December 6, 2009
Dear Friend:
There was a record turnout on Friday for the Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony at City Hall and the parade down Burlingame Avenue! Many thanks to sponsors Putnam Motors, the Burlingame Chamber of Commerce and the Burlingame School District for making this possible and to Council Member Jerry Deal for donating the colorful beach ball ornaments which adorn the giant tree in front of City Hall. Our Parks & Rec employees decorated the tree this year and it looks fabulous!
A big thank-you, too, to the Broadway merchants who brought “Broadway Cheer” to their festive event last evening, complete with real falling show, a fire dancing elf, dancing Christmas trees and of course Santa.
And don't forget Acting Out & About's presentation of "Miracle on 34th Street" at Il Piccolo Caffe on December 11, the Philharmonica Baroque Chamber Players concert at Kohl Mansion on December 13, and the Family Holiday Sing-Along by the Fireside on December 16 and two Holiday Puppet Shows on December 19 offered free through our library. See details in the Calendar section below.
Help Those in Need
Helping others is part of the season. When deciding whom to help, please visit the Community Wish List for San Mateo County at www.communitywishlist.org to view wish lists posted by more than 80 local nonprofits. Each organization has a page that describes its mission, goals and location. The Community Wish List is a free service offered by Burlingame volunteers.
One local nonprofit that needs your help is the CALL Primrose Center, which reports a 60 percent increase in requests for food and other aid since October 1. Please drop off your donations of food, funds and toys from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday at 139 Primrose Road. For suggestions, see http://www.callprimrose.org
Council Changeover
This Monday evening, December 7, you’re invited to the Council Rotation Ceremony at 7 p.m. in City Hall, 501 Primrose Road, when Cathy Baylock will become mayor, I will become vice mayor and our newest council member, Michael Brownrigg will be sworn in. Our thanks to Rosalie O'Mahony for her 20 years of outstanding service to our community.
High Speed Rail
High speed rail is the big issue on many people’s minds. While many people continue to protest the project's plan to slice through the middle of our cities - with good reason - our city has joined the Peninsula Cities Consortium with Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Atherton and Belmont to make sure we have a seat at the table when decisions are made. Our five cities support the recent addition of Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) to the design process.
The CSS community collaboration process has been used successfully for many years on major highway projects and will be incorporated for the first time on a rail project on the Peninsula section of the high speed rail line. We believe it will help result in a project that can integrate the rail system positively in our cities by incorporating community needs and desires.
We have been working closely with local high speed rail representatives to implement CSS, which they fully support. I’m also working with others to integrate Web 2.0 tools into the process that will invite feedback from experts around the world and incorporate new mechanisms for public input.
To learn more about high speed rail and its implications for the Peninsula, please visit the Peninsula Cities Consortium’s Web site at www.peninsularail.com and sign up to be on the mailing list, as well as our city's high speed rail e-news list at www.burlingame.org/signup.
If you want to get more involved, I urge you to attend the PCC meetings, which are held every other Friday. The next one will be on Friday, January 8, from 8:15 to 9:45 a.m. in the Menlo Park Council Chambers at 701 Laurel St., Menlo Park. The public is welcome to comment at these meetings and work with subcommittees that are trying to deal with all of the ramifications of what is likely to be the biggest public works project ever on the Peninsula.
Train Horns
Lots of people have complained about loud train horns on the Caltrain corridor in recent months. At our city’s request, Assemblymember Jerry Hill arranged a meeting with Caltrain and Union Pacific Railroad representatives last Thursday to investigate these concerns. Our city presented the results of an October 30 survey of the more than 4,600 subscribers to our city’s e-newsletter, along with comments I gathered during an email and telephone survey last week. We reported that local residents no longer have major concerns about train horns during the daytime, but continue to find horns on nighttime trains to be extremely disruptive, on a sporadic basis.
At our insistence, the Union Pacific representatives agreed to review the duration and decibel level of nighttime trains on the Caltrain corridor on a random basis, effective immediately. We agreed to capture information from residents about the trains that are causing concerns, so that Union Pacific can follow up.
We need your help. When you hear a loud and blasting train horn noise during the nighttime, please send an email IMMEDIATELY to: TrainNoise@burlingame.org. Please include this information in your email:
- Time/date you heard the train horn
- Number on the train engine, if you were able to see it
- Description of what the horn sounded like: length of time, whether it was continuous, volume
- How much it bothered you on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being "not at all" and 10 being "extremely disruptive"
- Your street address and city
- How many blocks you live from the tracks
- How to contact you by email and phone
You are welcome to include additional comments. Your email will go directly to rail representatives with a copy to our Burlingame staff.
Please note that it is important to send an email immediately because the "black boxes" that capture information about the horn use by each train (similar to black boxes in airplanes) only hold the data for 24 hours.
For a complete report on the meeting and a simple form to fill out when you hear an irritating train horn, please visit my Web site at http://www.terrynagel.com/main/Train_Noise/page604.htm. Your comments will be forwarded automatically to the train representatives and our city.
Neighborhood Network
Please mark your calendar! At the next Burlingame Neighborhood Network meeting, Rocque Yballa of the Central County Fire Department will train block captains in how to set up an Incident Command Center in their neighborhoods, in the event of a disaster.
All block captains and those interested in starting Neighborhood Network groups are invited to attend this meeting, which will be held Saturday, January 9, from 9 to 10:30 a.m. in the Lane Community Room at the main Burlingame Public Library, 480 Primrose Road. Free coffee, pastries and fruit will be served. Please RSVP to me at terry@terrynagel.com.
Good news! The council has approved making city rooms available at no charge to groups meeting to learn about emergency preparedness and crime prevention or for the purpose of building community. Requests must be made in advance and approved by the city manager. To download the meeting request form and a list of spaces available, visit http://www.burlingame.org/Modules/ShowDocument.aspx?documentid=5172. You can also call the city manager’s office at (650) 558-7204.
Housing Help
The nonprofit Housing and Endowment and Regional Trust (HEART) of San Mateo County offers a new Homebuyer Assistance Program to help first-time homebuyers earning no more than $150,000 buy a home in our county. To learn more and apply online, go to http://www.heartofsmc.org/open or call a Meriwest Mortgage loan consultant at (408) 363-3451.
The Santa Inez Apartments, a 44-unit tax credit development with two-, three- and four-bedroom units, will be accepting housing applications for its waiting list from 9 a.m. to noon December 7 through December 11. Applications can be picked up on those dates and times at 24 E. Santa Inez Ave. in San Mateo and must be returned by December 11.
San Mateo County residents with HIV/AIDS who can be considered low income and have trouble paying rent or utility bills may qualify for assistance through the Mental Health Association’s Housing and Client Assistance Program at (650) 368-9989, ext. 120. Youths ages 18 to 23 who are homeless or at risk of homelessness and need help finding housing, returning to school or obtaining a job may receive help through the Mental Health Association’s Support and Advocacy for Young Adults in Transition program at (650) 368-3345.
Quick Takes
Our county’s Commission on the Status of Women is seeking four new commissioners. This nonpartisan board advises the county Board of Supervisors on policies, programs and legislation that addresses the needs of women, girls and families. Applications are due December 7. Applicants must be age 18 or older. For details, visit www.co.sanmateo.ca.us/BoardsandCommissions or contact Marie Peterson at (650) 363-4634.
The Burlingame Fresh Market will continue to be open every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. through December 20. It is located on Park Road at Burlingame Avenue.
Skyline College is offering accelerated classes during February and March in solar installation and integration aimed at dislocated workers and veterans; visit http://cip.plsinfo.org/eblast/eblast_PDF/091130/091130_BAYCECProgFlyerSolarSalesSMCWIB.pdf. To see the hundreds of low-cost courses offered by the Community Education program through the San Mateo County Community College District, go to http://communityed.smccd.edu/index.cfm?fuseaction=1010
A Wheelchair Rider’s Guide, by Bonnie Lewkowicz, which suggests trails for wheelchairs and strollers in areas including San Mateo County, is available free at http://www.coastalconservancy.ca.gov/Publications/Wheelchair%20Guide%20Bay%20Area.pdf
Flu shot locations are posted at www.flucliniclocator.org. To access the latest flu news, visit the San Mateo County Health System’s site at www.smhealth.org/swineflu or call the flu hotline at (650) 753-3927. A flu brochure is available at www.smhealth.org/flubrochure
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