IT’S YOUR PAPER
‘Tis the Season
www.claytonpioneer.com
December 11, 2015
HowARd GelleR
MAYOR’S CORNER
See Mayor, page 6
Pete Barra
Seriously, is there anything prettier than downtown Clayton at Christmas? last Saturday’s traditional Tree lighting seemed to draw the biggest crowd in recent memory. Things kicked off with Christmas Carols at the Gazebo by MdeS chorus before Santa rolled up with lights and siren in the vintage 1971 police car. Mayor Howard Geller then led the parade down Main Street to the city’s tree where Santa flipped the switch, and the Holidays in Clayton officially began.
New chief seeks community vigilance TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
After a month on the job, things. Clayton’s new police chief says A retired Sheriff ’s Departhe’s getting a good feel for ment Commander, Chris Wenzel is no stranger to small town law enforcement having served seven years as Danville’s Chief of Police. “Except for the difference in tax base, the two towns are very much alike.” Both cities are extremely safe with property crime and traffic topping the list of major issues. He plans to make an all-out appeal to the community for extra vigilance in spotting potential crime. “If you see something strange, call us,” he said. “That could be as simple as a van parked in front in a neighborhood that you haven’t seen before or as complicated as seeing a radical change in behavior of someone you know.” “Once that call is made, we have to investigate,” he explained. “It’s the law. Wenzel will be keeping a Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer close watch on activity in The
CHRIS WENZEL
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Arts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Community Calendar . . . . .13
Directory of Advertisers . . . .7
Holiday Section . . . . . . . . .8 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 School News . . . . . . . . . . .10
City ends 2014-15 fiscal year in the black... and then
some
TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
New mayor wants to keep Clayton informed
When I moved to Clayton, never in my wildest dreams did I think I would become mayor of our city. Being appointed Mayor by your peer council for a second time is an honor I take seriously. I want to thank Dave Shuey, our outgoing mayor, for the stellar job he did. I also want to congratulate our new vice mayor, Jim Diaz, on his appointment. Clayton mayors write a column for the Clayton Pioneer without censorship. Living in Clayton for almost 42 years and being actively involved in the community during that time, I realized years ago not everyone will agree with your thoughts or opinions. I also realized everyone is entitled to
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Grove and other city parks. He wants to enlist more parental support in addressing vandalism and out-of-control youth. “Bad behavior isn’t a law enforcement issue,” he said. “It’s a parenting issue. Our officers need to be out patrolling, not raising someone’s kid.” Wenzel holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice from Sacramento State University. His career with the Sheriff ’s Department began in 1987. His assignments include the stint in Danville, Commander at the Marsh Creek Detention Facility, Watch Commander in the Office of Emergency Services and Commander of Administrative Services, a post he held until his retirement in 2011. He describes himself as “service-driven with a sense of humor, sometimes impatient, and committed to making things work.” Retirement was not his idea, he says. He and 50 of his colleagues were given the
City staff and council members had good reason to think Christmas came a bit early this year after the city’s auditors issued a clean audit report for Fiscal Year 2014-15 that included a surplus of $389,895 in the General Fund. This was welcome news coming on the heels of a five year recession that saw the city’s budget belt cinch tighter and tighter around the city’s already austere spending. For guidance in spending the found money, City Manager Gary Napper went to the various departments for suggestions. The final wish list included projects ranging from building a new city website (cost unknown) to a comprehensive updating of the city’s general plan, estimated at $400,000. Napper and the council went through the list one by one, eliminating some projects outright to create a short list of projects requiring cost analysis and more information in order to prioritize. Projects making the short list include: • New F-450 utility truck • Park improvements including new trash cans, replacing the resilient surface in the play area and trimming the trees in the Community Park and paint and re-seal the public restrooms. • Paint the exterior of Endeavor Hall • Repaint the interior of the city library • Replace the city-owned wood street light poles with metal ones • Install solar power equipment to run the Clayton Fountain • Funding for a training day for the entire police department • A new interactive city website • Replacing the antiquated paper records management system with an electronic system • Creating a searchable online City Municipal Code
option of early retirement in April of 2011 or taking a 17 percent cut in their pensions. He is supporting his mother in an assisted living facility and has two kids to put through college. He couldn’t afford the cut. So he and the others took the early retirement, only to find months later that the move wasn’t legal. But, by that time, he says “there was some bitterness…it was like a stab in the back.” He wasn’t ready to retire, he said. So, when the Clayton chief ’s job opened up late last summer, he jumped at it. Wenzel lives in Livermore with two teenagers and his wife who is a dog-trainer. The family owns two champion Labradors. He coaches youth sports and serves on the Livermore Valley School Board. Wenzel replaces former chief Chris Thorsen who left City staff will further refine in August to head up the the list and report back to the newly formed Oakley Police council at a future meeting. Department.
51-unit condo project proposed for downtown TAMARA STEINER Clayton Pioneer
Plans for 44 high-end, twostory condominiums on three acres on High Street and Marsh Creek Road are not sitting well with its neighbors, most of which live across the street in Stranahan. The developer, Bill Jordan, a Clayton resident who lives on Marsh Creek Rd. near the proposed project, has met twice with the neighbors. At a Nov. 23 meeting, he presented plans for a 60-unit, three-
story development, which neighbors said was too big. After the first meeting, he downsized the project to 44 two-story units. The revised plan calls for threeand four-bedroom condos. Attached to some of the full-size condos are smaller, one-bedroom, 400 sf. units. The smaller units can be sold individually. Of the 44 total units, 28 will have from 1,600-2,300 sq. ft of living space and 16 will be the smaller units. Ray Marentette, Architect The pared-down develop- A 44-unit townhouse development is planned for three one-acre lots on High Street and ment didn’t do much, however, Marsh Creek Road. The condos will be 3-4 bedrooms, up to 2,200 sq. ft. Some will have a
See Condo, page 6
smaller 400 ft. studio unit attached than can be sold separately or used as an in-law unit.
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