Are Those Beautiful Spanish-Style Officers Homes at Hamilton a Toxic Legacy?

When the Hamilton pool season opens on Friday, don’t be surprised to see the beautiful Spanish style homes adorning the hill are joining the Officers Club and BOQ in their ghost town status.  Weeds grow tall around the empty houses, paint is starting to peel, they have a sad and empty look.  What happened to these beautiful historic homes where the “Lawn of the Month” sign used to rotate from one green lawn to another?

My neighbor Amy Baldwin tells me the Coast Guard  discovered creosote in the houses, used in the flooring materials.  They don’t have the $$ to remediate this toxic material so the houses are being abandoned one by one as families move out.  If you haven’t walked in this neighborhood to admire these homes — with their vintage Spanish tiles, custom ironwork, red tile roofs surrounded by some of the most majestic trees in Novato — you are really missing something.