Vote yes on Measure A for Tam District high schools
Marin County is an extraordinary place to live. As someone who served on the Tamalpais Union High School District Board of Trustees for 12 years, I have seen the positive impact that quality schools have on students as well as the broader community.
Public schools are vitally important. They are the cornerstone of democracy.
The Tam District does an excellent job of managing its budget. Unfortunately, the state doesn’t provide funds for facilities upgrades. Measure A, the proposed bond on the March 5 ballot to support the district’s facility upgrades, is a well-conceived plan that will enable the district to rebuild and update classrooms, labs and food service facilities.
Access for students with disabilities will also be improved.
While the vast majority of district students attend college after they graduate, the bond will improve career-technical classrooms in order to ensure that all students receive an education that enables them to pursue their interests after high school.
The district’s out-of-date facilities impact teaching and learning. Many of our students will pursue careers that did not exist 10 years ago. To keep up, the district’s teaching has evolved, but our aging facilities have not kept pace.
Measure A is good for students, teachers, staff and our entire community. While a bond exemption for seniors who own property in the district is prohibited by state law, the tax rate of $30 per $100,000 is based on assessed value, not market value. Therefore, those who have owned their homes for decades get some level of relief.
Please join me in protecting our future by providing for the next generation of students. Vote yes on Measure A.
— Ruth Dell, Tiburon
Fight back against PG&E’s unfair system
There have been ongoing letters published in the IJ emphasizing the outrage of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. ratepayers regarding the regular (seemingly automatically approved) rate increases in our utility bills, as the company continues to update their failing infrastructure while we pay for it.
Gov. Gavin Newsom appoints the members of the California Public Utilities Commission, the regulatory agency in charge of approving these increases. It seems to me that the CPUC is serving PG&E’s shareholders over those who are dependent on the utility company for affordable essential services.
Our utility company should be a nonprofit, but it is clear that writing angry letters is not going to accomplish this. Newsom’s ties to PG&E and his oversight of the CPUC are problematic. I think a class-action lawsuit is the next best step.
According to my research, a class action lawsuit enables multiple plaintiffs to join forces and pursue the same defendant in court. A group of individuals, led by one or more people claiming to have been harmed due to unlawful activities, can bring a joint action against the same defendant. I don’t know if these incessant increases are unlawful but these are certainly suspicious.
— Christine Clayworth, Novato
Protesters who blocked bridge deserve applause
In response to recently published letters concerned with punishing protesters who shut down the San Francisco Bay Bridge last year, I would like to say I applaud those brave people of conscience over our political leaders, who have enabled the Israel-Hamas war to continue.
Letters concerned about unsuspecting drivers stuck on the bridge should remember that it was a minimal inconvenience compared to what people in the Middle East are going through right now.
— C. Gannon, Fairfax
McPhail Sridharan best for District 2 supervisor
When reflecting on Heather McPhail Sridharan, candidate for the District 2 seat on the Marin County Board of Supervisors, four concepts resonate profoundly with me: consensus-building, honesty, compassion and integrity.
My relationship with her began in December 2020, when I joined the Kentfield School District Board of Trustees, amid the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
McPhail Sridharan, then serving as board president, navigated us through a labyrinth of unprecedented challenges, impacting over 1,100 students in our district. Throughout these challenging times, her demeanor remained calm and composed. She consistently approached heated discussions and criticisms with a level head and an unwavering commitment to civility.
McPhail Sridharan’s leadership was defined by dignity and respect, and was always guided by her moral compass — which was doing what was best for our students. I always remember that she maintained open and respectful communication with all parties, even under the most trying circumstances, which I found to be truly admirable.
During my time on the school board with McPhail Sridharan, I also had the opportunity to witness her unwavering dedication to our community firsthand.
What sets her apart is an inclusive approach, a quality I find pretty rare. McPhail Sridharan’s commitment extended to all stakeholders, demonstrated through her active participation in numerous meetings and collaborations with diverse groups, including our English learner community. She also forged relationships with various organizations and stakeholders, always with the aim of supporting and enhancing the educational experience of our students.
She is a true community consensus-builder and her approach is exactly what we need from our next supervisor. It is with my utmost confidence and respect that I endorse Heather McPhail Sridharan in the March 5 election. I urge community members to vote for her as well.
— Annie Su, Kentfield
Big growth complicates Marin water supply plans
I am writing in regard to the article published Jan. 27 with the headline “Marin Municipal Water District reservoirs reach capacity amid storms.” I found the news to be encouraging and disturbing at the same time.
I am fine that, even with full reservoirs, water officials expressed caution about the ever-present threat of drought, while continuing to encourage conservation. That’s a good message.
Yet, at the same time, between both the MMWD and North Marin Water District, officials are likely going to need to provide over 13,000 new water hookups to comply with housing mandates coming from the state. It makes absolutely no sense.
For a county as highly educated as Marin, I remain dismayed about how little public concern and outcry there is about these unrealistic growth numbers created by the state. The situation is pure folly.
Water is today’s gold and there just isn’t enough of it to support this kind of growth.
— James Petray, Novato
Recent events not good signs for Trump campaign
Despite early forecasts that this will be a close general election in November between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, there are some early signs from the primaries that Trump is quite vulnerable.
Barely 50% of Iowa Republicans and a similar number in New Hampshire voted for Trump, which suggests his support is not at all high. In New Hampshire, “no party preference” voters can participate in the Republican primary. They voted heavily for Nikki Haley. That suggests trouble for Trump among “no party preference” voters in the November general election.
Lastly, polling suggests that a majority of Trump-leaning Republicans would no longer vote for Trump if he is convicted of a felony before November. Personally, I can’t imagine a convicted felon in the White House.
It is no wonder Trump wants Haley to stop the challenge to his candidacy as she continues to point out the chaos he brings to this country and the failure to drain the swamp as promised, all the while increasing the deficit he vowed to reduce.
Indeed, there is hope the disgraced former president will not return to the White House.
— Paul Hough, San Rafael
