City Hall
by John M. Zukoski on July 8, 2011 | 
7 Comments | Topics: City Hall · Opinions
As with last year’s survey, San Ramon, CA has set the pace for public employee compensation in the Tri-Valley in 2010. Even after the intense public scrutiny over his 2009 pay package, San Ramon City Manager Herb Moniz actually received a bigger paycheck in 2010 compared to the one he got in 2009. Moniz earned a gross annual pay of $357,099, which is almost $100K in excess of the $260,862 in average gross pay for all City and Town Managers in the Tri-Valley this year.
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by John M. Zukoski on July 3, 2011 | No Comments | Topics: Announcements · City Hall · Things To Do
Tuesday, August 2, 2011, will mark the 28th anniversary of National Night Out. The special neighborhood event, which is traditionally held on the first Tuesday in August, began as a concept for generating greater crime prevention involvement among residents throughout the country. In the past, residents would leave their porch lights on to demonstrate their anti-crime stance.
The Crime Prevention Unit encourages everyone in Dublin to plan an activity in which the neighborhood can reconnect and show support for National Night Out. National Night Out neighborhood events registered with the City of Dublin will receive a visit from City representatives, including staff from Dublin Police Services, Fire Services, and the City. McGruff may also be available on that day.
On August 2nd, National Night Out 2011, City representative will visit registered events from 5:00PM to 8:00PM. Please sign up your planned event early, because the number of sites visited is limited. Requests will be filled in the order they are received.
In the past, Dublin residents have organized many great events in their neighborhoods to celebrate National Night Out. These events include:
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by Around Dublin Team on June 19, 2011 | 7 Comments | Topics: Announcements · City Hall
Dublin, CA has been awarded the prestigious honor of being named an All-America City by the National Civic League. This award is due to the great work being done throughout the Dublin community. The City of Dublin has collected $60K to cover costs associated with the All-America City Awards competition and marketing the win throughout the community.
The All-America City Awards program is sponsored by Prudential, MWH, Hyatt Regency Crown Center, Southern California Edison, Burns & McDonnell, Pforzheimer Foundation, and Southwest Airlines, the official airline of the All-America City Awards. National Civic League (NCL) is a 117-year-old nonpartisan nonprofit organization that strengthens democracy by increasing the capacity of our nation’s people to fully participate in and build healthy and prosperous communities across America.
The City of Dublin submitted an application to the National Civic League (NCL) to be considered for this honor, documenting three community projects that addressed the City’s most pressing challenges – the integration of diversity and creating community unification following a period of significant growth. Dublin joined 25 other communities from across the nation in Kansas City, MO on June 15th-17th and competed for the prestigious award, telling the City’s story of positive community change to a jury of civic experts.
The City entered three projects for consideration – the community’s effort to build the School of Imagination; the City’s affordable housing programs; as well as the sustainability programs and activities that preserve our history, engage the community, and create a greener future for Dublin. The $60K that the City of Dublin plans to spend on the competition came directly from the generous contribution from its community and business partners.
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by John M. Zukoski on June 15, 2011 | 1 Comment | Topics: City Hall · Opinions · Schools
Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) program in Dublin, CA is known to have some of the most stringent standards in the state. In addition to developing some of the Tri-Valley’s brightest students, Dublin’s GATE program is now yielding benefits for the residents and businesses in Dublin. Mayor Tim Sbranti recently recognized some of Dublin’s most creative and innovative GATE students at the First Annual Mayor’s Challenge Award Night held at Dublin High School.
The Mayor’s Challenge program was created by Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti and Dublin Elementary School Principal and DUSD GATE Program Coordinator Tess Johnson. As part of the program, the GATE students within each of Dublin’s elementary schools formed teams and developed solutions related to three of the City of Dublin’s most critical objectives:
- What are some things we can do to bring more businesses to Dublin?
- What can we do to become a greener and more environmentally friendly city?
- How we can improve communications in the City of Dublin to inform residents and businesses about events, meetings, and other important information?
Dublin’s elementary school students participating in the Mayor’s Challenge were required to brainstorm, establish criteria and a rationale for selecting their idea, and develop an implementation plan that could be presented via a PowerPoint slide deck. The Mayor’s Challenge is a magnificent program that sets the achievement bar high for students and helps them to develop skills that will give them an advantage throughout their academic and professional careers.
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by John M. Zukoski on June 2, 2011 | 6 Comments | Topics: City Hall · Parks · Things To Do
The City of Dublin recently pulled the plug on Emerald Glen Park’s signature Day on the Glen event in Dublin, CA; however, Dublin City Council is now contemplating the possibility of hosting an International Festival at Emerald Glen Park in 2012 to celebrate the Tri-Valley’s burgeoning multi-cultural population. An International Festival could be a terrific opportunity to bring residents together and provide a platform for the various ethnic restaurants in and around Dublin to spotlight their cuisine. While Dublin has not sponsored an International Festival in the past, the 2008 Day on the Glen festival did have an international theme.
Dublin’s City Council is leaning towards having distinct areas setup in various parts of Emerald Glen Park where the food and culture of different countries may be featured. The area next to Emerald Glen’s Bocce Courts, for example, could feature Italian food, games, and entertainment. Similarly, the area adjacent to the cricket field could be the designated area that showcases Indian culture and cuisine.
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by John M. Zukoski on May 8, 2011 | 2 Comments | Topics: City Hall
For the second straight year, the City of Dublin has been named a finalist by the National Civic League for the 2011 All-America City Awards, the nation’s oldest and most prestigious civic recognition award. The City of Dublin submitted an application to the National Civic League (NCL) to be considered for this honor, documenting three community projects that addressed the City’s most pressing challenges – the integration of diversity and creating community unification following a period of significant growth. Dublin will join 25 other communities from across the nation in Kansas City, MO on June 15th-17th to compete for the prestigious award, telling the City’s story of positive community change to a jury of civic experts. Ten All-America Cities will be announced on June 17th.
The City submitted three projects for consideration – the community’s effort to build the School of Imagination; the City’s affordable housing programs; as well as the sustainability programs and activities that preserve our history, engage the community, and create a greener future for Dublin. In order for the City to send a delegation to compete for this distinguished honor, it will need to rely on its community and business partners to support the effort financially.
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by John M. Zukoski on May 6, 2011 | 1 Comment | Topics: City Hall · Sustainability · Things To Do
The 26th annual Dublin Pride Week celebration will take place between May 7th and May 14th this year in Dublin, CA. Dublin Pride Week is an annual event that seeks to demonstrate ways in which individuals, families or groups can act to “Build a Healthy Community.” The events encourage people to work to improve our world through environmental awareness and volunteerism.
The following events and activities will be taking place throughout Dublin Pride Week:
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by John M. Zukoski on May 5, 2011 | 21 Comments | Topics: City Hall
The Bay Area News Group recently published its database of 2010 Bay Area public employee compensation figures. This year’s database is the best yet in that it includes non-salary costs of employment such as employer contributions to pension and health plans. Unfortunately, not all cities are eager to open their books to public scrutiny. As of today, the City of San Ramon has refused to report complete compensation information for their employees. San Ramon’s reluctance may be due to the fact that they pay their top employees about 50% more than folks working in comparable positions for other Tri-Valley cities.
The City of Dublin’s top 20 compensated employees, ranging from City Manager Joni Pattillo to City Clerk Caroline Soto, cost taxpayers roughly $3.6M in 2010. This cost includes the City’s contributions to employee pension and health care plans. According to the Bay Area News Group, City Manager Joni Pattillo received $222,170 in cash compensation in 2010 and cost taxpayers $289,380 once other employment expenses are factored in. Assistant City Manager Chris Foss came in at number two on Dublin’s list at $181,516 of cash compensation. Senior Civil Engineers Ferd Del Rosario and Frank Navarro rounded out Dublin’s top 10 paid employees with total cash pay of $125,300 and employment costs of $168,112 each.
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by Around Dublin Team on April 28, 2011 | 7 Comments | Topics: City Hall · Local Businesses · Local Issues · Opinions
City Planning Manager Jeff Baker recently confirmed that Dublin Hyundai decided not to appeal the Planning Commission’s unanimous vote against the mega LED sign proposal along the I-580 corridor in Dublin, CA. Dublin Hyundai had hoped to install a two-sided, 450-square-foot LED billboard similar in size and design to the LED billboard next to the Oakland Coliseum along I-880 and the digital billboards popular throughout the Sacramento area. The mega-sign proposal drew the ire of many Tri-Valley residents who were upset by the aesthetic, environmental, and city planning implications of the 450-square-foot LED billboard.
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