Our City Council, City and Board members have purposely withheld information from the Public about the Toxicity of the Soil of the new Planned Park. We have ALL BEEN DECEIVED!

PLEASE EMAIL the following individuals to STOP construction of the New Park on Contaminated Soil & to Stop the Plans of Closing Pine Avenue to through traffic - OLD TOWN HAS BEEN DECEIVED, as we continue to be marginalized by our City.
CONSTRUCTION OF PARK AND CLOSING OF PINE AVE POSE GREAT DANGERS TO OUR COMMUNITY!

EMAILS:

james.coleman@ssf.net; eddie.flores@ssf.net; mark.nagales@ssf.net; flor.nicolas@ssf.net; mark.addiego@ssf.net; sharon.ranals@ssf.net; greg.mediati@ssf.net; phil.vitale@ssf.net; denardiruth@gmail.com; devin.stenhouse@ssf.net; planning@ssf.net; noen@migcom.com; dpine@smcgov.org; ncorzo@smcgov.org; SMC_SupMueller@smcgov.org; erika@eltecolote.org; jon@smcdailyjournal.com; alyse@smcdailyjournal.com; repkevinmullin@mail15.housecommuncations.gov

1. Constructing a park on contaminated soil poses a Health Risk (human carcinogens and lead poisoning)
2. Closing of Pine Ave poses dangers to our Safety
3. Cypress Playground should remain open and renovated
4. Green Lot appears to be acceptable for a park ONLY IF DEEMED SAFE TO BEGIN REMOVAL OF LEAD AND ALL CONTAMINANTS

The City continues to disregard our SAFETY AND HEALTH BY RASH DECISIONS BEING MADE YEARS AGO BY FORMER MAYOR RICHARD GARBARINO and MARK ADDIEGO

Soils Report dated 8/30/24 (only produced NOW!)
https://www.ssf.net/files/assets/public/v/1/parks-and-recreation/documents/linden-park-env-report.pdf

Per the Report dated 8/30/24:
616 LINDEN - Both soil and soil vapor samples were collected.
Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) were detected - motor oil, diesel, and gasoline. Lead was detected in all samples. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs; benzol(a)anthracene, phenanthrene, and pyrene) were detected. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were detected in soil vapor: benzene, ethylbenzene, toluene, xylenes, 2-dichloroethane, and tetrachloroethene. TPHd was detected in all samples.

700 LINDEN - Lead was detected in soil samples.

Pine Avenue (from Cypress to Linden) has experienced a gas leak from a home, a fire that took 2 homes, and there are concerns about PG&E transmission lines that run along Airport Blvd. When communicating with both PG&E and the City about safety concerns, we received silence (brings reminders about San Bruno explosion). Silence speaks Volumes! The City and Councilmember Eddie Flores manipulates and insults our intelligence by making us believe that we would be safe by mentioning that Fire trucks would be able to exit and enter Pine; however, we wish to be able to exit too in case of a major disaster or emergency. By closing Pine, Airport Blvd would be receiving more residential traffic that would compound the traffic. Streets are designed to have an exit/entry point, especially in a busy Downtown street. If Fire trucks block Cypress in case there is a fire, etc., we would be blocked by exiting our street!

There are ways to place speeding calming measures and there are ways to provide the documented needs dating back to 1990 and 2015 of much needed parks and dire needs for high risk teenagers. Thirty four (34) years later, we are still in the same place with the city not providing much needed parks, programs and services for Old Town. The City initially planned a park at the PG&E tower site on Airport (Armour & Linden), until an alert Advocate of Old Town (much thanks!!) placed a halt to this unacceptable and insulting site for a park. Now, the City wishes to place our lives at risk again and again, by first withholding information about the contaminated soil and then by building a park on toxic soil and closing of Pine Ave. 

The rash decisions by former Mayor Richard Garbarino and Mark Addiego do not justify the right to continue to place our lives, health and safety at risk!! We have no need for insulting flattery and hypocrisy by Garbarino, "Old Town deserves a better and bigger park."
It is a sin what the City is doing and it is NOT their families who live here!  It is our children and families who would be exposed to human carcinogens and lead poisoning - not there's! Please STAND UP AGAINST THE MANY INJUSTICES that we have faced by our city and Council!

LEARNING OF TOXICITY OF SOIL:
Not until after sending a concerning email to the City and Council on the very same evening of their last 8/28/24 meeting about purposely withholding information to the Public by not ever disclosing the toxicity of the soil, did the City then produce and publish the Environmental Summary Report dated two days later, 8/30/24.

Not even our Mayor James Coleman, District 5 Council member Eddie Flores, City Manager Sharon Ranals, Park & Rec Director Greg Mediati, Capital Projects Director Phil Vitale, city staff, Park & Rec Board President Ruth DeNardi, MIG (Consultant), nor many others, from the get-go and throughout the various outreach events, did they ever mention or inform the Public about the toxicity and hazards of the soil at either of the lots. We were kept out of the loop and not until we were directed to the city's website for updates, did we become aware of the contamination and history of these lots. This information should have been available from the get-go and throughout the outreach events, when residents were being guided through each of the stations by Council, Board members, staff or the consultant. The written report was never available either until now (on website). It was never produced in written form at any of the outreach events, knowing that many residents in Old Town do not have access to computers or knowledgeable of how to obtain information on the city's website. It still has not been made available in Spanish or in any other language. Either way, we were never informed of the toxicity of the soil and the PARK SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUCTED ON CONTAMINATED SOIL, where babies and children crawl and play on the ground.

Also, the Consultant was luring residents into choosing closing of Pine Avenue. When bringing this wrongdoing to both the City and the Consultant, there was silence! The Consultant MIG is complicit in the City's wrongdoings and they too must be held accountable and responsible to the continued marginalization and withholding of vital information that affects our health and safety!

PLEASE STAND UP FOR WHAT IS RIGHT AND CONTACT OUTSIDE LEADERS AND ADVOCATES THAT YOU MAY KNOW AND INCLUDE THE CITY COUNCIL, CITY MANAGER AND STAFF TO STOP ALL OF THE INJUSTICES AND THE RISKS THAT THE CITY PLACES US IN.