Awards, Awards, Awards – at El Cerrito City Hall

It was a big night for plaques and proclamations at the El Cerrito City Council meeting Tuesday night when three presentation ceremonies honored city programs and Tehiyah Day School.

"Community Sustainability" award for San Pablo Ave. upgrade

The city managers of two other Bay Area cities – Pat Martel of Daly City and Marcia Raines of Millbrae – presented four plaques to the city marking its first-ever award from the nation's leading association of city and county administrators.

As reported earlier this year, the city was selected to receive the Program Excellence Award in Community Sustainability from the International City/County Management Association (ICMA).

The honor was in recognition of El Cerrito's $6.6 million San Pablo Avenue Streetscape Project, which saw a broad makeover of the city's main commercial thoroughfare with new medians, crosswalks, landscaping, benches, bike racks, trees, historic markers in the sidewalk, and rain gardens designed to recycle and filter storm run-off. It also includes a public art component – a dozen abstract copper sculptures on streetlight poles – expected to be installed by early next year.

"The San Pablo Streetscape Project was identified as an outstanding representation of community partnering and solving a number of sustainability issues," said Martel, a former member of the ICMA national board who, along with Raines, presented the plaques on behalf of the ICMA.

"It's absolutely beautiful," continued Martel, "and you all should be very, very proud ... that you as a city and your community partners and residents in the community are benefitting from those efforts."

One plaque went to the city and three other plaques were engraved individually for City Manager Scott Hanin, Assistant City Manager Karen Pinkos and Environmental Services Division Manager Melanie Mintz.

U.S. Blue Ribbon School honor for Tehiyah Day School

The presentations also included a proclamation from the council to "recognize and celebrate" Tehiyah Day School in El Cerrito for its recent selection by the U.S. Department of Education as a National Blue Ribbon School. 

The award recognizes both private and public schools with outstanding performance in fostering student achievement and preparing students for college and careers.

Tehiyah – a private, K-8 Jewish school – is "the only private school in Northern California selected for this honor and one of only two in the State of California ... (and) the only Jewish day school selected for this honor in the United States," the city proclamation notes.

"This is for academic performance," said City Councilwoman Janet Abelson. "... They're working really hard and concentrating on the things that put together a quality education in our city, and so I'm very, very proud to be associated as a City Council member with Tehiyah Day School."

Appearing for Tehiyah was Head of School Bathea James and board President Debbie Bamberger.

"I wanted to just say how proud we all are to be part of El Cerrito," James told the council. "It's been the most amazing community around us, supporting us. ... We're very proud to bring this award to the City of El Cerrito."

The council proclamation is attached to this article.

Laurels for city's Recycling Center

Abelson also presented to staff a "2012 Leadership in Sustainability Award" given to the city on Oct. 24 by the nonprofit Sustainable Contra Costa in recognition of El Cerrito's rebuilt Recycling Center.

Awards were given in seven categories, and the Recycling Center won in the government category.

Abelson also relayed news of three certificates of recognition from U.S. Congressman George Miller, from state Senator Mark DeSaulnier and from Assemblymembers Nancy Skinner, Susan Bonilla and Joan Buchanan.

"The word has gotten around that we have a state-of-the-art recycling center," Mayor Bill Jones said in reference to the award in his "State of the City" talk before the Rotary Club of El Cerrito on Nov. 8. 

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