The San Ramon City Council convened on Tuesday, April 27th, to discuss official proclamations and open space in San Ramon. 

The City Council has issued three proclamations, declaring April 2021 as Alcohol Awareness Month, Donate Life Month, and Earthquake Preparedness Month. 

As stated in the first proclamation, alcohol is the most commonly used addictive substance in the United States and the third leading cause of death. A large proportion of young people use alcohol. People who learn about the dangers of alcohol are less likely to develop alcohol abuse, which is why the Discovery Counseling Center has formed the ADAPT San Ramon Valley program. This program works to create a community environment that decreases youth access to alcohol and changes community norms in regards to underage drinking. 

As stated in the second proclamation, more than 860 individuals in Contra Costa County are on the organ transplant wait list, and 22 patients die each day in the United States due to a shortage of donated organs. Donor Network West is a federally designated nonprofit dedicated to serving patients in need of organ or tissue transplants in northern California and northern Nevada. Organ transplants are recognized worldwide as acts of compassion that save thousands of lives per year, and the need for donated organs in the United States is especially urgent in Hispanic, Asian, and African-American communities. 

As stated in the third proclamation, as many as 10,000 earthquakes occur each year in California. Mitigation measures can save lives and reduce damage. California offers free technology to alert California through the Earthquake Warning California system, which includes apps such as MyShake, Android Earthquake Alerts, and Wireless Emergency Alerts. 

Appointments to the San Ramon Teen Council were confirmed next. 16 active members and 2 alternates were confirmed, and a ranked waitlist was formed should an opening occur. The terms will begin in August of this year and expire by July 2022. 

The Open Space Advisory Committee presented their 2020 Annual Report. Open space is any piece of land that is undeveloped and open to the public, like trails. The accomplishments of the committee included identifying opportunities to educate the community on open space within and contiguous to San Ramon, identifying ways to implement recommendations identified in the Parks, Trails, Open Space and Recreation Master Plan, focusing on trail enhancements including publicity, signage, connections, and trail quality, and defining and measuring the city’s open space and trail system. The goals for the committee are protection and preservation of open space in the city’s planning area, management and use of open space, and encouraging outreach and education about the open space.

A public hearing was held for the resolution establishing fees and charges for various municipal services and repealing the previous resolution for this purpose. Only one member of the public chose to present, and stated that fees for resident appeals are too punitive. The motion to repeal the previous resolution and implement the new one was approved by the council. 

The City Council also convened for a closed session to discuss a government code for the council to meet with city negotiators regarding labor negotiations with the San Ramon Police Officers Association. The Council gave direction to negotiators and had nothing to report before adjournment. 

To view the meeting and agenda, please go here and here respectively. To see what the Discovery Counseling Center is doing to mitigate alcohol abuse in the community, go here. To see what Donor Network West is doing to help patients in need of organs and tissues, or to learn how to apply for organ donation yourself, visit their website here.