Mayor and Members of the City Council:
This is the weekly report for the week ending January 27, 2017.
The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 7th. Enjoy the next week off!
- 2. City of Richmond Unemployment Rate Is Still Trending Lower
Employment and Training Director Sal Vaca recently shared data from the State of California Employment Development Department showing the City of Richmond unemployment rate as of December 31, 2016 at 4.6%. This is lower than the California statewide unemployment rate of 5.0%.
Mr. Vaca also reported that the Richmond Employment and Development Department was recently awarded a competitive grant from the State of California Workforce Accelerator program for an “Accelerating Careers through Essential Skills (ACES)” program.
- 3. Happy One Year Anniversary to the Richmond Promise & Spring Workshops
The Richmond Promise turned one year young this past Thursday, January 26th! Thank you to Richmond Promise Executive Director Jessie Stewart for navigating the program through its first year, and to all of the students, families, and community partners for supporting an incredible year of growth and development. This is just the beginning, and we look forward to a successful journey ahead.
Please help the Promise celebrate by having a college conversation with a young person in your life today and remind 12th graders and current college students to fill out their financial aid application by March 2nd!
Spring Workshops
As we approach the Richmond Promise application deadline on March 10th, the Promise team will be hosting workshops to assist high school seniors and their families complete their financial aid and Richmond Promise applications.
Spring Student & Family Workshops:
- Dates: March 1, 2, 7, 9, & 10
- Time: 3:00 PM – 7:00 PM
- Location: 450 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond
Events are free, and no RSVP is required.
The Richmond Promise Scholarship is due on March 10th! Please encourage the eligible high school seniors in your life to apply!
The application can be found at www.richmondpromise.org.
Questions? Contact us at info@richmondpromise.org or 510-620-6531.
- 4. City Manager Chronicles
I have listed below some of the topics for meetings that I attended during the past week in the hope that it provides an idea of the varied issues with which our organization deals routinely.
Meetings of note this past week included:
- Met, together with Infrastructure and Maintenance Operations Manager Tim Higares, with representatives from the Hilltop Landscape Maintenance District to discuss financial planning and maintenance issues;
- Met, together with Administrative Chief Shasa Curl, with the selected developers of the 12th and Macdonald site, to finalize the Exclusive Right to Negotiate (ERN) and discuss the status of the project;
- Met along with Transportation Project Manager Lori Reese-Brown, with staff from the West Contra Costa Transportation Advisory Committee (WCCTAC) and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) to discuss the City’s paratransit program;
- Attended the Water Transit Committee meeting of the Bay Area Council;
- Attended the West County Mayors and Supervisors Association meeting, at which Mayor Butt represented the City of Richmond;
- Met briefly with Congressman Mark DeSaulnier and his District staff, along with representatives from the Mayor’s office, to discuss federal issues affecting Richmond;
- Met with Finance Director Belinda Warner and Wastewater Manager Ryan Smith, along with the City’s finance team, to review the status of wastewater project financing;
- Met with staff members from the Finance Department and the interim Rent Board to review cash flow and revenue collection for the rent control program;
- Attended the reopening celebration for the AC Transit District Division 3 maintenance facility;
- Attended a meeting of various non-profit service agency representatives hosted by the West Contra Costa Region of the East Bay YMCA to welcome Gina Fromer, their new Vice-President/Regional Executive Director.
These meetings were in addition to attending the regular management staff meeting, agenda planning, reviewing staff reports to the City Council, doing department head “check-ins,” having discussions on various personnel matters, and having short discussions with staff, community members, members of the press, etc.
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the substance of these or any other topics.
- 5. Goodrick Avenue Bay Trail Gap Closure Project Draft Initial Study/Mitigated Declaration (IS/MND) Report Available for Comment
On January 12, 2017, the City of Richmond Planning Division released the Draft Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration (IS/MND) for the Goodrick Avenue Bay Trail Gap Closure Project. The City of Richmond proposes to construct a 0.3-mile Class I bicycle and pedestrian trail along the eastern side of Goodrick Avenue, north of Richmond Parkway (proposed trail or project). The proposed trail would connect the existing Class I San Francisco Bay Trail (Bay Trail) segment along the Richmond Parkway to a new 1.5-mile segment of the Bay Trail north of the project site. The proposed project would be a segment of a continuous Bay Trail alignment that extends from Buchanan Street in Albany to Atlas Road and San Pablo Avenue in Richmond.
The project alignment and all proposed improvements would be located within the existing Goodrick Avenue public right-of-way. The proposed trail would consist of a 10-foot-wide paved trail with two 2-foot-wide gravel shoulders. Existing accessible curb ramps at the northwest corner of the intersection of Goodrick Avenue and Richmond Parkway would be replaced to comply with current accessibility and Bay Trail design guidelines. Wayfinding signage would be installed at the Goodrick Avenue and Richmond Parkway intersection. In addition, the crosswalks across Goodrick Avenue would be striped to provide a safer crossing for cyclists and pedestrians in the area.
Review and Comment Period: Comments on the IS/MND, sent in writing, must be received by 5:00 PM on Friday, February 10, 2017, at the following address or email:
City of Richmond Planning Division
ATTN: Lina Velasco
450 Civic Center Plaza, 2nd Floor
P.O. Box 4046
Richmond, CA 94804
Lina_Velasco@ci.richmond.ca.us
A copy of the MND is available for review online at www.ci.richmond.ca.us/goodrickbaytrail. Copies are also available for review at the following Richmond locations:
- Richmond Public Library - Main Branch 325 Civic Center Plaza
- Planning and Building Services Department, City Hall, 450 Civic Center Plaza, 2nd Floor. The Planning Department public counter is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM and Friday from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM.
- 6. RichmondWORKS is Recruiting for 20 Food Service Jobs
RichmondWORKS One Stop Career Center is working with Food Service Partners to fill twenty (20) food service jobs. The positions include Production Manager, Production Supervisor, Cooks, Porters/Dishwashers, and Storeroom, Clerical, and Operations staff. All jobs are full-time, union, and offer great benefits with paid vacation and holidays.
The positions begin training February 2017 in South San Francisco and will move to Richmond in mid-2017. Transportation is provided from the East Bay to South San Francisco during training.
Applications are available at:
RichmondWORKS One Stop Career Center
330 25th Street
Richmond, CA
Please call the RichmondWORKS One Stop Career Center for more information at (510) 307-8014.
- 7. Bay Area Black Church Beginnings
The Richmond Public Library will celebrate Black History Month 2017 by hosting author Dr. Martha C. Taylor who will discuss her new book From Labor to Reward: Black Church Beginnings, San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, and Richmond 1849 – 1972.
The book details how Black churches were more than religious institutions, and how they became the center of Black communities providing social, economic, political, and educations support for Black people. The book also details the unity of Black people who started communities in the enclaves of the San Francisco Fillmore District, West Oakland, South Berkeley, and North Richmond as they struggled against adversities of racism, housing discrimination, KKK threats of violence and death, and other socio-political barriers.
Following the presentation, Dr. Taylor will engage in a question and answer forum. Copies of the book will also be available for purchase. The event will be held, Saturday, February 4, 2017, 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM, Richmond City Council Chambers, 440 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond. For more information, contact Angela Cox at (510) 620-5516 and visit www.richmondlibrary.org. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Richmond Public Library.
- 8. Richmond Seeks Next Poet Laureate
The City of Richmond’s Arts & Culture Division is currently seeking applications for the next Richmond Poet Laureate. This position offers the unique opportunity of being able to interpret the challenging times we live in through original poetry, and allows the poet to gain exposure for his/her work. The position is a two-year term. The new application period will remain open until February 1, 2017. For the application and more information go to http://www.ci.richmond.ca.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1507.
The Poet Laureate position provides a focus for the appreciation and dissemination of poetry in Richmond, promotes poetry among our youth, and acts as a spokesperson for the growing number of poets and writers in Richmond. The Poet Laureate will also work with the West Contra County Unified School District (WCCUSD) to bring poetry into the classrooms, and will coordinate poetry events in the community. An anthology of poetry will be published at the end of each Poet Laureate term.
Previous Poets Laureate include Dwayne Parish, Donte Clark, Lincoln Bergman, and Brenda Quintanilla. A combined anthology of Clark, Bergman, and Quintanilla is available for $10 through the Arts & Culture Manager by contacting her at Michele_seville@ci.richmond.ca.us. An anthology of Dwayne Parish’s work will be available in 2017.
Live poetry events were recently held at Kaleidoscope Café on December 10th, and at Richmond Progressive Alliance headquarters on December 15th. Both events featured over 30 poets, who read to overflow crowds at both locations – proving poetry is alive and well in Richmond.
- 9. S.A.T. Preparation Workshop
Richmond Public Library Teens is now taking applications for the 20th annual S.A.T. Preparation Workshop. Participation in the program can be used to fulfill the Educational Enrichment requirement when applying for the Richmond Promise Scholarship. This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Richmond Public Library in partnership with the Ed Fund. For additional information, contact Añgela Cox at (510) 620-5516.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7b8QpfjkFk8
Richmond S.A.T. Preparation Workshop
- 10. Community Services Highlights
The Park Film Premier
Community Services and the Richmond Police Activities League have teamed up to premier, The Park, a film inspired by the community based organization More Than a Game's most recent community outreach project in Richmond.
Adam Nesheim of Dream Media and The Director of the film said, "I saw that there was a story to be told beyond the tangible things that More Than a Game provides for communities. This is a story about Richmond and how an organization like More Than a Game provides help, hope, inspiration and an outlet for kids.”
The project highlighted four baseball field restorations in city parks, and a free baseball clinic with the University of California Baseball Team and the Catching Academy. Former De La Salle alums Jonny Tucker and Michael Miller were featured volunteers for the project. Tucker, recently retired from professional baseball and a new inductee to the De La Salle Hall of Fame said, "My family is from Richmond, and now that I am retired I understand the importance of giving my time to others." Miller, who made his Major League debut with the Red Sox this season said, "I have always been a fan of More Than a Game, because of my brother Josh, and I got to finally be a part of it.”
The film is to premier Thursday, February 9th at 6:00 PM in the Richmond Auditorium. Admission is free, but seating is limited. For more information please visit: http://www.morethanagameus.com/thepark/
Wendell Park
In partnership with KaBOOM!, Target, and the Friends of Recreation, Community Services and the Parks and Landscaping Division are planning an amazing Community Build to develop another great place in Richmond for kids to play.
Wendell Park will be getting a new playground on March 17, 2017 and the build will all be done in ONE day! The playground design is inspired by all the hard work that children and families from the neighborhood did at the Wendell Park Design Day held at Veteran’s Hall this past Wednesday, January 25th. Children drew their dream playground and parents helped with final designs and developed planning teams to make sure the project is a success. If you would like to volunteer on Build Day or help with the planning, please contact Community Services at (510) 620-6950 or email recreation@ci.richmond.ca.us
 
6th Annual McKinley Williams / John Easterling Community Chess Tournament
- 11. Information Technology
Website Statistics
For the week ending 01/27/2017
Twitter and Facebook Statistics
Followers are up
KCRT DATANET OF THE WEEK
City of Richmond Mobile APP UPDATE
The City of Richmond’s mobile phone app is available on the Apple App store and Google Play store.
This City of Richmond mobile app provides Richmond’s community members with one-stop access to City services and information via mobile devices. The app allows quick and real-time reporting of neighborhood-related issues; viewing the City’s Events Calendar; finding addresses and phone numbers of local businesses, city departments and council members. Locating one of Richmond’s numerous parks, and welcoming libraries and community centers, including reserving rental space for that special occasion are all done with ease!
You may view the City’s mobile app on YouTube: https://youtu.be/i4W1wVvB9fw
The City of Richmond is looking forward to feedback from the community on this upgraded Mobile App. We welcome your comments at webservices@ci.richmond.ca.us.
- 12. Engineering/CIP Departments
BART 19th Street Entrance Project:
The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) 19th Street entrance project is moving along well thanks in part to a break in the rain. Crews are continuing with the elevator housing and entrance building. The sidewalk framing for the walkway continues and should be ready for cement when weather permits.
Elevator Housing
Sidewalk Framing
Streets Division:
Paving crews worked from the outstanding pothole list, filled and delivered sand bags, and performed storm patrol.
Potholing
Street sweeping staff performed commercial and residential sweeping services for the fourth Monday through Friday in the Santa Fe, Point Richmond, Marina Bay, Coronado, Metro Richmore Village, Pullman, Cortex/Stege, Park Plaza, Laurel Park, City Center, Richmond Annex, Parkview, Panhandle Annex and Eastshore neighborhood council areas as weather permitted.
Signs and Lines staff repaired six signs and poles, installed five new signs and poles, fabricated 37 new signs, installed pavement markers, painted 466 feet of curb, and performed storm patrol.
- 13. Infrastructure Maintenance and Operations
Abatement:
Abatement crews continued to remove tons of illegal dumping and remove and graffiti throughout the City.
 
Illegal Dumping
 
Graffiti Removal
Code Enforcement:
Code Enforcement was addressing a vacant lot on the corner Leo Street and Willard Avenue for several years. It was continously overgrown and blighted and staff received numerous complaints. Finally, the lot was purchased and developed. Now there is a newly built single family home.
Before and After
Facilities Maintenance:
Carpenters completed organizing the workstation storage area, installed an additional work station in the Mayor’s office, performed work station modifications in the City Manager’s reception area, and altered work stations in the Engineering Department.
Painters completed the cells at the Police Department and began preparation work for the new storage area of the Booker T. Anderson Community Center.
Utility Workers scrubbed and waxed floors at the Recreation Complex, replaced bulbs at City Hall, replaced broken soap dispenser at the Main Library, set up various rooms for events and maintained 29 City owned facilities.
Autoscrubbing at the Recreation Complex
Bulb Replacement at City Hall
Stationary Engineers located and repaired the roof leak in the Fire Department administrative offices and a roof leak at the Parchester Community Center.
Electricians reset the traffic controllers at Hilltop Drive and San Pablo Avenue as Rumrill and Rheem Avenues, replaced damaged light poles on Moyers and Shane Drive, wired new laundry room at Booker T. Anderson Community Center, replaced exterior lighting at the Senior Center, fixed the traffic power pedestal at Marina Bay Parkway and Regatta Boulevard, replaced wiring in the traffic head on Blume Drive and Klose Way and restored lighting on the Marina trail.
Light Pole Installation
Parks and Landscaping Division:
General maintenance crews trimmed shrubs at Tiller Park, repaired irrigation at Nicholl Park, removed graffiti at LaMoine Park, trimmed trees at the Main Library, and trimmed an oak tree at Rain Cloud Park.
Hilltop District crews performed storm clean up, continued with weed abatement on Atlas Road center medians, continued maintenance around Hilltop Mall business area, and performed general maintenance around Country Club Vista and Bay Vista Parks.
Marina District crews cleaned storm debris, pruned dead shrubs from Barbara Jay Vincent parking lot, removed weeds along the Bay Trail, and prepared the planters near the beach area of the Rosie the Riveter memorial.
Weeding along the Bay Trail
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments about these or any other items of interest to you.
Have a great week!
Bill Lindsay
City Manager
City of Richmond
450 Civic Center Plaza
Richmond, California 94804
(510) 620-6512
Bill_lindsay@ci.richmond.ca.us
You can sign up to receive the City Manager’s weekly report and other information from the City of Richmond by visiting: www.ci.richmond.ca.us/list.aspx
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