Three courts for tennis, one for pickleball: commission votes 3-0 to end shared use at Piper Park

The loudest room in Larkspur this week was the Parks and Recreation Commission, where Director Nick Stone proposed ending the mixed-use arrangement on Piper Park's four courts. Under the plan, court 4 becomes four dedicated pickleball courts with permanent nets and a waiting deck, while courts 1 through 3 go to tennis only. Today, eight temporary pickleball lines are striped across courts 3 and 4. The change would ride along with a resurfacing job of roughly $100,000 that depends on the City Council approving capital funds in May, and would also pull out the oleander bushes Stone called "tennis court assassins" and address courts that are sinking and sloping because the park sits on an old dump site.

“Cutting those in half is a 50% reduction in what's available to pickleball players. That doesn't feel like a compromise. It feels like a massacre.”— Dan Newuhart, during public comment

Stone opened by conceding the obvious — "It's not a popular one. I know that" — and framed the split as the only fiscally and logistically workable long-term fix, citing damage from heavy portable pickleball nets, scheduling conflicts, noise complaints, no restrooms, and the price of building standalone courts. "Sandbags are designed to stop flood waters, not tennis courts," he told commissioners.

Public comment broke hard along sport lines. Rebecca Harris said that "every weekend and nearly every weekday, all eight courts... are in full use, often with 10 to 30 pickleball players waiting, often while the dedicated tennis courts sit empty." Eric Bowen asked the commission to hold off and have Stone "work with the pickleball community to try to come up with better solutions." Chuck Finny said flatly, "I don't think the answer is to eliminate half the courts," and Nathan Becker called the cut "devastating to this really special community." Tennis players countered that the deal is fair or generous: coach Leo Geraldi called it "a compromise. Nobody's going to get exactly what they want," and Laura Mcder argued the pickleball assignment is no downgrade — "Court 4 is the best court you get... Court three sucks. It really does." Joanne Blumbrren described being told to leave a court by players who said "There are more of us than you. Get off," and asked that court 3 stay dual-use under strict rules instead.

Commissioner Sunshine said she felt "very torn" but had enough evidence from the rec department to conclude shared use isn't tenable; Commissioner Harrison noted permanent nets are simply a better playing experience. On a roll call the vote was 3-0, with Commissioners Baxter and Capel absent, sending the recommendation to the City Council — which is where the resurfacing money, and the argument, land next. Stone closed with a word about tone: "We followed a municipal process. It may not be what everybody wants here, but they need to be respectful when you're here. These are volunteers up here."

Council buys the fountain and the sign, says no for now to a $70,000 stamped parking lot

Public Works Director Julian Skinner asked the Council on Wednesday for a $162,543 budget amendment to finish the exterior of the new Larkspur Library at The Commons: enhanced stamped and colored paving in the east parking lot (about $70,000, of which $19,584 would be new money atop an existing $50,000 allowance), an upgraded monument sign with dual TV screens at roughly $121,000 ($71,043 over budget), a custom waterfall fountain about $31,000 over budget, and $36,000 to $40,000 in odds and ends including a roof catwalk for solar and HVAC access, outdoor outlets and furniture upgrades. Skinner noted the sign price had already fallen from earlier estimates of $185,000 to $200,000, and that the designs reflect donor and community input plus the architect's judgment — the design team, he said, thinks a geometric pattern is too busy and doesn't want the parking lot to become the focus of the site.

Resident David Muller urged deference to the architects, calling the stamping a nice-to-have. The Council wasn't persuaded on that piece. Council Member Kandell, who said he had been a big proponent of the stamping, told colleagues he wasn't sure how much it added and called himself ambivalent. Another member put it as a taxpayer question: at an event on the site, you're watching the art or the performance, not the pavement. City Manager Schwarz said the site is currently under-parked but that visitors are finding spaces without spilling into the neighborhood — a key goal. Skinner said there's no rush; tables can sit on blacktop as they did at the ribbon cutting, and stamping can be added to old asphalt later at somewhat higher cost.

The vote was 5-0 to approve everything except the enhanced parking lot paving, held back pending a look at how the lot actually gets used. One question went unanswered: the mayor asked whether the building is the Library at The Commons or simply Larkspur Library, and suggested settling the sign copy before it's fabricated.

Two weeks in, the new library is packed — and the staff hasn't grown

Holding its first meeting in the new library's own community room, the Library Board spent Monday night on a happy problem. Director Damon reported that in the first two weeks since opening, seating has run near capacity, the 32-space parking lot has been full, and circulation is up as returns flow in from across the Marin system. The building went from 3,300 square feet to roughly 9,000 — company with Corte Madera (9,100) and Fairfax (9,600) — while the payroll stayed put at four full-time staff and a budget for five days a week, with no funding for a fifth day, let alone the six-day schedule that came up in discussion. "I think they feel overwhelmed," Damon said of the crew, "and they said this is not sustainable." Options floated: fundraising or foundation support for added hours, and part-time or student pages for shelving.

“We took this big step up in footprint, in caliber, in so many aspects of functionality. And what has not grown is the staff or the hours.”— a Library Board member, on the new building's demands

Community feedback since opening runs the same direction. Hours — especially evenings and Saturday afternoons — dominate the emails, followed by a sense that the collection looks smaller, though nobody has named a missing title. The rest is a wish list: a bulletin board, outdoor shade, coat hooks in the bathrooms, more trash cans, chess tables outside. Staff may convene a listening session in May or June. The board asked for numbers to back the case — seating occupancy, parking use, circulation, card issuance, foot traffic — before Damon presents the library budget to the City Council on May 6.

The Friends of the Library brought the week's other library news. Diana St. James said the Book Brigade opening event cost about $1,500, covered by a Community Foundation grant, drew 50 volunteers and sold out fast. Next is a used book sale in the new community room on June 6: roughly 3,000 books at $1 to $4, a possible $10 early-access fee, and a hoped-for $5,000 to $7,000 — which would also chip at the roughly $500 a month the Friends spend on two storage units holding some 6,000 books. The board voted unanimously to create recognition certificates for St. James and Chris Linhardt, and set its next meeting for June 1.

Five climate priorities endorsed — and a phone caller's warning about who pays for electrification

Meeting first in special session, the Council took up the Climate Action Forum's recommendation to elevate five items to priority status for 2026-27: EV charging, building electrification, equipment electrification, vehicle electrification and public outreach, with staff directed to report back on status and implementation metrics. Council Member Margalise presented; staff backed the approach as a way to focus limited resources on the most impactful of more than 200 items in the climate action plan.

“As a senior citizen owner of old houses with old electrical panels, any electrification requirement would be a huge burden... I would hope that we wouldn't be in a position where senior citizens are hoping to die before their appliances give out because of the impact of electrification requirements.”— James Holmes, calling in during public comment

Council Member Kandell objected to language he read as pointing toward mandates on property owners: "I'm not ready to require people to do that unless we are at a place where we are willing to supplement them." City Manager Schwarz said several items would require public debate and would be weighed against every other policy priority before resources are committed. In public comment, David Muller praised the Forum's first year and urged endorsement, and CAF member Katie Stra Hutton said tracking fewer items and finishing them builds confidence in the wider community. The Council endorsed the priorities unanimously by voice vote, with Kandell's concerns noted for the record.

Also from the podium — non-agenda — Muller warned that state density bonus law lets developers waive local height, parking and EV-charging rules, recounting a hearing where a developer's attorney told a planning commission "there is nothing you can do," and urging Larkspur to think ahead before a large multifamily project lands here.