MARIN COUNTY (KRON) — Tuesday, U.S. Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein announced their support of a plan to convert a U.S. Coast Guard facility in Point Reyes Station into an affordable housing complex.
The senators jointly introduced legislation directing the Coast Guard to bypass its normal property auction procedure and sell the surplus property directly to Marin County. The county plans to work with the Community Land Trust Association of West Marin to turn the 30-acre property, which currently contains 36 housing units, administrative offices, a dormitory and outdoor recreational facilities, into affordable housing.
Both lawmakers have strong ties to the Bay Area. In Feinstein’s early career, the San Francisco native fought to end housing discrimination in the city. She called the plan “commonsense” in a statement Tuesday.
“Housing in Marin County is among the most expensive in the entire country,” she said. “It’s becoming increasingly out of reach for working families and additional affordable housing is sorely needed.”
U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, introduced a similar legislative provision last year that was approved on Friday by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. As part of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, the bill will now go before the full House of Representatives for a vote.
The Coast Guard is expected to put the property up for sale as soon as this fall.
The project has drawn strong support from the Point Reyes Station community and nearly two dozen other organizations throughout the county, Feinstein and Boxer said Tuesday.