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• Storm Report – Severe Weather Forecast: Today through the Weekend, including a Flood Watch  
• Invitation to this Year’s State of the City Address  
• Quiet Zone Study Community Meeting  
• Share Input: Online Surveys Open Now 
• Celebrate Women’s History Month  
• Weekly City Manager Updates: March 6, 2023

Severe Weather Forecast: Today through the Weekend, including a Flood Watch 

National Weather Service forecasts gusty winds, thunderstorms, and heavy rain starting late Thursday and into Friday, with a flood watch continuing through the weekend. Staff are monitoring catch basins/storm drains with a priority on areas that flooded during the New Year’s Eve storm. Additional equipment and extra staff are on standby Thursday – Sunday to respond to the storm, if necessary. Pump stations and creek monitors have been inspected and are working, and creeks, streets, and other flood prone areas will be monitored. Please take precautions now for potential flooding and possible power outages due to storm impacts, sign up for emergency alerts and follow the City on social media by going to www.cityofpaloalto.org/connect. Gain storm preparedness resources, track creek monitors, follow the weather forecasts, learn how the City would notify you if flooding were to occur, and have important phone numbers on hand, by going here: www.cityofpaloalto.org/StormUpdate.

Reminder: Please only call 9-1-1 for emergencies. 

• For blocked storm drains, sink holes, landslides, levee damage, and fallen trees, call Palo Alto Public Works at (650) 496-6974 on weekdays from 7 a.m. - 4 p.m. and (650) 329-2413 after hours. 
• For gas leaks and sewer spills, call Palo Alto Utilities Water, Gas, Wastewater Operations at (650) 329-2579. 
• For power outages and electrical problems, call Palo Alto Utilities Electric Operations at (650) 496-6914.

Invitation to this Year’s State of the City Address  

Join the Mayor for this year’s State of the City address at the Palo Alto Art Center on Wednesday, March 22 at 6 p.m. A light reception will follow the Mayor’s State of the City address. Can’t make it? Watch live via the City’s YouTube or a recording at any time following the event. Save the date.

Quiet Zone Study Community Meeting 

The City of Menlo Park, in coordination with the City of Palo Alto, is conducting a Quiet Zone Study that includes consideration of the Palo Alto Avenue/Alma Street crossing along the Caltrain Corridor. Similar studies at other crossings in Palo Alto will be performed as a second phase of the project. Join a community meeting in-person or virtually on March 23 at 6 p.m. to learn more and provide input on the crossing study and conceptual plans. The meeting is taking place at the Arrillaga Family Recreation Center in Menlo Park. Learn more about the project and register to join virtually here.

Share Input: Online Surveys Open Now 

Share input on open online surveys ranging from community topics such as University Avenue Streetscape project, potential Recreation Wellness Center, Wilkie Bike and Pedestrian Bridge treatments, and the lived experience of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPI) in Palo Alto. These opportunities for input are closing soon. Go here for more.

Celebrate Women’s History Month

Women’s History Month originated as a national celebration in 1981 as Women’s History Week. After petitions from the National Women’s History Project, March 1987 was officially designated the first Women’s History Month. Today, Women’s History Month is an opportunity to recognize the specific achievements women have made over the course of American history. To help you celebrate, we’re sharing events and activities that honor women of the past and present — from Palo Alto and beyond.

Weekly City Manager Updates: March 6, 2023 

Each Council meeting, City Manager Ed Shikada shares brief updates highlighting details about upcoming events, City services, and City Council discussions planned. This week, find more about the San Francisquito Creek JPA board meeting (happening today) and automated license plate recognition technology information session. Plus, the Spring 2023 Enjoy resident registration is now open. Notable items coming to Council include parklets discussion & next steps, gas utility rebates, and more. Read this week’s update.

March is National Autoimmune Disease Awareness Month: This month, it is the mission of the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA) to educate the public on risk factors, prevalence, and lack of awareness surrounding autoimmune diseases, a condition in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and damages healthy body tissue and cells, rather than protecting the body. Autoimmunity is now one of the most common disease categories, ahead of cancer and heart disease. Some infections and diseases may trigger an autoimmune response and/or its symptoms may mimic an autoimmune disease such as Long Lyme Disease, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E./CFS) and Long Covid as is it is being studied and better understood each year. 

Recipe of the Week: There is some excitement in the air the arrival of spring, and is the new year for many people of the Persian diaspora who celebrate Norooz. This week’s recipe features a wonderfully aromatic traditional Norooz dish of herbed rice with fish, or sabzi polo ba mahi that can be found on most tables to celebrate the new year. Have a sweet tooth? Sweets, or shirini are prepared before Norooz in a variety of bite-sized morsels to be shared with family and friends. The delicate aroma of cardamom and rosewater will perfume the kitchen in preparation of these sweets, while others feature the flavors of pistachios, walnuts, or saffron. The simple rice cookie, or noon-e berenji can be found on most Norooz platters this new year, along with the melt-in-your-mouth pistachio chickpea cookie, or noon-e nokhodchi. 

10 Ways to Naturally Reduce Anxiety: While home remedies may help ease anxiety, we just want to note that they do not replace professional help that could necessitate therapy or prescription medication. With that said, one can still make adjustments to habits like exercise, sleep, diet, and find the openness to try something new, like aromatherapy or meditation. Always talk with your doctor about your concerns.

Palo Alto Mediation Program: Using trained volunteers to help people resolve everyday disagreements, the Palo Alto Mediation Program (PAMP) is available to all Palo Alto community members. If you’re having an issue with a neighbor, tenant or landlord, employer or co-worker, or someone else, connect with PAMP to gain resolution support. 

Daylight Saving Starts This Weekend: Don’t forget to set your clocks ahead. Daylight Saving Time begins on Sunday, March 12, 2023, at 2:00 A.M. and we “spring forward” one hour. The Sleep Foundation recommends some strategies for adjusting to the time change. 

Norooz New Year Celebration: On Saturday, March 11 at 2 p.m., join us at the Art Center Auditorium to celebrate the arrival of spring and welcome a new year with new beginnings this Norooz. This celebration is free to attend and find more here. 

Palo Alto Teens Capture and Preserve Our History: Join the Palo Alto Historical Society on Sunday, March 12 at 2 p.m. to learn about the Palo Alto Museum's Teen Council and how they are bringing new insights into documenting and viewing our local history. Learn more here. 

Friends Book Sale: Don't miss this month's Friends of the Palo Alto Library Book Sale this weekend at Cubberley Community Center. There will be three rooms with over 70,000 books, CDs, DVDs, puzzles, etc., new & gently used, all sorted, very reasonably priced. Proceeds benefit the Palo Alto libraries. Find more details plus hours for each room here.