The petition
Eight years since Hamilton's first residents moved in, Hamilton's redevelopment is far from complete. Aside from the addition of new neighborhoods, which are adding significantly to City revenues, the existing structures that have completely renovated after eight years include the headquarters complex, the barracks, the chapel, and some but not all of the hangars.
The renovation of the barracks was funded by developers, not the City. The renovation of the Hangars, likewise, is being funded by Barker Pacific, not the City. The renovation of the chapel was funded by Unity In Marin, not the City. The flood control levee that has been built is funded directly by property owners in Hamilton, not by the City.
Meanwhile, Novato citizens who live or work in Hamilton still see the remaining properties entrusted to the City left unfinished, like pieces of a ghost town: a theater, a hospital, and an officer's club that all stand abandoned, with broken windows, peeling paint, and weeds all around. A firehouse intended for conversion to a museum is still incomplete and in need of utilities the City agreed to install but still has not, despite funds set aside for the museum in the City budget and despite considerable contributions of work and time by many volunteers. Now, on top of all that, the City is seriously considering closing the Hamilton Pool.
Leaving City-owned facilities in Hamilton in disrepair, or shutting them down, or selling them off was not what was envisioned in the Hamilton Master Plan.
The people who have been most actively involved in Hamilton's community development fully understand and respect the priorities that have been placed on some other parts of Novato. The importance of renovating downtown, in particular, for financial and cultural reasons, is well understood by involved citizens who live or work Hamilton. Three years ago City Manager Rod Wood and other City officials met with the Hamilton Community Forum to explain the City's priorities and to explain the rationale for merging the Hamilton Redevelopment District with the Downtown District and the Vintage Oaks District.
Novato citizens in Hamilton listened and gave their support to the merging of their redevelopment district based on the City's promise that this merger would not impede the completion of the redevelopment of Hamilton, as laid out in the Hamilton Master Plan. City officials reaffirmed their commitment to complete the conversion of Hamilton into a multi-use, fully functioning community.
They confirmed that this redevelopment would be done in a way that would provide community services and amenities that would complete Hamilton's conversion from a military base into part of a small town, like other parts of Novato that are already completely developed. They made it clear that Hamilton was not intended to be merely a suburban bedroom community plugged in to the rest of Novato to add revenue to the City coffers, left isolated from the kind of local community services and amenities that give the rest of Novato a small town feel.
The citizens of Novato in Hamilton ask for no more than their fair share of City revenues. Those who own homes or businesses in Hamilton pay property taxes at a much higher rate than the great majority of other citizens in Novato. Thus, the existence of Hamilton as part of Novato is one of the best sources of net revenue for the City financially. As the City Council minutes and the consultant's report show at the time the Hamilton Redevelopment District was merged with the other two, the redevelopment of Hamilton has contributed considerably to the net revenues of the City and will continue to do so for all future generations. Hamilton is not a financial burden on the City. Quite the contrary. It is a source of revenue. The citizens of Novato who live or work in Hamilton deserve to have at least some of that revenue invested in Hamilton's continued redevelopment.
We ask the Novato City Council and City Manager to keep their commitment to all of Novato to complete the redevelopment of Hamilton Field as designed in the Hamilton Master Plan, by preserving, restoring, or renovating City-owned facilities and structures in Hamilton, beginning with the Pool and the Theater.
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