AGENDA ITEM #4
TOWN OF FAIRFAX
STAFF REPORT
November 2, 2022
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: Lorena Barrera, Administrative Analyst
SUBJECT: Receive report on Councilmembers’ assignments, committees, and activities in October
__________________________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION
Receive Councilmember activities report.
DISCUSSION
Every month, each Councilmember provides a list of the meetings they attended in the preceding month on behalf of the Town, for inclusion in this report. Under the agenda section entitled “Council Reports and Comments” Councilmembers may choose to highlight one of those meetings.
Mayor Hellman
A report was not provided in time for the publication of the agenda packet.
Vice Mayor Cutrano
10/4 - Meeting with Jenny Callway, District Director for U.S. Congressman Jared Huffman, regarding transportation planning for State Route 37
10/4 - Meeting with Marin County Supervisor Stephanie Moulton-Peters regarding transportation planning for State Route 37.
10/5 - Meeting with Suzanne Smith, Executive Director of the Sonoma County Transportation Authority (SCTA), regarding the operations of the SCTA and transportation planning for State Route 37.
10/5 - Meeting with U.S. Congressman Jared Huffman regarding transportation planning for State Route 37.
10/5 - Meeting with Gwen Froh of Safe Routes 2 School to discuss e-bike education and outreach with youth.
10/5 - Meeting with Councilmember Goddard regarding parklet fees. 10/6 - Meeting with David Lewis, Executive Director of Save the Bay, regarding transportation planning for State Route 37.
10/6 - Meeting with Anne Richman, Executive Director of the Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM), regarding transportation planning for State Route 37. 10/6 - Closed Session of the Fairfax Town Council
10/6 - Special Meeting of the Fairfax Town Council
10/6 - Regular October Meeting of the Fairfax Town Council 10/11 - Meeting with Chief Rico Tabaranza
10/11 - Special Meeting of the Fairfax Town Council
10/13 - Closed Session of the Fairfax Town Council
10/13 - Special Meeting of the Fairfax Town Council.
10/14 - Rent Stabilization Ad Hoc Subcommittee Meeting. I met with Mayor Hellman, Curt Reis (of DSA Marin) and Lucie Hollingsworth (Legal Aid of Marin), DeSeana Williams (City of Berkeley), and Leah Simon-Weisberg (ACCE), to discuss the next steps for a timely implementation of the 2 rent stabilization ordinance. We identified form identification and form customization for the Town of Fairfax as next steps for administration.
10/18 - Meeting with Alan Burr, Affordable Housing Specialist Marin Community Foundation to update him on the progress the Town is making on our Rent Stabilization ordinance and strengthening of our Just Cause Eviction ordinance. 10/19 - Attended the Larkspur City Council Meeting. Mayor Stephanie Hellman and I attended the Larkspur City Council Meeting where they were discussing whether or not to move forward with a Rent Stabilization Ordinance. I provided the council with an update on our timeline. The Larkspur City Council Subcommittee on Rent Stabilization recommended to staff that they move forward with the preparation of a rent stabilization ordinance. 10/20 - Meeting with Supervisor Katie Rice regarding the history of flooding in the Ross Valley, current projects underway in the Ross Valley as well as the new tenant protection ordinances that have been developed in Fairfax.
10/21 - Rent Stabilization Ad Hoc Subcommittee Meeting. I met with Mayor Hellman, Curt Reis (of DSA Marin) and Lucie Hollingsworth (Legal Aid of Marin) to discuss possible very simply, easyto-understand work products that Legal Aid of Marin could/will develop to help educate landlords and tenants about the proposed tenant protection ordinances. 10/24 - Town of Fairfax Agenda Setting Meeting
10/25 - Meeting with Councilmember Bruce Ackerman and several residents of Spruce Road to discuss their concerns about dust control at Fairfax Lumber, and to discuss their concerns about fencing materials proposed for the fencing on the Fairfax Lumber Property. 10/25 - Meeting with Director of Public Works, Loren Umbertis where we discussed the various strategies and frameworks to quickly improve our Pavement Condition Index (PCI) score.
Furthermore we discussed strategies to improve sidewalks and storm drains in within our Town Center. I also raised the idea of coordinating with Fairfax Lumber to pave portions of their gravel road when we repave that section of Broadway. DPW Umbertis and I discussed the Cross Marin Bikeway—specifically the planning work that has been done to date to place sharrows on Broadway and Bolinas. Finally, I received an update on our tree maintenance program in our Town Parks. We discussed possible amendments to the tree maintenance program, ongoing use of recycled water for our redwoods, and opportunities to coordinate future tree planting and tree maintenance with Fairfax Volunteers
10/25 - Meeting with Planner for the Town of Fairfax, Linda Neal, to relay concerns of the residents of Spruce Road regarding materials proposed for the fencing on the Fairfax Lumber property. In addition, requested information regarding the gas station ban agenda item on the October 27 Planning Commission agenda.
10/25 - Meeting with Anne Richman, Executive Director of the Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM), regarding transportation planning for State Route 37 and the Ride Amigos platform, which TAM utilizes as part of our Marin Commutes program. I received feedback on the State Route 37 letter submitted by the Marin County Board of Supervisors to assess how Fairfax can best articulate our concerns about the Interim project proposed by Caltrans/MTC for State Route 37. I learned how we might help to increase adoption of and participation in the Marin Commutes among our businesses in Fairfax. I plan to connect TAM staff with staff at the Good Earth as well as the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce.
10/25 - Town of Fairfax Open Space Committee Meeting. At this Open Space Committee meeting we received an update on the possible donation of a parcel to the Town of Fairfax that would provide access to the Egger Preserve. We received an update on the efforts of the San Anselmo Open Space Committee to preserve the summit of Bald Hill (in Ross), which will be acquired by the County of Marin. San Anselmo Open Space Committee is also working to acquire an additional 22 acres for Hawthorne Canyon Open Space, which is maintained by the Town of San Anselmo. This will be contiguous with the tax defaulted Upper Ridgeway Parcels the Town of 3 Fairfax is working to acquire from the County of Marin. I provided an update to the Open Space Committee that our Town Attorney and her team at BBK have finalized the escrow contract and will send that to the Marin Open Spact Trust this week for their signature so that monies can be deposited into the escrow account and the Town of Fairfax can execute the contract. The contract was delivered to Marin Open Space Trust on Wednesday, 10/26. 10/26 - Marin Emergency Radio Authority (MERA) Meeting. At the MERA meeting this month we discussed the progress on the NextGen system:
• All leases for project sites have been completed. We are about halfway through the construction phase of the NextGen system.
• At this meeting the Governing Board awarded Bid Package 3 to Fidato in the amount of $3,612,000.00 with a 15% contingency. Bid Package 3 will cover construction for Mill Valley, Skyview Terrace, Tomales and Wolfback Ridge sites.
• In the past, MERA has entered into agreements with Non-MERA agencies to use the Gen One Radio Channels. Recently, we have been asked by numerous agencies to enter into agreements for mutual aid use of the Next Gen System. Given the public concern the access to and use of the NextGen system by external agencies (e.g., federal law enforcement agencies), MERA executive staff and general counsel developed a Proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Between MERA and Non-MERA Agencies for use of the MERA Radio System. The MOU outlines rules of use, authorized channels and talkgroups, and expectations of Non-MERA Agencies should they be allowed to use the MERA System. We unanimously passed this MOU at our Governing Board meeting. 10/27 - Transportation Authority of Marin (TAM) Meeting • The TAM Board of Commissioners authorized a contract amendment and cooperative agreement for the Highway 101 Interchange and Approaching Roadways Study. • The TAM Board of Commissioners authorized a Ride Amigos software subscription agreement extension to support the Marin Commutes Program. • The TAM Board of Commissioners reviewed and accepted the Draft TAM Equity Statement and Action Plan with two amendments offered by Commissioner Cutrano. The next step will be for TAM to convene a roundtable with community based organizations and equity leaders in the region to review and provide feedback on the Draft Statement and Action Plan
• The TAM Board of Commissioners received an update on the strategy/approach to TAM’s Sea Level Rise Program
• The TAM Board of Commissioners went into Closed Session to conduct a performance evaluation of the Executive Director.
Other updates include:
• Pavement Condition Index Report to be Released. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) is planning to release the Annual Pavement Condition Index (PCI) Report to provide the 3-year rolling average of pavement condition of cities, towns and counties throughout the Bay Area. The PCI provides a snapshot of the pavement health of a road. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 100 (where 100 means a newly paved road), and many factors affect a city’s or county’s PCI score. These include pavement age, climate and precipitation, traffic loads and available maintenance funding. Fairfax has the lowest pavement condition index in Marin County, and is in the “At Risk” category with a PCI of 56 for 2021. Upon election and appointment to the Transportation Authority of Marin I learned this information and shared it as part of the rationale for hiring a Director of Public Works and doubling our investments in our roadways. We have a lot of work to do to increase our score. I have been discussing approaches with our new Director of Public Works, Loren Umbertis, and I feel confident that we will be able to greatly improve our PCI over the coming years.
4 • Eyes Up, Marin! Street Smarts Campaign Launched in October. As you have likely seen throughout Marin, the Street Smarts Program, as part of the Safe Routes to Schools Program, rolled out a new safety campaign including new messaging and images. The “Eyes Up, Marin” campaign includes new banners, yard signs, bus ads and social media outreach.
• San Rafael Transit Center Relocation.In response to the current transit center being impacted by the extension of the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) system to Larkspur, several government agencies partnered to identify a new transit center site and configuration. To address current and future needs, the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District (District) began a multi-year process to develop a new transit center for San Rafael, and on August 11, 2021, released a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for public review At the October 17 San Rafael City Council meeting, the Bridge District provided an update on the Transit Center Relocation DEIR and presented a summary of their responses to comments and the project in general. The City of San Rafael expects the Bridge District to release a Final EIR for a 30-day public review by the end of October.
• Active Transportation Program. On October 20, 2022, the California Transportation Commission (CTC) released its staff recommendations for the Statewide and Small Urban and Rural components of the 2023 Active Transportation Program. CTC received 434 project applications, totaling $3.1 billion in ATP funding requests. In the Statewide component, CTC staff is recommending 67 projects for a total of $853 million in funding. In the Small Urban and Rural component, CTC staff is recommending 26 projects for a total of $171 million in funding. Unfortunately, the six applications submitted from Marin were not selected among the projects.
Councilmember Ackerman
10/6 - MCE Technical Committee
10/6 - Town Council Regular Meeting, preceded by a closed session 10/11 - Town Council Special Meeting, preceded by a closed session 10/13 - Town Council Special Meeting
10/18 - Climate Action Committee regular meeting cancelled due to lack of a quorum 10/20 - MCE Board Meeting
10/24 - Meet with San Anselmo AdHoc Subcommittee and County staff re creek plaza 10/25 - Meet with Spruce Road neighbors along with Vice-Mayor Cutrano (as ad-hoc subcommittee appointed by Council)
10/26 - MCCMC Climate Committee zoom meeting
10/26 - MCCMC Regular meeting, in-person
10/27 - Pavilion/Microgrid meeting with staff
Councilmember Coler
1. Met with Town Manager several times on Town matters (Oct 11, 18, 25, Nov 1).
2. Attended MCE Marin Clean Energy Executive Committee meeting (Oct 7) – Lack of quorum so only informational items: Request for nominations for Charles McGlashen awards; the Richmond Virtual Power Plant will have its soft launch soon for the 1st home in the VPP; following were discussed but to be taken up at full Board meeting Oct 21 due to lack of quorum: Implementation of Electrification Rate Schedule E-ELEC; Proposed amendments to MCE’s Investment Policy.
3. Attended Town Council Special meetings (Oct 11 & 13).
4. Attended Marin Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) meeting (Oct 13) – primary item was approval of Annexation of 255 Margarita Drive to SR Sanitation District 5 (this property annexation was terminated prior as the owner never completed the easement for the sewer lateral and more) with conditions and tight schedule to ensure compliance.
5. Attended Annual CalLAFCO conference in Irvine, CA (Oct 19-21, all costs reimbursed by Marin LAFCO) – Sessions attended included: Municipal Services Reviews; Fire District Consolidations; Regional Roundtables; Succession Planning; Grand Juries & LAFCO; Hill LAFCO “mock hearing” proposal to dissolve Hill Fire District. Networking with other LAFCO commissioners and EOs/staff across the State.
6. Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA) Board meeting (Oct 21) –Alternate attended due to Coler attending CalLAFCO conference.
7. MCE Marin Clean Energy Board meeting (Oct 21) – Alternate attended due to Coler attending CalLAFCO conference.
8. Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA) (Oct 24) – Met with Board VP McMillian re:
her listening sessions for progress forward re: MWPA.
9. MCE Clean Energy Ad Hoc Committee RE: Executive Compensation (Oct 24) – to be presented to the MCE Executive Committee on November 4th.
10.Marin County Mayors & Councilmembers (MCCMC) Legislative Committee – Oct 24 Meeting was canceled as Legislature is in recess and it is election season. MCCMC LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE SCOPE OF ADVOCACY: Fiscal Protection: protect city revenues from state Local Control: support legislation that enhances local control of resources to provide services while supporting regional co-operation. Oppose unfunded mandates and preemption of local authority and control of land use Transportation Investment: promote stable transportation finance structure for state and local government.
Multimodal, enhancing livable communities Housing/Land use: protect local government land use authority. Oppose punitive housing legislation, and legislation that restricts or reduces local discretion on land use decisions. Other legislation can be recommended to MCCMC at a regular meeting.
11.Attended Marin County Mayors and Councilmembers meeting hosted by Novato (Oct 26). Business meeting held – reports on various committees, consider appointments to some committees and networking opportunities – this is the second in-person meeting held since COVID “shutdowns” in 2020-2022.
12.Attended Fairfax Age Friendly Task Force meeting (Oct 28) – Planning for the 90+ celebration on November 5th; discussion on other age friendly events and matters.
Councilmember Goddard
A report was not provided in time for the publication of the agenda packet.