Starting January 2012, admission will be free at the San Mateo County History Museum of the first Friday of each month! Explore the entire museum, enjoy a storytime, and embark on a guided history tour. For more information and tour times, call the museum at 650-299-0104.
Free First Fridays sponsored by AT&T.
The San Mateo County History Museum is located at 2200 Broadway in Redwood City.
Info: www.historysmc.org
Early next year, the City Council of Redwood City will be considering a 7.81% increase in the residential and commercial rates for garbage and recycling collection within Redwood City. For the great majority of Redwood City households (most of which have a 32-gallon cart), this would be an additional $1.93 per month/per cart (for those with 20-gallon carts the proposed increase is 81¢ per month/per cart). Corresponding increases would be effective for larger carts and for commercial service.
To help ensure residents and businesses have a full understanding of the services provided and the need for an increase in these rates, the City will hold a community information meeting on Thursday, December 15, 2011, starting at 7 pm, in the Community Room of the Downtown Library, 1044 Middlefield Road. The community is invited to join staff from Redwood City, Recology (the collection company), and the South Bayside Waste Management Authority (SBWMA) for this update on garbage and recycling services (including a proposed new Household Hazardous Waste collection service), and the latest information on the proposed 2012 rate increase. SBWMA is the joint powers authority representing the various cities and agencies that contract with Recology. The required public hearing on the proposed increase is scheduled for January 9, 2012, at 7 pm at City Hall.
The rate increase is due to higher costs and lower revenues than originally anticipated, during Recology’s first year of service and projected for service to be provided in 2012. Additionally, a new service is being considered – Household Hazardous Waste curbside collection – which contributes a small percentage to the proposed increase. The rates charged to customers must reflect Recology’s actual cost of providing service, and take into account the contractually-agreed upon revenues – in other words, Recology is guaranteed a specified amount of revenue, which was negotiated as part of the franchise agreement. This type of arrangement is typical in the garbage/recycling collection industry.
Other cities are also considering rate increases. Due to Redwood City’s ongoing deliberate, conservative fiscal management, we’ve been able to keep the proposed increase to a moderate level, and avoid the more significant increases being proposed by some cities.
If the proposed rates are approved by the City Council at the public hearing on January 9, the rate increase would be effective the following day, January 10, 2012. Notices of the proposed increase have been sent to all garbage/recycling service customers in Redwood City. Customers have the opportunity to protest the proposed rate increase in advance of the public hearing by writing to the City. Details of the protest procedure were included in the mailing, and are also available online, along with more information on the proposed rates, at www.redwoodcity.org/garbagerates .
Each year an analysis is done of the expenses and revenues from the prior year, along with projected expenses and revenues for the following year. A recommendation is made by the SBWMA concerning the following year’s rates, which is then considered by the City Council. The proposed 2012 rate increase is based on a financial evaluation of 2011 actual operating costs and revenues, and projected operating costs and revenues for 2012. Based on that analysis, the proposed 7.81% rate increase is comprised of these elements:
In the interest of keeping community members fully informed, it’s important to note that in spring of 2012 the City will need to propose increases in water and sewer rates, due to continually escalating costs in those services. The City understands that these increases are a challenge for many residents, and continues to work to keep necessary increases at a moderate level.
Concluding a rigorous, exhaustive search and evaluation process, Redwood City has appointed a new police chief. Meynard “J.R.” Gamez, currently a Captain with the San Jose Police Department, will begin work as Redwood City’s new Police Chief on December 2, 2011. His annual salary will be $186,984.
Mr. Gamez has been with the San Jose Police Department for over 25 years, where he rose through the ranks from patrol officer to Captain. During his tenure there, he gained the extensive professional experience, knowledge, skill and commitment to community that made him the top candidate to oversee the Redwood City Police Department.
“J.R.’s track record is exemplary, across the entire range of key attributes that contribute to a dedicated, creative, and successful leader,” said Bob Bell, City Manager of Redwood City. “We had a number of truly excellent candidates for this position and it was a very difficult decision. J.R.’s focus on creating partnerships, bridge-building, and community involvement, as well as his vast experience in San Jose, showed us that he’s the right choice for our community.”
Throughout his career in law enforcement, Mr. Gamez has consistently exhibited the highest professional standards, and has achieved an outstanding reputation for innovation, creative problem-solving, and mentoring. Among the accomplishments of which he is most proud, Mr. Gamez points to his leadership in Community Policing and Safe Neighborhoods initiatives, his groundbreaking work in gang suppression and rebuilding programs, mentoring youth with the Hispanic Development Corporation’s Youth Leadership Conference and in various elementary school programs, and his role as a divisional co-chair of the Mayor’s Gang Prevention Task Force. “This opportunity to lead the forward-thinking, talented, professional staff of the Redwood City Police Department is unparalleled, and I’m very excited about becoming part of this very special city” said Mr. Gamez. “I’m a big believer in building long-term, trusting partnerships that facilitate cooperation and directly address quality-of -life issues, and I know this belief is shared throughout the Redwood City community. The men and women of the Redwood City Police Department have an exceptional reputation as a professional and dedicated organization, and it’s a privilege to serve on the same team. The future looks very bright here, and I’m proud to have the opportunity to contribute.”
The Redwood City Police Chief position has been filled on an interim basis internally since the retirement of former chief Louis Cobarruviaz in January of this year.
First I want to thank the following Shores residents for organizing another great November event on Disaster Preparedness:
* Ramona Ambrozic
* Shannon Guzzeta
* Mike Mancusi
Hopefully we can hold this event at least once each year. Given the overwhelming response, maybe more often?
I do want to reinforce one more time the need for you and your family to be personally prepared. We live on an island that is physically separated from our neighbors by water on three sides and a multi-lane freeway on the fourth. In a large disaster, we will be on our own!
I don’t think we can begin to understand the total disruption that a truly large seismic event would bring. You MUST assume that:
All Shores residents should plan for such a disaster as though we will be without the most basic services for some period of time, possibly a week or more. Again, BE PREPARED!
Think about what skills or equipment you have that might be of use to your neighbors in an emergency.
Be prepared to find and go to the local emergency response center. (This may not be a shelter, just a coordination center.) That spot will probably be next to the fire station on Redwood Shores Pky, or it might be one of our schools, the library, or one of the commercial buildings in the Shores. It will depend on what location best survived. Listen to AM radio for the exact location.
The roadway median signs on Marine Pky and Redwood Shores Pky just before you reach Bridge Pky belong to your community association. RSCA has maintained and posted the messages on these signs for over 30 years.
Almost every resident of the Shores passes RSCA’s roadway median signs on the way home, and we use these signs as one more way to keep you informed (and sometimes reminded) about events and issues important to Shores residents.
Save the date for RSCA’s annual meeting, which will be held at the Redwood Shores Branch Library the evening of Wednesday, February 8, 2012. Come to hear from our City and school officials on issues that matter to the Shores. Look for more details in The PILOT in January.
We have been working closely with federal and state wildlife officials for almost six months now to find out what we can and can not do to help mitigate the problem of the increasing amount of goose feces left in our parks and on our walkways. We do appreciate the many notes & emails of support received from both residents and businesses in the Shores. But we also respect and appreciate that this is a diverse community with varying opinions about both “the problem” and any proposed solutions.
With over 5,400 residents and 700 business in the Shores, we use our email list to keep you informed about our community events during the year. If you would like to be on our email list, simply click on the “Join Our Email List” button in the Feedback section of RSCA.org to sign up.
Our Privacy Policy:
Your information is for use only by Redwood Shores Community Association in contacting you. We do not share, sell, or provide our contact list to any other person or organization.
— Harris Rogers, RSCA President
Below is this month’s issue of The Pilot, published in it’s entirety on the RSCA website. To get a complete view of this month’s issue that is easy to read on your screen, please choose the “Fullscreen” option at the top of the viewer — from there, you can click on the left or right of each page to thumb through the various pages.
All of the software needed to view this web-based version of The Pilot should be linked below if it is not already installed on your web browser, and you can also download or print the PDF document for use away from the computer. If you are having trouble viewing this document on your cellphone, tablet or computer, please contact the RSCA website team.
Dress up your home and yard with lights, Santa, reindeer, snowmen and win prizes! Winning homes will be featured in The Pilot and on the web.
If you want to be sure our judges see your lighted home, email RSCA when your lights are up and give us your street address and name.
Judging ends on Thursday, December 15th (7PM), so if your house is lighting up your neighborhood, be sure to let us know before the time limit has passed.
Good luck!
On Sunday, December 11, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM at the Redwood Shores Library, Santa will make a stop to greet the kids and hear their requests!
Bring your cameras to capture magical moments of your children on Santa’s lap while sharing their requests. Mingle with your neighbors, enjoy cookies and candy canes, hum along to the Christmas Carols played on the piano, and enjoy listening to readings from a new children’s book — Flying Poodles: A Christmas Story — by the author, Karen Morss.
Don’t be late! The line to see Santa can be long…
As we draw closer to the holidays, we are continuing to see an increase in day time residential burglaries throughout our beautiful city. As our investigations unit continues to actively investigate each and every case, we’re continuing to seeing that the majority of these burglaries are occurring during the day when people are typically at work, as the suspect(s) enter unsecured rear yards, and enter un-occupied homes via an unlocked sliding glass, garage door, unlocked, or open windows. These suspects are simply looking for easy access to your homes. They typically take laptops, cash that’s been left out, iPods/iPads, and jewelry that they can quickly sell to a pawn shop for cash.
The pattern of these suspect(s) is that they usually knock at the front door to see if your home. When they get no response at the door, they move to the backyard and start checking for unlocked doors, removing screens, and checking for unsecured windows. If by chance you answer the door and ask what they want, the suspect(s) will come up with an excuse for being at your door, leave you scratching your head, and simply move on to the next quiet house. These burglars rarely travel alone and typically have at least one other person with them as the “look-out,” somewhere on the sidewalk, or riding around on a bicycle in the street. Of the more than a dozen arrests that our patrol staff and detectives have made in the past few months, the age range of the suspects has been 15 to 21-years-old.
You and your neighbors are the eyes and ears for the police department. Be vigilant of this behavior and don’t hesitate to call 911 for anything you believe to be suspicious activity in your neighborhood. Some of our recent arrests of these burglars have occurred because of a great neighbor who was observant and called in what they believed to be suspicious activity or in fact a burglary in progress. Our department is actively working on solving these crimes as we send undercover units out on a regular basis to patrol your neighborhoods and looking for subjects casing your neighborhoods.
Please share this information with your neighbors and help us in reducing these very intrusive crimes. Please lock your gates to your backyards and be sure to lock all doors and windows. If its with in your budget, burglar alarms are a very good deterrent. You can go to our website http://www.redwoodcity.org/police/ to see other great prevention tips and hotlines for reporting graffiti, crime tips, or parking enforcement. You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter for facts and helpful resources to help keep your neighborhoods safe and beautiful.
— Ken Faljean
— Community Policing
— Redwood City Police Department
Inside the November issue of The Pilot you will find a Disaster Signal Card — green on one side and red on the other. KEEP THIS CARD WHERE YOU CAN GET TO IT EASILY!
Everyone who lives in Redwood Shores knows that the possibility of a major disaster is real. Although there are several possible causes of a future disaster, the greatest threat is from an earthquake. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake was a once in a hundred year quake which means that we are now overdue for another major quake. Although there is nothing we can do to prevent an earthquake, you CAN prepare your home and family for one. To help us prepare for such a disaster, the Redwood Shores Community Association (RSCA) has decided to is devoting this issue of our monthly The PILOT to Disaster Preparedness.
In The Pilot this month, you will find information on:
In addition to these informative articles dealing with preparedness, RSCA is providing a new Disaster Signal Card which will allow residents to signal for help when landline telephone, cell phone and online communications are not working. This tool for Redwood Shores will improve the ability of first responders such as fire and police departments as well as our Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) to quickly identify homes in need of help.
Redwood Shores Disaster Signal Card
Look for this card in your November 2011 issue of The Pilot. If you did not receive your card, please email
Please remove the Signal Card from the magazine and read the instructions for its use. On Saturday, November 12th and Sunday, November 13th, Redwood Shores CERT will hold a Disaster Signal Card drill. Residents are asked to ‘Show Your Cards’ (GREEN side ony!) that day so they can be seen from the street. On that day CERT teams will practice surveying our neighborhoods. We urge all residents to cooperate with this local disaster drill.
Since this month’s issue of The Pilot is devoted to disaster preparedness, it is only fitting I address the topic of animals and disasters. As humans, we’ve been told to have enough food, water, flashlights, battery powered radios and the like. But, for pet owners, it is also imperative you have a plan in place for your animals!
Let me take you back to a little more than 22 years ago — October 17, 1989 — the day Loma Prieta struck. In 1989 I was living in San Francisco. I arrived home to find some broken glass, some plaster that had fallen, and no electricity. My damages were minimal compared to what other people suffered that day.
As any good pet owner did, I promptly put my cat in his carrier as I did not want him stepping in the broken glass. Within two hours my nice, docile cat managed to chew his way out of his carrier (yes, it was a corrugated-type carrier), and my only working flashlight died on me. (Luckily, approximately 4 hours later we had our electricity back on.)
The Loma Prieta quake only served to illustrate how unprepared I was, especially when it came to the welfare of my beloved animal.
So, here is a list of some of the things you should have in place before you need them:
If you focus on completing one item at a time your task will not seem so overwhelming. And in no time you will be well-prepared for your animal.
–Jan Brown
Jan is the Owner of Jan’s Pet Sitting and is a Pet Tech Pet First Aid Instructor.