Cities, County Win Award for Behavioral Health Program

At its statewide conference last week, the League of California Cities announced the winners of the prestigious Helen Putnam Award for Excellence in 2022. The award is given annually in 12 categories, with the partnership among all 19 cities and towns in Contra Costa County and Contra Costa Health (CCH) receiving the Award for Intergovernmental Collaboration for the Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime (A3) behavioral health crisis response initiative. A3 seeks to transform the region’s behavioral health care and emergency response system.

Concord and other cities worked together with CCH, as well as mental health providers, community advocates and people with lived experiences or their family members to develop the new A3 system for delivering safe, appropriate care to county residents who are experiencing behavioral health emergencies.

The team worked to develop a new model in which a person in crisis has someone to talk to, someone to respond, and a place to go to receive behavioral health services. The result of the collaboration is A3 Community Crisis Response — where anyone can get professional help at anytime, anywhere in the county.

“Effectively responding to mental health emergencies by establishing A3 as the fourth arm of emergency response in Contra Costa County is transformational and will have a lasting impact on public health," Concord City Manager Valerie Barone said. "The City of Concord is so proud to be part of this process.”

Read more. 

New Omicron Booster Shots Available

Contra Costa Health (CCH) has begun offering the new Omicron booster shots at its COVID vaccination sites.

Vaccinated people ages 12+ are eligible to receive Pfizer’s new Omicron booster and adults ages 18+ can get Moderna’s Omicron booster. These recently authorized “bivalent” booster shots are designed to protect against both the original coronavirus strain and the newer Omicron variants now dominant in the United States.

To be eligible, people must have completed their primary vaccination series or gotten their last booster shot at least two months before getting the Omicron booster. The updated boosters will replace the existing “monovalent” booster vaccines for people ages 12+. Children ages 5-11 will still be able to get monovalent boosters for additional protection.

People can schedule a booster appointment at County-run vaccination sites online at covidvaccine.cchealth.org or by calling 833-829-2626. They also accept walk-ins without appointments. Community members also can get the Omicron boosters through their regular healthcare providers or local pharmacies.

Three Concerts Remain for Music & Market Series

Just three concert remain for the 2022 season of Concord's Music & Market concert series. 

Come on down to Todos Santos Plaza to enjoy live music and a fantastic farmers' market with fresh produce and hot food for dinner. The market opens at 4 p.m. and the music begins at 6:30 p.m. 

Sept. 15: Steve Snyder's Big Band

Sept. 22: Midnight Sun

Sept. 29: House of Floyd

September is Pedestrian Safety Month, 'Slow the Fast Down'

September is California's Pedestrian Safety Month and the Concord Police Department's Traffic Bureau reminds all drivers to be aware of pedestrians and bicyclists. 

One in four fatal collisions involves speeding. Speeding reduces a driver's ability to steer safely around objects and reduces the amount of time a driver has to react to dangerous situations. It also greatly extends safe stopping distances. 

Please pay attention to posted speed limits and drive safely, Concord!

The California Office of Traffic Safety provides resources and data through their site and reminds us all to "slow the fast down." 

BART Introduces New Schedule, Offers 50% Off Fares

Beginning Sept. 12, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) began running a new schedule. 

The agency says the schedule is changing to provide better spaced apart trains, add earlier train options, end scheduled single tracking in San Francisco, and improve transfers between BART and partner transit agencies. The new schedule also provides a new level of consistency seven days a week than we’ve ever had before.

The new schedule is loaded into our trip planning tools and PDF timetables can be found here. 

Improvements at a glance include: 

• Improved spacing between trains on nights and weekends through San Francisco
• The end of Sunday single tracking and reduced service in San Francisco from cable replacement; all Sundays will have 5-line service scheduled
• The end of scheduled nightly Transbay Tube single tracking is near (by November)  
• 30-minute common headways seven days per week offer predictability and less planning
• We are offering even earlier trains for early morning riders
• Improved connections with regional transit partners, with significant improvements with Caltrain, especially on weekends
• Improved transfers at Bay Fair
• Less wait time travelling through Millbrae to and from SFO

BART is also offering 50% off all fares for the entire month of September in celebration of their 50th anniversary. Visit bart.gov to learn more and plan your next transit ride.

Learn more.

We're Hiring

Why spend time commuting when you can work in the city you call home? 

Concord has nearly two dozen current job openings, including: 

• Account Clerk III (Finance)
• Associate/Senior Planner (Community Development)
• Construction Inspection Supervisor (Community Development, Building)
• Police Dispatcher II
• Police Officer -- Lateral and Trainee
• Recreation Program Aide (Parks & Rec)
• Recreation Specialist (Parks & Rec)
• Senior Lifeguard/Swim Instructor (Parks & Rec)
• Senior Network Systems Engineer (IT)
• Traffic Signal Technician (Public Works)
• ... and more! 

Apply today! 

The City of Concord's upcoming public meetings include:

• Wednesday, Sept. 14: Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
• Wednesday, Sept. 14: Special Meeting of the Recreation, Cultural Affairs and Community Services Committee
• Wednesday, Sept. 14: CANCELLED--Zoning Administrator
• Wednesday, Sept. 21: CANCELLED--Planning Commission
• Thursday, Sept. 22: Design Review Board
• Tuesday, Sept. 27: City Council

See the full calendar.

To receive email or text notifications when the meeting agendas are posted, please subscribe to alerts using the "Notify Me" tool on the City's website.

City Council and Planning Commission meetings are broadcast live on Concord TV (Astound/Wave 29 and 1026, Comcast 28, U-verse 99) and streamed through the City's website as well as rebroadcast at later times.