 
Mayor and Members of the City Council:
This is the report for the week ending June 23, 2017.
The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, June 27th, beginning with Closed Session at 5:30 PM, followed by the regular meeting at 6:30 PM. The agenda may be found by clicking this link: Richmond City Council Agenda Packet.
- Fiscal Year 2017-18 Operating and Capital Improvement Budget
Over the last several fiscal years, it has been a challenge to prepare balanced budgets while still trying to meet the growing needs of the community. Average annual growth in the City’s top three revenue sources has averaged less than 1.5% per year during the past nine years – a level well below inflation. It was only in fiscal year 2016-17 that the City’s property taxes finally exceeded pre-recession levels that existed eight years earlier. These revenue struggles were against the backdrop of significantly higher costs, especially pension-related costs, and an aging infrastructure. Achieving budget balances and favorable operating results during the past three fiscal years has created difficult policy choices for the City Council, but these difficult choices were successfully made.
While fiscal year 2017-18 was, in many ways, no less difficult in achieving financial goals, Finance Department staff was able to work closely with the various City departments to craft a budget that I believe offers a stable baseline for the coming years. At the June 20th Richmond City Council meeting, City staff presented to the City Council a balanced budget (a whopping $442 surplus!) that is being recommended for adoption at this coming Tuesday’s June 27th City Council meeting.
I would like to acknowledge in this report the efforts of Finance Director Belinda Warner, Budget Administrator Markisha Guillory, members of their budget team, and staff members in the various departments that are charged with managing the money. They have worked hard to prepare collectively a financial plan that sets the City on a strong financial course.
- Community Services Department Secures Over $350,000 in Grants During the Month of June
June is turning out to be a great month for the Community Services Department to receive grants. This past month, the department was awarded six grants to support programs, activities, and capital improvement projects.
Last week, we received word that the Community Services Department was the recipient of two state grant awards from the California Department of Parks and Recreation for outdoor basketball courts. The John F. Kennedy Park Basketball Court proposal received $182,740, and the Unity Park Basketball Court proposal was awarded $167,650. The State Department of Parks and Recreation received 166 competitive grant proposals requesting over $16 million in funding; Richmond was one of only 25 grant recipients statewide. Moreover, Richmond was the only community in the state to receive two grant awards.
The Community Service Department’s Achieve Summer Camp received two $1,000 grants from the Richmond Community Foundation’s Summer Mini-Grants Program to engage youth in meaningful activities during the summer. The Shields-Reid Community Center will use its funds to install a bike and pump repair station near the center to teach kids bike repair techniques. Staff and participants of the summer camp program at the Parchester Community Center will conduct a community clean up.
The Richmond Community Foundation (RCF) also awarded two $1,000 grants to support the John F. Kennedy Park Summer Neighborhood Camp. In conjunction with the West Contra Costa Unified School District’s summer lunch program, RCF’s Summer Reading Celebration Grant will provide new books and reading circles to children between the ages of 0-8 and their families. Funding from the Richmond Community Foundation’s Summer Mini-Grants Program will also support the neighborhood camp’s water safety program for kids at the Richmond Swim Center.
We appreciate the generosity of our grant donors, and the efforts by City staff members that were involved in preparing and submitting applications for these grant programs.
Join us for the annual 3rd of July Fireworks show! This will be a free, family-friendly event featuring live music by the Oakland Symphony, food, and spectacular fireworks across the San Francisco skyline! Please call (510) 620-7693 for more information.
 
- The 2017 Richmond Community Survey is Available Online!
One of the best ways to improve Richmond’s services is to ask the people that live here what they think. With this in mind, the City of Richmond is pleased to announce that all Richmond residents are now invited to participatein the 2017 Community Survey online!
Richmond residents not randomly selected to participate in the survey now have an opportunity to have their opinions heard. The community-wide version of the survey is now available online at http://bit.ly/richmondca2017 in Spanish and English. The deadline to participate in the online opt-in survey is Monday, July 3, 2017.
If you were selected to participate in the written survey, please return the completed survey as soon as possible.
Your input can help make the City of Richmond a better place to live, work, and play. Feel free to contact the City Manager’s Office with your questions at 510-620-6512.
- Notice of Development Opportunity – Macdonald Avenue Corridor Properties
All interested developers are encouraged to review the RFQ/P – highlighting four Opportunity Sites – intended to serve as major activity centers that will facilitate the economic and cultural heart of the City, and connection to the greater Bay Area.
Each site is within walking distance of the Richmond Multi-Modal Transit Station – with access to BART, Amtrak, and AC Transit – as well as assets including the Kaiser Richmond Medical Center and the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts.
The Richmond City Manager’s Office is accepting first-round development proposals until July 7th, 2017 at 12:00 PM (PST). A copy of the Request for Qualifications and Proposals is accessible at www.ci.richmond.ca.us/opportunitysites. All attachments and questions are available on the website.
Please contact Mike Uberti at mike_uberti@ci.richmond.ca.us or (510) 620-6512 for more information.
- Blood Drive Donors Needed
On Tuesday, June 27th, from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, join the Community Services Department as we roll up our sleeves and help save lives! We are proudly partnering with the American Red Cross to host a blood drive.
Do you know that each pint of blood we collect can help save up to three lives? Pay it forward and make an impact on people in our community and across the country. We are very excited about the drive and I hope you are too!
The American Red Cross bus will be parked along the side of the Plunge located at 1 Garrard Boulevard in Richmond. Use this link to get to the website to sign up for an appointment. Use the Sponsor Code RICHMOND to find our drive and make your appointment. Anyone who donates at our drive will receive one FREE SWIM and will be eligible for discount tickets for Great America.
For more information, please contact Paula Cooper-Tipton at 510-620-6831
I have listed below some of the topics for meetings that I attended during the past week in the hope that it provides an idea of the varied issues with which our organization deals routinely.
Meetings of note this past week included:
- Met, together with Planning Director Richard Mitchell and Project Manager Lina Velasco, with staff members from the State Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), and representatives from Zeneca and UC Berkeley, to discuss the status of soils remediation planning at the Zeneca site along Richmond’s south shoreline;
- Met, together with Finance Director Belinda Warner and Richmond Housing Authority (RHA) consultant Tia Ingram, with financial auditors from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to discuss RHA financial operations;
- Attended a tour of the Blue Apron facility in Richmond, along with Mayor Butt, Employment and Training Director Sal Vaca, and members of their respective staffs;
- Attended the monthly Council of Industries luncheon, at which economists from Mechanics Bank spoke about the national economy;
- Attended the monthly meeting of the Rent Board;
- Made a presentation to Standard & Poor’s (S&P Global Ratings), along with Finance Director Belinda Warner, Water Resources Recovery Director Ryan Smith, Senior Assistant City Attorney Everett Jenkins, and members of the City’s bond finance team, regarding the proposed wastewater infrastructure bond financing;
- Attended the Richmond Promise Board of Directors meeting;
- Attended the Healthy Richmond Steering Committee, at which one of the agenda items included a presentation by City Council staff member Trina Jackson concerning Richmond’s participation in the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) project.
These meetings were in addition to attending the regular management staff meeting, agenda planning, reviewing staff reports to the City Council, doing department head “check-ins,” having discussions on various personnel matters, and having short discussions with staff, community members, members of the press, etc.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the substance of these or any other topics.
- Richmond Promise (RP) College Success Workshops & 2016 Scholarship Renewal Application
College Success Workshop
440 Richmond Promise Scholars from the graduating Class of 2017 will be representing Richmond at 55 different colleges and universities this fall!
This summer, RP’s number one priority is to support its scholars through the summer months to ensure full-time and on-time college enrollment this fall. One way they are doing this is by hosting a series of College Success Workshops in June and July. These workshops are open and mandatory for all scholarship recipients.
Nearly 300 scholars attended the first four workshops! RP offered their thanks to its participating partner organizations: Youth Finance Institute of America (YFIA), SparkPoint, Students Rising Above, and Contra Costa College for making these workshops a success.
Didn’t attend a workshop yet? That’s okay! The Richmond Promise team will be holding one more workshop in July. Please encourage a scholar in your life to sign up and attend if they haven’t:
- Thursday, July 27: College Success Workshop #5 (for ALL Richmond Promise Scholars) RSVP Today!
2016 Scholarship Renewal Application
The application to renew the Richmond Promise Scholarship for next school year is open for our Class of 2016 Scholars!
The application can be found here and is due July 15, 2017. Students will need their FAFSA/Dream Act Student Aid Report, unofficial transcript, and class schedule for this upcoming school year. This application is only for Class of 2016 Richmond Promise Scholars who are just completing their first year of college.
Please remind a scholar in your life about this deadline!
Questions or need assistance? Info@richmondpromise.org or 510-761-7231.
- Richmond Library Teens Scholarship
On Wednesday, June 14th, the 20th annual Richmond Library Teens S.A.T. Scholarship was awarded to Marisol Contreras at the West Contra Costa Unified School District Meeting. Funding for the scholarship came from fees students paid for the six-week Library Teens S.A.T. Preparation Workshop that is sponsored by the Friends of the Richmond Public Library in collaboration with the West County Ed Fund. Marisol is a graduate of Middle College High School who will be attending UC Davis in the fall of 2017. She stressed that, “helping the community doesn’t help just one generation, but generations from then on.”
 
- We Need Your Input on the City’s Local Hazard Mitigation Plan
The City of Richmond is updating its Local Hazard Mitigation Plan in partnership with Contra Costa County. The Local Hazard Mitigation Plan serves as a coordinating document for the City and approximately three dozen local agencies and special purpose districts to reduce their risks from a wide range of potential natural and non-natural hazards, including earthquakes, floods, wildfires, and extreme heat.
You can be a part of this effort to update the current plan by taking just a few short minutes to fill out our brief survey.
The current plan was developed in 2011 and approved in April of 2012; it is expected that the update process will take approximately six months. Thank you for your time and contribution to this effort!
- Richmond Urban Garden Contest
There is still time to register for this year's Urban Garden Contest! Make sure to visit www.RichmondCAMayor.org for more information and to register. All entrants receive complimentary passes to the Soil Not Oil Conference on September 8-9 at the Richmond Memorial Auditorium.
This annual event hosted by Mayor Tom Butt is a great opportunity to showcase your garden, win prizes, and make friends!
- Kick-Off Summer FUN with Healthy Village Festival
Richmond Main Street invites the entire community to come to Downtown Richmond for the 8th annual Healthy Village Festival on Saturday, June 24th (tomorrow!) from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM at the Community Green Space (Harbour Way & Macdonald Avenue).
Healthy Village Festival is sure to be a super fun family event all about health and wellness in Downtown! The event will feature ZUMBA, Health Tips, Giveaways, Fitness Breaks, Animals, Pony Rides, Music, Info Booths, Vendors, Arts and Crafts, and more! Plus...Bike Smoothies by Rich City Rides, “Ask the Doc” hosted by Kaiser Permanente, Food Vendors Rosemary’s Kitchen and Civil Pops, Fitness demos by certified ZUMBA instructors and Anytime Fitness, and a Downtown History (mini) Hike – tours depart at 11:00 AM & 12:00 PM.
Admission is free. All are welcome. For more information, visit RichmondMainStreet.org, call (510) 236-4049, or email admin@richmondmainstreet.org
- Fire Department and CERT Evacuation Drill for Safety
On Saturday, June 3rd, the Richmond Fire Department oversaw Brickyard Landing’s annual emergency evacuation drill. Fire alarm systems were activated at all five residential buildings, alerting residents to evacuate their homes in an orderly manner. A total of 181 residents were safely evacuated and accounted for from 123 individual condominium units. The drill met the Department’s egress and reflex time objectives, and no injuries were reported. This exercise is consistent with the Fire Department’s public education to children and adults for establishing “exit drills in the home” or “EDITH” - always remember to establish a meeting location to ensure everyone is accounted for.
During the exercise, Brickyard Landing volunteers encountered a “real world” medical emergency incident, which was immediately reported to the firefighters. Engine 61 (Point Richmond Station) hurried to this incident where medical treatment was provided and immediate medical transport was arranged. Richmond’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members’ assistance with the training exercise provided a firsthand example of our program’s benefits. Way to go, Richmond CERT!
Find more information on Richmond’s CERT program at http://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/339/REACTCERT
- Community Services Highlights
Upcoming Events
Community Clean-Up in North Richmond
Join us on Saturday, June 24th from 9:00 PM – 3:00 PM for the beautification of Shields-Reid! Help us take pride in our beautiful park and join us for fun sports activities following the renovation. There will be BBQ, music, giveaways, and more!
Youth Leadership Committee is Back
Are you a high school or college student looking to become a leader in your community? Are you interested in learning how to create a community service project to create positive change? Join the YLC for the upcoming school year! Applications are now open with workshops to begin in the fall. We’ll have field trips to local excursions and workshop topics on public speaking, presentations, financial literacy, networking, resume-building, and more!
Application open here: tinyurl.com/RichmondYLC17
Contact Guadalupe Morales at guadalupe_morales@ci.richmond.ca.us or call 510-620-6553 for more info.
Spring Clothing Drive to Benefit Bay Area Rescue Mission – Only Two Weeks Left!
The Community Services Department’s Spring /Summer Clothing Drive is now under way! We need your help collecting new, unworn clothing essentials such as underwear, bras, socks, and belts for the residents and guests at Bay Area Rescue Mission (BARM). While plenty of clothing are donated to BARM, new undergarments are much more difficult to come by. Please consider bringing these clothing essentials in their original packaging to the barrels located at any of the following City of Richmond locations:
- Booker T. Anderson Community Center
- Community Services Building (Recreation Complex)
- May Valley Community Center
- Nevin Community Center
- Parchester Community Center
- Richmond City Hall
- Richmond Plunge
- Richmond Police Department
- Richmond Public Library – Bayview
- Richmond Public Library – West Side
- Richmond Swim Center
- Shields-Reid Community Center
For more information about the spring clothing drive, contact Stephanie Ny at stephanie_ny@ci.richmond.ca.us or (510) 620-6563.
For more information about Bay Area Rescue Mission, visit http://www.bayarearescue.org or call (510) 215-4555.
Community Highlights
Shields-Reid in the Outdoors
The Shields Reid Achieve Summer Camp visited Miller-Knox Park and Keller Beach just in time for the Bay Area heat up. Fifty campers and 10 adults made a trip to the park on Thursday, June 15th, during the first week of summer camp. The kids enjoyed a hike to the tower, a picnic with games, and a nice cool down at the beach. It was a great start to summer!
 
Website Statistics for the Week Ending 06-23-2017
Tweets and Facebook followers are up!
- Page views are up by 35%
- People reached are up by 162%
- Post engagement is up by 119%
- LIKES are up by 133%
- Videos views are up by 100%
- Followers are up by 75%
- Tweet visits are up by 17.3%
- Tweet impressions are up by 16.1%
KCRT DATANET OF THE WEEK
KCRT PHOTOS OF THE WEEK
Juneteenth 2017 Richmond California
Summer of MINECRAFT Camp
For the third summer in a row, the City of Richmond is hosting Summer of MINECRAFT summer camp for student’s grades 4-8 and ages 9-13. This program runs from Monday, June 12th to Friday, August 4th from 10:00 AM to noon.
Summer Youth are engaged and enjoying the colaborative team coding and of course the gaming experience.
SF Bay Ospreys
- The Ospreys nestlings were banded on Friday, June 16th, with official USF&WS band and a field-readable color-marked band. Here is Whirly back in the nest showing off those wings and the legs wearing the new bands. (Reposted from the SF Ospreys Facebook page).
City of Richmond Mobile APP UPDATE
The City of Richmond’s mobile phone app is available on the Apple App store and Google Play store.
This City of Richmond mobile app provides Richmond’s community members with one-stop access to City services and information via mobile devices. The app allows quick and real-time reporting of neighborhood-related issues; viewing the City’s Events Calendar; finding addresses and phone numbers of local businesses, city departments and council members. Locating one of Richmond’s numerous parks, and welcoming libraries and community centers, including reserving rental space for that special occasion are all done with ease! You may view the City’s mobile app on YouTube: https://youtu.be/i4W1wVvB9fw The City of Richmond is looking forward to feedback from the community on this upgraded Mobile App. We welcome your comments at webservices@ci.richmond.ca.us.
- Engineering/CIP Departments
Engineering Project
The Unity Park Project continues with the installation of base rock to even the surface from 4th Street to 8th Street. The park is along the Greenway and will cover multiple blocks.
Base Rock Installation
The Greenway Ohlone Gap Project continues with the completion of the pedestrian bridge abutment. The abutment will support the lateral pressure of the span, and are at the ends of the bridge located on both sides of San Pablo Avenue.
Pedestrian Bridge Abutment Construction
Streets Division
Paving crews continued with the paving of Wall Avenue from South 41st Street to South 47th Street, took down the barricades and stage for the Juneteenth Parade and celebration, and worked from the outstanding pothole list in various locations around the City.
Grinding for Paving on Wall Avenue
Street sweeping staff performed commercial and residential sweeping services for the third Monday through Wednesday and the fourth Thursday and Friday in the North Richmond, Iron Triangle, North Belding Woods, Atchison Village, South Belding Woods, Richmond Annex, Parkview, Panhandle Annex, and Eastshore neighborhood council areas.
Signs and Lines staff fabricated 10 new signs, installed eight new signs and poles, repaired 18 signs and poles, installed seven pavement markings, and painted 253 feet of curb.
- Infrastructure Maintenance and Operations
Abatement
Crews performed weed abatement at various planting strips, abated alleyways, cleared private and public lots, and continued with removing illegal dumping and graffiti throughout the City.
 
 
Planting Strips
 
Carlson Blvd Lot
 
Cutting Boulevard Lots
 
Illegal Dumping
 
Graffiti
Facilities Maintenance
Carpenters replaced doors at Nevin Park, provided workstation adjustments in the Finance Department, and installed panels at the Richmond Police Department.
Painters completed the remainder of the exterior of the Senior Annex Community Center and began the exterior of the Nicholl Park restroom.
Painting at Nicholl Park
Stationary Engineers removed and repaired grinding pumps at the Marina Bay Park, installed new fire extinguishers in the Point Richmond Community Center and Westside Library Branch, replaced the shower valve in Fire Station #61, rebuilt five backwash valves for the Plunge pool, repaired the air conditioning unit at the Family Justice Center, and repaired a hose bib and supply line at the Senior Annex Center.
New Hose Bib
Electricians checked various locations for upcoming events, replaced the damaged traffic cabinet at Valley View and De Anza Drive, fixed the underwater light circuit at the Kennedy Swim Center, replaced plugs at the Auditorium, supported the Information and Technology Department with wireless installations, repaired gates at Fire Stations #62 and #66, secured electrical wires damaged in the Marina, and attended training on Traffic Control.
New Electrician
Parks and Landscaping Division
Hilltop District crews continued maintenance around Hilltop Mall business area, continued with the Richmond Country Club Vista landscaping project by installing slide footings and general maintenance, completed mulch installation on the medians of Hilltop Drive, and began weed abatement along Hilltop Lake.
Marina Districtcrews trimmed and weed abated the Esplanade Trail, built and planted a screen planter, fabricated a fence for the Police Department, replaced broken valve at Marina Green Park, made irrigation repairs throughout the area, and performed general park clean up initiatives.
New Screen Planter
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!
Bill Lindsay
City Manager
City of Richmond
450 Civic Center Plaza
Richmond, California 94804
(510) 620-6512
Bill_lindsay@ci.richmond.ca.us
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