Larkspur Corte Madera Bicycle Alliance

Our endorsements

The City Council shapes where our kids can ride, how safe our streets are, and how we care for our open space. These candidates understand why that matters to Larkspur families.

Vote Tuesday, November 3

• 

  Gareth Walter

  Larkspur City Council

  Walter strongly supports a Larkspur bike park as a safe, legal place for young riders to build skills and gather, while addressing location, neighborhood, environmental, liability, and maintenance concerns early. He proposes reviewing city and school district sites, involving riders and neighbors in design, pursuing public-private funding, establishing a maintenance plan, and publishing a clear project timeline.

  Read Gareth Walter’s full responsesHide Gareth Walter’s full responses

  What are your thoughts on establishing one or more bike parks in Larkspur? What benefits or concerns do you see for our community?

  I'm strongly in favor. Marin is the birthplace of mountain biking, and Redwood High has one of the best mountain bike teams in the country. Yet our kids have very few legal, safe places close to home to build their skills. Most of our open space and parks are still off-limits to bikes. As a result, Marin has lost much of its riding heritage to places that welcomed it, while towns like Fairfax have taken a clearly pro-bike stance. Larkspur should be one of them.

  The benefits go well beyond riding. A bike park gives kids and teens a healthy, screen-free place to gather, take smart risks, and learn from each other. It eases pressure on illegal trail use. And it brings families into the heart of town. Stafford Lake Bike Park shows what's possible when a community partners with Larkspur Recreation: it's well used, well loved, and a model for financial stewardship.

  The concerns are real and solvable: site selection, neighbor impacts such as noise and parking, environmental review, liability, and long-term maintenance. They should be addressed openly and early, not used as reasons to stall.

  If elected, what specific actions would you be willing to take to help make a bike park a reality? For example, how would you approach identifying suitable locations, working with the community, and securing funding?

  My whole campaign is about execution over talk, and this is a good test of it.

  • Location: I'd ask staff for a quick inventory of city-owned and underused parcels. That includes the old dog park behind Hall Middle School. It comes with financial obligations and environmental constraints, but I'd want us to try everything we can to make it work. I'd also look at a joint-use agreement with the school district, since students are the core users.
  • Community: I'd bring in the Parks & Rec Commission, Redwood's MTB team, families, MCBC, and neighbors from the start, with a design process young riders help shape.
  • Funding: I'd follow the Stafford Lake model of a public-private partnership: grants, private and foundation donors, local businesses, and volunteer build days. That keeps the burden off the general fund, and a dedicated maintenance plan would be agreed before we break ground.
  • Follow-through: I'd put a clear timeline on it and report progress publicly.

  Visit ElectGareth.com
• 

  Aaron Burnett

  Larkspur City Council

  Burnett supports a bike park as a way to help children ride safely, build confidence, and enjoy the outdoors while protecting the environment. He proposes championing the project through the Parks and Recreation Commission, maintaining community involvement, and pursuing partnerships and grants with county agencies, nonprofits, and state and federal programs.

  Read Aaron Burnett’s full responsesHide Aaron Burnett’s full responses

  What are your thoughts on establishing one or more bike parks in Larkspur? What benefits or concerns do you see for our community?

  I was excited to learn about your efforts to establish a bike park in Larkspur. I bike to work every day, and my wife and I are raising a growing family here. I want my kids to grow up riding, and to learn in places built for it, not by dodging cars or weaving around people on a crowded path.

  You can count on me to be a strong champion of projects that improve the welfare of our children, expand their access to the outdoors, and make biking and walking safer. A bike park has the potential to do all of that, giving young riders a safe place to build skills and confidence, get outside with friends, and become safer riders on the way to school, downtown, or the trails.

  I also firmly believe Larkspur can improve its community assets while honoring our shared commitment to preserving the natural environment. Those goals aren't in conflict. With thoughtful planning and input from riders, parents, neighbors, and environmental stewards, projects like this can strengthen both.

  If elected, what specific actions would you be willing to take to help make a bike park a reality? For example, how would you approach identifying suitable locations, working with the community, and securing funding?

  Good projects happen when local advocates and government work hand in hand. That's the work I do professionally, bringing community leaders and local government together to turn shared priorities into real results. In San Rafael, for example, I'm working with the City on a bicycle and pedestrian bridge that would connect the Canal neighborhood to the high school and downtown.

  I'd bring that same approach to Larkspur. The Parks and Recreation Commission is the right place for proposals like this to be developed and vetted, and I'd respect that process. Respecting the process doesn't mean standing on the sidelines, though. As a Councilmember, I'd champion this effort by ensuring a lasting commitment to authentic community engagement, keeping riders, parents, neighbors, and local bicycle advocates at the table and partnering with them to find an option that works for Larkspur and respects the environment.

  Funding would take some creativity, since the City's budget is limited. I'd look to partnerships with Marin County Parks and the Transportation Authority of Marin, along with state and federal grants that local nonprofits and county agencies could pursue together. With a community as committed as yours, a bike park is well worth pursuing. If elected, I would bring a strong commitment to helping build a Larkspur where every kid, including my own, can ride safely and enjoy the outdoors.

  Visit AaronForLarkspur.com