Streets Briefly Closed and Several homes Evacuated Thursday Morning

A fake pipe bomb in the backpack of Pablo Jesus Guardado, 36, Oakland, was “rendered safe” by the Alameda County Bomb Squad.  Also found in the backpack was an unloaded gun and two switchblade knives according to Piedmont Capt. Chris Monahan.

“Police investigating a report of a suspicious person in the area of Wildwood and Winsor avenues about 8:30 a.m. detained Guardado in the 1100 block of Warfield Avenue. …  Streets in the area were shut down and some homes evacuated while the bomb squad did its work.

< Owner of the backpack

Authorities said that “out of an abundance of caution,” Wildwood Elementary School, 301 Wildwood Ave., a few blocks away, was placed on a shelter-in-place status.”  East Bay Times

Piedmont Police Press Release:

On September 27, 2018, at approximately 8:30 a.m., Piedmont Police responded to a report of a suspicious person in the area of Wildwood Avenue at Winsor Avenue in Piedmont. Officers located the individual, detained him and located an unloaded firearm, two switchblade knives and what appeared to be an explosive device. The individual was taken into custody without further incident.

Officers cordoned off the area and immediately began evacuating nearby residences. Wildwood Elementary School was directed to shelter-in-place.

The Piedmont Police Department requested the assistance of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad. Bomb Squad technicians responded to the scene, examined the device and were able to render it safe. Although the device was made to appear to look as an explosive device it was found to not contain any explosive material. Residents and Wildwood School staff were notified of the resolution of the event and that it was safe to return to their homes and routine school activity.

Participating Piedmonters were notified about the issue.  To sign-up for future notifications follow the instructions below:

AC Alert Emergency Notifications

Your safety is our top concern – that’s why Piedmont wants to make sure you know about emergencies and incidents as they happen.

The City of Piedmont will use “AC Alert” powered by Everbridge to make sure you know about issues that may affect your safety. This system allows the City to contact thousands of residents in seconds so you can find out about an emergency right away.

Receive important messages from city officials via email, phone, and much more!

How Does It Work?
The process begins when the City of Piedmont issues a message about a potential safety hazard or concern. Next, “AC Alert” sends a message through your primary contact path. If you don’t confirm receipt of the message, the system will try to reach your second contact path and continues trying to reach you until you confirm receipt.

The success of this service relies on YOU. Having your latest contact information is the only way to ensure that we can contact you in an emergency. Please sign up – it only takes about a minute to enroll!

Thank you in advance for you cooperation and participation in this important program!

The City of Piedmont Respects Your Privacy!!

The City of Piedmont will never share or distribute your personal information, unless required to do so by law. Additionally, we will never use your information for any purpose other than to send emergency notifications or information pertaining to Piedmont.

 

Citizens of Piedmont attended the Let’s Talk Workshop that took place on Saturday, August 25, 2018,  to gain a new understanding of the community they live in and the social aspects involved.

Labor Day Weekend BART to and from Piedmont to San Francisco destinations will take longer –

BART will be making major repairs on their track and other infrastructure between the 19th Street and West Oakland stations over the Labor Day Weekend, September 1-3.  There will be no BART service between those stations.

There will be a free bus bridge provided by AC Transit between 19th Street and West Oakland, with the trip taking between 10 and 15 minutes.  The trip from Rockridge or MacArthur Station to the San Francisco airport or any other San Francisco destination should be expected to take up to 30 minutes longer than normal because of the time needed to transfer between BART stations and buses.

Riders who wish to travel across the Bay should stay on their BART train until 19th Street, take the free bus to West Oakland, and board another BART train to their West Bay destination. In the eastbound direction, passengers should get off BART at West Oakland, take the bus shuttle to 19th St., and then board another BART train.

Normal BART service will resume Tuesday morning.

Read article about the closure here.  Note that the 511 Trip Planner site is not cognizant of the closure or Bus Bridge and presents schedules that assume no interruption between 19th Street Station and West Oakland Station on BART.

New Piedmont School Year Brings Foundation Funding and Hiring Crisis at PHS –

On Tuesday, August 21st, the Piedmont School Board held its bi-monthly meeting at City Hall, kicking off the School Board meetings for the 2018 school year.

The agenda was split between the usual items at the beginning of every school year and reports on some of the issues that the School District is already facing.

The meeting began with Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) Board of Education President Sarah Pearson inviting the representative of the teachers’ union, Mr. Kessler, to deliver the union’s remarks on the upcoming school year. He brought up the “palpable energy” of the new school year, the new initiatives in the Middle School, and the excitement in the new teachers. He requested that the administration and School Board have more faith in the teachers’ methods and allow them more autonomy.

Heather Frank, Executive Director of the Piedmont Education Foundation, presented the Giving Campaign’s annual check to the Piedmont Unified School District. The check was a record-breaking $2,708,421 with $1.4 million dollars dedicated to keeping class sizes smaller.

Board Member Amal Smith commented, “Due to the fact that our state budget is being continually cut, without the efforts of the Piedmont Education Foundation, the District would simply be unable to run.”

The Board opened the Public Forum when attendees could address items not on the agenda.  Senior Casey Lane spoke about her grant request for the Diversity Awareness Club. Mentioning that teenagers are basically dogs and follow food,  and she requested that the Board consider the grant in order to continue fostering diversity in Piedmont. The Board in response thanked her for taking charge of such an important action in Piedmont High School.

As Casey was the only speaker not on the agenda, the Board took up its regular agenda with the confirmation of the new Piedmont High School Director of Athletics, Alphonso Powell.  Superintendent Randall Booker introduced Mr. Powell and commented on his vast experience in the Oakland and San Francisco school districts.  Booker ended by saying “That he was most impressed by Mr. Powell’s experience of teaching in a classroom, a rare trait for an Athletics Director.”  Unsurprisingly, the Board approved Alphonso Powell for Athletic Director on a 5-0 vote.

Superintendent Randall Booker provided the Board with insight on the teacher shortage in Piedmont. He listed nine major vacancies at the beginning of the school year and so far five of them have been filled. He explained the reason for the shortage was the exorbitant Bay Area rent, a lack of qualified teachers and every school district fighting over the few qualified candidates that are left. He ended by asking the Board for patience, as while the District could throw anyone into a classroom and call them a teacher, he is making sure that they do the necessary background checks on any candidate before hiring them.

Personally, I believe that the school hasn’t properly communicated any of the issues with hiring to the students and are focusing far too much on new long-term initiatives and not enough on our current students.  As a student, I would love more than anything else to have smaller class sizes and fewer overworked teachers.  Both problems have only worsened this year.

Before the meeting, I had interviewed Superintendent Randall Booker on the hiring crisis and asked how he was communicating the issues brought up with the Board to the students. He responded, “The administration are doing their best to email parents and students in the affected classes and provide updates.”

I then asked him about alternatives to having substitutes who are unable to teach the classes. In response, he commented that, “The school is looking for any possible part-time teachers until a permanent replacement can be found and in the worst-case scenario, the school is looking at online classes that the students can use through their Chromebooks.”  Mr. Booker’s thoughts reflect the administration’s continued efforts to try and appease parents and students, while finding qualified teachers.

On a more cheerful note, Randall Booker showed the Board a video of the first day of school at all six schools. While without a doubt the elementary school kids were cuter than the high schoolers, the video was heartwarming at every school.

The Board meeting ended with each Board Member adding their personal thoughts on the upcoming school year. Of note was Cory Smegal’s comment on Mr. Booker’s keynote presentation. She complimented him on bringing the teachers, faculty and administration together with his speech on working as one team for the children in the District.

After those comments, the Board adjourned at 8:30, managing to end a half hour early despite the busy schedule and hectic start to the school year.

By Sam Orta, Piedmont High School Senior

Piedmont Election – November 6, 2018

Candidates seeking election to the three open City Council seats are:

• Betsy Smegal Andersen – Appointed Council member
• Nancy “Sunny” Bostrom-Fleming
• Teddy Gray King -Vice Mayor – Incumbent
• Tim Rood – Council member – Incumbent  

The nomination period for City Council candidacy ended on August 10th because the two incumbents filed re-election nomination papers. 

The Board of Education Nomination Period has been extended to Wednesday, August 15th because Incumbent Doug Ireland is not seeking re-election. 

Candidates seeking election to the two School Board seats are:

• Julie A. Caskey
• Megan Pillsbury
• Amal Smith – Incumbent
• Hari Titan

Louis Wu has had nomination papers issued, but has yet to submit all qualifying nomination papers which are due on 8/15/18.

For more information on the candidates, click the link below:

> Candidate List 2018

(current as of 8/13/18)

Earthquake preparation for water lines – 

On Wednesday July 11, 2018,  an East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) District Board briefing was held at the EBMUD Administrative Building on 11th Street in downtown Oakland. Present at the meeting were EBMUD Board of Directors for three of the Wards for EBMUD local service areas: Doug Linnet, William B. Patterson, and Marguerite Young.  Invited Guests present at the meeting included other EBMUD representatives, elected officials, local media (including PCA), and other community leaders. Director Marguerite Young is the elected representation of Ward 3, the local service area which includes the City of Piedmont.

Much of the briefing focused on many of the general issues that confront the east bay with regards to water and water waste. In terms of the ongoing drought, Director of Operations and Maintenance, Clifford Chan says that the end of year water storage and reservoirs look good and healthy.

Issues included recapping on certain projects in the area, like a 7 million dollar odor reduction operation that was just completed on the water treatment plant beside Interstate Highway 80. This insures a reduction in the strong odors that drift across the highway and into the Target store and other shopping centers in the Emeryville area. This accompanies other projects that EBMUD has taken on.

During the 2017-2018 year EBMUD has begun the process of replacing old transmission pipelines. Several of these pipeline replacements will take place in EBMUD Ward 3 and will have an effect on daily activity in Piedmont. One such case is the replacement of an 88-year-old pipeline that runs beneath Grand Avenue on a stretch between Arroyo Avenue and Oakland Avenue. The construction on Grand Ave will force some lane closures, but EBMUD says it will maintain two way traffic at all times. In case of water service interruption, residents will be notified either in person or with a door hanger.

Several of the replacement projects in Ward 3 will have pipes rebuilt to withstand seismic activity like pipes running through Berkeley and Oakland that are built near or on the Hayward fault line such as a new pipeline that is running by Cal Memorial Stadium and beneath Highway 24, which services water through Berkeley, Oakland, and Piedmont. This line near the fault line will need to be engineered to withstand a large earthquake within a close proximity.

by Joe Creason, Journalism Intern

Council would hire, but could not fire.

Facing a strong Administrative staff proposal to diminish the Piedmont City Council’s authority and control, the Council appeared confused, lacking clarity or direction.  Council members questioned issues as basic as whether the Council or the City Administrator should hire and fire the City’s top managers – Police Chief, Fire Chief, Finance Director, etc.

The City Council had paid little attention to the City Charter until there was a desire to accumulate ever greater amounts of revenue in reserve, without clear and specific purposes.

Overriding the unlimited reserve issue became the Administrative staff desire to change how Piedmont is governed. 

The review and changes to the City Charter had been pushed by former and resigned mayor, Jeff Weiler, who wanted the City to not only have a permanent, potentially escalating parcel tax, but who wanted the City to garner and retain in the General Fund Reserves unlimited amounts of revenue.

The City Council asked the Administrative staff to look at the City Charter and propose changes.   The Council was eager to allow the staff to construct their proposals independent of Council originated ideas. Individual Council members were to privately, outside of Council meetings,  submit to the City Administrator Charter changes they wanted.

The Administrative staff came up with a monumental proposed change to Piedmont’s long-held system of governance. The Charter changes proposed will significantly reduce Piedmont’s City Council’s long-held authority and Council responsibility for City services.

City Administrator, Paul Benoit, proposed that the City Council should no longer appoint top Department Heads, Police Chief, Fire Chief, Finance Director, Public Works Director, etc., he, the City Administrator, should have complete hiring and firing authority.

The Council did not totally accept Benoit’s proposal and chose to continue their long-held practice of hiring key positions.  The Council however, relented on Benoit’s proposal to allow him, the City Administrator, to be the sole individual authorized to fire key staff members hired by the Council.

The Council, in deference to Benoit, who is well liked by the Council, was also willing to forfeit their right as a Council to direct the Police Chief, Fire Chief, etc.  The Charter revisions as proposed will require all Council direction to go through the City Administrator, even if the Administrator position is vacated or terminated.  If there is a conflict with the City Administrator and a Council hire, the only choice the Council will have is to fire the City Administrator.

Mayor Bob McBain wanted to totally relinquish to the City Administrator the Council’s hiring and firing authority, but this was not supported by other Council members.

The City Administrator proposed governance is a form of governance traditionally found in cities with directly elected mayors who have more executive authority than Piedmont’s largely ceremonial Council-selected mayor, rotating among  their members with limited powers as set out in the City Charter. 

Council questions regarding Charter language stating the Council has authority “to direct” their appointees led to further Council confusion.  Despite specific existing language in the City Charter stating Council members as individuals are not allowed to direct staff members, Benoit argued he did not want the Council as a whole to be able to direct staff members even during Council meetings or emergency situations.

Individual Council members have been known to direct staff without the knowledge of the Council as a whole perhaps encouraged by a City Administrator.  It can be easier and faster for an administrator to gain direction from one person, a Council member, the mayor, than from a majority of the Council as required by the City Charter. 

The City Council and the City Administration, including the City Attorney, in recent years have not been attentive to the intent or language in the City Charter.  Since Piedmont’s long-term attorney retired, a great amount of knowledge on the City Charter has apparently been lost or ignored.

In considering proposals for changing Piedmont’s City Charter, the City Council has held a number of poorly attended, fragmented public meetings.  No independent committee, as in previous years, was formed to carefully consider the complex and important City Charter despite a number of citizen requests. Because of various voids in the questionable proposals, it is obvious  the entire Charter was not carefully considered nor discussed leaving many questioning the process and the proposals.

Significant current issues were never considered during the Council Charter review process. 

Some examples are:

• requirement for voters to make zoning changes
• borrowing money for more than one year
• Council officer vacancies
• bid advertisements and notifications

The Council agenda for Monday night appears to acknowledge that the Council, City Administrator, and City Attorney have not upheld Piedmont’s City Charter. 

The Council agenda items for the Monday, July 16, 2018 meeting rebuffs the City Charter when it states “Conform to Modern Practice.”  No one would want the City Charter to perpetuate unlawful practices; however, “Modern Practices” infers and confirms non-compliance with Piedmont’s long successful and practical City Charter.  Prime examples of ignoring the Charter are the usurpation of Council authority, borrowing money, and negation of voter approval for zoning changes.

The Council decided to separate the governance issue from the remainder of the Charter revision proposals after sensing the potential opposition to turning over long-held Council authority to the City Administrator.  Piedmont voters will find little transparency in the attempt to change Piedmont governance as noted in the staff report below:

Amendments to the City Charter to Clarify the Reporting Structure for Officers of the City, Clarify the Departments Responsible for Maintenance of Park Lands and Recreational Facilities, and Make Other Amendments to Conform the Charter to Modern Practice 

 Council dropped notion of unlimited General Fund Reserves.

When Kathleen Quenneville, a local authority on civic governance, told the Council that the Charter proposal to eliminate the cap on General Fund Reserves would not be supported by voters, the Council promptly removed the proposal, as it is their desire to not initiate opposition to Council proposals since a prospective voter approved future facilities bond measure is being considered.  Concern was expressed by Council members wanting to keep voters positive about Council actions and proposals, leading to the unlimited General Fund Reserves being dropped, and the separation of City Administration governance from other proposals.

This article does not describe the many other proposals suggested by the Council, however urgency does not appear to be present.  Items continuing to be of concern are:

• Inconsistencies between the School Board and Council elections – School Board members could seek re-election after sitting out for 4 years, whereas City Council members must sit out for 8 years, unknown in other communities
• Extension of time to fill Council vacancies from 30 days to 60 days

The Charter change matter will be considered by the Council at 7:30 p.m., Monday, July 16, 2018 in City Hall, 120 Vista Avenue.  The meeting will be broadcast live on Cable Channel 27 and from the City website under videos.

Comments can be made to the City Council as below:

Robert McBain, Mayor	rmcbain@piedmont.ca.gov	(510) 420-3048	2nd Term Exp. 11/20
Teddy Gray King, Vice Mayor	tking@piedmont.ca.gov	(510) 420-3048	1st Term Exp. 11/18
Jennifer Cavenaugh	jcavenaugh@piedmont.ca.gov	(510) 420-3048	1st Term Exp. 11/20
Tim Rood	trood@piedmont.ca.gov	(510) 239-7663	1st Term Exp. 11/18
Betsy Smegal Andersen	bandersen@piedmont.ca.gov	(510) 420-3048	Unexpired Term Exp. 11/18

Below are the staff reports: 

07/16/18 – Consideration of the Following Actions Related to the Possible Amendment of the City Charter

a. Approval of a Resolution and Measure Proposing Amendments to the City Charter to Modify Term Limits for the City Council, Modify the Procedures for Filling of Vacancies in Elected Offices, and Make Other Amendments to Conform the Charter to Modern Practice

b. Approval of a Resolution and Measure Proposing Amendments to the City Charter to Clarify the Reporting Structure for Officers of the City, Clarify the Departments Responsible for Maintenance of Park Lands and Recreational Facilities, and Make Other Amendments to Conform the Charter to Modern Practice 

07/16/18 – Consideration of Options Regarding a Direct Argument and a Rebuttal Argument Regarding the Charter Amendment Measure on the November 6, 2018 Ballot