On Friday, January 26, the Redwood City – San Mateo County Chamber of Commerce hosted its 120th award celebration, “Cheers to 120 Years!” I’d like to congratulate all the honorees on receiving this special recognition and thank them for their many contributions to Redwood City and San Mateo County. The 2017 honorees represent a diverse group of businesses and leaders in our community. All the recipients have made a lasting impact on the vibrancy of Redwood City, and have been a positive force for residents across San Mateo County.

Last week, I was proud to co-host the Home for All Second Units Convening alongside my Home for All Co-Chair, Supervisor Don Horsley. It was a packed house for the event, called “Second Units: What, Why, and How.” We heard from experts on Accessory Dwelling Units, or ADUs, which are small structures that typically range from 220 to 1,000 square feet and are built on the property of existing homeowners, either as a stand-alone or inside or attached to a house.

  On Wednesday, in my role as representative of San Mateo County to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), I attended the MTC and Bay Area Toll Authority Oversight Committee meetings at the Bay Area Metro Center in San Francisco.

  Reflecting on a Productive 2017  

  Libraries are no longer only about books – they are spaces where communities gather. This is particularly true with the Fair Oaks Library. On any given afternoon, the library is packed with people reading, doing homework, using computers, or catching up with neighbors. I am very excited that work is finally set to begin in February on renovations to the Fair Oaks Library, including a 600-square foot expansion. It’s a very exciting project that I know will greatly benefit our North Fair Oaks community!

This week in Getting the Job Done, I’d like to thank my colleague, Board President Supervisor Horsley, for hosting a year-long speaker series celebrating Black History. Over the course of the year, at nearly every Board Meeting, we had the pleasure of hearing from African American residents of San Mateo County. For those in attendance, and for those watching from afar, it was a wonderful opportunity to take a moment and celebrate Black History and the remarkable contributions that African Americans have made and continue to make in our community.

Boy Scouts take an oath to “to help other people at all times.” For a Scout to receive the coveted Eagle Scout rank, they must take that oath to the next level and “plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, school, or community.”

  This week, the SamTrans Board of Directors voted unanimously to adopt the Final Dumbarton Transportation Corridor Study. This vote represents a major step forward for the Bay Area to tackle the region’s serious and growing traffic issue. The approval of the Study signals that local leaders and private companies alike are serious about creating mobility alternatives along the Dumbarton Corridor between Alameda County, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.

Earlier this week, San Mateo County honored four remarkable women at the 2017 Women in County Government 27th Annual Luncheon. These women, all County employees, were recognized for their outstanding service, hard work and dedication in helping the residents of San Mateo County. I want to personally congratulate all the award recipients and thank them for their contributions to the County ‑ they have each earned a “Warren Award.” The honorees are:

In November, I was proud to co-host our fifth annual Connect Conference. This year’s Connect17, “Disruptive Technologies that Impact our Communities,” was held at the Gilead Sciences headquarter in Foster City. Assemblyman Kevin Mullin, Assemblyman Marc Berman, and Rosanne Foust, President & CEO of SAMCEDA, and I were pleased to welcome a roster of distinguished speakers who shared their ideas, stories, passions and best practices for using disruptive technologies to better impact our schools, nonprofits, services and public agencies.

 Last week, it was my honor to attend our 2nd annual Veteran of the Year Luncheon put on by the San Mateo County Veterans Commission. For nearly a year, the Veterans Commission has met to organize this special luncheon to recognize and thank our veterans for their service.