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City manager outlines plan to spend unspent MWPA funds and prioritize a 'Greater Mill Valley' fuel break
Summary
Staff told council that Measure C–funded MWPA accounts include unspent Mill Valley allocations and proposed reallocating carryover funds to a coordinated Greater Mill Valley fuel‑break project, tree/vegetation management and home‑hardening grants while improving reporting and oversight.
City staff presented an audit of Measure C (MWPA) allocations on May 19 and proposed a course correction to direct unspent local and defensible‑space funds into priority vegetation and home‑hardening projects.
Staff said Measure C produces about $22 million annually countywide and Mill Valley’s local pots (two 20% buckets for defensible space/home hardening and local projects) amount to roughly $273,000 each year. Reviewing five years of accounts, staff identified roughly $300,000 in unspent local carryover and additional core‑project carryover that could make a bundled Greater Mill Valley fuel‑break effort closer to $500,000.
"The good news is money’s there, it’s ours, it’s going to be spent," the city manager said; staff recommended packaging unspent core funds into a single Greater Mill Valley fuel-break project and using local carryover for tree management and up to $200,000 for home‑hardening grant support. The proposal includes quarterly reporting back to council and closer coordination with Southern Marin Fire District and the MWPA oversight committee.
Council members asked for clearer accountability and asked staff to present Southern Marin Fire’s operational plan and maps showing where fuel breaks would be located. Council discussed prioritizing core, defensible‑space and local funds to maximize community protection and the city manager pledged a spring briefing and a fall update with interactive maps.
Next steps: staff and councilmember representatives will work with MWPA and Southern Marin Fire to finalize the projects and bring a second budget amendment to spend carryover funds on vegetation management, home‑hardening grants and neighborhood response/education efforts.
