This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

Tax Rebates, Candidate Debate, Library Sale, Vine Planting Thanks and more

Read about our local tax rebate program, vine planting, the Lilbrary book sale, candidate debates, survey results and distracted driver month.

Local Tax Rebate Program

San Anselmo property owners with a financial hardship due to unemployment, a catastrophic emergency, or low income are invited to apply for a rebate of the Town’s Municipal Services (also called “General Purpose”), Pension Override and Library Parcel Taxes. 

The rebate program defines low income as below $24,956 for a one-person household, $28,514 for a two-person household, $32,083 for a three-person household, and $35,618 for a four-person household.  Rental property is not eligible to be considered for the rebate program.

Find out what's happening in San Anselmo-Fairfaxwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The Town of San Anselmo’s Tax Equity Board reviews the applications, which must be filed by Tuesday, May 1, 2012.  For more information, please contact Daria Carrillo at dcarrillo@townofsananselmo.org or 258-4678.

Vine Planting 

Find out what's happening in San Anselmo-Fairfaxwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The vine planting project at 790 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. went ahead as scheduled on Saturday, March 31, in spite of a driving rainstorm that arrived at the critical time and filled the holes with water!  Twenty five flowering jasmine vines were planted along the walls.  Hopefully as they grow, they will soften the look of the wall. 

Many thanks to Sunnyside Nursery for donating soil and fertilizer, and the plants at cost, and to Lori Lopin for organizing the event.  Sincere thanks to Chris Lopin, Dick Stutsman and Jim Grove for braving the rain and wind to get the plants into the ground.  Volunteers are needed to help us water the plants.  Water is available thanks to the generosity of neighbors Marchant & Chapman.  If you can help with the watering, please contact Lori Lopin at ljlopin@aol.com.

Book Sale 

The Friends of the San Anselmo Library are having a book sale on Saturday, May 5, 2012, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Town Hall Plaza.  Gently used books will be on sale for 25 cents to $3, with some special priced books.

Candidate Debates

The San Anselmo Chamber of Commerce is hosting two debates on Tuesday, May 1, 2012, beginning at 6 p.m. in the small theater at Sir Francis Drake High School.  The debates will be moderated by Dick Spotswood. 

 
The first debate will be between the three candidates for the District 2 County Supervisor seat.  The second debate will be between the three candidates for the Ross Valley Sanitary District.  The schedule is as follows:

6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. - District 2 Supervisor Candidate Debate
Candidates:  Eva Long; Katie Rice; David Weinsoff
 
7:45 - 9:00 p.m. - Ross Valley Sanitary District Candidate Debate
Candidates:  Frank Egger; Marcia Johnson, Mary Sylla

The debates will be held at Sir Francis Drake High School, 1327 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., in the small theater.  For more information, contact Connie Rodgers at the San Anselmo Chamber of Commerce, 454-2510 or go to www.sananselmochamber.org.

 
Survey Results

The results of our Town-wide survey will be discussed at the Town Council meeting of Tuesday, May 8.  We are currently assimilating the returns and culling through 30 pages of comments to prepare an overall analysis of the results.

Nearly 300 people responded to the survey.  Not surprisingly, the number one concern of respondents is funding for road maintenance and drainage improvements to ensure that Town infrastructure is in good condition.  The number two concern is working with the Ross Valley Watershed program on detention facilities, improvements at Memorial Park and other flood protection strategies.

The staff reports and the full results will be available on the website on Friday afternoon, May 4 and we hope to have a good turnout at the meeting of Tuesday, May 8, to hear the results and to give us your comments.

Distracted Driver Month 

Distracted driving is a serious traffic safety concern that puts everyone on the road at risk. As a result, law enforcement agencies across the state, including the San Anselmo Police Department, are increasingly cracking down on cell phone use and texting.

Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. Younger, inexperienced drivers under 20 years old have the highest proportion of distraction-related fatal crashes. In addition, studies show that texting while driving can delay a driver’s reaction time just as severely as having a blood alcohol content of a legally drunk driver. 

Studies show there is no difference in the risks between hands-free and hand-held cell phone conversations, both of which can result in “inattention blindness” which occurs when the brain isn’t seeing what is clearly visible because the drivers’ focus is on the phone conversation and not on the road.

“Turn off your phone and put it out of reach as you get into the car,” said Christopher J. Murphy, Director of the California Office of Traffic Safety. “Think before you call or text someone. If there is a chance they may be driving, let it wait. It’s not worth it.”

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

More from San Anselmo-Fairfax