The Burlingame Voice

Perceptions from the Outside

I had a chance to take advantage of the rain and get some ski days in Tahoe.  Sunday was particularly good with 15" of fresh snow.  Riding the chair lifts with strangers can be enlightening as well since everyone is in a good mood when the skiing is good.  I had three conversations with people who knew and liked B'game.

The first chat was with a guy about my age who grew up on Summit Drive and went to Hoover School, but had moved away after graduating from Mills.  He had been back to visit recently and thought the town was looking pretty good.  He was surprised to hear about the hubbub over reopening Hoover.  He had the standard response I hear ("But it was already an elementary school before!").  He used to walk down one of the dead end streets (must have been Kenmar Way or Belvedere Ct.) and then take Hoover Trail into the school.  Does anyone know if Hoover Trail is still there?  He used to play at Spencer Lake in H'borough, too.  Per the H'borough website, Spencer Lake is part of the town's Open Space but is not open to the public.

The second chat was with a woman who knew B'game and liked it for its charm and its airport access.  She is one of the people from EssEff who park on our streets instead of paying for airport parking.  I let that slide.

The last chat was with a guy from Tahoe City who loves B'game and would choose it and no where else if he had to move to the Bay Area.  His wife comes to B'game regularly to go to "one of the swanky hair salons".  That is not the first time I have heard that one from an out of towner and I guess we do pull in the well-high-heeled crowd for a trim.  All-in-all we got three thumbs up from knowledgeable outsiders.

Friday light. Thursday night lights.

Thought I would share a little about what makes Burlingame Burlingame again. Last night was another example. A few local actors portrayed legendary Burlingame local figures up at the Kohl Mansion, a jewel in the crown of Burlingame.

It was an interesting tale of Freddie Kohl and his loves ( and hates.) But more importantly, it was local amateur theater. That's another attribute of small town Burlingame. Wish we had more of it.

Yee.......?

Yee....? That is the extent of a title for this post that I can come up with.  The SacBee was on this yesterday, but the DJ has the details.

A California state senator who authored gun control legislation asked for campaign donations in exchange for introducing an undercover FBI agent to an arms trafficker, according to court documents unsealed Wednesday.

Yee is the third Democratic state senator in California to face charges this year. Sen. Rod Wright was convicted of perjury and voter fraud for lying about his legal residence in Los Angeles County, and Sen. Ron Calderon has been indicted on federal corruption charges. Wright and Calderon are taking a voluntary leave of absence, with pay, although Republicans have called for them to be suspended or expelled from the Legislature.

Yee, 65, represents western San Francisco and much of San Mateo County. He is best known for his efforts to strengthen open records, government transparency and whistle-blower protection laws, including legislation to close a loophole in state public records laws after the CSU Stanislaus Foundation refused to release its $75,000 speaking contract with former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in 2010.

That was the old days...when CSU speaking fees were news instead of gun running.  You guys know I am a huge Herb Caen fan and it's days like these when I wish Herb were still around to put this in context of gun running back in the Gold Rush or bootlegging days.  So when you read about 10 round or 15 round magazines are being debated in Sacramento, just remember the allegation "Yee discussed helping the agent get weapons worth $500,000 to $2.5 million, including shoulder-fired missiles".  I'm tempted to start a new category but I can't decide what it would be.  Now, about Leland's last high-cost rail vote...will Darrell Steinberg be questioning that too???????

The Bay Issue - SF Magazine's Take

For some unknown reason, I get the San Francisco magazine delivered in my mail for free.  Every time I go into Mollie's and see it on the newsstand for $4.99 I crack up because I cannot figure out why mine is free.  But I do read the thing since we B'gamers are inextricably linked to EssEff--for better or worse.  The April 2014 issue focusses on The Bay itself--our water mass and the politics around it.  It's worth a read but here is a spoiler alert--I am going to net one of the articles and tell you why they may be able to print in glossy but can't think in plain text.  First, the issue reviews the history of The Bay back to when the gold miners dumped tons of excess dirt into the feeder waterways that muddied the waters for decades.  Then the mag describes why this is both bad AND GOOD since the marshes in the South Bay need silt to survive.  They note

The loss of gold miner-era silt in the bay has led to two major, and unexpected, problems.  First, and seriously, it has threatened the restoration of the bay's marshes.  The wetlands were originally seen as unhealthly swamps standing the in the way of progress and were unmercifully filled in.....But marshes need sediments, and the sediments created by heedless gold rush miners are no longer there.

Here's the hook

The fact of the waterfront's unconquerable complexity is grounds for concern:  How do we know we'll take care of it properly?  The narrative of the human relationship with the bay in the last century is overwhelmingly one of success, but there are new challenges:  emerging contaminants, sea level rise, algae growth, marsh formation.

OK, so you know where I am going with this right.  They use five or six pages to tell us how complicated and "unconquerable" the  bay ecology is--which according to them is down to 548 square miles--but right there on page 67, these same geniuses warn that

Global warming is projected to bring 16 inches of sea level rise to San Francisco Bay over the next 36 years, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.  That will be enough to flood the highway that connects the East Bay mainland with the toll plaza and the (Bay) bridge beyond.

The good news is the Metropolitan Transportation Commission "does plan to address sea level rise going forward".  I'm relieved.  This the issue you are looking for to read it for yourself.

Ugly Bookends

We are in another development boom for all the obvious reasons (Dow Jones, S&P, IPO, social media, in-fill, etc).  I have a love-hate relationship with development booms since some of the casualties are old architecturally-significant friends.  Unfortunately, the replacement buildings can be damn ugly in my opinion.  As B'gamers we have to be very aware of how bad new architecture can be especially when it attempts to be "high density" or low budget.  Here are the latest bookends--on the northern border with Millbrae and the southern border with San Mateo.  I'm not a big fan of either...........

and on the southern border

Let's face it, we look pretty good compared to our ugly sisters.  How do we avoid killing the Golden Goose?  Oh, and where is the water going to come from to slake the thirst of the density?

CALL Primrose retirement

The DJ has a nice send-off piece for Mary Watt.  I know there are at least two regular Voice readers who are very involved at CALL Primrose.

After 15 years as the executive director of Burlingame nonprofit CALL Primrose, Mary Watt has stepped down to tend to her health....A search for a successor of the 30-year-old organization will take place over the next several months.

“I really encouraged them to try to take an interim and stabilize,” she said. “Set a vision before picking someone who is a dynamic person for that vision. … The face of hunger in the county is different than it was different than 30 years ago.”

I particularly liked this quote from Ms. Watt

“The house it’s in is 100 years old,” she said. “It’s held a much bigger volume [of supplies] than anyone ever dreamed. People like that it looks like a home because it’s welcoming.”

I probably walk by the century old house four or five times a week.  It's easy to forget that architecture and materials and building features can have an effect -- a calming, reassuring effect in some cases--on people so thanks for the reminder.  Happy retirement, Ms. Watt.

More Bgame Wildlife

The Spring is Buzzing post generated some additional photo submissions including a shot of one of our very own sealions hanging out just north of the Embassy Suites hotel on the bayfront.  He looks well-fed to me!

I had a nice chat with a current council member at last night's annual Council-Commissioners appreciation dinner about finding a way to do some improvements to the state land that is just a bit down the shore from here.  It's unimproved bayfront right now.  His idea is to have a city-owned billboard for rent that would be visible from 101.  He gets points for thinking out of the box.

Spring Is Buzzing

Happy first day of Spring, B'gamers.  Aside from the spring allergies which are brutal this year in my experience, our little burg's byways are looking very charming with all the budding and blossoming.  The bee population is getting active too.  Thanks to a sometime Voice blogger's mention on another site, I learned of a well-established honey bee hive located at the foot of a tree in front of 518 El Camino.  Her purpose in alerting people was to let them know that honey bees aren't very aggressive biters, so all one needs to do is tread carefully in that area--not go after the hive with pesticides like someone apparently tried to do.

We have enough concerns about colony collapse disorder as it is without adding to the problem with amateurish tactics.  Hives for the species that are not yellowjackets should be moved by a beekeeper and there are several actively working on the Peninsula.  Here is the hive which someone thoughtfully surrounded with bricks to alert passersby.

 

That was the "before" picture and per Anne H.'s comment on this post here is the "after" picture.  Fly high little guys!

Musings on New England's History

I had the chance to spend a chilly week in New England recently and there is no way I would exchange B'game for a return to my native region, but one aspect of Yankee thinking is superior to our California sensibilities--historic preservation.  With all of the historic structures in New England--churches, covered bridges, town commons, residences and commercial buildings--one might think Yankees would value them each a little less.  But that is not the case.  I had a chance to visit two different restored historic theaters and America's Oldest Restaurant and each venue treasured its history.

The Colonial Theater in Pittsfield, Mass and the Mahaiwe Theater in Great Barrington, Mass made me a little sad.  Neither of these towns are economic powerhouses nor is Berkshire County where they are located.  Yet each venue has a board that rallied to save them from The Claw over the last 15 years.  As you can see, the Mahaiwe is now gorgeous.

Contrast that with B'game where the Encore Theater on California Dr. was demolished for just-another-bland-retail-outlet.  Same with the Fox Theater on the Avenue.  It makes me sad.  Here's the old Encore.

At least we have the folks like Tom Gray and the B'game Historical Society around to save the photos of what we have lost.

Library Renewal- the Space, not Books

There's a nice article about the B'game library renewal that is being planned as we speak in today's Daily Journal.  I've seen some of the preparation first hand as the library has decommissioned some extra copies of cool stuff and donated it to the Historical Society to help it raise funds.  Being a Craigslist kind of guy, the Society asked me to post a test book for sale there.  If you search on "Burlingame City Directory - 1942 edition" you too can own a great bit of B'game history.  The plans for the library include

an expanded teen room, a café and a used bookstore in the main level.  A technology lab and several new study rooms are also in line to be added in the lower level. The upper level will feature conference rooms for community and business uses.  Each of these levels will also have updated computers and LCD screens to accommodate the community’s needs.

Everytime I go to the library it's pretty full so these updates give me a sense that the usage will continue.  This is great stuff if we can get from $445K to the $1M that is needed.