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- Seriously? This famous Marin building was put on stilts and moved 12 feet
Seriously? This famous Marin building was put on stilts and moved 12 feet
Marin history and our Zillow listing of the week
Marin Buzz
November 10, 2025
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Isn’t it hilarious to think of picking up and moving a building? Just like you would use a jack to lift a car, they can do it with homes and other buildings.
And it was fairly common in San Francisco. This SFGate article mentions a 1900 business directory with 19 companies offering the service. Here’s one in SF that traveled 1.6 miles in 1973:
The famous Marin building that did this fairly recently? The Novato City Hall building that is prominently featured in the city’s branding.
Here is the Novato City Hall building on jacks during its 2008-2009 renovation:
What’s the history of this building and why did they move it 12 feet north?
It was built in 1896 as the First Presbyterian Church of Novato. Then in 1960, when the city was incorporating, it was sold for $62,500. That’s about $684k today, which sounds like a good deal.
In 2005, the building was deemed structurally unsafe. The extensive 2008-2009 rehab process rebuilt both the foundation and the steeple. It was a massive $5 million project that included building a foyer connecting it to the building next door. At the same time, they also demolished two buildings next door to build the green space used for the Novato outdoor concert series.
Side note: the building is known for its distinctive dark red color, but it was white at some point. A former mayor in that ABC article said it was white until 1990, but the historic marker says it was in 1963. If you lived here before 1990, what was the color?
Apollo, Pug and French Bulldog mix, rescued through Kern County Rescue
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 Willits getaway for $610k |
Ok, this one isn’t in Marin, but is so unique I had to share it with you as a vacation home option.
Willits is on the 101, north of Ukiah. That means this getaway is a 2 hour drive from Marin. Not so bad compared to Tahoe…
The property was handcrafted and built with almost no power tools! It’s a classic style, but actually not all that old, built in 1981.
There’s a functional water tower, a detached workshop, and even a metal stock-tank pool with a view. This is the first time the home has been on the market, so I imagine this was a labor of love with the owner slowly making improvements himself.
Check it out:
Thanks for reading. We will be back with the regular events and activities email Wednesday morning!
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