Overwhelming support for Sprouts at MAC, but where does CV go from here?
On May 9, I attended my first Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) meeting. It turns out I was not the only one. A California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) appeal put into doubt the future of a new Sprouts grocery store at the current site of an underutilized Rite-Aid on …
EALI Governance to meet again, no mention of elected MAC in agenda
The Eden Area Livability Initiative (EALI) Governance Working Group meets on Thursday night at 7:00 at the San Lorenzo library to continue the conversation about various scenarios for local governance reform for the unincorporated communities. At the last EALI Governance Working Group meeting, the committee passed two resolutions. Resolution#1 – MACs for …
How CEQA scuttles projects like Sprouts, even when it’s not about the environment
A half-empty Rite-Aid on Castro Valley Boulevard was about to be revitalized into a shopping center featuring a Sprouts grocery store. Now a law originally envisioned to protect California’s environment may scuttle the transformation of the eastern gateway to Castro Valley’s business district. Enacted in 1970, the California Environmental Quality …
Support Castro Valley Matters on East Bay Gives 2016
Today, Castro Valley Matters is participating in East Bay Gives, a 24-hour “give-a-thon” for East Bay community non-profits sponsored by the East Bay Community Foundation. Castro Valley Matters is a grassroots, all-volunteer group that seeks to engage more Castro Valley residents in decisions that affect our community. We have three goals …
Sprouts Project Cancelled
Sprouts is no longer coming to Castro Valley, according to an article published in today’s Castro Valley Forum. The developer of the project, Kin Properties, Inc., cited a recently filed evironmental protest against the project for cancelling the project, according to the Forum. Sprouts would have been located at the …
What would you ask the Alameda County Supervisor Candidates?
The two candidates for District Four Alameda County Board of Supervisors seat will participate in a Candidates Town Hall on Tuesday, March 29, at the Castro Valley Library. District Four includes the unincorporated communities of Castro Valley, Ashland, Cherryland, and Fairview. Jointly sponsored by Castro Valley Matters and the Castro …
Caltrans Acknowledges Castro Valley Existence
One day back in July 2014, I was driving along on Northbound I-880. I saw a sign that I had passed hundreds of times before, a standard “CITY LIMITS” sign, installed by Caltrans throughout California, but missing the “CITY LIMITS” part since it was for our unincorporated neighbors in San …
Governance resolutions, including elected MAC, move forward at EALI
Wednesday night’s Eden Area Livability Initiative (EALI) Governance meeting was a huge win for moving the process of unincorporated governance forward and, coincidentally, for finally extracting any implementation steps from this group who’ve worked very hard for many, many years to gain more local control for all of the “Eden Area” …
Last night was my first exposure to the EALI process, and it was eye-opening
Last night was my first exposure to the Eden Area Livability Initiative (EALI) process, and it was eye-opening. I had attended the Town Hall at Canyon Middle School the previous week and was impressed. As a newcomer, I felt that the presenters took care to explain the situation. Both sides spoke …
Overwhelming support for elected MAC at town hall, but what next?
Over 200 people crowded into the Canyon Middle School cafeteria last Monday for an elected Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) town hall. The audience heard from county staff about different scenarios on how to convert the MAC to an elected body and from opponents and proponents of the proposal. The audience also spent …