Mary and Tim Shaw own PMI Northbay, a “boutique” property management company located in Fairfield (an independently owned/operated franchise of Property Management, Inc.), that specializes in providing an extremely high level of client service to real estate investors wishing to lease their investment property. But what does that have to do with American Canyon Community & Parks Foundation, you might ask? We’ll get to that soon enough.
Mary and Tim live in downtown Napa with their son, Steven. Mary grew up in Napa, earned her undergraduate degree in business management from Pacific Union College and her Master’s in Psychology from Chapman University. She got into banking early in her professional career and spent 22 years working at various financial corporate campuses in “back shop” banking—not working directly with clients, but managing people/processes behind the scenes. Tim, raised in San Diego, moved to the bay area in the early 1980’s. He was in the banking industry for 34 years and this industry is where he and Mary met. When Tim turned 55, he retired from banking and he and Mary transitioned from banking to real estate and opened their own business.
Tim and Mary started PMI Northbay in 2014, focusing on customer service. They were quickly well received in the community and their philosophy and approach has served them well. “When we get a property, we treat it as our own. We’re a boutique, with a small staff. We are small by design to ensure a high level of service for our clients,” says Mary. PMI is part of an international franchise network with 340 locations. Mary and Tim chose Fairfield as their business location due to supply/demand of the rental market in that area. “There are a lot of military service people who need housing while they are stationed at Travis,” Tim indicates. “They offer stability and multiple-year tenancies for several of our clients.”
In their free time, Mary and Tim love to travel, especially on cruises or to coastal destinations. They’ve been to Hawaii, Alaska, Canada, Mexico, all parts of the Caribbean, including Jamaica and the Virgin Islands, on cruises and they especially enjoy Disney cruises. Although the pandemic put a hold on their aquatic trips, they are eager to get back into the swing of things soon. Time permitting, Tim also plays golf and he loves the nearby Eagle Vines and Chardonnay courses. In fact, during the pandemic, Tim bought an electric golf trolley, controlled remotely, so that he can enjoy a beautiful walk outdoors wherever he plays.
So how did Mary and Tim come to hear about ACCPF? Well, their son Steven attends a school in Napa and, as luck would have it, Mary and Tim met and became good friends with several other parents at the school who live in American Canyon and are involved with ACCPF. Joy Hilton, a former ACCPF board member, now on the ACCPF staff, and Patricia Oro, a current board member, invited Mary and Tim to attend Evening at the Ruins in 2018–the annual ACCPF Fund Raiser held each year in September. Through that, Mary and Tim got a better sense of ACCPF and its role in the community. “I know how important parks are to ACCPF, especially the Wetlands; my own father is at the Wetlands often, photographing the wildlife there” Mary offers. “There are more people moving into Napa and American Canyon every year.” Tim states, “We feel strongly that we need to preserve places where people can relax and enjoy nature. We need a balance of both business and open space, and ACCPF understands that both are important to a vibrant community”