Good news! Mayor Rosalie O’Mahony listened to residents and has decided not to introduce an ordinance that would have reduced the waiting period for projects with prejudice and rejected by the City Council from one year to six months.

Had this ordinance been approved, it would have allowed Safeway to reintroduce the exact same 67,000-square-foot plan for the corner of El Camino and Howard Avenue that the council denied last February. Under current city laws, any project that has been denied can be reintroduced at any time if it significantly modified. Since Safeway has steadfastly refused to reduce its proposal even by the 10% requested by Mayor O’Mahony, it did not make sense to introduce an ordinance that would have allowed the previously rejected proposal to be fast-tracked through the planning process.

I applaud Mayor O’Mahony’s decision! I hope we can persuade Safeway to come back with a plan that will work for Burlingame residents as well as Safeway. To learn about some of the innovative supermarkets in other cities, including one that Safeway is building in Mill Valley, please click here.

Free Financial Course for Students

Incoming and current college students are invited to attend a free seminar called “Student Finance 101” from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, August 18, at the Lions Club Hall, 990 Burlingame Ave., Burlingame (next to the Burlingame Recreation Center). Pizza and soft drinks will be provided.

Sponsored by Wells Fargo Bank, the course will be taught by Kevin Nelson, a popular government and economics teacher at Burlingame High School. The Burlingame Lions Club has donated the use of its hall for the event.

I organized this event because I’ve heard horror stories about students who had to drop out of college because they didn’t know how to manage money. The class will explain how to evaluate credit card offers, balance a checkbook, figure out compound interest and more.

Space is limited. To make a reservation, please call me at (650) 347-3576 or send me an email at terry@terrynagel.com with the student’s name and age, the name of the college he or she attends and expected year of graduation, and your phone and email address.
Parents are welcome to take the class with their children.

Remembering Gloria

Hundreds of people attended the lovely memorial service held last Saturday for Gloria Barton, who served on the Burlingame City Council for 13 years and was mayor three times. I was greatly honored when she agreed to serve as co-chair of my campaign last year. I miss her terribly.

When Gloria first ran for the council back in 1978, she ran on a platform of preserving the beauty and character of Burlingame. At that time, apartment buildings were encroaching into the city’s neighborhoods. Gloria also fought to keep housing off the Bayfront and to maintain a healthy mix of businesses along Burlingame Avenue and Broadway. Times really haven’t changed that much!

You can read the remarks I made about Gloria’s contributions to our city by clicking here.