Resident Responds to “green benefits” of sports field –

The following letter was received  from a Piedmont resident.

In the November 9 issue of the Piedmont Post, Mr. Lance Hanf, the treasurer of the Piedmont Soccer Club wrote the opinion piece “Blair Park green benefits: just do the math”  I’d like to answer that letter.  > Click to read more…

 Changes in Final Plan Call for Further EIR Analysis –

The following letter was sent to PCA on the need for a Supplemental EIR –

Eric Havian stated, “the opponents now claim that the project has fundamentally changed, requiring a new EIR.”  One opponent is evidently the City of Oakland, which stated Dec. 6, 2010:  “In conclusion, the project wholly fails to meet with CEQA’s requirements.” Oakland’s primary concern is traffic flow, and now there is a new traffic plan not analyzed under the FEIR. > Click to read more…

Group Urges City to Hire Sustainability Coordinator

The following letter was received on November 11, 2011 from a group of Piedmont residents.  NOTE: The City Council passed the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Policy at its meeting on November 7, 2011. 

Dear City Council,

We’re writing in support of the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing Policy (EPPP) coming before you on Monday, and also to ask that the City place more priority on the issue of greenhouse gas emissions reductions.  Piedmont had a lot to be proud about when the Climate Action Plan (CAP) and Environmental Task Force (ETF) > Click to read more…

Big Changes at MacArthur BART Parking Lot

Piedmonters who drive to the MacArthur BART station for their weekday commute can expect to encounter blocked entrances and a reduced parking lot size, although parking capacity will not decrease.  For the next three months or longer, up to 60% of the parking lot will be closed for the construction of a parking garage.  There will be no access from MacArthur Boulevard or Telegraph Avenue via Apgar Street.  Soon, the only access will be from eastbound 40th Street. 

In order to accommodate the same number of cars in the shrinking lot, only the north end near 40th street will remain self-park.  South of that, BART introduced weekday assisted parking* from 7am to 10pm.   > Click to read more…

Field of Dreams or Everybody’s Nightmare?

Oh Truthiness thy name is PRFO. Rolling out their new PR slogan “Blair Park is everybody’s park” along with a “rally” to celebrate the “final” plans for what will be a sports facility, NOT a park.  It is with much amusement that I read that the “rally” is not actually being held in “everybody’s” Blair Park, but in Piedmont Community Park. Is it just me, or is it odd how those who want to save the park hold rallies IN it, and those who wish to destroy it, celebrate elsewhere? > Click to read more…

Moraga Canyon has been known by various names

The local Geology website “Oakland Geology” offers photography, research and discussions of natural features in Oakland, Piedmont and Berkeley.  The following excerpts from an article on Moraga Canyon note its geologic features, alterations and various names: > Click to read more…

Tim Rood announces he will run for City Council

Dear Piedmonter,

You’ve heard from me in the past about civic issues facing Piedmont – most notably, the $2.5 million in taxpayer funds that the City spent to cover cost overruns on the Piedmont Hills utility undergrounding project, as well as issues related to safety, recreation, long-term facility planning, and open, transparent government.

I’m writing today to share some exciting news: I’m running for City Council.

Having been an active, involved resident of Piedmont for years, I’ve realized more and more that the expertise I have would be helpful on the City Council to protect and enhance Piedmont as a high quality city. As a professional city planner with decades of experience working with communities all over the country, I understand the importance of sound financial planning and a robust public process.

I believe securing the City’s long-term financial viability is key to sustaining the services and quality we enjoy.

Over the coming months, I’ll be talking with a lot of Piedmonters and visiting with community groups. I look forward to sharing ideas about how to keep Piedmont a great place to live.

Please take a few moments to visit my website, www.TimRood2012.com, where you can learn more about my views on city government and to let me know what’s important to you. I want to hear what your concerns are and what you think is working well. You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter.

If you find that your views and mine coincide, if you want to keep Piedmont a great place to live, and if you think I have the qualities to make that happen, I’d be honored if you joined my campaign.

There are many ways to get involved, from simply signing up as a supporter, to requesting a yard sign, hosting a meeting, or making a financial contribution. Just go to www.TimRood2012.com and click on “Get Involved” to get started.

And of course, please forward this email to anyone you know who may be interested.

Thanks,

-Tim

Personal Statement – Tim Rood for City Council
After living in Oakland and San Francisco for twelve years, my wife Muffy and I moved our young family to Piedmont in 2002. We were attracted to Piedmont by the high quality public schools, the convenient location, and the attractive, safe and walkable environment. We have found Piedmont to be a great place to raise our family. Our son Henry and daughter Sylvie have participated in baseball, soccer, tennis and the fine music programs at Wildwood and PMS. The fact that they can walk to school or a friend’s house, and that I can bike or take the bus to my office in downtown Oakland, also helps us meet our environmental goals as a one-car family. We enjoy walking our dog Moby in the Piedmont hills, and playing trumpet in the Piedmont Community Band in the Fourth of July parade is one of the highlights of my summer.
Not long after we moved to Piedmont, I was asked to join the board of the Piedmont Swim Club. As an architect and city planner, I was interested in helping with the long-range planning for the pool. Particularly after I was elected president of the board in 2007, the relationships I built with other board members and organizations deepened my desire to be an even more active member of the Piedmont community.  Unfortunately, the Swim Club  was unable to come to a long-term agreement with the Council to continue the public-private partnership. I’m glad we now have a public pool and that it’s more affordable than ever for swimmers, but I want to see the City take the necessary steps to maintain the aging facility and ensure adequate funding into the future.
In my professional work as a city planner, I’ve worked with city staff, boards and commissions and citizens in over 35 communities to tackle tough long-range planning issues. For example, I led the multi-disciplinary consultant team that prepared the downtown revitalization plan that Martinez adopted in 2006. There, we found common ground among Smart Growth advocates, preservationists and neighbors fearful of displacement. In Healdsburg, we’ve found consensus on a vision for a redeveloping industrial area, changes to major streets and freeway ramps, and two new full-sized, thoroughly modeled roundabouts at the entrance to town. The open, transparent processes I’ve led allowed citizens to work through these difficult issues together and create plans in which the whole community can take pride.

Because my professional work involves frequent appearances before Councils, boards and commissions, and because of the time involved in my volunteer work for the Swim Club and school committees, I initially assumed that Piedmont’s government was in the capable hands of knowledgeable and qualified citizens and focused my energies elsewhere. But I got a wake up call in 2009 and 2010. Like many Piedmonters, I was appalled to find that the City had mismanaged a utility undergrounding project so badly that over $2 million in public funds was required to cover cost overruns. I encouraged everyone I knew to speak out about the need for appropriate risk management and more careful stewardship of public funds. I’m concerned that two years later, the Council still hasn’t taken action to address these issues.

Earlier this year, I was approached about running for Council by a group of Piedmont residents with long histories of involvement in civic affairs. After discussing the fiscal and public process issues facing Piedmont, I grew concerned about the work needed to get City finances on a sustainable footing. Without concerted action by the Council, Piedmont is on a course to greater and greater deficits that threaten essential public services, even as the tax burden on families has continued to grow. This concerns me as a taxpayer, a citizen and a parent.

I’m running for Council because I care about Piedmont as a great place to live and raise a family, and I want to protect our community’s future. I care deeply about public involvement, which along with environmental sustainability is the focus of my professional practice. Having led over a hundred community workshops myself, I have seen the difference that an open, inclusive and transparent public process can make. With all the difficult issues facing Piedmont, I believe that I have the skills and energy to be a leader on the Council and help our community protect our future – together.

Tim Rood, Candidate for City Council

(The above announcements were provided by the candidate.  The Piedmont Civic Association does not endorse nor oppose candidates.)

A large crowd of Piedmonters turned out on a warm Sunday afternoon to celebrate the opening of the new Piedmont Center for the Arts, Inc.   The former Christian Science Church at 801 Magnolia Avenue has been quickly renovated with roof repairs, basement work,  window replacements, lighting, new stair railings, fresh paint, and new carpet. The renovation work was done by privately raised funds and hands-on volunteer labor. Two donated oriental carpets and a loaned 1903 baby grand piano furnished the former sanctuary.  The City landscaped the exterior grounds and completed the entire job in two-and-a-half weeks, just in time to welcome the community on Sunday, August 28, 2011.  > Click to read more…

Unanimous Committee Wants Immediate Change – Before Parcel Tax Vote

At its August 17 penultimate meeting, the Municipal Tax Review Committee (MTRC) expressed its “grave concerns” that unless the Council implements recommended steps, “not only will the parcel tax not cover planned expenditures, but also renewal itself is at risk, if the public lacks confidence in the City’s fiscal management.” 

The Committee agreed unanimously (Hollis and Weiner absent) on a final set of strong fiscal reforms to recommend to the City Council.  (A few minor changes will be made in the Committee’s final report for adoption on August 31.)  Four Committee members (Ryan Gilbert, Tam Hege, Eric Lindquist and Steve Weiner) intend to submit a “supplementary statement” (at p. 9) that requires the Council to take specific actions on fiscal reforms before they will recommend voter support of the parcel tax.  Both the unanimous report and supplementary statement propose postponing the parcel tax election from February until June or November 2012 to give the Council time to enact the recommended fiscal reforms.

Below is a summary of highlights of the MTRC’s unanimous report and the supplementary statement, presented at the August 17th meeting.  The full text of both reports has not been released. > Click to read more…

Shutting Down Mismanaged Program Costs Piedmont $146,000 – so far

The City of Piedmont has agreed to make a payment of $146,000, plus pay additional amounts in the future as needed, to shut down an organization located in Alameda County intended to provide programs to low-income residents.  The cost to fully resolve the debts and pending litigation of the Associated Community Action Program (ACAP) has not been estimated.  (Staff report of 5/2/11t; staff report of June 20, 2011, fn at p. 2.)  Piedmont’s obligation for these liabilities stems from its participation in a Joint Powers Agreement (with Alameda County and 11 other cities) creating the ACAP.

The demand for payment from Piedmont came after an Alameda County audit “confirmed the [ACAP] program has “grossly” mismanaged hundreds of thousands of dollars of grant monies and attributed the loss to lack of oversight by its governing board” according to an Oakland Tribune article.

An Alameda County audit reveals that the board only met twice in 2010, although it was required to meet at least once every 90 days.  The audit also reports that ACAP was not audited in 2010, despite the 2008 and 2009 audits showing “significant deficiencies in ACAP’s accounting controls.” > Click to read more…