City Council

Mayor bans clapping at City Council meetings

By: Staff report 11/03/11 10:44 PM

DIM BULB: Peekskill, N.Y., Mayor Mary Foster has banned all clapping at weekly City Council meetings. She called it a “politeness policy” to stop intimidation by a “small group” and “make residents more comfortable.” However, Foster’s political opponents accuse her of simply trying to stop the increasing amount of applause against her council statements. And a local constitutional lawyer said the mayor is in violation of First Amendment speech rights. Read More

Topeka, Kansas decriminalizes domestic violence

By: Staff report 10/12/11 9:23 PM

DIM BULB: In a nasty dispute with its local county district attorney, the City Council of Topeka, Kan., voted 7-3 to repeal the municipal law making domestic violence a crime. The council members complained that the district attorney had stopped prosecuting misdemeanors without giving notice and was using the domestic violence issue to force a bigger budget for his office. Read More

Newcomer, two incumbents run for Burlingame City Council

By: Niko Kyriakou 09/17/11 3:00 PM

November’s City Council election in Burlingame will pit two well-known incumbents against a newcomer, Ricardo Ortiz, with two seats at stake.Ortiz, 48, faces first-term Councilman Jerry Deal and second-term Councilwoman Terry Nagel, who’s also mayor. The Colombian-born Ortiz hopes to bring “common sense” back to the council, saying he decided to run after watching three months of debates over whether to save Tom, an old eucalyptus tree that was damaging the sidewalk. Read More

Foster City deficit tops priority list in City Council election

By: Niko Kyriakou 08/24/11 8:00 PM

Dealing with Foster City’s budget deficit is the top campaign issue for the six candidates running in November for two open seats on the City Council. Read More

Daly City council member Gomez's future uncertain

By: Shaun Bishop 12/31/10 3:54 PM

A felony fraud case against a Daly City council member could potentially make her the first Peninsula politician in at least three decades to be forced out of office because of a criminal conviction, prosecutors say. Maggie Gomez, who was re-elected to a third term in November, is set to return to San Mateo County Superior Court on Jan. 31 for a pretrial conference in advance of a March 7 trial on 16 felony charges. Read More

San Carlos mulls future of police force

By: Shaun Bishop 09/02/10 12:00 AM

When San Carlos was incorporated in 1925, its Police Department consisted of one man: Chief Ed Wheeler. The department, which now has 39 employees, may be put in the history books for good at 7 tonight if the City Council goes ahead with a plan to outsource law enforcement services to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office. Read More

San Mateo sewer rates to rise

By: Will Reisman 06/24/10 12:00 AM

Residents in San Mateo will be paying higher sewer rates next month, following the city’s decision to increase costs by 9 percent to help offset maintenance and operational expenses. Read More

South City keeping red-light cameras

By: Andrea Koskey 04/25/10 12:00 AM

Safety concerns outweighed any financial issues for South San Francisco when it came to making a decision on keeping red-light cameras. The cameras became a source of controversy when it was revealed that the contract with American Traffic Solutions was not ratified by the City Council until January, even though the traffic-monitoring equipment had been installed at two intersections in August. Read More

Parking plan would extend hours

By: Andrea Koskey 04/18/10 12:00 AM

Parking in downtown San Mateo could get much easier if the City Council approves a plan to extend hours in the business district. Vince Hansen, facilities manager with the Department of Public Works, said businesses and residents have complained for years about the two-hour time limit. Read More

Major budget cuts loom for Burlingame

By: Examiner Staff Writer 04/01/10 12:00 AM

The worst economic cuts in years could close fire stations, cancel after-school recreational sports and lay off half a dozen workers if the Burlingame City Council approves budget reduction recommendations Monday, city officials said. City Manager Jim Nantell said Burlingame began reducing its budget in fiscal year 2003-04, but this year’s cuts seem to be worse than others. Read More