Keep Clayton sparkling this fall

September is half over and families have settled into their new fall routines. In Clayton, we take pride in the appearance of our town. How our community looks has a great deal to do with supporting our good property values. It’s also a big part of that warm, welcoming “ahhh” we all feel when we drive into our home town.

As we put away the toys of summer, it’s a great time to take a look at how we can all improve the appearance of our neighborhoods. Indeed, living in Clayton carries certain expectations of property maintenance, including our own responsibility to eliminate dead landscaping and weeds from our yards – even in back yards, for both fire protection and appearance.

Part of our neighborhood preservation responsibility includes the proper storage of RVs, boats, trailers, disabled and unlicensed vehicles behind a side-yard fence or in a storage yard. On-street and driveway or front-yard parking of these vehicles is prohibited in Clayton. See more about the precise regulations in Police Chief Thorsen’s column in this issue of the Pioneer.

Derby delight

Thanks to the Clayton Community Church for another spectacular Labor Day Soapbox Derby and car show. A great time was had by all and there were lots of pictures of smiling kiddos on Facebook pages. What a fun event for families!

Concert finales

This Saturday will be the final night of our “Concerts in The Grove” for this season with a great band, East Bay Mudd, and next Thursday is the final concert for that series as well. The concerts have become the place to be on those 10 Saturday evenings and five Thursdays of the summer. I want to thank my colleagues Howard Geller and Jim Diaz and their entire crew for their hard work – all volunteer – to present the concerts for our community. Part of that crew is the team from Diablo Valley Ranch who help with the set-up, take-down and park clean-up for every concert. We truly appreciate everything they do to help.

I also want to thank you, our wonderful audiences, for your generous donations toward next year’s concerts. As all who attend have heard, no concert funding comes from the city’s budget. The concerts are entirely funded by our generous sponsors, the Clayton Business & Community Association, Republic Services (our garbage company) and you. We use your donations to help pay for the concerts for the following year. During the first nine concerts this year you have contributed more than $16,000. That’s nearly half of what it costs us to put on the series for the summer. What will the final season total be? I’ll let you know next issue.

As we circulate among the crowd collecting donations, Howard and I hear how much you enjoy them and which bands you like the best. We already have about half of the bands chosen for next year, including some long-time favorites and some new up-and-coming ones, too. It’s going to be another great line-up.

As always, you can reach me at JPierce@ci.clayton.ca.us. Let me know what you think.