Scale and Character

Defending Sausalito's character and human scale by keeping our city purposefully livable — built for people rather than for cars or oversized buildings. This means:

• Low buildings with designs responsive to the community. Our historic heritage, eclectic designs, and 32-foot height limit make Sausalito a diverse and charming place that is unmistakably its own.
• Mixed use. On Bridgeway and Caledonia, shops, sideway cafes, restaurants, offices, and homes sit on the same blocks, so the streets stay active through the day and small, independent business have a place.
• Water access and maritime life. The waterfront is reachable on foot from most of town, and boats are a way of life for many residents. The ferry connects the town to San Francisco.
• Views. Low buildings are the reason the bay stays visible between buildings and the hillsides stay in view from the flats. Taller buildings close those views.
• Walkability and public parks It's easy to walk around Sausalito on public streets and bike pathways. Public staircases and secret but discoverable alleys and pathways connect the hillside to the waterfront, and many errands can be done on foot.

What human scale looks like in practice

Human scale and new construction are not opposites; the question is how and what you build. Sausalito's affordable housing on public land is a good example. Through Measure K, the city created the conditions for two new communities: a small village of 50 affordable homes, primarily for seniors, capped at 32 feet, and at the Corporation Yard on Nevada Street, affordable homes for residents of all ages — both mandated to protect resident views so they fit into the existing neighborhood. Public land keeps the rents affordable; public control keeps the scale right and responsive design makes it fit.

And happens when human scale is ignored

The proposed development at 1 Harbor Drive is the opposite. A design that could be dropped in from Houston or any other city with no connection to Sausalito character. It propose to reaches 90 feet — nearly three times the 32-foot limit — on Bridgeway. At about 477,000 square feet, it would be more than four times the floor area on the site today. It clear-cuts the entire site, including four healthy native coast redwoods. In their place, a planted roof deck at level three offers greenery to residents only enclosing them in a private world. At street level it offers no shops or patios, only an imposing monolithic entrance.

What we stand for

We need to actively support new building and renovation that keeps our 32-foot height limit and oppose buildings that overwhelm the street and block the light and views around them.

Let's keep Sausalito human scale.