Saturday, July 31, 2010

Unlicensed contractors cited in undercover sting

Bay City News
Thursday, July 29, 2010

Eleven workers were cited last week when state and local officials conducted an undercover sting in Pacifica aimed at unlicensed contractors, according to the Contractors State License Board

A CSLB fraud team and the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office participated in the July 22 operation, in which officers posed as homeowners inviting bids on work such as painting, landscaping and concrete work. 

According to state law, home improvement jobs with a value greater than $500 for labor and materials must be completed by workers with a state contractor's license.

In the sting, those who bid more than $500 for a job were cited and face a misdemeanor charge of contracting without a license. Eight of the 11 suspects cited also face charges of illegal advertising, according to the CSLB.

"Unlawful contractors are a huge part of California's underground economy and fail to follow California contracting laws," CSLB registrar Steve Sands said in a statement.

"Homeowners may end up paying twice as much for a job if the person demands an illegally high down payment before starting a job or abandons the project before it's completed." 

Submitted by Jim Alex

Friday, July 30, 2010

Any suggestions for trails runs and dinner in Pacifica for 20+ people?


I coach a HS boys cross country team and we are planning to run in the Stanford Invitational this Sept. I chose Pacifica so the kids can see a little of everything. It would be easy to get a cheap hotel off the interstate in Palo Alto, but this could be a once in a lifetime deal, so Pacifica here we come! We will have some time to see San Fran the day before we race and do some touristy things. Thinking of Fishermans Wharf, taking a cable car to Niketown, having dinner at Ciopinno's and just general sight seeing

My questions, #1 does anyone know where we could get in some easy trail runs around the Holiday Inn Express before and after we compete? Some typical "in the pines" type trail runs? (we could drive a few min. if we need too)

#2 Where could 20+ people dine fairly close to Pacifica after the race Saturday night (the race is late in the afternoon and we will want to take it easy)

#3 Any idea what to expect on weather? Last year the race was run in 100+ temps...inland at Stanford. Is that typical? What can we expect back by the beach?

Posted by Steve Sinai

Thursday, July 29, 2010

The Pacifica election cycle has started


Here we go again. For 3 years and 9 months, Councilmembers Digre, Lancelle and Vreeland totally neglect the city's economy so they can indulge their obsession with trails, snowy plovers, and "save the world" projects;  do all they can to make life hell for Pacifica businesses; and drive away anyone who considers opening up a business in town. Then, for the 3 months leading up to the election, they talk crap about being pro-business and how they've got a great plan to promote Pacifica's economy. 

They did the same thing four years ago. Remember Pete DeJarnatt's proud campaign boast in 2008, claiming his economic stewardship resulted in a $7+ million surplus? And then, "surprise, surprise, surprise" - after the election it was determined that the $7+ million surplus didn't really exist, and we were told that Pete "misspoke." What a con man.

Actions speak louder than words. The three incumbents up for re-election have all been on council for eight years or more, and other than coming up with silly slogans like "Our Environment is our Economy," can anyone point to anything they've done that's tangibly improved the city's economic situation?


From the Mayor: Pacifica's economic development
Updated: 07/29/2010 06:10:03 AM PDT

Pacificans are invited to participate in three subcommittees that are part of the city of Pacifica's Economic Development Committee. The next meeting is 6 p.m. Aug. 10 in the conference room at the Police Department, 2075 Cabrillo Highway. 

The subcommittees are tasked with improving customer service ( city permits, etc.), assisting businesses and marketing Pacifica. For more information or to sign up, contact me at Digres@ci.pacifica.ca.us or leave your name at my City Hall mailbox. 

The work plan of the Economic Committee, which was approved by the City Council in January of this year involves the following goals and objectives: 
Objective No. 1 — Review and develop plans to improve customer service in departments interfacing with current and potential Pacifica businesses 
Streamline permit process for the opening of a new business or events 
•Develop a questionnaire for those that have been through the current process recently, establish strengths or weakness of current process. 
•Explore the potential for development of an on-line project status report tool. 
•Research other city's processes to identify best practices that might be used in Pacifica. 
•Work with the City Manager to consider the assignment of a liaison to assist the applicant with the permit process. 
•Establish a defined and easy to follow rule set and application procedure for non-permanent facilities to be used during an event. 

Read more...


Posted by Steve Sinai

Pacifica's finest criminal?


2 held in $2.6 million theft from software firm

Kelly Zito, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Copyright San Francisco Chronicle. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
(07-28) 18:05 PDT SAN FRANCISCO -- Two Bay Area women were arrested and charged with embezzlement Wednesday after allegedly writing $2.6 million in bonus checks to themselves over a four-year period at a San Francisco software company, prosecutors said.

The investigation started shortly after one of the women, Maria Lourdes B. Dionisio, 46, of Pacifica, filed for unemployment insurance in May after she was fired from the firm for unrelated reasons. Dionisio listed annual pay of nearly $450,000, far above her $63,000 salary, San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris said.

Dionisio was a payroll clerk at Autonomy Inc., a business software company whose customers include Coca-Cola, FedEx and Lockheed Martin. Investigators say Dionisio and Autonomy financial analyst Hannah Yau, 56, of Fremont, each pocketed about $1.3 million by capitalizing on their positions overseeing payroll transactions.

"Essentially, these were foxes guarding the henhouse," Harris said during a news conference announcing the charges.

Both women are accused of felony grand theft and embezzlement. Dionisio also faces felony computer use crimes.

Investigators said they are freezing some of the women's assets and examining their finances to determine what became of the money.

Dionisio and Yau are being held in San Francisco County Jail. Bail for each was set at $1 million.

E-mail Kelly Zito at kzito@sfchronicle.com



Submitted by Jim Alex

Assemblyman Jerry Hill at Mazzetti's this Saturday, 8-10 AM



Problems viewing this E-Alert, click here.
Assemblymember Jerry Hill - Representing the 19th District


Please join me on Saturday, July 31 for an opportunity to share your thoughts and ideas on issues affecting our state and our community. From 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. I will be in Pacifica for another "Java with Jerry," then from 10:30 a.m. until noon you are invited to join me in Half Moon Bay at the Coastside Farmers' Market where I will be hosting "Community Office Hours." I hope to see you there.
Java with Jerry
Saturday, July 31
8 a.m. - 10 a.m.
Mazzetti's Bakery,
101 Manor Drive, Pacifica
Please join me for a cup of coffee and conversation. You are welcome to sit down and stay awhile or just drop in for a brief chat. No appointment is necessary. I'll provide the coffee at no taxpayer expense.
I'll be discussing the state budget impasse and the various proposals being negotiated in Sacramento to balance the $19 billion deficit. As budget negotiations continue, I would like your feedback on the various proposals. Please click here to take my constituent budget survey.
Community Office Hours
Saturday, July 31
10:30 a.m. - Noon
Coastside Farmers' Market
225 Cabrillo Highway South at Shoreline Station
Following "Java with Jerry," I will be holding community office hours at the information booth at the Coastside Farmers' Market, located at Shoreline Station. Bring your thoughts and ideas on issues affecting our state and community.
My staff and I will be available to help you with state-related programs such as renters/homeowners assistance programs, consumer complaints, veterans' affairs, unemployment and disability insurance, State Franchise Tax Board matters, tax relief programs, and various government forms.
For more information, visit www.asm.ca.gov/hill or call my District Office at (650) 349-1900.
Sincerely,

Jerry Hill






 

Capitol Office:
State Capitol
P.O. Box 942849
Sacramento, CA 94249-0019
Tel: (916) 319-2019
Fax: (916) 319-2119
District Office:
1528 South El Camino Real
Suite 302
San Mateo, CA 94402

Tel: (650) 349-1900
Fax: (650) 341-4676




Hunters Point Shipyard Redevelopment - big clean-up first

10,500 new houses, 10,000 jobs, 3 million square feet office space for green technology.

People all over the bay area drive through Pacifica. If we were a destination, some of these people would stop, visit and spend money here. As it is even our city dwellers drive out-of-town.  Will leadership in this city ever get smarter? Text and video from SF Gate 7/28/10.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Livability Center


Connecting the dots - vision for Beach Blvd/Palmetto Avenue
 

Here's the plan you didn't hear about, although you'd be expected to pay for it.

The plan: The Livability Center.  "Extreme Recycling:  The Pacifica (old) Wastewater Treatment Plant Transformed into a Center for Sustainable Living", "concept overview" report from Kelley Rajala, 3/2006 produced for The Livability Project. This center for old and young hippies is described as "... "a vision and world-class example of sustainability for the future...a trail-blazing hub for green commerce...the best attributes of public service, social enterprise and the commercial rigors of the private sector (page 2)...a destination for visitors..children..dogs" (page 3).  The total project completion: 3 years to build "if we all work together as a true community in a collaborative manner," (page 3), sure we'll do that.  

"Who is going to finance this type of project?  We will.  This project will be funded by Pacifica residents using the Pacifica Community Investment Fund," (page 3). Oops. "Who will own it?  The Center will be owned collaboratively by the city, the business owners and the community who invest in the project," (page 3). Double oops. 

Commentary. The proposed "Center for Sustainable Living" project report is not timid in concept or language, and
the vision report stands boldly on The Livability (communities) Project website, (second item under Pacifica).  Seemingly there is indication that city approval for such a project could be considered and acceptable at Beach Blvd/Palmetto Avenue.  And, we continue to hear the mantra of "public-private partnerships" from 8 year city councilmembers, particularly from Councilmember Vreeland.

"Public-private partnerships" was the paradigm "negotiation tool" used by city council sub-committee members Vreeland and Lancelle (post Measure L), which caused Peebles Corporation to walk away 3/09.  Follow-up comments from Councilmember Vreeland amounted to "good, now we can do it our way, and pursue public-private partnerships in the quarry." Apparently "public-private partnerships" was also the initial proposed arrangement for the biodiesel plant fiasco: "Whole Energy is one-third of a partnership that also includes the city and a local nonprofit, Livability Project, whose members introduced the idea of a local plant," article from Sasha Vasilyuk, examiner.com 12/05/2007.
 
When I attended the city consultant
Palmetto streetscape presentation 1/09,  the audience turn-out was about 85% "nothing for Pacifica city council friends", and there was only a few follow-up questions asked by them. At that time I wondered why.  Now the dots seem to connect to the "The Livability Center concept", another potential "pet project" for this city council. 

Posted by Kathy Meeh
 

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Magnitude 3.2 - OFFSHORE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA


http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsus/Quakes/nc71436076.php

Submitted by Jim Alex

Bell Council accepts resignations of 3 managers

By JOHN ROGERS, Associated Press Writer
 
Jae C. Hong / AP
People chat as they wait in line for food outside Bell Food Station in Bell, Calif., Thursday, July 22, 2010. The City Council in this small Los Angeles suburb is meeting Thursday to consider firing the police chief and two top administrators over their huge salaries, including Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo who makes more than $787,000 a year, nearly twice the salary of President Barack Obama. Revelations about the pay in Bell has sparked anger in this blue-collar town that is one of the poorest in Los Angeles County. The council also will consider firing Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia, who makes $376,288 a year, and Police Chief Randy Adams, whose annual salary of $457,000 is 50 percent more than that of Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck.
 
(07-23) 05:40 PDT Bell, Calif. (AP) --
Three administrators whose huge salaries sparked outrage in this small blue-collar suburb of Los Angeles have agreed to resign, the City Council said Friday.
Council members emerged from an hours-long closed session at midnight Friday and announced that they'd accepted the resignations of Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo, Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia and Police Chief Randy Adams.
Rizzo was the highest paid at $787,637 a year — nearly twice the pay of President Barack Obama — for overseeing one of the poorest towns in Los Angeles County.
Spaccia makes $376,288 a year and Adams earns $457,000, 50 percent more than Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck.
The three will not receive severance packages, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday. Rizzo will step down at the end of August and Spaccia will leave at the end of September. Adams will also leave at the end of August, after completing an evaluation of the police department, the Times said.
"I'm happy that they resigned but I'm disappointed at the pension that they're going to receive," said Ali Saleh, a member of the Bell Association to Stop the Abuse or BASTA.
Rizzo would be entitled to a state pension of more than $650,000 a year for life, according to calculations made by the Times. That would make Rizzo, 56, the highest-paid retiree in the state pension system.
Adams could get more than $411,000 a year.
Spaccia, 51, could be eligible for as much as $250,000 a year when she reaches 55, though the figure is less precise than for the other two officials, the Times said.
Saleh said the crowd applauded after the announcement but immediately yelled out questions about what would happen to the council members. Four of the five of them are paid close to $100,000 annually for part-time work. When the crowd's questions were not answered, they shouted, "Recall!, Recall!"
Revelations about the pay in Bell has sparked anger in the city of fewer than 40,000 residents. Census figures from 2008 show 17 percent of the population lives in poverty.
Enraged residents have staged protests demanding the firings and started a recall campaign against some council members.
"Woo-hoo, the salaries. Wow. What can I say? I think that's unbelievable," Christina Caldera, a 20-year resident of the city, said as she stood in line at a food bank.
Caldera, who is struggling after recently losing her job as a drug and alcohol counselor, said she generally was satisfied with the way the city was being run but felt high-paid officials should take a pay cut.
"What are they doing with all that money?" she asked. "Maybe they could put it into more jobs for other people."
Attempts to leave messages seeking comment from Rizzo and Spaccia failed because their voicemails were full. A message left for Adams was not immediately returned.
The county district attorney's office is investigating to determine if the high salaries for the council members violate any state laws. The City Council also intends to review city salaries, including those of its own members, according to Councilman Luis Artiga and Mayor Oscar Hernandez.
"We are going to analyze all the city payrolls and possibly will revise all the salaries of the city," Artiga said.
However, both men said they considered the City Council pay to be justified.
"We work a lot. I work with my community every day," the mayor said, as he shook hands with and embraced people leaving the food bank Thursday.
Council members are on call around the clock, and it is not uncommon for them to take calls in the middle of the night from people reporting problems with city services, Artiga said.
Though many residents are poor, Hernandez said they live in a city they can be proud of, one with a $22.7 million budget surplus, clean streets, refurbished parks and numerous programs for people of all ages. He pointed proudly down a street to a park filled with new exercise equipment.
When Rizzo arrived 17 years ago, Hernandez said, the city was $13 million in debt and on the verge of bankruptcy. Rizzo obtained government grants to aid the city, the mayor said.
Rizzo was arrested near his home in Huntington Beach in March and charged with misdemeanor drunken driving. He pleaded not guilty and is due back in court for an Aug. 5 hearing, said Farrah Emami, a spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney's office.
The Los Angeles Times reported the salaries last week, prompting a large protest Monday at City Hall in which residents shouted and demanded that Rizzo be fired.
California Attorney General Jerry Brown said his office has launched an investigation in conjunction with the state's public employee retirement agency into pension and related benefits for Bell's civic leaders.


Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/07/22/national/a092354D02.DTL&tsp=1#ixzz0uWdWGj9y

Submitted by Jim Alex

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Crews Make Progress On Devil's Slide Tunnel - KPIX Report


The Highway 1 tunnel at Devil's Slide is nearing a major milestone. After three years of digging, crews are almost done tunneling.

500 feet below San Pedro Mountain, engineers have been digging their way through the mountain as part of the $350 million project. Crews are within 300 feet of the end of the tunnel wall and hope to punch through in the next 90 days.

Commuters have been waiting 25 years to bypass the crumbling cliff side along the San Mateo Coast, and a little more than a year from now, drivers will zoom through the new tunnel.

Our video report has more.


http://cbs5.com/local/devils.slide.tunnel.2.1820387.html

Posted by Steve Sinai

City Council meeting agenda for July 27, 2010


http://www.cityofpacifica.org/civica/filebank/blobdload.asp?BlobID=3907

Submitted by Jim Alex

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Owner misses deadline for plan to save Pacifica cliff apartments

By Julia Scott
San Mateo County Times
Updated: 07/20/2010 11:14:26 PM PDT
 
Cliffside apartment building owner Millard Tong failed to meet a deadline to submit a timeline for repairs to the cliff behind his evacuated building Monday, but building officials said they don't plan to enforce it. 

When the city emptied 320 Esplanade Ave. on April 29 because tenants were living in a dangerous building at the edge of an eroding cliff, officials slapped Tong with a notice of violation requiring him to submit a timeline on how to save the building or choose to demolish it. The initial deadline was May 28. It was extended, at Tong's request, until June 17 and then again to July 19.

In June, Tong's representative warned the city that he had not yet found an affordable way to stabilize the upper portion of the 80-foot seaside cliff, which lost heavy chunks of sandy soil this winter. He said there would be headway by July, but so far no plan has emerged.

Pacifica building official Doug Rider said that as long as the building stays empty, and no one's life is in danger, missing the deadline wasn't that important.

"Their indication is that they intend to continue in the process to save the buildings. We're trying give them as much room as we can justify," Rider said.

He has previously said the city could face a lawsuit if it moves too quickly to condemn 320 as well as 330 Esplanade, which was evacuated in December.

"The next step would be to condemn the property and then to tear it down," Rider said. "That's a horrible thing, OK? So all this is bad unless they fix it."

Both Tong and Farshid Samsami, owner of 330 Esplanade, are struggling to come up with a way to finance an elaborate cliff repair expected to cost $1.5 million to $3 million.

The owners have already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on temporary fixes like rip rap — heavy rock placed at the bottom of the cliff to deflect the waves. In January, Samsami paid an engineering firm to install a reinforced concrete wall along the cliff but stopped the work three months later.

Both men have also been sued for unpaid bills by the firm that did the cliff work, Engineered Soil Repairs Inc.

On Monday, ESR sued Samsami for $589,589 for work done since 2008. The firm asked a court to place a lien against the apartment building in April. The lawsuit asks the court to seize the building and try to sell it to pay off its bills. ESR also sued Tong for $1.8 million in unpaid construction bills in May.

Samsami said ESR could expect a counter-lawsuit soon. 

Read more...

Submitted by Jim Alex


Important - Last chance to improve our highway!


Write your support letter email to San Mateo County Transit Authority smcta_feedback@smcta.com
 
Cut-off is Thursday, July 22, 2010, 5 pm. Be sure to add your name, address, and phone number.  

Dear Transportation Authority:  As a 35 year resident of Pacifica and lifelong resident of San Mateo County we have been waiting for the repair and upgrade of the outdated Calera Parkway section of Roadway One between Fassler Avenue and Fairway Park/Sharp Park Road for many years (you can't actually call it a Highway). My office is in the Rockaway Beach District of Pacifica and having to witness the traffic and being stuck in that traffic to get from my location to anywhere in the afternoon is horrendous and getting worse. But that is not the worst part. Witnessing an emergency vehicle trying to navigate this outdated stretch of road in the afternoon or morning is quite fascinating. I just hope no one I know has to be on the receiving end of an emergency ambulance, firetruck, or police car at that time of day or from 7:30-9:00 in the morning. To make matters even worse for me individually I live at the top of Fassler Avenue in the Saltaire Development and my wife and I are stuck trying to get through the obsolete stoplight on Highway 1 at the bottom to make a right or left on to Cabrillo Roadway. 

The people against improvement are the same types of individuals against any type of improvement and are the same names surfacing on the Coastside in local hearings against any type of development because of their own selfish reasons. 
Anyone with a modicum of foresight knows that when those tunnels south of Pacifica on Devil's Slide open there will be an automatic vehicle influx of not only commuters but people using those tunnels for the beautiful drive down the Coast. Now factor in the invitation to recreational users when the stretch of old Highway 1 (Cabrillo Hwy.) is used for various activities. Remember San Francisco & Daly City are only a few minutes away.

Now the simple logistics tell us that when you have a world class freeway (280) to the North and the biggest tunnel project since the Caldecott to the South of Pacifica we will effectively be squeezed in the middle like an accordion if this project does not move forward. There is a double benefit; truly an investment in Pacifica's future and citizen safety. Do not accept this anti-improvement madness.

Posted by Bill Haskins

Sharp Survives San Francisco's Budget Battle ; Supes vote-down the Rec & Park Charter Amendment; Thanks

 Hello everyone,

This dispatch just in from our SF colleague in the "Golf War", Richard Harris, of the SF Public Golf Alliance:

 
1.  Sharp Survives San Francisco's Budget Battle.  


The SF Board of Supervisors on Tuesday July 20 adopted a final 2010-2011 budget that leaves intact funding for Sharp Park Golf Course.  The vote was 10-1 to adopt the budget, with only Supervisor Daly objecting.  The Sharp Park issue was not publicly mentioned by any Board member in the Full Board's deliberations. 
 
Golf opponents, led by the Center for Biological Diversity, raised their close-the-golf-course-to-raise-money-for-parks-and-social-welfare-programs argument in public hearings in April, May, and June at the Board's Budget Committee; they were supported by a coalition of social services providers and some environmental organizations and a journalistic hit piece, "Bleeding Green," which appeared on the cover of the June 2 edition of the SF Weekly.

But, the Public Golf Alliance members, and its allies the Pacifica Community Coalition To Save Sharp Park Golf Course (PCC) and the Sharp Park Golf Club, fought back, with nearly 150 letters and e-mails to the Supervisors, and also a dozen stalwart golf supporters who, on June 21, stood patiently waiting through a 5-hour Budget Committee meeting to give public testimony in support of the golf course.  At the end of the day, the Supervisors agreed that it made no sense to close Sharp Park Golf Course. 
 
Since April, 2009, when Supervisor Mirkarimi opened the "Close-Sharp-Park Golf Course" Campaign with a Board Resolution to study possible closure of the golf course, the "Save Sharp Park Golf Course" campaign has won the support of the Cultural Landscape Foundation, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Northern California Golf Association, World Golf Foundation, the Pacifica City Council, San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, Sons-in-Retirement(SIR), Pacifica Chamber of Commerce, Sierra Club Loma Prieta Chapter, Laborers' Local 261, and 4,500 new members of the Public Golf Alliance.  The SF Board of Supervisors now joins the SF Recreation and Park Commission and the SF Park, Recreation and Open Space Advisory Committee(PROSAC), as San Francisco governmental bodies that have heard and rejected the "close-the-golf-course" arguments of the Center for Biological Diversity and its allies. 
 
2.  SF Supervisors Reject Proposed Charter Amendment to Change Selection Process for Rec & Park Commission.


By a 6-5 vote, the Supervisors on Tuesday night also rejected a proposed Charter Amendment that would have split appointment-authority over the SF Recreation and Park Commission members between the Mayor's office and the Board of Supervisors. 

Commission members are currently, and historically, all appointed by the Mayor.

This means that this proposed charter amendment will not be placed by the Board on the November, 2010 election ballot.  Both the SF Public Golf Alliance and the Neighborhood Parks Council wrote letters opposing the proposed charter amendment.  Voting against the amendment were Supervisors David Chiu, Carmen Chu, Sean Elsbernd, Sophie Maxwell, Bevan Dufty, and Michaela Alioto-Pier; in favor were Supervisors Ross Mirkarimi, Chris Daly, David Campos, Eric Mar, and John Avalos.
 

  ~Richard Harris

ALL THREE GOLF COURSE ADVOCATE GROUPS WISH TO EXPRESS THEIR THANKS TO ALL WHO HAVE WRITTEN LETTERS AND E-MAILS, ATTENDED PUBLIC MEETINGS, AND DONATED
TIME, MONEY, EXPERTISE, IN THE CONTINUING EFFORT TO SAVE SHARP PARK GOLF COURSE.
 
Richard Harris                    Barbara Arietta
Co-Chair                            Chair
SF Public Golf Alliance       Pacifica Community Coalition To Save Sharp Park Golf Course (PCC)
415-392-5431, ext 203         415-246-0775
 
Dave Diller
President
Sharp Park Golf Club
Ddill49@aol.com

Submitted by Barbara Arietta

                     

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Residents irate as Bell council requests report on salaries


Community groups were demanding the resignation of Bell's city council members, most of whom make $100,000 a year; police chief, who makes $457,000; and city manager, who makes $787,637.


A Bell councilman said Monday that he didn't know his salary was $90,000 a year less than his colleagues' nor that some city administrators made far more than that, until The Times reported that the district attorney's office was investigating why the pay was so high for the part-time positions.

Councilman Lorenzo Velez said he is being paid $8,076 a year, while his colleagues are drawing nearly $100,000 annually.

Ahead of Monday night's council meeting, Velez called for an investigation, saying that if The Times' report is true, the city manager, assistant city manager, police chief and entire council should resign.

The Times reported that Bell's Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo was earning $787,637 annually, twice as much as President Obama; Police Chief Randy Adams was earning $457,000 a year, 50% more than Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck; and Assistant City Manager Angela Spaccia was earning $376,288, more than most city managers.

Hundreds of angry residents attended Monday night's council meeting, expecting that officials would take action against Rizzo. Earlier in the day, Vice Mayor Teresa Jacobo said she expected Rizzo to resign or be fired at the meeting.

Instead the council, citing legal concerns, ordered a staff report on city salaries, sparking outrage from spectators.


Read more...

Posted by Steve Sinai

Keep your clothes on


Wouldn't this be a welcome change. How would the "rules" on oral communications handle this?


Tue Jul 20, 4:49 am ET
BOULDER, Colo. – Civil rights advocates in Colorado are urging a city council to reconsider a set of proposed roles that would bar people from taking off their clothes, stomping their feet and shouting at council meetings.
Boulder's so-called "rules of decorum" were inspired by an incident earlier this year when a man stripped down to his boxer shorts while speaking before the council. He was protesting a proposed anti-nudity law.
The proposed rules would also prohibit people from addressing comments toward individual council members, jeering or otherwise disrupting a meeting. The mayor would have the authority to remove people from the room if they're thought to have violated any of the rules.
The Boulder County chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union has criticized the measure as too vague.
___
Information from: Daily Camera, http://www.dailycamera.com/

Jim Wagner

Monday, July 19, 2010

Check our Mercurius Biofuels


Looks like Whole Energy had to change the name.

Submitted by Jim Alex

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Another Pacifica discussion on TripAdvisor



http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g60713-i30-k3779588-Travelling_from_Pacifica_to_the_City_advice_please-San_Francisco_California.html

Posted by Steve Sinai

Another lawsuit against the City Of Pacifica


http://openaccess1.sanmateocourt.org/getpdf/pdftemp/2010071710085616023/A-0000132830-1.pdf

Submitted by Jim Alex

No more registration required for comments


I've eliminated the registration requirement for commenting. The reduction in comments was obvious, and I've been getting emails telling me the registration process was confusing.

As always, comments will be displayed immediately after posting, and liberals and conservatives can continue to accuse each other of being Nazis and Marxists out to destroy America.   But if I come across comments that I consider to be either 1) personal attacks against individual blog participants; or 2) attempts to turn conversations into grade-school playground brawls, those comments will be deleted.

Any submissions or articles sent to fixpacifica@gmail.com will still require your name.

Posted by Steve Sinai

Friday, July 16, 2010

His name is Jim Vreeland, and he was the Mayor of Pacifica




Posted by Steve Sinai.

Cool site, cool stuff to be auctioned



Our own, Dave "The Duke" Sholin will be one of the auctioneers.

http://www.californiahistoricalradio.com/

Submitted by Jim Wagner

Driving through Pacifica - "its not that easy being green"

From  "Linda Mar Highway 1", letters-to-the-editor, Pacifica Tribune 7/13/10
Video  "The 1.3 mile message"


I read the letters covering the SMCTA meeting of June 22nd and have to disagree with the letter writers. These letters had a decided bias, in some cases so decided that they looked like they decided what they were going to write even before attending the meeting.

As most would know by now, many concepts have been suggested by the public and addressed. A list of these is on the Route 1/Calera Parkway Project — Preliminary Concepts Matrix (May 2010), which can be accessed by a link (Preliminary Concepts Matrix) at the SMCTA website. By now the TA has addressed concepts from widening the highway, to grade separation, to signal timing, to moveable cones. It is obvious a lot of work went into studying the feasibility of each of these.

The one thing that should be evident by now is that we need to move forward on this. It's not just about having to wait 8 minutes to get through this section of highway. According to an EPA publication, 'Emission Facts', "A gallon of gasoline is assumed to produce 8.8 kilograms (or 19.4 pounds) of CO2."

Not from the EPA but from my own math: For every 5-mpg reduction of every vehicle's fuel economy over a one-mile stretch of the Calera Parkway, during the am and pm rush hours; 226 extra tons of CO2 are added to the atmosphere every year. I think that's a very compelling reason for addressing our highway congestion issues sooner rather than later.

Posted by Gil Anda

E. Coli warning - packaged romaine lettuce

Package dated "use by July 8-12", "S" in the product code - sorry you probably already ate the Romaine.

From The Sacramento Bee 7/15/10, 6:09 pm.   The California Department of Public Health is warning consumers not to eat certain romaine lettuce products packaged by Fresh ExpressCalifornia, 40,684 cases of the recalled products were distributed, according to a Department of Public Health news release. The salad products were distributed to retailers in 19 states, including California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.  because they may be contaminated with E. coli, which can cause serious illness. Department officials said the E. coli was isolated from routine surveillance samples. So far, no illnesses have been linked to any of the 23 affected products. In
The romaine salad products are sold under the Fresh Express label and packaged in sizes ranging from 7 ounces to 32 ounces. The affected product labels are marked "Use by Date of July 8-July 12," and have an "S" in the product code. A complete list of the recalled products is available at http://www.cdph.ca.gov/pubsforms/Documents/fdbFrFExa.pdf. Photos of the affected product packages are available at http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm219059.htm. Health officials advise consumers who purchased affected romaine salad products to throw them away immediately, then thoroughly wash their hands with soap and water. E. coli infection often causes abdominal cramps and diarrhea. People with severe infections may suffer kidney damage and require hospitalization. Health officials warn that complications can be fatal. Those most at risk for serious complications include young children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems. consumers with any of these symptoms are advised to contact their health care provider.
 
Posted by Kathy Meeh