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Stephen Nestel May 14, 2013 at 11:21 am
Thanks again Bob for being a leading light in the discussion of the One Bay Area Plan. It is so…Read More frustrating to be presented with questionable statistics and wild projections of growth by our government as fact. Your commonsense criticism is most welcome. We must not allow the urbanization of Marin to go unchallenged. Remember Marincello.
Rico May 13, 2013 at 09:37 pm
reply to Al,
I posted a comment on this thread last night on the Mill Valley Patch and it was…Read More rejected instantly with no explanation as to why at all. I emailed the editor to see what the problem was, but so far I have not heard a reply.
I think that they are reworking the Patch and are experimenting with new filters, probably some bugs to work out .
Also, I have in the past noticed that some posts on the Mill Valley Patch do not show up at all on all the other Patch's in Marin. I guess it depends on the topic, each Patch has different articles for their areas, but this particular thread concerns all of Marin.
One thing I think that I will do from now on is to NOT use the reply button.
It confuses some people about the order that the Patch places replies, and some people have accused others of responding to the wrong poster.
I have a suggestion for the Patch editors, place replies in the order received, oldest first.
Also I like the new spelling warning.
And I agree, Bob wrote a great letter and I hope someone at ABAG reads and understands it.
Al Dugan May 13, 2013 at 07:11 pm
Wow, things have changed on the Novato Patch. I posted the comment below to the same articule on…Read More the Mill Valley Patch and it did not carry over to the Novato Patch. Wow, I miss Brent.....
Bob, as always a thoughtful and complete examination of the facts and a penetrating rebuttal of the flawed process apparently driven by a heavy dose of lobby pressure and politics and disregard for the facts.
Thrasy Bulus May 21, 2013 at 01:29 pm
http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/340982-if-you-can-t-dazzle-them-with-brilliance-baffle-them-with
valeri hood May 14, 2013 at 06:47 pm
there is now a marin real estate advisory disclaimer that urges people to look into this before…Read More buying a home- this will affect the local housing market! People do care about commute times, infrastructure and tax costs
valeri hood May 14, 2013 at 12:30 pm
There is a massive push towards geoengineering to meet our water needs at the national level, and…Read More this plan will open the floodgates locally for MMWD's multi-million dollar desal plant (with intake next to a sewer outlet, a bay so polluted with pesticides, herbicides, toxic metals, pharmaceuticals etc. that fisherman are advised not to fish out of it, nor people to swim in it- a project which our struggling residents, towns and infrastructure can ill afford in a failing economy. We cannot accept the parameters offered by this 'plan'-Kinsey needs to back off from accusing those who oppose it-of racism-we should be thinking outside the box which has been created to discuss this 'plan'. i do not believe that it is a plan to afford 'affordable' housing- I believe that it is a backdoor to subvert local governments deciding how and where they allow new housing. There is no offer of monies to pay for the infrastructure-sewers, schools, water- and who pays the cost? I think that those of us who oppose this plan need to start a website and sign a pledge to walk door to door to educate people, Yes- we do need workforce housing -let's find a way to subsidize it and cut out the middlemen- let's make local policy- town by town to meet local needs, and-if we are going to spend millions, let's have a public discussion. Many of them. It should go to a vote. But the 'One Bay Area' planners must not be allowed to control the ballot language. It must be put together by a group from all sides.
Kevin Moore May 11, 2013 at 04:20 pm
It would be nice if the comments section had "Thumbs up / Thumbs down" like the Press…Read More Democrat.
Tina McMillan May 21, 2013 at 11:03 am
I suspect this meeting is going to address recent comments by Adams that the infill development in…Read More San Rafael's low lying areas will be under water according to global warming theory. This issue was dismissed by other council members but if you want planning to dovetail with SB375 then you certainly wouldn't build homes in areas that may be under water.
How sad that the county can focus on a plan that encourages putting the homes of the most vulnerable populations alongside the freeway and in noisy, lackluster downtown areas lacking trees and open space.
The negative assumptions attached to people living into green areas seem like something out of a Woody Allen movie. Of course it is healthier to live in places where you have more open space, more trees, more plants, more animals and so on.
If we want walkable neighborhoods we can encourage small shopping centers nearby residential development by issuing zoning permits for retail/commercial. People should live further away from the freeway to avoid noise and poor air quality. What we should study is just how far away you have to live to avoid the negative health consequences of high density, urbanized housing.
Al Dugan May 13, 2013 at 08:32 pm
That is a very difficult time for folks that work for a living to make. Why doesn't this meeting…Read More happen after 5:30 pm so people can attend after work? This is an important supervisor meeting and the citizens of Marin deserve to hear the discussion and decisions on this issue.
Karen Pavone May 7, 2013 at 02:13 pm
Nope. Nothing of the sort. I do not write or do my reviews with any bias in mind and I do not…Read More receive any compensation. It's a great product that stands on its own and I would still recommend it, friendship or no friendship. Thanks for reading.
Bubbasixpack May 5, 2013 at 10:54 am
Do you get a cut of the sale? You should get something for turning your blog into a sales pitch for…Read More your friend.
Karen Pavone May 3, 2013 at 01:42 pm
No question there are less expensive ways to make raised beds, Rico. I like the M braces because…Read More they are a quick solution, save time, and are recyclable. For me the ininitial investment will pay off over time. Thanks for reading!
Bob April 6, 2013 at 05:20 pm
Check with the San Rafael planning commission and get the low-down on why they turned down a…Read More developer who submitted his plans to demolish and rebuild a mixed commercial/residential building at 2nd and B. That's directly across the street from SVDP, and a notorious loitering spot. It's currently a run-down box building that's long past its prime. The developer came in with a beautiful plan, and it was denied for, among other things, because it was not in keeping with the "Victorian era" of the others, and because the city was afraid people would store their bikes on the balconies. Take a look at it. It's the most run-down corner in the downtown area.
A great way for a small town to thrive and achieve an identity, is to get people living there. The city makes it extremely difficult with their rigid design board, and archaic operations that remind me of private industry in the 70s. Oh, and then they approved Target - completely disregarding the data from our neighbors up north, as well as other small towns.
Scott Adams April 4, 2013 at 07:08 pm
Tim, I am aware of many who want to increase the housing density downtown. I am also aware there…Read More has been objections particularly around the bus and future SMART station. It seems having commercial use at street level and housing above is favored by the city. It would definitely help bring people downtown. Other elements besides safety, includes maintenance, on going activities and marketing. I made reference to Healdsburg which is a good case study. They endorsed a study by urban planners around 1990. It took until 2000 when Hotel Healdsburg opened and then the downtown took off. They have one big asset and that is their city park which is where they have ongoing activities. Public Spaces such as this offer a sense of place and acts as a magnet. If you go two or three block away from the park, Healdsburg is just another sleepy little town of 11,000. Sure the wine country is a tourist attraction, but according to the County Visitor's Bureau Marin has 12 million visitors a year who enjoy our natural environment and 80% leave and go elsewhere in the evening.
Tim H April 4, 2013 at 04:41 pm
Thank you all for your interest in this topic. Scott, are you aware of any new multifamily or mixed…Read More use housing in downtown on the horizon? Someone in another article mentioned the need for greater density in the downtown area. It seems like greater density could make San Rafael a more attractive place to bring business. Maybe it's me being optimistic, but certain areas seem ripe for development which could be a catalyst for improving downtown. Just curious if others had any perspective of this issue.
Derek Sanders May 9, 2013 at 10:38 pm
MCE is a firehose of filth. There's nothing clean about them. Thanks for your work, Jim
Jim Phelps May 7, 2013 at 04:31 pm
Shell Oil and Marin Clean Energy recently extended their contract another 1-1/2 years.
John Parulis May 7, 2013 at 02:18 pm
Thanks Jim. MCE's customers should lobby their parent, Shell Oil, to stop despoiling the marine…Read More environment in Alaska. This is an environmental crime, unseen by supporters of "Marin Clean Energy".
Susan May 12, 2013 at 12:58 pm
Tsk, tsk, tsk. You left out the word communist, and you also neglected to blame President Obama.
Scott Rubin from Mathnasium May 24, 2013 at 07:13 am
Ronnie,
I am Scott Rubin with Mathnasium. Can you contact me at millvalley@mathnasium.com. I…Read More would like to know how to get added to your list.
Thanks!
Linda F Lehnhardt May 5, 2013 at 10:32 am
May I also suggest for Mother's Day the CRESBI crate? It's about as techy as you can get when it…Read More comes to carrying groceries. The Convenience CRESBI crate lets you pop-n-shop and avoid using the store's basket and save time! For only $14.95 you get a collapsible, stackable dishwasher safe, durable liightweight crate with sturdy strap. Its a packing powerhouse where one crate can replace up to 6 plastic bags. As you shop place your items' barcodes up. If the checker has a handheld scanner they simply scan the barcodes and never have to take your items out of your crate. Larger CRESBI systems are also available, all are online at CRESBI.com.
ex-DWPworker April 29, 2013 at 09:17 pm
The con of MCE's RECs is very clearly amplified in your political cartoon. Very funny. Tragic,…Read More too. Lots of snookered people in Marin.
Novato Chess Club April 28, 2013 at 06:17 pm
My girlfriend loves the Egrets...will forward this article to her
sumaira nabeel April 26, 2013 at 10:59 pm
I could not have made it happen without all your encouragement! Thank you...
Zeba Idrees April 26, 2013 at 06:58 pm
It was great to see your Aloo bhujia recipe...Nabeel is right, keep them coming :)
L.A. Chung (Editor) April 26, 2013 at 06:05 pm
I'm so thrilled that Los Altos Patch carries this new blogger with such wonderful tales of where the…Read More recipes came from. Because isn't that how we often relate to food? The way it makes us feel goes beyond the taste buds.
I will recommend we carry this on other Patch sites! Yum.
Old Monnkey May 1, 2013 at 03:48 am
It really is an either or proposition. Do you want a nice house in a nice environment, or do you…Read More want a job that pays well, a smaller house in an area that isn't as nice? To have both the nice house and a good paying job most people have to commute. Hauling people around which is expensive whether bus, trolley, or ferry, and someone's taxes will have to pay for it. Smaller the population density the more expensive. Last thing I want is to be stacked & packed in America. Only place I am good with it is in an a mature society that developed that way naturally like Taiwan.
Valerie Taylor April 29, 2013 at 08:16 pm
I'd like to invite everyone to take a step back, take a breath, and think about how they would like…Read More to live in 5, 10, or 20 years. By that time gasoline will be at $10 a gallon, so you may want to live where you can walk or bike to work, which means not out on the hills somewhere, but in closer-in areas like the Miracle Mile (San Rafael), Blithedale Ave. (Mill Valley), or Grant Avenue (Novato). If you'd rather live out on the hills in a single family home, that's your choice, and we certainly have lots of that type of housing. But almost everyone I know wants to move into areas like Gerstle Park, the Dominican, downtown Larkspur - somewhere where they can walk to the store, the pharmacy, the local coffee shop, and to the bus stop. So those of you who want the status quo need not be worried, the acres of single family homes are not being bulldozed. But at least allow those of us who want to remain in Marin without driving everywhere - even for a quart of milk - to be able to find housing in more developed areas around transit.
As Roger states above, we need the jobs in Marin to allow us to not commute long distances out of the County. So the focus on housing is puzzling to me. Marin has not done well in attracting the jobs of the future - green tech, high-tech, health care - to the County. Without those, we are stuck commuting to SF or other areas.
Al Dugan April 27, 2013 at 12:55 pm
I am curious, do the supervisors decide their own agenda items are do the use a paid consultant?
"My Medical Choice" -- Your Thoughts?
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