Lomita Park-Bret Harte Meeting Summary and Next Steps (March 2, 2019)

by Katie Rice, Marin County Supervisor (District 2)

Hello Lomita Park and Bret Hart neighbors,
 
Thanks to all of you who attended/participated in our recent meeting, including Deputy Contreras! As I said at the meeting, I am continually impressed and inspired by your community spirit, constructive participation, and general willingness to be involved.  Bravo and thank you! It really is a pleasure working with your community.
 
See below for a summary of discussion at our meeting.  Included are highlights plus links/contact info when more information is needed.  If you have questions or further issues/concerns to discuss, please feel free to get in touch with me/my office.  
 
Homeless/Encampments

• Sheriff consistently on lookout for homeless/homeless encampments;
  • when on public property, Sheriff will work toward moving them along if setting up encampment (Sheriff usually allows time for him/her to collect belongings and also provides information on services/shelters available locally).
  • if on private property, Sheriff has to (and will) work with private property owner to get access and then take steps (as above) to move person along.
• County is currently developing a clearly defined protocol/process for clean-up of homeless encampments as issue requires multiple agencies (Sheriff, DPW, Health and Human services). The County is working closely with City of San Rafael and CHP/Caltrans on this issue, particularly per Lomita Park area given multijurisdictional nature of community.
• For now, if you see that an encampment has been established, please contact Sheriff (415-479-2311) and our office (415-473-7351). While Sheriff is in the area frequently, they might not spot campers if hidden. Huge thanks to Ron Sieg, Theo, Jack Fulton and others who worked hard to clean up the latest encampment!
• Currently, an encampment exists under the freeway on Cal Trans property – Sheriff has alerted CHP (who works with Caltrans) so they will address, and continue to monitor the area; new fencing from Smart Train could be helpful in keeping this area free of homeless campers.
• Vegetation management is important to increase visibility in areas where campers might congregate – request made for County to clear brambles on county parcel across from Northern Star Auto (previous site of encampment).
• Sheriff to check out reported homeless encampments in between properties on Orange street.

 
Homelessness more generally:
County with a coalition comprised of service and housing providers, city and county departments, business and philanthropic community is making progress on homeless issue in the past year with the adoption of a coordinated/collaborative approach and adoption of a Housing First model. Over the past 18 months, 110 of Marin’s most vulnerable/chronically homeless, many who for years have lived on the streets, surviving on temporary shelter and daily services and in many cases rotating in and out of jail and/or hospital emergency services, are in stable housing and receiving the services they need to maintain their health and housing.  Visit https://housingfirst.marinhhs.org/housing-first to learn more.
 
Traffic Calming/Safety
County DPW has several projects/studies in the works toward traffic calming/safety in Lomita Park area. Thanks so much to Richard and Kathy Brew for bringing these issues to our attention:
 
Woodland/Auburn Intersection North (across from Northern Star Auto):

• Short-term – County to look at extending existing no parking zone to enhance sight distance/potential parking restrictions north of intersection on west side of road (across Woodland from Northern Star Auto).
• Longer -term – County to put crosswalk + pedestrian-activated flashing beacon at intersection on potential/future project list (note addition of recent Smart crossing for pedestrians on east side of Woodland); No funding available at this time. Improvements will also need to meet ADA requirements.
  • Intersection would not qualify for stop sign given the low traffic volumes on Auburn as compared to Woodland.

Woodland/Auburn intersection South (by Montessori school)

• County to conduct traffic study to see if stop sign on Woodland (or other improvements) is warranted – will look at traffic counts and pedestrian travel (rush hour best time).  Will happen spring or summer since pedestrian travel may increase during the warmer months and extended daylight hours.

Auburn Street

• County to go through process of having Auburn certified as a residence district, allowing for CHP to enforce with radar.
• Residents urged to trim vegetation where necessary to allow for more room for pedestrians.
• Striping could be potential traffic calming improvement when road is up for paving

 
5G Communications

• Marin now among coalition of public agencies joining court action against FCC ruling for deployment.
• Board of Supervisors subcommittee working with County Counsel and Community Development Agency to identify potential amendments to the County’s policies and regulations to ensure that County retains maximum regulatory control over new wireless telecommunications facilities, such as 5G, within the limits of federal law.
• Public workshop early February to get community input.
• See recent press release and website for more information and take a minute to fill out the 5G survey (open until March 31).

 
Fire Safety/Prevention
Throughout the County, the fire agencies and communities have mobilized around fire prevention and disaster preparedness including defensible space, vegetation management, resident evacuation and emergency planning, highlighted by exponential growth of Firewise neighborhoods in Marin and expansion of fuel reduction projects in public open space lands.
 
Each of the above mark progress addressing some of our most challenging community issues that I will continue to put my energy and attention towards further gains, with focus in the coming year on wildfire prevention, specifically driving forward a county-wide wildfire prevention and disaster preparedness effort.
 
Given that wildfire knows no boundaries, while many individual jurisdictions and neighborhoods across the county are making progress at the local level, it is imperative that communities across Marin work together to improve our collective ability to prevent, contain, and if necessary recover from wildfire or other natural disaster.
 
Reflecting this imperative, a cross-jurisdictional, multi-agency effort is underway to develop and implement a county-wide, coordinated strategy on wildfire prevention and disaster preparedness. This planning work is being led by city and county management and fire chiefs from across the county, and is being informed by the “Lesson’s Learned” report prepared by a countywide taskforce following the 2017 North Bay wildfires, and the Marin County Community Wild Fire Protection Plan, a science based assessment of Marin’s wildfire threat that identifies and prioritizes areas for fuel reduction and actions that should be taken across communities to reduce structural ignitability. Both these documents and more information on what you can do as a homeowner and to participate in broader community efforts are available at www.firesafemarin.org.  Lomita Park/Bret Harte should consider becoming a Firewise community.  Meanwhile, I will check status on Cal Park being included in San Rafael Fire program in the works and if new codes would apply. 
 
Other

• County road crew to make road improvements on Auburn and remove sawhorses when weather improves.
• County reviewing Restricted Parking signs on Auburn/Woodland where No Dumping/Parking signs have been added to post by private property owner (could be potentially confusing and need 7-foot high clearance).
• County will paint over graffiti on retaining wall/other when tagging or obscene.
• Smart Train work basically done in Woodland area; San Rafael working with SMART to ensure that quiet zone is extended thought the reminder of San Rafael and hope to have in place sometime during testing phase and before revenue service beings sometime in 2020; quite zone doesn’t apply to crossing arms.

 
Contacts for Complaints/Concerns

• Sheriff 415-479-2311 (non-emergency)
• CHP (under overpass) 707-551-4100 (for real-time events); 415-924-1100 (Monday-Friday 8am-5pm for ongoing traffic complaint)
• City of San Rafael (bike path) 415-485-3000
• Emergency 911
• Katie Rice 415-473-7825; [email protected]
• Nancy Vernon 415-473-7351; [email protected]

 
Katie
 
Katie Rice │District 2
Marin County Supervisor 
3501 Civic Center Drive, Suite 329
San Rafael, CA 94903
(415) 473.7825
 
 
 
Nancy Vernon │Aide
Office of Supervisor Katie Rice
3501 Civic Center Drive, Suite 329
San Rafael, CA 94903
(415) 473.7351
 

 
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