I was selected by the mayors of Contra Costa County to represent Contra Costa cities on the Contra Costa Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), and I currently serve as chair. Below is an announcement regarding a recent award to Contra Costa LAFCO presented by the...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 31, 2019 Media Contact: Jessie Stewart, Executive Director Richmond Promise 510-620-6570 jessie.stewart@richmondpromise.org National PromiseNet Conference at UC Berkeley 11/4-11/5 to gather hundreds of education and civic leaders to...

Hon. Mayor and Members of the City Council: This is the report for the week ending November 1st, 2019. 1. Meeting Notes The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 5th. Closed Session begins at 3:00 P.M., followed by the Regular Meeting of the...

Here are two links (& screenshots) of online maps to track air quality: 1) S.F. Chronicle - CA Air Quality Tracker 2) PurpleAir map Note - Power outages are visible since the offline sensors are greyed out. [Map as of Monday, 11:30am]. An explanation of the colors...

https://dtsc.ca.gov/2019/10/25/news-release-t-08-19/ DTSC Approves Final Cleanup for the Zeneca Site in Richmond Cleanup Plan Minimizes Adverse Impacts, Protects Public Health and Environment SACRAMENTO – The Department of Toxic Substances Control today announced the...

Here is another source of air quality data, from the Air Rangers project of Groundworks Richmond. The clarity map can be shared too. https://openmap.clarity.io/

On October 19, about 60 enthusiastic revelers attended the 2019 Mayor’s Community Fund event at Point Molate, adding about $40,000 to the fund. Many of the attendees had never even been to point Molate before, and they enjoyed a tour of Winehaven Building 1, hors...

The Richmond City Council will vote on November 5 in open session to approve a settlement agreement it approved in closed session in April of 2018. The action is intended to resolve any lingering accusations that the City violated the Brown Act by previously acting in...

Current District 1 Director Whitney Dotson has announced his retirement prior to the end of his term. The District Board will select an applicant on January 7, 2020. Applications are due November 8, 2019.

Due to gusty winds and dry weather conditions, PG&E announced a public safety power outage is anticipated from Sat. Oct. 26 evening through Mon. Oct. 28 afternoon. Per PG&E maps, potential Richmond neighborhoods that will be impacted are: May Valley, El...

Join Us This Week at Richmond Rotary . . . Program for Friday, October 18: Richmond Police Officer’s Association Ben Therrault will give us a presentation about the labor organization that represents all Richmond Police Officers. He will speak on public safety in...

Over the past several weeks, I have routed a number of questions to DTSC. Below are the questions and responses: Question 1: As stated at the last City Council meeting, this offsite contamination will increase with sea level rise, as the salinity of the Bay water will...

Today, Charlotte Knox posted on Facebook that former Richmond Mayor David Pierce had died in Thailand. Pierce was 86. David Pierce was, hands down, Richmond’s most colorful mayor. The following post s from my September 11, 2016, E-FORUM, “They Don’t Make Mayors Like...

Lots of excitement in next week’s meeting: Item I-1: District Elections – switch or fight? Item J-1: Proposed reorganization of City government by Interim City Manager Steve Falk. Item K-1: New comprehensive Cannabis regulations The agenda/packet for the Tuesday,...

Hon. Mayor and Members of the City Council: This is the report for the week ending October 18th, 2019. Meeting Notes The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 22nd. Closed Session begins at 5:00 P.M., followed by the Special Joint Meeting of the...

I just finished three days at the League of California Cities Annual Conference in Long Beach. The high point was representing the City to receive a Helen Putnam Award for Excellence for “Camp Achieve.” I was joined by Troy Porter of the Recreation Division. “Camp...

October 17, 1989, I was in my Point Richmond office talking to a client in a high rise in San Francisco. All of a sudden, he yelled, “holy shit,” and I heard crashing in the background (It was his bookcases falling over). The phone went dead. A few seconds later, it...

There is still much lingering criticism of the City Council’s decision to endorse Alternative 3A of the Feasibility Study/Remedial Action Plan for the Zeneca site. Unfortunately, the media coverage of the City Council’s vote was typical and all too common “he said;...

The following is excerpted from Before and After Vietnam 1969-70Military Experiences of Thomas K. (Tom) Butt. I last left this story on August of 1969 (31 Days of August 1969, July 31, 2019). September and October must have been busy because I either did not write, or...