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Anyone living in Redwood City just 20 ago, would never have imagined what the city derisively called “Deadwood City” is today. The city is at the epicenter of one of the fastest growing economies on the planet where the lure of high-paying Silicon Valley jobs has brought a flood of high-tech workers to the once sleepy community. As a result, Redwood City has become a vibrant, thriving place to visit, live and work. Theaters, restaurants, national retail chains, and transit-facing housing alongside technology startups now dominate an expanding downtown footprint.

The Downtown Precise Plan adopted in 2012 kickstarted the development that gave new life to the city, though it has also left many longtime residents seriously questioning the nature and quality of life of their transformed city, as well as what more growth might mean. City leaders are embarking on the next stage of planning for the downtown area, and of the three areas of community concern — housing, transportation and children—housing clearly is the top priority, according to Mayor Diane Howard.

“When you look at the imbalance between area jobs and our capacity to house new workers, it’s clear we’ve created an abundance of good-paying jobs here,” she said. The question is where are all the workers going to live.

This story was originally published in the April edition of Climate Magazine. To view the magazine online, click on this link.

It’s a very real problem for people trying to find a place to live, but city government is feeling a lot of pressure too from Sacramento, including mandates to dramatically ratchet up the number of housing units being produced.

Since 1969, local agencies have been given target numbers to meet anticipated housing needs, something they’ve routinely failed to deliver, although Redwood City has come closer than most in recent years. Recently, Howard attended a meeting of the regional Association of Bay Area Governments where there was talk of tripling the current number, which isn’t even being met now. The requirements are issued every eight years and new ones are due at the end of this year, hence the urgency.

Against that backdrop, as well as the need to plan for residential and economic growth, Redwood City has added two new employees to its staff who have proven records of success in their fields of expertise: Mark Muenzer, director of community development and transportation and, Housing Leadership Manager Alin Lancaster.

Muenzer spent the first 20 years of his career as a city planner in and around the Chicago area, starting in the small town of Countryside, Illinois. He spent the next 15 years working for the City of Chicago, where he served as Development and Project Manager for 77 different neighborhoods. From there, he moved on to a position in Evanston, located near Northwestern University, where he managed the building, planning, and transportation needs of the mid-sized Chicago suburb.

Throughout his life, Meunzer always felt he would be “at home” in the West with its welcoming culture and growing diversity. So at the age of 47, he accepted a community development position with the City of Menlo Park.

When Redwood City’s Community Development Director Aaron Aknin left his post to become a private sector consultant in January 2019, the City Council approved the creation of two new positions to replace and expand the role he had filled: One would oversee all new development and transportation proposals that came before the city, the second would concentrate primarily on the housing element of the City plan.

When Meunzer heard about the new position opening up in Redwood City, he took a trip to the city by Caltrain and was impressed by the “sense of place” that Courthouse Square provided, a value he’d learned in Illinois. Thinking that the vibrant, diverse, and aesthetically pleasing public area was reflective of the community’s overall environment, he applied and joined the city staff last August as Development and Transportation Director.

A passionate advocate for public transportation, Meunzer says the ability to commute on Caltrain from his apartment in downtown San Jose to the new job in Redwood City helped cement his decision.

“I look forward to working with the council and the community at large to create a new Central Redwood City Plan that meets everyone’s objectives, particularly in the areas of transit-oriented development,” Meunzer said.

One of the first tests of that plan came before the City Council in late February: a large, multi-use redevelopment proposal for Sequoia Station and the Caltrain corridor. Meunzer found himself in the not-unfamiliar position of mediator between opposing stakeholders.

Business and transportation advocates pushed for immediate action by the City Council to enable the project to go forward, while housing advocates demanded time to study and submit substantial project revisions to reduce the current job/housing imbalance. Meunzer offered a third alternative, an accelerated community visioning program so that residents would have more opportunity to make their views heard before the City Council revisits the proposal in the fall.

In addition to the Sequoia Station project, Meunzer is overseeing the Greystar development proposal known as the South Main Mixed-Use Project, located at 1601 El Camino Real near the Woodside Road overpass and at 1304 El Camino Real, across from Sequoia Station.

Unlike the Sequoia Station proposal, which was unveiled fairly recently, the South Main Mixed-Use proposal has been in the works since January 2018. The developer has made substantial modifications to the original proposal as a result of community meetings. They include changes to reduce Greystar’s office space, increase affordable housing and open space, and improve transportation and pedestrian features. In spite of the changes, the most recent meeting, held Feb. 26, still featured heated arguments by opposing stakeholders.

Muenzer seems unfazed being at the center of the passionate exchanges that can often roil development proposals. “Everyone has their own truths and expectations,” he said. “It’s my job to move the conversation forward by listening to all sides and find the common themes that will enable collaboration.”

To highlight the importance of housing issues in the city, the newly created position of Housing Leadership Manager was moved from its previous position within the Community Development Department into the City Manager’s office. Lancaster was appointed to the job in January.

Originally from the tiny town of Weaverville in Northern California, she received an undergraduate degree in Community and Regional Development from the University of California at Davis and moved to the Bay Area to work for the City of South San Francisco.

In 2015, she accepted a position as the Housing and Community Development Manager for the City of Union City where she led a 15-member taskforce that drafted and implemented a rent mediation and just-cause eviction ordinance. Over eight years in government work, Lancaster has worked extensively with city councils, residents, and community stakeholders to address the growing housing crisis facing cities throughout the region.

“I’m passionate about housing for all,” said Lancaster, “(and I) look forward to creating policies and programs to support housing stability for everyone.”

Several housing projects are already in production in Redwood City, such as the Main Street Project being built by ROEM Development, the Arroyo Green Project being built by MidPen Housing, and the 612 Jefferson Project being built by Habitat for Humanity. Lancaster will also oversee projects that have been approved but have not yet broken ground such as the Sobrato-MidPen Project known as Broadway Plaza, located between 1401 Broadway and 2201 Bay Road. Taken together, these projects promise to produce a combined 382 affordable and 400 market-rate new residential units in the city.

Lancaster believes that while active community engagement and visioning will be important, maintaining flexibility in developing housing solutions will be equally important as policies will need to be dynamic enough to address constantly changing economic realities.

Mayor Howard hopes to enlist Lancaster’s policy expertise to help the City Council develop new, innovative solutions to address the rapidly growing need for more housing in Redwood City.

San Mateo Mayor Joe Goethals says he’s both disappointed and frustrated over anti-Chinese graffiti posted on freeway signage in the city at Interstate 92 and De Anza Boulevard.

“I was outraged,” Goethals said.

The mayor has heard anecdotally of about a dozen verbal exchanges and graffiti, but no known violence in his city at this point directed toward Asian-Americans in relation to the pandemic.

Public health agencies including the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) have pegged the epicenter of the outbreak in Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei Province in China. Subsequent phrasing of the outbreak as the “Chinese virus,” including by President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (who used the term “Wuhan virus”), have been criticized in the U.S. and by Chinese officials as stoking racism and hate crimes.

News agencies across the U.S. have been reporting hate crimes directed at Chinese people. The Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council (A3PCON) based out of Los Angeles, San Francisco State University and Chinese for Affirmative Action have been tracking reports of alleged hate crimes since the start of the pandemic, tallying 1,135 reports in the first two weeks. The incidents largely involved verbal harassment and shunning. But there have also been reports of physical assaults, being spit on and workplace discrimination, according to the report. The incidents are indicative of “a widespread issue,” Manju Kulkarni, executive director of A3PCON, told KCRA.

San Mateo won’t stand for it, Goethals said.

“There’s a real harm in missing the importance of the moment, in labeling the virus as connected to a particular group or region,” Goethals said. “Not only is this very racist and ignorant, but it is dangerous to us all.”

In cooperation with the city’s public works department, the city aims to swiftly remove of any property defacement. In his day job, Mayor Goethals serves as a deputy district attorney in the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office, which he says will hold accountable anyone committing hate crimes, including graffiti that targets and threatens violence toward a specific group.

“This is a moment for all of us to come together in unity and reaffirm our values,” said the mayor, who encouraged residents to report damaged property or graffiti of this nature to local law enforcement.

The CDC has devoted a website page dedicated to reducing the stigma around the novel coronavirus.

“Stigma hurts everyone by creating fear or anger towards other people,” according to the CDC, resulting in social avoidance, rejection, denials of healthcare, education or employment and physical violence.

Stigma, the CDC adds, “affects the emotional mental health of stigmatized groups and the communities they live in. Stopping stigma is important to making communities and community members resilient.”

The CDC encouraged all citizens to know the facts about COVID-19 and to share them with others in their community.

Photo: Image of Mayor Goethals in front on the freshly resurfaced highway sign. Photo courtesy of Joe Goethals

San Mateo is dismissing or refunding the 1,241 parking citations issued in the city between March 17 and April 8, and has temporarily suspended citations for all metered parking, street sweeping, residential parking and expired registration, the San Mateo Police Department announced this week.

Those who received a citation during this time period will be contacted directly and do not need to take any action.

Starting Thursday, parking enforcement will focus on addressing public safety violations such as red zones, blocking a fire hydrant, blocking handicapped access or crosswalks, and all posted no parking areas. Enforcement will also continue for violations that cause immediate safety concerns such as parking on a rolled curb to prevent pedestrian access, wrong way parking, and parking in an alleyway.

For any questions regarding parking violations and citations, please email the Traffic Unit at traffic@cityofsanmateo.org.

Photo credit: San Mateo Police Department

At its meeting Monday, the Redwood City council directed city staff to take a number of steps to mitigate impacts of the COVID-19 lockdown on residents and small businesses. Agreeing to discuss delaying a possible minimum wage increase in 2021 was not among them.

Council rejected the idea of reviewing in October whether a minimum wage increase, set to be adjusted based upon the Consumer Price Index in January, should be postponed due to the economic hardship facing local businesses during the pandemic. In January, the city’s minimum wage rose to $15.38 per hour from $13.50, per an ordinance passed in 2017. From 2020 on, the wage is set to be adjusted annually based upon Consumer Price Index.

Julie Lind, executive secretary and treasurer of the San Mateo County Central Labor Council, spoke against any delay to a increase, should the CPI warrant one, saying minimum wage workers “now more than ever need as much stability and security as possible.”

“Many of them have huge health care deductibles in a time when quality health care has never been more critical, particularly as many of them are serving as frontline workers in grocery stores drug stores, delivery services, and restaurants,” Lind said. “Should there be a CPI increase, we respectively request the January 2021 minimum wage increase proceed as scheduled.”

Lind had support on council.

“I don’t even believe this discussion should be on the table,” Councilmember Giselle Hale said. “This effects some of our most vulnerable workers, when they are out there, putting themselves on the line every day for everyone in society…I think it sends the wrong message to them and to our community about the vital work they are doing.”

Hale and other councilmembers pointed out the CPI may not even increase given the grim economic picture.

The city should be prepared to dip below its rainy-day fund minimum to support residents and businesses in the months ahead, said Councilmember Ian Bain.

” I clearly heard a majority of the council say we don’t want to do anything that’s going to harm our minimum wage workers. We still want people to make a living, but at the same time we want to ensure our businesses are going to be able to make their ends meet,” said Bain, adding, “This is the biggest emergency we’ve seen since serving on the council.”

In other related decisions Monday, council directed staff to waive late penalties for waste, water and sewer bills from March through August for residents and businesses; appropriate $393,000 to an emergency rental assistance fund; contribute $300,000 to the San Mateo County Strong Fund supporting relief efforts for small businesses; and temporarily adjust downtown parking zones to favor takeout and delivery service.

Redwood City is working on a plan to install short-term parking zones and adjust right-of-way usage downtown to support restaurants’ ability to offer take-out services during the COVID-19 shelter-in-place period.

On Monday, the City Council directed city staff to move forward with parking adjustments. City staff consulted with Redwood City-San Mateo County Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Business Group, which expressed interest in the changes, the city said.

The temporary plan will involve installing short-term parking zones adjacent to restaurant storefronts, city staff said. Due to business interest, the city has temporarily allowed vehicular traffic on Theater Way to promote efficient restaurant takeout services.

The city expects drastically reduced parking need due to the shelter-in-place period. About $2.7 million per year is generated in parking revenue, funds which are primarily designed to offset the cost to manage parking in the city, according to city documents.

“Let us take care of your pet as you take care of us.”

Wag Hotels at 1025 Hansen Way in Redwood City is offering a 50 percent discount for overnight pet boarding and daycare services.

The pet hotel has remained open during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying it received ample community calls from locals needing their pets cared for while they attend to their loved ones and jobs, including those on the front lines.

For more information, call 888-WAG-LINE. Or visit the business website here.

Photo credit: Wag Hotels

At a time of need, the Redwood City community continues to create hope through collaboration. Aiming to offer peace of mind for vulnerable community members during the COVID-19 crisis, the St. Francis Center pledged no evictions for the 180 low-income apartments it operates in the North Fair Oaks community, and is committed to maintaining its safety-net services such as food, clothing and immigration counseling. But the pandemic is dealing financial uncertainty to nonprofits, as well.

“You can feel the fear in the community,” said Sister Christina Heltsley, the nonprofit’s executive director. “These families live paycheck to paycheck… savings is a privileged notion here.”

There have been rays of hope. The St. Francis Center recently received a $100,000 donation in emergency funding from Jay Paul, a longtime supporter, who also set aside 22 units for rent-free housing in Redwood City during this time of challenge. The nonprofit also received a $150,000 donation from Ned and Carol Spieker.

Heltsley said these and other generous donations will ease the nonprofit’s fears in the coming month. But the financial future is uncertain for the St. Francis Center and other nonprofits serving the most vulnerable populations, she said. While local governments have passed moratoriums on evictions for residents made jobless by the shelter-in-place order, the fear of being unable to pay rent remains at the top of their minds, said Heltsley. Some families served at the St. Francis Center will not qualify for government aid programs, Heltsley said.

“These are our beloved nannies, housekeepers, gardeners,” she said, urging those with the resources to continue paying them during this period.

“If you have the resources, please remember your favorite charities during this time,” Heltsley added.

Adding support is San Mateo County, which sank $3 million into the San Mateo Strong Fund aiming in part to support the nonprofits serving the most vulnerable county residents. At its meeting Monday, Redwood City council added $300,000 to that large-scale fundraising effort, and also $393,000 for emergency rental assistance. The Fund continues seeking larger-scale donations aimed at supporting individuals, families, and small businesses in addition to nonprofits.

Over the course of what feels like months but, in reality, has been just a few weeks, our lives have been rearranged in a way that previously seemed unimaginable. As we adapt to our new normal, we’ll all be pondering how best to handle things. With that in mind, I’ve spent some time this week thinking about the “dos and don’ts” of life in the evolving coronavirus/COVID-19 crisis era.

DO find good information sources and read them carefully. Two of the best I’ve found over the last few weeks are San Mateo County’s coronavirus webpage and the San Mateo County Economic Development Association’s Business/Worker Resource webpage. The county’s 2-1-1 telephone line is another excellent resource.

DON’T blindly follow/post/retweet/share information unless you’ve carefully confirmed that it’s accurate. Expertise and qualifications matter. Following advice from those unqualified to give it can be deadly right now.

DO wash your hands, often and thoroughly for at least 30 seconds. Don’t know what 30 seconds feels like? Say, “At this point in my life, I should probably be able to figure out when 30 seconds has elapsed” six times.

DON’T touch your face. As we’ve all recently realized, apparently we touch our faces around 16 times an hour. It’s hard, but try to avoid it as much as humanly possible.

DO stay home. Seriously. No joke. We know the kids/teens will be getting on your last nerve (and vice-versa.) As I read recently, “Your grandparents were called to serve in war. You’re being asked to sit on your couch. You can do this.”

DON’T leave home unless you need to for an essential purpose like grocery shopping, picking up medication, or for medical reasons. A reminder that “essential” means, “absolutely necessary” or “extremely important.” Yes, you can still go for a walk or jog.

DO shop as you normally would (remember the six-feet rule.) The virus has not affected the supply chain. Toilet paper aisles are barren simply because folks overreacted initially and hoarded.

DON’T overbuy and hoard. Kudos to local stores like Costco, Safeway, and many others who have implemented rules to ensure a steady supply of basic items of necessity.

DO support businesses still open in your community as much as you can. Order delivery/take-out from local restaurants. Need some tools/supplies for all those “to-do” list items you never seem to get to but now, all of a sudden, have plenty of time for? It’s a great time to patronize your local hardware store.

DON’T eat inside a restaurant and if you see one offering dine-in, call your local police department’s non-emergency line and let them know. If you’re picking up food, don’t forget the six-feet rule.

DO get some exercise. Go for walks in areas of your neighborhood you can access without driving. Go for a run, jog, walk or a bike ride. Just make absolutely sure you maintain six feet of distance between you and others when you do.

DON’T leave your neighborhood to get exercise. Don’t drive to the beach, your favorite trail, or your favorite park. The idea here is to keep people from aggregating together at attractions like this.

DO be aware that due to some appallingly bad decisions by high-ranking federal officials about how to refer to coronavirus, our friends and neighbors of Asian ancestry are vulnerable to some truly awful behavior. If you see someone being harassed or assaulted, call the police immediately and try to help if you can safely do so. This is San Mateo County; we do not and we will not tolerate racially or ethnically motivated crimes of hate.

DON’T let fear or appallingly bad decisions by high ranking federal officials about how to refer to coronavirus confuse you. This virus and the COVID-19 disease it causes knows no borders and doesn’t care what your ethnicity or race is.

DO follow the Golden Rule. If you find yourself wondering how you should handle a situation, just remember to treat everyone as you would like to be treated. It’s really that simple. Speaking of which, I’ve fielded a ton of calls and emails over the last two weeks from people wondering how they can help. I recommend two things: 1) sign up to be a volunteer through the county at surveymonkey.com/r/WSXH6PZ and 2) donate as much as you can to the SMCStrong Fund at smcstrong.org/. Every dollar raised will stay in the county to help individuals/families, small businesses, and nonprofits suffering from the negative impacts of the crisis.

Charles Stone is the Vice-Mayor of the City of Belmont, the Chair of the San Mateo County Library Joint Powers Agency, and serves on the Caltrain and SamTrans Board of Directors. The thoughts and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent the positions of any organization he is affiliated with.

This story was originally published in the April edition of Climate Magazine. To view the magazine online, click here.

Costco is now allowing healthcare workers and first responders such as police officers, EMTs and firefighters to enter stores without having to wait in line, the company said.

The temporary privilege offered amid the COVID-19 pandemic requires healthcare workers and first responders to exhibit their Costco membership card and official identification of to gain priority access.

Costco continues to open its warehouses early from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday to allow members ages 60 and older or those with physical impairments to shop early. The pharmacy remains open, but not the Costco Food Court at this time.

Costco is also still implementing limits on the purchase of certain high-demand items, like toilet paper, bottled water, sanitizing wipes, paper towels, rice and disinfecting spray.

The company is also limiting entrances to two people per membership card and is closing earlier on weekdays, at 6:30 p.m., except for at Costco Business Centers which will continue with normal hours.