Corte Madera team advances Lower Christmas Tree Hill evacuation plan, eyes limited undergrounding and parking controls

Corte Madera Town staff and consultants presented conceptual designs Wednesday for Lower Christmas Tree Hill aimed at improving evacuation egress, roadway capacity and utility reliability while keeping most on‑street parking available.

The presentation summarized prior outreach and traffic analysis, outlined targeted roadway widenings and a limited PG&E undergrounding district, and proposed an administrative “fire‑weather restricted” parking program to keep critical travel lanes clear during a small number of high‑risk days each year.

The plan matters because most of Lower Christmas Tree Hill relies on a single primary exit — Redwood Avenue to Corte Madera Avenue — and the project team’s analysis shows that, in a worst‑case evacuation, queues and delays could be long without changes. The town framed the work as one element of a broader climate adaptation and wildfire mitigation effort driven by a prior climate adaptation assessment and community input.

Town staff and consultants laid out technical goals and tradeoffs early in the meeting. RJ Sukko, Corte Madera’s director of public works, said the town’s earlier climate assessment and a Rule 20 undergrounding study focused the effort on the funnel point where Redwood meets Corte Madera Avenue. Sukko noted the cost of a broader undergrounding effort: “that component alone, that limit alone is is roughly $1,100,000.”

Consultants described the regulatory and design baseline. Becky (BKF, consultant) said the team used the California Fire Code as the guiding standard and that the code’s minimum unobstructed width for fire apparatus roads is 20 feet. The project team and Central Marin Fire District agreed to a relaxed 16‑foot standard for some low‑traffic local streets (Crescent Road, Portola Way and parts of Morningside Drive) where only residents would typically drive.

Traffic analysis presented by Ryan (Parametrics) estimated that current peak congestion on Redwood results in an average 35‑second delay and about a 20‑foot queue (roughly six cars). Under an evacuation scenario assuming one vehicle per property, the analysis projects delays at the Corte Madera intersection could reach about 141 seconds with queues up to roughly 400 feet; a 1.5‑vehicle‑per‑household scenario could produce queueing of about 600 feet. The consultants concluded that maximizing two lanes of outbound flow on Redwood Avenue, while preserving a single inbound lane for emergency vehicles, would substantially improve egress capacity.

Based on that analysis, the team proposed a package of measures rather than a single silver bullet: - Targeted roadway widening on Redwood between Edison and Portola (removing some planter strips and reconstructing sidewalks) to enable two outbound lanes plus a striped center median that could be used as temporary queueing during evacuations while retaining most on‑street parking between Edison and Portola; the constraints between Edison and Corte Madera Avenue mean less physical widening there. - Smaller widening or retaining walls at several pinch points (near 450 Redwood and the hairpin) to create consistent travelway widths or safe pullouts where full 20‑foot clearance is not feasible. - No widening proposed for Crescent Road or the steep portions of Morningside Drive; those segments would be managed to a 16‑foot standard because they primarily serve local residents. - Utility undergrounding limited to the previously studied Rule 20 undergrounding district at the base of the hill (the red‑dashed area shown in project materials). Becky said the team does not believe the existing overhead conductors on Lower Christmas Tree Hill are themselves likely ignition sources, but downed poles or conductors during wind events could block the single egress and the overhead lines constrain some possible widening. - Administrative parking controls labeled “fire‑weather restricted” parking: a subset of on‑street spaces would be marked and made unavailable on a limited number of high‑risk days each year (the team suggested roughly 10–14 days annually as an initial estimate) to preserve a clear travelway during elevated evacuation risk.

Becky said the conceptual approach minimizes permanent parking loss: of more than 50 on‑street spaces on the hillside, the team identified about seven spaces (under 5 percent) that would be removed permanently to facilitate widening near Redwood and Corte Madera Avenue. Most other spaces would remain available most of the year, with roughly half of some blocks proposed as conditionally restricted on high‑risk days to create the effective 20‑foot travel width.

The team also evaluated alternative egress options raised by residents. Extending California Lane up to Redwood was ruled out as infeasible because of steep grade and poor sight lines; Middle Summit Fire Road was found to be passable but was judged inappropriate for general public evacuation without a staffed pilot‑vehicle operation. Chief Landau of the Central Marin Fire Department emphasized the department’s position on pedestrian evacuation: “Under no circumstance should anyone on Christmas Tree Hill evacuate by foot.” Landau said pilot‑vehicle use of fire roads could be viable in some scenarios but that those routes are primarily best suited for trained emergency responders and apparatus.

On utilities, PG&E representative Greg Wright said PG&E is executing an undergrounding plan through 2026 approved by the California Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and is preparing a 2027+ undergrounding/system‑hardening submission. Wright said Christmas Tree Hill is included in PG&E’s current risk modeling for the next planning cycle but that any work beyond the current plan will require CPUC approval. He described “system hardening” options — thicker insulated conductors, fire‑retardant pole wraps and stronger poles — as an intermediate option when full undergrounding is not approved.

The meeting closed with next steps but no formal actions: staff will refine concepts based on feedback, continue preliminary design, and return later to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee and town council for review. Becky said the schedule anticipates additional public outreach this year and into fall/winter 2025, followed by focus group review of preliminary design and subsequent public hearings before final design.

Discussion versus decision: the workshop was advisory. The town and consultants presented conceptual alternatives, gathered public questions and comments, and asked for input on tradeoffs (parking, widening, and fire‑weather restrictions). No ordinance, resolution or funding authorization was adopted during the meeting; PG&E did not commit to undergrounding dates beyond noting the utility’s regulatory process.

Community members asked many practical questions about parking equity and how restricted spaces would be allocated; RJ Sukko said the town will analyze permit options and asked for public feedback. The team also committed to include FireSafe Marin guidance and the prior workshop materials on the project website and to accept emailed comments for two weeks to include in the workshop record.

For residents, two operational points were emphasized repeatedly: Central Marin Fire Department’s evacuation guidance that vehicles on pavement are the preferred evacuation method and the importance of neighbor coordination to “fill every seat” in cars during an evacuation if household vehicle capacity is limited. Chief Landau repeated that guidance and the team identified Menke Park and other off‑hill parking near Corte Madera Avenue as possible overflow locations if residents must leave parked vehicles off the hill during restricted days.

The town will continue refining the designs and the administrative proposals and return to advisory committees and council later in 2025; PG&E reiterated that undergrounding or system‑hardening beyond 2026 depends on CPUC/OEIS approval and the utility’s multi‑year plan.