Good morning and happy Wednesday, Mill Valley. You’re receiving a free preview of the weekday newsletter for paid subscribers. If you like what you see and want to support this type of reporting, please consider signing up.
☀️ Today's weather: Clear skies through the morning and afternoon, with a few clouds returning toward evening, high near 67°F. North winds 5 to 13 mph, with gusts up to 18 mph. Overnight: Mostly cloudy, low near 50°F. (Source: National Weather Service)
Today's newsletter: Miller Avenue's possible temporary flood wall, the Boyle Park tennis contract decision and Measure T's early results. This Briefing is roughly 1,100 words, a 4-minute read.
- Written and edited by Franz Strasser-Galvis
Mill Valley may test a temporary flood wall on Miller under new emergency powers
What’s happening: City Manager Todd Cusimano told the City Council Monday that the city, the county and Flood Zone 3 are looking at temporary flood walls on Miller Avenue. The idea, he said, is to hold back tidal water on dry days and possibly pump it. He made the case as council weighed a local emergency proclamation, which it approved by voice vote later in the same item.
Tidal flooding near Tam High last week. Left: the school parking lot underwater. Right: water partway across Miller Avenue. (MVB, Oct. 28)
Cusimano said the city is asking the county and Flood Zone 3 for support. If that doesn’t come, he said, the authority council was about to grant would let him “go try it” himself. He wouldn’t promise a wall. He said Sausalito and Tiburon are also trying the concept, about two weeks ahead of Mill Valley.
Sunday’s Briefing reported that Public Works was already exploring a temporary flood wall on Miller across from Tam High. Monday, Cusimano tied the idea to the emergency authority.
Why it matters: Miller closed at high tide every day last week, according to police alerts, with traffic backing up about 1.5 miles from before Tam High to Highway 101 at Tower Drive during school dismissal and the afternoon commute. Cusimano said closing main arteries on dry days seems ridiculous. He said opening Hamilton as a detour doesn’t work because the Highway 101 frontage road floods at the same tide.
The staff report from Deputy Director Kelsey Rogers says the proclamation lets Cusimano authorize emergency contracts and procurement without competitive bidding where the law permits. Cusimano said he will report spending to council.
The context: Marin supervisors approved $3 million for winter storm preparedness Sept. 29, according to the county. That includes $2.3 million for flood protection, including temporary flood barriers and sandbags, and resources to install protective measures where needed.
At the Oct. 21 town hall, Assistant Director of Public Works Robin Bartlett described fillable flood barriers, tubes that deploy quickly and stand several feet high. She said the county plans to install fixed barriers in the most susceptible areas. She called Miller extremely difficult to fix.
Cusimano estimated the city’s emergency spending at up to $400,000, including $100,000 for planning and equipment. The resolution has no dollar figure. He said FEMA reimbursement of 25 percent would be a win and that the paperwork can take four years.
The debate: Whether a wall can work on Miller is the open question. As Sunday reported, water enters the area across from Tam High from several directions. Cusimano said that on dry days the water isn’t coming from all directions, so a barrier plus pumping might work. He said rain makes it a different matter and that the stretch farther south on Miller is a separate discussion. He said a wall can be pulled back if rain arrives.
The city told the Briefing the storm drain plugs it bought work at only a few locations and can’t go in during or near a storm.
What’s next: The staff report lists the next extreme tide windows as Nov. 22 to 27, Dec. 21 to 26 and Jan. 18 to 24. Council must review the emergency at least every 60 days, and Cusimano said staff will meet every Monday.
📨 Know anyone who drives Miller Ave to get in or out of town? Forward this newsletter to them.
Council backs Frank Van Riggelen’s BP Tennis over HRT at Boyle Park
The City Council on Monday authorized the city manager to sign an agreement with BP (Boyle Park) Tennis LLC, led by Frank Van Riggelen and Kimberly Kaloi, to run the Boyle Park courts after Chris Reiff’s retirement. Staff proposed a five-year term starting Jan. 1. The Parks and Recreation Commission recommended BP on a 2-1 vote Oct. 7.
The council’s agenda item was narrow: approve a contract with BP Tennis. The debate that filled the room was not. HRT Tennis Academy, which also bid and was not chosen, came at the city’s invitation. Deputy Director Jay Ingram said the RFQ had no appeal process, so staff told HRT to show up and make its case in public comment.
About 26 people spoke in person for an hour, and paid subscribers get the rest: a cereal-aisle example, a Scottish retort and a councilmember channeling John McEnroe, all in the cause of choice at a public tennis court.
You’ll also find what BP’s proposal pays the city and the one fee still waiting on the commission.
A paid subscription is what lets us watch the three-hour meeting so you don’t have to. It also pays for the one-person newsroom that did the reading, the math and the fact-checking, and yes, the cornflakes argument holds up.
Subscribe to read the rest
Become a paying subscriber of the weekday edition to get access to this post.
UpgradeA subscription gets you:
- Everything shaping life in Mill Valley
- In your inbox at 6am, Mon/Wed/Fri
