After sitting through last night's council meeting, I kept saying to myself – don't, don't, don't get more cynical about small-minded Burlingame politics.

The residents vs. car dealers was an interesting example of Burlingame politics. Caltrans is willing to put up a sound wall to help with all that noisy traffic zooming by. There were fancy diagrams, decibel comparisons and alot of discussion about car buying, car sales tax coming into poor cash-strapped Burlingame and those poor car dealers' showrooms and signs being blocked off by a sound wall. One dealer said that nowhere else are there sound walls in front of car dealers. Conversely, the residents talked about not being able to have a conversation or sleep at night with the windows open because of the noise. The words "property rights" were banded around like a tired old mantra but the "logic" was that the property value of the residents' homes would go up and the dealers' property values would go down if the wall was built. Not fair, heh! Interestingly some council members were ready to vote but then realized that the wall would grade down at the wrong spot and cover up those fancy showrooms. Oops! The final vote was 3:2 for.

The grant funding went the way it usually does in our wonderful town. Except this year Broadway by the Bay was refused funding. The Burlingame Historical Society was asking for $400 to help with all the free – and I mean free – services they give to every Burlingame 3rd grader and residents of Burlingame and beyond. They were refused the $400. Burlingame Community Theater received funding ($2,835) so it had nothing to do with "food and lodging" although there was something about tree lighting.

It seems the crossing guard issue is still a hot potato. Who should the donations be sent to – the School Board or the School Crossing Guard Fund at City Hall? Make a decision, folks! Madam Mayor was miffed claiming that the CBB had not asked for permission before they mounted a $32 campaign that would have sent all the donations to the City Manager. Perhaps she should check with the City Manager first as he had received a copy of the flyer before it was printed. It has become so ridiculous that I requested my donation be returned to me because, in good faith, I had mailed my check to the City Manager for the Crossing Guard Fund but now it seems it should go via the CBB to be forwarded to God knows who. It is absolutely absurd.

Maybe the government employees who just lurk on this blog could clarify some of these anomalies especially for the group of residents who walked out of last nights meeting with a renewed sense of political activism! Cynical, moi!?

– Written by Fiona