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Commission approves 1,814-sq-ft addition at 9 Murray Lane; neighbor raises drainage and privacy concerns over tree removals
Summary
The Larkspur Planning Commission approved design review and the removal of two heritage oaks for a 1,814-square-foot addition at 9 Murray Lane, while ordering that one tree (tree #12) be retained; a neighbor warned that longstanding drainage issues and privacy impacts merit careful oversight.
The Planning Commission voted 3–0 on Feb. 10 to approve a design-review application for 9 Murray Lane (PLN25-027) that includes a 1,814-square-foot first-story addition, a two-car garage and a small workshop addition. The approval grants the applicant permission to remove two heritage oak trees located within the project footprint, while commissioners required that a third identified tree (tree number 12) be retained and protected.
Staff told the commission the addition splits into about 1,199 square feet of living area and a 615-square-foot two-car garage; the application also included an 899-square-foot accessory dwelling unit described by staff as included for context only under state law. Because the site contains heritage trees, the application included a heritage-tree removal permit; staff said the Valley Oak (about a 63-inch circumference) and a Coast Live Oak (about a 60-inch circumference) are proposed for removal to accommodate the required driveway turn-around and the garage footprint. The project was reviewed by an architectural historian and the Heritage Preservation Board, which forwarded a recommendation of approval to the commission. Public Works reviewed the drainage plan and, per staff, raised no ‘‘red flags.’n
Polsky, the project architect, said the team had incorporated Heritage Preservation Board recommendations. Civil engineer Glenn Dearth of LTD Engineering described a drainage concept that relies on two bioretention basins (rear and front), a landscaped river-channel–style feature at the front, and a series of catch basins and an easement to convey uphill runoff to the creek. "The discharge, if there is any from those basins, will go into the channel along Murray Lane," Dearth told the commission, and he said the design complies with Marin County stormwater retention standards.
Neighbor Laura Costello — who said she owns part of Murray Lane and that much of Kent Woodlands drains onto Murray Lane — urged the commission not to take drainage lightly, recounted historical flooding tied to past development and objected to removal of the coast live oak because it provides privacy to her master bedroom. Costello said the property currently has no drainage and asked the commission to ensure Public Works' calculations are followed.
Commissioners said they respected the neighbor’s concerns but deferred to public-works review and the applicant’s engineer on technical drainage questions. Commissioner Brock moved approval of project PLN25-027 including the design review and the heritage-tree removal with the exception that tree number 12 be retained; the motion passed 3–0 with two absences. The decision is subject to a 10-day appeal period and conditions including updated tree-protection and landscape plans.
