|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
About a dozen Redwood City residents gathered Saturday at Coffeebar on Broadway for a casual meet-and-greet with San Mateo County District 4 Supervisor Lisa Gauthier and Redwood City Mayor Elmer Martínez Saballos, raising concerns on everything from ICE enforcement to parking and pedestrian safety.
The “Tea and Conversation” event gave residents a chance to ask pointed questions, and they didn’t hold back.
Dima Ryazanov asked whether the city could make downtown more walkable, especially around the Caltrain station, where he said the traffic lights make it difficult and sometimes illegal to cross safely when the train arrives.
“It should be an easy solution, but I don’t know where to ask other than being here, I guess,” said the downtown resident.
Martínez Saballos said pedestrian safety is part of the city’s broader infrastructure work, including new bike paths, but acknowledged it’s still a challenge. He said recent funding has allowed the city to hire more community service officers to help with enforcement, including daylighting violations.
On the issue of ICE activity in the county, which was sparked by recent viral videos showing masked, unidentified people detaining residents, residents expressed fear and confusion about how to distinguish federal agents from impersonators.
“Our police department does not share any information with ICE,” Martínez Saballos said. “The information that gets collected through the equipment that the police department uses, like our automatic license plate readers, their body cams—that all remains in-house and doesn’t get shared out.”
He said the city tries to confirm any suspected ICE-related incidents and underscored that local police are not involved in federal enforcement actions, except in cases where public safety is at risk.
Gauthier said the county has been working to educate residents on their rights and how to respond if ICE shows up.
“We want to keep ICE out of our communities so that it doesn’t get to that,” Gauthier said. “There’s a hotline you can call… There are red cards that tell people what their rights are. You don’t have to open the door.”
She urged residents to stay politically engaged and support organizations helping immigrants and other vulnerable communities.
Renée Fuller, who recently moved to Redwood City, brought up another pressing issue: parking.
“The parking is insane,” she said. “People need places to park, and some people have more than one car… What are we going to do about street parking?”
Martínez Saballos acknowledged the frustration and said the city is considering creative solutions like partnering with churches or the YMCA to open up parking lots for residents. He also encouraged residents to initiate parking permit zones through neighborhood petitions.
Fuller added that she wanted to rely more on public transit, but service in Redwood Shores, where she lives, is too infrequent.
Gauthier said the “last mile” remains a big issue in improving public transportation, but noted that mini-transit programs and shuttles, like those run by colleges or SamTrans’ on-demand pilot programs, could help bridge the gap.
Steve Goodale said the city should explore more pedestrian-first infrastructure to reduce dependence on cars. Martínez Saballos said the city is exploring more of that, pointing to bike paths on Vera Avenue as a step in that direction.
The discussion also touched on local schools and the perception that Redwood City’s campuses lag behind those in neighboring areas.
Martínez Saballos, who attended Roosevelt and Sequoia, said the city is looking to support the school district where possible and noted a potential bond measure that could allow cities to play a bigger role in funding.
Gauthier said that state and county officials are working on initiatives aimed at child care, reading proficiency and early education.
Toward the end of the event, conversation shifted to climate concerns in Redwood Shores, with Gauthier urging residents to sign up for SMC Alerts and participate in meetings with OneShoreline and other local climate planning groups.
Martínez Saballos later said the event could become part of an ongoing series, possibly featuring other local and state officials, including Assembly members and council members.
Redwood City faces lawsuits over nearly $9M in Veterans Memorial Senior Center billsOctober 6, 2026 11:16 am
First look: Japanese supermarket Hashi Market to open first West Coast location in CupertinoOctober 6, 2026 4:28 pm
Is true people have to many cars ,some people park on Red mark areas ,on the corners .