Archive for 2010
by John M. Zukoski on November 18, 2010 | 
No Comments | Topics: Opinions
Erskine Bowles, left, accompanied by former Wyoming Sen. Alan Simpson, co-chairmen of President Barack Obama's bipartisan deficit commission
In response to public concern over the escalating Federal budgets, President Obama formed a bipartisan deficit commission to take a hard look at the nation’s fiscal future. Chaired by former Clinton White House chief of staff Erskine Bowles and retired Republican Senator Alan Simpson from the State of Wyoming, the commission has unveiled a controversial plan that will deeply impact Dublin and the rest of the country. The bold plan calls for reducing Medicare and Social Security payments, significantly cutting the Federal workforce, lowering Federal income tax rates, and eliminating the home mortgage interest expense tax deduction for owner-occupants. Landlords could still deduct their interest expense on rental properties.
Clearly, eliminating the deductibility of home mortgage interest payments would increase tax revenues for the Federal government and reduce our deficit; however, this change could have an adverse fiscal impact at the state and local levels.
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by John M. Zukoski on November 17, 2010 | 83 Comments | Topics: Schools
Dublin Unified School District (DUSD) Board of Trustees met on Tuesday night to determine the fate of John Green Elementary, H.W. Kolb Elementary, and Eleanor Murray Fallon School in Dublin, CA. The core issue that started the controversy was how the District should address the unacceptable overcrowding at John Green Elementary School. After receiving a presentation from DUSD Superintendent Dr. Stephen Hanke, the DUSD Board voted unanimously to approve Dr. Hanke’s recommendation to leave John Green Elementary School as a K-5 school, open H.W. Kolb Elementary School as a K-5 school for the 2011-2012 school year, and convert Eleanor Murray Fallon School to a middle school serving grades 6 through 8. Dr. Hanke’s recommendation was met with thunderous applause from the audience in the packed board room.
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by John M. Zukoski on November 16, 2010 | No Comments | Topics: Announcements · Local Businesses
Dublin’s Grocery Outlet store will be having its grand opening celebration on Saturday, November 20, 2010 starting at 8AM. The newest Grocery Outlet store is located at 7590 Amador Valley Boulevard in the old Anderson’s electronics store next to Target. Store owners Rich and Ruth Lavine will be hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony officiated by the Dublin Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday, November 17, 2010 from 4:30PM to 6:30PM.
Rich has been with Grocery Outlet for about five years in the State of Washington. Before Grocery Outlet, Rich worked for an office supply store while attending and graduating from Western Washington University. Ruth attended Whatcom Community College and worked in construction management with her family.
Rich and Ruth, along with their four children, wish to invite everyone to meet their family at the new Grocery Outlet Store Grand Opening in Dublin. The Grand Opening celebration activities scheduled for this Saturday will include:
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by Around Dublin Team on November 15, 2010 | 12 Comments | Topics: Local Issues · Opinions · Schools
The recent resignation of San Jose’s Chief Development Officer Paul Krutko is just the latest chapter in the unfolding financial scandal with deep ties to Dublin, CA. At the center of the financial scandal is Team San Jose, a non-profit organization that runs San Jose McEnery Convention Center, Parkside Hall, the Center for the Performing Arts, Montgomery Theater, San Jose Civic Auditorium, and California Theatre. Earlier this year, the City of San Jose declared Team San Jose to be in default of its management agreement and moved to restrict Team San Jose’s access to public funds for unexpectedly overshooting its budget by more than $750K. Around the time details of the $750K budget overage came to light, Team San Jose “dismissed” its Chief Financial Officer Dan Cunningham, who was elected to the Dublin Unified School (DUSD) Board of Trustees in 2008.
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by Around Dublin Team on November 14, 2010 | 7 Comments | Topics: City Hall
The City of Dublin would like to invite everyone to take a short five-minute online survey to help gauge community opinions about the City’s special events, and in particular the Day on the Glen Festival. The Day on the Glen Festival was suspended for 2010 as a measure to reduce the City’s budget deficit. The Dublin City Council voted unanimously earlier this year to cancel the Day on the Glen Festival for 2010 as a cost-saving measure. The step was necessary to reduce the 2010-2011 fiscal year budget deficit by $68,000 and to address the unprecedented multi-million dollar financial challenges facing the City in the form of a projected budget shortfall of as much as $4.67M in the 2010-2011 fiscal year, according to City Manager Joni Pattillo.
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by Tyler Moxley on November 13, 2010 | No Comments | Topics: Opinions
If you are looking at different neighborhoods in Dublin, CA, please visit our Dublin Ranch Neighborhoods page. This page features information on schools, parks, floor plans, and an interactive neighborhood map of Dublin Ranch.
Dublin Detached Homes
The number of detached homes sold in Dublin, CA decreased in October 2010. A total of 27 homes sold in October compared to 34 in September. The highest sale price for a Dublin detached home was $1,060,000 on East Cog Terrace. That home sold at $216 a square foot. The lowest sale price for a Dublin detached home was $371,000 on Sutton Lane. That home sold at $260 a square foot.
Average days on market for Dublin homes was 32 with an average list price of $675,462 at $293 a square foot. The average sale price was $660,220 at $287 a square foot.
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by John M. Zukoski on November 11, 2010 | No Comments | Topics: Announcements · Restaurants
Hot off the heels of its wildly successful one-year anniversary celebration, Lanna Thai Restaurant in Livermore would like to offer Around Dublin Blog readers a special deal of 50% off one of its new menu items. This coupon may be redeemed once per table with dine-in visits. Simply print out a copy of this article and bring it to Lanna Thai, or show the friendly Lanna Thai staff this article on your mobile device. The coupon is good from Thursday, November 11, 2010 through Sunday, December 12, 2010 (11/11-12/12).
Lanna Thai’s new menu items include:
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by Around Dublin Team on November 10, 2010 | 1 Comment | Topics: Announcements
On Wednesday, November 10, 2010, from 7PM to 9PM, Dublin City Staff will present the proposed bikeways programs and events included in the 2010-2011 Fiscal Year budget at the Shannon Center. The Shannon Center is located at 11600 Shannon Avenue. City Staff will also be available to make a presentation on the bikeways projects taking place throughout the City of Dublin.
The meeting at the Shannon Center will be an opportunity for interested residents and stakeholders to ask questions about these projects and programs recommended in the Bikeways Master Plan. A full version of the Plan is available for viewing on the City of Dublin’s website.
In an effort to conserve paper, the City will no longer be sending hard copies of this invitation to its mailing list. Going forward, City Staff will send invitations to bikeways workshops via email only. If anyone requires a hard copy of future bikeways workshop invitations or have any questions regarding the upcoming workshop, please contact Erin Steffen at (925)556-4524 or erin.steffen@dublin.ca.gov. An abridged version of the meeting agenda is listed below.
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by John M. Zukoski on November 9, 2010 | 14 Comments | Topics: Schools
In addition to API and other standardized test scores, many parents and students in and around Dublin, CA have used school climate as another metric in evaluating the different schools. Two objective measures of school climate and safety include the suspension and expulsion rates of a given school. The California Department of Education tracks the suspension and expulsion rates at each public school to satisfy the No Child Left Behind requirements related to “persistently dangerous” schools and the uniform management information reporting system. While no school in the Tri-Valley has won the dubious distinction of being “persistently dangerous,” a review of the 2008-2009 high school suspension and expulsion data in the Tri-Valley yielded some surprises.
Granada High School in Livermore had the highest suspension rate of all the Tri-Valley high schools in the 2008-2009 school year at 21%. Livermore High School had the second highest suspension rate at 16% during the same time period. Dougherty Valley High School in San Ramon rounded out the top 3 with a suspension rate of 11%. On the other end of the spectrum are the two high schools in Danville and one of the high schools in Pleasanton. San Ramon Valley High School in Danville has the lowest suspension rate of all the Tri-Valley high schools in the 2008-2009 school year at 3%. San Ramon Valley High School is followed by Monte Vista High School, the other high school in Danville, with a suspension rate of 4%. Amador Valley High School in Pleasanton has the third lowest suspension rate at 5%.
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