Novato Buying 6 million Brooklyn Bridge?

 No Strings Attached?   Uncanny politics by the Transportation in cahoots with /OBAG / ABAG authorities are  now running amuck with ambiguities confusing the public and the council  and being hidden by the City of Novato and the transportation agency.     For example, now there is another new project for spending another $ 3 million $$$,$$$ tax dollars and saying there are no strings attached.   That tax dollars’  project  is to meld/mix/ combine all low-income residents of canal area in San Rafael with Marin City and all of Novato in  a program from the transportation authority to tell the residents what is needed.   Yet, I think that many  prefer money for education, jobs, and cars.
A curious fact is that a  few years ago, the transportation authority took about

 $ 80, 000 dollars from the canal area in San Rafael and gave the tax dollars to the Smart train in the name of helping the low-income residents- is that what residents wanted and can the transportation agency be trusted?    

 So, now there is pressure on the Novato council to approve this program being touted with no strings attached for Novato except to build 4 new low income units in addition to the 415 units –and at the same time  be  threatened  that no federal or state money will come to Novato unless its accepts the decisions by this elite transportation bureaucracy with minimum input. The canal and Marin city can outvote Novato for funding.    So, there are strings attached  even for the $ 3-4 million $$$,$$$ tax dollars for a new bus hub.   Again,  with the new program ( costs unknown)  combining   the canal area in San Rafael with Marin City and Novato as one area and  if the funds for the transportation  program  are  not accepted  by the city ( note:    the transportation agency  makes the rules in doling out federal, state, and county tax dollars)   then no millions of  our hard earned dollars will be available  in the future, according to Novato’s  community developer and the transportation authority. 

All or most of the federal and  funds are connected with building  higher densities Plan Bay Area/ OBAG/ transportation authority  adding costs of   new maintenance and personnel  for  the residents in our rural town. These agencies

 do not pay for added expenses.

 Novato is being  a political pawn with no leverage in new funding.

The new deal

( suspected con) is   there will be no money forthcoming for sidewalks and paths and bus hubs  instead for SMART and the developers of higher density if Novato does not accept the apparent scam of no strings attached.

Is the city

 being sold the Brooklyn Bridge?     Yet, strings were attached to the recent grant.  In order to get this  grant of Novato, (the  $ 800,000 $$,$$$ thousand tax dollars)  was threatened that unless the Housing Element was to be signed, sealed, and delivered to the state in January or there would be no grant.  Threats ran the day.  And now Politics of the Transportation / OBAG authority are running rampant with ambiguities.  It is  

scaring

the Novato City council into an uncomfortable position.  These two projects have hardly any public involvement.   The absurd sounding, new $ 3 $$$, $$$ million  project which Mayor Lucan and councilman Kellner seem to be in favor of is that they believe  that there are no strings attached.  The new $ 3, 000,000 million tax dollar project to combine the Canal district of San Rafael, Marin City of Sausalito with majority  of Novato designated as low income will be connected to transportation and higher densities and  obligated to vote for  what the agency wants with almost no input.  Novato city council apparently needs support by the voters   to decide what our priorities are instead of being treated  like kindergartners by the transportation authority and city staff with threats.    Little publicity is out there for these projects and no voting by the public and little discussion is allowed -only three minutes at a city meeting.  The council is trying to sort through this mess, but the staff appears to hinder it with their management practices.  Support the council to call the bluff of the transportation authority and come up with a better priority plan with no connection to building even higher densities in  our 30% ( more or less) already low-income, deserving higher wages, veterans, women, men, seniors, disabled, and families living in town.   Can the city council  resolve these threats and ambiguities in due time,  given a one week time threat by the agency,  without being forced into a new  bureaucratic political board with the Canal and Marin City?