No Recent Flooding

Its mid February 2011 and there have been no floods since 2005. While floods have occurred here in the past, we are happy to report that none have happened for six years, and counting.

New flood videos

Please visit the TPNA Photo Archive link, under links on the right, there are new videos with subtitles that illustrate the locations that were the hardest hit by the flooding from the Arroyo Corte Madera Creek and Warner Creek, in Mill Valley, December 31st, 2005. I have additional footage that I'll post as I find time to clip, size and format it.

Flood Mitigation for all of the Sycamore triangle neighborhoods

Yesterday (April 9th, 2006 ) I attended one of the foundational meetings of a new group effort to support the property owners whose homes and businesses reside in the geographic area known by the Mill Valley City Counsil as the Sycamore Triangle, part of the larger County of Marin District #3 Flood Control Zone. Part of the purpose of the group is to learn about the many different government bodies, rules, regulations, issues, and private interest groups (environmental, cultural, etc.) who have a say or want to participate in the management of waterways that bring flood waters to our neighborhoods.

I'm trying to track down official references to the phrase "Sycamore Triangle" to determine if it has official meaning assigned by a study or a tract of land, or if it merely has been coined to represenet the neighborhoods formed by the three intersections: (1) East Blithedale Ave. & Camino ALto Ave., (2) Camino ALto Ave. & Miller Ave. and (3) Miller Ave. & East Blithedale Ave. (via Millwood Ave.). To be truthful Miller Ave. and East Blithedale never actually intersect, they are joined by Throckmorton Ave. in downtown Mill Valley, where after Miller terminates and East Blithedale becomes West Blitedale Ave.

TPNA Flooding

TPNA Flooding
The president of the Catalpa Garden's home owners association, that nice collection of condominiums at the corner of Catalpa and East Blithedale, called the TPNA hotline on the 3rd of March. She said that while they were not impacted by the most recent floods (December 31, 2005), she does encourgae the tenants to clear debris from the creek bed, for the properties with creek frontage (For Catalpa the specific creek is Warner Creek). She floated the notion of a postcard that might target residences with creek passage, to ask that each home owner clear debris from their portion of the creek, thus reducing the potentioal for blockages and blockage based flooding in the future. The Catalpa Garden's President mentioned too, that she knows of several renatl properties along Catalpa outside the condominium complex with absent property owners where debris clearing has not been performed for many years, and so the task of clearing debris may be a prudent tactic for our neighborhoods.

TPNA Flooding

TPNA Flooding
The was a meeting recently at the City Hall in Mill Valley, where among other issues, the topic of street cleaning and storm drain clearing was brought to the floor. A prepresentative from the Sycamore Triangle mentioned that there is a special truck and or euqipment used for the clearing of storm drains. Another contributor informed me recently that there are still storm drains in the TPN vacinity that have not yet been cleared, one in particular is on Sycamore, between Locust and Fern.

On another note does anyone know the schedule of the street sweeper? To quote a neighbor of mine,

"In the neighborhood (not unlike this one) which I moved from in Cambridge, Massachusetts anyone blocking street sweeping was ticketed and towed on the spot by a standby tow truck. The street sweeper had a megaphone and announced its arrival. There was a sign on the street. Here the street sweeping is a mystery and not taken too seriously. There is no notice of the sweeper's arrival. This week it came before 8 AM on the first Wednesday. The workers and student hadn't yet moved their cars. Other months it has arrived whenever.It's no wonder the drains are clogged. Contributed by Vera B."

TPNA Flooding

I've linked to a photo archive under links on the right, including a short vido clip, let me know what you think, and if you encounter any problems with it.

photo evidence

The aftermath, Sycamore and Locust underwater on December 31, 2005

Basic information

I am Roy Jensen, I served as a member of the board of directors for the TPNA, or the Tamalpais Park Neighborhood Association, in 2006. The TPNA represents a subdivision in Mill Valley, California, which was originally established in 1906. It collectively represents all the residences in a triangle formed by the intersections of (1) Sycamore Anvenue and East Blithedale Avenue, (2) East Blithdale Avenue and Hilarita Avenue, and (3) Locust Avenue and Miller Avenue. I have a map that shows it more precisely, and will publish it here soon.

I have established this blog to help members of our neighborhood discuss the flooding which impacted our homes in the Tamalpais Park neighborhood as recent as December 31, 2005, and historically, if anyone has stories to share.

Neighbors may email me directly at info@tamalapispark.org. I would like you to email me with any video or photographic documentation you might have, and I will make it available to us here or link to it elsewhere.

Please share your thoughts and concerns regarding the flooding, damage that you may have experienced, evidence you have gathered and if you have been in contact with the City of Mill Valley, the County of Marin, FEMA and any other flooding related commentary.

Thank you.

13-Feb-06: edited to correct spelling of subdivision. Thanks Nan.
13-Feb-11: edited to delete obsolete phone number and updated email address.

Tamalpais Park Neighborhood Flooding

This blog is meant to be a discussion forum for the people of the Tamalpais Park Nieghborhood who were recently impacted by the floods of December 31, 2005