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Health & Fitness

San Anselmo: Town Council Meeting Notes, Traffic Safety, Night of the Poets, and Family Biking Workshop

Town Council Meeting Notes

At the meeting of Tuesday, March 25, 2014, the Town Council took the following actions: 

  • Proclaimed April Fair Housing Month.
  • Proclaimed April 13-19 Library Week.
  • Proclaimed April 6-12 Volunteer Week.
  • Approved the application of Film Night in the Park for the 2014 summer series, to be held on August 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23 and September 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 26, 27.
  • Approved plans for a Skate Plaza on a portion of the basketball area at Memorial Park, next to Field 1.  The Skate Plaza is the product of a community effort to formalize skating in the underutilized basketball area of the park.  The Council approved the site plan, rules and regulations, equipment and materials, budget, fundraising plan, and ongoing governance and oversight.  Community Resources Director Dave Donery will work with the volunteer group on implementation of the Skate Plaza. 
  • Reviewed the Traffic Calming Guidebook and annual traffic report by Central Marin Police Authority (CMPA).  More on this important topic below.
  • Reviewed park rules regarding dogs, on and off leash and directed staff to draft an ordinance that would allow for citations to be given to dog owners who don’t follow the park rules regarding dogs.

The staff reports for the above items can be found at http://www.townofsananselmo.org/index.aspx?NID=449.

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Traffic Safety

Traffic safety was a big topic of conversation at the recent Town Council meeting.  In his staff report, Police Chief Todd Cusimano noted that traffic safety is an important issue in San Anselmo.  Numerous complaints have been received about speeding cars, especially in neighborhoods, poor driving habits, failure to yield to pedestrians, failure to stop for stop signs, and more.  And the complaints just keep coming!

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Traffic Sergeant Grady Joseph presented traffic statistics for 2013.  Sergeant Joseph presented the Council with a number of traffic facts, including the fact that CMPA responded to 166 traffic collisions in 2013. The primary reasons for the collisions are driving at an unsafe speed, unsafe turning movements, U-turns, failure to yield to vehicles, pedestrian right of way, and driving under the influence.  The streets that are most prone to collisions are, not surprisingly, Red Hill Avenue, Sir Francis Drake Blvd., and Center Blvd.  Sergeant Joseph’s full power point presentation can be found at with the staff report at: http://www.townofsananselmo.org/Archive.aspx?ADID=4012.

Public Works Director Sean Condry presented the Town’s current Traffic Safety Guidebook and recommended that it be reviewed and updated.  The Guidebook provides a number of traffic calming measures and a process that neighbors can undertake to calm traffic in their own neighborhoods.  The booklet is now about 15 years old, and although it contains much information that is still current and helpful, it is a good time to update it and add new measures.

The Town Council heard from quite a number of residents at the meeting complaining about speeding and poor driving habits in their neighborhoods and around Town.  In particular, residents fear for the safety of pedestrians and children riding bikes and walking to school, particularly on Butterfield Road, but complaints have been received from neighborhoods all over town.

Direction that was given by the Council to staff includes:

·                     Review and update the Traffic Calming Guidelines.

·                     Undertake more aggressive traffic enforcement to curb the poor driving habits exhibited in San Anselmo.  The Council tasked the CMPA with increasing traffic enforcement to send a message to drivers that unsafe driving practices are not tolerated in San Anselmo.  The CMPA will focus their initial traffic enforcement work on Butterfield Road.

So, San Anselmo drivers, please pay attention to your driving, keep your speed down, and leave for work or school with enough time to spare so that you don’t have to rush.  The point that Chief Cusimano made to the Town Council is that the violators are, essentially, US.  We all have to slow down and pay attention when driving.  And, fair warning to everybody, the Police are going to step up their traffic enforcement. 

Night of the Poets

The Library presents the annual Night of the Poets on Thursday, April 10, 2014, at 7:00 p.m. in the Library.  Meet local celebrated poets Karen Benke and Prartho Sereno.  The evening will end with refreshments and music by Jardin Gitane gypsy jazz band.  This event is made possible by the Friends of the San Anselmo Library and the Library Parcel Tax.

Family Biking Workshop 

The Marin County Bicycle Coalition is sponsoring several Family Biking Workshops.  The workshops will be fun for the whole family while learning valuable biking skills.  The two-hour workshop will teach your family how to safely navigate streets with proper equipment and behavior.  Planned workshops include:

Saturday, April 5         Mill Valley

Saturday, May 17        Fairfax

Saturday, June 7          Novato

Saturday, July 26         Larkspur

Advance registration is required and there is a $10 fee per family.  For more information, go to

http://marinbike.org/Campaigns/SafeRoutes/FamilyBiking/Index.shtml?utm_source=Family+Biking+2014&utm_campaign=Family+Biking&utm_medium=email or email Peggy at peggy@marinbike.org.  The exact locations will be given upon registration.

San Anselmo News, published weekly on Fridays, is available at the San Anselmo Town Hall, Library, and on the Public Notice Bulletin Board. It is also available on the Town’s website, www.townofsananselmo.org, and by email subscription. 

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