Pacifica 1.3 mile highway 1 bottleneck, let's study it another 20 years

"Open Letter to the Pacifica City Council",  March 6, 2013

Another effort to delay and do nothing to fix Pacifica traffic    

"Dear Mayor and Council Members:

The Caltrans project to widen Highway One from Reina Del Mar to Fassler Avenue, if it takes place, would be the largest construction project in Pacifica in a very long time and would affect most area residents on a daily basis. We, the undersigned residents of Pacifica and the Coastside, therefore request that the City of Pacifica engage in a comprehensive review of Caltrans' plans. The City Council and the Planning Commission, in conjunction with concerned and informed citizens, need to fully review and provide input on the design of the project. Transportation planning in Pacifica should not merely be the responsibility of a distant bureaucracy. It is the responsibility of local government to ensure that any project undertaken here will be the best possible for the City of Pacifica. We call upon you as our leaders to actively engage in the framing and examination of options in order to arrive at the best choices possible. This was done in Half Moon
Bay – both its City Council and Planning Commission had significant input into the design of Highway 92 modifications.

We believe a review of the Caltrans’s plans will reveal issues of concern to local residents. For example, Caltrans has not developed and made public a plan to provide for smooth flow of traffic during the construction process, which would last at least 2 years, nor is there any public plan to provide for continuous access to businesses along Highway 1 and in the Rockaway Beach area. Furthermore, post-construction impacts on businesses in the West Rockaway business district need to be investigated; the design could discourage tourists and local residents from patronizing those businesses. The visual impacts of the project also need to be addressed; the design calls for widening the highway to more than twice its present width and possibly including sound walls and large retaining walls.

Caltrans has prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Report on the project, and it is imperative that the City Council and the Planning Commission conduct a public review of that document. The time is now for Pacifica to study the project, ask the necessary questions, and request that Caltrans modify the project if  modifications would be in the best interest of Pacifica. We ask the Pacifica City Council to act in a timely, positive and decisive manner on this issue. Decisions affecting Pacifica need to be made by Pacificans. Caltrans may own the asphalt, but this is our home.

Please contact either of the undersigned circulators of this letter with your response. Tom Edminster. Circulator, tedminster@gmail.com  650-248-2077.  Hal Bohner, Circulator, hbohner@earthlink.net, 650-359-4257

Supporters:  Cindy Abbott, Lynn Adams, Todd Bray, Ian Butler, Victor Carmichael, Bill Collins, Ann Cooney, Leslie Davidson, Kim Day, Jeri Flinn (past President of Pacifica's Environmental Family and past President and founder of the Pacifica Beach Coalition), Sherry Flumerfelt, Ana Garcia, Edwin Earl Geer Sr., Laurie Goldberg, Margaret Goodale, Nancy Hall, Avril Hughes, Cynthia Kaufman, Mary Keitelman, Peter Loeb, Grace Mackertich, Dave Martinez, Roger Mascio, John Maybury, Ron Maykel, Margo Meiman, Clark Natwick, Bob Pilgrim, Stella Pilgrim, Mitch Reid, Citizens Alliance for a Tunnel Solution (CATS), Karen Rosenstein, Pete Shoemaker, Lou Sian, Dan Underhill, Dinah Verby" 

Reference -  State Route 1/San Mateo County, Pacifica, CA. Calera Parkway highway widening, Draft Environmental Impact Report project (DEIR), 287 pages (may be slow coming up, be patient). The project is a 1.3 mile highway1 widening  from south of Fassler Avenue to north of Reina del Mar Avenue.

Related articles - Fix Pacifica, the plans, the researched DEIR, and the civic meetings.  Also see The Loma Prietan (Sierra Club) 11/12, 2011, article and photograph by Bill Collins, complaint supporter above. Isn't the complaint just another deflection to do nothing?

Submitted by Jim Wagner

Posted by Kathy Meeh

City Council meeting, Monday, March 11, 2013

Attend in person, 2212 Beach Boulevard, 2nd floor.  Or, view on local channel 26, also live internet feed, pct26.com.  The meeting begins at 7pm, or shortly there following.  City council updates and archives are available on the City website.   City Council Agenda, 3/11/13.  Items listed may include embedded pdf documents, illustration and photographs of interest. Information below is from the city agenda documents. 

A.    Closed session, (5:30  pm)
1 .   Government code 54957.6.  "Conference with labor negotiator. Agency negotiator: Ann Ritzma. Employee organizations: Pacifica Fire Fighters Local 2400; Teamsters Local 856 Battalion Chiefs; Department Directors Local 350. 
2.     Government code 54957.6.   "Conference with labor negotiator: Agency negotiator: Ann Ritzma. Employee organizations: Pacifica Police Officers Assn.; Pacifica Police Supervisors Assn.; Police Management Teamsters Local 350; Department Directors; Miscellaneous Teamsters Local 856."

Pacifica police in the news, also see Item 8

 B.   Open session, (7:00 pm) 

Consent Calendar 

1.    Approval of cash disbursements. 2/8/13 to 2/25/13, fiscal year 2012/13.   
2.    Minutes of  the 2/25/13 meeting.
3.    Proclamation confirming of severe cliff erosion, landslide, revetment supporting city storm drainage emergency at 380 and 400 Esplanade, ratified 4/12/10.  Updated photographs.

4.    Resolution of intention to vacate approximately 11,865 square feet adjacent to 2212 Beach Boulevard to facilitate future development of the city's property, currently the location includes a parking lot. The public hearing is 4/22/13.

5.    City Manager recruitment search, 3 consultant firms qualified at the 2/25/13 council meeting.

Special presentations - 1) POPS Award, Anna Boothe.  2) Proclamation honoring Police Captain Fernando Realyvasquez.for his years of service to our city.

Consideration

6.     Intent to revise sewer charged for fiscal year 2013-14. Effective 7/1/13, the consumption charge is $11.61519 per 100 cubic feet; the minimum rate $557.52.  2012-13 the charge was $11.81632 per 100 cubic feet; minimum charge $510.34. See city agenda, this item for historic data. 

7.     First amendment to Recology of the Coast franchise agreement:  $27,280 annual contribution toward city street tree maintenance (CPI inflator used as a basis for annual increase adjustments).  No additional Franchise and regulatory fees.  

8.    Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), Pacifica Police Associations (officers, management, supervisors). " Each unit has reduced their contract by 3% by combining salary and benefit savings."  See city agenda, this item Summary.  

Adjourn

Posted by Kathy Meeh

The public needs more answers

Getting value for the money our city spends?

Pacifica Tribune, Letters to the Editor, 3/5/13.  "Public wants answers" by Therese M. Dyer

"Editor:  Mary Ann Nilhart stated at one of the first City Council Meetings that we, meaning the City Council, needs to educate the public. What, where, when and how?

I think it's the other way around. People who attend the City Council meetings and those who write their opinions in the paper are, forever, education council. The problem is council thinks that I, among others, do not know what we are talking about, but we do.

Quit making excuses. For years the council has approved millions of dollars for consultants..At the last City Council meeting I made copies for all members and I want an answer by the next City Council meeting or budget session, whichever comes first. The public needs to know, so now is the time to educate us and let us know if we understand." 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

San Mateo loses Bay Meadows race track, gains a transit hub

Grand opening of Bay Meadows urban village welcome center is Saturday, March 16, 12 pm to 4 pm.

The Daily Journal (San Mateo County), Bill Silverfarb, 3/6/13.  "Bay Meadows homes almost on market"

Progress at the Bay Meadows development in San Mateo is moving along quickly as the developers are set to open a welcome center next Saturday  followed by the first phase of a sales release for those who have already pre-qualified. *

Bay Meadows is a transit-oriented development

.... When completed, Bay Meadows will be the largest transit-oriented development in the state.  “I am thrilled to see Bay Meadows is set to begin the sales of homes. It is another sign of the improving economy. These homes will add to badly needed inventory for new homeowners in our community,” Mayor David Lim wrote the Daily Journal in an email yesterday.  

Phase 1 of the Bay Meadows project was officially completed in 2011 with the construction of the new Kaiser Medical Center and includes housing, office and retail space.  In phase 2, there will be five buildings of Class A office space for rent, ranging from 95,000 square feet to 185,000 square feet. The development sits between the Hillsdale and Hayward Park Caltrain stations. Read article.

Reference -  DMS Construction, Phase I, and Phase II. A map of designated areas for office, residential mixed-use, residential and parks is included in this developer website.

Related article- San Francisco Examiner, 1/25/12, "Bay Meadows development facing 2013 deadline."  There is historical development time line at the end of the article, 1934-2013.  

Update - "Bay Meadows opens March 16th! More details on our grand opening celebration coming soon. Thanks, San Mateo Daily Journal, for helping us spread the word! Get on board a new way to live in San Mateo – introducing Bay Meadows, a progressive new urban village on the Caltrain line with parks, retails, offices, and new homes. Grand opening celebration will be on Saturday March 16th from 12pm-4pm."   Facebook/Daily Journal.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Don Peebles moves on to another better venue

"Thank goodness we ran this guy out of Pacifica. I'm so proud of our vision." (Jim Wagner)

Don Peebles

"I would like to express my gratitude to the Mayor and to the City of New York for the opportunity to restore and develop this very significant building," said Joseph Chetrit of the Chetrit Group. "The Chetrit Group looks forward to working with the City and the Lower Manhattan community as this project moves forward."

New York, New York

"On behalf of The Peebles Corporation, we are honored by the trust Mayor Bloomberg and the City of New York have placed in us by awarding The Peebles Corporation such a significant and iconic landmark," said from R. Donahue Peebles, Chairman and CEO of The Peebles Corporation.

 "Since the inception of The Peebles Corporation, we have excelled in public-private partnerships and engaged in restoring and reusing landmark buildings for the purpose of historic preservation, economic development, job creation and community transformation.  Over the past 25 years, we have continued this tradition in Washington, D.C., South Beach, Miami Beach, San Francisco and now New York City."  Read Press Release, 3/5/13.

Related -  Commercial Observer, 3/6/13.  "Chetrit and Peebles will pay combined $250 million for city buildings. "The city announced yesterday that it will sell two Civic Center buildings at 49-51 Chambers Street and 346 Broadway for nearly $250 million to Chetrit Group and The Peebles Corporation. Chetrit – in the midst of a buying spree – and Peebles were selected following an RFP issued in April of last year as part of the Bloomberg administration’s plan to reduce underused government office space by 1.2 million square feet by 2014. The developers plan to restore the buildings and redevelop them as as a mix of hotel, residential and community space." 

Submitted by Jim Wagner 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Sailboat theft, only one person charged

San Francisco Chronicle, 3/6/13.  "Two suspects to be freed in sailboat theft."

"Two of the three people arrested in connection with the theft of a luxury sailboat from Sausalito didn't know the vessel was stolen and will be freed without being charged, prosecutors said Wednesday.

Stolen sailboat being repaired in Richmond, CA

The only person to face charges in the case will be Leslie Gardner, 63, of Gillette, Wyo., authorities said. He is scheduled to be arraigned later Wednesday in San Mateo County Superior Court on five felonies, including grand theft, possession of a stolen boat and vandalism.

Authorities say Gardner stole the 82-foot Darling from the Sausalito Yacht Harbor early Monday. The boat made it to Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, where it ran aground shortly before dawn.

The sailboat is owned by John Fruth, who watched as the three were removed from the boat Monday but has declined to comment. Authorities have not said how Gardner allegedly targeted the sailboat. He is being held on just over $1 million bail."   Read article,  includes 20 photographs by Paul Chinn.

Related articles - San Francisco Chronicle, continuing articles.  Fix Pacifica reprint:  Palo Alto Daily News reprint  Crime floated in..3/4/13,  and  Pacifica police press release, 3/4/13.

Update -  San Mateo County Times/Joshua Melvin, 10/23/13. "Man who crashed stolen yacht ordered to pay $1.3 million, DA says."  "Leslie Alan Gardner, who claimed the 82-foot boat was his, was to leave San Mateo County jail Wednesday but will still have to pay $1.38 million in restitution for costs stemming from the Darling's theft, District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said. The March 4 crash into Linda Mar beach damaged the $2.7 million boat so significantly it had to be sent to England, where it was originally built, for repairs."

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Rockaway Beach sewer main break follow-up

Pacifica Tribune/Jane Northrop, staff, 3/5/13. "Sewer main break releases wastewater into ocean."

"A crack in an old sewer main caused wastewater to overflow out of the ground along Highway 1 south of Fassler at about 4 a.m on Friday (3/1/13).

Rockaway Beach south of Nick's Restaurant

Out of the 5,800 gallons that flowed, city crews contained 4,000 gallons at the south end of Rockaway Beach within an hour and a half. Nevertheless, about 1,800 gallons spilled into the ocean  at Rockaway.  City crews closed Rockaway Beach. Workers opened up the sewer main, removed any wastater in it and repaired a break in the pipe with a repair clamp on Friday.

Ocean water samples -- a colilert test to determine any evidence of coliform or e-coli bacteria and an enterolert test to determine any evidence of enterococci bacteria -- were taken that day. The San Mateo County Public Health Lab determined there was no significant evidence or danger to the public from coliform, e-colil or entrerococci bacteria, according to Josh Cosgrove, assistant superintendent of the Calera Creek Water Recycling Plant."  

Reference - City of Pacifica Press Release  - Fix Pacifica article Press Release link, 3/1/13 was submitted by Pete Olinger, 3/1/13.

Related -  Rockaway photographs  Joanne Olivieri,  Poetic Shutterbug.  Site location from  Pacifica Patch, 3/1/13.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Half Moon Bay preparing to widen Highway 1

Half Moon Bay Review/Mark Noack, 3/1/13. "City revisits traffic study,  Planning officials discuss local roads."

"Half Moon Bay planning officials brainstormed ways to improve the city’s grid of roads, trails and highways at a follow-up meeting on Tuesday to prepare the city’s circulation update. The circulation report is the master plan setting goals for improving the city’s transportation infrastructure. The current circulation study was put together in the 1990s, and city planners have indicated it’s overdue for an update.  

Half Moon Bay to Pacifica, "Hello fix the traffic"  

The city’s array of pathways is used by all, and many people have firsthand knowledge of traffic hot spots.  In November, more than 40 city residents came out to make suggestions for where the city could improve traffic or safety. Many of those suggestions were centered on the Highway 1 backbone of Half Moon Bay.  “There is no safe way to cross from the east side of Highway 1,” wrote Golden Gate Avenue resident John Szabo, one of many who flagged problems for the city. “Don’t wait for people to die before something is done.”

But other residents were firmly opposed to new traffic signals or making any changes to Highway 1. That may be a sign of the provincial fights the city could face as it moves forward with planned road improvements. In tandem with the circulation study, the city is preparing a long-expected expansion of Highway 1 that would widen the roadway, extend its parallel pedestrian trail and install three new stoplights." 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Seawall/California Trail maintenance occurred late Februrary, 2013

Pacifica Tribune/Paul Slavin, 2/26/13.   "Pacifica seawall gets needed maintenance."   

Sea wall/California Trail protects West Sharp Park

"A work crew from the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department spent last weekend doing some much-needed maintenance on the Sharp Park Seawall, the 3,200 ft. earthen embankment that protects the Sharp Park Golf Course and adjacent residential communities. 

The project director, Ana Alvarez, described the work as basically "erosion control," necessary upkeep to ensure the integrity of any structure so exposed to the elements. Heavy earth-moving equipment graded the surface of the seawall, filling depressions and cracks. Some 75 tons of "chert," a crushed rock substance, was used to top-dress the roadway and fill some erosional rills, larger open cracks in the seaward side of the structure. A designated "environmental monitor" preceded the workforce, ensuring the area was clear of protected species. The project may take up to a month to complete, and access may be limited at times.

Sea wall/California Trail at Sharp Park Golf Course

  
Construction of the original seawall began in 1941 and, since then, it has received sporadic maintenance, occasional upgrades, and a few terrific batterings from wild winter storms. Over the years the Sharp Park and Fairway Park areas have grown up within its shelter. Longtime resident Robine Runneals, walking her dogs on the seawall last Sunday, personally thanked every one of the work crew. As a survivor of the 1983 winter storm that flooded her Sharp Park neighborhood, she noted: "This seawall is of the greatest importance to the safety of Pacifica, and I'm happy, and relieved, to see it being maintained."

As part of the California Coastal Trail, the seawall offers magnificent ocean views and bracingly fresh salt air. Today it is probably best known as one of the most popular places in town for leisurely strolls, serious jogging, bike riding or, as noted above, dog-walking."

Note:  Upper photograph taken from Mori Point, by Christine Kelly, Bay Nature.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Honors, Volunteers for Sharp Park Greens

Honors, Volunteers for Sharp Park Greens 1.   Congratulations to Sharp Park Superintendent Wayne Kappelman, honored as Golfdom Magazine's Golf Businessman of the Year for 2012!    For story and pictures, click here  2.   Thanks to volunteer work crews from Sharp Park men's and women's golf clubs and Public Golf Alliance members, we have new native plantings at 16th Green/17th Tee, and mended fence at the sea wall.  For story and picture, click here    Donations are greatly appreciated. To donate, please visit our website: Donations Page

We are on Twitter (@SFPublicGolf), Facebook and our website Contact us at info@sfpublicgolf.com Submitted by Richard Harris

Press Release / BOAT Incident on Linda Mar Beach

Pacifica Five-0 Press Release

Captain Daniel Steidle

Administrative/Investigative Services Division

2075 Coast Highway

Pacifica, CA 94044

650-738-7320 (Desk)

650-355-1172 (Fax)

steidled@pacificapolice.org

Planning Commission meetings tonight, 3/4/13

Attend in person, 2212 Beach Boulevard, 2nd floor.  Or, view on local channel 26, also live internet feed, pct26.com.  The meeting begins at 7pm, or shortly there following.  City website,  and  Planning Commission archives. 

Fix Pacifica Planning Commission Article.

6 PM, Palmetto Streetscape Plan study session discussion.   Planning Commission Study Session, 3/4/13, 3 pages.

7 PM, Vacation of Olympian Way/Pompeiian Way right of way.  Planning Commission Agenda, 3/4/13, 4 pages.  

Posted by Kathy Meeh 

Government in the Peninsula, week of 3/4/13

Palo Alto Daily News/Peninsula/Staff, 3/1/13.  "On the docket."  Highlights of government meetings in San Mateo County peninsula, viewed as daily. 

Monday, 3/4
Menlo Park.  Planning Commission,  "to review a proposal to turn a senior retirement residence at 555 Glenwood Ave. into a hotel with fewer parking spaces than required by the city's downtown plan."
Palo Alto. City Council "to consider taking a series of corrective actions following Sand Hill Proerty Company's unauthorized demolition of a structure it was supposed to move and preserve while redeveloping Edgewood Plaza.

Tuesday, 3/5  

460 Mountain Home Road, Woodside, CA

Menlo Park.  City Council "to consider an appeal of a permit that allows a developer to construct a driveway from 1825 Santa Cruz Ave. to Louise Street."
Mountain View."to hear a presentation and discuss finalizing the Rengstorff Park Master Plan to include the renovation of the existing Community Center and Aquatic Center in the current locations, new pools and other park improvements."

Wednesday, 3/6
Portolo Valley - Planning Commission "to continue a public hearing on a proposal to expand the Woodside Priory School's field and install artificial turf."
Woodside - Planning Commission " to consider a request to convert a garage at 245 Laning Drive to a storage building,  and a proposal to construct a three-story enclosed stairway in a historic water tower/living quarters at 460 Mountain Home Road." 

Trivia note:  460 Mountain Home Road, from the link under above picture:  "The 'Jackling house' is a huge 14,540-sq.ft. (1,350 sq.m.) mansion in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, designed by architect George Washington Smith in the early 1900s for copper magnate Daniel Jackling, which Steve Jobs bought in 1984."  Zillow Homes,  460 Mountain Home Road was last sold in 1984 (to Steve Jobs), apparently remains in the Steve Jobs estate, and is not for sale currently.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Crime floated in to Linda Mar State Beach this morning

Peninsula/Palo Alto Daily News/Joshua Melvin, 3/4/13. "Pacifica:  Police surround stolen boat that has run aground."  10:59 AM update.

Breakfast at Taco Bell this morning

"PACIFICA -- Authorities have surrounded a stolen 82-foot yacht that ran aground at a Pacifica beach early Monday, but the people aboard have not responded to orders from police. The Darling was reported stolen after its owner saw news reports on TV about the boat, "Darlin," Sausalito police Sgt. Bill Fraass said. It appears the boat was taken around 1:30 a.m.

The three people aboard the Darling were not talking to authorities and "their relationship to the owner" was unclear, Coast Guard Ensign Corinne Gaines said. Authorities were weighing their next steps.  The Coast Guard got word the boat was aground at Linda Mar beach just before 6 a.m. and have a rescue boat and helicopter at the scene. A rescue swimmer brought a radio to the people aboard the boat, but so far "they have not communicated well, if at all," said Gaines." Note:  The article link above  includes 5 photos.

Update - KTVU, 3/4/13, "Three people were arrested Monday after the 82-foot sailboat they allegedly stole from a Sausalito marina became stranded in the shallow waters off Pacifica’s Linda Mar Beach. After a standoff with police and the Coast Guard that stretched for hours, the two men and a woman were taken off the boat just before noon."   Read more. 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

CA legislation remedy passed to better protect wildlife

Thanks State Senator Jerry Hill for introducing that legislation in January, 2013!

San Mateo County Times/Aaron Kinney, 3/1/13.  "Mountain lion response guidelines overhauled by Fish and Wildlife."

The mountain lion cubs killed were only 4 month old

"SACRAMENTO -- The California Department of Fish and Wildlife on Friday unveiled broad changes to its policies for responding to mountain lions that wander into cities and suburbs, a philosophical shift prompted in part by the fatal shooting Dec. 1 of two mountain lion cubs in Half Moon Bay. 

The new guidelines allow for the increased use of nonlethal measures and bolster training programs for wardens in capturing and restraining wildlife. They also would allow for the rehabilitation and release of captured lions, provided a law is passed giving the agency that authority.  ....  The new policies may also be applied, when appropriate, to black bears, coyotes and certain exotic wildlife, a subject Fish and Wildlife plans to analyze in more detail later this year.

....  The changes are similar to what Dunbar and other wildlife advocates proposed after the controversial shooting in December, when wardens decided a pair of cubs hiding under a porch constituted a threat to public safety. An autopsy determined the cubs were starving 4-month-olds."   Read article.

Related Fix Pacifica article - CA Legislation to protect mountain lions, 1/24/13, photograph included.  Note:  The photograph of two cubs above is from Balanced Ecology.org. 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

San Mateo County Sheriff going tech to include public

The Daily Journal (San Mateo), Michelle Durand, 3/2/13.  "Sheriff rolls out online crime data site."

SM County Sheriff's dive team

SM County Sheriff vehicle

 "The Sheriff's Office is making it easier for the public to access crime data and arrest information by unveiling a new website where visitors can learn what is happening and who may be doing it. The database, called Citizen RIMS after the office's internal report writing system, will map crimes by dates, location and type, show adult arrest information for the past 30 days and let users sign up for email notifications."  Here's the San Mateo crime website link, same as  http://smso.crimegraphics.com .

                     

 "This is something that we wanted to do to connect with the community and it helps everyone," said San Mateo County Sheriff's Deputy Rebecca Rosenblatt. The site's rollout coincides with the department's inaugural virtual ride-along Saturday night during which Rosenblatt will use Twitter to give followers a peek into a deputy's typical evening in San Carlos. She will also answer questions and hopes, based on the 2,700 individual views of the Facebook post about the event, that participation is strong. The two happening so close together is coincidental but complementary, Rosenblatt said."  Read article.

Related -  Salem News, 3/2/08, "Coast Guard, San Mateo County Sheriff Dive on Vessel Wreckage", example of crime/safety  units working together. Coast Guard boat from this article. .

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Planning Commission meetings, Monday, 3/4/13

Attend in person, 2212 Beach Boulevard, 2nd floor.  Or, view on local channel 26, also live internet feed, pct26.com.  The meeting begins at 7pm, or shortly there following.  City website,  and  Planning Commission archives.

 Charming buildings deserve a great Streetscape

6 PM, Palmetto Streetscape Plan study session discussion.   Planning Commission Study Session, 3/4/13, 3 pages.

Applicant:  City of Pacifica

Location:  Palmetto Avenue, bordered by Paloma Avenue on the north, Clarendon on the south.
Project description:  Discussion of draft Palmetto Avenue "Streetscape Plan" design guidelines.  
CEQA status:  To be determined
Recommended action:  None. 

7 PM, Vacation of Olympian Way/Pompeiian Way right of way.  Planning Commission Agenda, 3/4/13, 4 pages.  The map referred to in the Planning Commission agenda is not posted, but a Google map reference is included in both the 3/14/13 and 4/12/12 Fix Pacifica articles.

Consideration - "Adoption of resolution certifying that vacation of portions of Olympian Way and Pompeiian Way conform to the General Plan.  Recommended CEQA status:  Exempt.  Proposed Action:  approve resolution."

Olympian and Pompeiian Ways are just over there

Page 2.  "On April 2, 2012 the Planning Commission adopted a resolution certifying that vacation of portions of Olympian Way and Pompeiian Way right of way (ROW) conformed to the General Plan.  The portions of Olympian Way and Pompeiian Way right of way to be vacated were approximately 3,695 square feet of unimproved area.  The applicant subsequently amended its request to vacant thos portions of right of way." 

Related Fix Pacifica article - Planning Commission article, 4/12/12, see Item 2.  "A resolution of the Planning Commission of the City of Pacifica Certifying that the proposed summary vacation of portions of Olympian Way and Pompeiian Way right of way conform to the General Plan."

Page 4. "Olympian Way and Pompiian Way were dedicated to the county for public use in the map "Pedro Point Terrace By-the-Sea" in 1908."   ... the vacation would allow access to that property. "

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Approx. 5800 gallon wastewater spill near Highway 1 and Fassler

http://www.pacificaindex.com/pacificadocumentwire/CPPR-5800gallonwastewateroverflow20130301.pdf

Submitted by Pete Olinger

Pacifica police captain Realyvasquez out, new police captain Steidle in

Pacifica Tribune/Elaine Larsen Editor and Publisher, 2/26/13. "Sargent Dan Steidle tapped for captain's position."   

Longtime Pacifica Police officer Dan Steidle, currently a sergeant, has been tapped to succeed retiring Fernando Realyvasquez as Pacifica Police Captain. Steidle has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and a master's in strategic leadership.  Read article.

Related - Pacifica Tribune/Elaine Larsen Editor and Publisher, 2/26/13.  "Longtime Pacifica police officer begins new chapter with San Mateo county Sheriff Captain Fernando Realyvasquez looks back on varied career in Pacifica."

"Whether serving as department point man on disaster preparedness, working with a psychic to solve a puzzling missing persons case or bringing closure to victims in a more than decade-old child molestation case, Fernando Realyvasquez has had a varied career with the Pacifica Police Department.

It's been a memorable and fulfilling journey, he says, but after 28 years Realyvasquez ("Ferny" to his colleagues and close friends) has decided to begin a new career path. He retired last week as a Pacifica Police Captain to join the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office as a patrol deputy. .... "I've made a lot of friends in the community, in the police department and among city staff. I'll miss everyone but will cherish all the relationships I've built over the years."   Read article.

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Some firefighters moving up from San Carlos to Redwood City

Goodbye San Carlos, hello Redwood City

Palo Alto Daily News/Bonnie Eslinger, 2/26/13.  "San Carlos will let its firefighters join Redwood City department."  

San Carlos firefighters could get a 14 percent pay raise under a contract the city's manager has been authorized to negotiate with Redwood City for fire protection service.

Before unanimously OK'ing the negotiations Monday night, city council members said they were concerned that staffing shortages led to overworked firefighters and high overtime costs. ....  Redwood City currently provides a shared fire chief and other managers to oversee firefighters in San Carlos' two stations. Under the proposed change, San Carlos' firefighters would be absorbed by Redwood City's department and receive the higher pay and benefits its employees get.

....  Redwood City pays its top-step firefighters $98,988 a year, according to a memo from Rebecca Mendenhall, San Carlos' administrative services director. In San Carlos, a firefighter at that same tier makes $86,796 a year.   Read article. 

Posted by Kathy Meeh

Living 100 years anywhere is a celebration

Pacifica Tribune/Jean Bartlett, Correspondent, 2/26/13.  "Longtime Pacifican celebrates banner 100th year birthday."

You don't look a day over 80, Dorothea

""My birthday party was wonderful," she said of the event that was held at the Pacifica Community Center. "We had over 100 people, which included Mayor Len Stone and Supervisor Don Horsley.

"We decided if we sold our War bonds and pooled all our money together, we could buy a lot," Dorothea said. "We had bought a pre-cut, pre-numbered model home that we had to put together ourselves. We looked around and found the lot in Pacifica in 1948. We paid $960 for it and I have been here since." The area was known then as Edgemar. The family's post office was Sharp Park. There were four families, including the Simpsons, building on Monterey Road back then. They became lifelong friends.

"Pacific Manor was maybe a total of three or four streets. Up above us there were artichoke fields and right over the hill was a dairy farm. There was a pay phone at the corner, several blocks away. We were the first ones with a phone and anybody who needed to make a call came to our house." Schools were being built, and students were being moved around. .."  ...."We really had a wonderful life," Dorothea said, adding that her husband had a lot of charisma. "And while I don't get around like I used to, I keep my mind active."  Read article.  Note:  The photograph of Dorthea Haines Simpson in her home was also taken by Jean Bartlett.  

Posted by Kathy Meeh