The Burlingame Voice

Granicus is finally a reality

Sunday Jan 20 Digital meetings coming to Burlingame Council signs deal to broadcast over the Internet, will update audio system By Mark Abramson / Daily News Staff Writer Burlingame City Council meetings are going high-tech. The city has signed a deal with San Francisco-based Granicus to broadcast its council meetings via streaming video through the Internet after the antiquated audio system in the council chambers is replaced. The streaming video system and a year's worth of service by Granicus will cost the city $32,222, and the new audio equipment $44,000. The expenditures will be covered by franchise fees collected from local cable companies. The new audio and video systems could be operational as soon as April. To install the audio system, a small amount of asbestos will have to be removed from certain areas of City Hall. It is unclear how much that will cost. The audio improvements will include new microphones, control panels and recording equipment. Burlingame will spend an additional $46,000 to make its council chambers more handicap accessible by adding an emergency exit for the disabled, a wheelchair area, a podium that lowers and assisted listening equipment for the hearing impaired. The city will tap into its facilities maintenance budget to pay for those improvements and the asbestos removal. As for the streaming video, Granicus officials say they provide the same service for more than 400 government clients. The system allows people to view past meetings online and jump to the parts they want to watch without having to fast-forward or rewind a videocassette. Currently, the meetings are broadcast on public access TV and available on audio cassette, VHS or DVD through the city clerk. San Carlos, Menlo Park, Saratoga and other Bay Area cities also contract with Granicus. "It gives the public greater access to information," said Burlingame Finance Director Jesus Nava. Nava was directed by the council to look at similar systems, but he said Granicus was the obvious choice because it is the leading provider of that technology. And after the first year, the only cost will be a monthly $1,075 service charge, Nava said. Under the city's contract with Granicus, the service charge can increase by up to 3 percent a year, said Hilda Stevens, a regional sales manager for the company. But the company has become so efficient that it has not had to raise rates since it was founded in 1999, she said. City Clerk Doris Mortensen said that in addition to making it easier for residents to access the meetings, the new setup will ensure that those watching the footage can hear what is said. The audio quality of the old system has been a source of complaints, Mortensen said. "There are still times when we will have employees watch (the meetings) and they will say 'the audio was terrible,' " she said. Longtime resident Pat Giorni has attended council and various city commission meetings for years. She said the recordings of planning commission meetings in council chambers are inaudible at times. "Those are pretty bad because the sound system is bad," she said. "The whole idea of upgrading the system will be a very big plus for the city in terms of capturing a larger audience," Giorni said.

- Written by Lorne

Music at Il Piccolo Cafe on Broadway

Tonight (Saturday) from 7:00 pm Il Piccolo will host live music to go with your latte. The musical group is Tall, Dark and Handsome. Something we need in our coffee and our men!

- Written by Fiona

A Change of Voice !

As you can see the Burlingame Voice has been going through some changes in the past week. I wish they could have been a bit smoother .. and we still have a long way to go. Here's what's been going on. The Burlingame Voice was running on a very (by Internet standards) old version of b2Evolution code. The new code has many more anti-spam features. As regular readers (especially early in the morning readers) know we have been attracting spam like flies to you know what. Well we had avoided the upgrade for so long that move to the latest code took (and is still taking) a long time. Although we have the Latest Comments back we still haven't got the community calendar on the Blog and don't have the old 'skin' including the rotating headers. Lets hope we can get those back this weekend. Sorry for the inconvenience .. and thanks Holy Roller for your opinions..... ;)

- Written by admin

Downtown Specific Plan Meeting on Tuesday, January 15

Agenda for CITIZENS' ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING for Burlingame Downtown Specific Plan to be held on Tuesday, January 15, 2008 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m in City Hall Conference Room A Objectives: Review and become familiar with the draft Plan Alternatives Clarify technical issues with consultant team members Refine Plan Alternatives for presentation and evaluation at Community Workshop Format/Agenda: Draft Alternatives Presentation. The consultant team will present the draft Plan Alternatives and analysis, as well as other issues to be considered separately. Questions/Clarifications of Draft Plan Alternatives. The CAC members may ask questions and seek clarifications of the concepts described in the plans. Refinement of Plan Alternatives. The CAC will be asked to suggest refinements to the Plan Alternatives such as: - what might have been missed - what should not be included - suggestions for analytical and visual aids to be included in the Plan Alternatives Workbook to assist the community in deciding between the alternatives ### Additional article in Examiner: Small-town Burlingame may go big City-hired consultants released drafts this week, based on public input, on potential improvements to Burlingame's downtown area. Jan 14, 2008 Burlingame, Calif. (Map, News) - Burlingame residents accustomed to quaint shops and a small-town atmosphere while walking around downtown may look up to see 75-foot buildings on its main shopping streets in the next 20 years, a new report suggests. Consultants hired by the city released this weekend three drafts of what the city could look like in the future after several public meetings and a citywide survey regarding changes to Burlingame's downtown area. The drafts include options on how to bolster housing, a likely Howard Avenue shopping expansion and the potential for raising the ceiling on maximum building heights. The areas affected by the plan lie between El Camino Real and the California Drive Caltrain tracks region, and between Oak Grove and Peninsula avenues. We expect to have some really spirited debates about [the proposed options],? lead consultant Kevin Gardiner said. One of the consultants' three alternatives for adjusting the height include pushing buildings to as high as 75 feet throughout downtown, 20 feet more than the tallest edifices allowed under the current code. Another option includes a donut? design with shorter buildings on Burlingame Avenue leading to structures as tall as six stories around the downtown periphery. I think we would want to preserve the downtown heights as they are now,? said longtime resident John Root. Perhaps a taller building in the proper place would be fine but not [throughout] downtown.? The consultants' suggestions are part of the city's specific plan, a new downtown policy that would define what the city would like to see in that area. The police should be drafted later this year, said Community Development Director Bill Meeker. The Citizen's Advisory Committee to the specific plan meets Tuesday to discuss the alternatives. A pamphlet describing the options will be created for residents and a community meeting will be held in early March, Meeker said. Both Gardiner and Meeker stressed that the plan will be completely determined by residential input. An aspect of the plan that was not as divisive, Gardiner said, was the recommendation to expand shops on Howard Avenue and its side streets. With mom-and-pop shops forced from Burlingame Avenue to lower-rent areas, the city could take advantage of Howard Avenue to maintain small businesses, he said

- Written by Fiona

You Really Missed a Show Tonight!

The Burlingame Centennial Variety Show is a real treat. The music and dancing is great, the talent is fantastic and it is community theatre at its best - an all-ages cast under the leadership of Jeriann and Cathy. Please go to the show today (Saturday at 7:00 pm) or Sunday (2:00 pm) at the High School. You will not ask to get your money back! PS. Thank you to our favorite Broadway restaurant for staying open late tonight so we could all celebrate Opening Night with a margarita or two, delicious food and encore some of the songs from such an exciting Centennial production. The Broadway Grill's generosity was very much appreciated. A wonderful show for all ages and in the true sense of community theatre ... don't miss it!

- Written by Fiona

Whats up with my Voice?

We had a perfect storm of issues yesterday, Thursday. The editors were busy upgrading to new code base when we had server outages.. So the Voice was half way installed and we couldn't access it anymore to complete the task. Of course the devil (who wears Guicci in Burlingame!) was in the details and we are still trying to get functionality back to where it was .. and then exploit the new (hopefully more spam proof!) functions that the new code base offers. Hope you didn't miss us too much!

- Written by admin

Burlingame Centennial Plans

From January 7, 2008 SF Examiner:
CENTENNIAL PLAZA'S LOCATION MAY SHIFT
by Mike Rosenberg

After a year of public discussion about a possible centennial plaza by Burlingame's train station, the city appears ready to scrap those plans in favor of an entirely new, more tucked-away site that officials say solves parking and safety issues.

When Burlingame turns 100 years old in June, officials want a permanent community area to be erected to commemorate the occasion. A logical idea for the city until recently was to build the centennial plaza on the parking lot in front of the train station, a symbolic location because the city expanded from the rail line.

Many residents and even a few City Council candidates in November argued the $800,000 plaza was too expensive, and that a community area by the train station downtown along the busy California Drive was dangerous. Furthermore, residents and businesses worried that downtown parking by nearby Burlingame Avenue -- already a headache for visitors -- would be worsened by losing some of the roughly 19 metered spots in front of the station.

The new proposed site at the west end of Washington Park behind its tennis courts would be safer and not tie up parking as much as the train station option, said Parks and Recreation Director Randy Schwartz, the staff member reporting to the city's Centennial Executive Committee.

The proposed $690,000 plaza includes a 20-foot-by-20-foot bandstand, new seating areas, and renovated horseshoe and bocce ball courts at the city's oldest park. The council tonight will likely direct city staff to conduct further study on the park plan, which could end up being implemented in favor of the train station idea.

"I'm not sure a bandstand is appropriate for the park at all," said Dan Andersen, centennial committee member and Washington Park Society president. "It disrupts the entrance into the park."

But the park site is a major improvement over the train station idea, which "was a hazard waiting to happen," said Mayor Rosalie O'Mahony, who is on the centennial committee. "To me, it's the smartest move to make."

Councilmember Cathy Baylock is concerned the new proposal will not go through the same rigorous public hearing process the train station endured. After all, she noted, the residents will ultimately pay for most of the plaza through donations.

Baylock also wondered why the original idea to mark the centennial with a commemorative clock has gradually grown into a giant plaza.

"I'd like to see us take a step back," she said, "I want it to be smaller."

- Written by Joanne

Business License Scofflaws

City cracking down on tax scofflaws (Daily Journal)

Burlingame merchants will have 45 days to pay delinquent business license taxes before the city starts aggressively collecting on the debt, according to a report released Friday.

The Burlingame City Council will consider approving a three-year agreement with Municipal Auditing Services to conduct a business license tax audit and enforcement program. If approved, business owners will be given a 45-day amnesty period beginning March 1. Those who don't make good on their outstanding bills with the city will receive collection letters and face late fees, according to the report.

The city began discussing a business license audit program two years ago. By creating the program, the city will ensure all businesses are being treated equally, gather more information about businesses and increase revenue to the city's general fund, according to the report. The 45-day amnesty period will give businesses that have no knowledge of the city's laws and an opportunity to come into compliance and pay taxes up to three years past due.

The council meets 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall, 500 Primrose Road.

- Written by Fiona

SMUHSD starts August 11 , 2008?

Is school really going to start on August 11, 2008?

A quick look at the calendar and some math (end of semester before Christmas) will reveal that the SMUHSD will start the 2008-2009 school year on August 11, 2008. It is bad enough that school starts in the in early August but the schools do nothing with the students in the first week because of orientation and late starts. Is there a real benefit to brining our students back to school so early? The SMUHSD and Burlingame Elementary schedules are still not aligned and most likely will not be with an early August start.

The 2008-2009 calendar is not yet in place.

- Written by JC

The Wind and the Rain ...

To report power outages - www.terrynagel.com
or PG&E 800-PGE-5002

Sandbag pick up location -
Burlingame: California and Juanita (one block north of Broadway)

- Written by Fiona