Sometimes ribbon-cuttings and ground-breaking ceremonies tend to be fairly uneventful, with little distinguishing them from each other. However, this was not the case for the ribbon-cutting event the City of Dublin hosted for the I-580/Fallon Interchange project on February 26th. At an event attended by Supervisor Haggerty, and representatives from Congressman McNerney, Caltrans, and the cities of Pleasanton and Livermore, the tent literally began to blow away on the eve of a major storm that hit the Bay Area. City Staff members literally had to physically hold the tent down, as all of us politicians quickly finished our remarks so we could cut the ribbon and get away before any damage was done. At least it forced some of us that tend to be somewhat long-winded to be brief:).

On a serious note however, this is a major infrastructure component for our City. It was an $18 million capital project, with $13 million coming from the Lin family and the City of Dublin as transportation mitigation, with the remaining funds coming from the cities of Livermore and Pleasanton. The Alameda County CMA also contributed funding towards the auxiliary lane between Fallon Road and Tassajara.

From an aesthetic standpoint, it is one of the more attractive overpasses along the I-580 corridor. In addition, it will ease travel and safety for residents of both Dublin Ranch and the Positano Development. In terms of economic development, the expanded and enhanced interchange will be the access point to future customers of Fallon Gateway, Staples Ranch, and the outlets in Livermore.

Tags: Tim's Travels by Tim Sbranti
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While consolidations and mergers are fairly common in the private sector, this type of activity rarely happens in the public sector. However, in the last couple of weeks I was involved in two major governmental consolidations within Alameda County that I believe will save taxpayers money while increasing efficiency and services in the future.

The first one that I believe will have the greatest impact on Dublin residents is the consolidation of fire services for the cities of Newark and Union City within the Alameda County Fire Department. Both cities were struggling financially to support their smaller departments, so the move allows them to improve services at an affordable cost. I was happy to have participated in a promotional video to support the consolidation. I also met with officials from both jurisdictions and wrote a letter in support of the consolidation. The consolidation is estimated to save the City of Dublin hundreds of thousands of dollars in general fund expenditures because of the increased economy of scale from the larger department. Our Fire Department will also receive additional resources from the consolidation.

Another major development that took place in the area of transportation was a vote on February 25th to combine the Alameda County Congestion Management Agency (CMA) and the Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority (ACTIA) into one new Joint Power Authority (JPA) known as the Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC). Historically, ACTIA has been the entity to manage projects as part of the voter-approved half-cent sales tax for transportation within the County, while CMA is the state-recognized legislative body for managing all other transportation projects and programs. The new JPA is estimated to save nearly $1 million in its first year of operation, and has the potential for millions of dollars in savings in future years. In addition to the financial savings, I was a strong advocate for the merger as a way to improve efficiency and coordination related to transportation planning moving forward.

Tags: Tim's Travels by Tim Sbranti
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If the month of March is known for all of the many Irish-related events hosted by the City, then I would have to say that February is known as a month for many cultural events offered in the Tri-Valley. As Mayor, I had the privilege to participate in our City’s Black Heritage Month event. I also was able to join several rabbis at the table of honor for a Torah signing for the newly formed Tri-Valley Jewish community, and I attended the Tri-Valley’s official Chinese New Year celebration. I have lived in the Tri-Valley for nearly my entire life, and it was a blessing to involved in these events and see the ever-increasing diversity of our area flourish.

Tags: Tim's Travels by Tim Sbranti
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