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| City Manager's Weekly Report for the Week Ending October 26th, 2012 October 26, 2012 |
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Mayor and Councilmembers: This is the weekly report for the week ending October 26th, 2012.
October’s fifth Tuesday provides another week’s hiatus from the City Council meeting. Also, please note that there will not be a City Council meeting on Election Day, Tuesday, November 6th. As a result, the next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 13th.
As you may recall, since March 2012, the City of Richmond has been in the process of planning to implement the Cities of Service® program model. Cities of Service® seeks to meet priority needs through impact volunteering: a volunteer strategy that targets a community’s priority needs, uses best practices, and sets clear outcomes for measurable results. Richmond’s participation in this national program is funded locally by a $200,000 grant from the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, and the effort is being managed by Rochelle Monk, who is now designated as the Community Service Officer. Cities of Service recently announced that it has awarded the City of Richmond a $25,000 grant, provided by Bloomberg Philanthropies, to expand a service initiative designed to address the high school achievement gap. Richmond is one of 18 U.S. cities to be awarded a grant to support cities who are harnessing the power of volunteers in a strategic way to address priority problems in their communities. Richmond’s $25,000 grant from Cities of Service will go towards recruiting and training 130 community volunteers to serve as writing coaches at Richmond High School. Coaches will work one-on-one with 120 to 150 students to develop students’ writing and critical thinking skills. The City of Richmond has teamed with Community Alliance for Learning to implement this education initiative. The program also recently received news that Youth Service America has selected the City of Richmond to serve as a State Farm Insurance Lead Agency, organizing Richmond’s youth to lead projects that improve their communities. As a State Farm Insurance Lead Agency, Richmond will receive a $2,000 grant, ongoing training, and expert consulting to develop high-visibility, youth-led community service projects in the lead-up to Global Youth Service Day, April 26-28, 2013. Richmond is one of 100 recipients of the State Farm Lead Agency grant, which was available to organizations in the United States and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Ontario and New Brunswick. For additional information regarding these initiatives, please contact Rochelle Monk at (510) 620-6511.
With the headline, “RichmondBUILDs Hope and Community through Training and Sustainable Jobs,” EPA Region 9 Brownfields recently touted Richmond’s local employment and training program as a “success story” in one of their recent publications. As noted in the EPA article, one of RichmondBUILD’s greatest achievements is its high graduation rate. Over 130 students have enrolled in the program since 2007 with 122 of those graduating. The program has an 80 percent job placement rate, with program students able to earn between $12–$36 per hour working as hazardous waste removal workers, emergency response team workers, construction laborers, crime scene cleanup workers, and quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) technicians, among others. To qualify for the program, prospective students need to be Richmond residents, 18 years or older, have a right to work status, and be able to pass basic math, reading and fitness tests. RichmondBUILD takes a multifaceted approach in assisting students in job placement including: local hire ordinance, union partnerships, leveraging related cleanup efforts/programs, staffing agencies, and direct placement. There is a one year follow-up with students who are placed in jobs. Students who have graduated the program have worked on jobs as diverse as: helping clean up the oil spill in the Gulf; removing hazardous materials from military fleets which are to be retired and dry docked in the Bay Area; and helping recycle electronics in California. Graduates have also worked on multiple EPA Brownfields and Superfund sites in California, including American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) grant recipient Mira Flores and the EPA Superfund site Naval Air Station Moffett Field. RichmondBUILD partners with the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Labor, Building Trades Council, The San Francisco Foundation, Chevron, PG&E, and others in this program.
Health in All Policies (HiAP) recognizes that the causes of health disparities and the resulting health inequities are the consequence of a variety of social factors that impact individuals and communities "upstream," beyond the scope of traditional health services. This concept acknowledges that all city departments impact health, even those that we do not traditionally consider as conducting health-related work. The City Richmond’s Health in All Policies Strategy is a collaborative approach with the goal of improving health equity by addressing the social determinants of health and integrating health into the decision making processes across all departments of the City. Those interested in this Health in All Policies effort can learn more about this strategy and provide feedback at an informational meeting on November 8th and at a workshop on November 29th, both from 6:00 - 7:30 PM in the City Council Chambers. Find out more about Health in All Policies at www.richmondhealth.org.
As part of the Health in All Policies strategy (described above), this past Wednesday, October 24th, the City of Richmond hosted the seventh meeting of the Richmond Health Equity Partnership, which is a partnership between the City of Richmond, Contra Costa Health Services, West Contra Costa Unified School District, and UC Berkeley to advance health and health equity. The Richmond Health Equity Partnership is funded, in part, by a grant from The California Endowment. At this most recent meeting, UC Berkeley Associate Professor Jason Corburn provided a presentation on the Health in All Policies (HiAP) strategy that aims to institutionalize health and health equity in Richmond. Promising strategies include integrating health equity in the City’s budget and attaching health equity goals to existing initiatives and operations. Find out more about the Richmond Health Equity Partnership on the city’s website.
Richmond’s Environmental and Health Initiatives Team hosted an olive tree giveaway on Friday (today), October 26th. 1,000 trees were given away at the Civic Center Farmers’ Market, recreation centers, and Richmond schools. Thank you to Self-Sustaining Communities and McEvoy Ranch for generous donations and Cities of Service volunteers.
The Environmental Initiatives Team recently completed a LED lighting upgrade for Nicholl Park walkways and tennis courts. The Nicholl Park lighting upgrade was the 35th City facility to receive energy efficiency lighting upgrades through the Smart Lights program. The Environmental Initiatives Team had previously completed lighting upgrades at the Recreation Complex and the Parks Yard. With the completion of Nicholl Park, the Environmental Initiatives Team has completed lighting upgrades on the entire City block. The project was a multi-department collaborative effort with the Parks Division assisting with trenching and troubleshooting power outages at several poles. The project received an upfront energy efficiency rebate of $13,522 dollars and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7 tons annually. The lighting upgrade is expected to reduce the City’s annual utility bills by $3,921 and achieved a wattage reduction of eighty percent. The project is a perfect example of how the City is able to achieve better public safety, improve walkability, enhance recreation spaces, and reduce operating costs through energy efficiency initiatives. Sometimes, pictures are, in fact, worth a thousand words: Before – Pathway Lighting After – Pathway Lighting
Before – Skate Park After – Skate Park
Before – Entrance Path After – Entrance Path
The Environmental Initiatives Team, Department of Employment and Training and non-profit Rising Sun Energy Services completed its 5th successful year of offering residents free energy services through the California Youth Energy Services (CYES) program. The CYES program hires and trains local youth to provide free in-home energy education and hardware installation to homeowners and renters. The CYES program demonstrated high success in the summer of 2012 in Richmond by providing employment and training to nine youth, ages 15-22 and servicing 241 Richmond households with energy saving hardware and information. CYES Energy Specialists installed the following materials in City of Richmond homes at no cost:
Of the Richmond households CYES served in 2012:
The installation of these measures resulted in an annual reduction of 60,816 kWh, 1,599 therms, and 308 gallons of water per minute, thereby reducing 50 metric tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere. This is equivalent to one of the following CO2 greenhouse gas emission reductions:
The City of Richmond invites members of the public to view the draft of the City’s ADA Transition Plan and offer comments. The Plan can be accessed on the City Manager’s web page at http://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/index.aspx?nid=2526 .
On Saturday, October 20th, the City of Richmond Office of Emergency Services, the Richmond Fire Department, the El Cerrito Fire Department, and the San Pablo Police Department held their bi-annual CERT drill at the Richmond Fire Training Center. Over 150 CERT students participated in this exercise which is the culmination of twenty hours of training received over the past two months. The training included instruction on:
For the drill, students were divided into various teams and with assistance from 15 different CERT instructors, they worked through a full day of rescue scenarios. Also participating in this year’s drill was the nursing staff from the Greenridge Nursing Home in Richmond and the Richmond Youth Academy cadets. At the conclusion of the drill, all students received a certificate qualifying them to form emergency response teams in their neighborhoods. These teams will help residents become more self-sufficient and increase survivability during a disaster. The feedback from the participants was very positive as they were all anxious to begin their disaster preparedness work.
The City of Richmond 2012 Employees Charitable Giving Campaign is underway. The annual campaign kick-off was held on Thursday, October 25th in the lobby of the Auditorium. The event was well attended by City staff as well as local charitable federations and Richmond non-profit organizations. The goal of the campaign is for every employee to make a contribution - no matter the size. Even a one-time contribution of one dollar will go a long way towards making someone else’s life more comfortable. Last year City employees raised $44,809, an increase of $11,553 over the previous year. This year’s campaign will run from November 1st through November 30th, with a goal to raise $45,000. Please contact Theresa Austin, Campaign Coordinator, for additional information at (510) 620-6891.
On Saturday, November 3rd from 9:00 AM to 3:30 PM, those interested will have the opportunity to join a day of learning and dialogue for adult allies to create supportive schools for LGBTQ youth in Contra Costa, hosted by Contra Costa Health Services and the Contra Costa LGBTQ Youth Advocacy Collaborative. Register at tinyurl.com/cclgbtyouth. The event will be held at 7230 Fairmont Ave in El Cerrito. Topics Include: • Welcoming Schools: strategies for more welcoming elementary schools
Shields-Reid The Shields-Reid Community Center Fitness Center improves! New flooring, wall decorations, and building location have made the Fitness Center more appealing. Natural light along with additional space allows users to be more comfortable while working out. Participation has significantly increased due to the partnership with the Weigh of Life Program through the Healthy Eating, Active Living Initiatives. The Fitness Center is currently open Monday through Friday from 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM.
Senior Center Sponsorship The Richmond Senior Center Trust (Trust) officially kicked off their sponsorship campaign on October 12th. The Trust sent invitations to local businesses to contribute a gift or become a sponsor and within one week the Trust received a check from one business for $150! The funds directly support the Trust which enhances Richmond senior activities and events. The Trust supplements class fees, offering a wider variety of classes and events seniors can choose from, and primarily supports the consistent growth of the Black History Celebration and Chinese New Year. Donations of all amounts are much appreciated by Richmond seniors. To learn more about becoming a sponsor or contributing a gift, contact Debbie Hernandez at 510-307-8086 or visit the City’s Recreation webpage at http://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/index.aspx?nid=2653. Help enhance and bring some joy to a Richmond senior because a small donation will give a senior something to look forward and help them maintain a healthy lifestyle! Disabled Persons Recreation Center (DPRC) The participants in the Adult Morning Program and Therapeutic Interactive Recreation Program are making the final touches to the decorations for the Halloween dance on Friday, October 26th. Through the Technical Learning Class, participants used iPads to select and download videos and music that will be shown during the dance. The projection TV screen will be the focal point of the graveyard scene.
Tennis Programs The first ever Richmond/Nicholl USTA (US Tennis Association) Men's Team won its first USTA match at Nicholl Park last Saturday. This event consisted of three doubles matches, and the Nicholl Team prevailed 2-1. The Nicholl Team has 14 enthusiastic players, most of whom are playing together for the first time. Next weekend, this team will be playing a match against the Claremont Team at Nicholl on Saturday at 1:00 PM, and then against one of the teams from Oakland at Laney College on Sunday. This season will run through mid-December and then start up again in March. The Recreation Department Adult Tennis Instruction class has attracted a number of women attendees and we hope a women's team will be launched in the spring.
Facilities Maintenance Division: The Carpenters replaced locksets at the Starlight building and have been working on various improvements at Fire Station #67. The Painters are in the process of painting the interior of Fire Station #67. The Electricians repaired the pedestrian walk lights at the Senior Center, repaired damaged fixtures at Cheese Park, and rectified various rain related failures throughout the City. Staff also attended a two-day training on traffic controllers. Parks and Landscaping Division: During the State Court Park Arbor Day tree planting event on Saturday, October 20th, there were 28 redwood trees planted.
State Court Park Tree Planting Event Crews performed weed abatement along the Richmond Parkway from Ohio Avenue to Hensley Street, landscaped along Cutting and Carlson Boulevards, poured a concrete bridge deck for the new Booker T. Anderson Park pedestrian bridge, and continued landscape maintenance in Hilltop. The Tree Crew trimmed and pruned trees on 28th Street, Groom Drive, and Esmond Avenue. Streets Division: Pavement Maintenance crews worked on the outstanding potholes list due to weather conditions. Traffic Signs and Lines crews repainted red curbs and crosswalks on Macdonald Avenue, installed multiple street sweeping signs, repaired a sign knockdown, installed thermoplastic stop messages, and fabricated signs. Street Sweeping, on weather permitting days, continued the commercial and residential routes for the fourth Monday through Friday of the month in the Santa Fe, Coronado, Point Richmond, Marina Bay, Metro Richmore Village, Pullman, Cortez/Stege, Park Plaza, Laurel Park, City Center, Richmond Annex, Parkview, Panhandle Annex, and Eastshore Neighborhood Council areas.
********************************************* 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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