A Little Something for Everyone

The school year may be in full swing, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty of rewarding and fun-filled entertainment soon coming down the pipeline.

It's become a tradition a Shakespearean play comes to Brisbane. This year marks the 6th annual performance by the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, sponsored by the Brisbane Women’s Club. This year’s performance, The Tempest, has been regarded as the pinnacle of Shakespeare’s dramatic output. Widely believed to be his final and most autobiographical play, it utilizes the wisdom and understanding gained from a career as a highly regarded dramatist.

The story captures the essence of the human condition with its compelling and timeless themes. Forgiveness versus revenge, good versus evil, freedom versus captivity, and youthful impetuousness contrasted with aged wisdom are just some of the ideas that Shakespeare illuminates with his powerful and poetic storytelling skills. It's a true delight that the Fall 2010 tour of The Tempest will soon be here in Brisbane!

The production is professionally directed and suitable for elementary students through adults. Five highly-skilled actors in costume, with set, props, and recorded music will be performing a 55-minute production of The Tempest at Mission Blue Center on Sunday, October 24th at 2pm. There is NO ADMISSION CHARGE for the performance, so mark your calendar now...you don't want to miss this once-a-year-only event!

If you haven't already checked out the farmers' market at the Cow Palace, this Saturday may be a good time to do so.

There will be a free bag giveaway and at approximately 9am, Assemblywoman Fiona Ma will be conducting a press conference on the benefits of buying from your local farmers' market. Take this opportunity to pick up some fabulous, fresh produce and perhaps even a bag of freshly-popped kettlecorn!

In the market for buying a new house? They say now is the best time to do so, but it's important you get your research done first. And on Saturday, Sept. 11th, there's a way to do just that. The Bay Area Homebuyer Agency (BAHBA), in conjunction with the cities of Brisbane, Daly City, Pacifica, and South San Francisco, invite you to attend a Free Homebuyer Seminar at Terrabay Recreation Center in SSF. The event starts at 9am and goes until 2pm; reservations are required. To learn more about the event and to register online, please click here.

The heat wave has passed, but the Community Park may become slightly ablaze with the music of the Unauthorized Rolling Stones...who look like the original, strut like the original, and rock like the original! Formed by Rudy Colombini who embodies Mick, he has created a true phenomenon with Dave Garcia as Keith Richards, Mark Banning as Ron Wood and Kenny Crampton as Bill Wyman. Don't miss them rocking out tonight at the Community Park as the penultimate band playing at this year's Concerts in the Park Series. The performance starts at 6pm, and lasts until 9pm. Enjoy the show, and ROCK ON!!!

Where Do We Go From Here?

One only needs to flip on talk radio or tune in to the nightly newscast for just a few minutes before a piece on the dreary state of the economy is broadcast. We probably have seen and heard more than we'd like, so the next question becomes, "Where do we go from here?"

For one, the California Department of Insurance has developed a new program - the California Low Cost Automobile Insurance program (CLCA) - to help ensure all Californian drivers are properly insured. CLCA has helped thousands of Californians comply with state laws by providing eligible drivers an affordable option to keep their vehicles insured for less than $400 a year. Take a look at this video to see if CLCA can be of assistance to you or members in your family. If you have any specific questions about the program, please contact crb@insurance.ca.gov.



Low cost is always good, but free is even better. This Saturday, from 10am - 1pm, Assemblymember Jerry Hill is sponsoring free child safety workshops at the Hillsdale, Serramonte, and Tanforan shopping centers.

These child fingerprinting "Kid Print" events will give parents an opportunity to create an identification packet for their children including a fingerprint and other safety information. Check out the flyer for more event details (if you're going to the Tanforan location, the event will be taking place outside Old Navy in the center court area). Parents, this is a great way to ensure you have the information and tools needed to ensure your kids remain safe and protected.

Now on to a piece about a kid in Brisbane who has done an amazing job at protecting himself! Charlie Sheehy, a soon-to-be 7th grader at Lipman Middle School, won the World Championship in Boxing in the 85 lb. division earlier this month in Kansas City, MO.

Charlie fought five fights in five days which culminated in his big win on Saturday, August 7th. Kudos to you, Charlie, on this spectacular achievement! You are a great example to us all, in that no matter what obstacles lay before us, we need to keep fighting the fight and doing what we do best...and before long, the end will be in sight!

We'll end this week's blog post with the wonderful news that a 6th Summer Concert has been added. Thanks to the generous support of local businesses, Big Bang Beat will be returning to Brisbane on Sept. 3rd. Click here to view the updated Summer Concerts in the Park schedule, and the businesses in Brisbane that made it all possible!

The free Summer Concerts series continues tonight with SOUL POWER. Soul Power plays a wide variety of soul, funk, and R&B by artists' such as Tower of Power, Earth Wind & Fire, Maceo, Steely Dan, The Average White Band, Aretha Franklin, and James Brown.

Soul Power blends the sophisticated sound of the East Side Horns with a funky rhythm section that hails from New York, Louisiana, and the SF Bay Area. Together, they are large horn band that you just can't find these days! Soul Power is guaranteed to get you dancing, or at least dancing in your chair. See you there at 6:00pm!

Making the Cut

It’s no longer where stand-alone buildings will be scored for their environmental progressiveness – it could very well be the building along with its entire surrounding areas. A couple weeks ago, representatives came to Brisbane to see whether or not our Marina would make the cut and be awarded the California Clean Marina Certification. They scoured pollution prevention methods, including oil, battery, zinc, paper, plastic, and materials recycling programs; evaluated and scored the Marina on their boater education (think sewage pump-out, vessel maintenance, pollution prevention on the docks, even pet restrictions!); analyzed the Marina’s Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan, landscaping practices, use or lack of pesticides and fertilizers; reviewed the Marina’s procedures for emergencies (i.e. sinking or sunk boats, haz mat and oil spills on water and land, fire, earthquake, tsunami, you name it); combed over the Marina’s daily, monthly, and yearly maintenance check sheets, employee training files on emergencies, safety, spills, and haz mat; and examined how the trash, hazardous materials, and solid waste are collected and handled, including the cleanliness condition of the dumpster enclosures.

As you can see, much of all this requires the constant, diligent oversight of Marina staff to keep records, policies, educational materials, and plans current. However, in order to maintain the type of cleanliness at the Marina these representatives are looking for, boaters and visitors to the Marina need to pitch in. And pitch in they did! The week prior to the representatives coming was declared Clean Marina Week, where boaters helped to keep the docks clean from debris and other possible water pollutants. All this to say, after the Marina underwent a 4 hour inspection, the Brisbane Marina scored 90% and was awarded the California Clean Marina Certification, which is good for the next 5 years. Thank you to all who help to keep the Marina looking the beautiful area it is, so that accomplishments like this can be realized!

Susie and Ted display the Clean Marina banner they proudly helped earn.

North County Fire Authority has been hard at work within the City as well. On July 23rd, they, along with Cal Fire’s California Department of Correction Hand Crews, completed cutting a 100 ft. fire break which gives the residential homes located near the top of San Bruno Mtn. a defensible space. This last phase of cutting began on the existing fire break at the end of Trinity Road and travels up to the intersection of San Mateo Drive and Kings Road.

The 2010 Concerts in the Park series continues today with Lava, the 3rd (and 3rd to last) summertime concert being performed at the Community Park. Come and enjoy a free 3-hour concert, with a band that plays different styles of Latin music such as Latin Jazz, Cha-Cha-Cha, Latin Rock, Latin Funk, and Salsa. The fiesta begins at 6:00pm. See you there!

Touring Around

Many of you may be familiar with the following two shuttles that serve Brisbane residents and those who work in town. The Brisbane-Bayshore Caltrain shuttle runs Monday - Friday between the Bayshore Caltrain station and Crocker Industrial Park, making a few residential stops as well. See the route map below, and click here for shuttle times. The Brisbane-Crocker Park BART shuttle runs Monday - Friday between the Balboa Park BART station and Crocker Park during commute hours (the shuttle serves Caltrain during the afternoons). To ride this shuttle, you must have a valid shuttle pass. To get one, come to City Hall with proof of residency and see Debra or Lyn behind the Finance Counter. See the route map below for the stops, and click here for shuttle times, as well as a list of businesses in Brisbane that generously support this program. But, did you know about the Bayshore/Brisbane Senior shuttle? This shuttle runs Monday - Friday between the Bayshore Caltrain Station and Airport/Linden in South San Francisco. It follows the route below, but also will pick up residents from their home, if needed, to bring riders to Tanforan Mall in San Bruno Mondays - Fridays and Serramonte Mall in Daly City on Mondays and Fridays only. Just call (415) 740-9458 between 9:00am - 9:30am to request a pick-up (you may also wait at one of the stops). You will have your call returned between 9:30am - 10:00am. The last pick-up from Tanforan (Sears side) is at 3:30pm. This shuttle is sponsored by Caltrain and is wheelchair-accessible. Click here for more information. Also, we wanted to make you aware of the fact that samTrans bus 292 serves Hillsdale Shopping Center, San Mateo, Burlingame, San Francisco International Airport, United Airlines Maintenance Base, South San Francisco, Brisbane, and San Francisco. Click here for more information and route times for this multi-city bus. Maybe knowing all this will lead to opportunities for you to tour around the Bay Area!

Speaking of which, The Houserockers will be touring through Brisbane tonight for the second Concerts in the Park, beginning at 6:00pm.

The Houserockers are a Rock & Soul band out of Los Gatos, CA that plays for you the greatest songs ever recorded. The band is known for their high energy, fun performances that gets everyone up dancing and singing to the music of The Rolling Stones, Earth Wind and Fire, Tower of Power, Springsteen, Van Morrison and much more. Bringing together elements of rock, swing, blues, 60's soul and R & B - the band turns every venue into a house party. Get ready for the best Rock & Soul show in town - and rock the night away with The Houserockers!

We'll leave you this week with some pictures from last week's Concert in the Park, which, along with the California Cowboys, featured free bike tune-ups and safety checks from Sports Basement, a Bike Rodeo for kids which Brisbane residents Nancy Lacsamana and Susan Maynard Sullivan coordinated, bike-friendly giveaways from Commute.org, and police officers Dominic Javellana and Lester Vega handing out free bicycle helmets. Enjoy the pictures, and the weekend!

Mid-week FYI's

All parents of high schoolers attending either Terra Nova or Oceana high schools in Pacifica have by now received a letter with school bus information for the 2010-2011 school year. Please note that students should be dropped off at the same location as before (corner of San Francisco Ave. & Visitacion, on the Community Park side). Please ensure they arrive by 6:55am, as the bus will leave promptly at 7:00am. Should you have any questions related to your child's lunch or transportation costs for the bus, please call (650) 550-7969.

Also, if you have tried viewing the Ch. 27 live video streaming page on the City's website and saw only a black screen, we are aware of the problem and are on it. The router that connects the server which operates the live stream to the Internet is needing to be replaced. This will happen as soon as possible. Please click here for Ch. 27's broadcast schedule -- fortunately, your television viewing of Ch. 27 will not be affected.

Also, all residents and businesses should be receiving, if not already, an issue of the latest STAR publication. This is the City's quarterly news publication and can also be found online by clicking here. We wanted to highlight on page 8 of the Activity Guide that the Brisbane Dance Workshop (BDW) is offering a Performance Session III class, from April 4 - June 4, 2011 for continuing BDW students only. No new students will be accepted for this session. There will be a Spring Performance on May 21st and 22nd of 2011 (taking place during the session, with students continuing their studies afterwards until June 4th). This is a very popular program, so make sure to register your child early! You may register online by clicking here, or by calling (415) 467-6698.