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Marin Water outlines Bolinas Road pipeline replacement and plans to limit business disruptions
Summary
Marin Municipal Water District presented a plan to replace more than a century‑old cast‑iron main on Bolinas Road, saying the project will boost hydrant flow by roughly 20%, reduce leaks and improve seismic resilience. The district and dozens of residents and business owners spent more than an hour debating shop access, water‑shutdown timing and parking and paving impacts.
Marin Municipal Water District officials told the Fairfax Town Council on March 4 they plan to replace roughly 4,300 feet of aging water main and associated service laterals along Bolinas Road, a project the district says will cut leaks, raise fire flows and make the system more seismically resilient.
The replacement, presented by Alex (MMWD engineering director) and Zach Talbot (engineering manager, design), would swap cast‑iron mains more than 100 years old for welded steel pipe and update valves, hydrant laterals and service laterals. Talbot said hydraulic modeling shows hydrant fire flow increases “up to 20% and higher in some areas,” and that the district has experienced eight or nine leaks on the corridor in the last 15 years.
Why it matters: the line serves downtown Fairfax, and a long, uncontrolled rupture on a brittle cast‑iron main could crater the road and flood properties, Talbot said. The district estimates the job will include replacing about 106 service laterals, seven hydrant laterals and two fire‑line laterals.
Construction timing and…
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