At 2000 Larkspur Landing Circle, a $60.1 million deal for roughly 357 homes moves to negotiation

Councilmember Margalles reported that the Ross Valley Sanitary District board has authorized its general manager to enter an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement with Brookfield Residential and Carmel Partners for the district's 10-acre parcel at 2000 Larkspur Landing Circle. The proposal pairs a $60.1 million purchase price with about 357 residential units — 72 for-sale townhomes and 285 rental apartments in a five-story building — including roughly 90 units affordable to low-income households under a minimum 25% affordability requirement.

Margalles said the site carries a by-right designation under the city's housing element allowing 25 to 35 units per acre with at least 20% affordable housing, so the developer team's 25% pencils out above the floor. She said 25 companies originally responded to the district's request for qualifications, a field narrowed to five for the request for proposals, and called it an exciting moment for Larkspur to see new development while reaching its affordable housing goals.

The building's size already came up later in the same meeting: during a presentation on the 2025 energy code, Margalles asked whether a five-story apartment complex at Larkspur Landing would escape solar requirements meant for low-rise buildings. Staff said exceptions turn on roof size, but that some offset requirement would still apply.

Nothing is final. The ENA is only an agreement to negotiate; the goal is a finalized Development and Disposition Agreement by the third quarter of 2026. City staff, meanwhile, told the council they will not build any revenue from new housing into budget forecasts until permits are actually issued.

Five-year forecast shows Larkspur spending about $500,000 a year more than it takes in

Administrative Services Director Emilia Gabrielle walked the council through a five-year general fund forecast that projects $26.8 million in revenue against $28 million in expenditures for FY2026/27, a negative fund balance change of $486,000, and a structural operating deficit of roughly $500,000 a year — driven by operating costs for the new library and growth in the city's CalPERS unfunded liability. A $2.5 million reserve set aside earlier is meant to absorb it.

Property tax supplies about 65% of general fund revenue, or $17.4 million, and staff are forecasting 4% annual growth against a 5% historical average, with no new-development revenue assumed. Two reassessments are being watched closely: the Skylark appeal and the recent Serenity sale.

The city manager attributed the sharp rise in Central Marin police and fire costs to regional bidding wars for personnel across California and the Bay Area that prior planning did not anticipate. Police contract renegotiations come up next fiscal year, fire the year after. He noted that many cities would turn cartwheels to spend only half their general fund on public safety, since some agencies statewide are at 65 to 70%.

Mayor Andre said the city has a structural deficit and will be drawing on reserves unless revenues rise or expenses fall, and asked that future presentations show projected reserve balances across the full five years. Budget sessions run through April and May, with adoption set for June 3.

Resident tells council Larkspur is a Marin outlier on electrification rules for remodels

New Chief Building Official Matthew Avala presented the 2025 California Energy Code and CalGreen standards, effective January 1, 2026, covering electrification, EV charging infrastructure, solar and battery storage, water efficiency, waste diversion, bicycle parking and indoor air quality, and comparing the 2022 and 2025 codes against optional Tier One requirements. No action was requested.

Resident David Mohler used public comment to press a gap: the electrification push, he said, largely targets new construction, leaving existing buildings and major remodels behind. He urged the council to adopt a flexible compliance path for major remodels, saying 8 of 12 Marin jurisdictions have already done so and that Larkspur is an outlier alongside Ross, Belvedere and Nevada City. He also untangled the code's vocabulary for the council: EV capable means conduit and panel capacity only, EV ready means the wires are pulled, and an EV charger is an actual charging station — a distinction Vice Mayor Wood had asked about minutes earlier.

Councilmember Margalles asked whether other jurisdictions had legally adopted Tier One codes tied to their general plans already this year and why Larkspur's path is taking longer, and requested a written follow-up because the supporting data arrived only an hour before the meeting. The city manager noted that AB130 stretches the code cycle from three years to six, which makes Tier One adoption more consequential for hitting climate goals during the longer gap.