Only one more year... are you ready to join the council?

In December, I announced that I will finish my city council term in the Fall of 2014, and that I will not be seeking re-election. I have announced my intention this early because I would like to encourage anyone who is concerned about good policy decisions in Emeryville to run. I would love to find two great candidates to support!

When I ran in 2009, I expected a four year term. With our change of elections to even years (to align with County, State and Federal elections and greater voter turn-out), I ended up with a 5 year term (as did all other sitting council members and school board members). I will spend my fifth year working hard on furthering my initiatives, but will leave the council at the end of 2014. If you are a person who is interested in local issues, from small details to larger policy, please consider talking with me about the city council race and the position!

Some of the things I have learned:

1. This work is very gratifying, and an individual with community support can make a real difference in our urban village.
2. It is hard to balance family commitments and a demanding job with this important work. The pay is not worthy of the position, but there are good health benefits provided.
3. I know that the changes we are seeing in Emeryville for the better (more attention paid to bike/ped facilities, more family friendly units in projects) are not because of me, but may be a result of increased public participation and a shift in priorities. This is about a group effort, not one individual.

I would also like to let you know about Scott Donahue, who is one of my trusted advisors for all things Emeryville. He has lived in town for over 30 years, in the artists' co-op, and he has announced that he is running for city council in 2014. I think that he will do a fantastic job, with thoughtful consideration of issues and a strong sense of where Emeryville is going. Please support me by helping elect Scott. I would like to find one more candidate to run with Scott as well.

Thank you to all of you who have shared opinions with me, served on committees, met with me, supported or challenged my ideas! I truly enjoy making sense of our opportunities, and correcting wrongs. Here is to big accomplishments in 2014!

If you are interested in running, please be in touch with me directly at emeryvillewest@gmail.com. In April or May, I will participate in a forum to discuss what serving on the council means in our town, with Jac Asher, sponsored by Residents United for a Livable Emeryville (RULE). Details will follow.

Stopwaste in 2014

I serve as Emeryville's representative on the Alameda County Waste Management Authority, also known as Stopwaste. I greatly appreciate all that this government organization has done to make Alameda County a national leader in terms of how much of our waste goes back into the economy through recycling and compost (food scraps and plant debris). We (Stopwaste) are also responsible for banning single use plastic bags at most retail stores county-wide. We also have required commercial businesses and multi-family residences to offer recycling.

But we still find that people need an additional nudge or more education to further reduce the amount of "good stuff" that is going to landfill. You may have received a mailer recently that gives a snapshot of how well our community of Emeryville is doing on this, in comparison with other cities in the county. This mailer is paid for by a "benchmark" fee, that also pays for additional data collection, so we can measure how well we are doing. the fee is $1.51/year for most accounts, more for larger trash generators. Questions you may have can be answered here, or you can email me directly at emeryvillewest@gmail.com.

Another challenge that we face in Alameda County is how to fund disposal of Household Hazardous Waste -- materials that cannot safely be put in a landfill. Over the years, our money to fund this has gone down (as it is based on fees on landfilled materials, which have been decreasing -- yeah!), so Stopwaste is finding new money to support HHW disposal, while also making it easier for households to take HHW to the facilities (making the hours more frequent and more regular). Ideally, someday, we will be able to phase out more of these toxic substances from our store shelves, or charge the person buying it at point of sale to cover these costs, but for now, we are proposing a fee on all properties in the county to support these services. You may have received a letter recently informing you about this fee and how you may protest it, if you choose. It will be $9.55/year for all properties, added to property tax bills. It will only be in place for 10 years, and will be reduced if the cost of services is reduced or other funding sources are more than projected. Go here to see answers to frequently asked questions.

I have asked for an information item on the March 4 council agenda to be sure we have a chance to discuss these fees at council. You may also contact me directly to get more information on these programs.

Emery-Go-Round and Watergate

I have heard from lots of people who live at Watergate over the past couple of weeks. Emery-Go-Round, which temporarily suspended its service beyond the Watergate office towers during sidewalk construction this summer/fall, announced that it would not reinstate the bus-stops out on the peninsula due to safety concerns and difficulty turning around. The Emery-Go-Round continues to stop at the Towers, which is a walk from the residential community.

Many people who live in Watergate (which constitutes about a fourth of the population of Emeryville) depend on the free shuttle service to get around without a car. Lives and travel patterns have been disrupted by this change, and everyone agrees -- we like our Emery-Go-Round! Watergate folks can get to MacArthur BART faster than most of us in town!

Well, I am a big fan of public transportation, so I do not take these changes lightly. In fact, abrupt changes like this make it clear that it is time to look carefully and comprehensively at public transportation throughout town and the area. There is a study being conducted now (dubbed EBOTS) that is looking at greater transit service in West Berkeley, Emeryville and West Oakland. See this blog entry for info on upcoming workshops. This crisis also shows how vulnerable chunks of town are to small and big changes -- changes that are not under the control of the city or your elected officials. Emery-Go-Round is predominantly funded by commercial property owners in town, and was set up originally as a shuttle for employees. The Emeryville Transportation Management Association (ETMA) runs the Emery-Go-Round through a funding mechanism called a Property Based Improvement District (PBID). That funding and other options are being considered soon.

The City Council has been asked to weigh in on future plans for Emery-Go-Round and its funding source, the PBID, along with plans for a bus yard. We are planning a study session for Tuesday, Dec. 3, starting around 6:30 pm at City Hall, before our regular council meeting. Please come and tell us what you think!

Some in town have asked for increased service to West Oakland BART, for example. We know that ridership has continued to grow and the free shuttle serves over 1 million riders per year. AC Transit has reduced service in Emeryville over the years. I would like to hear from you about Emery-Go-Round and public transportation in general.

Mentor a High School Senior

Every senior at Emery High School is being matched with a mentor for the year. Please consider giving 1 hour per week to advise a young person getting ready to graduate from high school. More information is available on this flyer, or by calling the Emery Ed Fund at (510) 601-4911.

Capital Improvement Program (CIP) discussion begins Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2013

On Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 6:30 pm, the City Council will hold a special study session on our Capital Improvement Program (CIP). This is our first attempt after the end of Redevelopment (it has been 4 years since the last real discussion) to look at how we will spend our "capital" dollars over the next 5 years to improve livability in town. This will be a challenge as we have less money and will balance prioritizing sewer repairs, road infrastructure, parks, building maintenance, and other worthy projects, all with fewer dollars to spend. This study session which will last until around 7:15 is the beginning of a process (see below) with culminating Council action in March/April 2014.

The staff report lays out the following steps:

1. Identify available resources
2. Identify priorities based on our plans that give us a roadmap for our future growth
3. Define priority results more precisely
4. Prepare a list of projects and programs for evaluation
5. Create a priority listing of projects and programs
6. Allocate resources

Come to City Hall (1333 Park Ave) and join in the discussion!

Our last CIP plan (2006-2011) is available here.

EBOTS - planning better transportation for our area

Workshops are coming up for public input! Please attend one of the following:

Emeryville-Berkeley-Oakland Transit Study Community Workshops and Questionnaire

Help us improve transit in West Berkeley, Emeryville and West Oakland.  Join us for a community workshop to explore future visions for transit in these three cities and to provide input on our transit study.  Your ideas will help shape the future of transit in this area!

* Thursday, November 7, 2013, 6:30-8:30pm
West Oakland Senior Center, 1724 Adeline St., Oakland

* Saturday, November 9, 2013, 11:00am-1:00pm
James Kenney Community Center, 1720 8th St., Berkeley

* Tuesday, November 12, 2013, 6:30-8:30pm
Emery Unified School District Office, Multi-Purpose Room
1275 61st St., Emeryville

You can also fill in a questionnaire at* https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/EBOTS
* https://es.surveymonkey.com/s/EBOTS_Spanish

For more information on the transit study, go to www.emeryville.org/ebots or contact Diana Keena at  or 596-4335.

The City of Emeryville is conducting this study using Federal Transit Administration funding through Caltrans, in collaboration with AC Transit, Amtrak/Capitol Corridor, BART, Berkeley Gateway Shuttle, City of Berkeley, City of Oakland, and Emery-Go-Round.

ECCL bike/ped path conversation

This evening about 40 people gathered at the Emery Secondary Site to talk more about the ECCL project and the bike/ped path that is in the General Plan for that site. In case you have not followed this issue, Emery Unified School District has asked the city to delete the path from that site saying that there is not space or money to put in the path with the new construction of our K-12 community school and center. Emery Bay Village residents have also asked for the path to be deleted citing security concerns. The Bike/Ped Advisory Committee (BPAC) asked to meet on the site today to walk through and talk about the concerns, trying to understand how we got to this point and how to solve this problem. The City Council voted NOT to delete the path from the General Plan a few months back. City staff pointed out that the path could remain in the General Plan, but that the project could also move forward without including it. Hmmm.

It was an animated discussion, although I left feeling discouraged. Several people called for creative thinking to break through and find a real solution. But road blocks are put up again and again, and some individuals didn't seem to be listening to all sides of the conversation. As to when the decisions are made and how firm those decisions are is always contentious. It isn't over until the building is built, one person said. Others said, the plans have been completed and the CEQA documents are in public comment now.

I feel that we need to envision the Emeryville we want to have and work steadily to get there. The General Plan process put "connectivity" and improving the pedestrian experience high on the list of goals. That is what all of the paths in the General Plan are about -- breaking up super blocks, where the only way to get from one quiet street to another is by going to the arterials, such as San Pablo, Hollis or Adeline. That is not pedestrian friendly to me.

And our brand new, we-want-to-feel-so-proud-of-it, hope-it-lasts-a-long-time Community Center and Full Service K-12 school should be setting the example, not shirking its pivotal role. Where better can we make a statement to kids, families and neighbors about encouraging alternative modes of transportation, reducing car emissions, encouraging physical activity and active transportation? I think kids should be able to walk or bike safely to school. It is all about priorities and the cost of everything... and what needs to change to make it all work.

The fear mongering about how dangerous a bike/ped path will be, with a sound wall and a security fence do not make sense to me. The street is dangerous as well, but we still put schools next to streets. Active uses tend to make places safer. And the increased cost of security personnel monitoring students may be mitigated by fewer vehicle miles driven, if we can put a cost on all the ramifications of our decisions, including the air we breathe and the lifestyles we choose. Saying that we are not ready for a bike/ped path, and will get it once we have erased all criminal activity nearby is giving in to defeat. We are building for our tomorrow.

The biggest surprise today is that the pool deck problem seemed to go away through the conversation. The sound wall can be placed closer to the property line (it will need shoring up seismically anyway , and a sound wall is planned to be built for the remaining length of the property line) and the visibility will be improved with a security fence between the path and the pool, with plenty of room to take a couple of feet off the deck for the path. The entrance to the pool is moving to the other side of the pool anyway it turns out! In fact that seemed like the easier problem to solve today, when compared to compromising a portion of the track around the football and baseball fields to get the path to fit on the north end of the property.

EUSD says that the path can go in during Phase 2. I am concerned that if Phase 1 doesn't get planned with the path included, there will be no political will to be certain that Phase 2 will include a path, especially if it will mean taking away the track or something that everyone has already gotten used to.

So, we had a wonderful chance to discuss, learn new things from each other, embrace community engagement and dialogue, but I am still not certain that this problem has been solved. Not yet anyway. We will keep trying. We have to if we want to realize our dreams for this wonderful town, Emeryville. We have to get it right!