Marin Lesser and Greater

Shut down the farm: The Drake's Bay Oyster Company has been ordered to close by Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. The heated debate (video) over whether the West Marin oyster farm could continue to operate in a designated wilderness area has not yet come quite to the end, as the company has already filed suit. (Marinscope, KQED, Pt. Reyes Light)
Marin keeps getting older: Marin is indeed getting older, households are getting smaller, and homes keep getting more expensive, at least according to the latest numbers from the US Census Bureau. (IJ)
Toward a sub-par Transbay: The downtown railway extension for Caltrain and California HSR is poorly designed and inadequate for the needs of the two systems. Unfortunately, the needed changes are European best practices, something American planners generally aren't comfortable with. (Caltrain-HSR)
Affordable housing through luxury housing: Housing becomes unaffordable when luxury buyers start looking for deals in poorer neighborhoods. In downtown Brooklyn, opposition to luxury development has meant more gentrification in surrounding neighborhoods, driving up prices for everyone else. (Bloomberg)
There are some new mayors in town: Towns and cities in Marin got around to choosing their mayors this week: Diane Furst in Corte Madera; Andrew Berman in Mill Valley; Pat Eklund in Novato; Dan Hillmer in Larkspur; and John Reed in Fairfax. (IJ, Patch)
Don't walk in LA either: Half of all crashes in Los Angeles are hit-and-runs, and the LAPD isn't doing much about it, saying their more concerned with "crimes against a person". Try telling the family of someone killed by a driver they don't count as a "person". (Atlantic) Relatedly, Atherton police aren't filing charges against a speeding driver who struck and injured two women in a crosswalk despite the fact that he was found to be at fault. (Almanac)
Travel back in time, today!: Remember how broke Bakersfield is? Yeah, Caltrans still wants to demolish a neighborhood for a new freeway right next to an existing one. It's like the 1960s never stopped. (Stop and Move)
Bikers buy less more often: As it turns out, bicyclists spend more than drivers, just not all at once. In general, drivers tend to be purpose-oriented, but riding a bike lends itself to more frequent shopping stops while going someplace. In other words, to build a better retail base, build a better biking culture. (Atlantic)
And...: Larkspur's Draft Station Area Plan is out, and it looks pretty good at first glance. (City of Larkspur) ... A few kinks and minimal confusion welcomes the newer, hopefully better, Napa VINE system. (NVR) ... BART will survey riders about whether to charge for parking based on demand. (SFist) ... It might not be such a bad thing to keep the 2/3 requirement for transit taxes. (Systemic Failure) ... More luxury apartments are coming to Corte Madera, resurrecting the Madera Vista development. (TCT)

The Toll

Barbara Rothwell was killed and four people were injured this week.

Barbara Rothwell drove her car off the road in Bolinas, killing herself. Her seven-year-old son, a passenger at the time, was spared injury and walked a half-mile to find help. Barbara was 48. (Patch)
No charges will be filed against Adam Bigham, a driver who was involved in the July death of cyclist Ruben Hernandez, 37, in Santa Rosa. Prosecutors believe there isn't enough evidence to convict Bigham of manslaughter. (PD)
Marin injuries: A driver on the Golden Gate Bridge swerved into oncoming traffic, causing a crash that sent two other drivers to the hospital with minor injuries. (IJ)
Sonoma injuries: A driver injured herself and a passenger by crashing her car into an oncoming driver in Petaluma. (PD)

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