Check Out Documentary “Girl Rising” at Emery Bay

Posted on April 28, 2013 by Shirley Enomoto

Let’s go to the movies!

Girl Rising:  Stories of 9 young girls from developing countries overcoming great obstacles to obtain an education and change their fates.

Now playing at UA Emery Bay Stadium 10, 6330 Christie Avenue, Emeryville. If you enjoy films or documentaries without car chases, explosions, or Dolby sound so loud it hurts your ears, support Emery Bay Stadium, the city’s first movie house.

Only $5 on Tuesdays!

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‘Residents United for a Livable Emeryville’ Thanks Local Businesses for Support!

Posted on April 27, 2013 by RULE

Residents United for a Livable Emeryville (RULE) wishes to thank and acknowledge our local businesses and professionals who so generously donated their goods and services for our first annual free raffle at Emeryville’s 2013 Earth Day last Saturday (April 20).

  • Dr. Parissa Peymani, Emeryville Chiropractic, 5858  Horton St., Ste. 155, Emeryville
  • Eric Pascuale,  Cafe E-22, 1366 Powell St., Emeryville
  • Inna Jam (purveyors of organic jams), 1307 61st St., Emeryville
  • Summer Summer Thai Eatery, 5885 Hollis St., Emeryville
  • Wendy Yoshimura, Oakland Artist

and congratulations to our winners!!

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City partners with Clean Water Program for Bag Give Away at Pak ‘N Save

Posted on February 24, 2013 by Marcy Greenhut

The Alameda County Waste Management Authority’s single-use plastic bag ban went into effect on January 1, 2013.  In response, the Clean Water Program (www.cleanwaterprogram.org) provided stylish reusable bags for give-away events staged all around the County over the past couple weeks.

At the Emeryville Pak N Save, the Friday before the Super Bowl, 230 of these reusable bags just about flew off our table.  To say the bags were well-received is an understatement!

Chinook Book also donated 120 of their popular sustainable product coupon books to give away to customers (normally a $20 value!).

Encouraging shoppers to use reusable bags is one way to reduce litter that harms wildlife, clogs storm drains and just looks bad.  Each year, the equivalent of 100,000 kitchen garbage bags worth of litter end up in our local waterways, including an estimated 1 million disposable plastic bags.

In Alameda County storm water does not pass through a water treatment plant. This means that litter and other pollutants carried into the storm drain system by wind and water flow directly into creeks and the Bay, where they harm fish, marine mammals and birds.  Plastic bags and other lightweight plastic litter don’t biodegrade and are particularly hazardous because they float, entangling and poisoning marine wildlife that mistakes the items for food.

In addition to its environmental impacts, litter is also an eyesore and puts a heavy financial burden on communities. Alameda County jurisdictions spend approximately $24 million every year on litter and storm drain cleanup.

Under the Federal Clean Water Act, cities in the Bay Area are required to reduce or eliminate storm water pollution by 40% by 2014, and by 70% by 2017. This ban is expected to go a long way toward reaching those goals.

Bags sold as “reusable” must meet certain specifications, such as being at least 2.25 mls thick, have a minimum lifetime of 125 uses, capable of carrying 22 lbs. or 15 liters over a distance of 75 ft. and be machine washable or made from a material that can be cleaned or disinfected.  Retailers must charge at least 10 cents for paper or reusable bags. All proceeds from the sale of recycled paper bags and reusable bags are retained by the retailer with no restrictions on their use.

If you missed us at Pak ‘N Save, we’ll have more reusable bags to give away at the City of Emeryville’s  Earth Day event at Doyle Hollis Park on Saturday April 20, 2013.

For more information about the ordinance go to: http://reusablebagsac.org/

Marcy Greenhut is Project Manager of Solid Waste Programs in Emeryville.

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Letter to the Editor: New City Manager Must Live in Town; Pay More Than Lip Service to Needs of Residents

Posted on February 4, 2013 by Editor

To the Editor (Re: Help the City Council Hire the Best City Manager, Jan. 30, 2013):

For very understandable (and even laudable) reasons, the path Emeryville is on, has gotten out of balance.

In the 1980′s and 1990′s, the town’s obvious and desperate need to renew itself (including the need for revenue to do this job), led to a decidedly pro-business stance which attracted new businesses, new revenues, a tax base, and many physical improvements.

However, being “pro-business” has turned into a religion in Emeryville town management. All while the city, ironically, has (thanks to its tax-based financed physical improvements), become one of the most desirable, close-to-San Francisco places in which to life and/or work. Yet our present City Council majority (abetted by a similarly “religiously pro-business staff), has not noticed this huge shift: Namely, what we have achieved in the town NOW MAKES IT NOT ONLY UNNECESSARY, but an anachronistic “give away” to continue over-incentivizing developers and businesses to participate here. If we continue mentally living in the 1990′s, do not change this “religion” or bias, and keep on over-incentivizing business — developers and business will of course KEEP TAKING (and expecting) the over-generosity that is offered.

SO, my first criteria for a new City Manager: Someone with new vision for a prosperous town who ALSO PAYS MORE THAN LIP SERVICE to citizen lifestyle and cultural needs. Money is NOT the only “religion” that should drive Emeryville. How about a new City Manager with more balanced values?

Secondly and lastly — it MUST be a non-negotiable requirement of the new manager who LIVES IN EMERYVILLE. Being physically part of the community will help the new manager “remember” that quality of life is as important as apparent physical prosperity.

I would be very pleased to discuss this further in person.

Berkeley F. Fuller
Park Avenue
Emeryville, CA

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Help the City Council Hire the Best City Manager – Fill Out the Resident Online Survey!

Posted on January 30, 2013 by Tracy Schroth
The survey on the new City Manager is posted! Take 10 minutes to fill it out and help the City Council select the best candidate. The city’s future depends on it! Click here to go to the survey (the link to the survey is on the homepage of the City of Emeryville website).
The City Council expects to consider finalists in March and appoint a new City Manager by April. The current City Manager, Patrick O’Keeffe, is leaving April 19.
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Clean Water Program Curbs Plastic Bag Pollution – Get Your Free Reusable Bag Friday at Pac N’ Save!

Posted on January 27, 2013 by Stefanie Pruegel

Pick Up A Free Reusable Bag,
Friday Feb 1, 3-5 pm, Pac N’ Save Foods

Clean Water Program member agencies throughout the county are hosting reusable bag giveaway events to help residents get into the habit of bringing their own bags.

In support of the countywide reusable bag ordinance that went into effect Jan. 1, Alameda County’s Clean Water Program will give away reusable bags on Friday in front of Pac N’ Save, San Pablo Avenue at 40th Street, 3 pm to 5 pm. The ordinance prohibits stores that sell packaged food or alcohol from giving away single-use bags at checkout, and requires them to charge a minimum of 10 cents per paper or reusable bag, as an incentive for shoppers to bring their own reusable bags to the store.

The Clean Water Program works to protect creeks, wetlands and the Bay in Alameda County.

Each year, the equivalent of 100,000 kitchen garbage bags worth of litter end up in our local waterways, including an estimated 1 million disposable plastic bags. In Alameda County, storm water does not pass through a water treatment plant. This means that litter and other pollutants carried into the storm drain system by wind and water flow directly into creeks and the Bay, where they harm fish, marine mammals, and birds.
So get your reusable bag and pledge to bring it to the store, doing your part to keep our creeks and the Bay clean and healthy!
Full press release here.

 

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The Big Job of Choosing the Right City Manager

Posted on January 24, 2013 by Tracy Schroth

Patrick O’Keeffe Retiring

Emeryville City Manager Patrick O’Keeffe has resigned, effective April 19. O’Keeffe served as City Manager for the past 7 years. Before that, he was the city’s Economic Development and Housing Director under City Manager John Flores for 11 years. During his 18-year tenure with the city, O’Keeffe used his considerable autonomy, political influence, and hundreds of millions in redevelopment money to help transform rugged, industrial Emeryville into a modern hub of big box retail, biotech, and condo/apartment complexes. His principle role — what he knows how to do — is promote and manage development.

City Manager Patrick O'Keeffe

City Manager Patrick O'Keeffe

Reviews of the city’s transformation – and O’Keeffe’s role in it – have been mixed. While the City Council theoretically makes the final call on development projects, anyone who knows Emeryville politics knows O’Keeffe is a key player. The Council largely depends on him (and other city staff) to inform and advise them. And he does, always in favor of big business and often at the expense of residents. Pedestrian and bicycle safety, open space, small business, historic buildings, and hundreds of old growth trees are sacrificed in the name of progress. Enormous tax breaks are given to billion-dollar corporations like Pixar, but not to the city’s local, independent companies. Many development deals are cut in private meetings arranged by O’Keefe, then rubber-stamped by the City Council majority (Council Members Nora Davis, Ruth Atkin, and Kurt Brinkman) in a public meeting — when it is far too late for the public to have any sway over the project or its terms. In fact, it is rumored that O’Keefe might try to slip one more deal through before he leaves. He and City Council Member Nora Davis, among others, are reportedly holding meetings with a potential developer of the Sherwin-Williams site.

A New, and Different, City Manager

It’s clear from O’Keeffe’s tenure that the City Manager has enormous power, playing a critical role in running, and shaping, the city. The residents have a major stake in who replaces him. Council Member (and former Mayor) Jennifer West considers the choice of a new City Manager her “biggest job yet” and urges residents to get involved.

“The Council directly hires only two city employees: the City Manager and the City Attorney. The City Manager is the executive of the City’s organization … and putting Emeryville in the hands of an exceptional person is of utmost importance to me,” West said in a recent email to residents.

The City has hired an executive search firm in Los Gatos, Avery Associates, which is asking residents to help develop a new City Manager profile, and draft a recruitment brochure (here is the brochure Avery did in 2006 before O’Keeffe was chosen). Avery Associates held a community meeting last Tuesday at City Hall, and will post a resident survey on the city website Monday, Jan. 28.

Residents, local workers, and advocates promote their interests at a historic community town hall meeting in 2009

Residents United for a Liveable Emeryville (RULE), a progressive community group, has already weighed in, proposing that the new City Manager be required to:

  • Adopt a community centered approach
  • Work closely with residents and seeks residents’ viewpoints
  • Work to achieve balance among all community factions – residents, businesses (large and small), and developers
  • Have experience working in and running an open government

Some RULE members also think the new City Manager should live in Emeryville, as he/she would have a real stake in the city’s livability. O’Keeffe lives in Piedmont. In fact, none of the city’s executive staff live in Emeryville, which many residents view as a major handicap, since they lack (and often dismiss) the residents’ perspective.

RULE members, and other residents, also expressed hopes that the future City Manager will make these issues a priority:

  • Affordable, family friendly housing
  • Neighborhood connectivity, including bicycle/pedestrian-friendly policies, public transportation, traffic control and parking management
  • The city’s General Plan, using it as the principal document against which all planning decisions are vetted
  • Quality of life issues, including support of local and small business, well-paying jobs, artistic activity, balancing community benefits with economic concerns
  • Transparency and accountability

The City’s goal is to hire a replacement for O’Keeffe before he leaves in April. Stay tuned … and get involved! Fill out the survey (to be posted here Monday, Jan. 28)! And/or post your comments here!

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Emeryville City Council to Consider Time Limits on Street Parking – Tonight, Tues., Jan. 15, 7:15 pm, City Hall

Posted on January 15, 2013 by Tracy Schroth

Come to the Meeting, Tell the City Council What You Think!

The City Council Tuesday will consider limiting parking to two hours in some areas of North Emeryville. The new zoned parking is a possible first step in instituting paid street parking in town, including meters and residential permits. In order to allow for more parking turnover, the initial proposal calls for changing 140 unrestricted curbside parking spaces to short-term parking.

The Council will vote on whether or not to create two-hour timed green zones along:

  • the east side of Hollis between 65th and 66th streets
  • the west side of Hollis between 65th and Ocean
  • the south side of 62nd St. between Hollis and Horton
  • the west side of Hollis between 62nd and 59th
  • both sides of Paledeau between 59th and Stanford
  • the south side of 59th St. between Paledeau and Horton
  • the north side of Powell between Paledeau and Horton
  • the north side of Stanford between Paledeau and Horton
  • the east side of Doyle from Powell St. north to approximately mid-block

For more information, click here.

If you can’t make the meeting, send a message to City Council members here.

 

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Emeryville Public Market Unveils First E. Bay Outdoor Exhibits from Exploratorium

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Editor

Reprinted from Heraldonline.com
Published: January 10, 2013

 

One of several Exploratorium exhibits at the Public Market in Emeryville
________________________________________________________

TMG Partners and the City of Emeryville welcome the public to discover the science of sustainability in eye opening new “Green Living Room”

SAN FRANCISCO — Today, developer TMG Partners, in conjunction with the City of Emeryville, unveiled a unique place for Bay Area residents to play and learn as officials cut the ribbon on new permanent exhibits from the Exploratorium at the Public Market in Emeryville. Woven throughout the outdoor walkways and plazas of this popular shopping, dining and work destination, the Exploratorium’s hands-on science displays represent the world-renowned museum’s first outdoor presence in the East Bay. Public Market recently sold to City Center Realty Partners/Angelo Gordon who are working with TMG to continue to create a unique mixed-use community at Public Market.

The Exploratorium’s exhibition is a key feature of the Public Market’s “Green Living Room,” an artful, interactive living park that will engage the Public Market’s 3,000+ daily visitors to discover how the latest in green design and management revitalized this private, mixed-use project. The Green Living Room was funded in part by a $1.35 Million California Catalyst Communities Grant to model sustainability best practices state-wide.

“The Exploratorium is thrilled to join the Public Market Emeryville,” Exploratorium Executive Director Dennis Bartels said. “Our participation in the Green Living Room is a great example of ‘place-making,’ with exhibits chosen to help the public notice the specific wind patterns or different sediment characteristics of the bay, among other natural phenomena. This collaboration is the work of Exploratorium Global Studios®, which places our exhibits in all kinds of venues around the world. After all, science happens everywhere.”

The museum’s exhibits reflect Emeryville’s bay-front environment, drawing on phenomena as varied as wind patterns, visual perception and bay sediment. The Exploratorium displays are the culmination of a green renovation that TMG undertook to transform the 14-acre mixed use Public Market site into a model of eco-friendly living. Home to retail, office, a forthcoming residential project and well known for its ethnic restaurants, the Public Market is a well-established gathering place that reflects the diversity of the Bay Area.

“We’re delighted that these new exhibits are permanent attractions in our city, here for generations to come, explaining environmental science and the Public Market site’s natural history,” said Patrick O’Keeffe, Emeryville City Manager.

“What TMG has created here is powerful. By demonstrating sustainable best practices including solar car-ports that fuel electric-vehicle charging stations, recycling, car-sharing, and sustainable landscaping, the Public Market’s Green Living Room will inspire others throughout the State for decades,” explained California State Assembly Member Nancy Skinner who represents the 14th Assembly District including Emeryville.

“TMG is proud to have created a partnership with San Francisco’s Exploratorium, the best scientific ‘explainer’ in the business, to provide a hands-on, fun experience of what it means to interact with the natural and the built environments,” noted Michael Covarrubias, Chairman and CEO of TMG.

The Exploratorium closed its facility in San Francisco’s Marina district to relocate to its new waterfront home on San Francisco’s Pier 15 on January 2. The new site, which opens on April 17, will feature over 2 acres of outdoor exhibits for the first time. The partnership with Public Market Emeryville is an extension of the Exploratorium’s educational mission, bringing its participatory learning directly to communities.

Exploratorium “Explainers,” teens who help guide participants, were on-hand at today’s ceremony while dozens of people played with the Public Market’s new exhibits, designed by the Exploratorium’s Outdoor Team, and which include:

  • Lift
    Drawing on the aerodynamics of bird flight and the rigging technology used in sailboat design, Lift is comprised of sets of wing-like airfoils that move up and down vertical cables. The airfoils on the cables rise and fall according to wind speed. The result is a kind of “aerograph,” a device that graphs how the speed of the wind changes across a horizontal distance.
  • Anamorphic Bench
    A playful exhibit that incorporates concepts of light, geometry, and human perception of both. A specially designed, semi-circular bench is reflected in a cylindrical mirror. In the reflection, this interestingly designed bench amazingly appears to be perfectly rectangular. This radial distortion also creates a seating arrangement that reorients the viewer towards other seated viewers, encouraging conversation, noticing, and sharing of ideas.
  • Outdoor Signposts
    A series of five outdoor signposts installed to encourage visitors to observe recycled materials, architectural elements, wear patterns and any number of man-made or naturally-occurring artifacts or phenomenon at the Public Market location.
  • Bay Windows
    Visitors spin disks filled with samples of bay mud, sand and sediment. The glowing color or quick settling of materials will be both beautiful and telling as visitors explore the movement and settling characteristics of bay sediment. Three Bay Windows will be installed, each with a different sediment mixture. The materials in each will be visually distinguished and together form a triptych of ocean sediments and tell an important local and regional story.

The Public Market is part of a 14-acre mixed-use site planned with approvals to build up to 1,000,000 square feet of new housing and mixed-use, infill transit oriented development over the next 20 years. Public Market was awarded in 2008 the first-ever Platinum designation from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) rating system, and it aims to be a model of walkable, green urban living.

About Public Market Emeryville
For more information, visit publicmarketemeryville.com

About the Exploratorium
For more information, visit http://www.exploratorium.edu/

About TMG Partners
For more information, visit www.tmgpartners.com

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Should Drivers Pay to Park on Emeryville Streets? Community Meeting on New City Parking Plan – 11 a.m. this Saturday

Posted on January 11, 2013 by Editor

Reprinted from the Emeryville Property Owners Association website
Originally posted on December 20, 2012

The Emeryville Property Owners Association (EPOA) is holding a community meeting on the City’s Parking Implementation Plan 11 am, Saturday, January 12 at the Ralph Hawley School, 1275 61st Street, Emeryville.

From 10-11 am, the EPOA will show a video of the City Council accepting the specific details of the Wilbur Smith Parking Plan on September 7, 2010. Approved, but NOT Implemented.

At 11:15 am, Council Member Jennifer West will explain to the community why Emeryville should eliminate free street parking. Following her presentation, there will be an open community dialogue about the impact of the parking plan. Then, the EPOA will make a five minute closing statement to end the meeting at 12:30 pm.

At the Transportation Committee meeting on December 11,  held at the Fire Station, about 30 people attended. Although about 28 particpants seemed to disagree with the Parking Plan, the Committee decided to move the first steps of the Parking Implementation Plan to the City Council for its consideration at its next meeting on Tuesday, January 15 at 7:15 pm. Please attend the community meeting on January 12th to express your concerns. We will have feedback cards to obtain public opinion.

Emeryville has no existing parking meters (except at the Bay Street Mall, which is privately controlled). All the existing parking controls, and enforcement, were implemented at the specific request of residents or business owners. The proposed implementation of new timed parking zones, including the details of the parking plan have NOT been reviewed or requested by the community. Instead, these parking controls are being imposed, without asking the community, as a first step to eliminate free public parking in Emeryville. This is a major change in public policy with economic consequences, which have not been properly considered. The lack of proper notification to affected parties raises questions about the need for a city-wide parking implementation plan. It is a form of raising taxes without public approval.

(See Council Member Jennifer West’s arguments in favor of paid street parking in Emeryville on her blog.)

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