Marin Voice: Marinwood lawsuit misconstrues arguments against segregation
The recent lawsuit filed against Marin County to challenge the 100% affordable housing project at Marinwood Plaza appears to be another troubling instance of opponents attempting to distort fair housing principles to thwart progress.
The so-called “Marinwood Coalition Against Segregation” suggests in the suit that an 100% affordable housing project at Marinwood Plaza will contribute to segregation. On the contrary, this 100% affordable project would serve as an important step toward affirmatively furthering fair housing in Marin.
Marin County is, indeed, highly segregated. A 2020 investigation by the Othering and Belonging Institute found that Marin County is by far the most racially segregated county in the Bay Area.
A major contributor to this segregation is a lack of affordable housing throughout the county. Residents understand that it is in a severe housing crisis. A 2024 Marin County report on affordable housing needs, produced by the California Housing Partnership, found that 9,694 low-income renter households in Marin do not have access to an affordable home. Of the extremely low-income households in Marin County, 75% are paying more than half of their income on housing costs. Renters in Marin County need to earn $54.23 per hour, or $9,400 per month (3.4 times the state minimum wage) to afford the average monthly asking rent of $2,820.
The housing crisis drives segregation. Marin County’s 2020 analysis of impediments to fair housing choice identified the cost of housing and the lack of affordable housing and new affordable housing developments in Marin as barriers to fair housing choice. The analysis shows that residents of color in Marin County are more likely to be renters than homeowners, and those who can least afford single family homes in the county are African American and Latino households.
Barriers identified in the analysis have serious consequences for people with disabilities as well: “the average person with a disability would need 200% of their monthly income to afford a one-bedroom apartment in Marin,” and many reside in a “a physical environment that is not accessible.”
Federal and state law mandate that Marin County affirmatively further fair housing. This requirement goes beyond nondiscrimination in housing, and it includes proactively taking action to “overcome patterns of segregation and foster inclusive communities free from barriers that restrict access to opportunity” for communities of color, persons with disabilities and others protected by fair housing law.
One recognized strategy to further fair housing is to increase housing choice and affordability in high opportunity areas.
Increasing the supply of affordable, accessible units in Marin, a highly resourced area of opportunity, is key to overcoming segregation and furthering fair housing, and adding 125 affordable residences at Marinwood Plaza would be a big step to make progress toward these goals. The plaintiffs’ suggestion that increasing market rate units, while reducing affordable units, at Marinwood will combat segregation just doesn’t add up.
This lawsuit reflects another major impediment to fair housing choice: public opposition to affordable housing. According to the county’s analysis of impediments, “public opposition to affordable housing continues to be identified as the number one barrier to housing development.” The report notes that community opposition to affordable housing, sometimes framed as “maintaining the character of their communities,” is often pretextual for discrimination based on protected classes.
It is disheartening to once again see opponents of affordable housing attempt to misuse fair housing principles to mislead the community and to slow and impede progress. Furthering fair housing and promoting integration in our community requires us to push back against the actors who seek to maintain the status quo, so that we can take steps toward a more equitable and sustainable Marin.
Caroline Peattie, of Mill Valley, is executive director for the Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California organization based in San Rafael.