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| City Manager's Weekly Report for the Two Weeks Ending March 2nd, 2012 March 15, 2012 |
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Mayor and Councilmembers: This is the weekly report for the two weeks ending March 2nd, 2012.
The next City Council meeting will be on Tuesday, March 6th, beginning with the regular agenda at 6:30 PM. There are no Closed Session items this week.
The State currently has a “No Fishing” advisory for the Lauritzen Channel: http://oehha.ca.gov/fish/nor_cal/pdf/SFBayAdvisory21May2011.pdf. To find out more about the United Heckathorn Superfund Site, go to: www.epa.gov/region09/UnitedHeckathorn
The Richmond Recovery Rebates (R3) program is continuing to provide generous rebates to Richmond residents for home assessments, energy upgrades and solar installations. The R3 provides residents the opportunity to improve the comfort and health of their homes while reducing their utility bills and greenhouse gas emissions. Thus far, 75 homes have reserved over 40% of the available R3 rebates and the City has issued over $40,000 to complete 23 Richmond projects. The projects include workforce development requirements that ensure quality jobs are created for Richmond residents as part of the program. Among these projects, the City, working with the nonprofit Grid Alternatives, has reserved funds to provide over 40 income qualifying Richmond households with a new solar system free of charge. This component of the program has currently reached full capacity, but residents in any income bracket are welcomed to apply for generous rebates that will significantly reduce the costs for energy efficiency measures and solar installations. The City is encouraging all residents to apply soon for their chance to improve their homes, save money, and help the environment while funds are still available. Reservations are issued on a first come, first serve basis and the application period will close as soon as funds are expended. If you have any questions, please contact Adam Lenz at adam_lenz@ci.richmond.ca.us and (510) 620–5537 or Mike Uberti at mike_uberti@ci.richmond.ca.us and (510) 620-5502. For more information regarding R3 energy upgrade and solar rebates, please visit: www.richmondenvironment.org
On Tuesday, March 13th, the City of Richmond and Marin Energy Authority will host a second community meeting to provide an overview of the Marin Clean Energy, Community Choice Aggregation program and obtain input for the City’s evaluation of participating in the Joint Powers Authority. The meeting will take place in the City Council Chambers at 440 Civic Center Plaza on Tuesday, March 13th, from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM (light refreshments will be available served at 6:00 PM). For our planning purposed, please RSVP at: www.richmondcca.eventbrite.com. Community Choice Aggregation is a system that allows local governments to procure electric energy for residents and businesses. This system would, in turn, provide customers with a choice of energy purchase options, including remaining with PG&E or selecting other “green” energy sources. The city is considering an option to join the Marin Energy Authority and participate in Marin Clean Energy, which is currently the only Community Choice Aggregation program in California. Marin Clean Energy provides 50% renewable energy, over 30% more than PG&E currently provides. For additional information regarding Community Choice Aggregation, including staff reports and past presentations, please visit: www.richmondenvironment.org.
Black History: The Recreation Department hosted its annual Black History Celebration at the Richmond Memorial on Saturday, February 25th. The sold-out event had over 300 participants enjoying dinner, performances, a silent auction and a presentation of honored guests. The National Guard and the Richmond Police Explorers honored 9 World War and 2 Korean War veterans with a ceremony presenting the colors. The Explorers also escorted seniors and the honorees to the main floor. Two seniors involved in the community and 9 youth from the African-American Tennis Outreach program were also honored. Speaker Nat Bates discussed the history of migration in Richmond and Savannah Bellos spoke about her civil rights quilt. Several inventions by African-Americans were displayed and the silent auction featured clothing from several African countries. Zumba The Zumba program is growing in popularity. In addition to the five classes held each week at the Richmond Recreation Complex, the program has been expanded to the Richmond Senior Center and the Annex Senior Center. Aqua Zumba is now also being offered on Friday and Saturday mornings at the Plunge. Education Summit The Nevin Center, in collaboration with Girls Inc. Richmond, took 16 Latina and African American girls to the California State University East Bay annual “Education Summit for African American and Latino Youth: Pathways to College Access, Success and Graduation” on Saturday, February 25th. The Education Summit is designed to engage and motivate youth, and their families, from traditionally underserved communities, to pursue and live the dream of obtaining a college education. Some of the topics covered at the Summit were student life experience on campus, college admissions, financial aid, scholarships and community support programs. Snow Trip The Recreation Department escorted 42 youth from Richmond to Boreal Ski Resort for a day of tubing and playing in the snow. Everyone was excited to see the snow, some for their very first time. Community Access Ticket Service For a low annual fee, the Recreation Department subscribes to the Community Access Ticket Service (CATS), an agency that provides tickets to events and programs for underserved communities. On Thursday, March 1st, with 18 tickets provided by the CATS program, the Shields Reid Community Center escorted community youth and their families to Disney on Ice, Toy Story 3. On February 17th, Therapeutic Interactive Recreation Program participants of the Disabled People’s Recreation Center visited the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art with tickets made available through CATS.
The carpenters repaired the pocket doors in Fire Station 64 and the gate at Nevin Community Center; installed ergonomic equipment in the Employment and Training Department and a new bookcase in the Library’s Bookmobile. The painters restained the paneling section of the Main Library; and painted the west exterior and the lower gymnasium walls of the Recreation complex. The stationary engineers repaired flush valves in Fire Station 67, the kitchen drain in Fire Station 68, the kitchen faucet in the Fire Training Center, and assisted with the repair of the drain and water supply in the Nichol Park Snack Shack. The electricians repaired apparatus bay lights at Fire Station 66 and parking light fixtures at Fire Stations 64, 66, 67, and 68; wire theft in Country Club Vista on Wood Glen, Tanglewood, and Park Ridge; both gates at the Police station; and the lights in the Barrett underpass; inspected various intersection traffic control loops; and, relamped City Hall. The Utility Section is 75% complete with buffing the floors in City Hall; provided pest control in the Fire Training Center; continues to address safety issues in the Parks Field yard and the Point Richmond Community Center; and, provided basic janitorial services. Parks and Landscaping Division: Parks’ crews continued work on Marina Bay Trail from Shimada to Vincent Parks; prepped baseball fields; installed irrigation improvements to Country Club Vista Park turf; and, continued vegetation management along Richmond Parkway. The Tree Crew completed tasks at 254 South 4th Street, 1808 Roosevelt Avenue, 848 – 15th Street and 451 – 6th Street. Streets Division: Inclement weather prevented the Pavement Maintenance Crew from performing the next scheduled area on the paving schedule. Instead miscellaneous paving jobs were performed in Nichol Park over plumbing pipes, the concrete slab at Parchester Community Center, over a failed area on Belvedere Street in Point Richmond, and 44th Street from Roosevelt Avenue to the north end of the cul-de-sac; more grinding on 44th Street just past Roosevelt Avenue; cleaned grindings from Portola Avenue; fixed metal manhole that were missing or loose; continued Class A pothole patching; and storm drain patrol, as needed.
Following the paving crew on 23rd Street between Ohio Avenue and Cutting Boulevard, the Traffic Signs and Lines section completed the installation of thermo-plastic left arrows, slow school crossing, and keep clear pavement messages; repainted all red zones; fabricated two sets of 25 mph hour pavement messages; repainted the crosswalks on 23rd Street at Maine Avenue; installed thermo-plastic stop messages and bars on 42nd Street between Roosevelt and Wilson Avenues; and, continued general maintenance and repair of street signs and pavement marking in various locations. * * * * * Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments about these or any other items of interest to you. Have a great week! You can sign up to receive the City Manager’s weekly report and other information from the City of Richmond by visiting: www.ci.richmond.ca.us/list.aspx Bill Lindsay
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