20 Sunnyside proposed renderings via Geiszler Architects.
In 2024, on the heels of a pair of major housing steps forward – an approved Housing Element by the State of California’s Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) through 2031 and unanimous City Council approval of a new development of 45 apartments that are deemed 100% affordable – both city officials and local developers hoped to build more housing while coming to grips with the complexities of that Housing Element and the designs standards associated with it.
Longtime local resident, developer, Barn Owl savior and former Mill Valley Planning Commissioner Steve Geiszler has been at the heart of that complexity. In a Planning Commission Study Session in April 2024, commissioners and applicants sought to have a back-and-forth exchange without yet committing to a public hearing and thus a verdict on the proposal from the commission. At the time, Geiszler learned that his target was a moving one. “You’re the guinea pig,” Commissioner Jon Yolles said at the time.
The property is occupied by an office building and a parking lot. The plan calls for dividing the parcel and constructing the homes on the part where the parking lot is. The two-bedroom residences would be 750 to 1,000 square feet and be built on top of a parking garage. A previous proposal for 12 residences was scaled back during the review process.
“As a community, the challenge we have is accepting more housing and accepting more density of housing, and to not have that development to be all based on the automobile,” said Greg Hildebrand, a member of the commission. “This is in a perfect place to walk everywhere. You can get to everything in this location. It’s right downtown.”
The commission voted 4-0 to approve the plan. Commissioner Jon Yolles was absent.
On Tuesday evening, the Mill Valley Planning Commission unanimously approved Geiszler’s proposal to build five two-story townhomes at 20 Sunnyside Ave., one of the most complex locations to build in town given the density.
“It’s been a bit of a journey since the last study session,” Geiszler said. “We received a lot of comments from the Public Works department. The three major piece that came up were the fact that the street is actually on Geiszler’s property, so we’re going to give the city the land that the roadway is on. The other biggest issue was an ADA accessible route to the project. We worked with Southern Marin Fire to provide a sidewalk, with the biggest question around a heritage redwood tree.”
Geiszler proposed a mixed-use multifamily development on an 11,571 square foot lot occupied by an existing 2-story, 7,390 square foot office building he sought to split into two separate lots (5,730 square feet and 5,840 square feet). The project sought a separate 3-story building with 5 units over a parking garage at the rear of the property. Two of the five units would be affordable to lower or moderate-income households pursuant to the City’s affordable housing requirements. The project required modifications to development standards, as allowed through Density Bonus law.
“As a community, the challenge we have is accepting more housing and accepting more density of housing, and to not have that development to be all based on the automobile,” said Greg Hildebrand, a member of the commission. “This is in a perfect place to walk everywhere. You can get to everything in this location. It’s right downtown. We’re going to need to add housing. Even if it’s housing of any scale, we need more units. This is one of these projects that Bruce Dorfman noted, this is kind of the future of how to develop a site to get as much housing as possible without having a building and extra land to park cars.
“We’re under a lot of pressure and every community is struggling with the same thing and there are only so many places to put housing,” Yolles said previously. “The reason this project is taller is because it is concealing the parking. That is why it needs to be taller. The way we grow in Mill Valley is that we have to go up. We can’t sprawl out. We don’t want to be one of those communities.”
Commissioner Eric Macris noted, “this is a beautiful neighborhood and a great example of what makes Mill Valley so beautiful. Thank you to the neighbors for maintaining that feel over decades. Mill Valley is getting five more affordable units, and this project is a small but important step towards our contribution to the city’s housing requirements.”
“Fifteen years ago, the late Marin County Supervisor Charles McGlashan said that rain should not fall on a parked car,” longtime local resident and developer Bruce Dorfman told the commissioners. We have these parking lots. When people have private garages, they likely don’t use them for parking cars – they use them for storage. This is a smart design.”