Redwood City | Redwood City E-News

"Are You Ready?" is a quick and informative introduction to disaster preparedness. It's perfect for individuals, families, or groups that don't currently have the time to attend our more-intensive Community

Emergency Response Team (CERT) program, and it provides the basics of how to survive after a major emergency. The Redwood City Fire Department provides the training materials and instructors, you provide the interest and enthusiasm!

This FREE one-to-two hour class covers the basics of what to do before, during, and after a major emergency. You will learn how to:

"Are You Ready?" is a great lead-in to our CERT training program - class size is limited, so sign up for an upcoming session now!

The Redwood City Library Foundation has announced the successful completion of its “Campaign for the Opening Day Collection” for the new Redwood Shores Library. The campaign has garnered an astonishing $850,000 to purchase new materials to fill the new Library

currently nearing completion at Bridge and Marine Parkways in Redwood Shores.

The Foundation and the Redwood Shores Community Association worked hand-in-hand to raise these much-needed funds through challenge grants, special events, and personal solicitations. All of the money will be used to purchase books, magazines, audio books, e-books, CDs, DVDs, and other materials for the Library scheduled to open September, 2008.

The City, Library, and Foundation offer sincere thanks to all who contributed and worked to achieve this fund raising goal, with special thanks to the eight largest donors: Oracle Corporation; Beverley Hemphill Family Trust; Pierre and Pamela Omidyar; the Redwood Shores Community Association; Danford Foundation; Palo Alto Medical Foundation; Provident Credit Union; and Wells Fargo Bank .

Construction of the 22,558 square foot, single-story building began in February. This full-service, high-tech, inviting, and engaging facility includes a family place for young children, a café, an environmental interpretive center, and space for community meetings.

The Redwood City Library Foundation raises funds to enhance the Library’s services, collections, and programs. Programs funded by the Foundation include the award-winning Traveling Storytime and the Teen Homework Center. For more information about the Foundation call 780-7045 or visit the website at www.rclfdn.org.

The City Council will recognize Redwood City's first three certified Green Businesses at its meeting on Monday, June 9th, 2008. The businesses are DES Architects, Harwood Homebuilders, and The Kastrop Group. The Council meeting starts at 7 pm and takes place at City Hall, 1017 Middlefield Road.

The Green Business Program, a partnership of the Association of Bay

Area Governments, San Mateo County, and several cities in the county, offers a process to certify that a business is meeting criteria for energy conservation, water conservation, waste reduction, and pollution prevention.

To be certified "Green," participating businesses must be in compliance with all state and local regulations and meet program standards for conserving resources, preventing pollution and minimizing waste.

These are the first three businesses in Redwood City to be certified green, and there are nearly a dozen more currently in process. Visit www.recycleworks.org/green_business for more information and to apply.

Coastal Conservancy Awards Grant for Environmental Interpretive Center at New Shores Library

The Redwood City Public Library has received a $150,000 grant from the California Coastal Conservancy to help fund the innovative Environmental Interpretive Center at the new Redwood Shores

Library. With this very generous grant, Redwood City Public Library has received a major boost toward securing the funding necessary for the entire Interpretive Center project.

The Redwood Shores Library's Environmental Interpretive Center will highlight the life in the sloughs, wetlands, and Bay, offering a community destination for interactive and fun environmental education. It will inlcude larger-than-life models of mud and water life, a 200-gallon aquarium, and many other hands-on and interactive educational activities emphasizing the benefits of wetlands, the interconnected food web, the diversity of microscopic life, and our connection to the environment.

The California Coastal Conservancy is a state agency working to protect and improve the coast and San Francisco Bay. It has helped open more than 100 miles of coast and bay shores to the public, and has preserved more than 300,000 acres of wetlands, wildlife habitat, parks, and farmland. The California Coastal Conservancy website is located at www.coastalconservancy.ca.gov.

The Environmental Interpretive Center project still needs an additional $145,000 to be fully funded. Contributions can be made to the Redwood City Library Foundation, and donors of $1,000 or more will be recognized on an outdoor Interpretive Center supporter wall. More information on the program and funding is available from Jacky Averill at (650) 780-7016 or javerill@redwoodcity.org.

New Shuttle Service Starts - Help Name the Shuttle!

Redwood City’s new, FREE on-demand shuttle service is launching on June 3rd, 2008, providing residents with door-to-door shuttle service to address mid-day transportation needs in the Fair Oaks Community and surrounding area. A special ribbon cutting ceremony featuring Mayor Rosanne Foust and Vice Mayor Diane Howard is scheduled for Friday, June 20th, 2008 at 11:30 am in the parking lot at Fair Oaks Community Center, 2600 Middlefield Road, and the entire community is invited to attend and help officially kick-off this new shuttle service!

The shuttle will be managed by the Peninsula Traffic Congestion Relief Alliance. The shuttle information and route are available on the Alliance’s website at www.commute.org. Bilingual printed copies are also available by calling 650-588-1600 or emailing shuttles@commute.org.

Funded by the City of Redwood City, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, and City/County Association of Governments of San Mateo County, this is a pilot program to serve the transportation needs of low income residents. This community shuttle service will operate Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am – 5 pm in the eastern part of Redwood City with two stops outside the area – Veterans Memorial Senior Center and Woodside Plaza. The eastern part of Redwood City includes: Downtown Redwood City, Fair Oaks, Friendly Acres, Kaiser Hospital, Marsh Manor, Redwood Village and Stambaugh/Heller.

Everyone is invited to help name the new shuttle, and get entered in a drawing for prizes! Go to www.commute.org, email to nameRWCbus@commute.org, or stop by a voting box at City Hall of Redwood City, Fair Oaks Community Center, Veterans Memorial Senior Center, or on the shuttle bus – entries for the “Name the Shuttle Contest”must be received by September 1st.

The prize drawings and the new shuttle name will be selected in mid-September, 2008. Prizes include $25 Borders, Olive Garden, and Red Lobster gift cards, Redwood City Parks and Rec program gift certificates, and $5 Starbucks gift cards.

**************************

At its meeting on June 9, the City Council will consider an amendment to the City's Municipal Code which will allow the City to implement and enforce new parking restrictions on specified streets in order to improve street sweeping.

Currently, residents are asked to voluntarily move their vehicles from the street on specified days in order to allow the street sweeper to properly clean their street. Unfortunately, in many cases vehicles are not moved and the street sweeper must veer around the parked car. The result is that the streets and gutters are not cleaned to the standard expected by the community.

As a pilot program, the proposed amendment will restrict parking on on the last Friday of each month from 7 am to noon (except holidays) on Douglas Avenue (from Spring Street to Middlefield Road) and on Marshall Street (from Chestnut Street to Maple Street). If approved by City Council, installation of signs on both streets will begin the first week of August 2008, and restricted parking and enforcement would begin on August 29, 2008, the last Friday of the month.

The proposed ordinance change will allow the City to restrict parking, specifically for street sweeping, on additional streets throughout the City, upon posting.

Residents are encouraged to attend and participate in the discussion at the Council meeting.

Delegation from Sister City of Colima, Mexico, Visits, Accepts Donation of Fire Engine

On May 30th, a delegation of elected officials and staff from Colima, Mexico (one of Redwood City’s Sister Cities) visited our community and accepted Redwood City’s donation of a fire engine.

The ceremonial handing-over of the donated engine took place at the City’s Public Works Services building, where Redwood City Mayor Rosanne Foust and Colima Mayor Mario Anguiano joined together to start up the engine and display its emergency lights.

The 1988 fire pumper truck is being given to Colima to help bolster its largely-volunteer fire department. It’s the third fire truck donated by Redwood City to Colima over the last nine years, and these donations are one way that the City promotes the spirit of international cooperation and sister city teamwork. Redwood City is proud to be a partner in helping the people of Colima with that city’s fire fighting capability.

In 1998, Redwood City formally established a sister city relationship with Colima, Mexico. Redwood City International, the local residents’ group that facilitates the sister city relationship, promotes cultural, educational, business, and interpersonal exchanges across international borders to foster better mutual understanding and to gain fresh perspectives on our community and our world. Redwood City also enjoys a sister city relationship with Zhuhai, People’s Republic of China.

Here are a few great tips for how to be more green in your office - thanks to San Mateo County Health Department!