Welcome to the City of Concord's e-newsletter. This publication is designed to keep you informed about what's happening in your community. Sign up here to subscribe to our City News updates. |
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Case Rates Declining, Contra Costa Lifts Most Indoor Mask Mandates |
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With more than 80% of Contra Costa residents fully vaccinated - and nearly 50% boosted - Contra Costa health officials have lifted the universal mask requirements for vaccinated people in most indoor public settings beginning Feb. 16.
Unvaccinated individuals over age 2 are still required to wear masks in all indoor public settings.
On Feb. 4 the County also announced that, due to the 80% vaccination rate, they have lifted the health order requiring certain businesses, including restaurants and gyms, to verify the vaccination status of patrons.
As of Feb. 16, 79.0% of Concord residents have been vaccinated.
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COVID-19 Testing Site Now Open in Concord |
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COVID-19 testing is now available by appointment at the Concord Senior Center (2727 Parkside Cir.).
Testing is set up on the front patio of the Senior Center from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Tests being performed are PCR tests (not rapid tests), and the results are typically available within 1-2 days.
Appointments can be made by clicking the QR code on the flyer, visiting cur.tv/concord, or calling 888-702-9042.
No health insurance is required. Individuals with health insurance will be asked to provide their health insurance information, and Curative will bill the insurance company.
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Feb. 23 Community Meeting, Surveys Focus on Federal Funding |
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The City of Concord is seeking community input for how the City can best utilize $19 million of one-time federal recovery funding.
The federal government is providing stimulus money to help communities recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. City leaders are seeking feedback from residents and businesses for how to invest these funds for the benefit of the community.
Join us on Wednesday, Feb. 23 to share your thoughts in a communitywide meeting held on Zoom and conducted in English, with Spanish translation.
If you would like translation into a language other than Spanish, please call or email the City Clerk’s office no later than Feb. 18: 925-671-3390 or CityClerk@cityofconcord.org
Wednesday, Feb. 23
6 p.m.
Passcode: 797034
Share Your Ideas - Take Our Survey!
In addition to the community meeting, the City is soliciting feedback through our online surveys for residents, businesses, and nonprofit organization. Please choose the survey that is most applicable and share your input today. The surveys will remain open until March 11.
All of the feedback that is gathered through these surveys and the community meeting will be shared with the City Council this spring, and will help inform their discussion about how to invest these one-time funds. For more information, please visit: www.cityofconcord.org/ARPA. |
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Housing Element Update Process Enters Next Phase |
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The City’s 2023-2031 Housing Element Update (HEU) is moving into the next phase, with meetings on Monday, Feb. 28 and Monday, March 21 with the Housing & Economic Development (HED) Committee, the Council subcommittee acting as the advisory body for the Housing Element.
The intent of these meetings is to present staff’s preliminary analysis and seek input from the HED Committee and the public on several key background areas that will inform the draft Housing Element. The Feb. 28 meeting will focus on the effectiveness of current policies and programs, key housing needs for 2023-2031, and preliminary assessment of fair housing issues. The March 21 meeting will focus on housing constraints and the City’s capacity for new housing units during 2023-2031.
In addition, the HEU project team will hold the second series of Town Hall meetings in mid-late March. The virtual town hall will be held via Zoom on Tuesday, March 15. An in-person town hall will be scheduled for late March with the date and location to be announced soon.
The purpose of these meetings will be to present the draft inventory of housing sites, obtain community input on new housing programs, and explain the next steps in the HEU process. Further meeting details will be shared in upcoming posts.
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Affordable Housing Project Secures Needed Funding |
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Thanks to a new grant from the state and funds that were previously allocated by the City, Resources for Community Development (RCD) has secured all necessary funding to move forward with the construction of Galindo Terrace, the 62-unit affordable housing project located at 1313-1321 Galindo Street.
In May 2019, the Concord City Council awarded $7.8 million to RCD to provide affordable housing to extremely low- and low-income households (30% to 80% of area median income).
The City’s funds have leveraged an additional $56 million in County, State and private funds, despite recent funding impediments at the state and federal levels. The funds that were recently awarded by the state are part of the California Housing Accelerator, a $1.75 billion investment to provide bridge funding to shovel-ready projects.
Galindo Terrace will house veterans, seniors, families, and people with disabilities. This project is also anticipated to provide job readiness programs to tenants and partner with the Veterans Administration to assist veterans. RCD anticipates starting construction this summer.
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Draft Maps Reviewed, Next Meeting Set for March 1 |
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The City of Concord's Redistricting process continued Feb. 1 with a public hearing to review draft plans and hear public and Council input on each plan.
The City's independent demographer reviewed each of the seven draft plans (maps) and described how they differed from the current district map.
Several community members provided feedback during the public comment period, and Councilmembers provided additional direction for adjustments that have been made to the subsequent versions, which are now available for review:
The next public hearing to discuss the updated plans will be on Tuesday, March 1 at 7 p.m.
The final adopted map is due to the County by April 17, 2022.
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Zonehaven Shares Real-Time Evacuation Information |
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The Concord Police Department has partnered with the Contra Costa Fire Protection District to launch Zonehaven, a platform that allows residents to view real-time evacuation information, including evacuation routes, shelters, and resource centers in their immediate area.
The map is updated in real time, so residents can check regularly for zone status information. Knowing what to do before, during, and after an emergency evacuation is critical to saving lives, and understanding your emergency zone is a valuable tool for emergency preparedness.
During an emergency, residents of affected zones will be alerted using a variety of tools, including the county warning system (CWS), social media such as Twitter, Facebook and Nextdoor, and door-to-door warnings when possible.
To learn more about Zonehaven and how it can help keep you and your family safe if evacuation is necessary, visit www.community.zonehaven.com.
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White Pony Express Introduces Food Rescue App |
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Become a food rescue hero -- help end hunger and combat climate change with White Pony Express.
White Pony Express is on a mission to end hunger in Contra Costa County and now it’s easier than ever to volunteer with their brand new White Pony Express app.
This is a volunteer-powered, entirely new collection and distribution system for smaller, more frequent food donations. With the app, food donors can signal when they have excess food. An available “food runner” volunteer then picks up and delivers the food directly to a matching food recipient organization.
White Pony Express hopes to use this app in part to respond to food outlets that will be required to recycle their food waste under the new California law (SB 1383), which went into effect Jan. 1. Also, under this law, by 2025, 20% of currently disposable food waste must be recovered for human consumption.
Becoming a Food Rescue Hero is EASY as 1-2-3
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DOWNLOAD the app and SIGN UP to be a Food Rescue Hero!
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COMPLETE the online Food Safety Training.
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CLAIM a "food run" via the app and off you go!
No long-term commitment needed. In as little as an hour you can make a difference by delivering surplus food to our neighbors in need. Food rescue prevents healthy, fresh food from being wasted by delivering it to families in need.
If you are a local restaurant or catering company, you can set up regular or one-time food rescue pick-ups by contacting Pete at peterolsen@whiteponyexpress.org.
Concord residents, including the city’s restaurants and other food establishments, are eligible to use this app.
Photo credit: Food Rescue Hero (used with permission)
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The City of Concord is seeking motivated, public service-minded individuals to fill openings in a variety of departments.
We are also actively recruiting for police officers, trainees, volunteers, cadets and civilian staff in the Police Department. Learn more about opportunities to protect and serve your community at www.joinconcordpd.com.
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