Rent control could bring unintended consequences

On Nov. 5, voters in Fairfax, San Anselmo and Larkspur will decide if their town’s housing policy should include additional rent control beyond that which was imposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2019.

The councils in those three municipalities enacted additional restrictions on rental housing providers, but it is unclear if those policies reflect the will of the residents. The overwhelming majority of rental properties in Marin County are owned by small “mom and pop” owners who keep their rents below market, favoring long-term residency and low turnover.

They are people you may very well know — mostly hardworking, unassuming folks who manage and maintain small apartment properties themselves. However, in recent years, the increase of well-meaning but misdirected policies which overwhelm small business owners is starting to drive small owners out of business.

Their kids aren’t sure they want to take over this increasingly challenging business, so owners are at a crossroads. Who will buy their properties? Most likely, the interested buyer won’t be a neighbor. Most likely, they are investment groups not tied to our community who can’t make responsive decisions like small owners can.

We also know that when rents are capped at an artificially low level, people don’t tend to move. How are these communities supposed to attract new workers and families? What about creating much-needed housing? Why would a builder invest their effort and capital in a place with no chance of staying in business?

Lastly, as the pool of buyers for small buildings shrinks, and prices fall, so do values. This is a math problem for everybody. Lower values lead to lower tax revenue, less community services and so on. On Nov. 5, the voters will decide if they want more rent control and all the unintended consequences that come with it.

— Scott Gerber, San Rafael

Kudler connected as author, teacher and poet

I was saddened to read Jacqueline Kudler’s obituary published June 30 after she died after complications of ALS.

Many of us took her memory-writing class, which she taught for many years at College of Marin. Some students went on to publish their memoirs, but published or not, we all learned a wonderful way of writing a memoir. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she taught remotely via Zoom.

She also taught a class on literature and we read books and discussed them and gained a new understanding of them.

Jacqui Kudler was a published poet. Those books of poetry mentioned in the obituary are wonderful.

— Elaine Goldman, San Rafael

MMWD bike-access plans deserve critique

I am a frequent hiker on watershed lands and, as such, I am familiar with the trails mentioned in the article published June 26 with the headline “MMWD details preparations for expanded bike access.” How could a pilot program expanding bike usage to single-track trails begin without first examining those trails for suitability?

The current land-use regulations say bikes are generally permitted on paved roads, protection roads and developed areas. They are specifically not permitted on single-track trails. This regulation is for public safety.

One would think that any trail with narrow passages, short or no sight distance, or structures like stairs, waterbars or bridges, are unsuited to bicycles. Some trails listed have one or more of these features.

We must focus on considerations of resource degradation from bike traffic. The article states there are conflicts between user groups on trails. These are between hikers and scofflaw bikers “poaching” trails.

Another pilot proposes permitting electric-assist bikes (class 1) on Marin Municipal Water District lands. Current regulations prohibit them along with other motorized conveyances. I have questions about safety.

Marin County Bicycle Coalition leadership asks that trails be opened to allow access for seniors with mobility issues. I suspect this to be a disingenuous ruse to get access for all. Who believes that seniors “with mobility issues” are likely to wander far from existing roads?

Which decision-makers have actually been on the trails being proposed for “expanded use?” Here’s a test: Start the administrators at the bottom of the International Trail and two or more bicyclists at the top (East Ridgecrest Road) and see how that interaction goes. The regulations limit speed to 15 mph and 5 mph when passing other users.

— Jackson Barker, San Rafael