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Welcome to EPA Today News Briefs
November 5 - A Very Special Day The November election and its aftermath now have a special meaning for many different people. For Muisi-kongo Malonga, a young woman who works in East Palo Alto, the day after the election was a very special day. She awoke on November 5 with a double reason to celebrate. Click here to see why November 5 will always be a very special day for her.
EPA Mayor Sends Letter of Protest East Palo Alto Mayor Patricia Foster sent a letter to Palo Alto Mayor Larry Klein to protest recent remarks by Palo Alto Police Chief Lynne Johnson which were interpreted as encouraging Palo Alto's police to engage in racial profiling. Read the complete text of Mayor Foster's letter here.
East Palo Alto Parolee Program Receives Million Dollar Grant The East Palo Alto Police Department announced on October 22, 2008 that it had received a $1.1 million grant to implement a 14-month pilot parolee work program. Get more information about the grant and the program here. Click on the Request for Qualifications to see what the department is seeking to fulfill the needs of the program.
Report Releleased on Increasing Minority Voters The James Irvine Foundation released an important report the week of September 21 which presents new research and suggestions to increase voting rates within low-income and multicultural communities. See the report.
Bay Road Improvements in Jeopardy
Confronting the Spread of HIV/AIDS in Minority Communities
Part of a Winning Team There are more minorties getting involved in swimming. Find out what has prevented them from doing so in the past and why there is a growing interest in swimming in minority communities now. See Part of a Winning Team.
Tips for Preventing a House Burglary The East Palo Alto Police Department has published 12 tips to assist residents in preventing residential burglaries. The tips appear in the department's latest Crime Prevention Newsletter. See it here.
Youth United for Community Action and other supporters of the rights of renters in East Palo Alto held a march to protest recent rent increases. Click here to get more details about the march.
Soldiers Vindicated After 64 Years Twenty eight African American soldiers were finally found innocent of lynching a white man. It took 64 years for the truth to be accepted and a travesty of justice to be corrected. Get the details.
Read the Text of Obama's Berlin Speech
A Popular Attraction What festival celebrates collard greens, features Collard Greens Ice Cream and has a Collard Greens Queen and King Cook Off Contest? The Collard Greens Cultural Festival in East Palo Alto Alto, of course. Read more about it.
July 15 - Mrs. Barbara's Mouton Birthday Mrs. Barbara Mouton was the inspiration for the City of East Palo Alto's incorporation in 1983. At its meeting on Tuesday, July 15, 2008, the East Palo Alto City Council will pay tribute to Mrs. Mouton in honor of her birthday. Read more about her here.
More Assistance for Homeowners and Renters The State of California Franchise Tax Board announced that it has a special program that will provide additional assistance to homeowners and renters. Go here for more information. Gov. Schwarzenegger Talks about California's Wildfires .
A New Bill to Prevent Foreclosures Representatives from consumer groups and local and state officials watched on Tuesday, July 8 as a new state bill was signed that would protect California homeowners from losing their homes to foreclosure. To get more information about the bill and to see a photo of the bill's signing, click on the following link. New Legislation to Protect Child Care in San Mateo County On July 3, a new bill was signed into law, which would enable an 200 additional children to get affordable child care in San Mateo County. Senate Bill 1304, authored by State Senator Joe Simitian will also enable other children throughout the county to get additional hours of care. Get more details about the bill here.
Dealing with the Heat California officials are urging state residents to prepare for the current heat wave. See what they are doing and what they suggest others do. Get additional tips for staying cool here.
East Palo Alto Celebrates 25th Anniversary The scheduled East Palo Alto City Council meeting on July 1 was turned into an occasion for celebration. Go here to read why it was an evening for nostalgia.
Zero Tolerance Policy for July 4th The East Palo Alto Police Department has issued a Letter to the Community" as a reminder to residents that fireworks are illegal inEast Palo Alto and that the Police Department will adopt a zero tolerance policy on the 4th of July. Read the entire letter. Hands-free Cell Phones Senate Bill 1613, the bill which makes it illegal to drive while holding a cell phone, becomes law this July 1. Get more information about the bill here.
The East Palo Alto Police Department released figures showing the results achieved from the "Crime Emergency" that was declared last April. See the details from the police department's latest report issued on June 11, 2008.
Fireworks are Illegal The East Palo Alto Police Department is attempting to notify all residents of a new city ordinance which now makes it illegal to use fireworks within the city.
New Grantees The Palo Alto Community Fund announced that it had awarded grants to 30 local community organizations. Read about the fund and its new grantees.
Even Sentor Barack Obama, himself, admitted that he was involved in history in the making. Find out why here.
Working as an Agent for Social Change Two East Palo Alto City interns made a special presentation to the East Palo Alto City Council. Read what they said during their presentation.
Read East Palo Alto Police Chief Ron Davis' latest "Letter to the Community," news about the recent appointments of two police captains and the newly released highlights of the first week of the "Crime Emergency."
Crime Emergency Implemented
Aggressive Recruitment Campaign The East Palo Alto Police held a recruitment fair on Saturday, March 22 to attract new officers. The accompanying article titled Working to fill vacancies gives more details
Local Campaign Volunteers Working for Obama
East Palo Alto City Council Approved Urgency Rent Ordinance. East Palo Alto City Council approved urgency rent ordinance to place a 6 month moratorium on rent increases. Go here for more details
Dealing with Power Outages The office of Santa Clara County Supervisor Liz
Kniss has sent emails to area residents with steps to take in the
event of a power outage. Go here
to see the steps.
Fall - Winter 2007 Public Hearings on Romic The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) is seeking public comment on Wednesday, October 10 regarding Romic. Please go here for more details.
Public Hearings on Romic The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) is seeking public comment on Wednesday, October 10 regarding Romic. Please go here for more details. May 2007 The Levee is Fixed 
Congresswoman Anna Eshoo was among the first to announce that East Palo Alto's Levee is now fixed. Read her announcement here. April 2007 New General Manager for the Four Seasons
Mercer brings 27 years of experience which he obtained from working in the hospitality industry in several countries. He succeeds Robert Whitfield who is now working for the Four Seasons in Hawaii. Look for more news in the next edition of East Palo Alto Today.
32 area congregations call on the U.S. Congress to halt ICE Raids. Click here to see what they are demanding. March 2007 Local Businesses Win Awards
East Palo Alto's Third Annual Business Expo was greeted with applause and awards. The applause came from those who attended the event which was held Thursday, March 29 at the new East Palo Alto Family YMCA on Bell Street. The awards were given to eight East Palo Alto businesses. Rick Green, received an award on behalf of Circuit City, which was named the East Palo Alto Corporate Business of the Year. Guillermina Gonzalez accepted an award as the owner of El Galope Tacqueria, which is celebrating its 17th year as the small business which has been in the community the longest.
Six other businesses received monetary awards through Citibank's Women's Awards Program, which is coordinated locally with Start Up. The recipients of the grant awards included: Victoria Estrada of Vision Cleaning Services, Dee Uhila of Pacific Tonga Maa Tonga USA, Maria Hernandez of Salud en Casa Hernandez Cleaning Service, Terry Clark of California Alzheimer's Placement and Resource Service, Ines Alvisar of Decoraciones Alvizar and Henrietta J. Burroughs of East Palo Alto Today and the East Palo Alto Center for Community Media. In thanking all who participated in the event, Raquel Medina, East Palo Alto's Redevelopment Agency Coordinator said, "Our City, the YMCA, Start UP, The East Palo Alto Belle Haven Chamber of Commerce, our local food providers and our local businesses all benefited from the information and materials you brought to our community. Find out more in the upcoming issue of East Palo Alto Today. A Tribute to Mrs. Barbara Mouton
Mrs. Barbara Mouton was the first mayor of East Palo Alto. During her funeral service on March 23, 2007, she was honored as the first mayor of East Palo Alto and as the inspiration for the incorporation of East Palo Alto as a city. Go here to see a slide presentation by Meda Okelo, showing some of those who attended her funeral to pay her tribute. Should We Be Concerned? Earthquakes aren't the only natural disasters for which area residents need to prepare. To get information on one more naturally occurring phenomenon that deserves our attention, click here. New Library for Edison McNair Academy
Wednesday, March 7, 2007 marked a very special day for the students and the administrators at the Edison McNair Academy in East Palo Alto. To find out why, see the inside article on Edison McNair. February 2007
An overflow crowd attended the grand opening of the East Palo Alto Family YMCA. For more details, click here.
People came from cities throughout the Bay Area to participate in East Palo Alto's first Peace and Unity March and Rally Saturday, February 3. To read what one East Palo Alto resident had to say about the event, see "East Palo Alto Peace and Unity March and Rally."
See Community Reception for more details. Stopping the Violence
East Palo Alto is seeing an upsurge in violence. Click here to get more details on what is being done to calm the immediate situation and stop future incidents. East Palo Alto Family YMCA Opens to the Public
Mrs. Barbara Mouton, East Palo Alto's first elected Mayor, was selected by television station KQED to be a recipient of its Local Heroes Award. Mrs. Mouton was one of six awardees selected by the station in honor of Black History Month which is celebrated in February. She and the other award recipients will have their profiles presented in sixty second spots throughout the first week in February. Mrs. Mouton was interviewed at the Community Development Institute by KQED TV producer Jim Yager. She will receive her award at a dinner at KQED on February 6. In speaking about Mrs Mouton, Goro Mitchell, the Executive Director said, "She is a legend.It is an honor to work with her in this community." January 2007 
Newly Released Statistics East Palo Alto Police release Jan 2007 crime statistics, which continue to show an overall decrease in crime. See chart. 
The East Palo Alto City Council finally took action to censure City Councilmember A. Peter Evans. The vote came at the council's meeting the evening of January 9 with Councilmember Evans abstaining. It was the council majority's third try. During the meeting the the East Palo Alto City Council apologized for the conduct and actions that led to Evans censure. 
A Call for Unity Representatives of East Palo Alto's Somoan and Tongan communities held a press conference Thursday, January 11 to announce that they are united in the citywide effort to put an end to youth violence. Speakers at the conference included Mayor David Woods, former Mayor Ruben Abrica, Police Chief Ron Davis and other local leaders. The press conference was held after last month's fatal shooting of 16 year old Maikeli Iongi and 19 year old Melevea Fifita in a separate incident. During the meeting, Samoan Chief Mau said, "This generation is a generation that needs peace in its life. Peace comes from family. We want unity and peace with all races, and all nationalities in East Palo Alto." See the attached police report about several of the suspects who were arrested in one of the incidents. December 2006 
David Woods Elected East Palo Alto's New Mayor In a step against tradition, the East Palo Alto City Council voted to elect city council member David Woods as the city's new mayor. The vote was taken at the council's regular Tuesday evening meeting on December 5. Vice Mayor Peter Evans was in line to become mayor, but the council said it was not comfortable electing him as mayor given the possibility that he might be censured, given the harassment charges filed against him. Read more about the election in the upcoming issue of East Palo Alto Today. It's Now Official In an official "Statement of the Vote," which was issued on December 5, 2006 Warren Slocum, San Mateo County's Chief Elections Officer, certified the results of the November 7, 2006 Gubernatorial Election. The Statement showed that with 251 votes cast, Ruben Abrica and David Woods were certified as the newly elected East Palo Alto City Council members while John Bostic, Larry James Moody, and Marcelino Lopez were certified as official members of the Ravenswood City School District Governing Board. Measure C passed with 152 votes yes with 74 no. Measure D was defeated with 182 no votes with 44 yes and Measure E was defeated with 150 no votes to 78 yes votes. November 2006 
Acting School Superintendent Fails to Receive Permanent Appointment At the urging of several of the Ravenswood City School District's newly elected board members, the Ravenswood trustees decided not to appoint Maria Meza-De La Vega as the school district's permanent superintendent. New board members Larry Moody and John Bostic convinced the trustees before their evening meeting on November 28 to leave the permanent appointment of the district's superintendent for the newly elected board. 
Amid caroling and cups of hot chocolate, the switch was turned thrown to light the 30 foot Community Tree standing at the entrance to the Four Seasons Hotel in East Palo Alto. Mayor Ruben Abrica said, "This is the beginning of a new tradition. It's so good to see the Four Season's Hotel reach out to the [East Palo Alto] community." Children's choirs representing three groups - African American, Latino and Pacific Island - performed at the event, which was held on Monday, November 27. |
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The Four Seasons Hotel Silicon
Valley at East Palo Alto has a new general manager. Tracy Mercer assumed
his new duties at the hotel earlier this month. His last position was
as the general manager at the Four Seasons Hotel Tokyo at Marunouchi,
which is a luxury hotel in Japan.
A Dream Fulfilled
A Day to Remember
In a meeting room that was
filled to capacity, Dr. Emmett Carson the new CEO and President of the
recently merged Silicon Valley Community Foundation, met members of
the East Palo Alto community and discussed the foundation's approach
to grant-making.
The East Palo Alto Family YMCA
had a successful opening on Saturday, January 20. The parking lot in
front of the building was full, and as soon as one car pulled out of
a parking space, another one pulled in and family members emerged. "I
am really jazzed," said Sharifa Wilson, Chair of the Board of the East
Palo Alto Family YMCA. "This building has been 10 years in the making.
People are impressed by the quality of the building and the equipment,"
she said. See