Opponents of the Point Reyes gas station remodel have appealed the project, maintaining that it would strip the building of its historic character and include a convenience store more than twice the size allowed under county regulations.

The Point Reyes Station Village Association filed its appeal on Valentine’s Day, demanding that the county planning commission overturn a zoning administrator’s Feb. 8 decision approving the project, which would also include five new apartments and a 1,000-gallon commercial propane tank.

The appeal asserts that the county failed to apply a provision of its local coastal plan that restricts a service station minimart to 15 percent of a building’s floor area. That would limit the store to 850 square feet—less than half of the size of the 1,900-square-foot store proposed by Redwood Oil, which owns the gas station.

“No rationale has been provided for this major omission,” the appeal states.

Association members fear a larger store will cause traffic problems at the busy intersections of Highway 1, Mesa Road and A Street. The approved plan calls for enclosing the front porch to make room for the expanded minimart, but the village association considers the porch to be a historic feature of the building, which once stored peas and artichokes. 

“The unenclosed porch and historic materials are character-defining features of this simple agricultural building and we appeal to the Planning Commission to use its discretion to require these be preserved,” their appeal states.

Association members argue that county planners used an incorrect cutoff date of 1930 to determine whether the building, which was built two years after that, qualifies as a historic resource. In fact, they maintain, buildings can be granted historic status if they are just 50 years old.

They cited an assessment by West Marin historian Dewey Livingston that linked the building’s history to the experiences of immigrant Japanese and Italian farmers, who used it as a warehouse for their peas and artichokes. After their civil liberties were curtailed during World War II, those local industries vanished.

“The cultural importance of these immigrant farmers has not been acknowledged to date, and this is the last extant building in the area associated with that theme,” Mr. Livingston wrote in a passage cited in the appeal.

The building was moved to its current location and transformed into an auto repair shop and gas station in 1942. It now houses a small gas station checkout counter and two businesses, Blue Waters Kayaking and Ink Paper Plate, which would be forced to relocate if the remodel moves forward.

County planners say the proposed remodel meets all county health and safety codes and would increase the housing supply, which is an urgent priority in West Marin and statewide. The renovation would not change the building’s footprint, but enclosing the porch and reconfiguring the interior would make room for five apartments, including one affordably priced unit.

The village association appeal also raises concerns about health and safety, singling out the planned addition of a 1,000-gallon commercial propane tank on the A Street side of the station. They fear that R.V.s and other larger vehicles will double park while filling up, exacerbating traffic and disturbing neighbors across the street.

The appeal also raises concerns about locating housing so close to the propane tank and the gas tanks, stating that emissions could pose health threats to residents. It asks the county to guarantee that environmental reviews are conducted to protect residents from emissions and noise.

Megan Alton, the zoning administrator who approved the plans, has said that the project will undergo further review by building inspectors to ensure that it meets relevant state fire and safety codes.

A hearing date for the appeal has not been set, but association members expect it to take place in March or April. Nearly 40 opponents showed up at the Feb. 8 hearing. “We will ask the community to show up again,” said Pamela Bridges, chair of the association’s site review committee. “Our case is strong.”