Good morning! The wettest April in recent memory is official behind us, and May 1 means it’s probably a holiday if you’re reading this in Europe. (Yes, the Briefing already has readers located in Europe for some reason.)
🌤️ Today’s weather: A warm one to end the week. High near 71 today with afternoon sun and a light southwest breeze. Clouds move in tonight. The weekend cools slightly: Saturday tops out near 66, Sunday near 65, both partly sunny with a westerly wind. No rain in sight. (Source: National Weather Service)
Today's newsletter: Why Mill Valley's wettest April since 2018 won't delay fire season. Plus, Caltrans confirms a timeline for the Highway 101 bridge bike lane project and your full weekend guide. This Briefing is about 1,123 words, a 5.5-minute read.
- Written and edited by Franz Strasser-Galvis
Mill Valley's wettest April in eight years won't delay fire season. Here's why.
April was the wettest since 2018 in Mill Valley. The rain gauge behind Marin Theatre on Miller Avenue, maintained by the Marin County Flood Control District, recorded 3.31 inches last month - twelve times what fell here in April 2025 and the third-highest total in twenty years of local records.
The context: The wettest April featured 5.08 inches of rain in 2018, powered by a record-rain day on April 6 when more than three inches were dumped on Mill Valley. The driest April was in 2008 with just 0.16 inches recorded. The past three Aprils sat closer to the dry end of that range. In fact, April 2025 recorded only 0.27 inches, the second driest in the last two decades.
The stakes: Marin Water confirmed its seven reservoirs entered May above 95% capacity, following a wet winter and the above-average April rainfall. But a wet winter didn’t necessarily translate to snowpack and the California Department of Water Resources Director Karla Nemeth warned after the April 1 survey: "It feels like we skipped spring this year and dropped straight into a summer heatwave." According to DWR, the early disappearance of the Sierra snowpack - which the department calls California's "frozen reservoir" - accelerates the drying of vegetation across Northern California ahead of schedule.
The bigger picture: The Sierra Nevada snowpack entered April in poor shape. According to the DWR, statewide snowpack stood at just 66% of average as of late February, with the Northern Sierra at 46%. A record-breaking March heat wave, with the National Weather Service issuing its first-ever heat advisory for March, then accelerated snowmelt across the range. DWR found no measurable snow at the Phillips Station survey site on April 1 with statewide snowpack at just 18% of average.
Late-April storms offered some relief: Palisades Tahoe picked up 81 inches and extended its ski season. But Chad Hecht, a meteorologist with the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes at UC San Diego, told the Sacramento Bee the late snow "is not going to do enough to get you back to a normal snowpack year."
What's next: Mill Valley Briefing is tracking Southern Marin Fire District's preparations for the coming fire season, including a $400,000 budget reallocation approved at the district's April 29 board meeting. SMFD's next meeting is May 27.
📨 Know someone who thinks a wet April means a safe summer? This is worth a read.
Bike lane project confirmed for late summer: what Caltrans told us
Construction on the East Blithedale/Tiburon Boulevard bike lane and repaving project will begin in late summer 2026 and run through summer 2027, Caltrans confirmed to Mill Valley Briefing.
Most paving will happen at night to limit daytime disruption. Residents should expect single-lane closures during those overnight periods. Caltrans confirmed the project scope includes the Highway 101 overpass itself, extending to the Tower Drive/Kipling Drive intersection.
What readers are saying: The original story drew strong reaction on social media, where the debate split sharply between cyclists and drivers.
Guy Palmer, who grew up in Tam Valley and has lived there since 2011, was blunt about the overpass location. "It is the single worst place to put a path," he wrote. "It just ensures a target rich environment for motorists."
Mark, a Mill Valley resident of more than 70 years who asked to be identified only by his first name, came down on the other side. He described being taken to the emergency room after a car cut him off at the northbound 101 onramp. He said he no longer rides the overpass, taking the longer Hauke Park and Shelter Bay route instead. He supports the bike lane, writing that it "would remind motorists that the road is to be shared by everyone."
Others called for lane reconfigurations to ease car congestion, and at least one resident said the bigger priority was clearing heavy equipment that has sat at the highway wye for nearly three decades.
🌲 Your Mill Valley weekend
🕺 Friday night Silent Disco — Kick off the weekend tonight from 5:30pm to 7:30pm with an outdoor silent disco at the Mill Valley Lumber Yard. The event is family-friendly and features three channels of music at 129 Miller Ave. More info here.
More Mill Valley events below. Including some anniversary parties you don’t want to miss…
