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 -- 1.13.10: Just the facts...

We knew it. The beard, the cool attitude... everything about Assemblymember Jerry Hill says Deadhead... so did his 'yes' vote on a recreational pot bill in an Assembly Committee yesterday. The head of the California Police Chiefs Association, who happens to be Susan Manheimer, was not pleased, saying (according to the Daily Journal), "It is unconscionable that the state would try to balance its budget by approving the use of mind-altering substance..." That quote makes her sound a little bit like Joe Friday...

In a story that bridges both Watch Dogs -- Tom Campbell is dropping out of the Governor's race (against Steve Poizner and Meg Whitman) and jumping into the Senate race (against Carly Fiorina)... how does he feel about recreational pot use?

Ah, schools in Burlingame. Nothing says relaxing public meeting like the Burligname Elementary School District Board meeting. Last night the Board was going to discuss the possibility of purchasing back the Hoover Elementary School site -- but parents weren't having any of it. Expect this long, tortured process to continue...

In case you've been living under a (synthetic) rock, synthetic grass fields are somewhat of an issue locally... think San Carlos. Now, Belmont is getting in on the action. Let's hope their plans don't take 10 years to implement...

Supervisor Rich Gordon assumed the role of President of the Board (again) yesterday (for the third time) and talked about weathering the financial crisis. It is a good thing he referenced Sacramento's cuts, because that's where he wants to be this time next year. If he gets elected, let's see how long it takes before he turns from a State government cut-ee to a State government cut-er...

Jon Mays mixes business (the Kinko's'/Aguiree International building demolition) with pleasure (where he met his wife)... in today's Daily Journal.

This has been a bad week for the Bonds family. Mark McGuire's admission that he used steroids has pushed many sport writers and thinking people (sometimes those two things are mutually exclusive) to call for Barry Bonds to come clean. That's Part A of the Bad Bonds Week... Part B is that Nikolai Lamar Bonds (Barry's son) was in a San Mateo County courtroom pleading not guilty to five misdemeanor counts including battery (of his mother), false imprisonment (of his mother), vandalism (of his mother's home), threatening a police officer, and obstructing a police officer. Apple. Tree. Not far...

Riptide feels for the folks who have been evacuated from the soon-to-be-in-the-Pacific apartments on Esplanade cliff. Riptide also worries about the neighbors...

There was a robbery at gun point of the 76 gas station on Willow Road on Monday night in Menlo Park. (Hey robbers, just because the gas station is in Menlo Park doesn't mean there is more money there than at any other gas station...) Here's an interesting detail, the robbers left with cash (obviously) and cigarettes... it is almost like they know they are going to prison and are looking to stash away some prison currency before they get there...