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The Town Hall Remodel and Addition Project includes remodeling the interior and exterior of the existing two story Town Hall and an addition of approximately 7,600 sq. ft. to the east of the building toward the parking lot and landscaped area. The new, fully ADA compliant Town Hall, will be approximately 11,900 sq. ft., and would include a new public permitting center, a new council chamber/flex space with seating capacity for approximately 95 people, new offices/workspaces, and an outdoor plaza built around the existing redwood trees. The New Town Hall will contain offices for the departments of Building and Planning, Public Works Engineering, Code Enforcement, Administration and Finance, all in one building accessible from both Tamalpais Drive and the reconfigured parking lot. A central circulation corridor including an elevator, stairway, lobby and restrooms will connect all levels of the existing building and the addition. When completed, the project is intended to create a more resilient, functional, and inviting community asset that will serve the Town for the next 50-100 years. Please see below for information about prior meetings, presentations, meeting materials, and meeting video.
Last month the Town Council unanimously approved Ordinance 999 establishing a new planning process for town projects. Town projects are development applications where the Town of Corte Madera is the applicant instead of a private party. Examples of such projects are the Town Park Dog Park and the digital marquee in front of the Community Center. The Town Hall Remodel and Addition Project will be the first town project to go through this new process which will include additional community input with the final decision on the project to be made by the Town Council.
The Planning Commission Study Session for preliminary review of the project was April 28, 2020. Meeting materials can be accessed by clicking on the title of each document listed below. Reference materials from previous public meetings can also be accessed at the bottom of this page.
The current public health crisis related to the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant changes to the Town Hall Remodel and Addition Project’s public review process. Town staff recognize that the current public health crisis has created significant uncertainty regarding the Town Hall Remodel and Addition Project’s construction timeline due to the anticipated fiscal impacts resulting from the loss of economic activity in the Town and region. At this point, we expect the project to pause for at least 12 months once the Design Review process is completed. Nonetheless, the project remains a critical piece of the Town’s current infrastructure plan. As we’ve discussed at recent public meetings, the project is intended to be a long-term solution to long-standing, serious deficiencies at our existing Town Hall facility, including issues related to seismic stability, compliance with current building codes (including ADA accessibility), and inadequate capacity and amenities for community and public meetings, permitting, and office functions. The project aims to provide the Town’s residents and business community with a more resilient, functional, and inviting facility that will be a community asset for the next 100 years.
It is extremely important that we continue to pursue approval of a project design through the Planning Commission review process in order to capitalize on the momentum that has been built through robust public discourse and dialogue, including the well-attended Community Workshop on January 30, and to ensure that the considerable time and resources spent by Town staff, the Town Council, our consulting architect Ron Kappe, and many Corte Madera residents, are not wasted. We believe we have finally developed a plan and project design that meets the needs of the Town, respects our residential neighbors and our neighborhood character, and creates public spaces that the entire community can take pride in and we are excited to now be able to show the preliminary design to the Corte Madera community and the Planning Commission.
If you have any questions about tasks completed, the current status, or upcoming events of the Town Hall Remodel and Addition Project or if you need help accessing the documents and images on the Project webpage please contact:
Phil Boyle, Senior Planner at 415-927-5067 or pboyle@tcmmail.org.
Jared Barrilleaux, Senior Civil Engineer, at 415-927-5120 or jbarrilleaux@tcmmail.org
Please submit your questions or comments to Phil or Jared by the end of the day on April 22 to allow time for staff to send such comments to the Planning Commissioners prior to the April 28 meeting, and for staff to prepare responses, as necessary, in advance of the April 28 meeting. Comments provided after April 22 will be provided to the Planning Commission, but may not be directly addressed by Staff. For information regarding how to participate and provide comments during the Planning Commission’s April 28 teleconference meeting, please click here.
As a reminder, no action will be taken by the Planning Commission at the April 28 Study Session, but the meeting offers the Commission and members of the public an early opportunity to informally weigh in on issues of planning and design prior to the development of a project application or the scheduling of a formal Planning Commission public hearing.
We understand it is a challenging time for our community, and wish you and your families well, but the input we have received from all of you has significantly shaped and strengthened this important Town project and we look forward to your continued participation in the weeks and months ahead. Thank you.
This meeting was cancelled and rescheduled for April 28, 2020.