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Residents pressure Mill Valley to act on trailhead parking, East Blythe Dale traffic
Summary
Residents described heavy trailhead parking and speeding on narrow neighborhood streets; city manager and staff outlined short‑term steps — no‑parking signage, monitoring and neighborhood engagement — and said longer measures (direction reversal, permit parking) would require further evaluation and policy direction.
Residents from the Escalon and East Blythe Dale neighborhoods told the Mill Valley City Council they face regular congestion, unsafe parking and speeding tied to a popular trailhead and social‑media driven hiking visitors.
Speakers at public comment included Craig Sultan, Debbie Sultan and John Hanley, who described a surge in weekend visitors since the pandemic. Craig Sultan said the neighborhood sees “over 150 cars now a day” on weekdays and “200–300” on weekends (resident estimate reported in public comment). John Hanley, who gave his address as 855 East Blythe Dale, said the speed humps installed earlier had not solved drivers’ behavior and reported near collisions and safety concerns. Debbie Sultan described cars parked on both sides of narrow streets, forcing pedestrians into travel lanes.
City Manager Todd Cusimano and public works staff responded in detail. Cusimano said the city’s traffic safety team — combining public works engineering and maintenance, police, fire, and planning and building — had evaluated the roadway geometry and identified pinch points and blind spots. Staff said the roadway in question is wider than many neighborhood streets (roughly 25–30 feet) and has sufficient turnaround space, so sidewalks are not feasible.
Immediate steps staff reported they are taking or have ordered: no‑parking signs to clear 11‑foot clearance areas, installation of signage the following week, and outreach to directly impacted neighbors. Cusimano said hedges that previously provided separation were dying and that Public Works had brought experts to prune or replant; the city is considering allowing hedges to regrow or installing a redwood fence as alternatives. Staff emphasized they will monitor the effects of the signs and other measures and will report back to the council.
Longer‑term ideas raised in discussion included reversing the direction of certain dead‑end streets, installing a resident permit parking program for restricted access, and other traffic calming devices. Cusimano and other staff cautioned permit parking is a heavy policy decision that can create precedent and enforcement burdens; the city is not recommending permit parking now but said it could evaluate the idea further if council directed staff to do so.
Residents handed a petition signed by 18 neighbors to the clerk and asked for continued attention. The council and staff committed to additional neighbor engagement, enforcement as appropriate, and monitoring the results of the newly posted signage.
Ending: staff will install no‑parking signs, continue neighborhood outreach and monitor parking, speed and safety outcomes; the council may revisit additional measures pending staff analysis and neighborhood feedback.
