As a busy mom, I know how hard it can be to stay on top of things happening in Menlo Park. I hope these emails help you stay informed and connected to our larger community. If there is any additional content or areas of interest that you would like to see covered, please let me know. I am also available for coffees, walks, chats or other methods of engagement.
Menlo Park advisory commissions examine issues of community interest and make recommendations to the City Council on policy matters. In this item, the Council will be voting on which applicants to appoint to the following commissions/committees:
Complete Streets Commission– 4 seats
Environmental Quality Commission – 4 seats
Finance and Audit Committee – 2 seats
Housing Commission – 2 seats
Library Commission – 2 seats
Parks and Recreation Commission – 1 seat
Planning Commission – 2 seats
Please note that there are more applicants than vacancies on the commissions. Sometimes it takes multiple attempts to be seated. I want to thank all of the residents who submitted applications, especially those who have done so multiple times. Our community is what we make of it.
The City maintains a street repaving program to keep our roads in good working condition. Ravenswood Avenue between El Camino Real and Laurel Street is set to be repaved in late summer 2022. The repaving offers an opportunity to make improvements to the roadway design that are aligned with our city's transportation goals (including pedestrian and bicycle safety).
The intersection of Ravenswood and Alma is one of the busiest pedestrian and bike crossings in the entire city, linking access to key destinations such as the Caltrain station, Downtown, Burgess Park, the Library and the Civic Center Campus and local schools. The proposed improvements, shown above, include additional bike facilities, and a wider pedestrian refuge to help those crossing Ravenswood at Alma. The staff report outlines the details of the design, including which components will be part of a pilot (subject to metrics and follow-up approval).
At the April 19th meeting, the City Council gave direction to City Staff in preparation of the 2022-2023 fiscal year budget. This consent calendar item is to confirm the adopted modified budget principles and to confirm the direction from Council. The red arrow on the above schedule illustrates where the City is in the budget development/adoption calendar.
On September 30, 2021, California Assembly Bill 481 was signed into law. The bill requires a law enforcement agency to obtain approval of its governing body before taking certain actions relating to the funding, acquisition or use of military equipment, as defined by the law and only if it is determined that the equipment meets certain standards. This staff report outlines the type of equipment classified as "military equipment" in AB 481 and lists which equipment the Menlo Park Police Department, and the regional SWAT team its part of, possess.
On April 14th the Menlo Park Independent Redistricting Commission adopted new City Council boundaries as set forth in Map 131.1 (see above) and a final Redistricting Plan. The new map has City Council districts substantially equal in population (8.08% deviation - the requirement is less than 10%) as required by the United States Constitution.
According to The Almanac, "The changes to the new district lines are slight, but will impact about 662 people based on 2020 U.S. Census data, and the boundaries will be set for the next decade until 2030. The changes are limited to two neighborhoods: Downtown Menlo Park and West Menlo." That is, part of Downtown that is now in District 3 will move to District 4, and part of West Menlo that was part of District 4 will move to District 5. Due to the sequencing of City Council district seats, those voters will have the timing of their City Council voting changed. Those moving from District 3 to District 4 will vote this year (only 2 years after they last voted), while those changing from District 4 to District 5 will have to wait until 2024 to vote (6 years after they last voted).
Because the City Council voted to conduct redistricting with an Independent Redistricting Commission, the City Council will only be adopting a resolution affirming the commission's decisions in this agenda item. No changes can or will be made to the maps.
Just as with hotels and motels, short-term rentals (including those rented by AirBnB, VRBO, Home Away, etc.) are required by Menlo Park Municipal Code 3.16 to remit transient occupancy tax (TOT). In 2021, Menlo Park hired HdL Companies to provide TOT/Short-Term Rentals administration and audit services in order to collect and monitor these taxes. This information item is the first update on this process.
According to the staff report, from September 2021 to March 2022, HdL identified 226 properties in Menlo Park offering short-term rental lodgings. Of those:
67 have registered with HdL and as of April 17th, 26 of them had confirmed stays and have remitted tax, interest and penalties totaling $30,798.
84 have closed their listings and no longer offer short-term rentals
75 have not responded and are in noncompliant status.
To date, Menlo Park has collected $30,798 from this effort, and has paid $10,779 to HdL for their services, for an increase in General Fund revenue of $20,019.
Other Item of Interest
Below are some additional items of interest:
Join Local Community Organizations for a
Menlo Park Housing Element Bike Tour
Saturday, May 7th at 11:30am
Come join a bike tour of Menlo Park to check out sites being considered for the Housing Element. The ride will start in District 5 and end in District 3. There will be scheduled stops for those who want to drive or do not wish to do the bike route. This event is sponsored by the Peninsula for Everyone, Menlo Together, the Housing Leadership Council and the Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition. I hope to see you there (I'll be on my e-bike). Register to attend here.
Bike To Wherever Days (May 20th, 21st and 22nd) Pledge to Ride and Receive Cool Bag
Whether you bike to work, school, shops, parks, libraries, or just wherever, biking is good for you and our environment. Pledge to ride somewhere (anywhere!) between Friday May 21st and Sunday May 23rd and visit an energizer station during that time (exact locations will be posted soon). Those who pledge ahead of time will receive one of the stylish and famous Bike to Wherever Day bags. Join in the fun if you can.
Menlo Park District 4 Family Wins Peninsula Clean Energy
2022 All-Electric Leader Award - Innovative Residential Project
"When the Hansens started the planning process to remodel their 1950s ranch-style Menlo Park home, they knew they wanted to make their remodeled home as “green” as possible. Working with environmental consultants, emeraldECO, they designed and implemented an all-electric plan for the home including electric HVAC, electric water heater, and all-induction range and electric oven for the kitchen. Additionally, they installed a new swimming pool, heated by an electric heat pump. But they didn’t stop there!
To make electric more affordable, they installed 28 solar panels on their roof and installed solar piping through which they pump their pool water as the primary heat source (before the electric pool heater has to kick in). They also installed a Chargepoint charger on the side of their house, to power their eGolf – their primary commute and “around town” vehicle. Last but not least, they installed a Tesla Powerwall to store and use solar during nighttime and other low-sunlight periods.
Thanks to these alterations, they can enjoy a warm pool, multiple fridges and freezers, and their first-ever air conditioning system, all within the envelope of their pre-remodel monthly energy costs. They also feel relieved to know that when unplanned or scheduled power outages occur, they can be mostly self-reliant, thanks to onsite energy storage."
Burgess Pool Update: Instructional Pool Out of Service,
Performance Pool (seen below) to use "Sharing Model"
Please see the below message sent to members of the community who are regular swimmers at Burgess Pool. Please reach out to Menlo Park's swim operator, Menlo Swim & Sport, run by Tim Sheeper, with any questions you have:
Menlo Swim & Sport
650-781-5525
customerservice@menloswim.com
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Burgess Pool Community,
Burgess Instructional Pool will be out of order for an extended period of time. The main circulation pump that is responsible for moving pool water through filtration, heating and sanitization has completely failed. Our providers have quoted that a full replacement of the circulation system will take 6-8 weeks. Our extended closure is due to mechanical parts manufacturing and installation challenges.
The current situation will not change our mission of serving all segments of our population. With that goal in mind, we are transitioning our Performance Pool into a Community Hybrid Pool on Wednesday, April 20 at 6:00am.
We will increase the temperature of the Performance Pool a few degrees and reposition all the programming into one pool. Our community “sharing" model will be put to the test and each program will have to sacrifice to some degree, in the effort to prevent excluding any program or population from receiving service.
As always, we appreciate the community support and positivity as we negotiate this new situation. Of course we will communicate changes as information becomes available.
