City Council — Special Meeting · special meeting, Wednesday, Jan. 7
Eight-point-seven feet of water: Council proclaims a local emergency after king tide floods Larkspur
The single biggest thing to happen in Larkspur this week happened before the week began — and the Council spent Wednesday night reckoning with it. In a special meeting called for one purpose, members voted unanimously to adopt Resolution 07-26 proclaiming a local emergency after tidal flooding closed Highway 101 and Sir Francis Drake in both directions. The proclamation is the paperwork that opens the door to grant funding and relief for affected residents and businesses.
“As your pragmatic city manager, I would strongly encourage you not to mention climate change in this resolution... I would not mention things the federal government don't like to hear about right now.”— City Manager Dan Schwarz, on drafting the emergency proclamation
The cause was not the sky. Public Works Director Julian Skinner's preliminary briefing pinned it on a record king tide of 8.7 feet — roughly 1.5 feet above forecast — stacked with storm surge and wind, sending Corte Madera Creek over its banks into the Larkspur Marina lagoon near Riviera Circle, onto Larkspur Plaza Drive, and through the Redwood Highway/Industrial Way area. "This was not a Ross Valley rain event... the rain was not the cause of it," Skinner said. City Manager Dan Schwarz's summary was shorter: "We programmed for the blue line and we got the red line."
The wording of the resolution turned out to be the argument. Resident David Mer asked the Council to name climate change as a cause and questioned describing impacts as occurring "throughout" the city when the damage was plainly localized. Schwarz urged the Council to leave climate change out for funding reasons, and Council Member Way argued for keeping "throughout" precisely so Larkspur stays eligible for reimbursement in areas not initially flagged as flood-affected. Resident Ross Aelstine used his time to press an older grievance — that flood fee revenue, present and historical, belongs to the levees under a 1965 contract.
Mayor Andre said the National Weather Service told a press conference with Rep. Jared Huffman that wind strength had been underforecast, pushing water into the bay and holding it there. Council Member Kandell asked the question everyone will ask again: would the city have done anything differently with an accurate forecast? Staff didn't answer it Wednesday. A fuller discussion of causes and mitigation is promised as an agendized item at a future meeting — the thing to watch for in the weeks ahead.
City Council · regular meeting, Wednesday, Jan. 7
Chamber gets its $20,000, and a plain warning: fix who you represent or don't come back
The Larkspur Chamber of Commerce asked for the remaining $20,000 in unallocated Transient Occupancy Tax business-enhancement money for the first half of 2026, on top of $30,000 already allocated this fiscal year. It passed 4-1 with one abstention as Resolution 06-26 — but the vote was the least interesting part of the item.
“Downtown Larkspur knows that smaller events are best for it... the bigger events hurt their business. This last wine stroll... there were two fights, arrests made, drunken people, and damage was done in stores.”— Jay Holland, resident and business advocate
The fight is over who the Chamber actually speaks for. Council Member Kandell laid out the binary: either the Chamber represents the entire business community and the city's $50,000 goes to the Chamber, or the separate business districts represent themselves — and said this would not happen again unless the problem gets resolved. Council Member Margles said she was uncomfortable writing the check at all, given that downtown merchants and event boosters tell her opposite stories about whether big events help or hurt.
Resident and business advocate Jay Holland gave the Council the unvarnished downtown version from the podium. Chamber Executive Director Marty Murphy answered with process: a new member and community survey to gather data on business needs and Chamber performance, plus a recent joint mixer with Corte Madera and a downtown holiday open house.
Mayor Andre noted that about a third of the Chamber's budget comes from the city and defended its outreach across Larkspur's districts. But the majority tied any future allocation to restructuring — which makes the survey results, and whatever the Chamber does with them, the story to follow this spring.
City Council · regular meeting, Wednesday, Jan. 7
A 1,000-square-foot park at the Arch Street steps — approved in concept, unfunded on purpose
On a city-owned parcel of about 3,000 square feet at the base of the Arch Street steps near Magnolia Avenue, the Larkspur Community Foundation wants to build a roughly 1,000-square-foot mini park and plaza: a raised plaza, retaining wall, seating, the existing Buckeye tree preserved, and possibly an upgraded bus shelter. Estimated cost is about $250,000, and the Foundation says it has already raised $65,000 in seed and donor money. The ask Wednesday was modest — a line on the Capital Improvement Program's unfunded projects list.
“Our objective is to encourage the city council to direct staff to add this mini park or plaza to Larkspur's capital improvement program as an unfunded project.”— Laura Anderson, president, Larkspur Community Foundation
Staff called it a viable public-private partnership consistent with a prior council resolution favoring community-funded projects. A petition of support arrived with it, and residents Lerner, Swisher, Klitsner, Andelin, Baxter, Love, Gilardi and River all spoke. James Holmes, recalling the site's past life as part of the Probert used car lot, asked that both the old well and the bus shelter survive whatever gets built.
The one hesitation came from Council Member Kandell, who said he had real ambivalence about locking up a parcel that has long sat on the city's list of potential revenue sources and might need to be liquidated if the budget turns. Mayor Andre's counter was that a park there would raise the parcel's value if Larkspur ever did sell.
The Council gave consensus direction to add the project to the unfunded projects list in this year's CIP. That is a placeholder, not a dollar — the Foundation still has roughly $185,000 to raise.