Morning News Round-Up -- 2.19.10: Please take a number...

Here's a twist. The possible sale of the Crestmoor High School site in San Bruno was going to be a tough sell with neighbors... and this isn't going to make it any better: the chair of the committee charged with looking into the Crestmoor sale for the San Mateo Union High School District had to resign his post because of a "perception of a conflict of interest..."

Get ready all you Menlo Park-ans... High-Speed Rail officials will be in Menlo Park this afternoon. Please take a NIMBY number...

Just down the street, Atherton will be writing lots of big checks to developers who paid "road impact fees" there... you see, road impact fees may be illegal and Atherton will be $1.65 million less rich for the dubious legal imposition of these fees. There was one person on the Council, Kathy McKeithen, that apparently would like to litigate the impact fees first... which would fit an Atheronian pattern...

It isn't just the folks that were sitting on the risers that are concerned about Mavericks... so are the good folks at the national marine sanctuary.

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.11.10: The Assessor-Clerk-Recorder-Short Order Cook-Blogger will retire...

Everyone's favorite Jack-of-all-Trades Warren Slocum will not seek re-election this year. In a County where one person leaving office sets off an entire chain reaction of political positioning, this is no different. Because unlike Lee Buffington's job, people actually want to be assessor-clerk-recorder... I mean, what are the chances that an assessor-clerk-recorder will lose $150 million overnight? Anyway, the jockeying has begun to replace Slocum: Supervisor Mark Church wants in (which will set off another landslide of political manuevering for his seat) according to the news story, but other familiar names popping up -- like Papan, Keighran, Hershman, Holober, Nagel, and Mullin..

Budget Woes Daily...

• San Mateo Community College District will most likely seek a Countywide parcel tax because of their crappy financial picture...
• San Mateo City workers must not like this budget headline today: Workers must make new sacrifice...
• San Bruno's property taxes, sales taxes, and all other local taxes are taking a hit -- and now they will cut, cut, cut...
• $9 million in cuts to the San Mateo Union High School District are needed... if only there was a piece of land to sell to help balance the budget...
• A parcel tax measure is underway for Menlo Park City Schools...

Millbrae officially announced that it was no fun... they will not allow marijuana dispensaries...

Morning News Round-Up -- 2.1.10: Nothing to sneeze at...

Big waves were all over the coast this weekend. Unfortunately, one wave brought a Berkeley woman out to sea and she drown in Pacifica.

On a more pleasant Pacifica note, the contractor hired to save the Esplanade Ave apartments in Pacifica are making headway...

Assemblymember Jerry Hill no longer likes red-light cameras. He wants the State to look into it. Perhaps Hill could do it quickly? Like before my $271 infraction needs to be paid...

Speaking of Assemblymembers, or wannabes, a new organization has sprung up locally: the Redwood City Woodside Democratic Club. As their coming out party, they are hosting the (trimmed down) line-up of candidates for the 21st Assembly District on February 24th in Redwood City. Is it too early for the candidates to use all the opposition research they are conducting?

Watch Dog is sick of the San Carlos artificial turf issue. While the anti-turf people are bringing a lawsuit, the City of San Carlos is looking for folks to do the laying...

$2 million in grants is nothing to sneeze at during these tough times... the Peninsula Health Care District handed that much out this week. Presumably some of it will go to stopping sneezing, ironically.

(Political) Martydym hits in San Carlos... Councilmember Andy Klein is passing up his $300 per month stipend. Perhaps he wants to donate that to Watch Dog to keep this blog up and running...

Speaking of Andy Klein...

Sue Lempert's column in today's Daily Journal looks a youthful trend on the local political landscape...

COWs of Woodside has an announcement for everyone... there is a seat on the ASRB Commission... for those of you who don't know Woodside Town government well, that's the Architecture and Site Review Board.

The San Mateo Union High School District would really like to sell the "Crestmoor" site in San Bruno. The problem is that the community doesn't necessarily feel the same way and sort of feels shut out of the process. Well, tomorrow the District is going to hold another (rowdy? unpleasant? boring?) public meeting on the issue. If you miss it, however, you can watch it on San Bruno TV...

And if you are one of the 7 or 8 people who ride SamTrans (just kidding) you should bring some extra cash today, fares are going up.

If there is an election coming up (and there is, in June) then there are likely to be School Districts looking for extra cash through parcel taxes. Menlo Park City School District and the Portola Valley School District are both expected to go to the ballot.

For years the City of East Palo Alto and Page Mill Properties spent time in court fighting about the rent control ordinance in that city. Now, Page Mill Properities is in bankruptcy court seeking protection. Today was going to be the day when the 1,800 units in East Palo Alto that Page Mill Property owns was going to be on sale... but it is delayed.

Morning News Round-Up -- 1.25.10: Enhancement Edition...

It is still raining... the Chronicle has a piece about how spectators are lining up to watch the Esplanade apartments fall into the Pacific in Pacifica... weird.

Ahh, good old "revenue enhancements" will be discussed this week at the Board of Supervisors. That is the well-known euphemism for tax hikes and the County will consider a bunch of options in advance of the June election. Of course, that puts Supervisor Rich Gordon on the spot -- if he approves putting a tax hike on the ballot, he'll be saying yes to higher taxes at the same time that he is running for higher office, which doesn't always work out that well for candidates...

Here is something we like to see... an anti-NIMBY/ pro-High Speed Rail group growing called Californians for High-Speed Rail. Watch Dog is a member -- well, in spirit if not financially.

The State of the City (of San Bruno) and the State of the (Hill Assembly) District were delivered on Friday. Times are tough... but when the going gets tough, everyone should blame Sacramento.

The State of San Carlos Crime is up (about 25 percent), which will be reported to the City Council this week by the Police Chief. Of course, the timing is good for the police department to report that crime is up as the City Council looks to cut budgets. Here's a prediction, the San Carlos Police Department won't get cut in the face of "rising crime"...

The State of Crime in Hillsborough is up too... Several cars were vandalized. We love the advice from the Police in Hillsborough: "Police are advising residents to park their vehicles in a garage or out of plain view whenever possible, and to remove all valuables from parked vehicles." That makes sense, especially because of this: "Police are also reminding residents that parking on any street in Hillsborough between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. is illegal without a permit." Yeah, so if your car is parked on the street it is either likely to be vandalized or towed...

The State of Pot in Redwood City is on hold... and will likely remain that way for a while... Sorry dude.

That State of Solar is thriving at San Mateo Union High School District... at a price tag of $31.5 million...

Brian Bothun, a former editor of the Palo Alto Daily News and former reporter for the Daily Post pleaded guilty to misdemeanor possession of pornography on Friday. Mighty. Fallen.

NIMBYs in San Mateo are holding up Serra High School's plans to put in a new pool based on noise concerns from coming from swimming activities. What type of noise? Student athletes having fun? How many of those Serra neighbors moved into their homes when Serra already had an outdoor pool?

Thank you Citizens of Woodside for providing a run down of the COWncil meeting a few weeks back. Good stuff.

Morning News Round-Up -- 12.18.09: Loud TV or Healthcare?

Not to say that keeping commercials quiet isn't important... but... Congresswoman Speier is working diligently on the healthcare bill and trying to get a provision stripped out of the bill that would allow insurance companies to circumvent California's strong consumer protection laws. Television commercials (Eshoo) or healthcare (Speier)... hmmm

The Daily Journal Editorial Board smacked the San Mateo Union High School District for cutting the health benefits of early retirees in today's paper...

The attorney for the would-be bomber of Hillsdale High would a mental evaluation of his client... y'think?

Just in time for Christmas: San Carlos may be cutting police officers and closing parks. Can they possibly remain the City of Good Living with fewer police and parks?

Coastsider provides a helpful map for all you big wave enthusiasts...

Not unrelated... In Pacifica an apartment building was evacuated because the building is close to falling off a bluff. Riptide has the full coverage...

We love this headline in the Merc/BANG papers: San Mateo, Santa Clara counties hosting sobriety checkpoints. The term "hosting" makes is seem like a party where they will be serving cheese, crackers, and perhaps some delicious pate.

Morning News Round-Up -- 12.17.09: Raises, Benefits, and Overcrowding... oh my!

Dave Burow, the Mayor of Woodside, was involved in a small-plane crash last weekend outside of Truckee. He's ok. (By small-plane, we mean that the plane was small, not the crash. Actually, the crash seemed pretty big and the police up in Truckee are saying that the Burow and the pilot are very lucky.) Burow isn't commenting and we await the COWs commentary on the subject...

But for now, the Citizens of Woodside are providing a run-down of holiday stuff around town...

Raises, benefits, and overcrowding... oh my!

Raises: Nothing says, "we know times are tough" like giving administrators of school districts raises... which is exactly what the Sequoia Union High School District Board. Of course, that comes after severe cuts earlier in the year...

Benefits: In a school district down the street (San Mateo Union HIgh School District) retirees and the District are still battling about health benefits for retirees...

Overcrowding: And in yet another school district (Belmont-Redwood Shores Elementary School District) is talking about how they are overcrowding...

Oh my: DMB Redwood City Saltworks has a new plan to get water to the Redwood City development. Big ships with water? Well, we don't know, because the details aren't clear yet, but I'm sure we'll learn.

Michael Salazar was appointed to the San Bruno City Councilmember yesterday. He takes the seat that was vacated when Jim Ruane took the Mayor's chair. Perhaps Unelected Supervisor Carole Groom can give some advice about what its like to be in office without voter approval...

Michelle Durand's Off the Beat wants to know what Belmont re-Councilmember Dave Warden's gift is/was/will be to San Carlos.

Here is some good news, the Half Moon Bay Library is getting $200K for renovations.

Morning News Round-Up -- 12.3.09: San Mateo County on everyone's front page... great!

San Mateo County (and Redwood City) is front-and-center in the Bay Area (and national) news today, and not in a good way. The robbers who stole from recently killed traffic accident victims live in our County. "Thieves best by government test?" Michelle Durand gets in the action as well in her Off the Beat column in the Daily Journal...

In other embarrassing local crime news: the Skyline College shooter had his pleading delayed because he is in the process of hiring a private attorney. Sounds like a good idea. Perhaps he and the the folks in the first story could split the legal bill.

San Mateo Union High School District will cut some of their early retiree health benefits. That ought to go over well... So will this... $1.5 million of cuts in the San Carlos Elementary School District.

And as school districts cut costs, Supervisors Rich Gordon and Rose Jacobs Gibson will be giving their raises ($5,500) to charity (which will help the County's general fund because the charity is the San Mateo Medical Center). While this could be a wash for County's general fund, it could be a boon for Gordon's and Jacobs Gibson's year end tax accounting...

The West Bay Sanitary District (and San Carlos and Millbrae) may be getting ready to pay some legal bills soon which could hurt their bottom line too. San Francisco Baykeeper is suing San Carlos, Millbrae, and the Sanitary District for spilling crap into the Bay.

SSF wants to continue the ban on medical marijuana clubs... buzz kill dude.

Half Moon Bay got a new Mayor and some new faces on the City Council. Councilwoman Marina Fraser will soon get new business cards that say Mayor...

Morning News Round-Up -- 11.18.09: Ayres Watch is Back...

Williams Ayres, William Ayres, William Ayres... it is back in the news. The new defense attorney wants the names of the jurors from the mistrial... apparently this isn't that unusual, but probably won't be much fun for those old jurors... Remember, you can get all the latest and greatest at William Ayres Watchdog...

Speaking of (alleged) local crimes...

The shootee in the Skyline College shooting (and presumably the shooter) will face gun charges...

And this... the Menlo Park Police are looking at a "person of interest" in the fatal hit-and-run of a first grader last week.

And to fight these crimes...

Daly City is getting a new Police Chief from San Jose. The going is tough in San Jose -- and the tough are heading north (apparently)... Watch Dog is hoping that the Daly City City Council doesn't cut the guys salary if they start to disagree with his actions...

Nothing sets people off (apparently) than thinking about selling land that belongs to a school district. That's the predicament that the San Mateo Union High School District finds itself as it looks at plans to sell Peninsula High School's campus...

If you were expecting a change in the Half Moon Bay horses-on-beach policy, you got all you needed to know in The Review's headline: 'Status quo' for horse riders...

Here is a non-shocker... the debate about the big Menlo Park project dubbed "the Bohannon Project" is "touchy"...

Speaking of touchy... When it comes to Atherton, we know from history that small-town politics can get ugly. Tonight, the Atherton Council will talk about repealing the "road impact fee" that developers pay when they are doing construction. Expect fire works, nasty words, and perhaps a hit to Atherton's budget...

Morning News Round-Up -- 11.12.09: Taking the protest to (Foster) City Hall...

As if Foster City wasn't in enough trouble with their schools... a group of teachers took their salary dispute to City Hall this week to protest Vice Mayor Linda Koelling who used to run a private school that went under and left teachers short on their paychecks and payroll taxes... this should get very interesting...

And those teachers aren't the only ones pissed these days...

Senator Simitian is pissed about the water bill that passed out of Sacramento... and when Senator Simitian is pissed, you know you are going to hear about it. Senator Yee likes it, however...

An illegal subdivision... that's the charge of several folks who are suing about a Redwood City subdivision at Cordilleras Creek.

The City of San Carlos runs a popular after school program... but the City is cash-strapped, so they are handing over the program to the cash-rich (?) San Carlos Elementary School District... thank you San Carlos... perhaps the City of Belmont should help foot the bill too?

San Mateo Union High School District is looking become a little less cash-strapped by installing solar... $32 million worth of solar.

Investigators don't think there is foul play in the death of a Palo Alto man who was found in a Redwood City pool. Foul play no... foul smell, yes...

Preuss Pharmacy is closing in Menlo Park... Safeway bought the business...

There was a long power outage in Portola Valley this week -- 26 hours. It was caused by a Portola Valley rat that tripped a circuit breaker. Raising the obvious question -- there are rats in Portola Valley? I thought the high-priced homes included a rat-free clause...

The Mi Pueblo grocery store is opening in East Palo Alto this weekend. Ikea, then Mi Pueblo, then Home Depot... the "honey do" list...

Morning News Round-Up -- 10.23.09: Sarah Palin for San Carlos 2012...

A gigantic "Palin for President 2012" sign could soon be erected in San Carlos... seriously. Lord help us all...

'Tis the season for campaigns... so:

The Sequoia Union High School District endorsements have been coming fast and furious. The one constant, Editorial Boards up and down the Peninsula are continuing their love affair with Chris Thomsen... We are sorry we missed this earlier, but Bruce at PP Examiner broke down this race and the San Mateo Union High School District race previously...

We've been following David Lim for sometime here on Watch Dog and his (second) bid for the San Mateo City Council... and the money is now flowing in to his campaign. We don't believe that is a coincidence, but perhaps it is...

Pedro Gonzales is also raking in some cash for his campaign for SSF City Council.

And in Half Moon Bay, Sofia Freer and Deborah Ruddock are leading the fundraising pack (or PAC, as the case may be...)

SamTrans is entering 2005 with a new idea: GPS on buses so people can know when they are coming... (That is no typo. GPS on buses is hardly a new idea...)

The Fox Theatre in Redwood City received a stay of execution yesterday for a month. (It isn't actually being executed, the sale has been delayed...)

If and when the Fox Theatre gets sold, when you go shows you'll be able to pick up In-N-Out on the way there (or the way home) because the Redwood City Planning Commission approved a plan for an In-N-Out on Veterans Boulevard... animal style please.

Morning News Round-Up -- 10.14.09: Politics, Politics, Politics...

Local politics...

Sequoia Union High School District (a.k.a. the District that continues to try to keep Charter schools out) has an election coming up. The Daily Journal gives us all insight into the race, then proceeds to make an endorsement in the race... two actually: Chris Thomsen and Alan Sarver.

Newcomer Michael Brownrigg is taking on three heavy-weight incumbents for Burlingame City Council. We always knew Brownrigg had some balls. Burlingame Vice Mayor Cathy Baylock tattled on her neighbors and now has set a historic precedent… no pun intended. Wonder how Brownrigg would handle this one...

San Mateo Union High School newcomer Mike Loy shakes up the race. Not hard considering the District has been mired in financial problems, a.k.a: mismanagement.

Now crime...

Police arrested two men accused of stealing nine iPhones worth $5,400 from a Burlingame store. Police caught up with them after a short car chase Monday night. Perhaps the thieves should have turned off the GPS in the iPhones...

The former Daly City man authorities believed was at large in Guatemala to avoid prosecution on murder charges stemming from the 2001 fatal stabbing of his high school classmate was busted in New York Monday morning after being pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving.

Menlo Park is attempting to save the Belle Haven neighborhood from facing any more home foreclosures. Groundbreaking stuff for MP...

Now rain...

The heavy storm, which left hundreds of Coastal residents without power, has come and gone, expected to taper off today. Rain, rain go away.

Now breaking story...

A bicyclist was hit by a dump truck in San Carlos this morning and killed. The driver left the scene.

Morning News Round-Up -- 9.15.09: Mostly Redwood City Round-Up...

Here are two words that are certain to raise some eyebrows: eminent domain. This time for a vocational training facility in Redwood City as part of Sequoia Union High School District...

While one High School District talks eminent domain, another one (San Mateo Union) considers something much less controversial (solar power)...

And San Mateo Union might be on the right environmental track... because Save the Bay came out with their most-polluted local water ways. There are several and some are right down the street from you...

Speaking of environmentalists... sort of. A couple in Woodside illegally cut down a tree in their yard, now they face a $10,000 fine from the Town Council. I cannot tell a lie... we await COWs response...

It was the best of times and it was the worst of times... that's how two Redwood City community groups are looking at High-Speed Rail. The Daily Journal delves deeper...

The Redwood City drunk driving check-point that was closed down in front of the Fair Oaks Community Center is getting increased attention... this issue is not going away.

The budgets for cities are getting worse before they get better. (So is Watch Dog's...) Redwood City's budget gets some ink today.

Half Moon Bay's November City Council race has been written about here, and elsewhere, before. Crowded field and a 20-something... oh, and a $20 million bill to a local developer...

We think Michelle Durand may be advocating for mild violence in her Off the Beat column today in the Daily Journal... but only for really stupid people.

The County Times highlights the possible closure of a cat shelter in Redwood City. Grrrr...

Morning News Round-Up -- 9.14.09: Ayres Round II

Williams Ayres will be retried for molestation... but he'll have a new defense attorney this time. Doron Weinberg was traded for Jonathan McDougall, a first round pick, and a player to be named later.

Speaking of high-profile court cases with sexual undertones... the Belmont Chamber Board President is facing molestation charges too. Unlike Ayres, however, Michael Kazarian seems to have friends coming to his defense...

Duh. The candidates for San Mateo Union High School District Board are talking about the budget... And so are San Mateo City Council candidates… While we are at it, David Lim was endorsed by the Sierra Club.

High-Speed Rail officials promised they would collaborate with Peninsula residents on the design of the controversial rail line. Promises, promisPost Optionses. It doesn't really matter, NIMBYs will never support High-Speed Rail. Plan on Rod Diridon...

As if the La Honda-Pescadero School District needed more controversy... parents are now saying the buildings are unsafe. This comes on the heals of alleged financial mismanagement, lawsuits, and the recent exit of the Superintendent.

Here is irony for you: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger worked hard to make California the bellwether of green policy, yet he is about to become the only Governor to close State parks to balance the budget. The State is expected to announce which parks will close this week. Stand by Coastsiders...

Morning News Round-Up -- 8.13.09: Awesome Budgetary News Day...

And the verdict is… SamTrans is officially discontinuing several bus routes to help deal with a $28 million deficit. The Board hasn’t yet decided which routes are to go, but those who live in San Bruno, East Palo Alto, and anywhere on the Coast are the likely targets. Oh, and they may also hike fares by 25 cents for adults and increase fares for those who use Redi-Wheels from $3 a trip to $4.50 a trip.

In other awesome budgetary news...

Property taxes are declining therefore schools are running out of cash. Not a new predicament for California schools. But San Mateo Union High School District thinks it can solve its cash problem by asking voters to pass a parcel tax. Board Vice President Linda Lees Dwyer admits that the tax is “bad timing” (was she talking about her election or the economy?) yet she goes on to say “I don’t think we have any other option.”

San Bruno City offices will be closed Friday as part of a plan to close a $2.5 million budget gap, the first of six planned furlough days between now and June.

The BART Board is meeting today in an emergency session to consider imposing contract terms unilaterally on the union. It’s their way of saying let’s agree to disagree.

In news having nothing to do with budgets... The well-known and popular Monsignor Bruce Dreier at Saint Robert’s Catholic Church died after an eight-month battle with liver cancer Monday.

Thomas Harold Randall, 51, had a blood alcohol content of .27 during the weekend crash where he killed a 32-year-old woman on vacation from Italy and injured her American hosts. He’s been charged with gross vehicular manslaughter and driving while intoxicated while driving on Devil's Slide.

San Bruno Councilman Jim Ruane is up against Miguel Araujo to be that City’s next mayor.

Another mountain lion was spotted last night in Woodside, according to the San Mateo County Office of Emergency Services... the COWs must be scared...

Paloaltoonline.com reports that the Eden Housing development in downtown Palo Alto was once envisioned as a win-win-win situation for seniors, businesses, and low income families. Now it’s just a win. Developers drastically scaled-down the plan to 50 units for affordable families and not much else.

Police warn San Mateo bikers and residents to be careful following a string of strong-arm robberies the last week. We assume they don't mean these type of bikers... these type of bikers don't really need to worry about strong arm robbers...

On a related (?) note... A woman discovered her stolen bike listed for sale on the online site Craigslist, and contacted Menlo Park Police. In a sting, Police arrested James Barry Durr in connection with two thefts.

Expect a lively race for Half Moon Bay City Council, where residents have been inundating City Hall to declare their candidacy. As of yesterday, there were nine candidates running for three open seats.

State regulators have further restricted fishing and boating in local waters, which is sure to affect the industries. California Department of Fish and Game Commissioners voted to establish 22 Marine Protected Areas that limit or prohibit fishing within three miles of the North Central Coast and around the Farallon Islands. Effective 2010, the new protections will expand from roughly 4 percent to cover about 20 percent of the area from Half Moon Bay to Mendocino.

Morning News Round-Up -- 7.29.09: Conflicted NIMBYs and Saving the Plastic Bag...

This will be little solace to William Ayres' victims: Apparently the jury was leaning toward a conviction. (Does that mean they didn't have the conviction to convict...) They were deadlocked at 11-1, according to a juror. A bit of news in today's story is that Prosecutor Melissa McKowanw will likely retry Dr. Ayres. Williams Ayres Watchdog has all the details...

If you live in San Mateo County, you have heard the Caltrain horn blasts. Well, they might be doing something about it -- but they aren't going to make everyone happy. That's because Caltrain really can't win. When they have quiet horns, people are concerned about safety. When they have loud horns, people are concerned about noise. Watch Dog likes the loud horns. We think it speaks to the romantic notion of train travel...

In Foster City, it seems not a day goes by when there isn't something in the news about either the battle between the San Mateo-Foster City School District and the City or about the skate park not happening (yet). Today, it is the skate park's day in the limelight. But these two issues are now being looked at in the larger context of the City's budget as they begin to define what are "essential services"... Just a Watch Dog hunch: Schools and Skate Parks will not be two of the essential services for the Foster City City Council.

Election Journal 2009 goes in depth about the race for the San Mateo Union High School District Board this November. Six candidates, including three incumbents, for three open seats... fireworks!

The Daily Journal Editor Jon Mays takes us on a journey through his inbox... if you want to jam his email box too, he gives out his email address...

You may have noticed that the Governor signed the budget yesterday. Now the real panic in local government sets in... Coastside school districts are worried, so is everyone else.

If you care about the future of San Mateo, you should care about the (dry, boring) process to revamp its General Plan.

But if you live in Redwood City and you care about getting a massage, you can forget about it. The City Council rejected the planned massage parlor on Woodside Road (near Cypress Street). This story has no happy ending for the folks who wanted to open the parlor.

Trouble in paradise: The "deal" to preserve some of Woodside's Jackling House (that Steve Jobs wants to rip down) doesn't measure up, according to some preservationists. Of course, another preservationist actually cut the deal with Jobs and the Town of Woodside, so this is getting pretty confusing, even for Watch Dog. (Especially confusing because our window into Woodside, the blog Citizens of Woodside, has been quiet on the subject lately...)

Menlo Park NIMBYs have a busy schedule today: SamTrans is hosting a community meeting about service reductions and cuts in MP and the Menlo Gateway/ Bohannon project is due to be discussed at a separate location. We poke fun, but what if someone is concerned about SamTrans cuts AND the Bohannon project? Where to go then? I'm glad you asked. SamTrans folks can also go to a public meeting in Half Moon Bay on August 6th... Plus, you can grab dinner before (or after) at Cetrella that way.

The plastic bag war has been settled, for now, in Palo Alto. The City can't implement the bag ban without an environmental review. Incredibly, the group that brought suit against Palo Alto is called SaveThePlasticBag.com. There are somethings worth saving, like baby seals and the rain forest, but who would have thought that a plastic bag would be worth a "save"? I mean, aside from these folks and this guy -- being followed by Watch Dog Silicon Valley.

HP employees got an interesting welcome to work yesterday: Greenpeace was protesting at their facility. (Ironically) They are concerned about plastics in HP products. Perhaps Greenpeace should protest SaveThePlasticBag.com headquarters next. Here is a map.

Morning News Round-Up -- 7.6.09: Campaign Season Starts Early...

Election season... seriously, it is upon us. Usually the official season starts post-Labor Day, but 4th of July sounds good for the purposes of good blog material... The San Mateo Union High School Board of Trustees race could be a good one -- if Trustee Bob Griffin decides not to seek reelection. It would be for his fifth term...

Which brings up this question: Could there be worse time to be on a school board? Cut, cut, cut... then hold your breath that the State doesn't screw you any more than it already has...

While we are on campaign talk, David Lim, who is gunning for a seat on the San Mateo City Council, raised over $13k during the fundraising period that ended July 1st. We guess he must proud of that number (or it is intended to scare off folks) because he had a press release announcing it...

Sue Lempert writes in today's Daily Journal. Of note, she speculates that the recent findings of the Civil Grand Jury (District elections for Supervisor/Pay-Cut Gate) "...may stimulate action and change..." Perhaps she could help push the Civil Grand Jury to release the Grand Daddy of Civil Grand Jury reports (garbage) soon.

Craig Baker, the interim Superintendent for the San Carlos Elementary School District, gets a write up in the Daily Journal.

The "Susan Manheimer for San Francisco Police Chief" story also gets some ink in the Daily Journal, as the paper tries to unpack what happened because she wasn't even a finalist... the SF Chronicle's Matier & Ross come off as ill-informed gossip mongers. (But that is supposed to be Watch Dog's role...)

There is a new history book out about Atherton. Watch Dog has to wonder if the political in-fighting in recent history made it in. We doubt it...

A pipe-bomb was found during a traffic stop on 280. Seriously. But that's about all the information this story contains right now...

Morning News Round-Up -- 6.26.09: A King of Pop-Free Round-Up...

Dr. Ayres' trial is picking up steam. Coverage from the Daily Journal and other main stream media... but William Ayres' Watch is much more in depth...

In an (un)related case, a San Mateo County man was sentenced to 24 years in prison for molesting his granddaughters... Perhaps he and Dr. Ayres will meet someday?

Budget problems:

• San Mateo Union High School District = $3.5 million.
• We'll put this Editorial from the Daily Journal under budget problems, but the problem in Half Moon Bay is not just about the budget, it is about "political naivety" according to the Journal...
• Congratulations Shaun Bishop. The County Supervisors are (finally) looking at their expenses during this economic downturn...

It wasn't just Unelected Supervisor Carol Groome who got Civil Grand Jury attention this week. Pay Cut Gate got some love as well. Not surprisingly, the Civil Grand Jury found that the Daly City City Council wasn't justified in cutting the City Clerk's pay. PP Examiner chimes is as well...

Watch Dog spies tell us that the Civil Grand Jury report that we've all been waiting for is coming... it can't come soon enough. That said, we hope that the Civil Grand Jury doesn't cave to PR pressure and release it in the dead news cycles of the July 4th long weekend...

Atherton. How we love thee. The trial of a Public Works Supervisor who is facing misdemeanor assault and battery charges against a female Atherton Police Officer started yesterday.

The Coastside Family Medical Center's bankruptcy could be dismissed. Watch Dog is no lawyer (obviously) and the details seem sketchy in this story from the HMB Review. Hopefully more will come out...

Morning News Round-Up -- 6.24.09: Atherton Politics...there is no substitute

The trial of accused molester Dr. William Ayres officially started. William Ayres Watch has this intro to the coverage that they will be providing on the trial:

"...If you are looking for strictly mainstream coverage of the Dr. Ayres trial, please go to the SF Chronicle or the San Mateo County Times. But if you are looking for a more complex and richer back story to the case, you will find it here..."

The Ayres' trial moves forward without one accuser testifying, however...

(While this trial could be viewed by some as a circus waiting to happen, there is a real circus (Circus Vargas) happening in San Mateo County...)

In a less high profile molestation case where a tae kwon do instructor molested a 13 year-old student in San Carlos. The case has been settled. The instructor pleaded no contest and will serve no more than a year in jail. Dr. Ayres may not be so lucky...

The Jackling House in Woodside will be demolished, thanks to a 5-2 vote of the Woodside City Council. One condition, though: the house will be deconstructed first by a preservationist whose goal will be do reconstruct the house somewhere, sometime... This is good news for Steve Jobs, but somehow we think he has more important things going on in his life, like recovering from a liver transplant...

Here are today's obligatory local government budget cutting/fee raising stories

• Parks and public works, and a bunch of other services are getting hit in the County budget...
• The Palo Alto Unified School District is preparing to plug a $7 million budget gap. Yikes...

Watch Dog has expressed our love for Atherton politics before... very cut-throat, very small-town, very good for Watch Dog to cover. There is a now a fight brewing about how to get items get on the City Council's agenda. Three Councilmembers (seemingly) want to make it more difficult, two want to make it easier. Unfortunately, it will take three votes to make it easier, so we expect the agendas in Atherton to be as sparse as they ever were...

San Mateo Union High School District, also feeling a budget pinch, is not deterred from its plans to put solar on its schools...

San Carlos Elementary will get a new (interim) Superintendent today. Craig Baker, the head of the Gardner Center for Youth in Their Communities at Stanford will be named at tonight's meeting.

The 6 year-old girl pulled from the water off the coast of Half Moon Bay over the weekend after her boat capsized is being released from the hospital. That's good news.

Speaking of HMB... PP Examiner gets in on the action describing the demise of Assemblymember Hill's Half Moon Bay Bail Out Bill. (As an aside, Watch Dog was the first to coin that phrase, we believe.)

And more HMB news.

Mavericks Surf Contest will have a longer window this coming season, and the decision to go or not to go won't be made by Jeff Clark, who invented the contest. Clark will stay on the Board, but the decision about who will make The Decision hasn't been decided.

Morning News Round-Up -- 6.3.09: A good news/bad news type of day...

Here is a good news, bad news story, depending on your point of view. Good news if you need to take summer school in San Mateo Union High School, that's because the bad news is that the summer school is cut because of bad budget times in San Mateo Union High School.

Another good news, bad news story, this time from Caltrain. The good news is that weekend service will continued, but the bad news is that fairs are going up and some trains are getting cut mid-week.

And this one is just bad news... the Redwood City Elementary School District had a parcel tax on the ballot earlier this week. It lost. Expect big cuts in Redwood City Elementary School District.

The bad news: a man was car-jacked, robbed, and beaten in Redwood City. The good news: six folks were arrested in connection to this incident.

This issue is a long-time coming, the Petaluma teacher that was set up by his students to meet a "teenage" girl, was sentenced to two years in State prison.

Ironically, State prisons were in the news yesterday, and not in a good way. State parks and State beaches were also in the news, not in a good way. Prisons, parks, and beaches are on the chopping block because the Governor didn't leave any State stone unturned yesterday in a 12 minute speech...

Menlo Park is about to have a battle about parking spaces at MP's Civic Center area. A new gymnasium will make the parking more crowded, meaning library patrons will have trouble getting a space... expect this battle to continue. Folks love their parking spaces in MP, if you don't believe Watch Dog, we can only assume you haven't been grabbing an outside coffee in MP when a parking space battle erupts...

Developer David Bohannon is doing outreach meetings for his Menlo Park hotel-office project. Our guess is the outreach meetings will be "on-message" -- because the last time we wrote about this, Bohannon was doing polling.

The San Francisco Chronicle must read Watch Dog... because they just wrote a story about the Half Moon Bay Bail-Out Bill... welcome to the story Mr./Ms. Chronicle...

Morning News Round-Up -- 4.21.09: Better late than...

Sorry for the delay. Better last than never and all that jazz...the heat is going to Watch Dog's head...

"We need a larger crane..." That was the call from the San Mateo Bridge during the removal of the boat lodged there since last week. It was hauled away last night.

As one emergency gets solved...another one is issued.

The Governor declared a fishing emergency earlier today.

San Mateo has an idea to cut their budget, go after senior lunch programs. Watch Dog doesn't think this will actually happen, but is probably a good way to get folks supportive of future fee/tax increases...

San Mateo Union High School is going to hire Assistant Superintendent from Palo Alto Unified to replace outgoing Superintendent David Miller. Miller is getting out before all hell brakes loose in California when/if Props A through F fail...

Still sleepy from last week's artificial turf meeting in San Carlos, in today's Daily Journal Michelle Durand's "Off the Beat" describes some ideas for how to streamline public meetings in order make government run more effectively...and help her meet her deadlines.

The Pacifica sales tax increase is facing some opposition -- no big surprise. Riptide covers the coverage...