| Together,
we have taken many positive steps toward a Better Richmond.
Let’s keep walking! |
|
Included here you will find a sampling of the many positive
steps we have taken as a City and a community. Many
good people from the City staff, Council, local businesses,
not-for profit organizations, churches and residents made these
accomplishments possible. I am happy to be a part of our movement forward.
We still have a long way to go toward the Better Richmond that
we deserve.
We are on our way. Richmond is changing!
|
|
| Community
Infrastructure and Economic Development |
Sunday,
June 12, from 1 to 3 PM: Join us for a Meeting to discuss a signature
arts project at the Port - Details
>>
|
 Richmond
Transit Station and Macdonald Avenue Streetscape Signal Downtown
Renovation (2007-2008) - “A Livable, walkable
community environment is taking shape in Richmond,” said Mayor
McLaughlin at the opening of the Intermodal Transit Station in
October 2007. The station opened next to Richmond Transit Village
where 132 homes were developed in the first phase, with 70 more
homes, 27,000 square feet of retail and an 800-space parking
garage to come. In 2008, beautiful new lighting, benches, and
historic markers were put up on Macdonald Avenue from Harbour
Way to Richmond BART. This area is part of the Macdonald Avenue
revitalization, in which the City is investing and partnering
with community-based organizations, like the Richmond Main Street
Initiative, to deeply transform historic downtown Richmond into
a pedestrian-friendly urban village.
|
 Richmond
Upgrades 6 Community Centers: $1.5 Million in Improvements (June
2007) - The work included new roofs, lighting, carpeting
and basketball-court flooring. "We need to have these
places for recreation, arts, culture and job training," Mayor
McLaughlin said. "There's a lot more this city can do,
and I'll be pushing for full programming for our centers." |
 Grand
Re-opening of Richmond Civic Center Complex (September
2009) - The original City Hall plaza needed major
seismic retrofitting work. The $100 million modernization
project was completed in June and city departments moved
in during the summer. Mayor McLaughlin said, “We’re going
in a new energy-efficient, greener direction with incredible
public art, and reclaiming this public space right in the
heart of Richmond.” |
 East
Bay Green Corridor Partnership Picks Up Steam (July
2009) - “With the University of California driving innovation,
progress continues toward the goal of making the East Bay
a regional hub of environmental research and green-collar
jobs… generating the green stuff that's going into the pockets
of those who haven't had it before,” said Mayor McLaughlin.
Seven new partners [the cities of Alameda, San Leandro, Albany,
and El Cerrito; the community-college districts of Peralta
and Contra Costa; and Cal State East Bay] are joining the
original founding cities of Richmond, Berkeley, Oakland,
and Emeryville. |
 Richmond
Repairs its Roads (September 2008) - The
City spent $10 million in 2007 fixing Richmond’s pocked and
cracked streets, substantially more than the $3 million spent
annually until 2005. In 2008, the City budgeted an additional
$7 million for street repairs. The city's average Pavement
Condition Index rating has climbed from 46 in 2006 (when
Richmond ranked second to last in a Bay Area streets assessment),
to 58 in 2007. However, to get roads to a PCI rating of about
80 — the kind of smooth pavement found in Concord and Livermore
—Mayor McLaughlin supported the manufacturing fee initiative
(“Measure T”) to fund street repairs and to hire local residents
to do it. |
 Richmond
Becomes Home to Largest, Solar-Powered, Affordable Housing
in U.S. (June 2008) - Crescent Park Neighborhood
underwent a $70 million restoration by EAH Housing and a
$7 million dollar solar installation. Now all 378 apartments
are provided solar power, reducing greenhouse gases and lowering
utility costs for this large, family complex. “EAH has created
an affordable housing complex that not only brings value
to our city but, with its commitment to solar energy, has
also taken on a stewardship role as well,” said Mayor McLaughlin.
The complex also bridges the technological divide with its
HUD "Best Practices" Award Computer Learning Center. |
 Restored
Richmond Plunge will be “Healthiest Public Swimming Pool
in America” (2010) - In a unique public/private
partnership, the Richmond Friends of Recreation worked with
the City to raise the necessary funds to retrofit, upgrade,
and reopen the historic Plunge. Soon the facility that Todd
Jersey, architect for the Richmond Plunge, calls “the healthiest
pool in America” will be open to all Richmond residents. |
| Community
Infrastructure, Economic Development and Jobs |
 Governor
Schwarzenegger Lauds Green Tech Jobs in Richmond (January
2010) - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger toured SunPower Systems'
facility in Richmond's historic Ford building. The manufacturer
is one of the world's top producers of solar power systems. The
Richmond facility now employs about 250; it soon hopes to expand. "That
is incredible, in this economic downturn," Schwarzenegger
said. "What is good for the environment is also good for
the economy, and this is a perfect example here." Mayor
McLaughlin echoed the Governor’s sentiments: "We want our
green businesses to stay in Richmond We think we can turn the
tide, and continue this economic development." |
 Target
Opens as Anchor in East Macdonald New Shopping Center (July
2008) - The 146,000-square-foot store opened, employing
300 workers (a majority are Richmond residents) and projecting
to generate $600,000 in sales tax revenue a year. New street
lights, benches, trees, and wider sidewalks were added to revive
the east end of Macdonald Avenue. Similar work is underway from
Harbour Way to 19th Street. |
 700
New Businesses Open in Richmond during 2007-2010, Creating 1000
+ Jobs - According to data from City’s Finance Department,
between 2007 and January 2010, 708 new business licenses were
granted to new companies choosing Richmond as their place for
business operations, a three-year average of 230 new businesses
a year (this figure excludes licenses for renting a property.)
The businesses were small and medium in size and included both
sole proprietor/operator and firms with a number of employees.
In addition to sole proprietors more than 1000 employees were
reported to work at one of these 700 new businesses at the time
of application for a business license. Remarkably, even during
these hard economic times new businesses continue to start-up
in or to come to Richmond at rates similar to previous years.
The great majority of these businesses survived the difficult
first years of business operations and are conducting business
today. Hero Arts, an international craft stamp manufacturing
company with 55 employees is an example of the new businesses
manufacturing in Richmond. |
 City
Meets Goals for Hiring Local Residents (April 2008)
- Local records, reviewed by the West County Times, showed that
one-third of Richmond public employees live within its borders.
The city requires that at least 20% to 30% of its contractors’
workforce be local. “More people working and living in Richmond
strengthens the tax base and provides revenue for services, and
I intend to see that number grow higher," Mayor McLaughlin
said. |
 Richmond
Youth Corps Takes Shape (2009, 2010) -
Mayor McLaughlin's proposal for a Richmond Youth Corps, currently
being implemented by Employment and Training, is placing
our young people in part-time jobs during the school year
within City Departments. "Over the course of
this year, nearly a hundred Richmond youth will be employed after school
and on weekends as part of the RYC, helping us move the City
forward, while learning new skills on which to build their future," said
Mayor McLaughlin. |
 Richmond
Pilots Solar Thermal Rebate Program Linked To Local ‘Green-Collar’
Jobs (2009-2010) - Introduced by Mayor Gayle
McLaughlin, a new initiative in Richmond will pilot a solar thermal
rebate program that requires customers to utilize locally trained
labor. Solar thermal systems use the power of the sun to heat
water. The pilot program will offer a $1,000 rebate per system
for 25 rooftops. “Richmond is leading the way in providing pathways
out of poverty in the solar field,” said McLaughlin. |
 Richmond
Partners with Private Developers for Senior Housing In Iron Triangle (2007-2009) - The project built 237 condominiums with more than 24,000 square
feet of retail space at 11th Street, and the 66-unit Trinity
Plaza Senior Housing at Macdonald Ave and Third Street. |
| Building
Community
and Social and Economic Justice |
 Richmond
City Council Passes Just Cause Eviction Ordinance: Tenants Protected
From Unfair Evictions From Foreclosed Home (June 2009) -
Following up on a call in 2008 for a 6-month moratorium on all
foreclosures to allow residents to negotiate with lenders, Richmond
became the second city in California to enact a "Just Cause" ordinance
protecting tenants from unfair evictions from foreclosed homes.
The ordinance spells out 12 specific circumstances where eviction
is allowed, none of which is foreclosure. The ordinance provides
an affirmative defense for a tenant in an unlawful detainer action,
contains retaliatory eviction protection and it requires payment
of a relocation fee in the amount of two times the monthly rent
plus $1000. |
 Mayor
Stands with Richmond Tent City Peace Movement (September
2007) - Mayor McLaughlin and Police Chief Chris Magnus visited
the encampment at Nevin Park, one of four camps pitched in parks
around the city in response to a wave of shootings that claimed
three lives and injured more than a dozen others in less than
a week. “This movement will not stop. This journey will not stop
until we resolve the violence in Richmond, until we show that
peace is the consciousness of Richmond,” McLaughlin said. Tent
City Peace Movement officials say the camps are a reminder that
parks and other public spaces belong to the entire community,
not just gang members or criminals. |
 Annual
Women in Solidarity Event Focuses on Unity, Social Justice (March
2009) - More than 200 women and men gathered for Richmond’s
Women in Solidarity celebration, an annual event initiated by
Mayor McLaughlin in 2008. The 2009 event featured performances
by local singers, dancers, and drummers and a keynote address
from former Black Panther Party member Elaine Brown. “Extraordinary,”
McLaughlin said. “It was all about social justice and unity in
Richmond.” Over 20 local organizations co-sponsored the event,
including RYSE Youth Center, Black Women Organized for Political
Action, Morada de Mujeres del Milenio/STAND! Against Domestic
Violence, Mothers Against Senseless Killing, Rosie the Riveter
WWII Homefront National Historic Park, and the Latina Center. |
 Mayor
McLaughlin Joins Clergy in Protecting Immigrants (January
2007) - McLaughlin spoke at an immigration forum at St.
Mark’s Catholic Church hosted by Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting
Community Organization (CCISCO). "I do not want our ...
residents to live under terror," said Mayor McLaughlin.
“That is how hundreds of thousands of families have lived”, she
said, since Immigration and Customs Enforcement began a nationwide
push in immigrant communities, including Richmond. Later in May
she joined faith leaders from across the country in Washington
to demand that the Department of Homeland Security stop conducting
mass immigration raids. |
 Nevin
Park Receives Total Transformation (January 2009) -
With an investment of $2.8 million, Nevin Park has been completely
reconstructed and fitted with state-of-the-art playground structures
and amenities. “A dream come true!” said Mayor McLaughlin at
the inaugural event. |
 Harmony
Walk to End Hunger, Greater Richmond Interfaith Program (GRIP) (October 2008) -
Mayor McLaughlin joined hundreds of Richmond walkers who came
out in support of peace and to end hunger. “I do know that many
families in Richmond struggle to make ends meet, and often do
not have enough to eat. I stand with these families and with
the families who are homeless and in need,” said Mayor McLaughlin. |
| Building
Community Peace and Preventing Crime |
Richmond
Summer Youth Employment Program Provides 1,700 Youth Work Placements
in 3 Years. In 2009 youth placements jumped 34% compared to 2008.
Youth from North Richmond, the Iron Triangle and Belding Woods
neighborhoods (n=323) were 46% of all the youth employed in 2009. |
 MLK
Community Leadership Service Awards Given to Activists Against
Violence (January 2008) - Initiated by Mayor
McLaughlin in 2007, the award recipients in 2008 included Mothers
Against Senseless Killing; The Latina Center; Victory Outreach
Church; Tent City Peace Movement; “Plant Love Not Fear” Children’s
March and Nevin Park Funeral Procession to Bury Drugs, Guns and
Violence. |
 Office
of Neighborhood Safety Funded (July 2007) -
“We have advanced one more step toward a better Richmond," said
Mayor McLaughlin, a strong proponent and consistent supporter
of the new office and its street outreach team. "And this
is a clear sign that Richmond-bred movements are coming together
– Tent City, the Latino community, neighborhood councils, and
law enforcement – all coming together for neighborhood safety,
and I am very proud to be part of that." |
 Violent
Crimes in Richmond Show a Declining Trend, Property Crimes Also
Decline (January 2009) - Violent crimes are
an ongoing serious problem in our City. Nevertheless all violent
crimes combined show a significant declining trend over the last
four years, the combined results of both community and Richmond
Police Department efforts. Homicides dropped 43% in 2008 from
the previous year, and in 2009 they went back up to the 2007
level.
|
 Richmond
BUILD Honored by FBI (December 2008) - The
Richmond BUILD program, the city’s innovative violence prevention
and job training program for local residents, was honored by
the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) with the agency’s prestigious
2008 FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award. Charlene Thornton,
FBI special agent in charge of San Francisco operations, presented
Mayor McLaughlin with a certificate and plaque to celebrate the
program’s success. “Those of you in the orange shirts are making
a difference. You are turning the lives of your families around.
You are turning the city around. You are turning the planet around,”
said McLaughlin as she accepted the award for Richmond Build. |
 Solar
Richmond Hailed by U.S. Conference of Mayors (April
2009) - Cofounded by Mayor McLaughlin, Solar Richmond, was
lauded by U.S. Mayors as “at the forefront of green jobs training
programs”. Directed by Michele McGeoy, Solar Richmond works to
promote solar energy on all fronts including advocating for local
policies to support the solar industry, providing solar panel
installation training and job placement for Richmond’s disadvantaged
populations, offering low-cost solar panel installation for low-income
homeowners, and supplying a bidding service to residents interested
in installing solar panels in their homes. |
 Richmond
Earns “Solar Champion” Recognition (July 2009) -
“Environment California” presented Mayor McLaughlin and the
city with a “2009 Solar Champion” award for ranking among the
top 15 cities in the state for solar capacity. Richmond has more
than 144 solar roofs totaling 5,076 kilowatts of solar power
capacity. “Richmond is leading the way to a solar future,” McLaughlin
said. “We are profoundly committed to not only creating a sustainable
environment, but also to creating those essential pathways out
of poverty through healthy, clean energy jobs.” |
 Building
Healthy Communities Selects Richmond For $100 Million For 10
years. The California Endowment identified Richmond
as one of 14 communities throughout California to partner with
to achieve the goals outlined in the 10-year strategic initiative,
Building Healthy Communities – places where kids and youth are
healthy, safe, and ready to learn. The endowment said about Richmond:
“With its history of activism, particularly around environmental
justice issues, the community is poised to move forward, bringing
with it the commitment, diversity of viewpoints and an engaged
leadership that are needed to transform an unhealthy community
into a healthy community. Youth violence, industrial pollution,
needed infrastructure, and blight abatement are all issues of
concern…and provide a tremendous opportunity for The California
Endowment to make a difference in the Iron Triangle and North
Richmond neighborhoods where the foundation will focus its investments.” |
 Richmond
Police Force Expands and Enhances Crime Fighting Capabilities (2007-2010) -
As of February 2010 the Richmond Police Department has a total
of 186 sworn officers in direct crime fighting responsibilities
and several hundred auxiliary personnel. This represents a significant
increase in police force capabilities since 2006. Under Chief
Chris Magnus, the RPD has embraced a community policing approach
and has been supported by the community and the Office of Neighborhood
Safety. It also incorporated cutting edge technologies to automatically
read and check license plates, an initiative introduced by Mayor
McLaughlin, as well as technologies to detect shootings and to
monitor high crime areas. |
| Building
a Cleaner, Greener, Healthier Community |
 Richmond
First in County to Pass Green Building Law (April
2009) - A new green building ordinance awards points for
buildings that use recycled materials, are energy efficient or
that employ other "green" measures focused on conservation
and using resources efficiently. Mayor McLaughlin emphasized
the long-term savings: "The energy cost savings are a tremendous
incentive to go forward with this.” Business community members
embraced the green construction trend. |
 Richmond
Celebrates Earth Day Every Year - Mayor McLaughlin joined
many volunteers in rolling up their sleeves to clean up sections
of the Wildcat Creek near the Chevron refinery and sections of
the Richmond Greenway |
 Richmond
Greenway Transforms Large Stretch of Abandoned Railroad Property (2007-2009) -
As both a local and regional transportation and open space resource,
the Greenway will provide people with opportunities to exercise,
socialize, observe wild life, and experience the outdoors with
their families and friends. The Greenway runs along the former
Santa Fe railroad corridor, connecting the San Francisco Bay
Trail on the west with El Cerrito’s Ohlone Greenway in the east. |
 Community
Now Protects North Richmond Open Space Shoreline - The
vision of a beautiful park, healthy neighborhoods, and a scenic
parkway is reaffirmed with the North Richmond Shoreline Area
Neighborhood Housing and Economic Zone. Long a dumping ground
for East Bay communities, large swaths of the shoreline’s marshlands
have been illegally filled, causing severe environmental damage.
The West County landfill is stuffed to capacity after 50 years
of dumping. Sewage treatment plants pollute Wildcat Creek Marsh,
and Chevron expelled contaminated refinery wastewater into Castro
Cove for nearly a century. No more! Now the community is in charge
to create a healthy shoreline with the full support of Mayor
McLaughlin. |
 Richmond
Passes New Food Ware Ordinance (2009-2010) -
The ordinance will help reduce the prevalence of Styrofoam and
plastic trash and promote the use of compostable food ware products.
Acceptable food ware products include paper, cardboard, plant-based
products, and aluminum products that have significantly less
environmental impact over the course of their life cycles. |
 Leadership
on Climate Change (2007-2010) - Based on efforts
initiated by the Mayor’s Office, Richmond became one of the first
cities to include a Climate Change Element in its new updated
General Plan. Richmond also completed its Greenhouse Gas Inventory
in 2008, which outlines and identifies the source and amount
of greenhouse gases emitted within the city limits. In February
2010, Richmond city leaders recognized the need to get atmospheric
carbon dioxide levels to below 350 parts per million from 387
ppm, which leading scientists say is needed to prevent severe
climate change. |
 Groundbreaking
New Rules for Cell Antennas Protect Community (July
2009) - Initiated by Mayor McLaughlin, the new ordinance
sets comprehensive and rigorous standards for wireless communication
facilities in Richmond to address community concerns as well
as current legal and technical issues. Community representatives
and City officials worked together to create a model ordinance
that can be used by other cities. “This is an excellent example
of elected officials and city staff taking a cue from the community
and working with them to come up with an ordinance that meets
the needs of our residents while still allowing the wireless
corporations to do business here on our terms,” Mayor McLaughlin
said. |
 No
Harmful Pesticides Sprayed Over Richmond (May 2009) -
The Mayor joined a lawsuit to prevent the spraying over Richmond
and nearby localities of CheckMate LBAM-F, the chemical used
to battle the light brown apple moth. The pesticide, never tested
on humans, had caused harm to infants, children, the elderly,
and the chemically sensitive, as well as to seabirds, upland
birds and other wild and domestic animals during a three-month
spraying program in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties in 2007.
McLaughlin and fellow plaintiffs prevailed: the federal EPA ordered
a ban on the sprays. |
 Superior
Court Orders Expansion Work on Chevron Refinery Halted (July
2009) - In a lawsuit filed by 3 local environmental groups, a
judge rejected Chevron’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for
its proposed refinery expansion, vindicating the deep and longstanding
concerns about the EIR expressed by Mayor McLaughlin and a council
minority. The judge halted the refinery expansion because the
EIR failed to include a comprehensive evaluation of the effects
of the refinery expansion and failed to declare whether or not
the project would enable the oil company to process heavier and
more polluting crude oils at the site. “Judge Zuniga’s decision
will enable the development of a good project at the refinery,
one in which all the requirements and regulations are spelled
out in the EIR,” said Mayor McLaughlin |
 New
Community Gardens Spring up in Richmond (April 2008) City
of Richmond employees, community volunteers, literacy students,
seniors and library users celebrated the creation of the “Richmond
Public Library Garden,” with Mayor McLaughlin planting the first
flowers of spring. Other community gardens created since 2007
to grow vegetables, fruit and medicinal plants include “Berryland”
and “Lincoln School Farms” on the Richmond Greenway, “Peace Garden”
at 1st and Nevin, “Humboldt Garden” at Humboldt and Solano, “HEAL
Garden” at 23rd and Garvin, the rebuilt “Richmond High School
Garden” and the “Kennedy High School Garden” just built under
the leadership of urbantilth.org |
 City
Staff Green Team Formed and Environmental Staff Hired (September
2008) - Initiated by Mayor McLaughlin’s office, the City’s
Green Team was formed and staff hired to develop and implement
the environmental initiatives that the City Council directs staff
to undertake. On September 16, 2008, Richmond became a signatory
of the Urban Environmental Accords, a declaration of more than
100 municipalities worldwide to build ecologically sustainable,
economically dynamic, and socially equitable urban futures, and
in January 2010, Richmond was welcomed as a Green Cities California
member. |
 Cleaner
Locomotive Rides the Rails: Richmond Runs Low-emission Train (March
2007) - Richmond Pacific Railroad rolled out a rebuilt "cleaner
and greener" locomotive that has been outfitted with low-emission
devices, preventing an estimated 10 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions
in the next 20 years. Mayor McLaughlin congratulated the railroad
company for its social responsibility: "I want to thank
our railroad for being innovative and for doing the right thing.
Particulate matter causes health problems, and Richmond has some
of the highest asthma rates in the Bay Area. The Richmond Pacific
Railroad has set a good example.” |
 Mayor
Introduces Pilot Electric Truck Fleet Program: First City Fleet
in U.S. to Incorporate ZAP Trucks (March 2007) -
With a pledge to ask the Richmond City Council to create a Department
of Environment within 4 years, McLaughlin also announced her
commitment to fight global warming by demonstrating Richmond's
new electric vehicle pilot program. |
| Building
A More Democratic, Participatory and Transparent City |
 Mayor
McLaughlin Makes Time for Residents: “Meet with the Mayor” (monthly
since 2007) are monthly forum discussions that give residents
a chance to ask questions about their city and bring concerns
directly to the Mayor. The monthly “Meet with the Mayor” sessions
ordinarily take place on the first Friday of the month from 5:30
to 6:30 p.m. in the Wittlesey Room of the Richmond Library, located
at 325 Civic Center Plaza. Periodically the meetings are held
in different neighborhoods throughout the city. |
 Richmond’s
General Plan Advances With People’s Participation (2007-2010) -
Through the updated General Plan, the mayor is committed to saving
the shoreline as open space including preserving Breuner Marsh
and surrounding area, resisting the move to build urban casinos,
and demanding appropriate clean-up of toxic sites. “Gayle represents
the grassroots, the everyday citizen. She has made great progress
in getting these discussions open to the public,” Richmond Southeast
Shoreline Community Advisory Group member Sherry Padgett said.
“She is a voice for us in the City Council,” said Parchester
Village resident Whitney Dotson. The updated General Plan also
advances community health with a groundbreaking Health and Wellness
Element. |
 The
Contra Costa Times Commends Mayor McLaughlin For Opposing Secret
Deals (May 2008) - The Times editorial denounced
the Richmond City Council’s [pro-Chevron majority] decision to
enter a secrecy deal with the Chevron refinery, saying “it should
offend anyone in the Bay Area who values open government.” It
also stated that: “Mayor Gayle McLaughlin and Councilmen Tom
Butt and Tony Thurmond are to be commended for opposing the secrecy…and
the other six members of the council, who were led by Councilwoman
Maria Viramontes, should be ashamed.” (Stop the Secret Oil Deal,
May 11,2008, WCT) |
 Public
Forum Placed At the Beginning of Richmond Council Meetings -
To facilitate the residents’ participation in the affairs of
the City and to give them an opportunity to bring forward their
concerns the Public Forum was placed at the beginning of the
meetings. “Everyone is welcome and everyone gets equal time,”
said Mayor McLaughlin who chairs the Richmond City Council meetings. |
 Youth
Event Promotes Democratic Participation Among Future Leaders (October
2009) - Mayor Gayle McLaughlin and the Richmond’s Southeast
Asian Young Leaders (SEAYL) program co-sponsored the Youth Stopping
Violence Summit 2009. “I am not a high school dropout. I am not
a drug dealer or a gang banger. I am not the negative of Richmond,
California,” said Phon Chanthanasak (photo) student at San Francisco
State University. The Youth Summit allows for reaffirmation and
workshops on topics such as anger management, positive hip-hop,
and how to use the law as protection instead of violence. “The
Youth Summits also promote the values and skills of public participation,
public speaking, discussing alternatives and presenting ideas
to others, all at the very base of our democratic system. They
are preparing to lead,” said Mayor McLaughlin. |
 Richmond
Surveys Residents To Learn Spending Priorities (2007
and 2009) - The City Council approved enrolling in the National
Research Center’s (NRC) National Citizen Survey program in order
to conduct a resident survey to help the City Council set spending
priorities for the 2007/08 and 2009/2010 fiscal years and to
set a benchmark and measure City service delivery. The surveys’
results may be found in the City’s website www.ci.richmond.ca.us . “We must always ask the people,” said Mayor McLaughlin. |
 Richmond
Supports Organized Labor’s Employee Free Choice Act(March
2009) - A resolution introduced by Mayor McLaughlin
was approved by the Council. Mayor McLaughlin stated: “We
are in solidarity. The freedom to form or join a union
is a fundamental human right.” The Richmond ordinance requested
federal legislation that protects and preserves the freedom
of America’s workers to organize and join an union by establishing
meaningful penalties for violations of a worker’s right
to join a union, and authorizes the National Labor Relations
Board to certify a union by majority sign-up. |
| Supporting
Education, Culture, The Arts, Our Youth |
 Richmond
Supports Local Schools with $3 million and Libraries Re-Open (2009) -
The City came to the rescue of several public elementary
schools and Kennedy High School threatened with closure by
the financial difficulties of the West Contra Costa Unified
School District. The City also reopened the Bayview and the
Westside Libraries branches and extended the main library
hours. |
 Supporting
Our Youth (2008) - The Richmond Youth and Student Empowerment
(RYSE) Center opened to culminate the work of a coalition of
youth and youth advocates, Supervisor John Gioia, and the City
to give West County youth a place to go and activities to engage
them. |
 Richmond
Joins Partnership in Unprecedented Arts Collaboration (October
2009) - Recognizing the arts as a significant, transformational,
and affirming force in civic life, regional economies and education,
the cities of Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland, and Richmond joined
a partnership to promote their arts in a new East Bay Culture
Corridor (EBCC). |
 City
Honors Richmond’s Past, Elders, Diverse Cultures, and Future:
Richmond embraced its past and future with festivals honoring
the Home Front, Juneteenth, Cinco de Mayo, and 4th of July, as
well as recognitions and proclamations for Black History Month,
International Women’s Day, and Labor Day. |
| Together,
we have taken many positive steps toward a Better Richmond.
Let’s keep walking! |
 |
Many
good people from the City staff, Council, local businesses,
and all our neighborhoods made these accomplishments possible.
We still have a long way to go toward the Better Richmond that
we deserve.
We are on our way. Richmond is changing!
With your
support I will continue to give our City my undivided attention
and time. I am not Mayor as a steppingstone to higher office.
I’m dedicated to serve the people of Richmond. I take not a
penny of corporate campaign money, and I remain independent
to serve you, the people and voters of Richmond. With your
help, A Better Richmond is Possible! |
 |
