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Working Hard to Protect and Improve the Quality of Life for All San Mateo County Residents |
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Happy October! I am excited to share what we have been working on this past month, highlight some resources and feature local opportunities for you to get involved in your community.
As always, I am honored to serve as your County Supervisor and share my work to protect and improve the quality of life for all San Mateo County residents.
If you would like to respond to this newsletter, or contact us for any reason, please email SMC_SupMueller@smcgov.org.
We look forward to hearing from you!
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 Supervisor Ray Mueller
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Pushing for Clean Water for Students |
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Did you know there is a school in San Mateo County, that doesn’t have clean drinking water? Students at Pescadero Middle School and High School can’t drink the water that comes out of the school’s plumbing. Former Supervisor Horsley and San Mateo County professional staff developed a plan to fix this issue, extending a new water pipeline to the school. But to build it, the County needs the California Coastal Commission to approve a Local Coastal Plan (LCP) Amendment.
Disappointingly, Coastal Commission staff requested a burdensome 2:1 agricultural land replacement for this project, with strict requirements regarding the location and type of land. Worse, Coastal Commission staff wouldn’t put the County’s proposed LCP Amendment on their agenda until the County met the impossible requirement. So in early October, I drove 8 1/2 hours with two bottles of contaminated water from Pescadero schools and presented them to the Coastal Commission at their meeting in Imperial Beach, San Diego County, and asked the Commission to agendize this issue immediately. I am happy to report that the Commission responded, and the issue has been tentatively added to the Coastal Commission agenda for December. Coastal Commission staff also reported they are evaluating whether to relax the 2:1 agricultural land replacement requirement. You can read more about this issue here.
Stay tuned for more and to see my testimony at the Commission, click here: https://www.coastsidebuzz.com/after-10-months-california-coastal-commission-staff-deem-firehouse-water-permit-incomplete-so-supervisor-mueller-drives-8-5-hours-to-show-the-board-the-yellow-contaminated-water-at-pescadero-h-s-ask/
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Supporting Families in Need This Holiday Season |
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On October 3rd, the Board of Supervisors approved my sponsorship request for County Measure K funds to go to a pilot program to provide free diaper supplies for families in need. Low-income families spend approximately 14% of their after-tax income on diapers and studies have shown that a family’s level of poverty spikes with the birth of a child. The goal of this pilot is to help ease the financial burden on families this holiday season by providing this costly necessity.
Two San Mateo County Library locations, Belmont and Pacifica Sharp Park, will now distribute kits that include both wipes and diapers during events from October to January. Each kit will hold 80 diapers and 200 wipes.
In addition to the Measure K revenue that will fund this pilot program, County Libraries leveraged donated diapers from SupplyBank.org which enabled us to maximize the funds and supplies to help more families. The Measure K cost of the initial pilot is estimated at $50,000, at $22 per kit, and would fund at least 1,800 diaper kits for under-resourced families who may be experiencing economic distress at a total of 12 distribution events to be held between the months of October and February.
Read here for more information, visit the County Library page for updates and see distribution dates for each library below!
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Belmont
Saturday, Oct 28, 10:30 AM
Saturday, Nov. 18, 10:30 AM
Saturday, Dec. 2, 10:30 AM
Saturday, Dec 16, 2:00 PM
Saturday, Jan. 13, 10:30 AM
Saturday, Jan 27, 10:30 AM
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Pacifica Sharp Park
Saturday, November 18 - 10:30 AM
Thursday, November 30 - 5:30 PM
Tuesday, December 5 – 5:30 PM
Saturday, December 16 – 10:30 AM
Saturday, January 6 - 10:30 AM
Saturday, January 20 - 10:30 AM
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Easing the Impact of Growth on Local Towns and Cities |
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As Stanford University continues to expand its footprint in serving students, community and the academic landscape, it is my responsibility to consider the impacts of the continued growth on the neighboring local jurisdictions and residents. On October 16th, I sent a letter to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors, expressing my support for Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian’s proposal that was developed in collaboration with our office, San Mateo County and local City stakeholders, which would require, among other things,
- 70% of new housing build must be on the Stanford University campus,
- No in-lieu fees – that the university must build actual housing rather than paying a small fraction to build, and
- A new methodology for transit impacts that would include not just one peak hour, but also include reverse commutes and three peak hours of traffic.
I am excited to share that those amendments were passed! Read more on the story here: https://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/2023/10/17/county-looks-to-steer-housing-toward-stanford-campus
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Ensuring County Roads are Safe for Residents
I am happy to announce that in response to our office’s advocacy and in partnership with Senator Becker, Assemblymember Berman, and Santa Clara County Supervisor Simitian,-- Caltrans District 4 has now been awarded a contract for repairs at three locations on Skyline Boulevard, with construction having begun in August! As long as the weather holds, construction should be complete by mid-November.
Thank you to the hundreds of individuals who rely on Skyline Boulevard that reached out to our offices in fear that one or more lanes would collapse in next winter’s rains if this situation was not addressed. Our constituents in Portola Heights, Castanea Ridge and South Skyline travel Highway 35 daily on their way to work, school, doctor’s appointments and to get groceries and our office is exceedingly thankful to Caltrans for being responsive to repairing such a critical commute for our residents!
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You're Invited to the Mirada Bridge Ribbon Cutting Event!
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On Friday, November 3rd, there will be a ribbon cutting on the Coastside for the Mirada Bridge at 1:30pm. We look forward to seeing you at 2 Mirada Road, Half Moon Bay, at the South bridge entrance for this exciting development! Make sure to RSVP to lsilberman@smcgov.org. |
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Resource Corner
SMALL BUSINESS ALERT!
Can't Miss Workshop for Small Businesses
Join the California State Treasurer’s Office, California Secretary of State’s Business Programs Division, California Office of the Small Business Advocate and Northern California Small Business Development Center for a small business workshop on how to Transform your Business with Resources from the Golden State.
The event will take place in person on Wednesday, November 8, 2023, 10:00AM – 2:00PM in the Google Visitor Experience located at 2000 N Shoreline Boulevard, Mountain View, CA 94043.
Please share with your networks and register today!
- Topics will include:
- Access to Capital from State and Federal Programs
- Go Green Business Energy Financing
- CalSavers Retirement Program
- Secretary of State resources for starting your business and filing requirements
- CalOSBA Small Business Resources
Registration Link: https://hellosbdc.com/118
If you have any questions regarding this event, please email SosOutreach@sos.ca.gov
Learn How to Repair Broken Items at a Local Fixit Clinic!
On November 4th from 11:00am-2:00pm, the Office of Sustainability is hosting a Fixit Clinic at Pescadero Elementary School at 620 North Street. Fixit Clinics are fun community-based workshops where neighbors, friends, and families work collectively to learn how to repair broken items with Fixit Coaches, specialty tools and a workspace for maintenance to your household items and appliances. Sign up here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeBewZzwa_ZJQW7USbx4lHc2ykCvvytjmr6_2-6m4C-HdBTww/viewform
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Giving Back Corner
Looking for ways you can give back? In our “Giving Back Corner” we will continually feature organizations and opportunities for you to donate either your time or goods to help your community.
- Support food distribution to our neighbors in need! Volunteer with Coastside Hope for their monthly Family Harvest food distribution at their warehouse in Princeton Harbor on the third Thursday of each month. Sign up here: https://coastsidehope.org/volunteer/
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The Arunay Foundation is committed to reducing beach accidents and coastal drownings by raising awareness and educating people about sneaker waves, rip currents, and other hazardous beach conditions; equipping our beaches with “LifeRings;” and keeping our communities informed about unsafe weather conditions. Rally your family, friends, neighbors and colleagues for a walkathon to raise awareness about beach safety on Sunday, November 5th at 9:00am-1:00pm at Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area in Fremont. Sign up here: https://www.arunayfoundation.org/events/2023-walkathon
- Attend a beach cleanup in Pacifica with the Pacific Beach Coalition! My team, family and friends all joined for a cleanup and so should you! It's a great way to get outdoors while also making a positive difference in the community. Learn more here: https://www.pacificbeachcoalition.org/
Do you have a volunteer or donation opportunity that you want us to highlight? Email us at SMC_SupMueller@smcgov.org and we can feature them in our next newsletter!
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