Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

City Hall will be closed in observance of the Thanksgiving Holiday tomorrow and Friday. We look forward to seeing you next week, though, for our Dedication Ceremony at City Hall! Guided tours are starting at 6:00 pm, with the ribbon cutting at 7:00. Click here for the agenda of the City Council Meeting that will be following directly afterwards at 7:30 pm. At the meeting, we will be recognizing Mayor Barnes for his most recent year of service to the Brisbane community as Mayor!

May you be stuffed with all the things that make you happiest this Thanksgiving Holiday, as you celebrate with those near and dear to your heart!

Another Spare the Air Alert Issued

** edited Tuesday, Nov. 25th **

Yet ANOTHER Spare the Air Day is in effect for today until noon tomorrow. Please respect the Air Quality District's regulation in curbing wood smoke pollution! Thank you for your kind attention.

* * *

The Bay Area Air Quality District has issued another Spare the Air Alert for today, so please make sure you do what you can to reduce wood smoke pollution by avoiding any wood-burning tonight and until noon tomorrow.

If you want to sign up to receive these alerts via e-mail, phone, or text message, you may do so when you sign up at http://airalert.sparetheair.org/.

Also, City Hall will be open to the public tomorrow, but just be warned...we're still in the process of unpacking. So, although red plastic moving bins will still be visible, our willingness to make sure you get what you need when you stop by will be, too.

A Word to the Wise

Reminding you that today marks Moving Day and that City Hall is closed to allow for the movers to work most efficiently. And since with every move comes a time of unpacking, offices will be closed to the public on Monday the 24th so that everything can get placed back in order. We will be re-opening for business beginning Tuesday the 25th.

Please come visit us in our "new" home and be sure to join us for the grand unveiling of the new City Hall on Monday Dec. 1st. Guided tours will be starting at 6:00 pm, with a ribbon cutting and first Council Meeting in the new Community Meeting Room commencing at 7:00 and 7:30 pm, respectively. It's sure to be quite the celebratory night!

So, although the next few days may have you holding off running down to City Hall, watching this clip may have you making a run to Bamboo Garden for their featured Chicken in Lettuce Cups! A View from the Bay certainly did!

Winter Spare the Air Alert Issued

The Bay Area Air District has issued a Winter Spare the Air Alert for today, which bans wood burning both indoors and outdoors through noon tomorrow. This wood-burning ban will be in effect for Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southern Sonoma and southwestern Solano Counties.

Winter air pollution is mainly caused by small particle pollution or particulate matter (PM) from wood smoke. Smoke from wood-burning fires is linked to illnesses such as asthma, bronchitis and lung disease, and is especially harmful for children and the elderly.

For more information about the wood burning rule, or to check before you burn, visit http://www.sparetheair.org/ or call 1-877-4-NO-BURN.

Thank you for doing your part to Spare the Air!

It's Time to Gear Up for Winter Storm Preparedness Weekend!

Dumpsters are being dropped off today in preparation for the next two days...where the community has the opportunity to dump all yard trimmings, branches, plants, and whatever else could wind up clogging our storm drains and gutters once the rainy season starts. This citywide effort is a preventative measure taken every year to prevent flooding and damage to personal property as well as our storm drains. With 2008 marking the 11th consecutive year the Annual Winter Clean Up has taken place, there is a clear benefit seen when we all pitch in and make sure our individual yards are properly maintained. And what better time to get this done than now, when the sun's still shining!

But before you roll up your sleeves and start trimming and hauling, please keep the following in mind:

• Do NOT place yard trimmings in plastic garbage bags when disposing of them in the dumpsters - this makes the entire load unrecyclable.
• All trimmings and branches placed into a dumpster MUST BE LESS THAN 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER
• NO RUBBISH OR OTHER WASTE IS TO BE DISPOSED OF IN THESE DUMPSTERS
• If you need assistance or to arrange for pickup, please call the Public Works Dept. at 508-2130 between 10:00 am - 3:00 pm on Saturday Nov. 15th or between the hours of 9:00 am - 1:00 pm Sunday the 16th. Again, no branches or logs larger than 4 inches in diameter or 6 ft. in length will be picked up by city maintenance crews. For information regarding tree removal, please call the City Manager's Office at 508-2112.

Thank you in advance for your cooperation and pitching in to help make sure our storm drains and gutters are as clear from debris as possible this winter!

In Honor of All Who Served

Every November 11th since 1919, when U.S. President Woodrow Wilson first proclaimed an Armistice Day, the country has an opportunity to stop and appreciate the military veterans who proudly served this country and sacrificed for the common good. Have you ever wondered about the significance of Nov. 11th, though, when all the history books have June 29, 1919 as being the official end to World War I, when the Treaty of Versailles was signed? It's due to the fact that fighting between the Allied nations and Germany ended with an armistice (temporary cessation of hostilities) on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

You truly can learn something new every day...

This year, Nov. 11th falls on a Tuesday. City Hall will be closed that day, but will re-open the following day. Come visit us for one of the last times at our temporary location...as we'll be moving back across the street to 50 Park Place on Fri. 11/21 and Mon. 11/24. (Just as a friendly reminder: to accomodate for the movers and to make the moving process as streamlined and safe as possible, the building will be closed to the public those two days). Don't forget to come check out the new building on Mon. 12/1 - guided tours start at 6:00 pm, a ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at 7:00, and a City Council meeting follows immediately afterwards at 7:30 pm. See you there!

Seasons of Change

Usually with dipping temperatures comes the increased smell of burning firewood permeating through the cold night air. However, there will be a decrease in the likelihood of that happening this winter season. A new wood-burning law has come into effect, requiring residents of the nine Bay Area counties to think of alternative ways to keep warm, and which doesn't involve lighting up a fireplace, wood stove, or outdoor fire pit.

Air experts estimate that wood burning in fireplaces and wood stoves creates about one-third of the winter particulate air pollution in the Bay Area. Due to that, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) has banned wood-burning on Spare the Air days. The ban will be in effect until Feb. 28th and is expected to affect about 20 days. First time violators will receive written warnings. A second violation could result in a fine ranging from several hundred to several thousand dollars.

If you'd like to be notified via e-mail or text message regarding which days those will be, you can sign up to receive alerts by visiting http://www.sparetheair.org/. You can also get that same information by calling the Bay Area Air District's "Check Before You Burn" line at 1-877-4NO-BURN (1-877-466-2816). Any complaints should be directed to the BAAQMD, toll free at 1-800-334-ODOR (6367), and NOT the Fire or Police departments. Names and addresses will be kept completely confidential.