Redwood City | Redwood City E-News

Looking for the perfect opportunity to become directly involved in participating in City government and serving the community? Here it is!

The City of Redwood City is seeking applicants for appointment to a variety of its boards, commissions, and committees. Click here to go right to the list of opportunities.

You're invited to bring your interest, experience, and enthusiasm and apply for appointment to one of these boards:

General requirements are that applicants have an interest in civic and community improvement, are 18 years of age or older, are a United States citizen, and are a resident of in corporated Redwood City (some board or commission positions may have additional or slightly different requirements or preferred areas of expertise).

Further information and applications are available by calling the City Clerk’s office at 650-780-7220, on the City’s website, or by visiting the City Clerk’s office at City Hall, 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City.

Redwood City has implemented the early phases of its award winning recycled water program. Already, an average of nearly 130,000

gallons of highly treated recycled water is being used daily for commercial irrigation purposes. That’s 130,000 gallons of drinking water saved each day for other critical uses in our community (over 31 million gallons just since last June!).

Now, the City is considering a Recycled Water Use Ordinance to provide guidelines for the future use of recycle water, as we continue to seek ways to preserve our limited drinking water supply for today, and for the generations to come. The proposed ordinance will focus on how recycled water might best fit into the plans for new development projects, and will outline which areas of the City may be most feasible for providing the recycled water infrastructure.

You’re invited to participate in a special community workshop , to learn about and offer your comments and input on the elements and desired outcomes of this proposed ordinance:

The community input from this workshop will be provided to the Council’s Utilities Committee and the City Council for their deliberation in considering the proposed ordinance, so your participation is crucial!

Do you think the City should expand the use of this important resource? What kind of expansion makes sense, and under what conditions? Come to the March 11 th workshop to learn more, get an overview of the ordinance, and participate in a facilitated discussion about this important topic.

If you’d like more information about this workshop, please contact Justin Ezell at (650) 780-7474 or jezell@redwoodcity.org. Visit the Project web site for information about Redwood City's Recycled Water Project.

Registration is now available for the 2008 session of Redwood City's renowned PACT (Partnership Academy for Community Teamwork) program. The deadline to register is 5:00 pm, March 14th, 2008.

Registration forms are available from the City Manager’s office,

located in City Hall at 1017 Middlefield Road, or by calling 650-780-7300. The form is also available online at www.redwoodcity.org/pact . Enrollment is limited to 40 participants. Middle school and high school students are encouraged to participate (waiver must be signed by parent or guardian).

This nine-week "academy" will provide participants with a hands-on overview of the management and governance of Redwood City, while helping to build relationships that will strengthen our entire community.

The 2008 program takes place each Thursday evening from April 3rd through May 29th and engages in dynamic and interesting activities illustrating how the City functions. The sessions cover subjects from Public Works to the Police Department, from the City Council to Finance, from the Fire Department to the Library, and more. This is a great opportunity for interested community members to get an insider’s view of where the City is going, become experts on how the City operates, and help to build a great community together.

Join the Redwood City Cool Campaign!

In Redwood City, we know that it takes our entire community, working together, to make a positive impact on reducing energy use and waste, lowering our community’s carbon emissions, and forging positive action to help protect our future from climate change.

You and many other members of the community, along with your City staff and Council members, recognize that this is one of the most critical issues for both today and for the generations to come. Our big step in the green direction for Redwood City is our new Cool Campaign - a community building project that brings people together around the issue of climate protection.

It's easy to join in the Redwood City Cool Campaign, which focuses on motivating and facilitating community members to take climate protection measures in their own homes. You can email or call our new Environmental Initiatives Manager Beth Ross at 780-5917, or go to the Redwood City Cool Campaign interactive website - a great tool providing information, assistance, various levels of challenges, and many easy ways for community members to take personal, positive action to reduce energy use and carbon emissions in their home, neighborhood, and workplace.

A great feature is the 'monthly challenge' that will put you on track, each month, to make a postive change toward climate protection. In March, the challenge involves water conservation - and you already know that Redwood City offers many tools for saving water (just look at the water conservation web page).

This is just the start, and as more and more community members join in by signing on to the website, Redwood City is poised with many more program elements that will inspire, motivate, and encourage the community toward this critical objective of climate protection.

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During the water rate adjustments that have been made over the last few years, as well as during last year's sewer rate increase, the City has made a point of letting the community know that similar increases would be occurring each year for the next several years. In keeping with that pronouncement, rate increases for both these services are now being proposed for this year.

Rate increases are not pleasant to contemplate, or to experience - however there are ongoing signficant needs for these upcoming proposed increases. Here is a brief overview of the proposals - additional information is available online.

A public hearing on the proposed sewer and water rate increases is scheduled for April 28th, 2008 at 7 pm at City Hall. If approved by the City Council, the new rates will be effective onJune 20th, 2008. All bills generated on or after that date will be impacted by the new rates.

Late last January, City kicked off the start of its new General Plan - the General Plan is the blueprint for what Redwood City will be – it both reflects the community’s values and guiding principles of today and

creates a vision for the future of Redwood City.

The kick-off workshop included an interactive “open house" featuring exhibits and graphics to facilitate understanding of the scope and focus of the General Plan. It was standing room only, and participants were encouraged to interact by adding “hearts” and “bugs” to a City map to show their general likes and dislikes of particular areas and aspects. They also had the opportunity to examine and place their ideas and comments on maps featuring some of the focus areas and land use issues of the General Plan, as well as review the existing Guiding Principles and fill out comment cards for future discussion.

This was a dynamic, energizing discussion with City staff, neighbors, elected officials, and community members about land-use, transportation, housing, ideas for the future, and the General Plan’s guiding principles.

Next up in the process is a series of "affinity group" meetings - these are groups of people who share a common interest in a specific topic area of the General Plan. Our goal is to meet with as many of these Affinity Groups as possible to gain their input, ideas, and comments.

Many thanks to all who took part in our community vote: you selected CASABLANCA as our third classic film for the Month of March!

Here's the full schedule of what we call the Library's "March Classic Film Festival" FREE in the community room of the Downtown Library, 1044 Middlefield Road in Redwood City:

Wednesday, March 5 ~ 6:30 pm: "Some Like it Hot" - “Arguably the best cross-dressing comedy of all time, it’s also one of director Billy Wilder’s most fluid, vibrant, laugh-out-loud accomplishments.” - Austin Chronicle. 121 minutes; 1959.

Wednesday, March 12 ~ 6:30 pm: "Touch of Evil" -

Orson Welles directs “One of the greatest movies ever made in America! A wondrous gift no movie lover should miss.” - Chicago Tribune. 108 minutes; 1958.

Wednesday, March 26 ~ 6:30 pm: "Casablanca" - One of the most popularly loved and critically acclaimed films in American history, Casablanca is an unforgettable love story. Starring Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart. 102 minutes; 1942.

And, don't forget that this film fest is just one of the many great events and activities offered by your Redwood City Public Library! Be sure to visit www.redwoodcity.org/library for information on all of the Library's other great activities and services.

Well, it will be very soon, and with Redwood City's focus on community

climate protection, sustainability, and the environment, it's the perfect time to green-up your spring cleaning regimen.

Many commercially available home cleaning chemicals persist in the environment without breaking down, leaving a legacy of polluted ground waters and streams. Reduce their use! Here are a few ideas:

Here are a some additional environmentally-friendly alternatives for your Green Spring Cleaning: