Local proposes working windmill for bank median

When Pacific Slope Tree Cooperative removed the dying pine that fronted the parking lot of the local Wells Fargo branch, they left a towering stump. Those remains, now draped in prayer flags evocative of the globes that hung from the towering tree in winter, will be removed this summer. The bank has not yet decided what will replace the tree, which was taken down last winter, but one resident has a proposal: a windmill. Richard Kirschman is lobbying to replace the stump with a functional windmill that would both generate electricity for the bank and celebrate West Marin’s agricultural legacy. Windmills, he said, are “emblematic of our ranching community. Most ranches have them or used to have them.” A spokesman for the bank said the idea is one option. “It could be a statue, we just don’t know yet,” he said. A decision will likely be made around Memorial Day, and the work completed this summer. “We know in a small community like this that we have to be cognizant of what the locals want,” he added. Mr. Kirschman, who is known for his local philanthropy, took a rendering drawn by local architect Alex Riley to shop owners near the bank. “Everybody seemed to really like the idea,” he said, adding that one owner suggested there could be a bench around it giving people another place to sit downtown. Mr. Kirschman said he likes the idea of making the town look like it once looked. “Windmills come in all sorts of flavors, different shapes and sizes,” he said. “The bank could really make it a work of art.”