Cost projections replace 60% of Piedmont mains – but only 40% are left to complete –

The City has provided cost projections for Piedmont’s sewer replacement projects that show the “worst case” (maximum) spending in all 3 of the following separate categories for sewer main replacements:

• general sewer projects
  
•  EPA “set aside”
  
• Phases V, VI, and VII 

The City has offered these projections to voters to demonstrate the need for a new sewer surcharge, Measure A.  But together these worst case projections estimate the cost of replacing 60% of the City’s sewer lines over the next 10 years, while in fact the City has only 40% of its sewer mains left to replace.  > Click to read more…

New Story Poles Required for Project Design Review-

The Planning Commission hearing on design review of the Blair Park sports field project, scheduled for February 13, 2012, has been postponed and is tentatively rescheduled for the Commission’s March meeting. > Click to read more…

    Piedmont City Council Candidate Announcements/Supporter Comments:

Margaret Fujioka

Bob McBain

Tim Rood

City Council Candidates discuss Spending Priorities, Managing Risk, Fiscal/Budget, Undergrounding,

Public Forums on City Plans, Multi-year Budgets, Park Bond Funds, Fire Department

Piedmont School Board Candidates Announcements/Supporter Comments:

Sunny Bostrom

Jon Elliott

Sarah Pearson

Rick Raushenbush

Andrea Swenson

School Board candidates discuss:  School Parcel Tax, Fiscal/Budget, Working with the City, Open Enrollment, Employee Children, Future Issues .

There is additional information on seven of the candidates at the candidate created webpages at smart voter .  Read  Quotes from Candidates on Issues.

Alameda County encourages voting by mail because it reduces expenses at the polling places, with fewer staff and less equipment required.  Tuesday, January 31, at 5 pm is the last day to request a vote by mail ballot for Piedmont’s February 7, 2012 municipal election.  Applications for vote by mail must reach the Registrar of Voters by the deadline of January 31.  The application can be downloaded and faxed to 510-272-6982.  It can also be obtained in person at:       

Registrar of Voters Office
1225 Fallon Street
Room G-1
Oakland, CA 94623

All absentee/vote by mail  ballots must be returned to the Registrar of Voters before 8 pm on Election Day.  If you already mailed your completed ballot, you can check that it  has been received by the Registrar at My Voter Profile.

For those voting in person on Tuesday, February 7, Piedmont’s polls will open at 7 am and close at 8 pm.  Your polling place and voter registration information is also at My Voter Profile.  For those without computer access, information about voting by mail, registration and polling place look-up is available by calling 510-267-8683.

In an effort to make certain all votes from the February 7 election are properly counted, on Thursday, February 9, a random 1% of the Piedmont vote will be selected for manual tabulation.  This is a requirement under section 15360 of the California Elections Code.  The result of that count will be available sometime on February 10.

At its meeting on January 18, the City Council voted unanimously to reimburse the Sewer Fund for $275,000 used for Crest Road repairs.   Piedmont residents Rick Schiller and Rob Hendrickson thoroughly investigated the payment of $275,000 from the Piedmont Sewer Fund for road repair work on Crest Road.   > Click to read more…

At its meeting on January 17, 2012, the City Council extended the moratorium on utility undergrounding districts for two more years, until March 2014. This was the Council’s first step in implementing  recommendations of  the Council’s own Audit Subcommittee and the League of Women Voters Task Force, both of which  investigated and reported on the serious and costly flaws in the City’s management of the Piedmont Hills Utility Undergrounding District.

> Click to read more…

Hidden Choices:  Draining the Sewer Fund to Fund General Fund Activities-

Where did the 2000 sewer tax increase go?

Replacement of Piedmont’s sewer mains has been a long-standing goal.  In 2000 the sewer tax was almost tripled to pay for mains replacement.  Where did the money go? > Click to read more…

Planning Commissioner Addresses Negativity in Post Letter –

One aspect of Piedmont that I’ve always felt made it a special place is that even if we disagree with one another, most of us try to do so respectfully.  We’re a small community and see one another all the time.  But that seems to have changed with the current city council race.  Many letters and opinion pieces have been > Click to read more…

Response to EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld’s letter in January 25 Piedmont Post – 

Editor’s Note: The following open letter to Piedmont residents was distributed to local news outlets including PCA.  The letter, written by an opponent of Measure A, the Sewer Surcharge, has been edited slightly to comply with PCA guidelines: > Click to read more…

News | Highlights from the January 11, 2012 School Board Meeting
by June Monach, Board Member > Click to read more…