- Bring out your exotic and classic cars.
- Meet your local police officers.
- Ask questions, discuss concerns, or just stop by and say hello.
Coffee and bagels will be provided.
Saturday, September 8th from 8am-11am
Piedmont Community Center parking lot
Meet your neighbors, strengthen neighborhood spirit and build police-community partnerships.
Piedmont Police Officers will be stop by Neighborhood Meetings to answer questions about crime prevention.
You Are Invited:
National Night Out
When: Tuesday, August 7th 6-8pm
Where: Participating neighborhoods:400 block Blair Avenue
200 block Scenic Avenue
100 block Ricardo Avenue
100 block Oak Road
0 block of Cambridge Avenue
100 block Palm Avenue
100 block Greenbank Avenue
For further information: Contact Captain Chris Monahan, 510-420-3012 or cmonahan@piedmont.ca.gov
From the Piedmont Police Department:
Piedmont, we need your help tracking down three armed robbers.
Around 5:47 this morning, a man was walking along Trestle Glen near Cavanaugh Court when he was approached by the three subjects. One of the men pointed a semi-automatic handgun at the victim and took his belongings.
The suspects then ran toward the area of Lakeshore Blvd. The suspects are described as Hispanic, in their early 20s, and wearing dark clothing.
If you have any information, please call Detective Jeff Spranza at 510-420-3013 or jspranza@piedmont.ca.gov.
Council members recently stated they wanted more and different Piedmonters to seek election to the City Council instead of formerly elected Council members who might be better known. The Council wanted more citizens to have an opportunity to be elected to the City Council. During recent City Council discussions of the City Charter, the City Council specifically added a proposed provision limiting City Council members ability to seek a return to the Council until 8 years had intervened rather than four years, noting that more Piedmonters should have a chance to be elected.
The time is now to be a candidate for City Council and Board of Education.
The Board of Education, according to Piedmont staff, declined a proposed change to the City Charter to exclude former Board members’ as candidates for 8 years, thus former Board members would continue to be able to seek a return to the Board following a 4 year hiatus. Apparently, there was no issue regarding former Board members seeking re-election to the Board of Education.
Numerous potential candidates are Piedmonters who have been active on commissions, committees, as volunteers and activists proving they care about their community and its schools.
A number of Piedmont City Council and School Board elections have been uncontested in the past, meaning only enough candidates seek election to fill the open positions and all candidates are automatically elected to the positions they seek. Uncontested elections engender less interest and little discussion of issues, as there is no competition or true election by voters.
ISSUES:
Some City Council issues:
Some School Board issues:
The City of Piedmont will hold its General Municipal Election on November 6, 2018. The nomination period for the three (3) vacancies on the Piedmont City Council and two (2) vacancies on the Board of Education opened on Monday, July 16th. The deadline for submitting completed paperwork is:
The California Elections Code requires that nomination papers be issued in person to the prospective candidate at City Hall.
It is strongly recommended that residents wishing to take out or return candidate paperwork set an appointment with the City Clerk. 510/420-3040
This ensures prompt service for the candidate and allows the Clerk to devote full attention to the process. Residents without appointments will be seen on a time available basis and may be subject to interruption. Contact the Piedmont City Clerk at 510/420-3040.
…………..
………….
If an incumbent does not file for re-election, of which there are 2 incumbents* for the 3 Council vacancies and 2 incumbents for the two Board of Education vacancies, the nomination period will be extended by 5 days as below:
– Elections Code Section 10225.
(a) Notwithstanding Sections 10220 and 10224, if nomination papers for an incumbent officer of the city are not filed by or on the 88th day before the election, during normal business hours, as posted, the voters shall have until the 83rd day before the election during normal business hours, as posted, to nominate candidates other than the person who was the incumbent on the 88th day, for that incumbent’s elective office.
If there is a tie vote Section 15651 shall apply:
In the event of a tie-vote for any office which is being voted on at such General Municipal Election, the provisions of Section 15651 of the California Elections Code, relating to determining the tie by lot, shall apply.
Residents with questions about the process or wishing to make an appointment should call the City Clerk’s office at (510) 420-3040.
Earthquake preparation for water lines –
On Wednesday July 11, 2018, an East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) District Board briefing was held at the EBMUD Administrative Building on 11th Street in downtown Oakland. Present at the meeting were EBMUD Board of Directors for three of the Wards for EBMUD local service areas: Doug Linnet, William B. Patterson, and Marguerite Young. Invited Guests present at the meeting included other EBMUD representatives, elected officials, local media (including PCA), and other community leaders. Director Marguerite Young is the elected representation of Ward 3, the local service area which includes the City of Piedmont.
Much of the briefing focused on many of the general issues that confront the east bay with regards to water and water waste. In terms of the ongoing drought, Director of Operations and Maintenance, Clifford Chan says that the end of year water storage and reservoirs look good and healthy.
Issues included recapping on certain projects in the area, like a 7 million dollar odor reduction operation that was just completed on the water treatment plant beside Interstate Highway 80. This insures a reduction in the strong odors that drift across the highway and into the Target store and other shopping centers in the Emeryville area. This accompanies other projects that EBMUD has taken on.
During the 2017-2018 year EBMUD has begun the process of replacing old transmission pipelines. Several of these pipeline replacements will take place in EBMUD Ward 3 and will have an effect on daily activity in Piedmont. One such case is the replacement of an 88-year-old pipeline that runs beneath Grand Avenue on a stretch between Arroyo Avenue and Oakland Avenue. The construction on Grand Ave will force some lane closures, but EBMUD says it will maintain two way traffic at all times. In case of water service interruption, residents will be notified either in person or with a door hanger.
Several of the replacement projects in Ward 3 will have pipes rebuilt to withstand seismic activity like pipes running through Berkeley and Oakland that are built near or on the Hayward fault line such as a new pipeline that is running by Cal Memorial Stadium and beneath Highway 24, which services water through Berkeley, Oakland, and Piedmont. This line near the fault line will need to be engineered to withstand a large earthquake within a close proximity.
by Joe Creason, Journalism Intern
Join the Piedmont Police Department for our Neighborhood Dog Walker Watch Meeting, SUNDAY, JULY 22, 2018 at 5 p.m. in Dracena Park. We will be providing safety information and resources on how you can assist Piedmont Police Department by becoming the eyes and the ears of the community while out walking your dog.
For more information contact the Piedmont Police Department at 420-3000.
On the afternoon of June 19, 2018, a City Council/School Board Liaison meeting was held. Members of the School Board, City Council, and their staff members met at the Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) Administrative Offices on Magnolia Avenue to discuss various issues, which included: upcoming summer facilities projects, H1 Bond projects, solid waste management education, recreational renovations, and school safety.
Present at the meeting were School representatives: Board Vice President, Amal Smith, Board Member, Andrea Swenson, Superintendent Randall Booker, Director of Facilities, Pete Palmer, and Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Cheryl Wozniak. Representatives from the City were Mayor Bob McBain and City Administrator Paul Benoit.
The meeting began with Booker introducing the agenda and starting off the conversation with updates on the H1 Bond measure and the issue of the various District Summer facilities projects. These projects include climate control renovations to elementary school facilities and the rebuilding of the 30’s complex at Piedmont High School for the high school’s new STEAM building, with construction beginning in June of 2019 as part of the H1 Bond measure.
During the April 2019 Spring break, the real projects begin removing the Alan Harvey Theater and drainage work on Witter Field.
“We’re starting these summer renovations at Havens Elementary, where five classrooms on the top floor can reach as high as 90 degrees while teachers are instructing students,” said Palmer. “The new climate control systems we will be installing are some of the most efficient units available on the market.”
Palmer explained that the same climate control systems would be installed in certain classrooms at Beach and Wildwood Elementary schools that are also at risk for reaching high temperatures.
“These new highly efficient systems will allow us to cut energy costs, which means putting more money right back into schools and facilities,” said Booker.
The High School’s new STEAM building will have 7 new classrooms, expanding the capacity of the school’s computer lab facilities. Booker stressed the importance of adding these new classrooms and computer facilities because 50 students had to be turned away from the school’s computer program during the previous school year due to insufficient class space.
“It’s great that we have so many students interested in computer science; however; right now we just don’t have the space. With these new facilities, we will be able to accommodate everyone,” said Booker.
Booker noted the School District was exploring options to install a new computer system that would cut down on the purchasing of expensive Computer Processing Units (CPU) by allowing as few as one control CPU unit to feed many students’ computer monitors without the need for them to have their own CPU unit.
Palmer related a break in the waterline under Wildwood Schoolmates, requiring a temporary waterline and the closing down of El Cerrito Avenue, as well as P.E Hill, in order to fix the break.
Witter Field will be closed during the installation of new LED field lights, which would be more directive, project less light on neighbors, and be better for player safety visibility. Palmer stated the installation should go quickly unless the current light structures are revealed to have rusted bolts or fixtures, in which case they would need to be cut and repaired during renovation.
Booker discussed the High School Master Plan beginning construction in March 1, 2019, when the closure, salvage and abatement of the Alan Harvey Theater will occur, along with the closure and drainage renovation of Witter Field.
An inspector from Division of State Architects (DSA) will come to survey the Witter Field area and check its Americans with Disability Act (ADA) compliance. Witter Field has areas of concern, such as the Wildwood steps leading down to the field, which are not ADA compliant, according to Booker.
A passing inspection regarding the ADA and approval from the state are necessary prior to construction, as clarified by Vice President Amal Smith.
City Administrator Paul Benoit addressed the issue of solid waste management.
“We only received one bidder for Piedmont’s solid waste contract. Waste Management as a firm did not want to do backyard service, and Piedmont doesn’t want to give up backyard service. We’ll be continuing to work with Republic Services as our contractor,” said Benoit.
In addition to the City’s new contract with Republic, Abbe and Associates, a green education and waste management consultant, will aid the community, including the schools, in environmental awareness and sustainable living.
When Vice President Smith raised questions as to expectations with Abbe, Benoit replied that the consulting firm’s community-wide involvement will be collaborative with no set expectations or requirements.
Mayor Bob McBain stated that Abbe would work in situations managing waste from City events like the Harvest Festival and everything Abbe does should be constructive leading to reduced waste and proper disposal.
“It’s not gonna work, if it is a burden to everyone,” McBain said.
There are pending renovations and resurfacing of several tennis courts. Linda Beach Tennis courts are desired by Pickleball players. Pickleball is a hybrid game of tennis and ping pong. The Piedmont Pickleball Association rents the Linda Beach courts on certain weekdays from 9 a.m. to 12 noon for $12 an hour according to Benoit, and will continue to do so until school begins on August 13th.
Mayor McBain stated there is the possibility for the City and the Piedmont Pickleball Association to work together in order to resurface the Middle School courts to be used for the sport when not in use by the schools.
Benoit introduced the topic of School Safety which he stated was a big topic. While School Safety was talked about at the staff level, thus far it had not received extensive discussion at the Council level. School Safety has risen in salience as the national climate around school shootings has intensified at an alarming rate. There are uncertainties on how to move forward with this initiative in Piedmont, according to Benoit.
Superintendent Booker brought up the implementation of onsite security personnel in Piedmont schools.
“From experience and time spent with Albany High School, I found the presence of a police officer on campus an extremely effective and beneficial resource,” said Booker.
Booker went on to explain that the presence of a security person on campus at the High School, such as one on-duty soft uniform officer from the Piedmont Police Department, would be helpful. These resource officers in soft uniform, meaning they are wearing uniform pants and Piedmont Police Department polo shirts instead of a full patrol uniform, would receive very specific and intensive training to acclimate them to a campus environment. The resource officer would carry the same equipment that other police officers do on their belts, including a firearm.
“I would consider myself a strong advocate for the resource officer as a solution to school safety, as in my experience they are incredibly effective at communicating safety,” said Booker.
The resource officer would report to the Piedmont Chief of Police and the hope is that the officer costs would be paid half by the City and half by the School District.
McBain emphasized the need for the City to find the money for the resource officer and introduce the idea to the community.
Benoit informed the attendees that the City is actively recruiting for a new Fire Chief.
Report by Joe Creason, Journalism Intern
Flawed process for changing the Piedmont City Charter has produced new issues and unknown rationale. Concerns have focused on such proposals as: Unlimited reserve funds, changes to management of employees, elimination of Council bimonthly meetings, elimination of posted notices, and questionable designations of City officers. –
The following letter was sent to the Piedmont City Council –
TO: City Council at citycouncil@piedmont.ca.gov
RE: Comments Regarding Proposed Changes to City Charter June 3, 2018Dear City Council:
I am writing to oppose the proposal to amend the City Charter, for two reasons: 1) process, and 2) substance.
PROCESS
I respectfully submit that the process is flawed and should be revisited. Here are some thoughts in that connection:
First, what is the problem we are trying to solve? Although the June 4, 2018 Staff Report states that the City Council has been discussing changes to the Charter since June 2017, it does not contain reasons for the proposed changes. Without a “statement of the problem,” how does the Council know what changes need to be made? And if we make changes to solve undefined problems, might the proposed changes create unintended consequences?
Second, what are the pros and cons of the proposed solutions to the problem? The Staff Report does not provide pros and cons, or alternative solutions to address perceived problems with the current Charter.
Third, shouldn’t workshops be held to determine the level of public support for the changes before they are submitted to Piedmont citizens for a vote? Deciding to put the Charter changes on the ballot without adequate public input is a backwards process.
SUBSTANCE
In addition to having serious concerns with the process the Council is following in this regard, I also have some substantive issues and questions:
Section 2.03. Because the Staff Report does not indicate what problem this “out of office” change attempts to solve, it’s not clear that this change is needed. If there is indeed a problem to be solved, and there’s public support for such change, a corresponding change should be made in Section 7.02 concerning the School Board.
Section 2.07 would delete the current requirement that the Council meet at least twice a month, and instead would only require that the Council meet “regularly.” This is totally inadequate. While I can understand that a twice monthly meeting requirement might be out of step with what is currently considered good governance and might make it difficult for some otherwise qualified candidates to serve on the Council, this change goes too far and could allow meetings only every other month, or quarterly. At a minimum, this section should provide for regular monthly meetings.
Section 2.08 states how the Mayor is selected. Should we consider having the Mayor be elected by the voters, as in many other communities?
Section 2.12(D) would eliminate the requirement to post ordinances on bulletin boards, in favor of using the City website. To ensure that citizens know they should look on the website for ordinances, I suggest that the City also be required to post a notice describing the ordinance (if not including the entire ordinance) in one or more newspapers of general circulation.
Article III’s changes are problematic. First, I’m not sure it is a good idea to give the City Administrator so much power without Piedmont having a citizen-elected Mayor to partner with the City Administrator. If public input indicates support for giving the City Administrator the power to manage and dismiss all City officers, but having the Council keep the authority to eliminate or consolidate these officer positions, then this Article should be overhauled completely (for instance, deleting from the Charter the listing of City officers, since if the Charter states that the City “shall” have certain officers, it’s unclear that the Council could eliminate such positions without an amendment to the Charter).
Section 4.03 proposes to eliminate the 25% ceiling on the General Fund Reserve. This proposal is outrageous. Piedmont’s taxes are much higher than those in comparable cities. Many (those on fixed incomes, or young couples, for instance) struggle to afford the current rates. While keeping adequate reserves is important, there’s been no case made by Staff or the Council that the City needs more than 25% in reserves. The cap should stay.
Section 4.10 governs franchises. It’s unclear what this section is intended to cover. Is this a section that should be considered for updating or deletion?
Section 4.11 proposes to eliminate the requirement that all public projects be competitively bid. This is unacceptable. A requirement to competitively bid ensures that public funds are spent wisely. Competitive bidding should be the rule, and deleting this language opens the door to wasting public funds.
Article V. If the Charter is being examined fully, the Council might consider whether most of the provisions of Article V belong in the Charter, or could instead be moved to an ordinance. While the updating of Section 5.02 is admirable, the law keeps changing. To eliminate the need to constantly update the Charter, it might be easier to simply say that the City will not discriminate on any prohibited basis.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Quenneville, Piedmont Resident
If the City Administrator’s requests to change the City Charter are approved, the City Council could take a back seat in Piedmont’s governance.
Readers will find the administrative changes repeatedly diminish the authority of the Council forfeiting their authority to the City Administrator.
The form of government proposed by Benoit is usually termed a City Manager form of government joined by a strong mayor, which Piedmont does not elect. Oakland has a City Manager form of government as does Alameda and Astoria, Oregon, where Benoit was employed for many years prior to coming to Piedmont. Each of these cities have a separately elected Mayor. Piedmont’s mayor is elected from within the Council by the five Council members.
Many are familiar with Oakland struggles, but perhaps less familiar with Alameda’s recent troubles when the Council terminated their City Manager over a hiring situation. Piedmont has not had such disruption and the City Council has worked collaboratively when selecting officers such as the Fire Chief, Police Chief, and others. It has been stated that it is better to have 5 members of the Council selecting the City officers rather than one unelected person – the City Administrator – making the selections and terminations.
Despite pleas for an independent committee to study and evaluate proposed changes to the Piedmont City Charter, none was formed by the City Council. The Administration driven proposals have moved forward following a Council Study Session.
This PCA article points out some of the critical issues, but as with any City Charter the devil is in the details, of which there are many. The Council, apparently, will be presenting forums after they decide what should be placed on a Piedmont November 2018 election ballot to seek required ratification
~~~~~~~~~~~
Below are various changes noted by City staff as substantive. Readers will note in the full draft linked below there are many other important issues.
The pros and cons of the changes have not been presented by staff.
Important administrative changes of the Charter were listed last in the staff report linked below. The order has been changed here.
POLITICAL: LIMITING SERVICE BY FORMER COUNCIL MEMBERS. The proposal would increase the period of time during which a former Councilmember is ineligible to run for office from 4 to 8 years after leaving office.
Only two Council members have in the past 3 decades attempted to be re-elected following 4 years of ineligibility. One former Councilmember was not re-elected, another was elected, but recently resigned over a scandal. A local newspaper’s publicity for those two candidates influenced the election more than the candidates’ efforts.
POLITICAL: HOW LONG SHOULD THE COUNCIL HAVE TO FILL A COUNCIL VACANCY. An amendment to the provision for filling of vacancies on the City Council would be extended to allow the Council 60 days rather than just 30 days to fill a vacancy.
Recent history has proven the Council has been able to readily fill numerous Council vacancies within the allotted 30 day time period. The intention of the Charter was to expeditiously fill a vacancy for a full Council composition of 5 members rather than unnecessarily remain at 4 or fewer members.
CONTROVERSIAL: WHEN TO HOLD COUNCIL MEETINGS A requirement that the Council hold two regular meetings per month is eliminated. The proposed language would require the City Council to hold meetings on a regular basis.
Change could be arbitrary.
Residents often plan their public participation schedules around knowing when the Council will meet – the first and third Mondays of each month. With recent changes to the Zoning Code, not knowing when the Council will next meet to consider a matter opens up conflicting issues. From high school students to public participants, having regularly scheduled meetings, a standard for most cities, is beneficial. If three (the required amount) Council members cannot attend a regularly scheduled meeting, then the meeting would fall to the next day or week. Going on the City Council is known to require certain meetings per month thus allowing the Council and public set dates for planning purposes. Scheduling of matters can be crucial to the consideration of many issues and the orderly functioning of government. Reducing the frequency of Council meetings puts them at a disadvantage in providing the leadership the citizenry expects of their elected officials.
Amendments are also proposed to a number of other sections of the Charter to remove stated outdated provisions and modernize language. Click to read a marked up version of the Charter containing each of the proposed Charter amendments.
READ the full STAFF REPORT > HERE.
Citizens are invited and encouraged to comment at this meeting. Written comments may be submitted to the City Council at citycouncil@piedmont.ca.gov or by US Mail to City Clerk, 120 Vista Avenue, Piedmont, CA 94611. All comments submitted will become part of the public record.
The meeting will be televised live on KCOM-TV, Channel 27, the City’s government TV station and will be available through streaming video on the City’s web site www.ci.piedmont.ca.us.
For further information, contact Assistant City Administrator/ City Clerk John O. Tulloch via email at cityclerk@piedmont.ca.gov or via phone at (510) 420-3040.
The next meeting of the Piedmont Public Safety Committee will on May 31, Thursday, at 5:30 pm. This meeting is open to the public in the Council Chambers at City Hall.
The agenda includes updates on
Discussion of
Draft Minutes of March meeting below:
Public Safety 2018-03-29 DRAFT
Content on the PCA website by Piedmont Civic Association is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.
Some icons are Copyright © Yusuke Kamiyamane
