Library Tax Oversight Committee
The San Anselmo Town Council is recruiting applicants to serve on the Library Tax Oversight Committee. Measure B, which provides a $49 tax per parcel, was approved by voters in June 2010 to increase open hours, improve children’s services and enhance general library services. The purpose of the oversight committee is to ensure transparency and accountability to the voters by reviewing the collection and expenditure of library tax revenues.
The membership of the committee is five seats, with one member representing the Library Advisory Board, one member representing the Friends of the Library, and three members representing the general public. The group will meet twice a year to review the library budget. The terms of the members will be three years.
Application deadline is Monday, Feb. 28.
For more information and an application form click here or contact Jeannie Courteau at jcourteau@townofsananselmo.org or 258‐4691.
Town Council Meeting Notes
At the meeting of Tuesday, Feb. 8, the town council took the following actions:
• Presented the for removing non‐native growth in Sorich Park and helping his elderly neighbors maintain their garden.
• Approved the resolution providing for , subject to posted time limits.
• Approved the resolution designating signers on the Snack Shack checking account with Westamerica Bank.
• Approved the date change for downtown event application for the San Anselmo Baseball Association opening day parade, to be conducted on Red Hill Avenue to Memorial Park on Sunday, March 20, from 8:30 to 9 a.m.
• Accepted as complete and authorizd filing Notice of Completion of the Saunders Neighborhood Resurfacing Project.
• Received the report from the town’s financial advisors, Stone & Youngberg, regarding possible refinancing of the Measure G general obligation bonds, due to lowered interest rates. The council was presented with a choice of refinancing three of the four bond issues to either 1) lower San Anselmo taxpayers’ annual payments or 2) shorten the repayment period of the bonds.
The town council directed staff to begin the process to refinance three of the four Measure G bonds (the fourth bond issue is not eligible for refinance at this time). The refinanced bonds will retain the original final payment date, but will result in a savings to San Anselmo property taxpayers of a total of $758,815. This translates into an estimated savings of $1.84 per $100,000 of assessed value on a single family home. The average annual estimated savings for a median assessed single family home of $428,762 is $7.91.
You can read the staff report for this item here.
• Received the report from the Ross Valley Fire Chief on the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Code and vegetation management planning and coordination. The code includes a map of areas designated as in the wildland/urban interface. The WUI Code is intended to address the risk of wildfire in the WUI, which includes defensible space, access, water supply, and ignition resistant building standards for new construction. Much of San Anselmo, excluding the flatlands, is included in the WUI map.
The discussion at the council centered around the balance between reducing fire risk through vegetation removal, the desire to screen structures for privacy and aesthetics, and the need to ensure soil stability. Concerns were raised by members of the public around this conflict of values. Council directed staff to ensure that vegetation management/landscape plans are reviewed with all these factors in mind, with an eye to flexibility. In addition, staff will prepare a handout for residents outlining the objectives of vegetation management.
You can read the report here.
• Continued to the meeting of Feb. 22, the informational report regarding the town’s current franchise agreements. The town currently has franchise agreements with 1) PG&E for the provision of gas and electricity, 2) Marin Sanitary Service for the provision of refuse and recycling services and 3) Marin Telecommunications Agency (MTA) for the provision of video services through Comcast.
The town receives annual franchise fee revenue from these sources, as follows: 1) PG&E ‐ $77,000, 2) Marin Sanitary Service ‐ $215,000 and 3) MTA ‐ $208,000. The full staff report and franchise agreements can be read here.
San Anselmo News, published weekly on Fridays, is available at the San Anselmo Town Hall, Library, on the Public Notice Bulletin Board, and in the Ross Valley Reporter. It is also available on the town’s website and by email subscription. To subscribe to the email list, go here.
