Larkspur ready to seek contractor for regional path segment

Larkspur is moving forward with a key link in the North-South Greenway bicycle and pedestrian network.

The City Council voted 3-1 on Wednesday to authorize staff to solicit contractors to construct the approximately $2 million multiuse path near Highway 101.

Councilmember Kevin Carroll dissented, saying that residents of the Marin RV Park directly across from the project area had no idea the project was happening. He said only the property owner received notice, and the information wasn’t relayed to the tenants.

The new path will run along the west side of Redwood Highway. It will connect to the Corte Madera Creek bridge to the north, which was completed by Caltrans in 2022. The bridge is the bicycle and pedestrian link to East Sir Francis Drake Boulevard.

The new path would extend south toward Industrial Way, where there is a pedestrian overcrossing spanning Highway 101. It links to Nellen Avenue in Corte Madera.

Carroll said he has concerns about lighting, freeway noise and flooding. He said the Corte Madera Creek bridge path is well lighted and the new segment should be too.

“I think that’s a startling transition to go from that very well lighted path to the very dark path that’s going to be existing,” Carroll said.

Julian Skinner, the director of public works, said the city has been working with the Transportation Authority of Marin and Caltrans on the project for years.

The project was conceived around 2013, and the city allocated funding toward the project in 2019.

About $1.12 million is coming from federal funds and another $1.1 million is from Senate Bill 1 gas tax revenues.

The city is paying about $150,000 for paving, Skinner said.

The project is part of the long-envisioned North-South Greenway, designed to run from the Golden Gate Bridge into Sonoma County and potentially beyond, and the San Francisco Bay Trail network.

The project was split into two phases. Caltrans handled the path buildout on the Corte Madera Creek bridge because it owns that property.

The second phase, which is in Larkspur’s jurisdiction, is what city officials are now embarking on, Skinner said.

The project would create a multiuse path on the west side of Redwood Highway. The path would be 8 feet wide with a 2-foot buffer on either side. There would be parallel street parking between the path and vehicle travel lanes.

The city has a Dec. 28 deadline to award the contract for construction, or else lose funds.

Skinner said staff planned to advertise the project on Monday and open bids Oct. 1. That would allow the city to award the contract Nov. 1 and begin construction later that month. The project team would consider delaying construction until the spring if weather disruptions are anticipated.

Skinner said planning is still underway to secure funding to extend the path even more to Wornum Drive in Corte Madera.

Several bicycle and pedestrian advocates wrote to the City Council to voice their support for the project.

“Please use the money already allotted!” wrote Corte Madera resident Chris Tufts. “This would improve the safety and livelihood of your residents and surrounding communities, (and) encourages safe healthy, environmentally friendly transportation at extremely low cost.”

Dwayne Price, a Larkspur resident, attended the meeting to show his support.

“This area down by Redwood Highway is the rock star of what really needs to be done,” Price said. “There’s a lot that needs to be done down there.”

Price said the project, being one piece of a major network, is “not perfect, of course.”

“It never is,” he said. “But it’s there, it’s ready to go, so let’s get that piece in there, get it done.”

Councilmember Catherine Way said the conversation about the plan has been going on for a long time.

“I stand really firmly in support of this project,” Way said.