The Burlingame Voice

Podcast: Hear About the Voice in Our Own Words

This is one of the most exciting posts in the history of the Burlingame Voice because it is about the history of the Voice.  Man-about-town and now podcaster-about-town, Mark Lucchesi, who we wrote about two years ago when he "retired" from Mollie Stone's, has trained his microphone on Russ and me.  You can listen to a number of "Mark at the Mic" podcasts that he has gone for the Burlingame Historical Society by searching that moniker on YouTube.

Russ and I were happy to be asked and had a blast talking about the Voice past and present for about 45 minutes.  The direct link to our podcast is HERE.  You will hear about how we started, who was involved early on, what each of us thinks about some local issues (hint:  we don't always agree and that is half the fun).  I describe some of the "Principles of the Voice" but I didn't get to all of them during our conversation, so here's the list as it sits currently:

• Respect the Law of Unintended Consequences
• There are Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics (popularized by Mark Twain, maybe Benjamin Disraeli)
•               Corollary:  A numerator without the denominator is useless
• There is no Free Lunch, somebody is paying.
• Always do cost/benefit assessments
• Does it pass the “Shoe on the other foot” test?
• People get interested when the pothole is in front of their house.
• A cat seldom changes its stripes.
•               Corollary: “When someone shows you who they are believe them” Maya Angelou

The session was also video recorded, so you may get to see our mugs in the future if and when that version is posted to YouTube.  In the meantime, enjoy the podcast. 

Covid-19 Tracking and Planning

It's time to start a new thread on our tracking of the coronavirus.  You can see the prior post from March 24th and the path of the virus' growth in the County here.  Today's County report at SMChealth.org shows 16 new cases in the County for a total of 767.  67 cases are currently in hospital and 7,295 total tests have been done with a 10% positive ratio.  Recall there are about 769,000 people in the County so the testing rate is still minuscule.

There was a great human interest story in the Daily Journal yesterday about Officer Steve Vega.  I've chatted with the officer on the street before (the last time was in front of the Apple store during the on-going patrol there) and I'm thrilled to hear he is better.  He may be down at Stanford right now donating

After recovering from COVID-19, Burlingame police Officer Steve Vega is hoping the antibodies in his blood can be used to treat others infected with the disease.  Vega, 55, is among the first participants in a new effort by Stanford Blood Center to treat COVID-19 patients while the world waits for a vaccine to be developed.

The 22-year Burlingame officer is set to donate his plasma, the liquid in blood, at Stanford this Thursday and however many times is needed after that.

Also in the news is some data on how the work-at-home trend for self-isolating plays out across the economy.  Having worked full-time from home for more than a decade one article about the trials the newbies are discovering was gratifying to read.  On the data side, the Wall Street Journal has a piece titled "The Lucky Stay-at-home 37%"

A newly released study called “How Many Jobs Can Be Done at Home?” reckons that 37% of all U.S. jobs can plausibly be done at home, meaning that nearly two-thirds cannot. The study’s authors, from the University of Chicago’s Becker-Friedman Institute, add that their 37% estimate is at the “upper bound of what might be feasible.”  Along with other studies, this one also finds that those in jobs that can be done from home “typically earn more.” By their calculations, for example, 37% of jobs that can be done at home account for 46% of all wages.

Those who have stressed the need to get our economy up and running again are sometimes criticized for favoring profits over people. But the Becker-Friedman paper underscores that those lower down on the socio-economic scale are most in need of a re-opening for their livelihoods.

That's an important point that can be missed during the high-anxiety zeitgeist we are in.  Here is the Avenew showing that zeitgeist.

 

Our Cupola

Let's lighten things up with a couple of normal, pre-COVID style posts.  You may have gotten the freebie magazine Punch - Spirit of the Peninsula in your driveway over the last couple of days.  If so, be sure to read the very last one-page article by our very own author-historian Joanne Garrison.  The mag asked her to explain what can seem like an odd little feature of our downtown parking lot next to Pet Express on Park Rd.  It's the cupola from the original city hall that stood on that site.

Joanne notes the original city hall was designed by Charles Peter Weeks and describes how the late-'60s plan to tear it down in favor of the architecturally-challenged city hall we still have raised preservationists' ire, spawned the Burlingame Historical Society and gave the cupola a home amid the asphalt and parking meters.  Fun story about a fun monument.

B'game Town Hall - COVID-19 local updates

The City Council and City staff ran an hour-long Zoom webinar tonight to update about 175 residents on the status of various actions to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.  I thought it was very well done with kudos to the mayor and especially City Manager Lisa Goldman.  The link to the recording is up on the city website here.

If you don't have an hour, here are a few of my takeaways.  The County website SMChealth.org is "information central" for the most current counts of cases and for the status of shelter-in-place restrictions.  It is usually updated mostly in the morning but the FAQs are continuously updated.  The County is taking a number of steps to prepare for the anticipated uptick in cases.  It has rented a number of B'game hotel rooms for non-hospitalization-needed cases; as well as first responders who may not have the ability to do their regular commutes.  The County is also accepting volunteers' contact info and has about 1,000 volunteers already, but there is not yet a clear direction on what they might do.  The same goes for our favorite local preparedness group BNN and its CERT-trained teams.  More info to follow as recommended actions are decided upon.

The County has set up 211 phone service for those that may not know how or where to look on-line.  I have to imagine that is more of a last resort for more complicated questions.

Similarly, if you see things in town that merit some intervention or seem non-essential--like groups of teens congregating in public or gardeners gardening-- you can call the Non-Emergency BPD phone at 650 777-4100.  Officers will educate them and disperse where necessary and they have a flyer to hand out--so you should not do it yourself if you are not comfortable--and who would be?  Note that housing construction and repair has been deemed an "essential service" by the county, so don't call about contractors.

The County has allocated $3M of Measure K funds to "help out" and is soliciting donations to a 501c3 named SMC Strong--more to follow when details emerge but I'm guessing you have several ideas on who needs support directly.  CallPrimrose is accepting monetary donations, but no food, clothing, etc at this time.

Those are my key findings from the one-hour webcast and I believe we will be seeing more of these.  In the future, we need to incorporate slides (graphics/text) so that items like phone numbers and websites don't have to be repeated verbally--people still don't reliably get them that way.  This is standard stuff in the corporate world and can easily scale to meet municipal communication needs.  All in all, good show.  It's worth you going to view it--you probably have the time ;-(

Staffing Up Locally for the U.S. Census

After a recent conversation with an old B'game friend of mine, I got a real kick out of this Wall Street Journal article titled "Who Will Be the First American Counted in the Census":

TOKSOOK BAY, ALASKA — In this tiny coastal village, five leaders of the Nunakauyarmiut tribe huddled around a table one recent evening to make a decision: Who will be the first person counted in America for the 2020 census?  They wanted to pick the oldest resident of this 659-person fishing outpost. Two of them, Alois Lincoln and Lizzie Chimiugak, both seemed to be 89 years old—but the records aren’t exactly clear on their birthdates. 

In the coming decennial count, the government will ask most Americans to respond online for the first time, starting shortly before Census Day on April 1. The count really kicks off in January, however, in remote parts of Alaska—where internet is spotty and some homes lack addresses. There, census takers must count every household by hand.

Alaska starts early because residents are more likely to be home during winter’s peak, and frozen terrain is easier to cross than the mushy ground of spring. On Jan. 21, specially trained enumerators with paper and pencils (because ink can freeze) will start knocking on tens of thousands of doors.

Those conditions make helping out with the 2020 Census in San Mateo County look like a piece of cake.  My friend, Pat Belding, is also a recent retiree in search of ways to contribute and has taken a position as a Recruiter Assistant with the local census organization.  So I'm helping him out with some free advertising--the only kind we do here at the Voice.  There are several types of jobs available locally including clerks ($24/hr), enumerators like those described in the Alaska article ($30/hr) who verify addresses and help people fill out the forms and some supervisor jobs ($33/hr).  Paid training is included both on-line and two Saturday sessions conducted locally.

If you know someone who is over 18, a citizen with no criminal record who wants flexible work of between 25 and 40 hours per week for eight weeks at a time (renewable) and likes to get out in the neighborhoods, this is a great way to help out the Federal government.  It takes them awhile to process applications, so don't wait because you think the census is a long ways in the future.  In government time, February to June 2020 is just around the corner.  Apply on-line at 2020census.gov/jobs.

Kudos to Pat for taking on this important recruiting role in an economy with 2.3% unemployment!

Disaster Preparedness - Practice, Practice

Today was the city-wide disaster preparedness drill sponsored by the Burlingame Neighborhood Network.  22 "blocks" or neighborhoods in B'game took part and B'game police, fire and city officials toured the gathering sites to get a feel for how residents participated and learned about preparing.  This was my second year participating and I can verify that the more you do it, the more engaged and informed you become.  Step 0 is knowing where your block meets which is the most fundamental thing to know.  We had many new faces this year as people have moved into the neighborhood or just decided to come to the event.  That interaction alone makes it worthwhile.

I'll just tell you three things about being prepared.  Neighborhoods that plan and practice do far better, in the aggregate welfare, than those that don't.  That may seem obvious, but it bears repeating so that participation can get above 3-4% of everyone in the neighborhood.  Second, B'game has about 100 first responders in total but only about 25 are on duty at any given time, so figuring out what has happened, how serious it is and getting the most dire issues up the "chain of command" is essential.  The rest will be up to us.  Lastly, the city is doing a good job of assisting this grass roots efforts.  My neighborhood qualified for one of the 22 "caches" of emergency supplies that the city has funded based on our history of engagement in the process.  We also got one of the decommissioned radios to enable a communications lead to talk to ham operators at the elementary schools (who then relay the most critical info to police and fire).  We cannot count on 911 and cell phones for everything when all is chaos.

All in all it was a worthwhile morning and kudos to BNN for the planning, documentation and coaching needed to make it a success.  Here is the cache spread out for the drill.

$20 Million Shelter Breaks Ground

The Daily Journal was on hand for the groundbreaking of the new Humane Society building out at Coyote Point that is replacing the old facility in the same spot.  The DJ hits the high points here

(President Ken) White estimated some 6,000 animals’ lives have been saved at the county’s current shelter, where he said a spay and neuter clinic and education programs, among other services, have offered pet owners and residents ways to provide good care for the county’s animals. He expressed gratitude to the estimated 1,400 volunteers, 120 staff members and city and county officials he said have supported the shelter in the past.

Though White acknowledged the new facility will be smaller than the existing one, he said it will help facilitate an ongoing shift of the nonprofit’s charitable services, which includes animal adoption, to the Tom Lantos Center for Compassion, a Burlingame facility it opened in 2011. With fewer services to accommodate at the San Mateo location, White said the new space will be designed specifically to house stray animals and provide better care for them using updated tools and technologies.

Here's the B'game facility on Rollins that allows for a smaller, more focused facility on the Bayfront.  All of this has not happened without controversy as we noted here.  I haven't heard any follow-up on those concerns.

KD's Mom in B'game

Our hotel row on the Bayfront gives us easy access to a lot of events that other people have to travel a long ways to attend.  Last night was one of those events--a charity dinner for Support Circle which helps women with unintended pregnancies.  I was fortunate to be in attendance and got to hear the guest speaker, Wanda Durant, single mom to the Warriors' Kevin Durant.  ABC News covered it here saying

Warriors star Kevin Durant's mom Wanda has been front and center at his games since he was a little boy, cheering on her son. But not Wednesday night.

Wanda is in the Bay Area Burlingame just in time for the Warriors final regular season game against the Lakers. Her son Kevin is back from his injury, but she won't be anywhere near Oracle Arena when the team takes the floor.

"I'm here to support Support Circle, an organization that supports teen pregnancy, young pregnancy. Being the support that they need, no matter what decision they decide to make concerning the pregnancy," she said.

As she noted from the stage, she was looking fine last night.  Here is a close up from the audience when she decided to take some questions from the floor.

Humane Society Conflict

I won't get too deep into this because I am not close to the Peninsula Humane Society operations and the Daily Journal article today has a bit of a he-said-she said feel to it; in my opinion.  With substantial operations in B'game-San Mateo including Coyote Point, Rollins Road and Pick of the Litter near B'way, it is of local interest.  Here's the allegation first

More allegations that animals are abused at the Peninsula Humane Society, as well as complaints about the high salaries of the nonprofit’s top executives, prompted former workers to come forward Thursday.

The small group of donors, past volunteers and prior employees asked the PHS Board of Directors to make changes by reallocating funds toward its true mission of caring for the animals under its care. They estimated nearly $1.5 million is spent each year on salaries and benefits for just six of the nonprofit’s executives.

and for balance, a bit of the recent accomplishments

The humane society, which has a nearly $13 million annual budget, contracts with San Mateo County for animal control services and operates the county-owned Coyote Point Shelter — which all have agreed is grossly out of date and officials are in the midst of planning a $22 million remodel. The nonprofit was also able to form a stronghold of donors to raise $26 million to build the Tom and Annette Lantos Campus of Compassion on Rollins Road in Burlingame. Adoptions and wildlife rehabilitation are conducted out of the nonprofit-owned facility opened in 2011.

I know some volunteers are Voice readers, so if you have a first-hand perspective this is the place to voice it.  Here is the Rollins Rd facility that is now five years old!

Real Charity Begins at CALL

Long time Voice contributor Peter Garrison and I have been discussing the more frequent appearance of street panhandlers in B'game.  He has noticed them in front of churches, then on the Avenue and lately in front of Lunardi's.  We also notice a similarity between the signs they hold which may point to a coalition.  Pete knows Terri Boesch, the Exec Director at CALL Primrose, who provided this bit of advice for B'gamers

With the long, warm days of summer comes a noticeable increase in the number of panhandlers, especially at busy intersections and in front of heavy traffic areas such as storefronts, churches and gas stations.  

While it may feel good to provide spare change or a few dollars to “help” those who appear to be homeless or hungry, those dollars often go to buy alcohol or drugs, which may be the very vices that led to the homelessness in the first place.  In addition, there are a number of large scale scammers, who employ vulnerable women with young children (often infants) to beg for money, with a promise of part of the proceeds for their efforts. Providing money in these instances only perpetuates the problem.  

For those who are genuinely hungry or homeless, there are many resources in the area that offer legitimate assistance. The CALL Primrose center, located in downtown Burlingame, is one of those resources. Founded over 30 years ago as a joint project between the First Presbyterian and United Methodist churches of Burlingame, CALL Primrose is a direct aid and referral agency, offering immediate grocery/food support to individuals and families along the peninsula. Clients may visit weekly to pick up food, grocery and small toiletry items that are tailored to individual living situations. CALL has an array of non-perishable items, along with meat, dairy and fresh produce options, available on a drop in basis.  If the need goes beyond that of food, CALL has a wide network of service agencies that can be called upon to help.    

The next time you encounter someone asking for help, perhaps instead of a few dollars, you can provide them with information about CALL Primrose. For those truly in need, this may be their first step towards a path of self-sufficiency.

Pete also notes "I carry information cards from our local food pantry that I distribute when I encounter someone asking for money."  Good advice from both of them.  Terri is at 650 342-2255.  They are Gems of Burlingame.  I hope this doesn't get to the point of us needing a "Sit - Lie" ordinance.