By Lisa Vorderbrueggen
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011 at 3:21 pm in Bill Clinton, Contra Costa County, Contra Costa politics, Richmond.
Bill Clinton
Former President Bill Clinton is coming to Richmond on Oct. 21, where he will deliver the keynote speech at the first Blueprint for Healthy Communities Summit sponsored by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
It may be the first official visit to Richmond by a former or sitting president. Longtime Richmond resident and county Supervisor John Gioia cannot recall any other.
But Clinton doesn’t come cheap. The district will have to raise $150,000 for his speaking fee, probably through corporate sponsorships. (This ought to be interesting as some of Contra Costa’s biggest corporations are oil refineries subject to air district regulation.)
The invitation-only summit at the Craneway Pavilion on the Richmond waterfront will focus on the links between land-use planning and health primarily. Attendees will be elected officials, public health directors, city staffers and others.
Here’s the email that went out to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District board this afternoon:
Dear Board members,
As you know, the Air District has been working through the CARE program and CEQA guidance to help local governments consider air quality, public health and climate protection in their land use decision making. As part of this effort, the Air District will be hosting another cutting edge summit this fall focused on the linkages between public health and land use. I’d like to provide a few highlights of the summit planning.
Title: Blueprint for Healthy Communities Summit
Date: Friday, October 21, 2011
Location: Craneway Pavilion, Richmond Waterfront
Audience: Bay Area elected officials, public health directors, city managers, planning directors, business leaders, non-profits, foundations, and more
Keynote: President Bill Clinton
We are very pleased to have secured President Clinton as the keynote speaker! We have also invited, but not yet confirmed, Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius as well as White House Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality Nancy Sutley. We also plan to offer two workshops and a plenary on Constructing Healthy, Complete Communities.
We already have a number of sponsors for the event and will continue to secure additional sponsorship commitments.
Due to the tight planning schedule and the timing of acceptance by President Clinton, we needed to make some quick decisions and sign a contract to book President Clinton for this event. After speaking to Board Chair Bates about the tight timeline, Chair Bates authorized the APCO to enter into a contract with the Harry Walker Group to secure President Clinton for the October 21st date. Chair Bates gave this authorization with the caveat that speaker fees would be offset by sponsorship funds. The speaking fee is $150,000. We are confident we will be able to secure sponsorships to cover President Clinton’s speaking fee. Staff will provide an update on summit planning at the September 21 Board of Directors meeting.
Please mark your calendars for this exciting, invitation-only event when the Bay Area Air Quality Management District welcomes President Bill Clinton to the Bay Area to speak about a Blueprint for Healthy Communities. Invitations will be mailed soon.
Please feel free to contact me at 415-749-4646 with questions.
Jean Roggenkamp
On behalf of
Jack P. Broadbent
Executive Officer/APCO
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