In Your Town for Nov. 15, 2024
STINSON BEACH
Neighbor challenges
plan to build home
The approval of a home construction project at 21 Laurel Ave. has been appealed to the Marin County Planning Commission.
The owners of the vacant lot want to build a two-story, 1,432-square-foot residence and install an on-site wastewater treatment system, according to the county planning office. A deputy zoning administrator approved the project on Oct. 3.
A resident at an adjacent property on Calle del Mar filed the appeal, saying the zoning administrator’s decision is not supported by the evidence. The neighbor also says the project does not have an approved wastewater discharge plan from the Stinson Beach County Water District.
The Planning Commission has set a hearing on the appeal for 1 p.m. Monday in room 328 of the Marin County Civic Center in San Rafael.
THE COUNTY
Investigators arrest
online scam suspect
Marin County sheriff’s investigators arrested a San Leandro woman who allegedly scammed online users, including a Greenbrae woman.
Authorities were alerted to the scams in September when a victim was notified about a false computer virus. The victim was misled into paying large amounts of money to couriers sent to the victim’s home, sheriff’s Sgt. Adam Schermerhorn said. The scheme is common in the Bay Area, he said.
Investigators worked with the Northern California Computer Crimes Task Force and they identified a suspect. On Wednesday, they conducted warrant searches at two houses in San Leandro.
Qingyun Chen, 30, was arrested on suspicion of grand theft and theft from an elderly adult. She was booked into Marin County Jail where her bail was set at $2.5 million. Schermerhorn said that Chen was also suspected in other financial scams in the Bay Area.
MILL VALLEY
Commission grants
variance for deck
The Planning Commission has approved a setback variance for a residential deck in the Blithedale Canyon area.
The owners of 8 Rowan Way applied for permission to remove a 205-square-foot second-story deck and replace it with a 342-square-foot deck. The new deck will extend 12 feet, 3 inches into the required 15-foot buffer, according to the city planning office.
The commission held a hearing on the application at its meeting on Tuesday.
PUBLIC SAFETY
Police agencies get
traffic safety grants
Three Marin police agencies announced they have received a fresh round of state grants for traffic enforcement.
The Novato Police Department was awarded $119,000; the San Rafael Police Department, $92,000; and the Central Marin Police Authority, $68,500. The grants run through September 2025.
The funding comes from the California Office of Traffic Safety to support operations such as intoxicated driving checkpoints, crackdowns on drivers using cellphones and efforts to improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists.