The PCA posed a series of 10  questions to candidates for the Piedmont City Council in the upcoming election on February 7.   Following are the candidates’ entire responses to question #5.

 Do you support the full set of recommendations of:
– the 2011 Municipal Tax Review Committee (MTRC) on budget/fiscal issues?
– the League of Women Voters (LWV) Task Force on contract administration?
– the Audit Subcommittee on undergrounding projects?
– the City Administrator on priority for implementing these reforms?

Please identify any recommendation you do not support and state your reasons. Click to read more »

The PCA posed a series of 10  questions to candidates for the Piedmont City Council in the upcoming election on February 7.   Following are the candidates’ entire responses to question #9:

The MTRC recommends multi-year planning, would you want to start with the 2012-13 budget? Click to read more »

The PCA posed a series of 10  questions to candidates for the Piedmont City Council in the upcoming election on February 7.   Following are the candidates’ entire responses to question #6:

Would you support holding one or more public forums or town hall meetings on City plans for the future of the following public facilities?

• the East Wing of 801 Magnolia
• the Piedmont swimming pool
• future proposals for large capital improvement projects Click to read more »

The PCA posed a series of 10  questions to candidates for the Piedmont City Council in the upcoming election on February 7.   Following are the candidates’ entire responses to question #10:

The City of Piedmont is eligible for approximately $500,000 in East Bay Regional Park WW bond funds.  How would you like to see this money spent?  (Identify up to 3 projects of priority.) Click to read more »

The PCA posed a series of 10  questions to candidates for the Piedmont City Council in the upcoming election on February 7.   Following are the candidates’ entire responses to question #8:

If service quality can be maintained, would you support an independent study to determine potential savings to Piedmont by adopting the Albany fire department staffing model of paramedic and fire protection services? Click to read more »

Friends of Moraga Canyon Charges Environmental impact Report Inadequate  – 

The following press release was received  by PCA:

January 5, 2012:  A lawsuit was filed today in Alameda Superior Court against the city of Piedmont by attorneys for Friends of Moraga Canyon (FOMC), a coalition of Piedmont and Oakland residents opposed to development of privately financed sports fields in a public Piedmont park.  The lawsuit charges that the project’s environmental impact report (EIR) is fundamentally flawed and that the Piedmont City Council approved the final plan for the project in December without adequate public review of significant changes made since last August. Click to read more »

Highlights written by Board Member June Monach

Spotlight on Student Learning: 11 PHS Teachers Pursue National Board Certification –*
Supporting professional growth that improves instruction and student learning is a priority in our school district. Assistant Superintendent Randall Booker shined the spotlight on a group of PHS teachers who are currently participating in the National Board Certification process, a rigorous and collaborative process of reflecting on one’s classroom instructional practices within the context of national teaching standards. Click to read more »

Upcoming Events with City Council and School Board Candidates – Click to read more »

Forum Presents City Council, School Board Candidates, and Sewer Tax Measure –

The League of Women Voters of Piedmont will host a candidates’ forum on Thursday, January 12, 2012 at 7:30 pm in the City Council chambers in City Hall. The community is  invited to meet the candidates running for Piedmont City Council and the Board of Education. The audience also will have a chance to learn about Measure A, the sewer tax surcharge measure that will be on the February 7, 2012 municipal election ballot. Click to read more »

Demonstrators Oppose Development on Land in Clear Lake –

On Saturday, December 17, a peaceful protest was directed against a Piedmont resident. Approximately 35-45 supporters of the Elem tribe walked from Lakeview Branch Library to Piedmont Park and then up to the home of the Piedmont resident.   According to another local resident, the protest, which included supporters from Occupy Oakland, was an attempt to stop the approved development of a home on Rattlesnake Island in Clear Lake on land owned by the Indians approximately 140 years ago.  

The tribe was supported by Oakland Occupy, which announced the protest on its website as follows:  “Saturday 12 noon:  Demonstration – meet at the Grand Lake Theater and march to Piedmont to (resident’s)  home to protest vacation homes being built on sacred land at Rattlesnake Island.”   Although Occupy Oakland describes the land as “sacred” in its announcement, archeological studies determined there were no historical items on the site and it was not a burial site.

In forum discussion on the Occupy Oakland website, some individuals have urged more generalized marches on Piedmont.  See here. Protests at homes in Piedmont have occurred occasionally in the past.  The narrow streets and residential nature of most areas in Piedmont have once more raised the potential for an ordinance limiting protests to the commercial center of town.

See related article.