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Dear Greenbrae Neighbors,
We’re all at risk of wildfires in our beautiful, wooded and fully-interconnected landscaped community. Volunteers from GPOA*, NRG*, and CSA16* work closely with our Fire Departments and FIRESafe Marin experts to help ensure our private homes and landscapes are safe(er). Of course, these groups don't maintain your private properties, so these efforts must include homeowners, their gardeners and perhaps tenants. On our community web site at www.greenbrae.org/fire--safety, you’ll find a growing list of curated information and educational resources to help all of us to understand what to do to make our properties and homes, and thereby our neighbors and community, safer. This takes some focused thought and some additional expense, but the payoffs in saved lives and properties are obvious.
If a wildfire starts or moves into our community along with strong seasonal winds, being prepared is best, right? We have provided you with helpful educational materials already on our website, www.greenbrae.org. You also will receive occasional mailings and emails (if not already subscribed, please go here so you can receive timely updates, (www.greenbrae.org/signup)
Please take a look at your home and in your landscaping for items that can and will make a difference in saving your home and those of your neighbors. For example, are your roof and gutters regularly kept clear of leaves and other flammable debris? Are your foundation, soffit, and roof vents protected with 1/16” mesh and/or ‘Vulcan’ or similar vents? is the ‘Zero Zone’ (0-5 feet around your home) free of plants and protected by hardscaping, gravel or other non-flammable material? Do you have bamboo, junipers, pine trees, rosemary, and other highly-flammable plants near your home? Are you at the top of a slope with abundant dried grasses, French broom and other plants? Have your ground cover, shrubs and trees been separated to prevent fire from ‘laddering' up into the canopies and onto roofs of your and your neighbors’ homes?
Guidance on how to address these and other key FireSafe items is provided on our website at www.greenbrae.org/fire--safety . To get professional guidance on how to prepare and maintain your home and landscaping for wildfires you will find links to fire safety professionals at www.firesafemarin.org/contractors and other excellent resources at www.firesafemarin.org, www.firesafemarin.org/preparedness and FireWise USA
Additional Resources for fire preparedness include the following videos:
Yes, we’re all in this together. Work on your property. Coordinate activities and share costs with your neighbors. Participate with your NRG ‘cluster’ and help all of us to make a real difference.
*GPOA: Greenbrae Property Owners Association (to which most homeowners pay voluntary dues 1-2 times a year to fund FIRESafeMarin, our website, annual GPOA Picnics, newsletters, etc.)
*NRG: Central Marin Neighborhood Response Groups www.nrgmarin.org (A grassroots volunteer-driven initiative designed to assist the residents of Central Marin prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters by encouraging a neighbors-helping-neighbors approach and by providing resources, guidance and training and conducting periodic disaster drills.)
*CSA16: County Service Area 16 (to which each home pays taxes, currently $150/year, to fund the maintenance and improvements of our community's landscape medians, community parks on Corte Morada and Corte Los Sombras, and mile-long Sir Francis Drake Boulevard frontage.)
Scott Sherman, PhD
GPOA Landscaping Chairman and Neighbor on North Almenar,
Plus your GPOA Board of Directors
landscaping@greenbrae.org
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