I did not intend to start a post on the topic of the proposed assisted living center on Trousdale, but the buzz around town and the forthcoming election caused me to change my mind. I think the buzz started because more people than usual were watching the Council meeting on Oct. 23rd to see who would be appointed to the open seat vacated by Jerry Deal. This agenda item was right before it hence well-viewed. The front page article in the DJ on Thursday contributed to interest as well and noted
Meanwhile, the city brought up questions about the aesthetics of the building, including a chain-link fence property divider covered in vines not being up to par with the rest of the building.
“The original design was found to be very cold by the Planning Commission,” Nagel said. “Could you do anything for the fence itself? The chain link is kind of a step down from the character of this project. You can’t cover it all.”
The architects plan to look into alternatives. The financing is in place and the project represents six years of diligence, Cappel said.
“Your team (the council) has given us much to chew on and we have,” he said. “It meets the architectural requirements and fits into place beautifully at this point. It’s going to be welcoming to the community with a lot of glass and a lot of wood and will be open to community for classes.”
Other councilmembers had concerns about the fence and other features of the building.
“The wood brings an elegance to this building,” said Councilwoman Ann Keighran. “I’m not saying it has to be traditional; there’s ways of softening it. … It’s a corner building and much more prominent.”
The architects handling the project, SmithGroup JJR Architects, say they bring a knowledge of the region and local design aesthetics. The building will utilize Prodema metal painted wood to the exterior to make it warmer and to give it more character, said Joyce Polhamus, vice president of SmithGroup. The wood is easy to replace and lasts a couple decades, the architects added.
If you take a look at the Trousdale rendering on the DJ website (the link above) and then look at this sad little building in Millbrae you will see what she means by "bringing knowledge of the local design aesthetics" - unfortunately it reminds me of a really cheap hotel on the outskirts of Paris or Rome. Do large (as in the seventh largest firm in the country) and local go together? Then there is the Health Care District election next Tuesday with its own DJ article noting
Current board Chair Larry Cappel was elected to his first full term in 2010. Director Helen Galligan was elected to her first full term in 2006, while Director Dennis Zell was appointed in December 2013 to replace Joe Goethals, who was elected to the San Mateo City Council. Doug Radtke of Millbrae is running on a platform of combining the district with the Sequoia Healthcare District.
I'll leave the affordability question for another day, but it is interesting that the Daily Journal uses the first half of the article to discuss something brought up by all of two residents......
Read up and place your votes, ladies and gents!
I am surprised that no one has complained about Terry Nagel supporting proposition 2 that hurts our local school district. It is going to be very difficult to keep our budgets going if 2 passes and no one seems to care. Where are the board members? Where are the other parents? The Hoover situation is a small distraction compared to this and no one seems to care.
Posted by: Mom | October 28, 2014 at 07:10 PM
What is happening with the Hoover School debacle?
Has construction restarted under the guise of "building security?"
Or like most "Hard hitting News" been forgotten? The Trees that were illegally trimmed by the City of Burlingame Park Dept. Burlingame @ Mills Canyon-Who new what and when. Who signed the papers. Using Washington Park as a Dog Run.
Some friends and I were talking about how quickly the 300 girls kidnaped in Africa, The Disappeared Airline over the Indian Ocean, Earth Quake Preparation, the war in Ukraine, Afghanistan, Iraq,-all over again, Boarder Control and illegal immigration, Drought in California-what are we-Burlingame going to do about it?
Everything gets swept under the rug.
I bet Elder Cohen is under there, somewhere fighting his was out.
You GO Russ!
Now we have to add all that and figure out what to do with Ed Larios, vs. Mr. Big.
I vote for Larios.
Posted by: [email protected] | October 29, 2014 at 03:05 PM
Well, call Bruce Dickinson amused. I had my A/V assistant piece together key moments from the video feed for my viewing enjoyment. I had to laugh, yes, chuckle at Brownrigg's baited question about what "The Trousdale" offers that is unique to the community, and the CEO could not come up with the answer and Brownrigg kept on giving him hints. C'mon mayor, it looks like you are basically scripting everything and keep pressing when the actor forgets his lines. The answer should have been that these are available for renting versus purchase and there should have been a discussion of the benefit/savings over time. How a City Council cannot ask basic questions without pulling the puppet strings speaks to a shallow talent pool.
Also, in case you wondered, Bruce Dickinson believes, on an architectural beauty scale of between Diarrhea and Sculpture, I would say this very generic modern architecture, that would look just as well at home in Daly City, is somewhere in the "soft poop" category. That building will look outdated in 15 years and can't imagine how "plastic wood" siding fares in the city of trees. Maybe we should start planting fake plastic trees too, would keep the power lines nice and safe during storms, because real wood or natural materials is asking a bit too much in Burlingame I guess. Seriously guys, who comes up with this s&it??!? Have we lost all sense of architectural as well as generic integrity?
Not pleased!
Posted by: Bruce Dickinson | October 30, 2014 at 10:10 PM
Mom is correct about Nagel and Prop. 2. It begs the question of whether Nagel is moving on next year and can afford to abandon the parent vote.
Posted by: dtn | October 31, 2014 at 01:52 PM
The fact is the district is taking parcels of land away that could go to legitimate businesses and non-subsidized housing.
PHCD wants to use the real estate development as a "cash hedge" in lieu of holding large reserves.
The district has no interest in actual health related services. Their first proposed design was straight up retail developments.
Dig into the PHCD meeting minutes and you'll see Councilmember Ricardo Ortiz say it's not "politically wise to build only housing".
All the points of the Trousdale are correct. The project shouldn't really shouldn't be happening - but it will crammed down your throat whether you like it or not - with your tax dollars.
http://www.smdailyjournal.com/articles/opinions/2014-08-27/letter-peninsula-health-care-district-is-not-a-real-estate-development-firm/1776425129065.html
Posted by: Doug Radtke | November 01, 2014 at 08:18 PM
Doug-baby, the Burlingame Voice's dot-connecter, if you will. Bruce Dickinson would be remiss if I didn't say that it all coalesces now. This is why that televised council meeting was a giant brouhaha of baiting, puppeteering, diarrheal architecture and diversionary debates on chain link fences, ivy, awnings, plastic siding, fake wood, and trees.
The motivations of the PHCD do not appear to be to help sick people or seniors that need help, which is why the CEO had so much trouble articulating the the difference of this project versus the Sunrise center, despite Brownrigg practically handing him the soft-ball question on a silver platter.
If it's such a great benefit to the community, Bruce Dickinson also asks why does assisted living not qualify as inclusionary housing so Burlingame can meet these fictitious housing quotas without the need to be building downtown housing with insufficient parking?!? Folks, something smells fishy in these murky waters and five cowbell rings for Doug-baby in pointing some of these critical observations for Burlingame residents. He has my vote, and coming from me, that means a lot!
Posted by: Bruce Dickinson | November 01, 2014 at 09:16 PM
He has mine too. If for no reason other than I like guys who ask pointed questions of those who are supposedly in charge but don't seem to know what the heck is going on in their own shop.
Posted by: Joe | November 01, 2014 at 11:51 PM
Read, and learn more about the slush fund healthcare districts in our backyard.
http://blogs.kqed.org/stateofhealth/2012/07/13/millions-in-health-care-district-deals-involve-firms-with-ties-to-officials/
"A board member of the Sequoia Healthcare District in Redwood City voted to approve a grant to a nonprofit where his wife worked, while another board member held stock in two banks with district ties."
"In the Sequoia Healthcare District, which also serves the Peninsula, board member Gerald Shefren voted in April 2011 to approve a $60,000 grant to Pathways Home Health, Hospice and Private Duty, a nonprofit where his wife, Joyce, works part time"
I know of some ties to grant recipients of PHCD as well that haven't been blown wide open yet.
http://californiawatch.org/dailyreport/more-uninsured-san-mateo-county-receive-health-care-17319
You'll see that only watch dog pressure caused the "about face" for PHCD.
https://www.baycitizen.org/news/health/lawmakers-question-health-districts/
"This year, Dickinson and Assemblyman Rich Gordon, D-Menlo Park, introduced legislation to force districts to spend 95 percent of their annual tax revenue on community health programs and services, but the bill failed to make it out of a key committee in May."
Very unfortunate.
Keep informed, keep reading, keep your elected folks accountable. Thanks for reading.
Posted by: Doug Radtke | November 03, 2014 at 01:34 PM
Thank you Mr. Radtke.
School Districts in "at least the State of CA." are an entity unto them selves."
If anyone understands the way Native American Reservations are governed, it is very similar.
Financial, Legal, Constitutional Rights, building permits, almost every aspect of governance is in the hands a very few people.
Transparency is an option.
Good for the community around the district, but can be "Contained" whenever "damage control" is necessary.
Ed Larios-Burlingame HS
Hooverville-Burlingame/Hillsborough
Burlingame/Hillsborough City Manager/School District deals that are not subject to Public Review.
This is the definition of:
Taxation without Representation.
I know. I was an Educator almost 30 years.
Unless communities and people start to care about their Honor and Integrity, things will only get worse.
Very Sad
Posted by: [email protected] | November 03, 2014 at 07:16 PM
Focus, Holleyroller. Focus. Are you able to focus?
Posted by: hillsider | November 03, 2014 at 07:59 PM
You know what?
You have Zero ability for critical thinking.
I do not feel sorry for you.
I am just disappointed.
Posted by: [email protected] | November 03, 2014 at 08:53 PM
Ground has broken:
A long-awaited senior care facility specializing in treatment for patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of memory loss will soon be coming to Burlingame, as construction teams prepare to begin building The Trousdale across the street from Mills-Peninsula Medical Center.
The project is slated to offer 124 living units to seniors and older adults when it opens its doors to patients next year at 1600 Trousdale Drive, on the corner of Magnolia Avenue, near a growing hub of live-in care facilities surrounding the medical center.
http://www.smdailyjournal.com/articles/lnews/2015-05-06/officials-break-ground-on-long-awaited-trousdale-ceremony-honors-assisted-living-facility-slated-to-open-in-burlingame-next-year/1776425142871.html
Posted by: Joe | May 06, 2015 at 02:20 PM
$55 million is no small sum of money. The intention of the district according to the board is to create a "cash flow" from the lease to the assisted living facility.
I would feel more comfortable if there were open and outward statements from the district stating they are moving to model themselves after Petaluma Healthcare District.
Petaluma's board opts not to collect ANY tax revenue and the services they provide towards health are self sustaining from rent revenue.
IF, PHCD is aiming for that - then I am all for it. If they intend to collecting rent as well as tax money - what's the point?
There's a real lost opportunity cost for people when that land is not only taking away housing, but competing with a private senior home.
I would coin the double dipping of rent and tax revenue as "baking the cake and eating it too".
Unfortunately, it's kind of water under the bridge now but I would like PHCD to exercise better governance and fiduciary responsibility over tax revenue in the future - this really is not what the healthcare districts were set up to do and this should not be their direction.
I've spoken to many cops and some firemen. $55 million could have went towards a trauma center.
Anyone who saw the Asiana Airlines debacle knows if SFO has a major terrorist incident, accident, or emergency - you're either going to SF General Hospital or Palo Alto for trauma. Peninsula is not equipped with at trauma center.
A trauma center would benefit ALL constituents. A senior home benefits already the most affluent demographic of people in the Peninsula. This isn't some indigent senior housing - this is fancy housing.
I mean I really shake my head at this. I understand from talking to Cappel very briefly via email this is to leverage the districts assets and generate revenue for PHCD, but I'm just still in disagreement about the project.
Water under the bridge. Time will tell what comes of this.
Posted by: Doug Radtke | May 06, 2015 at 05:51 PM