Sir Francis Drake Boulevard Median Replanting

Overview and background

The Sir Francis Drake Boulevard (SFDB) Median Trees & Entryway Replanting project started construction in July 2023.

The initial scope of the Upgrade The Drake project included landscape improvements only to areas directly affected by the street improvements. With the benefit of additional funds from County Service Area 17 (CSA 17), the scope of the project was expanded to include new planting in all the center medians in the corridor within the area of work, as well as improvements at key entryways. The median landscaping for the Upgrade The Drake project was placed on hold due to the drought and mandatory water use restrictions that were in place in 2021 and into 2022. Also due to increased costs affected by inflation and budgetary limitations, the planting scope of the current replanting project has been simplified to only include new trees within the center medians, with the ability to add shrubs and groundcover plantings in the future, if funding allows.

The SFDB Median & Entryway Replanting project includes:

• Soil improvements and sheet mulching
• New irrigation systems
• New trees
• New shrubs and groundcover plants at key entryways only

The design incorporates:

• Trees that are drought tolerant, CA native, resilient to climate change, sequester carbon, and offer shade, color, and seasonal interest.
• Sheet mulching that will build the health of the soils to support the trees’ roots, as well as suppress weeds and reduce maintenance costs.
• New smart irrigation systems that are efficient and conserve water, and are also easily expandable to support future planting if funding allows.

Funding

The improvements are funded in part by County Service Area 17 (CSA 17), as well as by the County of Marin Department of Public Works’ (DPW) Road and Bridge fund. CSA 17 funds ongoing maintenance of medians through this portion of the Sir Francis Drake Boulevard corridor. County Service Areas 16 (CSA 16) also will develop new plantings along the north frontage of the corridor to meet the same criteria.

Traffic impacts

Potential  traffic impacts associated with this median landscaping work should be expected, but efforts are being taken to minimize disturbance. Traffic updates are announced via social media and message boards located on the corridor, but the following should be expected:

• Work will occur on non-holiday weekdays no earlier than 7:30am and no later than 5:30pm (unless otherwise approved by the County and communicated to the public beforehand).
• There will be temporary, partial lane closures but one lane of traffic will be open in each direction at all times.
  • The following shows the times of lane closures for given date ranges:
    • Up until Friday, August 18:  8:00AM to 3:00PM
    • From Monday, August 21, until the end of the project:  10:00AM to 3:00PM (time adjusted to accommodate morning traffic increase due to school year starting.)

Timeline

Mid-July 2023

• Project start

Fall 2023

• Anticipated completion