are currently not well represented with respect to ongoing civic affairs. Decisions currently being made by City management have recently favored deep-pocketed special-interest groups; these decisions may result in a combination of reduced home values and escalating budget structural issues.
Homeowners are the backbone of any community, and Novato is no different. When the majority of residents are adversely affected by the actions of a vocal minority, the majority need to have their voices heard or accept the consequences. Novato has been plagued with budget deficits in recent years, and is projected to have structural budget deficits in the future (absent any changes to current taxes). Deficits affect the level of services that can be provided. Continuing to promote a strategy of allowing nonprofits to develop property tax-exempt, high-density housing will result in increased burdens on taxpaying property owners to either support existing service levels, or accept the effects of reduced services.
Homeowners Of Novato
In Novato, approximately 67 percent of residents live in owner occupied dwellings, and 33 percent live in rental units. Homeowner property taxes constitute the largest revenue source for the City's operating revenue. In addition to property taxes, homeowners contribute the vast majority of other revenues needed for the City to operate.
If you agree we have attached a flyer you can use in your neighborhood.
I love Novato and have seen many changes in the last thirty years and feel this organization has the best of intentions to work with the city council to maintain the quality of life we all moved here for. It is very easy to say " if you don't like the way the city is run, run for office and change things" but it is hard for a lot of people to do. It takes time and plenty of money. It however, does not mean we should not be vocal about our views. That is our right and responsibility.
If they had waited and allowed HCD to create its own response then at least there would have been a fair chance of being heard in Sacramento. Katie Crecelius sits on multiple panels and commissions. Her influence in this debate represents her interests and not the whole of the city of Novato. If you have a chance read the recent budget adopted by the city of Novato. Then you will understand why every homeowner and resident needs to be concerned. Page 62 compares Novato's per capita revenue to the revenue of other cities in Marin and Sonoma County. Just to see the difference in revenue available to support city services consider that our per capita is $442.70 while Fairfax is $619.54, Sonoma is $802.44, Corte Madera is $1510.51and Ross is $1854.10. The cities whose per capita fall closest to our own are Rhonert Park at $446.44 and Petaluma at $431.87. Both theses cities have a designation of suburban for purposes of base density. http://www.cityofnovato.org/Index.aspx?page=1619
The city's draft housing element represented a compromise. It allowed development of additional AH to meet RHNA for the last cycle. It's only request was a lower density base for multifamily housing which would still have bonuses attached based on properties developed. Support our city planners. Let the council know that you agree that 20 units per acre and a Suburban designation for purposes of RHNA is an accurate description of our community.
Suggesting that one must run for office or hold office to make a difference and support the community is sad. Lots of people don’t have the time or interest in being part of government, but should we all just give up and follow the herd? Sometimes it’s the circles of influence of involved community members that reflect the majority better and can get more completed. Community involvement can be as little as maintaining your house and yard, watching out for your neighbor, voting and paying attention to important decision made by our elected officials. I believe more can be done by active, involved and caring citizens than most politicians. Simply being negative or remaining silent doesn’t help but hinders our potentially great little city.
Although this statistic is not yet provided what we need to see is in each city how much affordable housing has been developed and what is the range of market rate housing and who does it serve. So for example, if you use Ross's per capita of $1854.10 you realize that they have the highest revenue per person and they serve the fewest needy individuals. San Rafael has more than double the revenue of Novato with only 6000 more residents. These numbers paint a picture where the cities that are taking on the greatest debt and the most responsibility are also functioning on the lowest revenue. You can't operate a city or a school district using this formula or eventually you will go bankrupt.
I've tried to register on the site but after entering in all my info, when clicking on the register button nothing happens. I also tried to send an email message on the site re: the problem I am having and same thing the 'send email' does not work.
I am not a group, just an individual with a strong point of view. I am not sure if you are directing your comments at me personally or at NHA but since they are in the reply to my post they appear to be directed at me, so I will respond. The NHA website is supporting Novato city planners who devised a draft housing element that represents reasonable and balanced growth. It was designed to give a voice to Novato homeowners. It is straight forward. If you want to support it, there is no cost to join, as long as you own a home in Novato you can register. The special interests beginning with SUNN's Katie Crecelius, drafted a letter to HCD before the element had even arrived in Sacramento saying it was not enough to meet their needs. Their letter criticized the work of the city planners. They claim to represent Novato residents. They say that they are not specifically advocating high density housing and yet that is exactly what they are asking for. I am not sure that I understand what it is that you are suggesting. As a member of NHA I support balanced housing. I did not appoint myself or suggest that I represent the majority of homeowners. I am a homeowner that believes we need revenue to support services. I suspect your comments have more to do with my support of the Core Knowledge Charter School. I would be glad to discuss that issue with you on another thread. I think it strays too far from the purpose of this Blog.
"The General Plan was developed through an extensive public participation process, including a community survey. Early public comments created a foundation of goals adopted by the City Council. Preserve and improve the quality of life in Novato. Retain and promote the small town character of Novato including preservation of the historic features and landmarks. Keep Novato relatively compact in physical size by establishing firm urban limit lines. Provide areas where land uses, densities and intensities create a gradual transition from the developed suburban area to the surrounding rural area. Maintain and revitalize Downtown Novato as the heart of the community. Provide for a variety of housing opportunities through new construction and maintenance of existing housing for an economically and socially diverse population, while preserving the character of the community. Low and moderate income housing of all types will be given special consideration. Encourage local job opportunities to avoid the need to commute out of Novato for employment. Manage growth by requiring the coordination of development with adequate infrastructure, public facilities, public services and promoting conservation, reuse and recycling strategies while meeting the needs of the community with the limited land available for development." http://www.ci.novato.ca.us/cd/gp/GPSUM.HTML
Not only do we get the prestige, but a great deal of business from the employees of this organization.
We are currently updating both the Housing Element (2007-2014) and the General Plan (1996 last updated). Getting involved with this process as a resident is part of the reciprocal dialogue between local government and the people it represents. Novato Homeowners Association is but one of many grassroots neighborhood groups that support the Draft Housing Element and the view that Novato is indeed a Suburban Community for the purpose of creating base density in Affordable Housing Plans.
It is a great game. IVC currently has a two year certificate program in Multi Media Studies including 3D game design classes. When I think of all the opportunities to put together education with experience here in Novato it makes me hopeful that we can create a stable revenue base to support city services. It all starts with being realistic about what we build and what we need.
Harry Lehmann