Mark Your Calendars: San Carlos 2010 City-Wide Garage Sale..

Weekend of October 2-3.

Once again this year, San Carlos Together is organizing and hosting the San Carlos Annual City-Wide Garage Sale.  This year, the event will take place on the weekend of October 2-3, so you have plenty of advance notice to start digging through all of those neglected treasures in the deep recesses of your garage.    Look at the bright side — now you have something to do over the upcoming Labor Day Weekend!

In order to have your address included on the list that will be circulated to all of the treasure hunters, you must sign up for the City-Wide Garage Sale on the San Carlos Together website.  You can access the sign-up page by clicking here.

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San Carlos Council Set to Approve Police Outsourcing Contract with San Mateo County.

Special Thursday Meeting.

The City Council of San Carlos will hold a special meeting this coming Thursday September 2,  in which they are expected to approve the contract which will outsource the law enforcement responsibility for San Carlos to the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office.   Once this vote is approved, it will officially mark the end of the San Carlos Police Department as stand-alone law enforcement unit — a status it has held since 1925.   According to this article in the Daily Journal, the transition of responsibility to the Sheriff’s Department could take place as soon as this coming October once the necessary contracts are approved this week.

This week’s special meeting will commence at 6:00 PM in the City Council Chambers, and like all other Council meetings, citizens will have the opportunity to voice their opinions.  And while Mayor Royce says he “still hopes to hear from the public” about this issue, one has to wonder why…

This one is a done deal, folks.

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Recology Prepares to Take Over Garbage Collection Duties in San Carlos.

New Collection Bins to be Delivered.

Almost is if on cue after Allied Waste’s public relations gaffe last week, Recology San Mateo County announced today that they begin delivering new garbage and recycle collection bins to residents throughout San Mateo County, starting with the City of San Mateo this week.   If you weren’t aware, Recology will take over they garbage and recycle collection contract from Allied Waste for all of San Mateo County starting on January 1, 2011.  Today’s announcement is the most visible sign of the upcoming transition.

What’s in Store For San Carlos.

There will be some positive changes for San Carlos residents when Recology takes over the helm next year.  First, Recology will be issuing brand-new, wheeled garbage containers to each household.  This will make it much easier to get trash to the curb each week if you have one of the old-style cans.  Second, they will allow residents to combine ALL hard recycled material (glass, cans, paper) into a single, wheeled container.  No more sorting!  There will be a third bin for compost and food scraps, just as before.

Here’s a very informative update that was released by Recology today regarding the transition over to their system, and most important, what to do with your old recycle and garbage bins:

San Mateo, CA – August 30, 2010 – This morning marks the beginning of Recology San Mateo County’s phased delivery of 276,000 new Recycle, Compost and Garbage carts to residents of the South Bayside Waste Management Authority (SBWMA) service area (i.e., Atherton, Belmont, Burlingame, East Palo Alto, Foster City, Hillsborough, Menlo Park, Redwood City, San Carlos, San Mateo, Unincorporated San Mateo County and the West Bay Sanitary District) with deliveries first starting in the City of San Mateo. A total of 92,000 homes, or an average of 1,200 homes per day, will receive the new wheeled carts over the next three and half months. The delivery schedule is as follows:

San Mateo: Aug. 30-Sept. 21
Redwood City: Sept. 22-Oct. 12
San Carlos: Oct. 13-Oct. 22
Menlo Park: Oct. 25-Nov. 2
Belmont: Nov. 11-Nov. 17
Foster City: Nov. 18-Nov. 24
Burlingame: Nov. 25-Dec. 1
East Palo Alto: Dec. 2-Dec. 7
Hillsborough: Dec. 8-Dec. 10
Atherton: Dec. 13-Dec. 15
West Bay Sanitary District: Dec. 16-Dec. 18
*Unincorporated San Mateo County residents will receive their carts based on the cart delivery schedule for the neighboring city.

The new carts will be delivered the day before a resident’s regular plant material collection service day.

As of January 1, 2011, Recology San Mateo County (formerly Norcal Waste Systems of San Mateo County), will provide recycling, compost and garbage franchised collection services to all Residential, Multi-Family and Commercial customers within the 12 Member Agencies of the SBWMA. Allied Waste of San Mateo County’s franchised collection agreements with the 12 Member Agencies expire December 31, 2010.

Residents will receive three new, wheeled carts: A new black Garbage cart in the size of their choosing, (20, 32, 64 or 96 gallon), 64-gallon single-stream blue Recycle cart and 96-gallon green Compost cart, with the exception of Hillsborough, whose residents will continue to use their current green Yard Trimmings carts.
In June, most residents living in single-family homes were mailed a Garbage Cart selection brochure that included their current garbage service level and assigned Garbage Cart size, along with the option of changing their assigned size by July 9th. Responses were only needed if a different size cart was wanted other than the one assigned.
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San Carlos Garbage Pickup Delayed by Allied Waste Strike

Got Garbage?

If Wednesday or Thursday is your normal garbage pickup day in San Carlos, don’t be surprised when you get home from work today to find the garbage that has been stewing in your garbage can during the heat wave is still there.  A labor dispute between 12 clerical workers and Allied Waste management has resulted in picket lines at both the Ox Mountain facility in Half Moon Bay and the San Carlos Transfer Station.    The result?  Drivers aren’t crossing the picket line, and YOUR garbage is still sitting in your front yard.

Thanks, Local 350…

According to this article in the Half Moon Bay Review, the strike was organized by Robert Morales, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 350 — the union that represents local Allied Waste Employees.   The strike is expected to last 48 hours, meaning you’ll be lucky if they get to it by Friday.   The reason for the strike?  Here’s the kicker, straight from the paper:

Morales said his union has been working with Ox Mountain to get equal pay for the dozens of women in the clerical units and to negotiate their pension contracts. But there has been a stalemate so far, says Morales, because the company is “negotiating in bad faith.”

Pension contracts for clerical workers?   That’s why your garbage is rotting in your front yard in 100-degree heat.   Sorry for my lack of compassion, but most people I know don’t have the luxury of ANY pension, and are simply thankful to have a job.    We call that a “recession”, Bob.

So, if you’re thrilled with the stench in your front yard today (and likely tomorrow), give Robert Morales a call up at good ‘ol Local 350 – he can be reached at 650-757-7290.  I’m sure he’d love to hear from you.

Unions and pensions…enough, already.

UPDATE:  A revised pick-up schedule was just released by the City of San Carlos:  Garbage Schedule

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San Carlos Businesses on Twitter

A Great Business Tool…

Twitter is an amazing online tool for posting 140-character, real-time updates on….well, just about anything.  The early users of Twitter used the tool to update people on their whereabouts, like “I’m eating dinner at Town” or “Just dropped the kids off at school.”   OK, I guess there was some importance to informing the world on the minutiae of their day.   Since those early days of Twitter, the basics of the technology have remained largely unchanged, but how the tool is being used couldn’t be any different.

All of the major news networks now use Twitter as an effective way to post breaking news and draw traffic back to their websites.   “The Miracle on the Hudson” plane crash was first broken and covered on Twitter by witnesses and survivors, not by cable news networks like CNN.  And now, smart business owners are finding interesting ways to promote their company and their brand image on this medium.

San Carlos Businesses That Use Twitter.

There are a handful of San Carlos business owners who have embraced the real-time capabilities of Twitter to uniquely and effectively promote their businesses.    The technology is a perfect match for businesses whose products or services may change on a daily or hourly basis.  Here are three examples of San Carlos business owners who have truly elevated their brand image and customer awareness in this way:

Zest Bakery:  Our newest bakery in town also happens to be one of the few gluten-free bakeries on the Peninsula.  They post real-time updates about what specials they have on a particular day, and what samples are sitting warm and toasty on their counter.   Last week, they posted a picture of a lemon cake glazed with chocolate icing.  That’s just not playing fair

Jett Cakes:  Food trucks have been around for decades..but specialty cupcakes on the road?   That’s a very unique business idea that totally relies on a) great cupcakes, obviously… and b) customers knowing where you’re going to be and when every day.  Marianne does a great job of using Twitter to take care of the latter, posting tweets about what her special baked treats are for that day, and where she will be selling them.

The Reading Bug:  Books – talk about an ever-changing industry!  The key for small, specialty bookstores to compete with the big, online gorillas is to get people into their stores.  The Reading Bug shines in this area by hosting reading sessions for the kids, and by constantly getting new releases into their inventory — all things that you can find out about on their Twitter page.

Wait…There’s More.

These three aren’t the only San Carlos businesses that use Twitter.   Here’s what I’m sure is just a partial list of businesses who are putting their business online in a cool fashion.  Just click on the name to go right to their Twitter feed.

• A+ Japanese Auto Repair.
• Town Restaurant.
• Geoffrey’s Diamonds.
• Flight Lounge.
• Harmony Yogurt.
• Tutti Frutti.
• Olive Crush.
• City of San Carlos.
• BullFrog Media

Did I miss anyone?  Of course I did!  If you know of a San Carlos business that isn’t mentioned above and is using Twitter in a cool and unique fashion, let us know by leaving a comment below.   I’ll add it to the Twitter List that I have already started to compile:  San Carlos Businesses on Twitter.  Feel free to follow this list on your own Twitter account!

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Psst!!.. do you like what you’re reading? Click here to subscribe to the site for free, and you’ll get updates sent automatically to you. And for more information about San Carlos, be sure to follow the White Oaks Blog on Facebook and on Twitter.
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San Carlos City Manager Announces Retirement

Effective End of 2010..

Officially confirming what has been widely speculated for months, the City of San Carlos announced yesterday that City Manager Mark Weiss will be retiring from his post on December 18th of this year.   According to this article in the Mercury News, his last day on the job will actually be September 24, since he plans to use up accrued vacation time in advance of the retirement date.  The City Council has been working on a transition plan in advance of this announcement, and will appoint an interim City Manager shortly.

Weiss’ 5-year reign as the City Manager will most likely be remembered for his “Two Paths” proposal for cutting the city’s budget deficit in San Carlos, which led to the controversial decision to outsource the Police, Fire, and Park services in San Carlos.   His successor will surely have his or her hands full driving these initiatives through to completion, as well as ultimately balancing the City budget.

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Psst!!.. do you like what you’re reading? Click here to subscribe to the site for free, and you’ll get updates sent automatically to you. And for more information about San Carlos, be sure to follow the White Oaks Blog on Facebook and on Twitter.
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