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lthough a former Pleasanton mayor once warned us that the Tri-Valley is quite small and there’s not much news here, both our stories in TriValley Views and a robust Dublin, as well as the 10 years of success of the Pleasanton Weekly, have proved him wrong. As Mayor Tim Sbranti said in his recent “State of the City” address, Dublin is in its fifth cycle of development and growth, with the first dating before 1960 when it was largely rural and agricultural. The birth of what is today modern Dublin and the growth of its residential and commercial core occurred between 1960 and 1982. From there, in the years 1982 to 1998, after the city was incorporated and under its first mayor, Pete Snyder, planners moved forward both eastward and in developing vacant properties to the west of the core commercial district, where Target is located. The growth continued from 1998 to 2008 under the leadership of former mayors Guy Houston and Janet Lockhart, with major changes in the commercial and residential landscape, including Hacienda Crossings and hundreds of new high density apartments and condos to serve a rising demand for moderate priced, new housing in the Tri-Valley. Along with that forward momentum, the Pleasanton Weekly also thrived with Pleasanton’s population growing in the last 10 years from about 55,000 to 68,000. Now with its sister newspaper, TriValley Views, both cities have publications that report on city, civic and commercial activities and city schools. In this issue, we report on International Women’s Day celebrations planned this week at Regal Hacienda Crossings, on Bunjo’s Comedy Club’s third annual Killer Laughs Comedy Competition that starts Friday and the spring used
Chris Kamali, REALTOR Before delivering his “State of the City” address at the Shannon Community Center, Sbranti honored Andre Ward, a Dublin resident and World Boxing Association middleweight champion. Ward holds an undefeated record of 21-0 with 13 knockouts as a professional boxer. He has won more than 120 matches as an amateur, includ9ing the Gold Medal at the 2p004 summer Olympics games. Ward has not lost a bout as an amateur or a professional since 1996. In addition to his achievements in the ring, Ward was recognized at the luncheon and later at Dublin High School where Sbranti teaches for his continued commitment to working with and inspiring at-risk youth throughout the Bay Area.
book sale from March 5 to March 8 under the sponsorship of the Friends of the Dublin Library. Another story reports on Dublin’s 80-point ranking in road conditions, which puts Dublin at the top among Alameda County cities in the Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s “best roads” list in the Bay Area. Brentwood scored an 85 to lead the list, but Dublin’s ranking topped Livermore’s 78 points and Pleasanton’s 76. Other stories in this TriValley Views issue report on the coming census and how important it is to Dublin and Alameda County, and the Dublin Police Services’ annual Citizens Police Academy. Between issues of TriValley Views, be sure to read daily updates of news and features affecting Dublin. Sign on to our website at www. trivalleyviews.com. Besides seeing stories that are updated frequently, you can also sign up for TriValley Views Express, which goes out by email every weekday at 9 a.m. n
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ABOUT THE COVER Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti delivers the “State of the City” address at the Shannon Community Center in an annual event sponsored by the Dublin Chamber of Commerce Vol. II, Number 5
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Local office prepares for 2010 Census count
Dublin, Brentwood lead in report on quality roads
10-question form to be mailed out to residents
Pleasanton, Livermore close behind but with more miles of streets
By Janet Pelletier Ten questions will determine how much funding the Tri-Valley will receive for social services and transportation, whether or not a business decides to invest locally and will help city leaders shape their polices to serve their constituencies. The questions comprise the 2010 Census and will be mailed out locally and across the country next month. The U.S. Census Bureau has been preparing for the big count, which only happens once each decade, for some time, and a local office representing Alameda County was opened in October in Pleasanton. Community representatives, faith leaders and elected officials gathered last month at the Pleasanton office, located off Koll Center Parkway, for an open house, where the importance of all community representatives working together to get the word out was emphasized. Karen Koistinen, who is the manager of the Pleasanton office, said this is one of the largest civilian efforts conducted by the federal government other than a military operation. “It’s mandated in our Constitution to be done once every 10 years,” she said. “It wouldn’t take more than 10 minutes to complete and it can be mailed back or dropped off. It’s one of the simplest forms we’ve had in many, many years.” “It means a tremendous amount to the community,” Koistinten continued. “This is how federal funding is allocated to every community across the United States. So think of any federally funded program — No Child Left Behind, school lunches, the funding for community roads, improvements,
developments — this is all how it is allocated. It’s very important for our congressional districts as well. They will redraw the district lines based on population.” While many residents are expected to fill out the form, there are bound to be some people who won’t — either because they don’t recognize the importance or out of fear. Lia Bolden, a senior partnership specialist with the Census Bureau, said some residents won’t want to fill out a form for fear the government will find out they have too many people living in one home. County Supervisor Scott Haggerty, who is the chair of the Alameda County Complete Count Committee and gave some remarks at the open house, said he used to be one of those people who was afraid to fill out the form because he didn’t want his personal information being shared, but he recognizes the importance of it now. “This is safe,” Haggerty said. “People can be counted even if they are recent immigrants. A total of $2,200 per year is given each year for every person counted. So, if you miss 500 people, that’s $1 million.” Census data is also a driver of business to a local region. Companies often look to demographics to decide where to open a new store, Koistinen said. Just as important as the financial implications is the social effect. Dublin Mayor Tim Sbranti used city parks and programs as an example. It was through Census data that the city realized it needed to provide not just baseball and soccer fields for residents but also courts for cricket, a popular sport played in India, he said. Data also showed
offering Tai Chi classes would be an interest to Dublin’s growing Asian population. To carry out the Census count in the local area, 50 workers are currently staffed at the local office and Koistinen said 1,200 people will be hired in March to visit homes and collect Census information from those who didn’t mail back their form. The form is expected to
“A total of $2,200 per
year is given each year for every person counted. So, if you miss 500 people, that’s $1 million.”
Scott Haggerty County Supervisor
arrive in mailboxes between March 15 and 17. The count is expected to create a number of temporary positions. Most of the field assignments, according to Koistinen, pay $22 per hour and range from 20 to 40 hours a week. Workers will also strive to reach populations who are challenging to count such as the homeless, people living in nursing homes and those incarcerated in prison. Once the forms are collected, they will be sent to a national processing center and the goal is to present the data to President Obama by Dec. 31, Koistinen said. The data will then be posted on the Census Bureau website for the public to view, as is done currently with the 2000 Census. For information, visit www.census.gov. n
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with just 47 miles of roadway. Suisun City, located in Solano County, had the most improved rating compared to the agency’s previous report for the time period between 2005 and 2007. Goodwin said some cities that were at or near the top of the list were newly incorporated, like Brentwood, or very small like Belvedere, which finished with the fourth-highest rating. However, Goodwin said the strongest indicator among cities and counties with good ratings was the portion of its budget spent on preventative measures, such as fixing cracks or other problems before they require major repairs. “The dollar not spent on preventative repairs becomes five dollars you’ll spend on rehabilitation,” he said. Transportation funding remains an issue for all cities and counties in the Bay Area, according to Goodwin. MTC officials gave out $122 million in federal stimulus money to cities and counties in the region, but most aspects of Bay Area transportation, from state highways, to streets and roads and public transportation, remain underfunded, Goodwin said. “Every part of the Bay Area transit system has more needs than there are resources available,” he said. He said MTC’s policy has been to use any available money “to take care of what we already have” and “hold the line against further deterioration.” The entire list of ratings for Bay Area cities and counties is available at www.mtc.ca.gov/news/press_ releases/pavement/PCI_09.pdf. Dan McMenamin of Bay City News contributed to this report.
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By Jeb Bing The quality of the pavement on an average street or road in the Bay Area has improved slightly in recent years, but the struggle to find funding for necessary repairs will likely hinder further improvements, according to a report released by a regional transportation agency. The report, released by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for the years 20062009, is based on a 100-point rating system of pavement conditions. The report showed that the overall average score for the Bay Area rose a single point compared to the previous report for 2005-2007 and remained in “fair” condition. MTC spokesman John Goodwin said “while the numbers are inching in the right direction, we are far short of where we want to be as a region.” The report rated Brentwood, located in eastern Contra Costa County, as the city with the best streets in the Bay Area. Besides Brentwood, which leads the MTC’s “very good” list with an 85-point ranking, Dublin roads also ranked near the top with an 80-point rating, the highest of all Alameda County cities. The other top leaders among Alameda County municipalities are Livermore, with 78 points, and Pleasanton, with 76 points. Union City and Emeryville also scored 76 points each, but with far fewer miles of roadway. The MTC study showed that Brentwood has 379 miles of roadway, with Dublin’s roadways totaling just 228 miles. According to the survey, Livermore has 639 miles of streets, Pleasanton has 498 miles, Union City has 330, and Emeryville trails
David Hoff, 17, a junior at Dublin High School, instructs Andrew Totaro, at left, and Kent Nakano, at right, both freshmen at St. Raymond’s, where to install signage at the Dublin San Ramon Services District’s conservation demonstration garden Feb. 16. Hoff, who is going for his Eagle Scout award, enlisted members of his Troop 905 to help him identify drought-tolerant plans for visitors. The services district made some updates to the garden in 2008, but due to budget cuts, couldn’t afford to replace old signage that had deteriorated. Janet Pelletier
State of the City Dublin weathering the financial storm By Jeb Bing Despite the severe economic recession that has many California cities reeling in double-digit budget deficits, Dublin’s municipal government is weathering the financial crisis quite well. “We are facing awesome, incredibly challenging times,” Mayor Tim Sbranti said in his recent “State of the City” address. “But we are tackling our problems head-on while continuing to provide the programs and services that our residents expect and deserve.” Dublin, with its newer high density housing has experienced more foreclosures than its neighboring cities. Two major stores — Mervyn’s and Circuit City — have closed and a large two-story office building on Dublin Boulevard owned by Washington Mutual Bank, which was sold last year, stands empty. Sales tax receipts, which are a major source of revenue for Dublin, have fallen 25 percent over the last two years and are now at 1999 levels, Sbranti said. “Also, our property tax is down for the first time in recent memory because of declining property values,” he added. “Keep in mind that even as the economy improves somewhat, the fiscal situation with regard to assessed property values has a 12- to 18-month lag before we see the revenue stream climbing.” “But there are some ways that the city has met these challenges throughout the past year, and we’ll continue to meet these challenges,” Sbranti said. Although everyone in the city government has felt the financial pinch, Dublin has been able to avoid layoffs and program cuts. The city’s workforce has been reduced 20 percent over the past year, mainly through attrition and reassignments. In addition to assuming a heavier workload, city employees have gone without pay raises for the past year. The city has also reduced its use of consultants and outside building inspectors “However, when we talk about reductions in city staff, one area that the City Council and I remain committed to absolutely is public safety,” Sbranti said. “And even if I talked about city departments
that unfortunately have borne the savings, where if a position goes vacant that we aren’t filling it, that doesn’t happen when it comes to police and firefighters. We keep every position filled because public safety is always the number one priority for our city and will remain so.” “Dublin will remain a safe community,” he added to loud applause. Also with regard to public safety, Sbranti said that the police department opened a satellite office in Hacienda Crossing in the recent holiday period to show a stronger presence during the busy Christmas shopping season. He also announced that the Alameda County fire department, which provides services to Dublin under contract, will move its headquarters to Dublin this year, and that a training disaster preparedness exercise will be held March 18 in Dublin. “Remembering the gas leak we had last year in our city, and watching situations like Katrina and Haiti, we know that we have to be ready wherever we are and well prepared to handle disasters,” Sbranti said. Dublin is also postponing capital projects until the economy and city revenues improve. It’s not just the cost of building the project, he said, it’s also the ongoing costs of operating it. For these reasons, the long-awaited Emerald Glenn Swim Center has been postponed indefinitely. “We’re still going to build it,” Sbranti said, “but the reality is that until the overall financial picture improves, thatís a difficult project to go ahead and build and to operate. So it’s one that we deferred but will continue to consider.” Sbranti said stronger than expected retail sales over the recent holidays were encouraging, although recent problems involving Toyota could affect sales tax receipts from new car sales at that agency. With regard to business, he said city officials are working with banks and developers to ease the credit crunch that is making it difficult for builders. n
Tour Santa Rita Jail, get a taste of police services with Citizens’ Academy Program begins March 31 to teach citizens about law enforcement Taking a tour of the fifth largest jail in the nation, watching police officers train, learning how investigators collect evidence at a crime scene and how they deal with gangs and the war on drugs will be offered to 25 participants of the Dublin Police Services’ annual Citizens’ Police Academy. The goal of the academy is to teach the public about how law enforcement operates, foster a relationship between police and the community and promote community policing by supporting and encouraging citizens to get involved. The sessions get under way March 31 and will be held for nine Wednesdays thereafter from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., with a graduation on June 2. The sessions are limited to 25 participants on a first-
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come, first-served basis. Potential participants must be at least 18 years old, either live or work in Dublin, and must successfully complete a background investigations check, sign waiver forms, and be approved by the chief of police. Felony convictions or serious criminal arrests are cause for dismissing an applicant. Applications are available by email, fax, or in person at the Dublin Police Services front counter. To request that an application be sent by email or fax, contact Laura Correa-Hernandez at 833-6686 or email laura.correahernandez@ci.dublin.ca.us. Once completed, applications may be submitted by fax, mail, or in person. The application deadline is March 22. –Janet Pelletier
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Seeing green St. Patrick’s Day If you’re Irish or just adopting the Emerald Isle heritage for the holiday, Dublin is the place to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. The annual festival will be held March 13 and 14 at the Dublin Civic Center parking lot, located at 100 Civic Plaza. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, there will be more than 100 craft and commercial vendor booths, an international food court, three stages of authentic Irish entertainment, sheep herding and carnival rides. An Irish Tea Cottage will be set up in the Library Program Room for festival-goers to enjoy a Celtic harpist, storytelling, crafts, knitting and tea. Admission to the festival is free and there is no cost for parking. Other St. Patrick’s Day activities include the annual Firefighter’s Pancake Breakfast on that Saturday morning. At Fire Station No. 16, located on Donahue Drive and Amador Valley Boulevard, firefighters will be serving green pancakes starting at 7 a.m. Tickets are $5 at the door. There’s also the popular Dublin Lions Club Parade on Saturday, where more than 80 groups, including equestrian riders, clowns, local marching bands and bagpipes march around town. Head over to Amador Valley Boulevard or Village Parkway in time for the 9:30 a.m. start. Bleacher seating is available on Amador
Cancer healing therapy foundation aids 12 through donated funds Applications being accepted for 2010 grants By Janet Pelletier
Valley Boulevard near Lucky Pizza. The Shamrock 5K Fun Run and Walk is in its 12th year. Starting at 8:30 a.m. Sunday at the Civic Center, participants will navigate a 3.5-mile course and have a chance to win prizes. Register at active. com by March 10. Lady K and the Kings of Swing will be playing tunes to heat up the dance floor at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Dublin Senior Center. Tickets can be purchased at the door. For more information, call the senior center at 556-4511. To kick-off the St. Patrick’s Day fun, the Sister City Organization hosts the Green and White Gala March 12 at the Dublin Senior Center. Tickets are $65. To make a reservation, call 829-4758. For all of the information about St. Patrick’s Day events in Dublin, visit www.dublinstpats.com. —Emily West
Twelve cancer patients living in the Tri-Valley have been granted funds for complementary treatments such as acupuncture, acupressure, massages and deep breathing meditation as the Sandra J. Wing Healing Therapies Foundation marks its first full year in operation. The Pleasanton-based foundation, started by resident and ovarian cancer survivor Sandra Wing, has gifted funds from grants it was awarded by the Kaiser and Symington foundations as well as $40,000 that was generated from fundraisers and individual donations. Grantees included a Pleasanton woman with stage three ovar-
86 percent of respondents rate quality of life ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ A public opinion survey recently released says Dublin residents are very pleased with their quality of life and believe the city is doing a good job in providing services. Conducted by Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates, which has offices in Oakland, the results came from 400 Dublin voters who were polled between Nov. 30 and Dec. 6. The margin of error is 4.9 percent. According to the survey, 86 percent of respondents rated the quality of life to be “excellent” or “good.” “The survey results show high
Vote for your favorite Dublin stores, restaurants and service providers in TriValley Views’ inaugural Readers Choice Dublin!
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to 40 cancer patients. The therapy treatments are given as financial aid to patients for care that is not covered by insurance. They are meant to be a complement to the traditional treatments of chemo and radiation. To be eligible for a grant, which can range up to $1,000, the applicant must be diagnosed with cancer, be under the care of a physician, be receiving chemo or radiation; live in Pleasanton, Dublin, Livermore, San Ramon or Danville; and may not have medical insurance which covers complementary services they desire. Applicants can apply online at www.healingtherapiesfoundation.org or call 866-8627270. n
Survey says Dublin residents happy, but concerned about state budget deficit
Coming Soon!
Online balloting begins April 2 at TriValleyViews.com. Categories will range from best car wash to best place for a haircut to best place to people-watch.
ian cancer who received massage therapy before and after each traditional cancer treatment to reduce body aches and fatigue; a Dublin breast cancer patient who received acupuncture to alleviate muscle and bone pain caused by chemotherapy; a Livermore patient who received acupuncture treatments to improve neuropathy, which is a side effect of chemo that includes tingling, numbness and pain in the extremities; and a San Ramon patient with stage four colon cancer who used guided imagery and massage therapy and massage therapy to learn how to relax to reduce pain. This year, Wing said the foundation has a goal to award grants
Businesses can get into the action by asking residents to vote for them. A poster will be available for download as soon as balloting begins; special advertising rates for the ballot pages in the March 29 and April 26 issues of TriValley Views are available by calling 600-0840. Readers Choice Dublin winners will be announced online May 24 and in print May 31.
levels of resident satisfaction with Dublin’s quality of life and a desire to protect essential city services, as well as the city’s longterm financial viability, in the midst of challenging economic times,” the polling firm said in its report. Dublin City Manager Joni Patillo said residents are taking issue with state problems — particularly if and how California will take away from the city. “With the state looking at a $21.7-billion budget deficit, they have already knocked on our dour and plan to take $2 million from Dublin this year,” she said. “Residents in Dublin are angry over Sacramento politics, and we must educate them on what effect continued state takeaways will have on Dublin’s city services.” Nearly 90 percent of respondents in the survey said they see the state budget deficit as an “extremely” or “very” serious problem. Nearly three in
five respondents said they were concerned about cuts to funding for local services, 53 percent said they were worried about loss of local businesses, 51 percent about the condition of the local economy (rating it an “extremely” or “very” serious problem), lack of funding for local schools (50 percent rated it an “extremely” or “very” serious problem) and the local tax rates (41 percent rating it an “extremely” or “very” serious problem). The survey showed respondents felt maintaining essential city services, such as public safety, was the most important. Highest was keeping fire stations open (85 percent rated it “extremely” or “very” important), 75 percent said it was “extremely” or “very” important to maintain the current level of police protection and 71 percent for maintaining and improving 911 emergency and medical response times. –Janet Pelletier
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Goings On a calendar of TriValley
March 4 Half The Sky Live Celebrate International Women’s Day with L-P-D Branch AAUW from 6 to 9:30 p.m. March 4 at Regal Hacienda Crossings, 5000 Dublin Blvd., Dublin. See “Half The Sky Live” at 7:30 p.m. following a 6 p.m. dinner at Fuzio’s. True stories of extraordinary women struggling under dire circumstances. Call 846-5056 or email mjm94550@ aol.com.
March 5 Killer Laughs Comedy Competition Bunjo’s Comedy Club hosts the third annual Killer Laughs Comedy Competition, starting March 5. Preliminary rounds are through April 23, with shows starting at 7:30 p.m. and doors opening at 7. Tickets are $5, plus a two-item minimum. The 17-round weekly competition will last through June 11. The club is located at 6513 Regional St. Call 264-4413 or visit www. bunjoscomedy.com.
March 5-8 Dublin Library Spring Used Book Sale The Spring Used Book Sale, put on by the Friends of the Dublin Library, is from March 5 to 8 at 200 Civic Plaza. From 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, is a members-only night, with memberships available starting at 5:30 p.m. The sale is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday and noon to 6 p.m. Monday. Monday is also Bag Day, where you can fill a provided paper back for $4 or a Friends of the Library canvas tote for $13.
March 6 ‘Chicks with Schtick’ with Laurie Kilmartin This show is from 7:30 to 9 p.m. March 6 at Bunjo’s Comedy Club, 6513 Regional St. It features headliner Laurie Kilmartin, who has been on Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel, and Tough Crowd. She will be joined by other funny Bay Area females. Cost is $15 plus two-item minimum. Call 264-4413 or
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visit www.bunjoscomedy.com.
gmail.com.
Eighth Annual Youth Food Drive
Ongoing
The drive will be held, rain or shine, on March 6 in Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, Sunol, San Ramon, Alamo, Danville, Walnut Creek, Concord, Moraga, Orinda, Lafayette and Pleasant Hill for Alameda and Contra Costa county food banks. Place bags by 9 a.m. to be seen from street. Call 998-6513 or visit www.youthservicecouncil.com.
March 7 Holi Celebrate Holi — the Indian Festival of Colors — from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 7 at Emerald Glen Park, 4201 Central Pkwy., Dublin. The event includes music, dancing, color and food. Tickets are $7 for adults, or $5 for kids 4-12. For tickets, email tvia@gmail.com.
2010 Bridal Fair Elliston Vineyards, 463 Kilkare Road, Sunol, will host their 2010 Bridal Fair from noon to 4 p.m. March 7. Tour the mansion, speak with a coordinator and meet with local wedding professionals. Admission is free with reservation and $5 at the door. Call 862-2377 or visit www.elliston.com.
March 13 Seniors: Dancescape Social Dance Spend an evening dancing to the sounds of Lady K and the Kings of Swing. Listen to Duke Ellington, Cole Porter and other Big Band era classics played with the a slightly modern twist, from 7-10 p.m. March 13 at the Dublin Senior Center, 7600 Amador Valley Blvd. Tickets are $9 residents $10 non-residents if purchased early or $12 at the door. Call 556-4511 or visit www.DublinSeniorCenter.com.
March 14
LPD AAUW Local Scholarship The Local Scholarship Foundation of the Livermore-Pleasanton-Dublin branch of AAUW is now accepting applications. Applicants must be women who live, or have gone to high school, in the branch cities, be an undergraduate planning to attend a four-year college in fall 2010. Applications are due April 1. Call Joan at 484-0602.
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Daughters of the American Revolution DAR, Daughters of the American Revolution, Jose Maria Amador Chapter meets the second Saturday of the month. It is a time for social gathering and history of our American roots. We are descended from Patriots who won the American Revolutionary War of Independence from England. For meeting time and location, call Susan, 6994147.
Visit our showroom 5729 Sonoma Drive, Suite H Pleasanton
* visit www.bcdaylight.com for details.
Phase 1 Group Ride This easy paced, no-drop road ride is ideal for new riders, riders coming back from time off or those wanting a more social/ learning environment. Meets at 10 a.m. Saturdays. Takes 20-35 miles, with a monthly ride of 40 miles. Re-group every 10 miles and 1 longer stop. Call 4853218 or visit cyclepath.com.
Texas Hold’Em Style Tournament This event is from 3-7 p.m. March 14 at Sunshine Saloon, 1807 Santa Rita Rd., Pleasanton. Cost is $100. Prizes for 1st through 5th place. Taco bar opens at 3 p.m. and tournament begins at 4 p.m. Players must be 21. Call 463-9393 or email pleasantonholdem@
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B or g Fen c e .c om Walk-Ins Welcome New owner Dan Pell, has been with the shop since 2005. Fences Arbors Decks & more!
925 462-0864
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