Displaced Tenants Press for Stronger Protections In Marin County Town

NOVATO, CA — Former residents of Romar Court filled the Novato City Council chamber on Tuesday, urging officials to adopt strong tenant protections after they say they were forced out of unsafe apartments with just days’ notice.

On April 29, 2025, residents of the 14-unit Romar Court apartment building in Novato were forced to vacate after the City's Code Enforcement officially red-tagged the property due to persistent, unaddressed safety issues by the management company.

North Marin Community Services is providing temporary hotel stays, case management to find new housing, and potential financial aid for moving costs and deposits, striving to keep families connected to their local schools and jobs.

Tenants described receiving five‑day notice to vacate orders following red tags and being told police would remove them if they stayed. Several spoke through interpreters about paying for hotels, storage, food and gas out of pocket while searching for new housing, and then taking on much higher rents in new units.

One former tenant said her family paid around $3,000 a month at Romar Court and now pays more than $5,000, while also dealing with electrical and safety problems in the new place. Another said her baby was born early amid the stress of an eviction she characterized as unjust.

The Novato City Council is considering a Tenant Protections Ordinance that would establish new local rules around residential tenancies, expanding on existing state law under California's Tenant Protection Act of 2019. The ordinance would require landlords to cite a specific, legally defined reason — known as just cause — before terminating a tenancy, and would extend those protections to all rental units in Novato, beyond what state law currently mandates.

The ordinance places particular emphasis on no-fault evictions, such as cases where tenants are displaced due to substantial remodels or government orders to vacate a property deemed uninhabitable, commonly called a red tag. In those situations, the ordinance would require landlords to provide financial relocation assistance and give displaced tenants the right to return once the unit is back in habitable condition. The effort is part of the City's broader 2023–2031 Housing Element goals around anti-displacement and protecting vulnerable residents from losing their homes.

Councilmember Tim O’Connor stressed that the ordinance is aimed at clear rules and safeguards, not rent caps. “None of this ordinance is about rent control,” he said. “There's nothing included in here about rent control.”

Council members also acknowledged the emotional weight of the testimony.

Mayor Rachel Farac said, noting that many residents had also met with her in recent weeks.

Tenants and advocates called for meaningful relocation payments, guaranteed rights to return after repairs and retroactive protections for those already displaced.