The Vision
San Anselmo Creek is a precious but underutilized environmental asset. A significant flood mitigation construction project presents our Town with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reimagine Creek Park as a vibrant community commons.
The Process
With input from the community the Town established goals for the project, enlisted needed expertise, and held a design competition for professional landscape architect firms. Young Imagineers in Grades K-8 also submitted their design ideas.
Our Design Partner
We're excited to have selected RHAA-Mill Valley as the winner of the Reimagine Creek Park Design Contest. Design funds have been secured and Town Council has authorized the Town Manager to sign an agreement with RHAA for the Reimagine Creek Park Project. The design process has begun.
About Us
Town Council approved the formation of a Community Advisory Committee (CAC) of local expertise who managed the design contest with Town staff and advised the Town Council throughout the process. We are now collaborating on creating the community input phase of the design and fundraising.
From Creek Park to Creekside Commons
Downtown San Anselmo has experienced a number of historic floods, most
recently in 1982 and 2005. Marin County has had a continuing remediation program
focusing on sections of the Creek from its headwaters west of San Anselmo, to
its exit into the San Francisco Bay. The most current County flood control stormwater
plan sets the stage for reimagining Creek Park.
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As part of the San Anselmo Flood Risk Reduction Project (SAFRR), the County
had originally scheduled building demolition and the creek work for summer 2020.
Then Covid-19 struck. There was a silver lining during the Shelter-in-Place shutdown
in spring 2020: the Town and County were able to work together to create the temporary
Creek Park plaza space. This was an unexpected gift for all to enjoy when outside space
to gather was at a premium and the closure of San Anselmo Avenue on weekend
evenings was initiated for outdoor dining.
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Why is the temporary Creek Park Plaza Closed?
Town staff learned on August 30, 2022 that based on engineering reports they received stating that the foundation (also known as Building Bridge 2 or BB2) of the temporary Creek Park plaza was unsafe, the District was considering removing BB2 before October 15, 2022 to avoid having BB2 go though another rainy season. As a result of this decision, on September 15, 2022 the District sent the Town a letter terminating the Town’s lease of BB2 and the plaza effective immediately. The plaza was fenced off by the County and closed to the public.
The Town Council appointed an ad hoc subcommittee on September 27, 2022 to work directly with the County District to negotiate a solution to get the plaza reopened and determine plans for the future. Mayor Alexis Fineman and Council member Brian Colbert are serving on this subcommittee.
For more information, please go to the Town of San Anselmo Building Bridge #2 FAQ page:
Click Here: BB2 FAQ’s
or go to: https://www.townofsananselmo.org/1568/Building-Bridge-2-BB2Creek-Park-Plaza—