Oversight Board

To keep you informed on Redevelopment changes, I will share with you about the Oversight Board. The Oversight Board is being formed in the next month or so and will be in place by May 1, 2012. This body will be reviewing all decisions made by the City Council as Successor Agency to the Redevelopment Agency as we wind down its affairs, including looking at all of the projects and "enforceable obligations" that are listed on our Enforceable Obligation Payment Schedule (EOPS). The Oversight Board will have 7 members:

• the Mayor
• a person appointed by the County Superintendent of Schools, Sheila Jordan
• a person appointed by ACTransit
• a person appointed by the Peralta Community College District
• a member of the County Board of Supervisors
• a person appointed by the County Board of Supervisors
• a member of our staff: Helen Bean the Director of Ecomonic Develeopment and Housing will serve in that capacity

The Oversight Board includes representation of the other taxing entities who have been impacted by tax increment money going to Redevelopment projects and debt service over the years. The oversight of the Successor Agency decisions ultimately rests with the State Dept. of Finance, but the Oversight Board provides local input on those decisions. Tonight after our public visioning workshop, the council will be recommending folks for the County Board of Supervisors' appointment. We have been asked to make recommendations to several of the appointing bodies. The status of several projects in town hinge on the decisions that are made by this board.

Important meeting to chart Emeryville's path

Please come on down to City Hall on Tuesday, February 28 to share your ideas with the City Council. Redevelopment is gone and we must set our shared priorities before the new 2 year budget is drafted and adopted in June. We start at 5:30 pm and will go until 9:30 if we need to. You will get a chance to hear information from staff, add your own voice, meet some neighbors, hear the council share their views and even have a few refreshments. The agenda is available here.

I look forward to seeing you at 1333 Park Ave. at 5:30 on Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Jennifer West
Mayor of Emeryville

I-80 Corridor Congestion Relief project meeting, Feb 13, 6:00-9:00pm

Here is a link to information on this meeting!

Yellow Pages Opt out link

Emeryville Neighbors,

If you are interested in no longer receiving yellow pages directories, please follow the info provided below. Realize that it may take a month or more to process your request and you may still receive a yellow pages in the interim.

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YELLOWPAGES Opt-Out

Consumer Choice

Developed in partnership between the Local Search Association and the Association of Directory Publishers (ADP), www.YellowPagesOptOut.com provides an easy and secure way for you to control the number of Yellow Pages telephone directories you receive or to stop directory delivery entirely.  It is a completely free service for residents, municipalities and organizations that want to help promote sustainable business practices.

The Internet-based tool is specifically designed to prevent directories from being delivered to anyone who does not want one while ensuring that they are delivered to the majority of consumers who continue to rely upon and use the print Yellow Pages to make purchases supporting the local business community and economy.  It is a significant and unified commitment on behalf of directory publishers of which the positive impacts are already being realized in many communities around the country.

As the industry’s official website to manage requests, all Association and ADP member companies are committed to honoring requests made through the opt-out web portal. Information gathered through the site will not be sold to third-parties and will be used solely to update publishers’ delivery information.

Simply go to www.YellowPagesOptOut.com, enter your zip code and follow the prompts to make your choice.  Once complete, you will be sent a confirmation email.  Click the link embedded in the email to confirm your request.

What is the State of the City?

On February 7, at the City Council meeting at 7:15 pm at City Hall (1333 Park Ave.) there will be several items that may interest folks in town.

The Mayor (that's me) will give a State of the City address at the beginning of the meeting -- the same address I gave at the Chamber of Commerce Luncheon just a week ago. To reach the citizens of Emeryville, I asked to give the speech again so that more might hear about what has gone on in the past year and what can be expected going forward. Pat O'Keeffe, the City Manager, will also give a part of the speech. You can also watch this live on your TV on Channel 27, or on your computer with live streaming. You will be glad to hear that we are also taking this show on the road -- reaching out even further as we are committed to attending neighborhood gatherings to share the same information. Consider inviting us to one of your homes, your complex, or your community room in the near future.

Contracting with the County for fire services? Before our regular meeting there is a study session (beginning at 6:30) to hear about the proposals we have received to improve Emeryville's fire services. The folks who work in the Fire Dept., the Task Force that was created to look into our fire service delivery, the consultants who we hired to analyze our needs, and the managerial staff all have recommended to the Council that we consider joining the Alameda County Fire Department. Come to this session before the City Council meeting to hear more about this topic.

You may have noticed new LED street lights lighting up the street outside your home. There is an item on the agenda to discuss the changes in lighting, both the quality of the light and the cost savings that we anticipate from the energy saving technology and the lower maintenance costs. A number of residents have brought this to our attention and we will discuss the change at our meeting.

We are appointing a new Planning Commissioner as Art Hoff has left the Planning Commission. Several people have applied and now the Council will appoint one.

The design for a new park next to the development dubbed "Parkside" in the block bordered by Hollis/Powell/Stanford/Doyle will be considered by the council.

A group named Ohana that is proposing to assist ECAP, the Emeryville Community Action Program, an organization that helps people who need food, clothing and support services will be presenting an update on their activities.

And we will hear about regional sustainability with the Sustainable Communities Strategies presentation. For me, this is a very important and exciting opportunity to be involved in the way our region tackles transportation and land use decisions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as mandated by CA law, SB375. If you are not able to attend Tuesday evening, but want to participate, please consider this virtual workshop as a way to share your thoughts.

Finally, we will proclaim how kids need parks, the importance of the Red Cross, celebrate the dedicated career of a Police Service Technician, and acknowledge one impressive college freshman from Emeryville!

I will do my best to get all the hot topics as early as possible in the evening.

See you there!