Saturday, September 12, 2020
David P. Donery, Town Manager

COMMUNITY WILDFIRE SAFETY EDUCATION WEBINARS

Living With Fire in Marin is a wildfire preparedness education program developed by FIRESafe MARIN in conjunction with the Marin County Fire Chiefs Association, Marin County Fire Prevention Officers Association, Marin Master Gardeners (UCCE), and wildfire and home hardening experts.

In 2020, all Living With Fire programs are being delivered online, presented in a 60-minute webinar format. The monthly webinars will be posted online, and can be viewed live, with live participant Q&A.

Leading experts in wildfire preparedness, defensible space and landscaping, home hardening and building science, and evacuation preparedness will cover a new topic each month.

On August 25th, FIRESafe MARIN featured a webinar titled:

Evacuation & Warnings – How To Survive a Wildfire
Speakers: Battalion Chief Todd Lando (Central Marin FD); Dr. Shannamar Dewey (Camp Fire Evacuee & Survivor)

Over 1,000 people have viewed this webinar, which includes important information about how to prepare for, and survive a wildfire event. This is available for viewing at the following link: Evacuation & Warning WEBINAR.

Update on San Anselmo Avenue One-Way Pilot Project

The Town held three public meetings to receive comments on a proposed pilot project to temporarily convert part of San Anselmo Avenue into a one-way street between Tunstead and San Anselmo Avenues, with traffic flowing in the northwest direction. This project was to be established during the COVID-19 pandemic to create additional space for social distancing in the downtown and to provide extra sidewalk space for use by businesses.

At the September 8, 2020 Town Council meeting, the Council decided to not pursue the project at this time. To read the staff report and staff recommendation, please visit this LINK.

Art On The Avenue

The San Anselmo Arts Commission is sponsoring the vacant storefront art exhibit at 538 San Anselmo Avenue. Featured artists are Helen Steele and Sunila Bajracharya.

Stop by to check it out! Please visit the commission's Website to see what else they are up too.

Business Openings Delayed

The County of Marin was notified by the State of California that the planned move to Tier 2 in the State’s monitoring framework has been delayed. Marin County will remain in Tier 1—the most restrictive status—while the state conducts further review. This will lead to delayed business reopening planned for Tier 2, including: indoor personal care services; indoor dining; indoor gyms; movie theaters; indoor houses of worship; and expanded capacity at indoor retail establishments and malls.

Marin Public Heath has requested an adjucation process with state officials before a final determination is made. A final determination of the status regarding Marin’s tier standing is anticipated before the end of the week.

Electrify Your Ride!

Bay Area nonprofits and cities will co-host a series of virtual events during National Drive Electric Week. More than just webinars, these interactive events will connect the EV-curious with veteran EV drivers and e-bike owners. It's everything you've always wanted to know about range, charging, rebates, and programs for income-qualified drivers, along with additional savings via Drive Clean Bay Area's Preferred Pricing Campaign. Supplies are limited and all participants receive priority placement.

https://www.facebook.com/sananselmo.sustainabilitycommission/

Cybersecurity Tips from MISC

The recently formed Marin Information Security Collaboration (MISC) between Marin County regional agencies (including San Anselmo) was created to develop best practices for cybersecurity. Below are some ideas for anyone who may be working from home.

Between working at the office and working from home, the principles of security can become something of a moving target. When at home, you may not know if your network is secure and if your actions may be putting systems and data at risk. Applying security to home networks, keeping information secure during virtual meetings, and using strong passwords are some best practices that can be implemented quickly and effectively no matter where you are working.

Reducing Risk on Home Networks
Home network devices such as routers and modems are subject to many of the same threats as business devices. They can be attacked via the Internet, and your home devices may also be vulnerable to unauthorized access from neighbors and passersby. As we continue to work, attend school, and connect with friends and family remotely, there are steps you can take to reduce the risk and improve the security of home networks. Please consult the vendor’s support documentation for specific instructions for your devices and accounts.

Keep your devices physically secured.
Change the default manufacturer/administrative account password on your network modem, router, and other network devices.
Set a unique password for the web portal account that you use to manage your Internet Service. If supported, enable Multi Factor Authentication (MFA) on this account.
Install the latest updates for your network devices (e.g. modem, router, computer, mobile device) and enable automatic updates
Configure your wireless network encryption to use WPA3 (if supported) or WPA2 at a minimum with a strong password.
Disable Wireless Protected Setup (WPS) and Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) on your network. If enabled, these might allow attackers to connect to your devices without permission.
Change the Wireless SSID (Wi-Fi network name) to something unique that doesn’t provide any identifying information.
Enable a firewall on your network devices.
Disable remote router management. Most routers offer the option to view and modify their settings over the internet. Turn this feature off to guard against unauthorized individuals accessing and changing your router’s configuration.
Uninstall software or services that are unused or unwanted.
Run updated anti-virus / anti-malware protection on your devices

A Note from the Library

You may have heard that changes are coming as Marin County eases restrictions on businesses and activities. Public libraries in Marin are currently working together through the MARINet consortium to establish protocols that will help protect the health and safety of library staff as well as our patrons as we move to a different level of service. These protocols, which will take several weeks to put into place, also need to be approved by Marin Recovers.

Services provided could include modified browsing, access to public computers, and picking up of holds, depending on the specific library, but will not include full access to services or extended time in the building. Stay tuned in the upcoming weeks for more specific information. In the meantime, curbside service will continue in the same manner.

Introducing Grab and Go Craft Bags for Kids at your San Anselmo Public Library

Pick up a Grab and Go Craft Bag every week at your San Anselmo Public Library! Bags will be available for pick up during our Curbside hours on the Library Lawn. There will be a new craft every week for kids ages 5-10. One bag per child please.
Monday, September 14 Craft: Create Your Own Graphic Novel!

Fall Gardening Series: Backyard Composting

Wednesday, September 16 at 1pm on Zoom

Composting, the mystery of gardening! Marin Master Gardener Joan Irwin will share how to compost using scraps from your kitchen and table, as well as plant material, to create nutrient-rich organic matter. Composting will improve your soil and plants while, at the same time, reduce the waste in our landfills. Email sleyland@townofsananselmo.org to register and get the Zoom link!

Slow Streets

The Slow Streets program is intended to support safe, essential physical activity by creating more space for social distancing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This program discourages residents and visitors from driving on all “Slow Streets” unless they are necessary to reach your final destination.

The Town of San Anselmo is responding to the increased demand for pedestrian street usage during COVID-19 pandemic by implementing a concept of "Slow Streets" throughout the Town where appropriate. Many cities around California and other states are adopting similar approaches, aimed at increasing the usability of the streets for pedestrians with social distancing in mind. There are many different approaches to this concept, many of which are aimed at reducing and slowing down vehicular traffic on neighborhood streets so that they are not used as shortcuts or detours.

Additional information on the subject, as well as some examples of other cities' slow streets programs are below:

Participating Streets

Caleta Ave
Sycamore Ave

Reporting Shelter-in-Place Violations

To expedite the process for resolving business violations of the Shelter-in-Place (SIP) Public Health Orders, 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 Anselmo, please email SIPviolations@townofsananselmo.org and include the following information:

Business name
Address
As much detail as possible regarding the perceived health order violation

Marin Wildfire Prevention Oversight Committee

Community members are invited to apply to serve on the Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority’s (MWPA) Citizens’ Oversight Committee. The MWPA Board of Directors announced several openings on the Citizens’ Oversight Committee. The MWPA was formed in 2019 to develop and implement a comprehensive wildfire prevention, education, and emergency preparedness plan throughout most of Marin County. Measure C, which passed in March 2020, funds wildfire protection and prevention services developed by the MWPA. Proceeds collected through Measure C are controlled locally and reviewed by the citizens’ oversight committee. The deadline to apply to become a member of the oversight committee is 5 pm on Wednesday, September 23. For more information: https://www.marinwildfire.org/

New Additions to the Historical Museum's 3-D Display

Volunteer extraordinaire Mary Miner, with help from husband Dick Miner, places miniature vehicles, livestock and people onto the model of old San Anselmo found in the Historical Museum. Historical Commission Chair Judy Coy looks on, providing support and helping with placement of the new additions.

After hearing children visiting the museum complain about the absence of people, animals and train cars, Mary dreamed of adding more life to the 3-D display. When the museum is able to reopen, stop by and look for the tiny fire engine, the dog that was at the station and the two trained fire horses, Colonel & Major. Z scale is one of the smallest model railway scales; the little people measure less than 1/4 inch. Talented Brian Sousa, of Marin Hobby & Gift, saved the day by building the more complicated vehicles. He told Mary that the fire engine was the most difficult model that he ever built. The model enhancements took scores of hours to finish. The project was truly a labor of love.

Thank you to Brian for his contributions and to Mary for her dedication, creativity and hard work.

Election 2020

Recent legislation passed in response to the coronavirus pandemic requires ballots be mailed to all active registered voters, in addition to in-person voting options.

Voters are receiving a postcard with information about the November election and the opportunity to update their signature. All voters have a signature on file from when they registered to vote – this update is optional. To seal the postcard, fold the top half to cover the signature and seal with a piece of tape. This is a legitimate mailing from the Marin County Elections Department. We have reproduced the postcards here. Vote-By-Mail postcard[PDF]. Postcard for voters who vote at the polls[PDF]. If you have questions or concerns, you may call the Marin County Elections Department at (415) 473-6456.

Ballots will be mailed starting October 5 – expect 5-7 days for delivery
The Voter Information Guide will be mailed by the end of September
Early in-person voting options will be available – information to be posted closer to the election
Ballot drop boxes will be available throughout the county (one will be located in front of San Anselmo Town Hall.)

Polling places will be open on October 31 through November 3. Locations and hours of operation are still being finalized and will be posted on the County's website soon. If you do decide to visit an in-person polling place, don’t forget your face mask!

If you are not registered to vote, you can do so here: https://www.marincounty.org/depts/rv/voter-registration/register

Virtual Green House Calls

The Rising Sun Center for Opportunity’s Green House Call program provides no-cost energy and water measures to Marin County residents. After completing a home energy efficiency survey, residents will receive an energy and water efficiency kit mailed to their doors. The kit is available to residents in single-family homes, duplexes, and fourplexes. Both homeowners and renters are eligible for the program.

Each kit will include the following measures:

LED lightbulbs - globes and floods
Advanced power strips ($50 value)
Kitchen and sink aerators
Showerhead
Toilet leak detection dye tabs
Information about energy-saving programs

Complete the energy efficiency survey to get started: https://bit.ly/2Zu81Di
Or call (510) 665-1501 ext. 300

Organic Waste Program for 2020

Residents of incorporated San Anselmo can opt to receive a second or third green waste cart as part of their basic bundled service package with Marin Sanitary Service (MSS). Customers who want the third green waste cart must make the request by December 31, 2020 to be able to have the third cart as part of their basic bundled service. After that date, customers will be entitled to two green waste carts as part of the bundled service, and will be able to rent additional carts (up to 4).

In summary, customers who have secured up to three (3) total green waste carts before December 31, 2020, will keep this secured level of service at no additional cost until the customer terminates service with the Marin Sanitary Service. This change is part of the new program for the collection of organic waste (food and yard waste). Beginning in 2020, Marin Sanitary will no longer collect organic waste from customer-owned cans. You will be receiving more information from MSS and the Town throughout 2020 on this program change.

It is important to note that these changes are for customers in the incorporated town of San Anselmo. This does not apply to customers who may have a San Anselmo address but reside in unincorporated Marin County, such as residents of Sleepy Hollow.

For additional information, click here.

Town Hall Office Hours

Town Hall will be reopening for in-person services. Permits, Planning and Business Licenses will be available from 8:30 am - 12 pm Monday through Thursdays.
Social distancing and masks will be required while in the building.

Saturday, September 12, 2020 David P. Donery, Town Manager