We wish all our Baywood neighbors who celebrate Hanukkah a joyous celebration. In these difficult times, the light from Hanukkah candles brings hope.
2022 Holiday Lights Award Winner
NOMINATE YOUR FAVORITE BAYWOOD HOLIDAY LIGHTS BY SUNDAY, DECEMBER 24
Our Best of Baywood Holiday Lights Competition is here again! Holiday lights and decorations add a wonderful feel to our neighborhood and are a welcome reminder of the holiday season. Every June and December, a "Best of Baywood" plaque is awarded to a residence with outstanding appeal. The December award recognizes the effort and beauty of holiday light displays.
As always, we are collecting nominations from members of the community. Please like our BNA Facebook page to share your recommendations. You also can vote for your favorite decorated home by emailing us at baywoodneighborhood@gmail.com or messaging us at www.baywoodneighborhood.org.
This is a great chance to get out to walk our beautiful Baywood neighborhood! Nominations must be made by Sunday, December 24th. The winner will be able to display a "Best of Baywood" plaque outside their home and will receive a $100 gift certificate to the San Mateo merchant of their choice.
Looking forward to the bright lights sparkling around the neighborhood and to receiving lots of Holiday Lights nominations!
BREAKFAST WITH SANTA SATURDAY, DEC. 9, 9AM AT THE DOWNTOWN FIRE STATION!
Join San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department in welcoming Santa to the Downtown Fire Station on Saturday. Photos of the kiddos meeting with Santa on the 1921 fire engine will make a great keepsake!
If you can, please bring an unwrapped children's toy.
For more info:
MUSICAL FUN DOWNTOWN SAN MATEO DURING DECEMBER
Check out the great line up of San Mateo students (including Aragon!) who will be performing this month downtown on B Street. This holiday music brought to you by the Downtown San Mateo Association. Please come on down and support our very talented young people!
HISTORIC RESOURCE BACKGROUNDER #2: FRAMEWORK AND DEFINITIONS
As promised in the last Baywood Bulletin, your Baywood Neighborhood Association is providing a series fo articles explaining the facts about historic resources.The BNA Board is not taking a position on the issue at this time. We want to be sure our neighbors have factual information about historic districts in order to enable a more accurate understanding of the topic and facilitate community discussion.
In the coming weeks, we will look more closely at how historic district designation will affect your property rights and property values. And we will explain the historic district nomination process and the respective roles of the Federal, State and local governments. If you have a topic you would like to learn more about, please email us at baywoodneighborhood@gmail.com
Historic Districts Framework and Terminology
State and Federal laws already exist that recognize the importance and value of protecting historic resources, individually and as districts. Listing as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places is a high honor not easily achieved. It means the neighborhood possesses special historic significance and maintains a level of architectural integrity or historic importance worthy of recognition and preservation based on specific criteria (https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/NRB-15_web508.pdf) (See section II )
The vast majority of neighborhoods do not qualify. The boundaries of a district must be specific and are carefully drawn based on the area’s history and significance. The National Register of Historic Places (National Register), created by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, (NHPA) is the nation's official list of buildings, structures, objects, sites, and districts worthy of preservation based on established Department of the Interior criteria.An individual resource "Historic Property" is any district, building, structure, site, or object that is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places because the property is significant at the national, state, or local level in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, or culture.The National Register defines a Historic District as a significant concentration, linkage, or continuity of sites, buildings, structures, or objects united historically or aesthetically by plan or physical development. It may be a row of stores or a neighborhood.A Contributing Resource is a building, site, structure, or object adding to the historic significance of an area.
Historic Significance, in turn, is the importance of a historic property as defined by the National Register criteria in one or more areas of significance. Baywood’s nomination is based on its meeting such criteria as noted by at least two expert firms over the past two years.
In an effort to help San Mateo residents understand how historic preservation fits into the City's planning process and to elicit community input,the City Manager and Planning staff will conduct significant public outreach starting in the first quarter of 2024. This will guide staff in creating a new ordinance that clarifies procedures for identifying, registering and protecting historic resources in San Mateo.
San Mateo does have such an ordinance currently, but it is limited to the Downtown District and the Glazenwood District in Hayward Park and to structures that are individually eligible for listing on The National Register. The current ordinance is silent on procedures for evaluating potential historic areas and on other parts of the City outside of these two districts.
It is the role of the City, with community input, to determine how it wants to manage and protect its historic resources. The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (NHPA) specifically states thatdesignation does not impact local codes.
As noted by the California State Office of Historic Preservation (SHPO), “…The fact is absolutely no requirements, takings, or prohibitions result from a National Register listing. The designation is honorary. All land use authority remains with the local government.”
Our next article will take on the topic of what impact will occur on homes as a result of National Register listing. BNA will publish all our educational pieces on the BNA website, www.baywoodneighborhood.org. We will spotlight them in our Baywood Bulletin email (sign up here) and on our Facebook and Nextdoor pages.
Please stay tuned and we welcome your feedback!
Helpful Linkshttps://ohp.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=21237
P.S. We will maintain all the information we share athttps://www.baywoodneighborhood.org/baywoodhistoricdistrictand highlights on our Facebook page athttps://www.facebook.com/BaywoodNeighborhoodAssociation.
SAN MATEO CITY UPDATES
DON'T FORGET TO MAIL IN YOUR STORMWATER AND FLOOD PROTECTION BALLOT INITIATIVE...DUE DEC. 17, 2023!
All San Mateo property owners received a mail-in ballot last month to register their support or opposition to the City's proposed ~$8/month fee to support stormwater infrastructure upgrades to build City defenses against increasingly severe winter storms. This ballot must be received by Friday, Dec. 17, 5pm, for your vote to count.
The latest update is that The San Mateo Daily Journal came out on Friday with an endorsement of the stormwater fee ballot initiative. In a thoughtful piece we encourage you to read, Jon Mays, the SMDJ Editor, emphasized the responsibility of the City to always look first to existing funding to pay for City initiatives and to be sensitive to the impact that new fees have on our community. But he also acknowledged the huge need to upgrade San Mateo's stormwater infrastructure upgrades now that cannot be met by existing funding.
Your Baywood Neighborhood Association has endorsed this initiative as a necessary step to expand the City's pro-active clean up efforts and stormwater infrastructure modernization. As you may recall, there was flooding Citywide in January, including in Baywood at Arroyo Court. This fee, which will raise ~$4 million/year, will enable the City to begin its extensive flood protection plan, as well as make San Mateo eligible to apply for matching State and Federal funding. Some of the current need is due to insufficient historic City investment. Investing now will greatly strengthen our defenses.
Some community members oppose this initiative because it does not sunset and includes the potential to increase the fee up to 3% annually if there are cost of living rises. There is no sunset because the long-term forecast is that climate change will only increase the danger of storms and flooding, with no end in sight. To ensure accountability, the City Council must approve any annual increase. In addition, there is a Council-mandated quarterly public report on actions taken, funds spent and impact created.
Full details about the Community Storm and Flood Protection Initiative, developed in collaboration with San Mateo residents, can be found at https://www.cityofsanmateo.org/2288/Community-Flood-Storm-Protection-Initiat.
If you have any issues with your ballot, please contact San Mateo's Office of the City Clerk at (650) 522-7044 or mmctaggart@cityofsanmateo.org.
Stay safe, please vote and return your ballot so it is received by December 17th. Thanks for participating in our democratic process!
SAN MATEO FALLEN HEROES MEMORIAL GROUND-BREAKING TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 11AM, CENTRAL PARK
ARE YOU PREPARED FOR WINTER STORMS AND EL NIÑO?
The National Weather Service is predicting an El Niño season and the City is hard at work preparing- have you cleared your gutters yet?
Quick Tips to Prepare Yourself for Winter Storms
· Prepare in advance – get sandbags & any supplies early, charge devices – visit the City's Flood Preparedness web page
· Clear gutters around your home
· Adopt-a-Drain to help keep storm drains near your home clear & report clogged drains
· Stay in the know – follow weather updates, sign up for alerts (SMCAlert.org & Nixle.com)
· Check sump pumps on your property
· Remove belongings from areas that flooded in the past
· Avoid driving during storms if you can & NEVER DRIVE THROUGH A FLOODED ROAD
Steps the City is Taking to Prepare for This Year’s Rainy Season:
· Clearing gutters on City facilities
· Inspecting and cleaning catch basins and trash racks
· Preparing stormwater p ump stations
· Increasing the number of free 24/7 sandbag stations - the City will have four open this year
· Coordinating improved public outreach and messaging for emergency preparedness
New Sandbag Locations
We now have 4 sandbag locations open to City of San Mateo residents. Learn more about these self-serve, 24/7 sandbag locations on our new interactive map at www.cityofsanmateo.org/sandbags
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