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 December 6, 2024
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We hope to see you this evening from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm for Fremont's inaugural Holidays at the Plaza event in Downtown Fremont! This free, family-friendly event offers a festive tree lighting ceremony, hot chocolate, a holiday market, photobooth, food trucks, and fun activities for kids. Holidays at the Plaza is the perfect way to make festive memories and celebrate the season with friends and family.
 Tell Us Your Project Priorities for Fremont
Development of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025/26 – FY2029/30 Capital Improvement Program (CIP) is underway and we want your input! The CIP is a five-year plan of action to preserve and improve our City’s public infrastructure, such as buildings, streets, and parks, through the prioritization of capital projects intended to prolong the lifespan of the City’s infrastructure, increase its value, and enhance its capabilities.
Every two years, City staff prepares the five-year plan based on community feedback and Council priorities and presents it to City Council for review and approval. City staff receive community feedback largely through participation in relevant Commission meetings. This cycle, we are also reintroducing a survey component that can reach even more residents.
The survey closes January 31, 2025 and results will be shared with City Council in February. Please visit the program’s MyFremont page for more information about all things CIP and to take the survey before it closes!
 Upcoming Council Meeting on December 10
At next week’s City Council meeting on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, which begins at 7:00 pm at City Hall, 3300 Capitol Ave., the meeting agenda will include:
- Certification of the November 5, 2024 Election Results.
- Recognition and Comments from the Outgoing Mayor and Councilmembers.
- Oath of Office and Installation of the Newly Elected Mayor and Councilmembers.
As in years past, the City of Fremont will be implementing a Holiday Closure for many non-public safety City services from Tuesday, December 24, 2024, through Wednesday, January 1, 2025. City Holidays are observed December 24, 25, 31, and January 1, 2025, while limited City services will be offered December 26, 27, and 30. Police and fire services will not be affected during this Holiday Closure. For those who may need assistance with building and permit projects over the holidays, please make sure to get everything taken care of between now and December 23.
City offices participating in the Holiday Closure will re-open for business on Thursday, January 2, 2025.
Please be advised that during the City’s Holiday Closure—Tuesday, December 24, 2024, through Wednesday, January 1, 2025—all construction and development services will be unavailable.
- The City’s online permitting portal, Citizen Access, will be unavailable starting Monday, December 23, 2024, at 5:00 pm through Thursday, January 2, 2025, at 8:00 am. Online requests for permits and building inspections will not be available during this time. This includes planning, building, and engineering permits. Please keep this in mind when planning construction and development projects requiring these types of permits.
- To schedule a building inspection for Thursday, January 2, 2025, the City’s Inspection Scheduling Phone Line will be available starting Monday, December 30, 2024. The phone number is 510-494-4885. Online inspection scheduling through Citizen Access will not be available until Thursday, January 2, 2025, at 8:00 am.
- General email accounts and phone lines will not be monitored during the Holiday Closure. Staff will not be responding to emails received during the closure. Community members should avoid sending any emails during this time.
- The City’s Development Services Center/Permit Center, located at 39550 Liberty St., will be closed. It will reopen on Thursday, January 2, 2025, at 8:00 am.
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The City is excited to launch Appointment Plan Check (APC), a pilot program providing virtual plan check appointments for building permit requests for limited types of residential projects without any complicating site constraints (e.g., flood zone, earthquake fault zone, easement encumbrances). Projects eligible for APC include the following:
- Single-family, single-story conventionally framed residential additions,
- Single-family residential alterations (e.g., kitchen/bathroom remodels),
- Accessory structures (e.g., storage sheds, gazebos),
- Junior accessory dwelling units (JADUs),
- Pre-approved accessory dwelling units (PDUs), and
- Revisions to issued single-family residential building permits.
This program facilitates the review of building permit requests in real time with City staff, with the goal of issuing the permit at the end of the appointment.
After a permit application is received and reviewed for completeness and plan review fees are paid, staff will notify the applicant if their project is eligible for APC. If eligible, the applicant can then schedule an appointment to meet with staff via Zoom to have their project plans reviewed and approved. This eliminates the need to visit City offices.
As one of the most heavily traveled months of the year due to the Holiday season, December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. Alcohol and drugs are not the only cause of impaired driving. Driving can also be impaired by lack of sleep or stress. Plan ahead by identifying a designated driver, utilizing public transportation or ride share, or arrange an overnight stay.
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The new Daylighting Law (AB 413), which was implemented at the beginning of this year, makes it illegal to park within 20 feet of the approach of any marked or unmarked crosswalk, even if the curb is unpainted. The goal of the new law is to improve the safety of all roadway users by increasing visibility at intersections.
Removing the obstruction of parked vehicles will allow drivers to have a clear view of pedestrians waiting to cross the street while at the same time allowing pedestrians to see approaching cars without having to step into the intersection to see past a parked vehicle before crossing. Forty states currently have similar laws in place, and while this new law won’t be enforced in California until January 1, 2025 (unless signs already restrict parking), there’s no reason not to start leaving at least 20 feet (or the length of one large car) between your car and a marked/unmarked crosswalk.
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 Upcoming Events & Community Meetings
November Through December 14: Olive Hyde Art Gallery Exhibition 'Connecting Cuts', Thursday through Sunday each week, 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm, Olive Hyde Art Gallery, 123 Washington Blvd.
Friday, December 6: Holidays at the Plaza from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm, Downtown Event Center Plaza, 3500 Capitol Ave.
December 7 through December 28: Crippsmas Place 2024, from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Walk on the sidewalks or drive on the streets to see the decorations and lights along Crippsmas Place. Organized by The Crippsmas Club.
Sunday, December 8: Twilight Time Holiday at the Patterson House from 4:30 pm to 7:30 pm, Ardenwood Historic Farm, 34600 Ardenwood Blvd.
Monday, December 9: Bay Area Winter Job Fair, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, Downtown Event Center Plaza, 3500 Capitol Ave.
Saturday, December 14: Open House at Nature Learning Center, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, 40224 Paseo Padre Pkwy.
Tuesday, December 24: City offices closed for the day preceding Christmas.
Wednesday, December 25: City offices closed for Christmas.
Tuesday, December 31: City offices closed for day preceding New Year's Day.
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 Tsunami and Emergency Preparedness Update: On Thursday morning the Fremont Police Department issued an evacuation order as a result of a tsunami warning from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service. Shortly after the public evacuation message was issued, the Bay Area region was notified that the tsunami warning had been canceled. Fremont Police in partnership with the City’s Office of Emergency Services continued to monitor the situation throughout the remainder of the day.
During any emergency situation, there may be very limited time available for advance notice, and we appreciate the community’s response in acting swiftly to move into safety. The City would also like to remind our community that the Bay Area is subject to a number of natural disasters, and it’s essential to be prepared for such an emergency. Please take a moment to review the emergency preparedness tips from the California Office of Emergency Services: https://www.caloes.ca.gov/ or take a look at the resources on our website https://www.fremont.gov/residents/emergency-preparedness.
The State Office of Emergency Services offers a MyHazards tool that allows you to assess if your location is at risk for natural disasters. By entering your address, you can better help determine if your location is at risk for an earthquake, tsunami, fire and/or flooding.
Visit: https://myhazards.caloes.ca.gov/
Help the City of Fremont turn your thoughts into actions!
my.fremont.gov
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