Yesterday, Marin County was cleared to take another step forward in reopening following an appeal to the California Department of Public Health. Based on the most recent local coronavirus metrics, the State of California has downgraded the risk level assigned to Marin from "widespread" to "substantial," which allows more doors to open in businesses and schools. The primary changes allowed under the state order as...
Although the building is a historical landmark and originally built as a residence, the City of San Rafael believes that the Boyd House can function as a museum, retail space, art gallery, or another commercial operation. The City is seeking any appropriate and a feasible business opportunity in the Boyd House since the downtown area...
September is National Preparedness Month and it serves as a reminder to take action to prepare, now and throughout the year, for any types of emergencies that could affect us where we live, work, or learn. We kicked off the month with a Wildfire Safety Forum, answering some great questions sent in by the community, if you haven’t seen it—it's...
Location: 618 B Street, San Rafael Community Center When: Sat, 09/12 - Sun, 09/13 Time: 1PM - 5PM The City of San Rafael has opened a Clean Air Center Saturday, September 12th through Sunday, September 13th at the 618 B Street Community Center. This Clean Air Space will help to protect the health and well-being of those who are continually exposed to very...
PurpleAir is a real-time air quality sensor that feeds into a continuously updated, crowd sourced map at www.purpleair.com. Particularly useful for geographic-specific and realtime air quality readings, PurpleAir has become a go-to site for many during this fire season to check the air quality in their backyard or in the destination they’re heading. The City...
We were able to increase the on-street parking supply by approximately 24 spaces in East San Rafael. On Thursday August 29th, Bayside Striping and Seal striped on-street angled parking on the on the south side of Bellam Boulevard between Vista del Mar and Playa del Rey and on the west side of Kerner Boulevard south...
This past week Public Works Streets and Parks Maintenance staff installed 6 new outdoor dining areas in parking spaces in front of businesses along 4th Street. The barricades, planters, and plants were funded by TAM’s Quick Build Grant – a Measure AA funded grant program designed to aid local businesses during the pandemic by building...
Streets Supervisor John Shindelus with his crew of Jeremy Quintal and Arturo Tinoco work with some of our contracted labor to clear out a large homeless encampment in the City's storm drain system. This was an especially difficult clean up due to the location, type of debris and conditions within the storm drain. They hauled...
The Parks Division has had a very busy couple of weeks. The Parks crew devised a creative solution to beautify an empty planter bed in front of Johnny Doughnuts. The Parks Division also assisted the San Rafael Police Department with the clean up of another large homeless encampment. Parks Division crew members Valente Curiel, Jorge...
Garage Division vehicle mechanic Angel Lopez made quick work of this transmission replacement. With all maintenance personnel riding alone in vehicles, it was important to get this truck back into service as soon as possible.
The Francisco Blvd West multi-use path and one-way conversion is under construction. Over the last two week’s Francisco Blvd West was temporarily closed at Rice Drive as the contractor drove sheet piles along the creek. The majority of the new bike path will be installed within the previous southbound vehicle travel lane, but as the...
At the end of July, the City kicked off the multimillion-dollar upgrade of the sidewalk on Francisco Blvd East between Vivian and Grand Ave. The City’s contractor, Ghilotti Bros, continues to make progress replacing underground storm drainpipe. Concurrent with the City’s project is a cooperative effort with the San Rafael Sanitation District (SRSD). The project...
Living in the Bay Area can feel especially tough these days, from the ongoing impacts of COVID-19, wildfires throughout the state, unhealthy air, and a general anxiety throughout the nation. Though we may feel overwhelmed by all this, it is important to take care of ourselves and our loved ones. Today is Thursday, September 10th—World Suicide Prevention Day (WSPD). Each year, suicide claims more lives than war, murder, and natural disasters...
The National Weather Service issued an Excessive Heat Warning that’s been extended through September 9th. Forecasters predict a prolonged period of potentially dangerous heat across the Bay Area and Central Coast. A Red Flag Warning means warm temperatures combined with low humidity and strong winds are expected to produce an increased risk of fire danger. Tier 2 Status...
Three cooling centers open in Marin due to excessive heat With predicted triple-digit temperatures over the next few days, the California State Warning Center has issued a statewide excessive heat warning through Monday, September 7. These conditions could also increase the possibility of Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) early next week. In response, three Cooling...
On Thursday, September 3, the City removed a mural from the cement wall at the intersection at Freitas Parkway and Las Gallinas. We don’t typically notify the community when we do this type of work, but we think it’s important in this instance to share our reasoning. The mural read “Breonna Taylor was killed 166 days ago and her...
To expedite the process for resolving business violations of the Shelter-in-Place Order, each jurisdiction has set up a way to report these violations, instead of being triaged by the County. This will allow cities and towns to respond faster to the complaints. To report a business violation in San Rafael please email SIPviolations@cityofsanrafael.org and include the following information: Business name Address...
The City of San Rafael (City) hereby requests proposals for janitorial services for City facilities. It is the intent of the City to hire a fully-licensed contractor. Services shall include routine janitorial maintenance for all City facilities, including the Police Department, Library, Recreation Centers, Department of Public Works, and City Hall. Work will include: vacuuming,...
The Sidewalk Repair Program continues to make good progress in East San Rafael. The City and contractor have completed nearly 50 of the 110 properties signed up in the area. Green dots in the image above represent completed projects with blue dots to be completed. An impressive 42 properties on Riviera Drive alone have signed...
Air quality in Marin is fluctuating with the direction of the winds, so continue to keep doors and windows closed when you can, and check AirNow to determine the quality of the air in your zip code. CalFire's website continues to be inundated with visitors, forcing it to crash. Their Facebook page and Twitter remain the best ways to access the most up-to-date information about evacuations and wildfire spread around the greater...
Francisco Boulevard West was recently converted to one-way southbound from Second Street to Rice Drive. This was done to improve safety at the SMART rail crossing at Second Street by diverting northbound traffic to Lindaro. It also allowed us to make room for a two-way protected cycle track on the west side of the street....
Streets crew members Ken Gatlin, Arturo Tinoco and Jeremy Quintal recently conducted the annual cleanup of the Freitas ditch ahead of the rains to come which could potentially clog the drainage ditch with debris or wash it out into the bay. The crews generally tend to haul about 20-30 tons of mostly organic material to the dump...
Maintenance crews were busy Monday after a windy weekend storm brought down numerous trees and branches around the City. Parks Division crew member Trevor Thomas is seen here helping to clear a large branch that was blocking a lane along the Miracle Mile.
This year has been hard on Parking Services buggies. The Vehicle Maintenance Division has had to take many out of service due to parts unavailability and high repair costs. The buggy in this photo has frame damage that cannot be repaired safely and therefor had to be taken out of service. Mechanic Jay Arieta is...
To ensure continued safe disposal of expired and unused medications, Facilities Department crew members Anthoney Heaven and Michael Reiser installed the drug drop off box, which was previously located at the old Police Department, in the lobby of the new Public Safety Center.
Facilities Division crew members Omar Garcia, Michael Reiser, and Anthoney Heaven built and mounted panels to the new Public Safety Center motorcycle parking garage. This will allow Officers to mount all necessary charging devices within easy reach of their motorcycles.
Diane Dillion, Senior Associate Engineer, is retiring after 35 years of service to the City of San Rafael Public Works Department. In her role, Diane oversees citywide Encroachment Permitting (any construction work in the right of way) including approvals and inspections, as well as implementation and participation in the mandated Marin County Stormwater Pollution Prevention...
San Rafael, CA – With Americans celebrating the warm Labor Day holiday weekend with extra enthusiasm this year, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) wants to remind everyone about the dangers of drinking and driving. This Labor Day weekend, NHTSA will join with the San Rafael Police Department to spread the word about impaired driving...
On August 17, 2020, the San Rafael Police Department brought proposed changes to the Use of Force Policy (Policy 300 of the Police Procedural Manual) to the City Council. The City Council voted unanimously to accept these changes. Here are a few highlights of the changes: Police Chief Diana Bishop wrote her first Chief’s Preface to the Police Procedural Manual This preface...
Where to begin? Following severe lightning storms, wildfires are active statewide, many with evacuation orders in place. Smoke and ash from the Woodward Fire, Hennessey Fire, and other regional fires have impacted our air quality here in Marin. AirNow provides reports about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Air Quality Index (AQI). Search your zip code to see the quality of the...
