Castro Valley is a friendly town, a close-knit community of about 63,000 people that can still get excited about a homecoming game.  But getting around Castro Valley can be complicated, and it’s not just because Strobridge suddenly stops south of 580.

We are governed by a hodgepodge of distinct and separate units of government that do different things.

• The Alameda County Board of Supervisors (BOS) serves as our local government, the one you would associate with a city hall and mayor.  Alameda County government is based in  Oakland with a branch office in Hayward.
• We have a seven member Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) that provides non-binding advice to the BOS and is appointed   by  Supervisor Nate Miley, a resident of  Oakland.
• Castro Valley is covered by multiple school districts, mainly by the Castro Valley Unified School District, but also Hayward Unified School District and the  San Lorenzo Unified School District.
• The Alameda County Sheriff and the California Highway Patrol provide local police and traffic services, but without robust oversight from local residents.
• Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSan) takes care of sewage and solid waste collection, the trash and recycling collection that CVSan has contracted out to Waste Management.
• And our parks are managed by the Hayward Area Recreation and Park District (HARD) and the East Bay Regional Park District.

Good luck trying to figure out who’s in charge.

How a community gets to decide and implement its priorities matters.  And if the process is confusing or not very clear, then it is tougher for a community to articulate its priorities and establish a vision for our community.

The idea behind Castro Valley Matters is simple.  We want to make sense of how Castro Valley works.   We plan on attending public meetings and talking to our local lawmakers, report back to you, and let you know what matters.

We welcome you to join us while we figure out how this place works because we believe that Castro Valley matters.