HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-07-08 City Council Emails701-32
DOCUMENTS IN THIS PACKET INCLUDE:
LETTERS FROM CITIZENS TO THE
MAYOR OR CITY COUNCIL
RESPONSES FROM STAFF TO LETTERS FROM CITIZENS
ITEMS FROM MAYOR AND COUNCIL MEMBERS
ITEMS FROM OTHER COMMITTEES AND AGENCIES
ITEMS FROM CITY, COUNTY, STATE, AND REGIONAL AGENCIES
Prepared for: 7/8/2024
Document dates: 7/1/2024 – 7/8/2024
Note: Documents for every category may not have been received for packet reproduction
in a given week.
From:Alice Smith
To:Human Relations Commission; Council, City
Subject:An invitation
Date:Monday, July 8, 2024 8:56:06 AM
Attachments:Screenshot 2024-07-07 at 8.57.19 PM.png
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
We hope you will all attend this local event and encourage your friends and neighbors
to attend: celebrating John R Lewis's amazing life and in support of the right to vote:
every voter counts and every vote is counted. This is happening nationwide. For
more information or to find other events, you may refer to the Declaration for
American Democracy's event page. This coalition includes the LWV, ACLU, and
some 260 other nonpartisan organizations.
https://www.mobilize.us/dfadcoalition/event/630005/
Alice
Alice Schaffer Smith
Executive Director
6502832822
850 Webster Street #520
Palo Alto, CA 94301
www.nationalvotercorps.org
a nonprofit project under the Social Good Fund
Click this LINK for telephone/addresses for your US Senators and Congressional
Representative: Ask them to pass SB4/HR14: the John R Lewis Advancement Act now! Protect
everyone's right to vote.
From:Loran Harding
To:Loran Harding; antonia.tinoco@hsr.ca.gov; alumnipresident@stanford.edu; boardmembers; bballpod;bearwithme1016@att.net; fred beyerlein; Leodies Buchanan; David Balakian; beachrides; Cathy Lewis; Council,City; cramirez.electriclab133@gmail.com; Doug Vagim; dennisbalakian; dallen1212@gmail.com;eappel@stanford.edu; Scott Wilkinson; Gabriel.Ramirez@fresno.gov; George.Rutherford@ucsf.edu;huidentalsanmateo; hennessy; Irv Weissman; Sally Thiessen; Joel Stiner; jerry ruopoli;karkazianjewelers@gmail.com; kfsndesk; Kevin.Nower@bestbuy.com; margaret-sasaki@live.com;maverickbruno@sbcglobal.net; merazroofinginc@att.net; Mark Standriff; Mayor; MY77FJ@gmail.com; nickyovino; news@fresnobee.com; newsdesk; russ@topperjewelers.com; Steve Wayte; terry; tsheehan;vallesR1969@att.net; yicui@stanford.edu
Subject:Fwd: Elon Predictions- Very interesting. New.
Date:Monday, July 8, 2024 1:12:23 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Mon, Jul 8, 2024 at 12:22 AMSubject: Fwd: Elon Predictions- Very interesting. New.
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Sunday, July 7, 2024
To all-
38 minutes. I had not heard some of this and I follow Tesla closely. Here they edit out the
laughing, clapping, cheering, etc. so it is compressed. If this comes to pass, you wlll be gladyou own some TSLA. It went up 17% in two days this week. From the close on Monday, July
1 to the close on Wed. July 3, 2024, up 17.41%. Pretty impressive and I feel pretty guiltygetting this easy money. Up 25% if you go Friday to Wednesday.
And up another 2.08% on Friday, July 5, 2024 to $251.52. So up 27.1% from the close last
Friday, June 28, 2024 to the close Friday, July 5, 2024. Mighty guilt producing. I may have tobuy a hair shirt.
This is not to be missed:
Elon Musk’s PREDICTIONS Just Left Audience SPEECHLESS!! (youtube.com)
The Tesla Van. 18 min. This is new: Quite an eye-opener:
It Happened! Elon Musk Review 2025 Tesla Van with REAL Design, Specs & CrazyBattery Tech! (youtube.com)
Slightly different re the Tesla Van:
Finally Happened! Elon Musk Reveals NEVER SEEN 2025 Tesla Van Design and
Specs, Will Hit Market Soon (youtube.com)
Tesla Model 2 news production redwood project first look 33:26
Tesla Model 2 News Production. Redwood Project First Look. All You Need ToKnow! (youtube.com)
Now fun and not so intense in production facilities. Autonomous driving Tesla, with
commentary. Take us to Golden Gate Park. Wow. 23:41:
Tesla FSD 12.4.3 is Ready to Go Wide! My first drive with commentary (youtube.com)
Now FSD Golden Gate Park to Fort Point. This is spead up and I think that sort of ruins it:
Hands Free Tesla FSD 12.4.3: Golden Gate Park to Fort Point with ZeroInterventions (youtube.com)
Stanford campus Campus Drive to Page Mill Rd to Tesla Palo Alto HQ on Deer Creek Rd.
with FSD 12.4.2. Notice not 12.4.3.
Tesla FSD 12.4.2 Drive with Commentary (youtube.com)
Now a technical discussion of robotaxi and who is likely to dominate it. This is verytechnical and incomprehensible to most, but worth hearing if you are an investor. I sat through
all of it. It's like hearing about television in 1946: 3 mos ago: You will gain some insightsinto the Robotaxi industry.
Tesla FSD v12 Just Changed Transportation Forever w/ James Douma (youtube.com)
L. William Harding Fresno, Ca.
From:Raymond Goins
To:Aram James
Cc:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Afanasiev, Alex; Baker, Rob; Binder, Andrew; Braden Cartwright; Cecilia
Taylor; Council, City; Dave Price; District7@sanjoseca.gov; DuJuan Green; EPA Today; Emily Mibach; Enberg,
Nicholas; Jeff Moore; Joe Simitian; Kaloma Smith; Holman, Karen (external); Linda Jolley; Lotus Fong; Bains,
Paul; Robert. Jonsen; Rose Lynn; Salem Ajluni; Sally Lieber; Sean Allen; Shikada, Ed; Supervisor Otto Lee;
Supervisor Susan Ellenberg; Tom DuBois; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Perron, Zachary; Barberini, Christopher;
Lee, Craig; dennis burns; editor@paweekly.com; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; kenneth.Binder@shf.sccgov.org;
Foley, Michael; swright@embarcaderopublishing.com
Subject:Re: Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?
Date:Sunday, July 7, 2024 9:59:28 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Aram,
Oklahoma in my opinion give those descendants of the mascara some kind of reparations, sothey their families love ones life didn’t get lost in vain.
Raymond Goins Silicon Valley De-Bug
Community Organizer For the hanged, and beaten.
For the shot, drowned, and burnedFor the tortured, Tormented, and Terrorized
We Will RememberWith Hope because Hopelessness is the enemy of justice
With Courage because Peace requires BraveryWith persistence because Justice Is a constant struggle
With Faith because we shall overcome!!!
On Sun, Jul 7, 2024 at 9:02 PM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:
Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?
Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?https://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=4a568354-090c-4516-a74d-49ef6dc68163&appcode=SAN252&eguid=8922b006-1f3e-4027-be6b-23afc47f7ace&pnum=26#
For more great content like this subscribe to the The Mercury News e-edition app here:
From:Jacob Loh
To:Council, City
Subject:Re: Bike lane on El Camino
Date:Sunday, July 7, 2024 9:34:22 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking
on links.
Hi,
I saw the recent update regarding the bike lane on ECR and I just want to say thank you!! I admire the council’s
ability to pivot; being stuck in our ways is the biggest hurdle we face with regards to making positive change.
Looking forward to seeing our better community,
Jacob
> On Apr 7, 2024, at 9:49 PM, loh.jacob@gmail.com wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> I am writing to share my support for replacing street parking on El Camino (ECR) with bike lanes.
>
> I am a local resident who rides a bike regularly. I bike to and from work, to meet up with friends, go to
restaurants, and to shop.
>
> There are countless reasons to build this bike lane including environmental, health, and economic. But I believe
user safety is the highest priority that needs to be considered here.
>
> Streets like ECR pose a threat to everyone in the Palo Alto community, not just those on foot and on bike. ECR is
a stroad (a portmanteau of street + road…and it fails at being a street people enjoy or a road that moves people
efficiently). It is filled with dangerous points of conflict. As you already know, many citizens are injured and killed
on ECR each year, and yet we choose to do nothing to improve the safety of the road.
>
> Cars kill people. We need to move away from car-centric design and embrace infrastructure that makes walking,
biking, and using public transit safe, convenient, and enjoyable.
>
> Accidents happen. Humans make mistakes. But the city has a moral obligation to design and build infrastructure
that mitigates the repercussions of the inevitable human error. Repaving ECR without moving towards a
walking/biking/public transit design ignores the obligation the city has to protect its people. If the bike lane is not
added to ECR, then I believe the city council members who voted against it will be morally culpable for any harm
that comes to the users of ECR.
>
> We can’t be perfect. But we can do our best. And at this time, building this bike lane is our opportunity to move
forward and create a better city.
>
> Sincerely,
> Jacob
From:Aram James
To:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Afanasiev, Alex; Baker, Rob; Binder, Andrew; Braden Cartwright; CeciliaTaylor; Council, City; Dave Price; District7@sanjoseca.gov; DuJuan Green; EPA Today; Emily Mibach; Enberg,Nicholas; Jeff Moore; Joe Simitian; Kaloma Smith; Holman, Karen (external); Linda Jolley; Lotus Fong; Bains,Paul; Raymond Goins; Robert. Jonsen; Rose Lynn; Salem Ajluni; Sally Lieber; Sean Allen; Shikada, Ed; SupervisorOtto Lee; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg; Tom DuBois; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Perron, Zachary; Barberini,Christopher; Lee, Craig; dennis burns; editor@paweekly.com; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie;kenneth.Binder@shf.sccgov.org; Foley, Michael; swright@embarcaderopublishing.com
Subject:Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?
Date:Sunday, July 7, 2024 9:02:14 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?
Who died in the Tulsa Race Massacre?https://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=4a568354-090c-4516-a74d-49ef6dc68163&appcode=SAN252&eguid=8922b006-1f3e-4027-be6b-23afc47f7ace&pnum=26#
For more great content like this subscribe to the The Mercury News e-edition app here:
From:Aram James
To:Baker, Rob; Bill Newell; Daniel Kottke; Diana Diamond; DuJuan Green; EPA Today; Enberg, Nicholas; GRP-CityCouncil; Greer Stone; Jay Boyarsky; Holman, Karen (external); Gardener, Liz; MGR-Melissa Stevenson Diaz; VanDer Zwaag, Minka; Patricia.Guerrero@jud.ca.gov; Roberta Ahlquist; Shikada, Ed; Tom DuBois; WILPF PeninsulaPalo Alto; Perron, Zachary; Barberini, Christopher; dennis burns; walter wilson; yolanda
Cc:Council, City
Subject:Re: ISRAELIS = NAZIS -CENSOR THAT( Photo March 2024 -SF)
Date:Sunday, July 7, 2024 6:13:14 PM
Attachments:A6FD7C10-1252-4CA5-8784-35BFA8115C2E.png
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
On Sun, Jul 7, 2024 at 6:04 PM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:
From:Aram James
To:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Afanasiev, Alex; Wagner, April; Bill Newell; Binder, Andrew; BradenCartwright; Cecilia Taylor; Council, City; Dave Price; Diana Diamond; DuJuan Green; EPA Today; Emily Mibach;GRP-City Council; Jeff Moore; Julie Lythcott-Haims; Lewis james; O"Neal, Molly; Raj Jayadev; Raymond Goins;Reifschneider, James; Richard Konda; Rodriguez, Miguel; Rose Lynn; Sally Lieber; Sean Allen; Shikada, Ed;Stump, Molly; Victor Sin; dennis burns; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; kenneth.Binder@shf.sccgov.org; Foley,Michael; swright@embarcaderopublishing.com; yolanda
Subject:Taser issue fuels ideological battle
Date:Sunday, July 7, 2024 8:40:37 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Taser issue fuels ideological battle
Taser issue fuels ideological battlehttps://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=785ba775-d124-4c78-a259-5b5888a524c8&appcode=SAN252&eguid=8922b006-1f3e-4027-be6b-23afc47f7ace&pnum=4#
For more great content like this subscribe to the The Mercury News e-edition app here:
From:Mircea
To:Gollinger, Peter
Cc:Council, City; City Mgr; City Attorney; Hernandez, Uriel; price@padailypost.com; ghase@bayareanewsgroup.com;
Lait, Jonathan; Eggleston, Brad
Subject:3880 El Centro Palo Alto Tree Protection Will be Moved Monday July 8th 2024
Date:Friday, July 5, 2024 7:41:12 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Peter, Is been two weeks and I have no response. I am moving the tree protection
fence on Monday 7/8 8 AM. I am not sure who and Uriel Hernandez are working for
but deffinitelly not for the citizens of Palo Alto.
Several facts were brought to my attention about Edward P Mathewson City of Palo
Alto, Admistrative Hearing Officer
Citations 07895 and 07896 (3880 El Centro)
City Attorney/City Manager,
1.Your administrative Hearing Officer Edward P Mathewson does not have a
valid/active CA attorney license since 2018 and he practices law? Please provide a
copy of the contract between city of Palo Alto and Edward P Mathewson. FOIA
request to follow. Edward Palmer Mathewson # 60298 - Attorney Licensee Search
(ca.gov)
2. Your administrative hearing officer Edward P Mathewson stopped me in the
middle of examining city empoyee/Urile Hernandez when I questioned how
incompetent this employee has been. Who is he protecting?
3. City of Palo Alto pays Edward P Mathewson to review city of Palo Alto Citations??
How is that not a Conflict of Interest again?
==============
I lived under a Communist Goverment for 20 years and I experienced Communism
first hand. The summary of what happened here clearly reflects how Communist
Goverments act like when their own people ignore the citizens request for services,
when city paid employees or consultants make decisions on Citations protecting their
employees incompetence, and when their own paid employees/consultants stop
citizens to question the Goverment employees because they are always "right". A
dictatorship, this is what Palo Alto is.
Mircea
650-996-1114
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: Mircea <mircea27v@gmail.com>Date: Thu, Jun 20, 2024 at 3:41 PM
Subject: 3880 El Centro Tree Protection To be Moved to complete approved Permit concrete
driveway work-Monday 6/24/24To: Gollinger, Peter <peter.gollinger@cityofpaloalto.org>
Peter, This is a notification that per the approved plans the tree protection will have to
be moved back closer to the tree/see pictures (3 ft to clear the construction of the
driveway plus a 1.6 ft buffer to allow the driveway forms and workers to work around
at which point the tree protection fence will be Relocated 4 ft from the tree trunk) .
Concrete driveway preparation will start on Monday 6/24/24. After we are completed
with the driveway on 7/2/24 the tree protection fence will be put back (slide back by
4.6 ft)
The Blue tape lines in the picture from the Left shows where the tree protection fence
will be moved (2nd blue tape line) and 1st blue line from the left shows where the
concrete driveway will end. The 3rd blue tape line from the left shows the edge of the
tree trunk.
Thanks
Mircea
From:Annette Isaacson
To:Council, City
Subject:airport
Date:Friday, July 5, 2024 6:06:39 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking
on links.
Dear City Council Members,
I know the airport is going to be a contentious issue. People feel
strongly about it.
I agree with my partner, Paul Heft, "It's not worthwhile to spend a lot
of money on the airport, which mostly serves corporations and wealthy
people. We do not need the airport, which serves few of us, causes or
enables significant greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft, and will be
expensive to protect from rising sea level. Let's cut bait." There are
so many other worthy issues on which to spend our tax dollars.
Sincerely,
Annette Isaacson
2550 Webster St.
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Midtown
From:Magrissa Funnie
To:Council, City; Becchetti, Benjamin
Subject:Fabian way, 3 day parking, no license plates, what does it take to move RVs off the streets
Date:Friday, July 5, 2024 7:15:11 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachmentsand clicking on links.
Sent from my iPhone
From:Chloe Chu
To:Council, City
Subject:Downtown parking.
Date:Thursday, July 4, 2024 3:04:47 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking
on links.
My name is Chloe Chu and I live at 1148 Bryant Street, Palo Alto CA 94301. My agenda is about parking permits
for residents in Professorville and Downtown area. I live in the area where a lot of of residents do not have parking
garage and we are forced to park in front of our house. The parking permits program started because of workers
from downtown parked in front of our house, thus, created a problem for residents to park. The first car was free
and after that we have to pay $50.00 for each additional car. After Covid, the parking problem resolved, a good
portion of the workers work from home or companies leave the downtown area. The parking spot have free up
considerably and Instead of removing the charges for residence permits, the city had made it worse by making us
residents pay for permits for every car that we have.
The mater is worse for visiting friends and family members, they either have to move their car every two hours or
buy a day permit and if they are visiting long terms we have to pay for a full permit. The parking fee for residents
should be implemented for all residents of Palo Alto to be fair or it should be eliminated all together. Why do some
residents have to pay to park in front of our house and most don’t. Are we penalized just because we live close to
the downtown area, that is discrimination. Now that Covid had eliminated a lot of the workers in the downtown
area, parking fee for residents and visitors to the residents need to be resolved. Thank you for your time.
Y
Sent from my iPad
From:Raymond Goins
To:Aram James
Cc:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Cait James; Cecilia Taylor; Council, City; Diana Diamond; DuJuan Green;
EPA Today; Ed Lauing; Emily Mibach; GRP-City Council; Human Relations Commission; Jack Ajluni; Jay Boyarsky;
Jeff Moore; Jeff Rosen; Josh Becker; Julie Lythcott-Haims; Kaloma Smith; Karen Holman; Lewis james; Gardener,
Liz; Lotus Fong; Marina Lopez; Michelle; Bains, Paul; Salem Ajluni; Sean Allen; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg; Tim;
Tom DuBois; Vicki Veenker; Zelkha, Mila; dennis burns; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; ladoris cordell; Foley,
Michael
Subject:Re: Israel turbocharges West Bank settlement expansion
Date:Thursday, July 4, 2024 10:28:02 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Very interesting, thanks for sharing.
On Thu, Jul 4, 2024 at 8:05 AM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:Israel turbocharges West Bank
settlement expansion
Israel turbocharges West Bank settlement expansionhttps://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=7e7c5292-
5bde-4129-b129-a3bfb76f6afb&appcode=SAN252&eguid=52275a8f-f0a5-4a36-93a4-6d8bb5912694&pnum=14#
For more great content like this subscribe to the The Mercury News e-edition app here:
From:Aram James
To:Ed Lauing; Josh Becker; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg
Cc:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Cait James; Cecilia Taylor; Council, City; Diana Diamond; DuJuan Green;
EPA Today; Emily Mibach; GRP-City Council; Human Relations Commission; Jack Ajluni; Jay Boyarsky; Jeff
Moore; Jeff Rosen; Julie Lythcott-Haims; Kaloma Smith; Karen Holman; Lewis james; Gardener, Liz; Lotus Fong;
Marina Lopez; Michelle; Bains, Paul; Raymond Goins; Salem Ajluni; Sean Allen; Tim; Tom DuBois; Vicki Veenker;
Zelkha, Mila; dennis burns; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; ladoris cordell; Foley, Michael
Subject:Israel turbocharges West Bank settlement expansion
Date:Thursday, July 4, 2024 8:05:57 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Israel turbocharges West Bank
settlement expansion
Israel turbocharges West Bank settlement expansionhttps://edition.pagesuite.com/popovers/dynamic_article_popover.aspx?guid=7e7c5292-5bde-
4129-b129-a3bfb76f6afb&appcode=SAN252&eguid=52275a8f-f0a5-4a36-93a4-6d8bb5912694&pnum=14#
For more great content like this subscribe to the The Mercury News e-edition app here:
From:Jo Ann Mandinach
To:HeUpdate
Cc:Council, City; City Mgr; Dave Price; Planning Commission
Subject:Only a few days over July 4th weekend for comments on your long HOUSING Element report??
Date:Wednesday, July 3, 2024 11:25:51 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Thanks for making the Housing Element report available to residents just before the
July 4th holiday weekend with a comment deadline of July 8th, the Monday right
after the holiday weekend and the start of summer vacation for many families,
Because your report is very long and because people are otherwise occupied this
weekend, we obviously can't discuss it and return with sensible comments even if
we wanted to spend our holiday plowing through your report.
When people saw your deadline, responses ranged from anger and disgust because
the HE is so important to comments like "SNAFU -- typical PA arrogance" to "just
another PA outreach failure" to obscenities.
Discouraging community response with these absurd deadlines has long been a PA
tradition dating back to former Transportation czar Jaime Rodriuques' infuriating
practice of issuing RFP's just before Thanksgiving and Christmas to ensure he didn'thave to deal with pesky responses from contractors or solve any of our problems.
That's why it took him 8+ to plan for what should have been a quick no-brainer:
turning off the Paly stop light when there were no students at Paly -- midnight,weekends, summer vacations etc. -- so we didn't get stuck at two red lights since theT&C light is mere feet away. How many hours did taxpayers waste at that stupid
light, writing letters asking when/if sanity would prevail during those 8+ years??
And now --decades later -- with your deadline we see that nothing's changed except
for your huge salaries and our huge utility bills funding them.
Seriously, what are you and the rest of our "leaders" thinking?? Where's theaccountability and oversight?
Most sincerely,
Jo Ann Mandinach650 269-0650
From:Cindy GoralTo:Council, City
Subject:Expanding the Airport and Paving the Duck PondDate:Wednesday, July 3, 2024 4:08:30 PMAttachments:kPllADVfiQ6y5wn3.png
Some people who received this message don't often get email from cindy@goral.org. Learn why this is important
Dear Councillors,
I read recently that there are discussions about expanding the Palo Alto Airport to possibly include extending the runway into the Baylands and filling in the Palo Alto Duck Pond.
The Baylands is one of Palo Alto’s gems. It would be a real tragedy to lose the Duck Pond.
I have been a resident of Palo Alto since 1985. During the past many decades, I have visited the Baylands and Duck Pond occasionally, to see the various birds. However, since I retired lastyear my adult son and I have been going to the Baylands almost every day (at least 5 days a week) to observe the birds and how things change during various tides, seasons, and times of day.
I wanted to share with you some of the wonders we have seen this past year, just in the Duck Pond! Last August, there was a white pelican who showed up in the Duck Pond and came almostevery day until end of October. Sometimes he was there with more pelicans. It was magical to observe them so closely and see them swimming around and eating fish in the pond. Anotheramazing time was a Saturday evening in January. There were probably a hundred Northern Shoveler ducks doing their mating dance in the pond. They pair off and circle each other. I hadnever seen that sight before. Since June 11, we have been observing 13 Gadwall ducklings and their parents growing up in the Duck Pond. All of the ducklings have survived so far in thissheltered pond area and it’s been great to see them swim around the edges of the duck pond, bringing joy to others who are observing them as well. In addition to that, there are regularcormorants, blue herons, black crowned night herons, a kingfisher, ruddy ducks, other ducks, geese, and egrets that come to the Duck Pond to swim and eat.
In addition, it’s one of the few places if you are handicapped, you can enjoy the birds from the parking lot without getting out of your car.
I hope I have been able to share just a little of the magic that happens there. One evening, I met a couple walking around the Duck Pond who come there because it's one of the "few placesleft" like this. People of all ages enjoy the duck pond. Once this area is lost, it is lost forever.
I've included a few photos taken in the last year at the duck pond. Please do not allow the airport to expand into this special place.
Thank you for your consideration,
Cindy Goral
From:Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce
To:Council, City
Subject:LoCal Libations: Celebrate LOcal CALifornia with wine, music, & friends in the heart of Palo Alto!
Date:Wednesday, July 3, 2024 2:42:05 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Local Libations - Buy Your Tickets Today & Save 10% ad
Join us for a very special wine-tasting event on California Ave on Thursday,
July 18 at 6pm.
Let LoCal Libations make this an unforgettable summer night as we present an event
overflowing with expertly selected wines paired with the sounds of live bands, one-of-
a-kind shopping, and award-winning dining in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.
Enjoy tasting the best of small-production red and white wines from 11 Boutique
Santa Cruz Mountain Wineries at locations outside participating businesses on Cal
Ave, as you stroll with friends along the car-free street.
>>Tickets are on sale now! Buy single and group tickets ($45-$55) through
Eventbrite.
>Reserve Now
For more information, visit 3rdthursday.fun.
This email was sent on behalf of Palo Alto Chamber of Commerce 355 Alma St Palo Alto, CA 94301.To unsubscribe click
here. If you have questions or comments concerning this email or services in general, please contact us by email atinfo@paloaltochamber.com.
From:Loran Harding
To:Loran Harding; antonia.tinoco@hsr.ca.gov; alumnipresident@stanford.edu; boardmembers; bballpod;bearwithme1016@att.net; fred beyerlein; Leodies Buchanan; David Balakian; beachrides; Cathy Lewis; Council,City; cramirez.electriclab133@gmail.com; Doug Vagim; dennisbalakian; dallen1212@gmail.com;eappel@stanford.edu; Scott Wilkinson; George.Rutherford@ucsf.edu; Gabriel.Ramirez@fresno.gov;huidentalsanmateo; hennessy; Irv Weissman; Sally Thiessen; Joel Stiner; jerry ruopoli;karkazianjewelers@gmail.com; kfsndesk; Kevin.Nower@bestbuy.com; MY77FJ@gmail.com; margaret-sasaki@live.com; maverickbruno@sbcglobal.net; merazroofinginc@att.net; Mark Standriff; Mayor; nick yovino;news@fresnobee.com; newsdesk; russ@topperjewelers.com; Steve Wayte; terry; tsheehan;vallesR1969@att.net; yicui@stanford.edu
Subject:Fwd: NYT- Biden weighing whether to stay in.
Date:Wednesday, July 3, 2024 1:57:34 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Wed, Jul 3, 2024 at 1:43 PMSubject: NYT- Biden weighing whether to stay in.
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Wed. July 3, 2024
Biden Told Ally That He Is Weighing Whether to Continue in the Race - The New York
Times (archive.is)
From:Patricia Judge Tamrazi
To:Marshall, Tomm
Cc:Batchelor, Dean; Burton, Kaylee; Lauing, Ed; Council, City; City Mgr
Subject:Re: FW: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Wednesday, July 3, 2024 9:30:58 AM
Attachments:image001.pngimage002.pngimage003.pngimage004.pngimage005.pngimage006.pngimage007.png
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi there,
I do not know who I am communicating with - the email directly below is sent from the emailaddress of Tomm Marshall, but is signed with Kaylee Burton's signature. This is of course
important because Mr. Marshall would be, I believe, presenting technical information, whileMs. Burton would not.
Thank you for sending the data from the newest transformer from Thursday, June 27, starting
around noon when it was installed. This illustrates exactly my point about CPAU'snegligence: there is no need to put a load logger up on the line and spend weeks evaluating the
voltage swings, as you say you have been doing - there should be testing in real time, rightaway, as soon as work is being done, and any dangerous conditions should be addressed then
and there. This perfectly illustrates the fact here: that CPAU left known dangerous conditions(voltage swings) up on the electrical line, unfixed, since at least mid-March (likely February)
until June 27. This is not in line with minimum maintenance and safety standards in theindustry (as many of CPAU's employees and contractors have told me).
Your troubleshooting efforts were only "persistent," as you are now trying to spin it, because I
- a resident and customer - have been persistent. This is no way to run a utility - this isdangerous.
Could you please provide an update on the overarching HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES /
SOLUTIONS, which I have inquired about repeatedly?
1. Emergency line and customer service not properly staffed / trained (lack knowledge to
do their jobs; Dean Batchelor, in February, and Tomm Marshall, in April, both agreedwith me on the phone that this is a real issue) - training and oversight needed.
2. Employees not empowered to diagnose and fix problems when identified - boots on the
ground should be empowered, not supervisors who do not understand problems (this isper CPAU's own employees).
3. CPAU maintenance standards fall below PG&E's / industry standards (this is per
CPAU's own employees - see above and overgrown tree issues above).
4. Contractors must abide by the City's own stated steps of performance - training and
oversight needed. (This is the dirty water / water meter swap lawsuit.)
What actions are being taken to address these issues?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
On Tue, Jul 2, 2024 at 4:09 PM Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org>
wrote:
Ms. Tamarazi,
The city is prepared to cover the costs of an electrician to conduct a thorough inspection of
your home. Should the electrician discover any damages that might have been caused by thecity, you have the option to file a claim through the city's website at Submit a Claim Against
the City – City of Palo Alto, CA, to seek reimbursement for those damages.
Regrettably, this issue was not a simple repair but rather a complex matter that required
extensive troubleshooting and time to resolve.
Enclosed are the latest readings from the newly installed transformer as of Thursday, July
28, confirming that there are currently no issues detected.
Due to the complexity of the situation, the solution did not unfold as originally anticipated.
Through persistent troubleshooting efforts, however, we successfully identified and resolvedthe underlying cause.
At present, CPAU (City of Palo Alto Utilities) has not been informed of any additionalelectrical concerns associated with transformer malfunctions.
I trust that I have sufficiently addressed all of your inquiries in the preceding email.
Thank you,
Kaylee Burton
Utilities Administrative Assistant
City of Palo Alto Utilities Department
Phone: 650.329.2326 | Cell: 650.444.5305
E-mail: kaylee.burton@CityofPaloAlto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 10:53 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City Mgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Dear Tomm,
Thank you for your email. In response:
1. Will the City commit to paying for all damage to my house? I am waiting to get anelectrician in because I am waiting for an answer to the question I have asked multipletimes: will the City commit to paying for any damage found within my home? Myhouse is newly rewired and had no damage when assessed back in late January whenour flickering lights were first reported to CPAU. These flickering lights were laterattributed to being caused by severe brownouts due to the City's poor power supply,however the City denied all possible responsibility for over a week prior to putting asmart meter on my house, so, trusting that, I consulted multiple electricians duringthat time. Thereafter, voltage fluctuations were measured. Therefore, if the powersupply to my house is safe and reliable now and I am still experiencing issues, it isdue to the damage the City's poor power supply has caused to my house. Will theCity commit to paying for all damage?
2. Shouldn't it be up to CPAU - not me - to determine what a "proper fix" is? I havebeen told that, in fact, back in February, the loose leg was tightened and the power
supply got worse, not better, but that the supervisor did not want to pay overtime forthe proper fix, so they just left it. This is per your own employees - multiple of them
told me to advocate for something better than a "Band-aid fix." I know you havedenied that being the case, but you have not provided any data illustrating that your
employees who told me to advocate for myself were wrong (and what would theirmotivation be to lie to me??). What a "proper fix" means, I do not know, nor should I,
as I am simply a resident and customer. If you replaced the transformer only upon myrequest, as you are now saying - wow, that is incredibly scary and this whole situation
is even worse than I thought.
3. Could you please provide data showing the issue is fixed? Do you have data showing
that the fourth transformer fixed the ongoing issue?
4. Why is the fix only at the repeated request of a resident? If I didn't push and push and
push, would you have just left the defective transformers? With the latest swap(which you say now fixed the poor power supply, right?), Utilities sent my neighbors
notification of power shut down only after I requested the California State regulatorsbe let in to inspect, and even then it was not treated as an emergency!
5. Are faulty transformers a problem throughout the City of Palo Alto? If yes, what isbeing done to fix this issue to protect the health and safety of residents? Please see
one resident's account below. I have also connected with other homeowners whoseappliances were blown out by poor power supply to their houses.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
On Tue, Jul 2, 2024 at 9:50 AM Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org>wrote:
The voltage fluctuations observed in the network supplied by the transformer located at3480 Thomas Drive were not due to a loose neutral wire but rather stemmed from amanufacturing defect in the transformers supplied to the City of Palo Alto.
Initially, the issue at your property was identified as a loose Hot Leg on the transformer.The voltage fluctuation on your service was resolved upon repairing this connection.However, following this repair, you reported persistent voltage fluctuations. Although wedid not observe any issues with your service, we proceeded with replacing the transformerupon your request. After replacement, we observed unexpected voltage deviations causingintermittent flickering on the new transformer. Subsequent replacement with another unitfrom the same manufacturer revealed that the issue lay in a defect inherent to thesetransformers.
The transformer was then replaced a third time, this time with a unit from a differentmanufacturer, which effectively resolved the unexpected voltage fluctuations in thesecondary system.
As mentioned previously, if you continue to experience flickering lights or any relatedissues, we remain committed to assisting you by facilitating an investigation with anelectrician of your choosing to identify and address the root cause.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:06 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Becautious of opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi Tomm,
I hope this email finds you well. Following up on my email from May 31, since I havenot heard back from you yet and since Kurt Williams told me yesterday to contact youregarding my questions on the known and unfixed loose neutral.
Could you please provide an update on fixing the loose neutral measured up on the pole at3480 Thomas Drive, in at least March?
It looks like they switched out the transformer again last week. I believe that this is thethird time the transformer has been switched. Why was it switched again?
Has the loose neutral been fixed?
Trish Tamrazi
On Fri, May 31, 2024 at 8:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Dear Tomm - Following up on my email from Tuesday, since you have not replied. When will the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? As you know, utility
companies treat this as an emergency, and ours was identified at least back in March (Ibelieve, in talking with CPAU employees,
February). https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-floating-neutral-2262
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 11:25 AM Patricia Judge <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks, Tomm. My understanding is that the crews would know right away by
testing if they fixed the loose neutral, so is it correct to assume that your email meansthat they did not fix the neutral issue? When will you be doing that? I’m sure you can
understand my being worried about this since it’s a serious electrical danger (risk ofsurge and fire).
From what I have pieced together, there was a neutral issue with the old transformer
and a neutral issue with the new transformer, so wouldn’t that suggest that the issueis NOT with the transformer? Is there maybe a damaged or loose wire somewhere
that needs to be found? I understand that would take much more time to find and fixversus switching out the transformer again, and I do appreciate the crews’ time.
2 City employees now - one back on February and one last week (May) - have
expressed to me how worried they are about overgrown trees around the overheadwires in my neighborhood. Could that be contributing to my poor power supply?
When will the trees around the wires be trimmed?
I’m looping in Councilmember Lauing, since he has been actively working on this.
I’m here to help. I want nothing more than to get this resolved so that I can just livein peace - with safe and reliable power - and never have to contact you again. I want
to be clear, that is my goal.
Thank you,
Trish
650-208-4802
Sent from my iPhone
On May 28, 2024, at 10:13 AM, Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The transformer was replaced, new wire connections were installed andmeters were installed to record data.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, May 24, 2024 10:26 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
What happened yesterday - did they find the loose neutral (identified inearly March) and tighten it?
Trish
Patricia Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 10:10 AM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have attached a screenshot of the neutral issue.
<image001.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. My understanding is that when my house was on the
new transformer, there was a "neutral issue" that was picked up by theload logger. Could you please send me screen shots of that data,
showing the "neutral issue"?
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 8:20 AM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have reviewed the data from April 25th – May 1st and have
attached a screenshot below. On 4/29 at about 6AM, there was atemporary dip of the high side voltage, causing the secondary
voltage to drop below 114V. Besides this anomaly, the secondaryvoltage stayed between the required 5% tolerance (126V -114V)
and the PST value was below 1, indicating that no flicker likelyoccurred expect on the morning on 4/29 where the PST value was
above 1.
<image003.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 4:21 PMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. Has the data been reviewed yet that was takenfrom the last time the load logger was on the house?
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 3:53 PM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I spoke with Tomm and the meter technicians will be outtomorrow morning, 5/16, between 9AM and 10AM to install theload logger.
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 8:57 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Williams,Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
My lights are flickering again - at 11:15am on Sunday 5/12 and inthe evening of Monday 5/13. The flickering was on differentcircuits. I can send video if you'd like.
I don't know whether the load logger is on or not? I think maybeit is not, since I did see my gate closed differently after it wasinstalled. I don't receive notification of the work - but I wouldlike that, please, since I am having to be so involved.
A couple of questions:
1. Is it possible there are loose connections from Utilities onmy panel? There was a torque test on everything myelectrician did - how about what Utilities has done? Itseemed like the flickering stopped when the load loggerwas on (if it is indeed off) - so I thought maybe it was aloose connection related to that - especially since you hadtold me previously that you found a LOOSECONNECTION on the load logger. This is quiteconcerning, of course, and should be an easy fix? It seemslike the load logger was taken off, and the flickeringreturned. 2. You said previously there was a "neutral issue" whenconnected to the NEW transformer, so you took us off thatand put us on the OLD transformer next to it. Can you justfix the "neutral issue" and put me on the NEWtransformer? Will this solve my flickering lights? Whatdoes "neutral issue" mean?
This flickering was first reported to CPAU January 24, so this isquite frustrating that it is still going on.
Could you please fix it?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 2:47 PM Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Here are more files.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 2:16 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Load logger. Having a meter reset - does that mean coming out
to put a load logger back on my house? My understanding isthat the smart meter will not pick up most poor power supply
issues - I need a load logger on there, and it needs to be thecorrect one (I have been told there was a "wrong" one on, for
quite a while). I was told that it was only because mybrownouts were so severe that the smart meter picked them up -
generally, it would not.
Video. The video showed the light - when the light switch isturned off - it takes a long time to go out, gets very bright, then
turns off. This is on a dumb switch. It was flickering severelythe day before this odd behavior (I do have video of the
flickering). Then this odd behavior. Then back to normal. Please note that this is different than the flickering, which
occurs when the lights are on. This is odd behavior when wetry to turn the light off.
Flickering. Flickering occurs on fixtures with lightbulbs
throughout the house - many have dumb switches, some havedimmers. Since this flickering is consistent across different
switch devices and happens intermittently, it seems unlikelythat the flickering is due to dimmers. It seems flickering is
more pronouced on fixtures with bulbs than integrated LEDs - Ihave been told that may indicate low voltage - what do you
think?
Records request. I do not believe that any original datasetscame through to me in response to my records request. There
are many, many items missing in the records request, which Ionly submitted because I've asked for the data many times, and
I have never received it. I have been told that Utilities does notwant to provide it (folks refer to "my supervisor") - which is
why I put in the records request - as a matter of law, it is to beprovided. I'm attaching the load logger data that I have seen -
but I would like the full data set, please.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Apr 23, 2024 at 1:36 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
I am having the charts printed out so that I can forward them
to you . The original datasets were included in the PublicRecords Request but they appear to require the meter
manufacturers software to decode the data. When I have more time I will see if the files can be exported in a data file
that can be read by something like EXCEL. The PDF files ofthe data from your house should be ready by the end of the
week.
I have asked the engineer to request the meter to be reset onyour house and it should be done this week.
The video showed the light flickering and going out. A
couple of questions since I don’t know the setup in yourhouse. Was this the only light experiencing the flickering? Is
the light connected to a dimmer switch?
Thanks for you patience.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 12:43 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean
Some people who received this message don't often get email frompatricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causingbrownouts
Hi Tomm,
Following up from our phone discussion on Thursday, April18, since I have not heard from anyone yet -
Could you send all data from the load loggers associated with
the power to my house, please? When will load loggers beput back on my house, please?
I have more video of my lights flickering on Saturday, April
20. Could you please let me know if you'd like to see it?
My understanding from our discussion Thursday is that youmeasured the following: (1) brownouts initially (first
reported January 24 and recorded via smart meter February 8- these issues are also in the data from the load loggers?), (2)
power to house from new transformer around February 12,then continuing flickering lights due to a problem with the
neutral (is that a loose neutral?), then (3) did not fix thoseneutral issues, instead moved the house to an old transformer
on the secondary pole (which also had loose connections - soif the "proper fix" on the other pole was a new transformer,
why not on this pole too?), and continuing flickering lights.
Did you have a chance to review the video I sent on April 17,video recorded April 14? I've never seen a light do this -
could you please tell me what is going on? Is thisdangerous? Is this a surge due to ongoing issues? The light
did go back to normal - so the only thing that could havechanged is the power supply to my house.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 11:55 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm,
I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Thank you for your call on the afternoon of Thursday,April 4. I'm sorry for missing it - I am dealing with some
health issues and could not answer the phone. Myunderstanding is that many City employees do not work on
Fridays, so I intended to call you on Monday, April 8. However, upon walking out my door to take my son to
school on that morning, I came upon the City's contractorreplacing my water meter (no notice) - I asked him to
follow specific City procedures laid out to my elderlyneighbor whose water was grossly contaminated by the
techniques used by the contractor, with the assurance thoseprocedures would be followed, but they were not, and my
water was contaminated with yard dirt. I have beendealing with that since.
I just left you a voicemail. Attached please find the video I
referenced in that voicemail, of the weird issue with thelight in my daughter's room. This was last Thursday, April
11. The day before, April 10, the lights were severelyflickering. The light went back to normal as of Sunday,
April 14. The only thing that possibly could have changedis the power supply to the house. By way of background
which may be helpful, this light fixture was new last year -it uses lightbulbs.
Could you please provide all load logger data related to the
power supply to my house?
If you think this issue is resolved, could you please put aload logger back on to measure these issues? I have never
seen a light act like in the video - neither have electriciansthat I have consulted.
I am very worried that this is dangerous and could start a
fire.
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 4, 2024 at 10:31 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Tomm,
It's nice to hear from you. I am free to discuss by phone
at any time. I want to start with a baseline: I am here tohelp and I am open to working with you. While I am
very upset with the dysfunction in Palo Alto, my angerand frustration is not directed toward employees like
you (as a general statement, with exceptions for thosewho have been threatening to me and/or lied to me).
A quick Google search suggests that you probably
understand the reality of what I am going through. Mylights seem to flicker evenings and weekends - but not
long holiday weekends or, it seems, during this weekwhich is spring break for Palo Alto public schools.
The "EIT" (which I assume is "Engineer in Training"),
who I have been told is the point person for my issues(an illustration of how seriously it's been taken, that we
don't even have a licensed engineer in charge),suggested my flickering lights are due to some sort of
machine at a hypothetical construction site nearby,which is, of course, silly.
I think it's more likely that it's the 2 EVs charging in
many driveways in my neighborhood.
It's been insinuated to me that CPAU is covering upissues voiced by citizens like me, who are only trying to
get safe and reliable power to our houses. Maybe it'sthat with the City Council's obsession with
electrification, no one dares admit what's actually goingon.
Yes, my primary transformer was upgraded, but how
about the lines?
I've been in contact with a bunch of folks with flickeringlights who are PG&E customers - PG&E comes right
out, diagnoses the problem, and fixes it.
Here in Palo Alto is different - in a bad way. I havebeen told that cutting costs is the number 1 priority - not
providing safe and reliable power to homes orempowering linemen to diagnose and fix problems.
Do you know that another customer called in flickering
lights and 2 failed appliances (at least) and it took 10days plus another follow-up call plus 1 more day to get a
lineman out to just check for a loose neutral?! Howunsafe!!!! They put a load logger on, but now she's
getting the runaround from CPAU for someone to comeout to pull the data. It's exactly what happened to me.
This is too much to ask from citizens. This is no way to
run a utility.
Please let me know when a good time for a discussionis.
Again, my anger is toward this dysfunctional city, not
toward you.
Thank you for reaching out to me, and I look forward toworking together.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 3, 2024 at 3:24 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
If you have time tomorrow or sometime next week I
would like to have a conversation with you regardingyou concerns with the electric service at your house. I
am the Assistant Director of Electric Engineering andOperations and I hope that I can find a way to address
your concerns. My staff has updated me on yoursituation and I am familiar with the events and the
visits to your house. In addition, I have reviewed thevoltage and current recordings that have been take at
your house and in the adjacent homes.
Please let me know when you have time to discusseither on the phone or in person at your home.
Thanks
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Some people who received this message don't often get email
from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Sent: Monday, April 1, 2024 9:02 PMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr
<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick
<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed
<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims,Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Stone, Greer <Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Tanaka, Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Clerk, City
<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing
brownouts
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have notreceived an answer. The only time I received a
substantive answer was when I expressed mydispleasure at not being able to purchase an EV (being
afraid that my neighborhood would burn down or thatmy young children were in danger didn't strike a
chord with you). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garagewhere I had planned for EV chargers:
<image004.png>
<image005.png>
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replacethe old car which was totaled after being stolen from
in front of my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on
the evening of March 28. This is visual evidence ofwhy I cannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safe
and reliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU onJanuary 24. After struggling with CPAU for over 2
weeks, I first reached out to you regarding this issueon February 9, after I was told by CPAU's own
employees that I needed to advocate for a "proper fix"to our issues and was met with a threatening
environment when I did so in person to CPAU'ssupervising employee. I truly thought you would help
me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronicsin our home, all of which are new since we just
finished renovating in late 2023. For example (andthis is not all-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up
(turn on and off randomly and unexpectedly) and theice in our Sub-zero is stuck together (suggesting that it
is not regulating its temperature properly).
My family is suffering because ofyour unresponsiveness. I spend countless hours trying
to navigate how to get my city government to respondto me so that I can get safe and reliable power to my
house. My business is suffering, my young childrenare suffering, and I have developed health issues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it?
Your constituents are depending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of theemails that came before it: I welcome any thoughts
you have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, sincebeing told by Ed on March 5 that Dean will be
calling me and that Ed would join if needed. Thatwas over 3 weeks ago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on
PBS last night. I recommend you watch it. I foundit inspiring to see the amazing impact properly
funded and functioning public health systems canhave, as well as the negative effects that flow from
cutting funding and letting those systems fall intodisrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for your management
of the Utilities Department?
I'm sure by now you have heard of thecontamination of some houses' drinking water that
was caused by the contractor the city hired to swapout water meters. When are you planning on
warning residents of the error and helping them toclean up the mess? This is a public health issue!!!
As you remain silent, citizens have been drinkingcontaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notify
my neighbors of the damage your poor powersupply has done to their homes. I first suggested
you do this in my email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman across
town - a mom with your children and a lot on herplate - who has had flickering lights as well as a
dishwasher and refrigerator that have gone out. Myunderstanding is that she is patiently waiting for
someone to come out to her house to check it out. Iimagine I do not need to state this to you, as you are
the regulators of the Utility and must know - butjust in case: utilities companies generally treat
flickering lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city'sresponse to my Public Records Request is still
woefully unresponsive. I am simply trying togather information to fix the power supply to my
house! It is the city's legal duty to respond fully. The city did, however, produce 2 emails which are
sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any real
assistance or response, Dean forwarded mydesperate email pleading for help and
expressing my general displeasure with themismanagement in Palo Alto to Catherine
Elvert, who I gather from a Google search isa PR professional, with the note “Here you go
!!!” Were you getting your talking points inorder, rather than focusing on helping your
citizens??2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate email
pleading for help (email stamp on my emailshows, "date: Feb 12, 2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed
sent an email (email stamp on Ed's emailshows: "Sent: Monday, February 12, 2024
3:16 PM") to multiple City of Palo Alto emailaddresses stating that Dean has spoken to me
a couple times (NOT TRUE!!!!!) and “Noneed for further prompting. Thanks all!”
NOTHING HAD BEEN ADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of the
emails that came before it: I welcome any thoughtsyou have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be very
clear: I would much rather have a responsive,caring, and ethical city government, than bring
any thieves to justice.
The stress from having our car stolen from infront of our house pales in comparison to the
stress and anguish we have experienced as afamily in getting the run around from CPAU and
then being ignored by City Hall, as I try to getsafe and reliable power delivered to the houses in
my neighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should neverhave been this involved or have had to push so
hard. This is too much to ask from citizens. It isno way to run a utility. But, to continue down
that path: logically, shouldn't the transformer alsobe replaced on the "secondary pole," where loose
connections were also found? If that was the"proper fix" on the first pole climbed (i.e. PG&E
minimum maintenance standards), wouldn't italso be the "proper fix" on the second?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this
is a long-standing issue, not unique to my block,which has harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed
<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being
stolen. I can only imagine how this hasimpacted you and your family. While
understanding nothing can make up for such aviolation, I hope the thieves are quickly
brought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spokento Director Batchelor and understand he will be
calling you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear thattheir replacement of the electrical transformer
did not resolve the problem. I will stay in touchwith him and happy to join a call as he works
with you on next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
<image006.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 |
ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
<image007.png>
Some people who received this message don't often get
email from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this
is important
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump,Molly <Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka,Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; CityMgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk,City <city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issuescausing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated fromoutside of the organization. Becautious of opening attachments andclicking on links.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from infront of our house here in Palo Alto. It lookslike it's totaled. When we completely rewiredthe house last year, we future proofed toaccommodate an EV charger - 2 actually. However, CPAU is unable to provide safe andreliable power to our house. Because of this,to our great disappointment, we cannot replaceour gas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call in
the middle of the night that someone isbleeding to death and needs an intervention,
and his EV didn't charge - well, that's a bigproblem!
City Council - I see your talking points on
electrification (I'm all for electrification). Youknow that your electrical infrastructure can't
support it.
This is the real world effect of yourdecisions: a family that wanted to go electriccannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help,dating back to my first email to you on
February 9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 GreerRd. - the latest working theory from CPAU is
that it is caused by an air compressor at atheoretical construction site nearby. (1) That's
a laughable theory. (2) My lights flickerevenings and weekends - which CPAU
engineers have been told. Is the cause the 2EVs charging in every driveway + an outdated
electrical infrastructure that cannot support it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to mypower issues. (a) The response was a day late.
(b) The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behindmunicipal utilities falling outside of regulation
is (i) elected officials, who serve as the utlity'soversight, will be responsive (mine - you - are
silent) and (ii) there are protections such as the
Public Records Request (my city obviouslydisregards its legal duties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week,
one stated: When municipal utilities are good,they're really great. But when they're bad, it's
abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead ofthe rest of the city in the grid update. Maybe
Elon Musk's words will resonate with you then- he said that the world will face supply
crunches in electricity and transformers nextyear. What does that result in? Flickering
lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps tomake our municipal utility "really great,"
instead of "abysmal"? Your constituents aredepending on you.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409Greer Rd. I still have not heard anything
substantive from anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council -you are the regulators of the Utilities
Department, correct? Why have I still notheard back from any of you with anything
substantive? (The vast majority of you, Ihave not heard anything at all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a
fire risk? I am worried - I have 2 smallchildren - I have expressed this and no one
seems to care!
The transformer that I have been toldsupplies power to my house was switched
out on February 15. On February 14, theUtilities Department climbed another pole
nearby (described to me as my "secondarypole") and found loose connections, which
I've been told were tightened. That's 2 out of2 poles with loose connections. Is routine
maintenance being done? Are there looseconnections all over the city? My lights
continue to flicker - are other looseconnections causing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connections
would explain the problems the neighborshave experienced on that side of my house:
(1) one neighbor's refrigerator went out andshe had to go buy a new one last weekend,
(2) another neighbor had flickering lights (Idiscovered this by overhearing him over the
fence speaking to someone about his panel),(3) a third neighbor had an outdoor light that
was malfunctioning (she described it as"acting weird"). These are the things that I
have heard only in passing - surprisingly,everyone has complete trust in Palo Alto
Utilities and does not blame the poor powersupply they are receiving. These 3 houses
are in addition to the 6 houses experiencingpoor power supply issues from the other pole
(one of which went through 3 refrigerators in
January). So that's 9 houses total with issues- and I imagine there are more!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to your
citizens these issues after you discoverthem? Shouldn't you inform them that they
have been receiving poor power supply andeducate them on the damage that has
possibly (or likely) been done to theappliances and electronics within their
home? I thought CPAU is supposed to dobetter than PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from an
engineer to get my story to analyze the datacollected by the load logger on my house.
He was unaware that mine was not the onlyhouse with flickering lights! How is
communication that bad?! As a reminder,the morning of February 9 was when I first
emailed all of you to escalate this issue - atthat time we had 5 houses total with
confirmed flickering lights. The engineerwas not informed that it was not just my
house with flickering lights - I had to explainto him then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong
load logger had been on my house sinceFebruary 7. It was switched for the correct
one, which I was told would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM PatriciaJudge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday:My lights continue to flicker after
Thursday's "Band-Aid fix," as describedby CPAU employees. Over the weekend,
I discovered a 6th neighboring house withflickering lights.
My understanding is that flickering lights
are a sign of possible fire risk, as they areoften caused by loose connections that
may arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from anyof you on Friday regarding whether my
neighbors and I are at risk for fire, despitemy desperate plea, I called the Fire
Department this morning to ask. I havebeen told that they are looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after I
spoke with the Fire Department, and he islooking into the issue. I do appreciate his
call.
I still do not understand why CPAU'sstandard practice falls below PG&E
standards or how that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out topull the load logger from my house and
put a new one. I understand they'reanalyzing the data. Why not just change
out the transformer, as PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effectiveregulation of CPAU. I think you all (with
the exception of Dean and perhaps theCity Attorney) are responsible for
oversight, but I have not heard anythingsubstantive from any of you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly
unsafe here in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructurealso fall below PG&E standards?
There is something up on the pole on
Greer as I walk my children to school thatmakes a lot of noise. Is it a transformer?
Does the noise mean it's old and indisrepair? I know if a transformer
explodes, my children and I should not beunder it, as we will be harmed by the oil
inside falling on us. Do I have to rerouteour walk to keep us safe? I trusted CPAU,
and although I noted the sound every timeI walked under it, I didn't think twice
about walking under it. Now, I do thinktwice.
The problems aren't just with the Utilities
Department. On December 19, thegarbage cans were not collected in my cul-
de-sac. My elderly neighbor phoneddaily, and the cans were not collected until
December 23, after my second elderlyneighbor in the cul-de-sac called on
December 22 (so it took 3 days of calling,plus it seems like it wasn't taken seriously
until there was a second householdcalling). After my experience with
Utilities, I was sure to apologize to myneighbor for not calling as well - I had
never heard of anything like this! Recology always comes out the next day,
whenever there is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovatingour Eichler - it's our dream house and we
intended for it to be our "forever home." We moved here from Redwood City for
the schools and also to be surrounded by acommunity of safety-oriented individuals
(something that became especiallyimportant in the pandemic). I am
devastated to learn that CPAU standardsfall below PG&E standards. We are now
considering moving, but it would be verydifficult for us to do so financially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you may
have?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM PatriciaJudge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday,
but I really do think this is urgent. Cansomeone please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and
I am worried about the safety of theelectricity being supplied to my home
and the homes around me. Am I at riskfor fire? I've asked this to CPAU
multiple times, with no answer. Am Isafe to stay in my home over the
weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very closefamily friend who is a retired PG&E
lineman. His partner has been in thehospital, I have just found out, so we
were only just able to reach him latemorning today. He said that PG&E
would have changed out thattransformer - that's what Tito said he is
opting not to do and the 2 otheremployees at CPAU told me I should
"plead my case" for. I had no idea whatthe standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only
owned my home for a little over 2 years,but my understanding from fellow
residents is that CPAU is better thanPG&E. Then why isn't CPAU doing the
minimum that PG&E would do?
As you can tell from my email below, Ihad already lost faith - given prior
interactions - that CPAU was fixing ourproblems. I wasn't sure, though -
maybe not replacing a transformer wasa fix, which is why I emailed you.
Now, I have an opinion from aknowledgeable source that the
transformer should have been replaced.
After learning that CPAU is possiblynot meeting standard practice - and
having not heard back from anyone withhigher authority - I contacted the
California Public Utilities Commissionand was disheartened (to say it lightly)
to hear that they only advocate forcustomers of shareholder owned utilities
- i.e., not CPAU. I was advised that Ineed to appeal to the City - which, I
think, is all you.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity,to protect CPAU customers when there
is evidence that a standard is not beingmet? Am I reaching out to the wrong
people for help?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call theFire Department and ask? What does a
"Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean,in terms of safety? Should I leave my
home? Are my neighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM PatriciaJudge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to
you, copying the City Manager, CityAttorney, and City Council, asking
you to please ensure that my ongoingand severe electrical issues at 3409
Greer Road are fixed by CPAU. Atleast 4 of my neighbors are
experiencing these same issues (5houses total). I have been told by 2
CPAU employees that we arereceiving a "Band-Aid fix," not a real
fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit,given how grossly negligent and,
frankly, abusive, my interactions withCPAU have been. But - at this time -
my focus is on getting the electrical
service to my house and myneighbors' houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from my
smart meter, pulled yesterday,February 8, showing severe
brownouts to my home at 3409 GreerRd. This smart meter was put on my
house on February 7. As you'll see,one brownout lasted 1 hour 9
minutes, which I have been told is"insane." For those on the email
without an electrical background,here is a quick primer on the
seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one lightfixture at my house, illustrating the
severity of the flickering lights that Ifirst reported to CPAU on January
24. (Please excuse the paint job - wejust finished completely renovating
the inside and don't have the niceweather yet to paint the outside. That
is a new light fixture, installed lastyear.) As reported to CPAU, this has
been happening throughout myentire house, and we also heard
exhaust fans throughout the houseslowing down and speeding up. My
next door neighbor had the sameexperience.
From January 24 to the time this data
was looked at by CPAU yesterday,February 8, CPAU employees have
denied that there are any issues onCPAU's side. Shockingly, they
continued to deny this, even afterbeing formally informed of 4 more
houses with flickering lights. Untilyesterday afternoon when they finally
looked at the smart meter data frommy house, various CPAU employees
kept telling me to call an electrician,
which I did (multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal,one neighbor called CPAU dispatch
reporting flickering lights and wastold to call back when the
flickering got worse. Everyknowledgeable person I have talked
to - with the exception of one CPAUemployee - has thought that was
absolutely reckless, most laughing indisbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to
rectify the situation, but I was told by2 individuals within CPAU that they
were doing a "Band-Aid fix," not areal fix. I was told by one well-
meaning CPAU employee that Ishould walk around the corner to
where the linemen were working andfind a big guy with a bald head
named Tito to "plead my case" for areal fix. That in itself is one of the
craziest things I've ever heard!
Tito did not seem very receptive tothis (rightfully so because who am I
as a homeowner to tell him how to dohis job?), so, shaken up, I went home
and called the City Manager's office,pleading for an advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant,
took down my story and myinformation, and I have received
attempted help from Alex Gonzalez,Utilities Supervisor. Alex even
worked on my issue into the evening. However, Alex is not in charge of the
correct division of CPAU to addressmy issue. This illustrates a continued
lack of understanding of my issue, at
best, and perhaps a continued lack ofwillingness to rectify my issue. That
is why I'm reaching out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Loran Harding
To:Loran Harding; antonia.tinoco@hsr.ca.gov; alumnipresident@stanford.edu; boardmembers; bballpod;bearwithme1016@att.net; fred beyerlein; Leodies Buchanan; David Balakian; Cathy Lewis; Council, City;cramirez.electriclab133@gmail.com; Doug Vagim; dennisbalakian; dallen1212@gmail.com; eappel@stanford.edu;Scott Wilkinson; George.Rutherford@ucsf.edu; Gabriel.Ramirez@fresno.gov; huidentalsanmateo; hennessy; IrvWeissman; Sally Thiessen; Joel Stiner; jerry ruopoli; karkazianjewelers@gmail.com; kfsndesk;Kevin.Nower@bestbuy.com; MY77FJ@gmail.com; margaret-sasaki@live.com; maverickbruno@sbcglobal.net;merazroofinginc@att.net; Mark Standriff; Mayor; nick yovino; news@fresnobee.com; newsdesk;russ@topperjewelers.com; Steve Wayte; terry; tsheehan; vallesR1969@att.net; yicui@stanford.edu
Subject:Fwd: Barron"s- The Case for NVDA to rally.
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 10:23:34 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
---------- Forwarded message ---------From: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Date: Tue, Jul 2, 2024 at 10:10 PMSubject: Fwd: Barron's- The Case for NVDA to rally.
To: Loran Harding <loran.harding@stanfordalumni.org>
Tuesday, July 2, 2024
To all-
As if investors need to hear it, here is strong support by experts for NVDA. I bought 30shares on Monday, July 1, 2024 after foolishly selling 55 shares last week. Took a little
beating there roundtrip, and won't get fooled again.
Nvidia Stock Drops. The Case for the Chip Maker to Rally. | Barron's (archive.is)
Jensen has continued selling some of his NVDA stock, nine times at least in June, getting~$16 million out each time, now more like $13 million out each time. He sells 120,000 shares
each time, the SEC document shows. But getting $125 million out is peanuts for him. He isworth $40 billion or so. If he thought the Co. was going down he'd be selling a lot more.
L. William Harding
Fresno, Ca.
From:matt@evolutionaryteams.comTo:palo-alto@fridaysforfutureusa.org
Subject:FFF Follow Up – June 28 (Week #129)
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 4:43:14 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious of opening attachments and clicking on links.
A group of young adults passed by. When we asked them how they feel about climate change, they uniformly said, “Climate change sucks.” We couldn’tagree more.
Juan stopped by briefly to let us know that he plans to join us for our climate slow march this Friday. Thanks, Juan, looking forward to having you join us!
George shared a birthday greeting he received from his cousin in Australia. He was surprised because he normally doesn’t receive a birthday greeting from her,and he was even more surprised by her message: Keep up the important work of waking up the complacent. We are delighted that George’s activism is sowell supported by his family. Thanks for sharing that, George!
Robin remains concerned about the potential for a Trump re-election. She reminded us of Michael Mann’s quote, “A Trump win is game over for theclimate.” Thanks, Robin. Let’s not let orange win!
Sheena, who is currently working on an Alzheimer treatment, highlighted how working together in a community towards a common purpose helps reduce therisk of contracting that disease. Just one more benefit of working together to fight climate change. Thanks, Sheena, for the encouragement.
Kimberly shared her journey about training her brain to let her sing and drum at the same time. Music is another great activity for both climate action andreducing Alzheimer risk. Thanks for sharing, Kimberly!
Diane shared an update on the HPWH program – see below. After great progress in spring, we seem to have hit the summer doldrums with only 8 newHPWHs installed in the last month. What can we learn from spring’s amazing progress that we can carry forward year-round? Thanks, Diane, for the update.
Don’t forget that Peninsula Peace and Justice Center is hosting a film screening of Now or Never: A Generation of Climate Warriors (25 minute film)followed by a discussion with Julia and Avroh from Palo Alto Student Climate Coalition (PASCC) on Wednesday, July 3 starting at 7PM. Register for theevent here. Thanks again, Paul, Julia and Avroh for creating this event!
Did anyone else notice it is quite warm today? Although our house sits in direct sun all day, it only got up to 78 inside, without turning on the A/C. How? Themagic of radiant barrier. I installed it on the rafters of our house. I encourage everyone to install radiant barrier to keep the heat out of your homes duringheat waves. (I hear heat waves are becoming more frequent, longer and more intense.) Maybe the city could consider offering incentives for residents to haveradiant barrier installed in their homes. That would be a great way to save energy! This Friday we will march! Our warm weather uniform will be our white Fridays for Future t-shirt. I will bring extras for those who need them.
Keep Up the Fight and See You Friday! Climate Change Sucks! Upcoming Events
Wednesday, July 3, 7PM: Film Screening and Panel discussion –– Peninsula Peace and Justice Center hosts a screening of Now or Never: A Generation of Climate
Warriors followed by a panel discussion with members of Palo Alto Student Climate Coalition. Register here.
Friday, July 5, Noon to 1:00: Climate Slow March –– We meet at King Plaza in front of Palo Alto City Hall and march through downtown Palo Alto
Friday, September 20, Noon to 1:00: Global Climate Action (GCA) –– This is an international day of action with events around the country and the world.
Palo Alto City Meetings: https://www.cityofpaloalto.org/Departments/City-Clerk/City-Meeting-Groups/Meeting-Agendas-and-Minutes (Will Sustainability Task
Force meetings be posted here?)
Climate Community Center: https://climatecommunitycenter.org/
Peninsula Peace and Justice Center calendar: https://peaceandjustice.org/events-calendar/
City of Palo Alto Sustainability Summer Workshop Calendar: Local Sustainability Summer Workshops, Volunteering & Regional Events – City of Palo Alto, CA
Heat Pump Water Heater Program Update
As of:6/27 6/6 5/2 4/4 2/29 1/31 12/28
HPWH full-service interest list signups 1009 991 970 878 797 750 687
Site assessment agreements (SAA) sent 1009 991 970 878 783 748 679
Signed SAAs 824 805 776 696 613 579 522
Completed site assessments 754 727 679 615 538 510 473
Installations
Total Full Service HPWHs installed 280 267 243 226 224 184 158
Total DIY HPWH installed 83 88 68 68 57 49 44
Total HPWHs installed 363 355 311 294 281 233 202
Target Installations 1000 1000 1000 1000 1000 1000 1000
Monthly Installation Rate
Monthly Installation Rate 8 44 17 13 48 31 19
Target Monthly Installation Rate 83 83 83 83 83 83 83
Weekly Photos
FFF June 28: https://photos.app.goo.gl/Vh9DQThYxnNkWq3y7
What We Are Reading/Watching/Listening to:
Harvard Business Review article In Defense of Degrowth: https://hbr.org/2024/06/in-defense-of-degrowth The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens (podcast): https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/ Care More Be Better podcast with Corrina Bellizzi: https://caremorebebetter.com/
Roger Hallum’s final episode on his Designing the Revolution podcast series on the importance of transcendence to build a movement community: https://music.youtube.com/podcast/h6EnT0icv7o
Climate One podcast: https://www.climateone.org/listen-watch/podcasts
Follow Fridays For Future Palo Alto:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fridaysforfuture_paloalto/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Fri4Future_PA
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@FridaysForFuturePaloAlto
Email notifications of FFF Palo Alto events: https://mailchi.mp/c8c130127345/join-fridays-for-future-palo-alto
You are receiving this email because you have expressed an interest in supporting climate action in Palo Alto. If you no longer wish to receive these emails,
please let me know.
Matt Schlegel
Organizer
Fridays For Future Palo Alto
Cell: 650-924-8923
Email: Palo-Alto@FridaysForFutureUSA.org
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fridaysforfuture_paloalto/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Fri4Future_PA
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMGKrv_ADB5k7HPK9FJO_Hw
Green Mic Web: https://www.greenmic.org
FFF Web: https://fridaysforfutureusa.org/local-groups/palo-alto/
Email List: https://mailchi.mp/c8c130127345/join-fridays-for-future-palo-alto
From:Marshall, Tomm
To:patricia.judge@gmail.com
Cc:Batchelor, Dean; Burton, Kaylee; Lauing, Ed; Council, City; City Mgr
Subject:FW: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 4:08:55 PM
Attachments:image001.pngimage002.pngimage003.pngimage004.pngimage005.pngimage006.pngimage007.pngNew Transformer Graph.png
Ms. Tamarazi,
The city is prepared to cover the costs of an electrician to conduct a thorough inspection of your
home. Should the electrician discover any damages that might have been caused by the city, you
have the option to file a claim through the city's website at Submit a Claim Against the City – City of
Palo Alto, CA, to seek reimbursement for those damages.
Regrettably, this issue was not a simple repair but rather a complex matter that required extensive
troubleshooting and time to resolve.
Enclosed are the latest readings from the newly installed transformer as of Thursday, July 28,
confirming that there are currently no issues detected.
Due to the complexity of the situation, the solution did not unfold as originally anticipated. Through
persistent troubleshooting efforts, however, we successfully identified and resolved the underlying
cause.
At present, CPAU (City of Palo Alto Utilities) has not been informed of any additional electrical
concerns associated with transformer malfunctions.
I trust that I have sufficiently addressed all of your inquiries in the preceding email.
Thank you,
Kaylee Burton
Utilities Administrative Assistant
City of Palo Alto Utilities Department
Phone: 650.329.2326 | Cell: 650.444.5305
E-mail: kaylee.burton@CityofPaloAlto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 10:53 AM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing,
Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City Mgr
<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Dear Tomm,
Thank you for your email. In response:
1. Will the City commit to paying for all damage to my house? I am waiting to get an electrician
in because I am waiting for an answer to the question I have asked multiple times: will the City
commit to paying for any damage found within my home? My house is newly rewired and
had no damage when assessed back in late January when our flickering lights were first
reported to CPAU. These flickering lights were later attributed to being caused by severe
brownouts due to the City's poor power supply, however the City denied all
possible responsibility for over a week prior to putting a smart meter on my house, so,
trusting that, I consulted multiple electricians during that time. Thereafter, voltage
fluctuations were measured. Therefore, if the power supply to my house is safe and reliable
now and I am still experiencing issues, it is due to the damage the City's poor power supply
has caused to my house. Will the City commit to paying for all damage?
2. Shouldn't it be up to CPAU - not me - to determine what a "proper fix" is? I have been told
that, in fact, back in February, the loose leg was tightened and the power supply got worse,
not better, but that the supervisor did not want to pay overtime for the proper fix, so they
just left it. This is per your own employees - multiple of them told me to advocate for
something better than a "Band-aid fix." I know you have denied that being the case, but you
have not provided any data illustrating that your employees who told me to advocate for
myself were wrong (and what would their motivation be to lie to me??). What a "proper fix"
means, I do not know, nor should I, as I am simply a resident and customer. If you replaced
the transformer only upon my request, as you are now saying - wow, that is incredibly scary
and this whole situation is even worse than I thought.
3. Could you please provide data showing the issue is fixed? Do you have data showing that the
fourth transformer fixed the ongoing issue?
4. Why is the fix only at the repeated request of a resident? If I didn't push and push and push,
would you have just left the defective transformers? With the latest swap (which you say now
fixed the poor power supply, right?), Utilities sent my neighbors notification of power shut
down only after I requested the California State regulators be let in to inspect, and even then
it was not treated as an emergency!
5. Are faulty transformers a problem throughout the City of Palo Alto? If yes, what is being done
to fix this issue to protect the health and safety of residents? Please see one resident's
account below. I have also connected with other homeowners whose appliances were blown
out by poor power supply to their houses.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
On Tue, Jul 2, 2024 at 9:50 AM Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The voltage fluctuations observed in the network supplied by the transformer located at3480 Thomas Drive were not due to a loose neutral wire but rather stemmed from amanufacturing defect in the transformers supplied to the City of Palo Alto.
Initially, the issue at your property was identified as a loose Hot Leg on the transformer.The voltage fluctuation on your service was resolved upon repairing this connection.However, following this repair, you reported persistent voltage fluctuations. Although wedid not observe any issues with your service, we proceeded with replacing the transformerupon your request. After replacement, we observed unexpected voltage deviations causingintermittent flickering on the new transformer. Subsequent replacement with another unitfrom the same manufacturer revealed that the issue lay in a defect inherent to thesetransformers.
The transformer was then replaced a third time, this time with a unit from a different
manufacturer, which effectively resolved the unexpected voltage fluctuations in thesecondary system.
As mentioned previously, if you continue to experience flickering lights or any relatedissues, we remain committed to assisting you by facilitating an investigation with an
electrician of your choosing to identify and address the root cause.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:06 AM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City
Mgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi Tomm,
I hope this email finds you well. Following up on my email from May 31, since I have not heard
back from you yet and since Kurt Williams told me yesterday to contact you regarding my
questions on the known and unfixed loose neutral.
Could you please provide an update on fixing the loose neutral measured up on the pole at 3480
Thomas Drive, in at least March?
It looks like they switched out the transformer again last week. I believe that this is the third time
the transformer has been switched. Why was it switched again?
Has the loose neutral been fixed?
Trish Tamrazi
On Fri, May 31, 2024 at 8:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm - Following up on my email from Tuesday, since you have not replied. When will
the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? As you know, utility companies treat this as an
emergency, and ours was identified at least back in March (I believe, in talking with CPAU
employees, February). https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-floating-neutral-
2262
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 11:25 AM Patricia Judge <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks, Tomm. My understanding is that the crews would know right away by testing if they
fixed the loose neutral, so is it correct to assume that your email means that they did not fix
the neutral issue? When will you be doing that? I’m sure you can understand my being
worried about this since it’s a serious electrical danger (risk of surge and fire).
From what I have pieced together, there was a neutral issue with the old transformer and a
neutral issue with the new transformer, so wouldn’t that suggest that the issue is NOT with
the transformer? Is there maybe a damaged or loose wire somewhere that needs to be
found? I understand that would take much more time to find and fix versus switching out the
transformer again, and I do appreciate the crews’ time.
2 City employees now - one back on February and one last week (May) - have expressed to
me how worried they are about overgrown trees around the overhead wires in my
neighborhood. Could that be contributing to my poor power supply? When will the trees
around the wires be trimmed?
I’m looping in Councilmember Lauing, since he has been actively working on this.
I’m here to help. I want nothing more than to get this resolved so that I can just live in peace
- with safe and reliable power - and never have to contact you again. I want to be clear, that
is my goal.
Thank you,
Trish
650-208-4802
Sent from my iPhone
On May 28, 2024, at 10:13 AM, Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The transformer was replaced, new wire connections were installed and meters
were installed to record data.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, May 24, 2024 10:26 AM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
What happened yesterday - did they find the loose neutral (identified in
early March) and tighten it?
Trish
Patricia Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 10:10 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have attached a screenshot of the neutral issue.
<image001.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 9:27 AM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. My understanding is that when my house was on the new
transformer, there was a "neutral issue" that was picked up by the load
logger. Could you please send me screen shots of that data, showing the
"neutral issue"?
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 8:20 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have reviewed the data from April 25th – May 1st and have attached a
screenshot below. On 4/29 at about 6AM, there was a temporary dip of
the high side voltage, causing the secondary voltage to drop below 114V.
Besides this anomaly, the secondary voltage stayed between the required
5% tolerance (126V -114V) and the PST value was below 1, indicating that
no flicker likely occurred expect on the morning on 4/29 where the PST
value was above 1.
<image003.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 4:21 PM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor,
Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. Has the data been reviewed yet that was taken from the
last time the load logger was on the house?
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 3:53 PM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I spoke with Tomm and the meter technicians will be out tomorrow
morning, 5/16, between 9AM and 10AM to install the load logger.
Best,
<image002.png>Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 8:57 AM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
My lights are flickering again - at 11:15am on Sunday 5/12 and in the
evening of Monday 5/13. The flickering was on different circuits. I can
send video if you'd like.
I don't know whether the load logger is on or not? I think maybe it is
not, since I did see my gate closed differently after it was installed. I
don't receive notification of the work - but I would like that, please,
since I am having to be so involved.
A couple of questions:
1. Is it possible there are loose connections from Utilities on my
panel? There was a torque test on everything my electrician did -
how about what Utilities has done? It seemed like the flickering
stopped when the load logger was on (if it is indeed off) - so I
thought maybe it was a loose connection related to that -
especially since you had told me previously that you found a
LOOSE CONNECTION on the load logger. This is quite concerning,
of course, and should be an easy fix? It seems like the load logger
was taken off, and the flickering returned.
2. You said previously there was a "neutral issue" when connected
to the NEW transformer, so you took us off that and put us on the
OLD transformer next to it. Can you just fix the "neutral issue"
and put me on the NEW transformer? Will this solve my flickering
lights? What does "neutral issue" mean?
This flickering was first reported to CPAU January 24, so this is quite
frustrating that it is still going on.
Could you please fix it?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 2:47 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Here are more files.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 2:16 PM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Load logger. Having a meter reset - does that mean coming out to
put a load logger back on my house? My understanding is that the
smart meter will not pick up most poor power supply issues - I need a
load logger on there, and it needs to be the correct one (I have been
told there was a "wrong" one on, for quite a while). I was told that it
was only because my brownouts were so severe that the smart meter
picked them up - generally, it would not.
Video. The video showed the light - when the light switch is turned
off - it takes a long time to go out, gets very bright, then turns off.
This is on a dumb switch. It was flickering severely the day before this
odd behavior (I do have video of the flickering). Then this odd
behavior. Then back to normal. Please note that this is different than
the flickering, which occurs when the lights are on. This is odd
behavior when we try to turn the light off.
Flickering. Flickering occurs on fixtures with lightbulbs throughout
the house - many have dumb switches, some have dimmers. Since
this flickering is consistent across different switch devices and
happens intermittently, it seems unlikely that the flickering is due to
dimmers. It seems flickering is more pronouced on fixtures with bulbs
than integrated LEDs - I have been told that may indicate low voltage
- what do you think?
Some people who received this message don't often get email frompatricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Records request. I do not believe that any original datasets came
through to me in response to my records request. There are many,
many items missing in the records request, which I only submitted
because I've asked for the data many times, and I have never received
it. I have been told that Utilities does not want to provide it (folks
refer to "my supervisor") - which is why I put in the records request -
as a matter of law, it is to be provided. I'm attaching the load logger
data that I have seen - but I would like the full data set, please.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Apr 23, 2024 at 1:36 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
I am having the charts printed out so that I can forward them to
you . The original datasets were included in the Public Records
Request but they appear to require the meter manufacturers
software to decode the data. When I have more time I will see if
the files can be exported in a data file that can be read by
something like EXCEL. The PDF files of the data from your house
should be ready by the end of the week.
I have asked the engineer to request the meter to be reset on your
house and it should be done this week.
The video showed the light flickering and going out. A couple of
questions since I don’t know the setup in your house. Was this the
only light experiencing the flickering? Is the light connected to a
dimmer switch?
Thanks for you patience.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 12:43 PM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Following up from our phone discussion on Thursday, April 18,
since I have not heard from anyone yet -
Could you send all data from the load loggers associated with the
power to my house, please? When will load loggers be put back on
my house, please?
I have more video of my lights flickering on Saturday, April 20.
Could you please let me know if you'd like to see it?
My understanding from our discussion Thursday is that you
measured the following: (1) brownouts initially (first reported
January 24 and recorded via smart meter February 8 - these issues
are also in the data from the load loggers?), (2) power to house
from new transformer around February 12, then continuing
flickering lights due to a problem with the neutral (is that a loose
neutral?), then (3) did not fix those neutral issues, instead moved
the house to an old transformer on the secondary pole (which also
had loose connections - so if the "proper fix" on the other pole was
a new transformer, why not on this pole too?), and continuing
flickering lights.
Did you have a chance to review the video I sent on April 17, video
recorded April 14? I've never seen a light do this - could you please
tell me what is going on? Is this dangerous? Is this a surge due to
ongoing issues? The light did go back to normal - so the only thing
that could have changed is the power supply to my house.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 11:55 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm,
I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Thank you for your call on the afternoon of Thursday, April 4.
I'm sorry for missing it - I am dealing with some health issues and
could not answer the phone. My understanding is that many
City employees do not work on Fridays, so I intended to call you
on Monday, April 8. However, upon walking out my door to take
my son to school on that morning, I came upon the City's
contractor replacing my water meter (no notice) - I asked him to
follow specific City procedures laid out to my elderly neighbor
whose water was grossly contaminated by the techniques used
by the contractor, with the assurance those procedures would
be followed, but they were not, and my water was contaminated
with yard dirt. I have been dealing with that since.
I just left you a voicemail. Attached please find the video I
referenced in that voicemail, of the weird issue with the light in
my daughter's room. This was last Thursday, April 11. The day
before, April 10, the lights were severely flickering. The light
went back to normal as of Sunday, April 14. The only thing that
possibly could have changed is the power supply to the house.
By way of background which may be helpful, this light fixture was
new last year - it uses lightbulbs.
Could you please provide all load logger data related to the
power supply to my house?
If you think this issue is resolved, could you please put a load
logger back on to measure these issues? I have never seen a
light act like in the video - neither have electricians that I have
consulted.
I am very worried that this is dangerous and could start a fire.
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 4, 2024 at 10:31 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Tomm,
It's nice to hear from you. I am free to discuss by phone at any
time. I want to start with a baseline: I am here to help and I
am open to working with you. While I am very upset with the
dysfunction in Palo Alto, my anger and frustration is not
directed toward employees like you (as a general statement,
with exceptions for those who have been threatening to me
and/or lied to me).
A quick Google search suggests that you probably understand
the reality of what I am going through. My lights seem to
flicker evenings and weekends - but not long holiday
weekends or, it seems, during this week which is spring break
for Palo Alto public schools.
The "EIT" (which I assume is "Engineer in Training"), who I
have been told is the point person for my issues (an
illustration of how seriously it's been taken, that we don't
even have a licensed engineer in charge), suggested my
flickering lights are due to some sort of machine at a
hypothetical construction site nearby, which is, of course,
silly.
I think it's more likely that it's the 2 EVs charging in many
driveways in my neighborhood.
It's been insinuated to me that CPAU is covering up issues
voiced by citizens like me, who are only trying to get safe and
reliable power to our houses. Maybe it's that with the City
Council's obsession with electrification, no one dares admit
what's actually going on.
Yes, my primary transformer was upgraded, but how about
the lines?
I've been in contact with a bunch of folks with flickering lights
who are PG&E customers - PG&E comes right out, diagnoses
the problem, and fixes it.
Here in Palo Alto is different - in a bad way. I have been told
that cutting costs is the number 1 priority - not providing safe
and reliable power to homes or empowering linemen to
diagnose and fix problems.
Do you know that another customer called in flickering lights
and 2 failed appliances (at least) and it took 10 days plus
another follow-up call plus 1 more day to get a lineman out to
just check for a loose neutral?! How unsafe!!!! They put a
load logger on, but now she's getting the runaround from
CPAU for someone to come out to pull the data. It's exactly
what happened to me.
This is too much to ask from citizens. This is no way to run a
utility.
Please let me know when a good time for a discussion is.
Again, my anger is toward this dysfunctional city, not toward
you.
Thank you for reaching out to me, and I look forward to
working together.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 3, 2024 at 3:24 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
If you have time tomorrow or sometime next week I
would like to have a conversation with you regardingyou concerns with the electric service at your house. I
am the Assistant Director of Electric Engineering andOperations and I hope that I can find a way to address
your concerns. My staff has updated me on yoursituation and I am familiar with the events and the visits
to your house. In addition, I have reviewed the voltageand current recordings that have been take at your house
and in the adjacent homes.
Please let me know when you have time to discusseither on the phone or in person at your home.
Thanks
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, April 1, 2024 9:02 PMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims,Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Some people who received this message don't often get email from
patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Stone, Greer <Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Tanaka, Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Veenker, Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Clerk, City <city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causingbrownouts
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have not
received an answer. The only time I received asubstantive answer was when I expressed my
displeasure at not being able to purchase an EV (beingafraid that my neighborhood would burn down or that
my young children were in danger didn't strike a chordwith you). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garage
where I had planned for EV chargers:
<image004.png>
<image005.png>
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replace the
old car which was totaled after being stolen from infront of my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on the
evening of March 28. This is visual evidence of why Icannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safe and
reliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU onJanuary 24. After struggling with CPAU for over 2
weeks, I first reached out to you regarding this issue on
February 9, after I was told by CPAU's own employeesthat I needed to advocate for a "proper fix" to our issues
and was met with a threatening environment when I didso in person to CPAU's supervising employee. I truly
thought you would help me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronics inour home, all of which are new since we just finished
renovating in late 2023. For example (and this is notall-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up (turn on and off
randomly and unexpectedly) and the ice in our Sub-zerois stuck together (suggesting that it is not regulating its
temperature properly).
My family is suffering because ofyour unresponsiveness. I spend countless hours trying
to navigate how to get my city government to respond tome so that I can get safe and reliable power to my
house. My business is suffering, my young children aresuffering, and I have developed health issues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it? Your
constituents are depending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of the emailsthat came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have
on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, since beingtold by Ed on March 5 that Dean will be calling me
and that Ed would join if needed. That was over 3weeks ago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on PBS
last night. I recommend you watch it. I found itinspiring to see the amazing impact properly funded
and functioning public health systems can have, aswell as the negative effects that flow from cutting
funding and letting those systems fall into disrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for your management of the
Utilities Department?
I'm sure by now you have heard of the contaminationof some houses' drinking water that was caused by the
contractor the city hired to swap out water meters. When are you planning on warning residents of the
error and helping them to clean up the mess? This isa public health issue!!! As you remain silent, citizens
have been drinking contaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notifymy neighbors of the damage your poor power supply
has done to their homes. I first suggested you do thisin my email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman across
town - a mom with your children and a lot on herplate - who has had flickering lights as well as a
dishwasher and refrigerator that have gone out. Myunderstanding is that she is patiently waiting for
someone to come out to her house to check it out. Iimagine I do not need to state this to you, as you are
the regulators of the Utility and must know - but justin case: utilities companies generally treat flickering
lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city'sresponse to my Public Records Request is still
woefully unresponsive. I am simply trying to gatherinformation to fix the power supply to my house! It is
the city's legal duty to respond fully. The city did,however, produce 2 emails which are sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any real assistance
or response, Dean forwarded my desperate email
pleading for help and expressing my general
displeasure with the mismanagement in Palo Alto
to Catherine Elvert, who I gather from a Google
search is a PR professional, with the note “Here
you go !!!” Were you getting your talking points in
order, rather than focusing on helping your
citizens??
2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate email pleading
for help (email stamp on my email shows, "date:
Feb 12, 2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed sent an email (email
stamp on Ed's email shows: "Sent: Monday,
February 12, 2024 3:16 PM") to multiple City of
Palo Alto email addresses stating that Dean has
spoken to me a couple times (NOT TRUE!!!!!) and
“No need for further prompting. Thanks all!”
NOTHING HAD BEEN ADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of theemails that came before it: I welcome any thoughts
you have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be veryclear: I would much rather have a responsive,
caring, and ethical city government, than bring anythieves to justice.
The stress from having our car stolen from in front
of our house pales in comparison to the stress andanguish we have experienced as a family in getting
the run around from CPAU and then being ignoredby City Hall, as I try to get safe and reliable power
delivered to the houses in my neighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should never havebeen this involved or have had to push so hard.
This is too much to ask from citizens. It is no wayto run a utility. But, to continue down that path:
logically, shouldn't the transformer also be replacedon the "secondary pole," where loose connections
were also found? If that was the "proper fix" on thefirst pole climbed (i.e. PG&E minimum
maintenance standards), wouldn't it also be the"proper fix" on the second?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this is
a long-standing issue, not unique to my block,which has harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed
<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being
stolen. I can only imagine how this has impactedyou and your family. While understanding
nothing can make up for such a violation, I hope
the thieves are quickly brought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spoken toDirector Batchelor and understand he will be
calling you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear thattheir replacement of the electrical transformer
did not resolve the problem. I will stay in touchwith him and happy to join a call as he works
with you on next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
<image006.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 |
ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
<image007.png>
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump,Molly <Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Kou, Lydia <Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer
Some people who received this message don't often get
email from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is
important
<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka,Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr
<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issuescausing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated fromoutside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking onlinks.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from in
front of our house here in Palo Alto. It looks likeit's totaled. When we completely rewired the
house last year, we future proofed toaccommodate an EV charger - 2 actually.
However, CPAU is unable to provide safe andreliable power to our house. Because of this, to
our great disappointment, we cannot replace ourgas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call in
the middle of the night that someone is bleedingto death and needs an intervention, and his EV
didn't charge - well, that's a big problem!
City Council - I see your talking points onelectrification (I'm all for electrification). You
know that your electrical infrastructure can'tsupport it.
This is the real world effect of your decisions:a family that wanted to go electric cannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help,dating back to my first email to you on February
9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 GreerRd. - the latest working theory from CPAU is
that it is caused by an air compressor at atheoretical construction site nearby. (1) That's a
laughable theory. (2) My lights flicker eveningsand weekends - which CPAU engineers have
been told. Is the cause the 2 EVs charging inevery driveway + an outdated electrical
infrastructure that cannot support it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to mypower issues. (a) The response was a day late.
(b) The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behindmunicipal utilities falling outside of regulation is
(i) elected officials, who serve as the utlity'soversight, will be responsive (mine - you - are
silent) and (ii) there are protections such as thePublic Records Request (my city obviously
disregards its legal duties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week, onestated: When municipal utilities are good, they're
really great. But when they're bad, it's abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead of therest of the city in the grid update. Maybe Elon
Musk's words will resonate with you then - hesaid that the world will face supply crunches in
electricity and transformers next year. Whatdoes that result in? Flickering lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps to
make our municipal utility "really great," insteadof "abysmal"? Your constituents are depending
on you.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409Greer Rd. I still have not heard anything
substantive from anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council - youare the regulators of the Utilities Department,
correct? Why have I still not heard back fromany of you with anything substantive? (The
vast majority of you, I have not heard anythingat all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a
fire risk? I am worried - I have 2 smallchildren - I have expressed this and no one
seems to care!
The transformer that I have been toldsupplies power to my house was switched out
on February 15. On February 14, the UtilitiesDepartment climbed another pole nearby
(described to me as my "secondary pole") and
found loose connections, which I've been toldwere tightened. That's 2 out of 2 poles with
loose connections. Is routine maintenancebeing done? Are there loose connections all
over the city? My lights continue to flicker -are other loose connections causing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connections
would explain the problems the neighborshave experienced on that side of my house: (1)
one neighbor's refrigerator went out and shehad to go buy a new one last weekend, (2)
another neighbor had flickering lights (Idiscovered this by overhearing him over the
fence speaking to someone about his panel),(3) a third neighbor had an outdoor light that
was malfunctioning (she described it as "actingweird"). These are the things that I have heard
only in passing - surprisingly, everyone hascomplete trust in Palo Alto Utilities and does
not blame the poor power supply they arereceiving. These 3 houses are in addition to
the 6 houses experiencing poor power supplyissues from the other pole (one of which went
through 3 refrigerators in January). So that's 9houses total with issues - and I imagine there
are more!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to yourcitizens these issues after you discover them?
Shouldn't you inform them that they have beenreceiving poor power supply and educate them
on the damage that has possibly (or likely)been done to the appliances and electronics
within their home? I thought CPAU issupposed to do better than PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from an
engineer to get my story to analyze the datacollected by the load logger on my house.
He was unaware that mine was not the onlyhouse with flickering lights! How is
communication that bad?! As a reminder, themorning of February 9 was when I first
emailed all of you to escalate this issue - at
that time we had 5 houses total with confirmedflickering lights. The engineer was not
informed that it was not just my housewith flickering lights - I had to explain to him
then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong loadlogger had been on my house since February
7. It was switched for the correct one, which Iwas told would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday: Mylights continue to flicker after Thursday's
"Band-Aid fix," as described by CPAUemployees. Over the weekend, I discovered
a 6th neighboring house with flickeringlights.
My understanding is that flickering lights
are a sign of possible fire risk, as they areoften caused by loose connections that may
arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from anyof you on Friday regarding whether my
neighbors and I are at risk for fire, despitemy desperate plea, I called the Fire
Department this morning to ask. I have
been told that they are looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after Ispoke with the Fire Department, and he is
looking into the issue. I do appreciate hiscall.
I still do not understand why CPAU's
standard practice falls below PG&Estandards or how that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out to
pull the load logger from my house and puta new one. I understand they're analyzing
the data. Why not just change out thetransformer, as PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effective
regulation of CPAU. I think you all (withthe exception of Dean and perhaps the City
Attorney) are responsible for oversight, but Ihave not heard anything substantive from
any of you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly unsafehere in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructure
also fall below PG&E standards?
There is something up on the pole on Greeras I walk my children to school that makes a
lot of noise. Is it a transformer? Does thenoise mean it's old and in disrepair? I know
if a transformer explodes, my children and Ishould not be under it, as we will be harmed
by the oil inside falling on us. Do I have toreroute our walk to keep us safe? I trusted
CPAU, and although I noted the sound everytime I walked under it, I didn't think twice
about walking under it. Now, I do thinktwice.
The problems aren't just with the Utilities
Department. On December 19, the garbagecans were not collected in my cul-de-sac.
My elderly neighbor phoned daily, and thecans were not collected until December 23,
after my second elderly neighbor in the cul-de-sac called on December 22 (so it took 3
days of calling, plus it seems like it wasn'ttaken seriously until there was a second
household calling). After my experiencewith Utilities, I was sure to apologize to my
neighbor for not calling as well - I had neverheard of anything like this! Recology
always comes out the next day, wheneverthere is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovating
our Eichler - it's our dream house and weintended for it to be our "forever home."
We moved here from Redwood City for theschools and also to be surrounded by a
community of safety-oriented individuals(something that became especially important
in the pandemic). I am devastated to learnthat CPAU standards fall below PG&E
standards. We are now considering moving,but it would be very difficult for us to do so
financially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you mayhave?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday, butI really do think this is urgent. Can
someone please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and Iam worried about the safety of the
electricity being supplied to my home andthe homes around me. Am I at risk for
fire? I've asked this to CPAU multipletimes, with no answer. Am I safe to stay
in my home over the weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very closefamily friend who is a retired PG&E
lineman. His partner has been in thehospital, I have just found out, so we were
only just able to reach him late morningtoday. He said that PG&E would have
changed out that transformer - that's whatTito said he is opting not to do and the 2
other employees at CPAU told me Ishould "plead my case" for. I had no idea
what the standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only ownedmy home for a little over 2 years, but my
understanding from fellow residents isthat CPAU is better than PG&E. Then
why isn't CPAU doing the minimum thatPG&E would do?
As you can tell from my email below, I
had already lost faith - given priorinteractions - that CPAU was fixing our
problems. I wasn't sure, though - maybenot replacing a transformer was a fix,
which is why I emailed you. Now, I havean opinion from a knowledgeable source
that the transformer should have beenreplaced.
After learning that CPAU is possibly not
meeting standard practice - and having notheard back from anyone with higher
authority - I contacted the CaliforniaPublic Utilities Commission and was
disheartened (to say it lightly) to hear thatthey only advocate for customers of
shareholder owned utilities - i.e., notCPAU. I was advised that I need to
appeal to the City - which, I think, is allyou.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity,
to protect CPAU customers when there isevidence that a standard is not being met?
Am I reaching out to the wrong people forhelp?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call the
Fire Department and ask? What does a"Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean,
in terms of safety? Should I leave myhome? Are my neighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to you,copying the City Manager, City
Attorney, and City Council, asking youto please ensure that my ongoing and
severe electrical issues at 3409 GreerRoad are fixed by CPAU. At least 4 of
my neighbors are experiencing thesesame issues (5 houses total). I have
been told by 2 CPAU employees thatwe are receiving a "Band-Aid fix," not
a real fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit, givenhow grossly negligent and, frankly,
abusive, my interactions with CPAUhave been. But - at this time - my focus
is on getting the electrical service to myhouse and my neighbors'
houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from mysmart meter, pulled yesterday, February
8, showing severe brownouts to myhome at 3409 Greer Rd. This smart
meter was put on my house onFebruary 7. As you'll see, one
brownout lasted 1 hour 9 minutes,which I have been told is "insane." For
those on the email without an electricalbackground, here is a quick primer on
the seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one lightfixture at my house, illustrating the
severity of the flickering lights that Ifirst reported to CPAU on January 24.
(Please excuse the paint job - we justfinished completely renovating
the inside and don't have the niceweather yet to paint the outside. That is
a new light fixture, installed last year.) As reported to CPAU, this has been
happening throughout my entire house,and we also heard exhaust fans
throughout the house slowing down andspeeding up. My next door neighbor
had the same experience.
From January 24 to the time this datawas looked at by CPAU yesterday,
February 8, CPAU employees havedenied that there are any issues on
CPAU's side. Shockingly, theycontinued to deny this, even after being
formally informed of 4 more houseswith flickering lights. Until yesterday
afternoon when they finally looked atthe smart meter data from my house,
various CPAU employees kept tellingme to call an electrician, which I did
(multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal, oneneighbor called CPAU dispatch
reporting flickering lights and was toldto call back when the flickering got
worse. Every knowledgeable person Ihave talked to - with the exception of
one CPAU employee - has thought thatwas absolutely reckless, most
laughing in disbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to rectifythe situation, but I was told by 2
individuals within CPAU that they weredoing a "Band-Aid fix," not a real fix. I
was told by one well-meaning CPAUemployee that I should walk around the
corner to where the linemen wereworking and find a big guy with a bald
head named Tito to "plead my case" fora real fix. That in itself is one of the
craziest things I've ever heard!
Tito did not seem very receptive to this
(rightfully so because who am I as ahomeowner to tell him how to do his
job?), so, shaken up, I went home andcalled the City Manager's office,
pleading for an advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant, tookdown my story and my information,
and I have received attempted helpfrom Alex Gonzalez, Utilities
Supervisor. Alex even worked on myissue into the evening. However, Alex
is not in charge of the correct divisionof CPAU to address my issue. This
illustrates a continued lack ofunderstanding of my issue, at best, and
perhaps a continued lack of willingnessto rectify my issue. That is why I'm
reaching out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Patricia Judge Tamrazi
To:Marshall, Tomm
Cc:Williams, Kurt; Batchelor, Dean; Burton, Kaylee; Lauing, Ed; Council, City; City Mgr
Subject:Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 10:53:36 AM
Attachments:image.png
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Dear Tomm,
Thank you for your email. In response:
1. Will the City commit to paying for all damage to my house? I am waiting to get an
electrician in because I am waiting for an answer to the question I have asked multipletimes: will the City commit to paying for any damage found within my home? My
house is newly rewired and had no damage when assessed back in late January whenour flickering lights were first reported to CPAU. These flickering lights were later
attributed to being caused by severe brownouts due to the City's poor power supply,however the City denied all possible responsibility for over a week prior to putting a
smart meter on my house, so, trusting that, I consulted multiple electricians during thattime. Thereafter, voltage fluctuations were measured. Therefore, if the power supply to
my house is safe and reliable now and I am still experiencing issues, it is due to thedamage the City's poor power supply has caused to my house. Will the City commit to
paying for all damage?
2. Shouldn't it be up to CPAU - not me - to determine what a "proper fix" is? I have beentold that, in fact, back in February, the loose leg was tightened and the power supply got
worse, not better, but that the supervisor did not want to pay overtime for the proper fix,so they just left it. This is per your own employees - multiple of them told me to
advocate for something better than a "Band-aid fix." I know you have denied that beingthe case, but you have not provided any data illustrating that your employees who told
me to advocate for myself were wrong (and what would their motivation be to lie tome??). What a "proper fix" means, I do not know, nor should I, as I am simply a
resident and customer. If you replaced the transformer only upon my request, as you arenow saying - wow, that is incredibly scary and this whole situation is even worse than I
thought.
3. Could you please provide data showing the issue is fixed? Do you have data showingthat the fourth transformer fixed the ongoing issue?
4. Why is the fix only at the repeated request of a resident? If I didn't push and push and
push, would you have just left the defective transformers? With the latest swap (whichyou say now fixed the poor power supply, right?), Utilities sent my neighbors
notification of power shut down only after I requested the California State regulators belet in to inspect, and even then it was not treated as an emergency!
5. Are faulty transformers a problem throughout the City of Palo Alto? If yes, what is
being done to fix this issue to protect the health and safety of residents? Please see one
resident's account below. I have also connected with other homeowners whoseappliances were blown out by poor power supply to their houses.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
On Tue, Jul 2, 2024 at 9:50 AM Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org>
wrote:
The voltage fluctuations observed in the network supplied by the transformer located at3480 Thomas Drive were not due to a loose neutral wire but rather stemmed from a
manufacturing defect in the transformers supplied to the City of Palo Alto.
Initially, the issue at your property was identified as a loose Hot Leg on the transformer. The
voltage fluctuation on your service was resolved upon repairing this connection. However,following this repair, you reported persistent voltage fluctuations. Although we did not
observe any issues with your service, we proceeded with replacing the transformer uponyour request. After replacement, we observed unexpected voltage deviations causing
intermittent flickering on the new transformer. Subsequent replacement with another unitfrom the same manufacturer revealed that the issue lay in a defect inherent to these
transformers.
The transformer was then replaced a third time, this time with a unit from a different
manufacturer, which effectively resolved the unexpected voltage fluctuations in thesecondary system.
As mentioned previously, if you continue to experience flickering lights or any relatedissues, we remain committed to assisting you by facilitating an investigation with an
electrician of your choosing to identify and address the root cause.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:06 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City Mgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi Tomm,
I hope this email finds you well. Following up on my email from May 31, since I have notheard back from you yet and since Kurt Williams told me yesterday to contact you regardingmy questions on the known and unfixed loose neutral.
Could you please provide an update on fixing the loose neutral measured up on the pole at3480 Thomas Drive, in at least March?
It looks like they switched out the transformer again last week. I believe that this is the thirdtime the transformer has been switched. Why was it switched again?
Has the loose neutral been fixed?
Trish Tamrazi
On Fri, May 31, 2024 at 8:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Dear Tomm - Following up on my email from Tuesday, since you have not replied. When will the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? As you know, utilitycompanies treat this as an emergency, and ours was identified at least back in March (Ibelieve, in talking with CPAU employees,February). https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-floating-neutral-2262
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 11:25 AM Patricia Judge <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks, Tomm. My understanding is that the crews would know right away by testingif they fixed the loose neutral, so is it correct to assume that your email means that theydid not fix the neutral issue? When will you be doing that? I’m sure you can understandmy being worried about this since it’s a serious electrical danger (risk of surge andfire).
From what I have pieced together, there was a neutral issue with the old transformerand a neutral issue with the new transformer, so wouldn’t that suggest that the issue isNOT with the transformer? Is there maybe a damaged or loose wire somewhere thatneeds to be found? I understand that would take much more time to find and fix versusswitching out the transformer again, and I do appreciate the crews’ time.
2 City employees now - one back on February and one last week (May) - haveexpressed to me how worried they are about overgrown trees around the overhead wiresin my neighborhood. Could that be contributing to my poor power supply? When willthe trees around the wires be trimmed?
I’m looping in Councilmember Lauing, since he has been actively working on this.
I’m here to help. I want nothing more than to get this resolved so that I can just live inpeace - with safe and reliable power - and never have to contact you again. I want to beclear, that is my goal.
Thank you,
Trish
650-208-4802
Sent from my iPhone
On May 28, 2024, at 10:13 AM, Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The transformer was replaced, new wire connections were installed andmeters were installed to record data.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, May 24, 2024 10:26 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor,
Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
What happened yesterday - did they find the loose neutral (identified inearly March) and tighten it?
Trish
Patricia Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 10:10 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have attached a screenshot of the neutral issue.
<image001.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. My understanding is that when my house was on thenew transformer, there was a "neutral issue" that was picked up by theload logger. Could you please send me screen shots of that data,showing the "neutral issue"?
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 8:20 AM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have reviewed the data from April 25th – May 1st and have attacheda screenshot below. On 4/29 at about 6AM, there was a temporary dipof the high side voltage, causing the secondary voltage to drop below114V. Besides this anomaly, the secondary voltage stayed between therequired 5% tolerance (126V -114V) and the PST value was below 1,indicating that no flicker likely occurred expect on the morning on4/29 where the PST value was above 1.
<image003.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 4:21 PMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. Has the data been reviewed yet that was taken fromthe last time the load logger was on the house?
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 3:53 PM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I spoke with Tomm and the meter technicians will be out tomorrow
morning, 5/16, between 9AM and 10AM to install the load logger.
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 8:57 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Williams,
Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
My lights are flickering again - at 11:15am on Sunday 5/12 and in
the evening of Monday 5/13. The flickering was on differentcircuits. I can send video if you'd like.
I don't know whether the load logger is on or not? I think maybe it
is not, since I did see my gate closed differently after it wasinstalled. I don't receive notification of the work - but I would like
that, please, since I am having to be so involved.
A couple of questions:
1. Is it possible there are loose connections from Utilities on my
panel? There was a torque test on everything my electriciandid - how about what Utilities has done? It seemed like the
flickering stopped when the load logger was on (if it is indeedoff) - so I thought maybe it was a loose connection related to
that - especially since you had told me previously that youfound a LOOSE CONNECTION on the load logger. This is
quite concerning, of course, and should be an easy fix? Itseems like the load logger was taken off, and the flickering
returned. 2. You said previously there was a "neutral issue" when
connected to the NEW transformer, so you took us off thatand put us on the OLD transformer next to it. Can you just
fix the "neutral issue" and put me on the NEW transformer? Will this solve my flickering lights? What does "neutral
issue" mean?
This flickering was first reported to CPAU January 24, so this is
quite frustrating that it is still going on.
Could you please fix it?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 2:47 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Here are more files.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 2:16 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Load logger. Having a meter reset - does that mean coming out toput a load logger back on my house? My understanding is that
the smart meter will not pick up most poor power supply issues - Ineed a load logger on there, and it needs to be the correct one (I
have been told there was a "wrong" one on, for quite a while). Iwas told that it was only because my brownouts were so severe
that the smart meter picked them up - generally, it would not.
Video. The video showed the light - when the light switch isturned off - it takes a long time to go out, gets very bright, then
turns off. This is on a dumb switch. It was flickering severely theday before this odd behavior (I do have video of the flickering).
Then this odd behavior. Then back to normal. Please note thatthis is different than the flickering, which occurs when the lights
are on. This is odd behavior when we try to turn the light off.
Flickering. Flickering occurs on fixtures with lightbulbsthroughout the house - many have dumb switches, some have
dimmers. Since this flickering is consistent across different
switch devices and happens intermittently, it seems unlikely thatthe flickering is due to dimmers. It seems flickering is more
pronouced on fixtures with bulbs than integrated LEDs - I havebeen told that may indicate low voltage - what do you think?
Records request. I do not believe that any original datasets came
through to me in response to my records request. There are many,many items missing in the records request, which I only
submitted because I've asked for the data many times, and I havenever received it. I have been told that Utilities does not want to
provide it (folks refer to "my supervisor") - which is why I put inthe records request - as a matter of law, it is to be provided. I'm
attaching the load logger data that I have seen - but I would likethe full data set, please.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Apr 23, 2024 at 1:36 PM Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
I am having the charts printed out so that I can forward them toyou . The original datasets were included in the Public Records
Request but they appear to require the meter manufacturerssoftware to decode the data. When I have more time I will see
if the files can be exported in a data file that can be read bysomething like EXCEL. The PDF files of the data from your
house should be ready by the end of the week.
I have asked the engineer to request the meter to be reset onyour house and it should be done this week.
The video showed the light flickering and going out. A couple
of questions since I don’t know the setup in your house. Wasthis the only light experiencing the flickering? Is the light
connected to a dimmer switch?
Some people who received this message don't often get email frompatricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Thanks for you patience.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 12:43 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Following up from our phone discussion on Thursday, April18, since I have not heard from anyone yet -
Could you send all data from the load loggers associated withthe power to my house, please? When will load loggers be putback on my house, please?
I have more video of my lights flickering on Saturday, April20. Could you please let me know if you'd like to see it?
My understanding from our discussion Thursday is that youmeasured the following: (1) brownouts initially (first reportedJanuary 24 and recorded via smart meter February 8 - theseissues are also in the data from the load loggers?), (2) power tohouse from new transformer around February 12, thencontinuing flickering lights due to a problem with the neutral(is that a loose neutral?), then (3) did not fix those neutralissues, instead moved the house to an old transformer on thesecondary pole (which also had loose connections - so if the
"proper fix" on the other pole was a new transformer, why noton this pole too?), and continuing flickering lights.
Did you have a chance to review the video I sent on April 17,
video recorded April 14? I've never seen a light do this - couldyou please tell me what is going on? Is this dangerous? Is this
a surge due to ongoing issues? The light did go back to normal- so the only thing that could have changed is the power supply
to my house.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 11:55 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm,
I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Thank you for your call on the afternoon of Thursday, April
4. I'm sorry for missing it - I am dealing with some healthissues and could not answer the phone. My understanding is
that many City employees do not work on Fridays, so Iintended to call you on Monday, April 8. However, upon
walking out my door to take my son to school on thatmorning, I came upon the City's contractor replacing my
water meter (no notice) - I asked him to follow specific Cityprocedures laid out to my elderly neighbor whose water was
grossly contaminated by the techniques used by thecontractor, with the assurance those procedures would be
followed, but they were not, and my water was contaminatedwith yard dirt. I have been dealing with that since.
I just left you a voicemail. Attached please find the video I
referenced in that voicemail, of the weird issue with the lightin my daughter's room. This was last Thursday, April 11.
The day before, April 10, the lights were severely flickering. The light went back to normal as of Sunday, April 14. The
only thing that possibly could have changed is the powersupply to the house. By way of background which may be
helpful, this light fixture was new last year - it useslightbulbs.
Could you please provide all load logger data related to the
power supply to my house?
If you think this issue is resolved, could you please put a loadlogger back on to measure these issues? I have never seen a
light act like in the video - neither have electricians that Ihave consulted.
I am very worried that this is dangerous and could start a fire.
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 4, 2024 at 10:31 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Tomm,
It's nice to hear from you. I am free to discuss by phone atany time. I want to start with a baseline: I am here to help
and I am open to working with you. While I am very upsetwith the dysfunction in Palo Alto, my anger and frustration
is not directed toward employees like you (as a generalstatement, with exceptions for those who have been
threatening to me and/or lied to me).
A quick Google search suggests that you probablyunderstand the reality of what I am going through. My
lights seem to flicker evenings and weekends - but notlong holiday weekends or, it seems, during this week
which is spring break for Palo Alto public schools.
The "EIT" (which I assume is "Engineer in Training"),who I have been told is the point person for my issues (an
illustration of how seriously it's been taken, that we don'teven have a licensed engineer in charge), suggested my
flickering lights are due to some sort of machine at ahypothetical construction site nearby, which is, of course,
silly.
I think it's more likely that it's the 2 EVs charging in manydriveways in my neighborhood.
It's been insinuated to me that CPAU is covering up issues
voiced by citizens like me, who are only trying to get safeand reliable power to our houses. Maybe it's that with the
City Council's obsession with electrification, no one daresadmit what's actually going on.
Yes, my primary transformer was upgraded, but how about
the lines?
I've been in contact with a bunch of folks with flickeringlights who are PG&E customers - PG&E comes right out,
diagnoses the problem, and fixes it.
Here in Palo Alto is different - in a bad way. I have beentold that cutting costs is the number 1 priority - not
providing safe and reliable power to homes or empoweringlinemen to diagnose and fix problems.
Do you know that another customer called in flickering
lights and 2 failed appliances (at least) and it took 10 daysplus another follow-up call plus 1 more day to get a
lineman out to just check for a loose neutral?! Howunsafe!!!! They put a load logger on, but now she's getting
the runaround from CPAU for someone to come out to pullthe data. It's exactly what happened to me.
This is too much to ask from citizens. This is no way to
run a utility.
Please let me know when a good time for a discussion is.
Again, my anger is toward this dysfunctional city, nottoward you.
Thank you for reaching out to me, and I look forward to
working together.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 3, 2024 at 3:24 PM Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
If you have time tomorrow or sometime next week Iwould like to have a conversation with you regarding
you concerns with the electric service at your house. Iam the Assistant Director of Electric Engineering and
Operations and I hope that I can find a way to addressyour concerns. My staff has updated me on your
situation and I am familiar with the events and the visitsto your house. In addition, I have reviewed the voltage
and current recordings that have been take at your houseand in the adjacent homes.
Please let me know when you have time to discuss either
on the phone or in person at your home.
Some people who received this message don't often get email from
patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Thanks
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, April 1, 2024 9:02 PMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims,Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer <Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Tanaka, Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Veenker, Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Clerk, City <city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causingbrownouts
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have notreceived an answer. The only time I received asubstantive answer was when I expressed mydispleasure at not being able to purchase an EV (beingafraid that my neighborhood would burn down or thatmy young children were in danger didn't strike a chordwith you). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garagewhere I had planned for EV chargers:
<image004.png>
<image005.png>
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replace theold car which was totaled after being stolen from in
front of my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on theevening of March 28. This is visual evidence of why I
cannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safe andreliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU on
January 24. After struggling with CPAU for over 2weeks, I first reached out to you regarding this issue on
February 9, after I was told by CPAU's own employeesthat I needed to advocate for a "proper fix" to our issues
and was met with a threatening environment when I didso in person to CPAU's supervising employee. I truly
thought you would help me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronics inour home, all of which are new since we just finished
renovating in late 2023. For example (and this is not all-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up (turn on and off
randomly and unexpectedly) and the ice in our Sub-zerois stuck together (suggesting that it is not regulating its
temperature properly).
My family is suffering because ofyour unresponsiveness. I spend countless hours trying
to navigate how to get my city government to respond tome so that I can get safe and reliable power to my
house. My business is suffering, my young children aresuffering, and I have developed health issues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it? Your
constituents are depending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of the emailsthat came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have on
this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, since beingtold by Ed on March 5 that Dean will be calling me
and that Ed would join if needed. That was over 3weeks ago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on PBS
last night. I recommend you watch it. I found itinspiring to see the amazing impact properly funded
and functioning public health systems can have, aswell as the negative effects that flow from cutting
funding and letting those systems fall into disrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for your management of the
Utilities Department?
I'm sure by now you have heard of the contaminationof some houses' drinking water that was caused by the
contractor the city hired to swap out water meters. When are you planning on warning residents of the
error and helping them to clean up the mess? This is apublic health issue!!! As you remain silent, citizens
have been drinking contaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notifymy neighbors of the damage your poor power supply
has done to their homes. I first suggested you do thisin my email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman across
town - a mom with your children and a lot on herplate - who has had flickering lights as well as a
dishwasher and refrigerator that have gone out. Myunderstanding is that she is patiently waiting for
someone to come out to her house to check it out. Iimagine I do not need to state this to you, as you are
the regulators of the Utility and must know - but justin case: utilities companies generally treat flickering
lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city'sresponse to my Public Records Request is still
woefully unresponsive. I am simply trying to gatherinformation to fix the power supply to my house! It is
the city's legal duty to respond fully. The city did,however, produce 2 emails which are sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any realassistance or response, Dean forwarded my
desperate email pleading for help andexpressing my general displeasure with the
mismanagement in Palo Alto to CatherineElvert, who I gather from a Google search is a
PR professional, with the note “Here you go!!!” Were you getting your talking points in
order, rather than focusing on helping yourcitizens??
2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate emailpleading for help (email stamp on my email
shows, "date: Feb 12, 2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed sentan email (email stamp on Ed's email shows:
"Sent: Monday, February 12, 2024 3:16 PM")to multiple City of Palo Alto email addresses
stating that Dean has spoken to me a coupletimes (NOT TRUE!!!!!) and “No need for
further prompting. Thanks all!” NOTHINGHAD BEEN ADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of theemails that came before it: I welcome any thoughts
you have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be veryclear: I would much rather have a responsive,
caring, and ethical city government, than bring anythieves to justice.
The stress from having our car stolen from in front
of our house pales in comparison to the stress andanguish we have experienced as a family in getting
the run around from CPAU and then being ignoredby City Hall, as I try to get safe and reliable power
delivered to the houses in my neighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should never havebeen this involved or have had to push so hard.
This is too much to ask from citizens. It is no wayto run a utility. But, to continue down that path:
logically, shouldn't the transformer also be replacedon the "secondary pole," where loose connections
were also found? If that was the "proper fix" on thefirst pole climbed (i.e. PG&E minimum
maintenance standards), wouldn't it also be the"proper fix" on the second?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this is
a long-standing issue, not unique to my block,which has harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed
<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being stolen.
I can only imagine how this has impacted youand your family. While understanding nothing
can make up for such a violation, I hope thethieves are quickly brought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spoken to
Director Batchelor and understand he will becalling you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear that
their replacement of the electrical transformer didnot resolve the problem. I will stay in touch with
him and happy to join a call as he works with youon next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
<image006.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 |
ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
<image007.png>
Some people who received this message don't often get
email from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is
important
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump,Molly <Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Kou, Lydia <Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka,Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issuescausing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated fromoutside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking onlinks.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from infront of our house here in Palo Alto. It looks like
it's totaled. When we completely rewired thehouse last year, we future proofed to
accommodate an EV charger - 2 actually. However, CPAU is unable to provide safe and
reliable power to our house. Because of this, toour great disappointment, we cannot replace our
gas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call inthe middle of the night that someone is bleeding
to death and needs an intervention, and his EVdidn't charge - well, that's a big problem!
City Council - I see your talking points on
electrification (I'm all for electrification). Youknow that your electrical infrastructure can't
support it.
This is the real world effect of your decisions:a family that wanted to go electric cannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help,
dating back to my first email to you on February9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 Greer
Rd. - the latest working theory from CPAU is thatit is caused by an air compressor at a theoretical
construction site nearby. (1) That's a laughabletheory. (2) My lights flicker evenings and
weekends - which CPAU engineers have beentold. Is the cause the 2 EVs charging in every
driveway + an outdated electrical infrastructurethat cannot support it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to my
power issues. (a) The response was a day late. (b) The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behind
municipal utilities falling outside of regulation is(i) elected officials, who serve as the utlity's
oversight, will be responsive (mine - you - aresilent) and (ii) there are protections such as the
Public Records Request (my city obviouslydisregards its legal duties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week, one
stated: When municipal utilities are good, they'rereally great. But when they're bad, it's abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead of the
rest of the city in the grid update. Maybe ElonMusk's words will resonate with you then - he
said that the world will face supply crunches inelectricity and transformers next year. What does
that result in? Flickering lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps tomake our municipal utility "really great," instead
of "abysmal"? Your constituents are dependingon you.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409
Greer Rd. I still have not heard anythingsubstantive from anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council - youare the regulators of the Utilities Department,
correct? Why have I still not heard back fromany of you with anything substantive? (The
vast majority of you, I have not heard anythingat all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a
fire risk? I am worried - I have 2 smallchildren - I have expressed this and no one
seems to care!
The transformer that I have been toldsupplies power to my house was switched out
on February 15. On February 14, the UtilitiesDepartment climbed another pole nearby
(described to me as my "secondary pole") andfound loose connections, which I've been told
were tightened. That's 2 out of 2 poles withloose connections. Is routine maintenance
being done? Are there loose connections allover the city? My lights continue to flicker -
are other loose connections causing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connectionswould explain the problems the neighbors have
experienced on that side of my house: (1) oneneighbor's refrigerator went out and she had to
go buy a new one last weekend, (2) anotherneighbor had flickering lights (I discovered this
by overhearing him over the fence speaking tosomeone about his panel), (3) a third neighbor
had an outdoor light that was malfunctioning(she described it as "acting weird"). These are
the things that I have heard only in passing -surprisingly, everyone has complete trust in
Palo Alto Utilities and does not blame the poorpower supply they are receiving. These 3
houses are in addition to the 6 housesexperiencing poor power supply issues from
the other pole (one of which went through 3refrigerators in January). So that's 9 houses
total with issues - and I imagine there aremore!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to your
citizens these issues after you discover them? Shouldn't you inform them that they have been
receiving poor power supply and educate themon the damage that has possibly (or likely)
been done to the appliances and electronicswithin their home? I thought CPAU is
supposed to do better than PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from anengineer to get my story to analyze the data
collected by the load logger on my house. He was unaware that mine was not the only
house with flickering lights! How iscommunication that bad?! As a reminder, the
morning of February 9 was when I firstemailed all of you to escalate this issue - at that
time we had 5 houses total with confirmedflickering lights. The engineer was not
informed that it was not just my housewith flickering lights - I had to explain to him
then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong loadlogger had been on my house since February
7. It was switched for the correct one, which Iwas told would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday: Mylights continue to flicker after Thursday's
"Band-Aid fix," as described by CPAUemployees. Over the weekend, I discovered
a 6th neighboring house with flickeringlights.
My understanding is that flickering lights are
a sign of possible fire risk, as they are oftencaused by loose connections that may arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from any
of you on Friday regarding whether myneighbors and I are at risk for fire, despite
my desperate plea, I called the FireDepartment this morning to ask. I have been
told that they are looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after Ispoke with the Fire Department, and he is
looking into the issue. I do appreciate hiscall.
I still do not understand why CPAU's
standard practice falls below PG&Estandards or how that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out to
pull the load logger from my house and put anew one. I understand they're analyzing the
data. Why not just change out thetransformer, as PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effective
regulation of CPAU. I think you all (withthe exception of Dean and perhaps the City
Attorney) are responsible for oversight, but Ihave not heard anything substantive from
any of you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly unsafe
here in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructurealso fall below PG&E standards?
There is something up on the pole on Greer
as I walk my children to school that makes alot of noise. Is it a transformer? Does the
noise mean it's old and in disrepair? I knowif a transformer explodes, my children and I
should not be under it, as we will be harmedby the oil inside falling on us. Do I have to
reroute our walk to keep us safe? I trustedCPAU, and although I noted the sound every
time I walked under it, I didn't think twiceabout walking under it. Now, I do think
twice.
The problems aren't just with the UtilitiesDepartment. On December 19, the garbage
cans were not collected in my cul-de-sac. My elderly neighbor phoned daily, and the
cans were not collected until December 23,after my second elderly neighbor in the cul-
de-sac called on December 22 (so it took 3days of calling, plus it seems like it wasn't
taken seriously until there was a secondhousehold calling). After my experience
with Utilities, I was sure to apologize to myneighbor for not calling as well - I had never
heard of anything like this! Recologyalways comes out the next day, whenever
there is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovatingour Eichler - it's our dream house and we
intended for it to be our "forever home." Wemoved here from Redwood City for the
schools and also to be surrounded by acommunity of safety-oriented individuals
(something that became especially importantin the pandemic). I am devastated to learn
that CPAU standards fall below PG&Estandards. We are now considering moving,
but it would be very difficult for us to do sofinancially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you may
have?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM PatriciaJudge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday, but
I really do think this is urgent. Cansomeone please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and I
am worried about the safety of theelectricity being supplied to my home and
the homes around me. Am I at risk forfire? I've asked this to CPAU multiple
times, with no answer. Am I safe to stayin my home over the weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very close
family friend who is a retired PG&Elineman. His partner has been in the
hospital, I have just found out, so we wereonly just able to reach him late morning
today. He said that PG&E would have
changed out that transformer - that's whatTito said he is opting not to do and the 2
other employees at CPAU told me Ishould "plead my case" for. I had no idea
what the standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only ownedmy home for a little over 2 years, but my
understanding from fellow residents is thatCPAU is better than PG&E. Then why
isn't CPAU doing the minimum thatPG&E would do?
As you can tell from my email below, I
had already lost faith - given priorinteractions - that CPAU was fixing our
problems. I wasn't sure, though - maybenot replacing a transformer was a fix,
which is why I emailed you. Now, I havean opinion from a knowledgeable source
that the transformer should have beenreplaced.
After learning that CPAU is possibly not
meeting standard practice - and having notheard back from anyone with higher
authority - I contacted the CaliforniaPublic Utilities Commission and was
disheartened (to say it lightly) to hear thatthey only advocate for customers of
shareholder owned utilities - i.e., notCPAU. I was advised that I need to
appeal to the City - which, I think, is allyou.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity,
to protect CPAU customers when there isevidence that a standard is not being met?
Am I reaching out to the wrong people forhelp?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call theFire Department and ask? What does a
"Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean,in terms of safety? Should I leave my
home? Are my neighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM PatriciaJudge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to you,
copying the City Manager, CityAttorney, and City Council, asking you
to please ensure that my ongoing andsevere electrical issues at 3409 Greer
Road are fixed by CPAU. At least 4 ofmy neighbors are experiencing these
same issues (5 houses total). I havebeen told by 2 CPAU employees that
we are receiving a "Band-Aid fix," not areal fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit, given
how grossly negligent and, frankly,abusive, my interactions with CPAU
have been. But - at this time - my focusis on getting the electrical service to my
house and my neighbors'houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from my
smart meter, pulled yesterday, February8, showing severe brownouts to my
home at 3409 Greer Rd. This smart
meter was put on my house onFebruary 7. As you'll see, one
brownout lasted 1 hour 9 minutes,which I have been told is "insane." For
those on the email without an electricalbackground, here is a quick primer on
the seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one lightfixture at my house, illustrating the
severity of the flickering lights that Ifirst reported to CPAU on January 24.
(Please excuse the paint job - we justfinished completely renovating
the inside and don't have the niceweather yet to paint the outside. That is
a new light fixture, installed last year.) As reported to CPAU, this has been
happening throughout my entire house,and we also heard exhaust fans
throughout the house slowing down andspeeding up. My next door neighbor
had the same experience.
From January 24 to the time this datawas looked at by CPAU yesterday,
February 8, CPAU employees havedenied that there are any issues on
CPAU's side. Shockingly, theycontinued to deny this, even after being
formally informed of 4 more houseswith flickering lights. Until yesterday
afternoon when they finally looked atthe smart meter data from my house,
various CPAU employees kept tellingme to call an electrician, which I did
(multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal, oneneighbor called CPAU dispatch
reporting flickering lights and was toldto call back when the flickering got
worse. Every knowledgeable person Ihave talked to - with the exception of
one CPAU employee - has thought that
was absolutely reckless, mostlaughing in disbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to rectify
the situation, but I was told by 2individuals within CPAU that they were
doing a "Band-Aid fix," not a real fix. Iwas told by one well-meaning CPAU
employee that I should walk around thecorner to where the linemen were
working and find a big guy with a baldhead named Tito to "plead my case" for
a real fix. That in itself is one of thecraziest things I've ever heard!
Tito did not seem very receptive to this
(rightfully so because who am I as ahomeowner to tell him how to do his
job?), so, shaken up, I went home andcalled the City Manager's office,
pleading for an advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant, tookdown my story and my information, and
I have received attempted help fromAlex Gonzalez, Utilities Supervisor.
Alex even worked on my issue into theevening. However, Alex is not in
charge of the correct division of CPAUto address my issue. This illustrates a
continued lack of understanding of myissue, at best, and perhaps a continued
lack of willingness to rectify my issue. That is why I'm reaching out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Marshall, Tomm
To:Patricia Judge Tamrazi
Cc:Williams, Kurt; Batchelor, Dean; Burton, Kaylee; Lauing, Ed; Council, City; City Mgr
Subject:RE: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:50:28 AM
The voltage fluctuations observed in the network supplied by the transformer located at 3480Thomas Drive were not due to a loose neutral wire but rather stemmed from a manufacturing
defect in the transformers supplied to the City of Palo Alto.
Initially, the issue at your property was identified as a loose Hot Leg on the transformer. The
voltage fluctuation on your service was resolved upon repairing this connection. However,following this repair, you reported persistent voltage fluctuations. Although we did not
observe any issues with your service, we proceeded with replacing the transformer upon yourrequest. After replacement, we observed unexpected voltage deviations causing intermittent
flickering on the new transformer. Subsequent replacement with another unit from the samemanufacturer revealed that the issue lay in a defect inherent to these transformers.
The transformer was then replaced a third time, this time with a unit from a differentmanufacturer, which effectively resolved the unexpected voltage fluctuations in the secondary
system.
As mentioned previously, if you continue to experience flickering lights or any related issues,
we remain committed to assisting you by facilitating an investigation with an electrician ofyour choosing to identify and address the root cause.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:06 AM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing,
Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Council, City <city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; City Mgr
<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi Tomm,
I hope this email finds you well. Following up on my email from May 31, since I have not heard back
from you yet and since Kurt Williams told me yesterday to contact you regarding my questions on
the known and unfixed loose neutral.
Could you please provide an update on fixing the loose neutral measured up on the pole at 3480
Thomas Drive, in at least March?
It looks like they switched out the transformer again last week. I believe that this is the third time
the transformer has been switched. Why was it switched again?
Has the loose neutral been fixed?
Trish Tamrazi
On Fri, May 31, 2024 at 8:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm - Following up on my email from Tuesday, since you have not replied. When will
the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? As you know, utility companies treat this as an
emergency, and ours was identified at least back in March (I believe, in talking with CPAU
employees, February). https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-floating-neutral-2262
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 11:25 AM Patricia Judge <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Thanks, Tomm. My understanding is that the crews would know right away by testing if they
fixed the loose neutral, so is it correct to assume that your email means that they did not fix the
neutral issue? When will you be doing that? I’m sure you can understand my being worried
about this since it’s a serious electrical danger (risk of surge and fire).
From what I have pieced together, there was a neutral issue with the old transformer and a
neutral issue with the new transformer, so wouldn’t that suggest that the issue is NOT with the
transformer? Is there maybe a damaged or loose wire somewhere that needs to be found? I
understand that would take much more time to find and fix versus switching out the
transformer again, and I do appreciate the crews’ time.
2 City employees now - one back on February and one last week (May) - have expressed to me
how worried they are about overgrown trees around the overhead wires in my neighborhood.
Could that be contributing to my poor power supply? When will the trees around the wires be
trimmed?
I’m looping in Councilmember Lauing, since he has been actively working on this.
I’m here to help. I want nothing more than to get this resolved so that I can just live in peace -
with safe and reliable power - and never have to contact you again. I want to be clear, that is
my goal.
Thank you,
Trish
650-208-4802
Sent from my iPhone
On May 28, 2024, at 10:13 AM, Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The transformer was replaced, new wire connections were installed and meters
were installed to record data.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Friday, May 24, 2024 10:26 AM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
What happened yesterday - did they find the loose neutral (identified in
early March) and tighten it?
Trish
Patricia Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 10:10 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have attached a screenshot of the neutral issue.
<image001.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 9:27 AM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. My understanding is that when my house was on the new
transformer, there was a "neutral issue" that was picked up by the load logger.
Could you please send me screen shots of that data, showing the "neutral
issue"?
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 8:20 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have reviewed the data from April 25th – May 1st and have attached a
screenshot below. On 4/29 at about 6AM, there was a temporary dip of the
high side voltage, causing the secondary voltage to drop below 114V. Besides
this anomaly, the secondary voltage stayed between the required 5%
tolerance (126V -114V) and the PST value was below 1, indicating that no
flicker likely occurred expect on the morning on 4/29 where the PST value
was above 1.
<image003.png>
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 4:21 PM
To: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor, Dean
<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. Has the data been reviewed yet that was taken from the
last time the load logger was on the house?
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 3:53 PM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I spoke with Tomm and the meter technicians will be out tomorrow
morning, 5/16, between 9AM and 10AM to install the load logger.
Best,
<image002.png>
Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 8:57 AM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
My lights are flickering again - at 11:15am on Sunday 5/12 and in the
evening of Monday 5/13. The flickering was on different circuits. I can
send video if you'd like.
I don't know whether the load logger is on or not? I think maybe it is not,
since I did see my gate closed differently after it was installed. I don't
receive notification of the work - but I would like that, please, since I am
having to be so involved.
A couple of questions:
1. Is it possible there are loose connections from Utilities on my
panel? There was a torque test on everything my electrician did -
how about what Utilities has done? It seemed like the flickering
stopped when the load logger was on (if it is indeed off) - so I
thought maybe it was a loose connection related to that - especially
since you had told me previously that you found a LOOSE
CONNECTION on the load logger. This is quite concerning, of
course, and should be an easy fix? It seems like the load logger was
taken off, and the flickering returned.
2. You said previously there was a "neutral issue" when connected to
the NEW transformer, so you took us off that and put us on the OLD
transformer next to it. Can you just fix the "neutral issue" and put
me on the NEW transformer? Will this solve my flickering lights?
What does "neutral issue" mean?
This flickering was first reported to CPAU January 24, so this is quite
frustrating that it is still going on.
Could you please fix it?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 2:47 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Here are more files.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 2:16 PM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Load logger. Having a meter reset - does that mean coming out to put a
load logger back on my house? My understanding is that the smart
meter will not pick up most poor power supply issues - I need a load
logger on there, and it needs to be the correct one (I have been told
there was a "wrong" one on, for quite a while). I was told that it was
only because my brownouts were so severe that the smart meter picked
them up - generally, it would not.
Video. The video showed the light - when the light switch is turned off -
it takes a long time to go out, gets very bright, then turns off. This is on
a dumb switch. It was flickering severely the day before this odd
behavior (I do have video of the flickering). Then this odd behavior.
Then back to normal. Please note that this is different than the
flickering, which occurs when the lights are on. This is odd behavior
when we try to turn the light off.
Flickering. Flickering occurs on fixtures with lightbulbs throughout the
house - many have dumb switches, some have dimmers. Since this
flickering is consistent across different switch devices and happens
intermittently, it seems unlikely that the flickering is due to dimmers. It
seems flickering is more pronouced on fixtures with bulbs than
integrated LEDs - I have been told that may indicate low voltage - what
do you think?
Records request. I do not believe that any original datasets came
through to me in response to my records request. There are many,
many items missing in the records request, which I only submitted
because I've asked for the data many times, and I have never received
it. I have been told that Utilities does not want to provide it (folks refer
to "my supervisor") - which is why I put in the records request - as a
matter of law, it is to be provided. I'm attaching the load logger data
that I have seen - but I would like the full data set, please.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Apr 23, 2024 at 1:36 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
I am having the charts printed out so that I can forward them to you .
The original datasets were included in the Public Records Request but
they appear to require the meter manufacturers software to decode
the data. When I have more time I will see if the files can be exported
in a data file that can be read by something like EXCEL. The PDF files
of the data from your house should be ready by the end of the week.
I have asked the engineer to request the meter to be reset on your
house and it should be done this week.
The video showed the light flickering and going out. A couple of
questions since I don’t know the setup in your house. Was this the
only light experiencing the flickering? Is the light connected to a
Some people who received this message don't often get email frompatricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
dimmer switch?
Thanks for you patience.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 12:43 PM
To: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>
Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Following up from our phone discussion on Thursday, April 18, since I
have not heard from anyone yet -
Could you send all data from the load loggers associated with the
power to my house, please? When will load loggers be put back on
my house, please?
I have more video of my lights flickering on Saturday, April 20. Could
you please let me know if you'd like to see it?
My understanding from our discussion Thursday is that you measured
the following: (1) brownouts initially (first reported January 24 and
recorded via smart meter February 8 - these issues are also in the
data from the load loggers?), (2) power to house from new
transformer around February 12, then continuing flickering lights due
to a problem with the neutral (is that a loose neutral?), then (3) did
not fix those neutral issues, instead moved the house to an old
transformer on the secondary pole (which also had loose connections
- so if the "proper fix" on the other pole was a new transformer, why
not on this pole too?), and continuing flickering lights.
Did you have a chance to review the video I sent on April 17, video
recorded April 14? I've never seen a light do this - could you please
tell me what is going on? Is this dangerous? Is this a surge due to
ongoing issues? The light did go back to normal - so the only thing
that could have changed is the power supply to my house.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 11:55 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm,
I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Thank you for your call on the afternoon of Thursday, April 4. I'm
sorry for missing it - I am dealing with some health issues and could
not answer the phone. My understanding is that many City
employees do not work on Fridays, so I intended to call you on
Monday, April 8. However, upon walking out my door to take my
son to school on that morning, I came upon the City's contractor
replacing my water meter (no notice) - I asked him to follow
specific City procedures laid out to my elderly neighbor whose
water was grossly contaminated by the techniques used by the
contractor, with the assurance those procedures would be
followed, but they were not, and my water was contaminated with
yard dirt. I have been dealing with that since.
I just left you a voicemail. Attached please find the video I
referenced in that voicemail, of the weird issue with the light in my
daughter's room. This was last Thursday, April 11. The day before,
April 10, the lights were severely flickering. The light went back to
normal as of Sunday, April 14. The only thing that possibly could
have changed is the power supply to the house. By way of
background which may be helpful, this light fixture was new last
year - it uses lightbulbs.
Could you please provide all load logger data related to the power
supply to my house?
If you think this issue is resolved, could you please put a load logger
back on to measure these issues? I have never seen a light act like
in the video - neither have electricians that I have consulted.
I am very worried that this is dangerous and could start a fire.
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 4, 2024 at 10:31 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Tomm,
It's nice to hear from you. I am free to discuss by phone at any
time. I want to start with a baseline: I am here to help and I am
open to working with you. While I am very upset with the
dysfunction in Palo Alto, my anger and frustration is not directed
toward employees like you (as a general statement, with
exceptions for those who have been threatening to me and/or
lied to me).
A quick Google search suggests that you probably understand
the reality of what I am going through. My lights seem to flicker
evenings and weekends - but not long holiday weekends or, it
seems, during this week which is spring break for Palo Alto public
schools.
The "EIT" (which I assume is "Engineer in Training"), who I have
been told is the point person for my issues (an illustration of how
seriously it's been taken, that we don't even have a licensed
engineer in charge), suggested my flickering lights are due to
some sort of machine at a hypothetical construction site nearby,
which is, of course, silly.
I think it's more likely that it's the 2 EVs charging in many
driveways in my neighborhood.
It's been insinuated to me that CPAU is covering up issues voiced
by citizens like me, who are only trying to get safe and reliable
power to our houses. Maybe it's that with the City Council's
obsession with electrification, no one dares admit what's actually
going on.
Yes, my primary transformer was upgraded, but how about the
lines?
I've been in contact with a bunch of folks with flickering lights
who are PG&E customers - PG&E comes right out, diagnoses the
problem, and fixes it.
Here in Palo Alto is different - in a bad way. I have been told that
cutting costs is the number 1 priority - not providing safe and
reliable power to homes or empowering linemen to diagnose
and fix problems.
Do you know that another customer called in flickering lights and
2 failed appliances (at least) and it took 10 days plus another
follow-up call plus 1 more day to get a lineman out to just check
for a loose neutral?! How unsafe!!!! They put a load logger on,
but now she's getting the runaround from CPAU for someone to
come out to pull the data. It's exactly what happened to me.
This is too much to ask from citizens. This is no way to run a
utility.
Please let me know when a good time for a discussion is.
Again, my anger is toward this dysfunctional city, not toward
you.
Thank you for reaching out to me, and I look forward to working
together.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 3, 2024 at 3:24 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
If you have time tomorrow or sometime next week I
would like to have a conversation with you regarding youconcerns with the electric service at your house. I am the
Assistant Director of Electric Engineering and Operationsand I hope that I can find a way to address your concerns.
My staff has updated me on your situation and I amfamiliar with the events and the visits to your house. In
addition, I have reviewed the voltage and currentrecordings that have been take at your house and in the
adjacent homes.
Please let me know when you have time to discuss eitheron the phone or in person at your home.
Thanks
Some people who received this message don't often get email from
patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, April 1, 2024 9:02 PMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr
<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick
<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed
<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stone, Greer
<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka, Greg<Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker, Vicki
<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causingbrownouts
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have not received
an answer. The only time I received a substantive answerwas when I expressed my displeasure at not being able to
purchase an EV (being afraid that my neighborhood wouldburn down or that my young children were in danger didn't
strike a chord with you). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garagewhere I had planned for EV chargers:
<image004.png>
<image005.png>
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replace theold car which was totaled after being stolen from in front
of my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on theevening of March 28. This is visual evidence of why I
cannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safe andreliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU on
January 24. After struggling with CPAU for over 2weeks, I first reached out to you regarding this issue on
February 9, after I was told by CPAU's own employeesthat I needed to advocate for a "proper fix" to our issues
and was met with a threatening environment when I did soin person to CPAU's supervising employee. I truly
thought you would help me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronics inour home, all of which are new since we just finished
renovating in late 2023. For example (and this is not all-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up (turn on and off
randomly and unexpectedly) and the ice in our Sub-zero isstuck together (suggesting that it is not regulating its
temperature properly).
My family is suffering because of your unresponsiveness. I spend countless hours trying to navigate how to get my
city government to respond to me so that I can get safe andreliable power to my house. My business is suffering, my
young children are suffering, and I have developed healthissues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it? Your
constituents are depending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of the emailsthat came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have on
this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, since beingtold by Ed on March 5 that Dean will be calling me and
that Ed would join if needed. That was over 3 weeksago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on PBS last
night. I recommend you watch it. I found it inspiring tosee the amazing impact properly funded and functioning
public health systems can have, as well as the negativeeffects that flow from cutting funding and letting those
systems fall into disrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for yourmanagement of the Utilities Department?
I'm sure by now you have heard of the contamination of
some houses' drinking water that was caused by thecontractor the city hired to swap out water meters.
When are you planning on warning residents of the errorand helping them to clean up the mess? This is a public
health issue!!! As you remain silent, citizens have beendrinking contaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notify my
neighbors of the damage your poor power supply hasdone to their homes. I first suggested you do this in my
email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman acrosstown - a mom with your children and a lot on her plate -
who has had flickering lights as well as a dishwasherand refrigerator that have gone out. My understanding
is that she is patiently waiting for someone to come outto her house to check it out. I imagine I do not need to
state this to you, as you are the regulators of the Utilityand must know - but just in case: utilities companies
generally treat flickering lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city'sresponse to my Public Records Request is still woefully
unresponsive. I am simply trying to gather informationto fix the power supply to my house! It is the city's
legal duty to respond fully. The city did, however,produce 2 emails which are sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any real assistance or
response, Dean forwarded my desperate email
pleading for help and expressing my general
displeasure with the mismanagement in Palo Alto to
Catherine Elvert, who I gather from a Google search
is a PR professional, with the note “Here you go !!!”
Were you getting your talking points in order, rather
than focusing on helping your citizens??
2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate email pleading for
help (email stamp on my email shows, "date: Feb 12,
2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed sent an email (email stamp on
Ed's email shows: "Sent: Monday, February 12, 2024
3:16 PM") to multiple City of Palo Alto email
addresses stating that Dean has spoken to me a
couple times (NOT TRUE!!!!!) and “No need for
further prompting. Thanks all!” NOTHING HAD BEEN
ADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of the emailsthat came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have
on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be veryclear: I would much rather have a responsive, caring,
and ethical city government, than bring any thieves tojustice.
The stress from having our car stolen from in front of
our house pales in comparison to the stress andanguish we have experienced as a family in getting
the run around from CPAU and then being ignored byCity Hall, as I try to get safe and reliable power
delivered to the houses in my neighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should never havebeen this involved or have had to push so hard. This
is too much to ask from citizens. It is no way to run autility. But, to continue down that path: logically,
shouldn't the transformer also be replaced on the"secondary pole," where loose connections were also
found? If that was the "proper fix" on the first poleclimbed (i.e. PG&E minimum maintenance
standards), wouldn't it also be the "proper fix" on thesecond?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this is a
long-standing issue, not unique to my block, whichhas harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed
<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being stolen. I
can only imagine how this has impacted you andyour family. While understanding nothing can
make up for such a violation, I hope the thieves arequickly brought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spoken to
Director Batchelor and understand he will becalling you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear that
their replacement of the electrical transformer didnot resolve the problem. I will stay in touch with
him and happy to join a call as he works with youon next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
<image006.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 |
ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
<image007.png>
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed
Some people who received this message don't often get email
from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
<Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer <Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Tanaka, Greg<Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker,Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; CityMgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issuescausing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated fromoutside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking onlinks.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from in frontof our house here in Palo Alto. It looks like it'stotaled. When we completely rewired the houselast year, we future proofed to accommodate an EVcharger - 2 actually. However, CPAU is unable toprovide safe and reliable power to our house. Because of this, to our great disappointment, wecannot replace our gas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call in themiddle of the night that someone is bleeding todeath and needs an intervention, and his EV didn'tcharge - well, that's a big problem!
City Council - I see your talking points onelectrification (I'm all for electrification). Youknow that your electrical infrastructure can'tsupport it.
This is the real world effect of your decisions: afamily that wanted to go electric cannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help,dating back to my first email to you on February 9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 Greer Rd. -the latest working theory from CPAU is that it iscaused by an air compressor at a theoreticalconstruction site nearby. (1) That's a laughabletheory. (2) My lights flicker evenings andweekends - which CPAU engineers have been told. Is the cause the 2 EVs charging in everydriveway + an outdated electrical infrastructure thatcannot support it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to mypower issues. (a) The response was a day late. (b)The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behindmunicipal utilities falling outside of regulation is (i)elected officials, who serve as the utlity's oversight,will be responsive (mine - you - are silent) and (ii)there are protections such as the Public RecordsRequest (my city obviously disregards its legalduties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week, onestated: When municipal utilities are good, they'rereally great. But when they're bad, it's abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead of therest of the city in the grid update. Maybe ElonMusk's words will resonate with you then - he saidthat the world will face supply crunches in
electricity and transformers next year. What doesthat result in? Flickering lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps to make
our municipal utility "really great," instead of"abysmal"? Your constituents are depending on
you.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409 GreerRd. I still have not heard anything substantive
from anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council - youare the regulators of the Utilities Department,
correct? Why have I still not heard back fromany of you with anything substantive? (The vast
majority of you, I have not heard anything at all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a firerisk? I am worried - I have 2 small children - I
have expressed this and no one seems to care!
The transformer that I have been told
supplies power to my house was switched out onFebruary 15. On February 14, the Utilities
Department climbed another pole nearby(described to me as my "secondary pole") and
found loose connections, which I've been toldwere tightened. That's 2 out of 2 poles with
loose connections. Is routine maintenance beingdone? Are there loose connections all over the
city? My lights continue to flicker - are otherloose connections causing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connections
would explain the problems the neighbors haveexperienced on that side of my house: (1) one
neighbor's refrigerator went out and she had togo buy a new one last weekend, (2) another
neighbor had flickering lights (I discovered thisby overhearing him over the fence speaking to
someone about his panel), (3) a third neighborhad an outdoor light that was malfunctioning
(she described it as "acting weird"). These arethe things that I have heard only in passing -
surprisingly, everyone has complete trust in PaloAlto Utilities and does not blame the poor power
supply they are receiving. These 3 houses are inaddition to the 6 houses experiencing poor power
supply issues from the other pole (one of whichwent through 3 refrigerators in January). So
that's 9 houses total with issues - and I imaginethere are more!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to your
citizens these issues after you discover them? Shouldn't you inform them that they have been
receiving poor power supply and educate themon the damage that has possibly (or likely) been
done to the appliances and electronics withintheir home? I thought CPAU is supposed to do
better than PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from anengineer to get my story to analyze the data
collected by the load logger on my house. He was unaware that mine was not the only
house with flickering lights! How is
communication that bad?! As a reminder, themorning of February 9 was when I first emailed
all of you to escalate this issue - at that time wehad 5 houses total with confirmed flickering
lights. The engineer was not informed that it wasnot just my house with flickering lights - I had to
explain to him then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong loadlogger had been on my house since February 7.
It was switched for the correct one, which I wastold would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday: My
lights continue to flicker after Thursday's"Band-Aid fix," as described by CPAU
employees. Over the weekend, I discovered a6th neighboring house with flickering lights.
My understanding is that flickering lights are a
sign of possible fire risk, as they are oftencaused by loose connections that may arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from any of
you on Friday regarding whether my neighborsand I are at risk for fire, despite my desperate
plea, I called the Fire Department thismorning to ask. I have been told that they are
looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after I spokewith the Fire Department, and he is looking
into the issue. I do appreciate his call.
I still do not understand why CPAU's standardpractice falls below PG&E standards or how
that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out to pullthe load logger from my house and put a new
one. I understand they're analyzing the data. Why not just change out the transformer, as
PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effectiveregulation of CPAU. I think you all (with the
exception of Dean and perhaps the CityAttorney) are responsible for oversight, but I
have not heard anything substantive from anyof you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly unsafe
here in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructurealso fall below PG&E standards?
There is something up on the pole on Greer as
I walk my children to school that makes a lotof noise. Is it a transformer? Does the noise
mean it's old and in disrepair? I know if atransformer explodes, my children and I
should not be under it, as we will be harmedby the oil inside falling on us. Do I have to
reroute our walk to keep us safe? I trustedCPAU, and although I noted the sound every
time I walked under it, I didn't think twice
about walking under it. Now, I do thinktwice.
The problems aren't just with the Utilities
Department. On December 19, the garbagecans were not collected in my cul-de-sac. My
elderly neighbor phoned daily, and the canswere not collected until December 23, after my
second elderly neighbor in the cul-de-saccalled on December 22 (so it took 3 days of
calling, plus it seems like it wasn't takenseriously until there was a second household
calling). After my experience with Utilities, Iwas sure to apologize to my neighbor for not
calling as well - I had never heard of anythinglike this! Recology always comes out the next
day, whenever there is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovating ourEichler - it's our dream house and we intended
for it to be our "forever home." We movedhere from Redwood City for the schools and
also to be surrounded by a community ofsafety-oriented individuals (something that
became especially important in the pandemic). I am devastated to learn that CPAU standards
fall below PG&E standards. We are nowconsidering moving, but it would be very
difficult for us to do so financially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you mayhave?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday, but Ireally do think this is urgent. Can someone
please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and Iam worried about the safety of the electricity
being supplied to my home and the homesaround me. Am I at risk for fire? I've asked
this to CPAU multiple times, with noanswer. Am I safe to stay in my home over
the weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very closefamily friend who is a retired PG&E
lineman. His partner has been in thehospital, I have just found out, so we were
only just able to reach him late morningtoday. He said that PG&E would have
changed out that transformer - that's whatTito said he is opting not to do and the 2
other employees at CPAU told me I should"plead my case" for. I had no idea what the
standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only ownedmy home for a little over 2 years, but my
understanding from fellow residents is thatCPAU is better than PG&E. Then why isn't
CPAU doing the minimum that PG&Ewould do?
As you can tell from my email below, I had
already lost faith - given prior interactions -that CPAU was fixing our problems. I
wasn't sure, though - maybe not replacing atransformer was a fix, which is why I
emailed you. Now, I have an opinion from aknowledgeable source that the transformer
should have been replaced.
After learning that CPAU is possibly notmeeting standard practice - and having not
heard back from anyone with higherauthority - I contacted the California Public
Utilities Commission and was disheartened(to say it lightly) to hear that they only
advocate for customers of shareholderowned utilities - i.e., not CPAU. I was
advised that I need to appeal to the City -which, I think, is all you.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity,
to protect CPAU customers when there isevidence that a standard is not being met?
Am I reaching out to the wrong people forhelp?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call the Fire
Department and ask? What does a "Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean, in terms of
safety? Should I leave my home? Are myneighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to you,copying the City Manager, City Attorney,
and City Council, asking you to pleaseensure that my ongoing and severe
electrical issues at 3409 Greer Road are
fixed by CPAU. At least 4 of myneighbors are experiencing these same
issues (5 houses total). I have been toldby 2 CPAU employees that we are
receiving a "Band-Aid fix," not a real fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit, givenhow grossly negligent and, frankly,
abusive, my interactions with CPAU havebeen. But - at this time - my focus is on
getting the electrical service to my houseand my neighbors' houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from my
smart meter, pulled yesterday, February 8,showing severe brownouts to my home at
3409 Greer Rd. This smart meter was puton my house on February 7. As you'll
see, one brownout lasted 1 hour 9minutes, which I have been told is
"insane." For those on the email withoutan electrical background, here is a quick
primer on the seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one lightfixture at my house, illustrating the
severity of the flickering lights that I firstreported to CPAU on January 24. (Please
excuse the paint job - we just finishedcompletely renovating the inside and don't
have the nice weather yet to paint theoutside. That is a new light fixture,
installed last year.) As reported to CPAU,this has been happening throughout my
entire house, and we also heard exhaustfans throughout the house slowing down
and speeding up. My next door neighborhad the same experience.
From January 24 to the time this data was
looked at by CPAU yesterday, February 8,CPAU employees have denied that there
are any issues on CPAU's side.
Shockingly, they continued to deny this,even after being formally informed of 4
more houses with flickering lights. Untilyesterday afternoon when they finally
looked at the smart meter data from myhouse, various CPAU employees kept
telling me to call an electrician, which Idid (multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal, one
neighbor called CPAU dispatch reportingflickering lights and was told to call back
when the flickering got worse. Everyknowledgeable person I have talked to -
with the exception of one CPAUemployee - has thought that was
absolutely reckless, most laughing indisbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to rectify the
situation, but I was told by 2 individualswithin CPAU that they were doing a
"Band-Aid fix," not a real fix. I was toldby one well-meaning CPAU employee
that I should walk around the corner towhere the linemen were working and find
a big guy with a bald head named Tito to"plead my case" for a real fix. That in
itself is one of the craziest things I've everheard!
Tito did not seem very receptive to this
(rightfully so because who am I as ahomeowner to tell him how to do his
job?), so, shaken up, I went home andcalled the City Manager's office, pleading
for an advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant, tookdown my story and my information, and I
have received attempted help from AlexGonzalez, Utilities Supervisor. Alex even
worked on my issue into the evening.
However, Alex is not in charge of thecorrect division of CPAU to address my
issue. This illustrates a continued lack ofunderstanding of my issue, at best, and
perhaps a continued lack of willingness torectify my issue. That is why I'm
reaching out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Patricia Judge Tamrazi
To:Burton, Kaylee
Cc:City Mgr; Council, City
Subject:Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:08:57 AM
Attachments:image002.pngimage010.pngimage011.png
image012.pngimage013.pngimage014.pngimage015.pngimage016.pngimage018.pngimage019.png
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious ofopening attachments and clicking on links.
Dear Ms. Burton,
Do you have updates for me yet regarding my inquiries regarding the known health and safety issueswithin Utilities, whether they are being addressed, and whether the City will be letting California Stateregulators in to assess, in the interest of the safety of Palo Alto residents?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
On Thu, Jun 27, 2024 at 2:46 PM Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Good afternoon Ms. Tamrazi,
Thank you for your recent correspondence regarding this issue. We have received your messages. Atpresent, I regret that I am unable to provide answers to your inquiries. Please rest assured that we areactively working on resolving this matter, and we will provide further information as soon as theybecome available.
Thank you,
Kaylee Burton
Utilities Administrative Assistant
City of Palo Alto Utilities Department
Phone: 650.329.2326 | Cell: 650.444.5305
E-mail: kaylee.burton@CityofPaloAlto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Thursday, June 27, 2024 9:14 AMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Council, City<city.council@cityofpaloalto.org>; Fire <fire@cityofpaloalto.org>Cc: City Mgr <CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims,Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka, Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker,Vicki <Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Clerk, City <city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>; CityAttorney <city.attorney@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautious ofopening attachments and clicking on links.
Hello Mr. Shikada,
Following up on my emails below from last week and prior to that, since I have not received aresponse from you.
Could you please provide an update, particularly regarding the emergency / fire risk thatneeds to be addressed: LOOSE NEUTRAL (known about since at least March, and just left)?
Will you let the State auditors in, to protect the health and safety of the City's residents?
I requested via Public Records Request, "Maintenance schedule for overhead electrical wires, andprogress on that schedule. Related Electrical Preventive Maintenance Program materials andchecklists." I was sent budget schedules. When I followed up, asking, does this mean the requestedmaterials do not exist? I was re-sent the budget schedules. This is highly concerning.
Trish Tamrazi
On Wed, Jun 19, 2024 at 8:05 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Mr. Shikada,
Following up again, since none of my HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES related to Utilitieshave been addressed and also since I have not heard back from you after my emails to you belowon June 3, June 4, June 6, or June 10. Today is June 19.
At the prompting of another Palo Alto resident, this week, I reached out to the Electric Safety andReliability Branch (ESRB) of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) with myHEALTH AND SAFETY concerns. I had previously called the CPUC in February, right before Ireached out to you for help, as I was put in the very odd position of having CPAU employees tellme to "advocate" for myself for a better than "Band-aid fix. The CPUC told me to appeal to CityHall - which I have done. Now that the City has agreed that there is a LOOSE NEUTRAL whichhas not been fixed and as far as I know is not being fixed, I thought it couldn't hurt to reach outagain. The ESRB agreed this is worrying, but told me that they cannot do an audit unless the Cityallows them to. Given these HEALTH AND SAFETY CONCERNS, will you allow theaudit?
The ESRB suggested that I reach out to the Fire Department regarding the LOOSENEUTRAL that you have known about since at least March (I believe February) and that isstill not fixed. As you know, I already did reach out to the Fire Department about this back inFebruary and you, Mr. Shikada, told them to let Head of Utilities Batchelor deal with me. I didlater speak to Fire Marshal Tami Jasso, and she said the Fire Department is always here for me incase of an emergency. I'm sending this email to fire@cityofpaloalto.org as well - maybe, as theESRB suggested, the Fire Department will prompt Utilities to fix the LOOSE NEUTRAL. Notresponding properly to emergency calls (e.g., flickering lights) I imagine is also of concern to theFire Department.
Once again, here are the overarching HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES / SOLUTIONS whichneed to be addressed:
1. Emergency line and customer service not properly staffed / trained (lackknowledge to do their jobs; Dean Batchelor, in February, and Tomm Marshall, in April,both agreed with me on the phone that this is a real issue) - training and oversightneeded.
2. Employees not empowered to diagnose and fix problems when identified - bootson the ground should be empowered, not supervisors who do not understand problems(this is per CPAU's own employees).
3. CPAU maintenance standards fall below PG&E's / industry standards (this is perCPAU's own employees and contractors - includes negligence regarding tree trimmingand infrastructure mapping).
4. Contractors must abide by the City's own stated steps of performance - training
and oversight needed. (This is the dirty water / water meter swap case.)
Could you please let me know what actions are being taken to address these issues? Especially urgent are KNOWN FIRE RISKS not being fixed.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Mon, Jun 10, 2024 at 12:50 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Mr. Shikada,
Following up again because I have not heard back from you yet regarding any of the manyHEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES caused by Utilities (a growing list, as I speak to more CPAUemployees and contractors).
1. Will you commit to PAYING FOR DAMAGE done to my house by Utilities' welldocumented gross negligence?
2. When will the KNOWN LOOSE NEUTRAL be fixed?
Aside from being inappropriate and puzzling in intent, the distinction you were trying todraw regarding the article I sent to you previously in your email last Monday is incorrect. Youcommented, "The article you attached refers to neutral issues in buildings, which is distinctfrom the utility’s side." Did you read the article? The article specifically discusses looseneutrals on the UTILITY SIDE and states that (1) they need to be fixed, (2) they are asafety risk (fire hazard, shock risk), and (3) they will damage electronics connected tothem.
Here is a YouTube video of a lineman IN THE DARK locating and fixing a loose neutral, inresponse to a customer calling in flickering lights in their home. This illustrates that looseneutrals are fixed on an emergency basis by utilities - that is industry standard. ByCPAU's own admission, the loose neutral was discovered at least in March (I believe February)and still not fixed (it's now June). It's been at least 3 months and not fixed.
The video also has technical information regarding how to find the source of the bad neutral,which seems like it would be helpful to your Utilities Department.
It is not acceptable to just leave the loose neutral. It needs to be fixed. (I cannot believe I evenhave to say that.)
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Jun 6, 2024 at 10:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Mr. Shikada,
I am relieved to see that there are contractors inspecting the power poles in my neighborhoodtoday.
The tree trimmers told me that the trees were very overgrown as compared to when they trimtrees for PG&E - this is in line with what CPAU employees have told me: that CPAUmaintenance standards fall below PG&E maintenance standards. Would it be a goodidea to call Davey Tree Service and get on the same schedule as PG&E?
Now that the trees are trimmed, will CPAU be able to find and fix the loose neutral in myneighborhood, that was first discovered at least in March (and, in talking with CPAUlinemen, I believe February)? I have been told that this is a very dangerous condition thatshould be a priority to fix.
What is being done to improve maintenance, so that it is in line with industry safetystandards?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Jun 4, 2024 at 1:56 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Mr. Shikada,
I was relieved to see crews trimming the trees around the overhead electrical wires today,as that has been a concern first flagged to me by a lineman in February (almost 4 monthsago).
I look forward to your answers to the other outstanding concerns.
Trish Tamrazi
On Mon, Jun 3, 2024 at 2:38 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Dear Mr. Shikada,
My answers and questions in response to you are below in RED, ALL CAPS.
I am copying the City Council, so that they can be kept in the loop. I know that youhave told multiple of them, many times, that my issues have been taken care of - I havealso seen you write that in an email. That is totally untrue, as now supported by the"Loose Neutral" graph showing a significant safety issue identified at least in March (Ibelieve February) and JUST LEFT (highly negligent). And the loose wire still remainsto this day!
I am simply asking for SAFE AND RELIABLE POWER (and clean water) to my houseand the houses in my neighborhood. This is the bare minimum that a utility shouldprovide - and CPAU is not doing it. No resident should ever have to push this hard.
Please also could you provide an update on your progress on the overarching HEALTHAND SAFETY ISSUES / SOLUTIONS, listed in my previous email, which have beenflagged repeatedly for many months now?
I look forward to answers to my questions below in response to your email, as well.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Mon, Jun 3, 2024 at 1:48 PM Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hello Ms. Tamrazi,
Following up on your most recent message below, I’d like to confirm a few items:
1. Staff has offered to coordinate an independent electrician review conditionsinside your home. I understand that they are awaiting your confirmation toproceed. I CONSULTED MULTIPLE ELECTRICIANS TO CONFIRM THATTHERE WERE NO ELECTRICAL ISSUES INSIDE OF MY NEWLY-REWIRED HOUSE, WHEN CPAU DENIED FOR WEEKS THAT MYSEVERE FLICKERING LIGHTS HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH POORPOWER SUPPLY TO MY HOUSE, EVEN AFTER MY NEIGHBORSCALLED INTO THE EMERGENCY LINE FOR THE SAME ELECTRICALISSUES AND WERE BLOWN OFF. THEN IT WAS REVEALED THATCPAU HAS NOT PROVIDED SAFE OR RELIABLE POWER TO MYHOUSE, AS DATA HAS REVEALED (1) SEVERE BROWNOUTS AND (2)VOLTAGE SWINGS FROM A LOOSE NEUTRAL - BOTH OF WHICH AREKNOWN TO DAMAGE FIXTURES AND ELECTRONICS. PLEASE,COULD YOU CONFIRM THAT FIXES / REPLACEMENT COSTS FORANY DAMAGE FOUND INSIDE MY HOUSE WILL BE PAID FOR BYTHE CITY OF PALO ALTO AND/OR CPAU?2. Staff is reviewing the neutral issue, with the understanding that this does notpose a risk to your home. The article you attached refers to neutral issues inbuildings, which is distinct from the utility’s side. A loose wire connection onthe utility line might be involved, so staff is troubleshooting. In the meanwhile,they have rerouted your electric supply to avoid the suspectedconnection. THIS ABSOLUTELY POSES A RISK TO MY HOME, AS ITPOSES A RISK TO MY NEIGHBORS. TO KNOW OF A LOOSE WIREAND JUST LEAVE IT IS HIGHLY NEGLIGENT. THE ARTICLE IATTACHED WAS FOR THOSE RECEIVING THE EMAIL WHO MAY NOTBE WELL-VERSED IN ELECTRICITY, SO THEY CAN UNDERSTANDTHE RISKS OF A LOOSE NEUTRAL. ANYONE INVOLVED WITHUTILITIES KNOWS THAT A LOOSE WIRE ON THE UTILITY'S SIDE ISALSO DAMAGING AND DANGEROUS, SO I WILL GIVE YOU THEBENEFIT OF THE DOUBT ON WHATEVER DISTINCTION YOU ARETRYING TO DRAW WITH YOUR STATEMENTS HERE AND NOTCOMMENT FURTHER. 3. In response to your new request, staff is reviewing tree clearance in thearea. WHEN WILL THE TREES BE TRIMMED? I WAS TOLD BY YOUROWN EMPLOYEES THAT IT IS OVERDUE. PLEASE DO NOTCHARACTERIZE THIS AS *MY* NEW REQUEST - IT IS YOUR OWNEMPLOYEES' OLD REQUEST, WHICH THEY CHARACTERIZED TO MEAS AN EMERGENCY AND WHICH SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN IGNORED,AS THEY WERE IGNORED WHEN TRYING TO FIX MY POOR POWERSUPPLY ISSUES BACK IN FEBRUARY WHEN FIRST IDENTIFIED.
Sincerely,
--Ed
Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 | ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, May 31, 2024 8:10 AMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly <Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burt, Patrick <Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed <Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Lythcott-Haims, Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka, Greg<Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Clerk, City <city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Becautious of opening attachments and clicking on links.
Dear Mr. Shikada,
I guess you are responsible for addressing CPAU's negligence, until a majority of theCity Council decides to address it.
When will the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? For those not familiarwith this being an EMERGENCY: https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-floating-neutral-2262
When will the overgrown trees in my neighborhood be trimmed, so they do notinterfere with overhead electrical wires? The City employee I spoke with last weeksaid he was VERY WORRIED and that he was suggesting to management this bedone directly after the Memorial Day holiday (i.e., this week - he saw it as anemergency). A lineman told me back in February (almost 4 months ago) that he wasalso VERY WORRIED, but nothing has been done.
Overarching are the following HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES / SOLUTIONS:
1. Emergency line and customer service not properly staffed / trained(lack knowledge to do their jobs; Dean Batchelor, in February, and TommMarshall, in April, both agreed with me on the phone that this is a real issue)- training and oversight needed.
2. Employees not empowered to diagnose and fix problems whenidentified - boots on the ground should be empowered, not supervisors whodo not understand problems (this is per CPAU's own employees).
3. CPAU maintenance standards fall below PG&E's / industry standards(this is per CPAU's own employees - see loose neutral and overgrown treeissues above).
4. Contractors must abide by the City's own stated steps of performance -training and oversight needed. (This is the dirty water / water meter swaplawsuit.)
What actions are being taken to address these issues? Especially urgent areKNOWN FIRE RISKS not being fixed.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 6:27 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council, in your capacity as regulator of the Utility,
On May 16, a City engineer sent the chart below to me, showing that a LOOSENEUTRAL was discovered in my neighborhood in MARCH and NOT FIXED. This is a very well known FIRE RISK. It will blow out appliances and make lights
flicker.
This is HIGHLY negligent to know of a LOOSE NEUTRAL and just LEAVEIT.
(I believe this dates back to February and is why a lineman came to my door as awhistleblower and also why dispatch called me to go plead my case for a "properfix" - I believe Utiltiies' "Band-aid fix" was that egregious. Leaving a loose neutralwould be it.)
Compounding this is the fact that there is 1 fire truck for all of South Palo Alto. Is that really accurate, as reported? It's unbelievable - but so is leaving a looseneutral unaddressed!
Utiltiies turned off power to "investigate" the loose neutral last Thursday (May 23). I directly asked on Friday (May 24) and got a roundabout answer (a non-answerreally) today (May 28), suggesting to me that the LOOSE NEUTRAL has NOTBEEN FIXED.
My conversations with the linemen on Thursday were concerning. Do you have anexperienced crew that can be sent out here? Maybe can you consult withPG&E?
The engineer with whom I have been corresponding has "EIT" after his name in hisemail signature. Does that mean "Engineer in Training"? Is there someone moreexperienced who can head this and get it fixed?
As a reminder, my electrical problems (which a loose neutral would cause) werefirst reported to CPAU on January 24. It is now May 28. It has been 125 days,and my issues are unresolved.
In addition, 2 City employees now have told me that they are worried aboutovergrown trees crowding the overhead lines (1 in February and 1 last week). Again, this is highly negligent and a well known FIRE RISK. Since there is only 1fire engine down here - even more reason to address any known fire risks!
Overarching are the following HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES /SOLUTIONS:
1. Emergency line and customer service not properly staffed / trained(lack knoweldge to do their jobs; Dean Batchelor, in February, and TommMarshall, in April, both agreed with me on the phone that this is a realissue) - training and oversight needed.
2. Employees not empowered to diagnose and fix problems whenidentified - boots on the ground should be empowered, not supervisorswho do not understand problems (this is per CPAU's own employees).
3. CPAU maintenance standards fall below PG&E's / industrystandards (this is per CPAU's own employees).
4. Contractors must abide by the City's own stated steps ofperformance - training and oversight needed. (This is the dirty water /water meter swap case.)
Could you please let me know what actions are being taken to address theseissues? Especially urgent are KNOWN FIRE RISKS not being fixed.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 9:15 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
My lights continue to FLICKER here at 3409 Greer Rd.
I have called commercial electricians to see about installing something to regulatethe power coming into my house - estimates are $30,000 to do so. Is thissomething the City will pay for, since Utilities is unable to provide safe andreliable power to my house?
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU on January 24, I first wrote toyou on February 9 - today is May 15. As you know, I have tried pretty mucheverything to get this taken seriously and fixed. No success.
Tomm Marshall has acknowledged this is an issue on CPAU's side, but it has notbeen fixed. He said that a "neutral issue" was discovered when my house wasconnected to the NEW transformer, so (rather than fixing it), they put myhouse on the OLD transformer nearby. Flickering continues.
Please let me know, will you pay for the regulator to be put on my house?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Mon, Apr 1, 2024 at 9:01 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have not received an answer. The onlytime I received a substantive answer was when I expressed my displeasure atnot being able to purchase an EV (being afraid that my neighborhood wouldburn down or that my young children were in danger didn't strike a chord withyou). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garage where I had planned forEV chargers:
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replace the old car which was
totaled after being stolen from in front of my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on the evening of March 28. This is visual evidence of why I cannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safeand reliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU on January 24. Afterstruggling with CPAU for over 2 weeks, I first reached out to you regardingthis issue on February 9, after I was told by CPAU's own employees that Ineeded to advocate for a "proper fix" to our issues and was met with athreatening environment when I did so in person to CPAU's supervisingemployee. I truly thought you would help me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronics in our home, all of whichare new since we just finished renovating in late 2023. For example (and this isnot all-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up (turn on and off randomly andunexpectedly) and the ice in our Sub-zero is stuck together (suggesting that it isnot regulating its temperature properly).
My family is suffering because of your unresponsiveness. I spend countlesshours trying to navigate how to get my city government to respond to me sothat I can get safe and reliable power to my house. My business issuffering, my young children are suffering, and I have developed health issues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it? Your constituents aredepending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of the emails that came before it: Iwelcome any thoughts you have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, since being told by Ed on March 5that Dean will be calling me and that Ed would join if needed. That was over3 weeks ago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on PBS last night. I recommendyou watch it. I found it inspiring to see the amazing impact properly fundedand functioning public health systems can have, as well as the negativeeffects that flow from cutting funding and letting those systems fall intodisrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for your management of the UtilitiesDepartment?
I'm sure by now you have heard of the contamination of some houses'drinking water that was caused by the contractor the city hired to swap outwater meters. When are you planning on warning residents of the error andhelping them to clean up the mess? This is a public health issue!!! As youremain silent, citizens have been drinking contaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notify my neighbors of thedamage your poor power supply has done to their homes. I first suggestedyou do this in my email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman across town - a mom with yourchildren and a lot on her plate - who has had flickering lights as well as adishwasher and refrigerator that have gone out. My understanding is that sheis patiently waiting for someone to come out to her house to check it out. Iimagine I do not need to state this to you, as you are the regulators of theUtility and must know - but just in case: utilities companies generally treatflickering lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city's response to my PublicRecords Request is still woefully unresponsive. I am simply trying to gatherinformation to fix the power supply to my house! It is the city's legal duty torespond fully. The city did, however, produce 2 emails which are sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any real assistance or response, Deanforwarded my desperate email pleading for help and expressing mygeneral displeasure with the mismanagement in Palo Alto to CatherineElvert, who I gather from a Google search is a PR professional, withthe note “Here you go !!!” Were you getting your talking points in
order, rather than focusing on helping your citizens??2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate email pleading for help (emailstamp on my email shows, "date: Feb 12, 2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed sent anemail (email stamp on Ed's email shows: "Sent: Monday, February 12,2024 3:16 PM") to multiple City of Palo Alto email addresses statingthat Dean has spoken to me a couple times (NOT TRUE!!!!!) and “Noneed for further prompting. Thanks all!” NOTHING HAD BEENADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of the emails that came before it:I welcome any thoughts you have on this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be very clear: Iwould much rather have a responsive, caring, and ethical city government,than bring any thieves to justice.
The stress from having our car stolen from in front of our house pales incomparison to the stress and anguish we have experienced as a family ingetting the run around from CPAU and then being ignored by City Hall, asI try to get safe and reliable power delivered to the houses in myneighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should never have been this involved orhave had to push so hard. This is too much to ask from citizens. It is noway to run a utility. But, to continue down that path: logically, shouldn'tthe transformer also be replaced on the "secondary pole," where looseconnections were also found? If that was the "proper fix" on the first poleclimbed (i.e. PG&E minimum maintenance standards), wouldn't it also bethe "proper fix" on the second?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this is a long-standing issue,not unique to my block, which has harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being stolen. I can only imaginehow this has impacted you and your family. While understandingnothing can make up for such a violation, I hope the thieves are quicklybrought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spoken to Director Batchelor andunderstand he will be calling you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear thattheir replacement of the electrical transformer did not resolve theproblem. I will stay in touch with him and happy to join a call as heworks with you on next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 | ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AM
Some people who received this message don't often get email from
patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
To: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka, Greg<Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of theorganization. Be cautious of opening attachments andclicking on links.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from in front of our house here inPalo Alto. It looks like it's totaled. When we completely rewired thehouse last year, we future proofed to accommodate an EV charger - 2actually. However, CPAU is unable to provide safe and reliable powerto our house. Because of this, to our great disappointment, we cannotreplace our gas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call in the middle of the nightthat someone is bleeding to death and needs an intervention, and his EVdidn't charge - well, that's a big problem!
City Council - I see your talking points on electrification (I'm all forelectrification). You know that your electrical infrastructure can'tsupport it.
This is the real world effect of your decisions: a family that wantedto go electric cannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help, dating back to my firstemail to you on February 9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 Greer Rd. - the latest workingtheory from CPAU is that it is caused by an air compressor at atheoretical construction site nearby. (1) That's a laughable theory. (2)My lights flicker evenings and weekends - which CPAU engineers havebeen told. Is the cause the 2 EVs charging in every driveway + anoutdated electrical infrastructure that cannot support it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to my power issues. (a) Theresponse was a day late. (b) The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behind municipal utilities fallingoutside of regulation is (i) elected officials, who serve as the utlity'soversight, will be responsive (mine - you - are silent) and (ii) there areprotections such as the Public Records Request (my city obviouslydisregards its legal duties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week, one stated: Whenmunicipal utilities are good, they're really great. But when they're bad,it's abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead of the rest of the city in thegrid update. Maybe Elon Musk's words will resonate with you then - hesaid that the world will face supply crunches in electricity andtransformers next year. What does that result in? Flickering lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps to make our municipalutility "really great," instead of "abysmal"? Your constituents aredepending on you.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409 Greer Rd. I still have notheard anything substantive from anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council - you are the regulators of theUtilities Department, correct? Why have I still not heard back fromany of you with anything substantive? (The vast majority of you, Ihave not heard anything at all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a fire risk? I am worried -I have 2 small children - I have expressed this and no one seems tocare!
The transformer that I have been told supplies power to my house wasswitched out on February 15. On February 14, the UtilitiesDepartment climbed another pole nearby (described to me as my"secondary pole") and found loose connections, which I've been toldwere tightened. That's 2 out of 2 poles with loose connections. Isroutine maintenance being done? Are there loose connections all overthe city? My lights continue to flicker - are other loose connectionscausing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connections would explain theproblems the neighbors have experienced on that side of my house:(1) one neighbor's refrigerator went out and she had to go buy a newone last weekend, (2) another neighbor had flickering lights (Idiscovered this by overhearing him over the fence speaking tosomeone about his panel), (3) a third neighbor had an outdoor lightthat was malfunctioning (she described it as "acting weird"). Theseare the things that I have heard only in passing - surprisingly,everyone has complete trust in Palo Alto Utilities and does not blamethe poor power supply they are receiving. These 3 houses are inaddition to the 6 houses experiencing poor power supply issues fromthe other pole (one of which went through 3 refrigerators in January). So that's 9 houses total with issues - and I imagine there are more!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to your citizens these issues afteryou discover them? Shouldn't you inform them that they have beenreceiving poor power supply and educate them on the damage that haspossibly (or likely) been done to the appliances and electronics withintheir home? I thought CPAU is supposed to do better than PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from an engineer to get my story toanalyze the data collected by the load logger on my house. He wasunaware that mine was not the only house with flickering lights! How is communication that bad?! As a reminder, the morning ofFebruary 9 was when I first emailed all of you to escalate this issue -at that time we had 5 houses total with confirmed flickering lights. The engineer was not informed that it was not just my housewith flickering lights - I had to explain to him then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong load logger had been on myhouse since February 7. It was switched for the correct one, which Iwas told would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday: My lights continue toflicker after Thursday's "Band-Aid fix," as described by CPAUemployees. Over the weekend, I discovered a 6th neighboringhouse with flickering lights.
My understanding is that flickering lights are a sign of possible firerisk, as they are often caused by loose connections that may arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from any of you on Fridayregarding whether my neighbors and I are at risk for fire, despitemy desperate plea, I called the Fire Department this morning toask. I have been told that they are looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after I spoke with the FireDepartment, and he is looking into the issue. I do appreciate hiscall.
I still do not understand why CPAU's standard practice falls belowPG&E standards or how that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out to pull the load logger frommy house and put a new one. I understand they're analyzing thedata. Why not just change out the transformer, as PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effective regulation of CPAU. I thinkyou all (with the exception of Dean and perhaps the City Attorney)are responsible for oversight, but I have not heard anythingsubstantive from any of you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly unsafe here in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructure also fall below PG&Estandards?
There is something up on the pole on Greer as I walk my childrento school that makes a lot of noise. Is it a transformer? Does thenoise mean it's old and in disrepair? I know if a transformerexplodes, my children and I should not be under it, as we will beharmed by the oil inside falling on us. Do I have to reroute ourwalk to keep us safe? I trusted CPAU, and although I noted thesound every time I walked under it, I didn't think twice aboutwalking under it. Now, I do think twice.
The problems aren't just with the Utilities Department. OnDecember 19, the garbage cans were not collected in my cul-de-sac. My elderly neighbor phoned daily, and the cans were notcollected until December 23, after my second elderly neighbor inthe cul-de-sac called on December 22 (so it took 3 days of calling,plus it seems like it wasn't taken seriously until there was a secondhousehold calling). After my experience with Utilities, I was sureto apologize to my neighbor for not calling as well - I had neverheard of anything like this! Recology always comes out the nextday, whenever there is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovating our Eichler - it's ourdream house and we intended for it to be our "forever home." Wemoved here from Redwood City for the schools and also to be
surrounded by a community of safety-oriented individuals(something that became especially important in the pandemic). Iam devastated to learn that CPAU standards fall below PG&Estandards. We are now considering moving, but it would be verydifficult for us to do so financially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you may have?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday, but I really do think this isurgent. Can someone please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and I am worried about thesafety of the electricity being supplied to my home and the homesaround me. Am I at risk for fire? I've asked this to CPAUmultiple times, with no answer. Am I safe to stay in my homeover the weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very close family friend who is aretired PG&E lineman. His partner has been in the hospital, Ihave just found out, so we were only just able to reach him latemorning today. He said that PG&E would have changed out thattransformer - that's what Tito said he is opting not to do and the 2other employees at CPAU told me I should "plead my case" for. I had no idea what the standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only owned my home for a littleover 2 years, but my understanding from fellow residents is thatCPAU is better than PG&E. Then why isn't CPAU doing theminimum that PG&E would do?
As you can tell from my email below, I had already lost faith -given prior interactions - that CPAU was fixing our problems. Iwasn't sure, though - maybe not replacing a transformer was afix, which is why I emailed you. Now, I have an opinion from aknowledgeable source that the transformer should have beenreplaced.
After learning that CPAU is possibly not meeting standardpractice - and having not heard back from anyone with higherauthority - I contacted the California Public Utilities Commissionand was disheartened (to say it lightly) to hear that they onlyadvocate for customers of shareholder owned utilities - i.e., notCPAU. I was advised that I need to appeal to the City - which, Ithink, is all you.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity, to protect CPAUcustomers when there is evidence that a standard is not beingmet? Am I reaching out to the wrong people for help?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call the Fire Department and ask? What does a "Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean, in terms ofsafety? Should I leave my home? Are my neighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to you, copying the CityManager, City Attorney, and City Council, asking you toplease ensure that my ongoing and severe electrical issues at3409 Greer Road are fixed by CPAU. At least 4 of myneighbors are experiencing these same issues (5 houses total). I have been told by 2 CPAU employees that we are receiving a"Band-Aid fix," not a real fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit, given how grossly negligentand, frankly, abusive, my interactions with CPAU have been. But - at this time - my focus is on getting the electrical serviceto my house and my neighbors' houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from my smart meter, pulledyesterday, February 8, showing severe brownouts to my homeat 3409 Greer Rd. This smart meter was put on my house onFebruary 7. As you'll see, one brownout lasted 1 hour 9minutes, which I have been told is "insane." For those on theemail without an electrical background, here is a quick primeron the seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one light fixture at my house,illustrating the severity of the flickering lights that I firstreported to CPAU on January 24. (Please excuse the paint job- we just finished completely renovating the inside and don'thave the nice weather yet to paint the outside. That is anew light fixture, installed last year.) As reported to CPAU,this has been happening throughout my entire house, and wealso heard exhaust fans throughout the house slowing downand speeding up. My next door neighbor had the sameexperience.
From January 24 to the time this data was looked at by CPAUyesterday, February 8, CPAU employees have denied that thereare any issues on CPAU's side. Shockingly, they continued todeny this, even after being formally informed of 4 more houseswith flickering lights. Until yesterday afternoon whenthey finally looked at the smart meter data from my house,various CPAU employees kept telling me to call an electrician,which I did (multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal, one neighbor called CPAUdispatch reporting flickering lights and was told to call backwhen the flickering got worse. Every knowledgeable person Ihave talked to - with the exception of one CPAU employee -has thought that was absolutely reckless, most laughing indisbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to rectify the situation, but I wastold by 2 individuals within CPAU that they were doing a"Band-Aid fix," not a real fix. I was told by one well-meaningCPAU employee that I should walk around the corner to wherethe linemen were working and find a big guy with a bald headnamed Tito to "plead my case" for a real fix. That in itself is
one of the craziest things I've ever heard!
Tito did not seem very receptive to this (rightfully so becausewho am I as a homeowner to tell him how to do his job?), so,shaken up, I went home and called the City Manager's office,pleading for an advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant, took down my story andmy information, and I have received attempted help from AlexGonzalez, Utilities Supervisor. Alex even worked on my issueinto the evening. However, Alex is not in charge of the correctdivision of CPAU to address my issue. This illustrates acontinued lack of understanding of my issue, at best, andperhaps a continued lack of willingness to rectify my issue. That is why I'm reaching out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Patricia Judge Tamrazi
To:Marshall, Tomm
Cc:Williams, Kurt; Batchelor, Dean; Burton, Kaylee; Lauing, Ed; Council, City; City Mgr
Subject:Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Date:Tuesday, July 2, 2024 9:06:40 AM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
Hi Tomm,
I hope this email finds you well. Following up on my email from May 31, since I have not
heard back from you yet and since Kurt Williams told me yesterday to contact you regardingmy questions on the known and unfixed loose neutral.
Could you please provide an update on fixing the loose neutral measured up on the pole at
3480 Thomas Drive, in at least March?
It looks like they switched out the transformer again last week. I believe that this is the thirdtime the transformer has been switched. Why was it switched again?
Has the loose neutral been fixed?
Trish Tamrazi
On Fri, May 31, 2024 at 8:13 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm - Following up on my email from Tuesday, since you have not replied. Whenwill the loose neutral in my neighborhood be fixed? As you know, utility companies treat
this as an emergency, and ours was identified at least back in March (I believe, in talkingwith CPAU employees, February). https://www.luminsmart.com/blog/the-dangers-of-
floating-neutral-2262
On Tue, May 28, 2024 at 11:25 AM Patricia Judge <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:Thanks, Tomm. My understanding is that the crews would know right away by testing if
they fixed the loose neutral, so is it correct to assume that your email means that they didnot fix the neutral issue? When will you be doing that? I’m sure you can understand my
being worried about this since it’s a serious electrical danger (risk of surge and fire).
From what I have pieced together, there was a neutral issue with the old transformer and aneutral issue with the new transformer, so wouldn’t that suggest that the issue is NOT with
the transformer? Is there maybe a damaged or loose wire somewhere that needs to befound? I understand that would take much more time to find and fix versus switching out
the transformer again, and I do appreciate the crews’ time.
2 City employees now - one back on February and one last week (May) - have expressedto me how worried they are about overgrown trees around the overhead wires in my
neighborhood. Could that be contributing to my poor power supply? When will the treesaround the wires be trimmed?
I’m looping in Councilmember Lauing, since he has been actively working on this.
I’m here to help. I want nothing more than to get this resolved so that I can just live in
peace - with safe and reliable power - and never have to contact you again. I want to beclear, that is my goal.
Thank you,
Trish
650-208-4802
Sent from my iPhone
On May 28, 2024, at 10:13 AM, Marshall, Tomm<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
The transformer was replaced, new wire connections were installed andmeters were installed to record data.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Friday, May 24, 2024 10:26 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor,Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
What happened yesterday - did they find the loose neutral (identified inearly March) and tighten it?
Trish
Patricia Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 10:10 AM Williams, Kurt
<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have attached a screenshot of the neutral issue.
<image001.png>
Best,
<image002.png> Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 9:27 AMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Batchelor,Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. My understanding is that when my house was on the new
transformer, there was a "neutral issue" that was picked up by the loadlogger. Could you please send me screen shots of that data, showing the
"neutral issue"?
On Thu, May 16, 2024 at 8:20 AM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I have reviewed the data from April 25th – May 1st and have attached a
screenshot below. On 4/29 at about 6AM, there was a temporary dip ofthe high side voltage, causing the secondary voltage to drop below 114V.
Besides this anomaly, the secondary voltage stayed between the required5% tolerance (126V -114V) and the PST value was below 1, indicating
that no flicker likely occurred expect on the morning on 4/29 where thePST value was above 1.
<image003.png>
Best,
<image002.png> Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 4:21 PMTo: Williams, Kurt <Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton, Kaylee
<Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Thank you, Kurt. Has the data been reviewed yet that was taken from the
last time the load logger was on the house?
On Wed, May 15, 2024 at 3:53 PM Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Hi Patricia,
I spoke with Tomm and the meter technicians will be out tomorrowmorning, 5/16, between 9AM and 10AM to install the load logger.
Best,
<image002.png> Kurt Williams.
Associate Power Engineer, EIT.
City of Palo Alto | Utilities Department
1007 Elwell Court | Palo Alto, CA 94303
O: 650-329-2445 | C: | E: kurt.williams@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 8:57 AMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burton,
Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Williams, Kurt<Kurt.Williams@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
My lights are flickering again - at 11:15am on Sunday 5/12 and in theevening of Monday 5/13. The flickering was on different circuits. I
can send video if you'd like.
I don't know whether the load logger is on or not? I think maybe it isnot, since I did see my gate closed differently after it was installed. I
don't receive notification of the work - but I would like that, please,since I am having to be so involved.
A couple of questions:
1. Is it possible there are loose connections from Utilities on mypanel? There was a torque test on everything my electrician did
- how about what Utilities has done? It seemed like theflickering stopped when the load logger was on (if it is indeed
off) - so I thought maybe it was a loose connection related tothat - especially since you had told me previously that you found
a LOOSE CONNECTION on the load logger. This is quiteconcerning, of course, and should be an easy fix? It seems like
the load logger was taken off, and the flickering returned. 2. You said previously there was a "neutral issue" when connected
to the NEW transformer, so you took us off that and put us onthe OLD transformer next to it. Can you just fix the "neutral
issue" and put me on the NEW transformer? Will this solve myflickering lights? What does "neutral issue" mean?
This flickering was first reported to CPAU January 24, so this is quitefrustrating that it is still going on.
Could you please fix it?
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 25, 2024 at 2:47 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Here are more files.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 2:16 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Load logger. Having a meter reset - does that mean coming out toput a load logger back on my house? My understanding is that the
smart meter will not pick up most poor power supply issues - I needa load logger on there, and it needs to be the correct one (I have been
told there was a "wrong" one on, for quite a while). I was told that itwas only because my brownouts were so severe that the smart meter
picked them up - generally, it would not.
Video. The video showed the light - when the light switch is turnedoff - it takes a long time to go out, gets very bright, then turns off.
This is on a dumb switch. It was flickering severely the day beforethis odd behavior (I do have video of the flickering). Then this odd
behavior. Then back to normal. Please note that this isdifferent than the flickering, which occurs when the lights are on.
This is odd behavior when we try to turn the light off.
Flickering. Flickering occurs on fixtures with lightbulbs throughoutthe house - many have dumb switches, some have dimmers. Since
this flickering is consistent across different switch devices andhappens intermittently, it seems unlikely that the flickering is due to
dimmers. It seems flickering is more pronouced on fixtures withbulbs than integrated LEDs - I have been told that may indicate low
voltage - what do you think?
Records request. I do not believe that any original datasets camethrough to me in response to my records request. There are many,
many items missing in the records request, which I only submittedbecause I've asked for the data many times, and I have never
received it. I have been told that Utilities does not want to provide it(folks refer to "my supervisor") - which is why I put in the records
request - as a matter of law, it is to be provided. I'm attaching theload logger data that I have seen - but I would like the full data set,
please.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Tue, Apr 23, 2024 at 1:36 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
I am having the charts printed out so that I can forward them to
you . The original datasets were included in the Public RecordsRequest but they appear to require the meter manufacturers
software to decode the data. When I have more time I will see ifthe files can be exported in a data file that can be read by
something like EXCEL. The PDF files of the data from yourhouse should be ready by the end of the week.
I have asked the engineer to request the meter to be reset on your
house and it should be done this week.
The video showed the light flickering and going out. A couple ofquestions since I don’t know the setup in your house. Was this the
only light experiencing the flickering? Is the light connected to adimmer switch?
Some people who received this message don't often get email frompatricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Thanks for you patience.
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Tuesday, April 23, 2024 12:43 PMTo: Marshall, Tomm <Tomm.Marshall@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean <Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Burton, Kaylee <Kaylee.Burton@CityofPaloAlto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts
Hi Tomm,
Following up from our phone discussion on Thursday, April 18,since I have not heard from anyone yet -
Could you send all data from the load loggers associated with thepower to my house, please? When will load loggers be put backon my house, please?
I have more video of my lights flickering on Saturday, April 20. Could you please let me know if you'd like to see it?
My understanding from our discussion Thursday is that youmeasured the following: (1) brownouts initially (first reportedJanuary 24 and recorded via smart meter February 8 - these issuesare also in the data from the load loggers?), (2) power to housefrom new transformer around February 12, then continuingflickering lights due to a problem with the neutral (is that a looseneutral?), then (3) did not fix those neutral issues, instead movedthe house to an old transformer on the secondary pole (which alsohad loose connections - so if the "proper fix" on the other pole
was a new transformer, why not on this pole too?), and continuingflickering lights.
Did you have a chance to review the video I sent on April 17,video recorded April 14? I've never seen a light do this - couldyou please tell me what is going on? Is this dangerous? Is this asurge due to ongoing issues? The light did go back to normal - sothe only thing that could have changed is the power supply to myhouse.
Thank you,
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 17, 2024 at 11:55 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Tomm,
I look forward to speaking with you soon.
Thank you for your call on the afternoon of Thursday, April 4. I'm sorry for missing it - I am dealing with some health issuesand could not answer the phone. My understanding is thatmany City employees do not work on Fridays, so I intended tocall you on Monday, April 8. However, upon walking out mydoor to take my son to school on that morning, I came upon theCity's contractor replacing my water meter (no notice) - I askedhim to follow specific City procedures laid out to my elderlyneighbor whose water was grossly contaminated by thetechniques used by the contractor, with the assurance thoseprocedures would be followed, but they were not, and my waterwas contaminated with yard dirt. I have been dealing with thatsince.
I just left you a voicemail. Attached please find the video I
referenced in that voicemail, of the weird issue with the light inmy daughter's room. This was last Thursday, April 11. The
day before, April 10, the lights were severely flickering. Thelight went back to normal as of Sunday, April 14. The only
thing that possibly could have changed is the power supply tothe house. By way of background which may be helpful, this
light fixture was new last year - it uses lightbulbs.
Could you please provide all load logger data related to thepower supply to my house?
If you think this issue is resolved, could you please put a load
logger back on to measure these issues? I have never seen alight act like in the video - neither have electricians that I have
consulted.
I am very worried that this is dangerous and could start a fire.
Trish Tamrazi
650-208-4802
On Thu, Apr 4, 2024 at 10:31 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi
<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hi Tomm,
It's nice to hear from you. I am free to discuss by phone at
any time. I want to start with a baseline: I am here to helpand I am open to working with you. While I am very upset
with the dysfunction in Palo Alto, my anger and frustration isnot directed toward employees like you (as a general
statement, with exceptions for those who have beenthreatening to me and/or lied to me).
A quick Google search suggests that you probably understand
the reality of what I am going through. My lights seem toflicker evenings and weekends - but not long holiday
weekends or, it seems, during this week which is spring breakfor Palo Alto public schools.
The "EIT" (which I assume is "Engineer in Training"), who I
have been told is the point person for my issues (anillustration of how seriously it's been taken, that we don't
even have a licensed engineer in charge), suggested myflickering lights are due to some sort of machine at a
hypothetical construction site nearby, which is, of course,silly.
I think it's more likely that it's the 2 EVs charging in many
driveways in my neighborhood.
It's been insinuated to me that CPAU is covering up issuesvoiced by citizens like me, who are only trying to get safe
and reliable power to our houses. Maybe it's that with theCity Council's obsession with electrification, no one dares
admit what's actually going on.
Yes, my primary transformer was upgraded, but how aboutthe lines?
I've been in contact with a bunch of folks with flickering
lights who are PG&E customers - PG&E comes right out,diagnoses the problem, and fixes it.
Here in Palo Alto is different - in a bad way. I have been told
that cutting costs is the number 1 priority - not providing safeand reliable power to homes or empowering linemen to
diagnose and fix problems.
Do you know that another customer called in flickering lightsand 2 failed appliances (at least) and it took 10 days plus
another follow-up call plus 1 more day to get a lineman out tojust check for a loose neutral?! How unsafe!!!! They put a
load logger on, but now she's getting the runaround fromCPAU for someone to come out to pull the data. It's exactly
what happened to me.
This is too much to ask from citizens. This is no way to run autility.
Please let me know when a good time for a discussion is.
Again, my anger is toward this dysfunctional city, not toward
you.
Thank you for reaching out to me, and I look forward toworking together.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Apr 3, 2024 at 3:24 PM Marshall, Tomm
<Tomm.Marshall@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
If you have time tomorrow or sometime next week I
would like to have a conversation with you regarding youconcerns with the electric service at your house. I am the
Assistant Director of Electric Engineering and Operationsand I hope that I can find a way to address your concerns.
My staff has updated me on your situation and I amfamiliar with the events and the visits to your house. In
addition, I have reviewed the voltage and currentrecordings that have been take at your house and in the
adjacent homes.
Please let me know when you have time to discuss eitheron the phone or in person at your home.
Some people who received this message don't often get email from
patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
Thanks
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, April 1, 2024 9:02 PMTo: Shikada, Ed <Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Stump, Molly<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims, Julie<Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stone, Greer<Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Tanaka, Greg<Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Veenker, Vicki<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Clerk, City<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causingbrownouts
Dear City Council,
I last wrote to you on March 27 and still have not receivedan answer. The only time I received a substantive answerwas when I expressed my displeasure at not being able topurchase an EV (being afraid that my neighborhood wouldburn down or that my young children were in danger didn'tstrike a chord with you). So, here's more about that EV:
Here are photographs of the two places in my garage whereI had planned for EV chargers:
<image004.png><image005.png>
Last week, I purchased a gas powered car to replace the oldcar which was totaled after being stolen from in front of
my house here in Palo Alto.
Attached please find video of my lights flickering on theevening of March 28. This is visual evidence of why I
cannot have an EV: CPAU fails to provide safe andreliable electricity to my home.
My flickering lights were first reported to CPAU on
January 24. After struggling with CPAU for over 2 weeks,I first reached out to you regarding this issue on February
9, after I was told by CPAU's own employees that I neededto advocate for a "proper fix" to our issues and was met
with a threatening environment when I did so in person toCPAU's supervising employee. I truly thought you would
help me, but I am still waiting.
Our flickering continues.
We now have multiple problems with the electronics in ourhome, all of which are new since we just finished
renovating in late 2023. For example (and this is not all-inclusive), our bathroom fans act up (turn on and off
randomly and unexpectedly) and the ice in our Sub-zero isstuck together (suggesting that it is not regulating its
temperature properly).
My family is suffering because of your unresponsiveness. I spend countless hours trying to navigate how to get my
city government to respond to me so that I can get safe andreliable power to my house. My business is suffering, my
young children are suffering, and I have developed healthissues.
It is your responsibility to oversee CPAU, isn't it? Your
constituents are depending on you.
I close this 8th email to you as I have most of the emailsthat came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have on
this matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Mar 27, 2024 at 9:27 AM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear City Council,
I have not heard from Dean, nor from Ed, since beingtold by Ed on March 5 that Dean will be calling me and
that Ed would join if needed. That was over 3 weeksago.
Episode 1 of The Invisible Shield premiered on PBS last
night. I recommend you watch it. I found it inspiring tosee the amazing impact properly funded and functioning
public health systems can have, as well as the negativeeffects that flow from cutting funding and letting those
systems fall into disrepair. A lesson, perhaps, for yourmanagement of the Utilities Department?
I'm sure by now you have heard of the contamination of
some houses' drinking water that was caused by thecontractor the city hired to swap out water meters.
When are you planning on warning residents of the errorand helping them to clean up the mess? This is a public
health issue!!! As you remain silent, citizens have beendrinking contaminated water!
In the same vein, I am still waiting on you to notify my
neighbors of the damage your poor power supply hasdone to their homes. I first suggested you do this in my
email below on February 21.
By the way, I have connected with a woman across town- a mom with your children and a lot on her plate - who
has had flickering lights as well as a dishwasher andrefrigerator that have gone out. My understanding is that
she is patiently waiting for someone to come out to herhouse to check it out. I imagine I do not need to state
this to you, as you are the regulators of the Utility andmust know - but just in case: utilities companies
generally treat flickering lights as an emergency!
Another thing is that, after following up, the city'sresponse to my Public Records Request is still woefully
unresponsive. I am simply trying to gather informationto fix the power supply to my house! It is the city's legal
duty to respond fully. The city did, however, produce 2emails which are sickening:
1. Prior to anyone providing me any real assistanceor response, Dean forwarded my desperate email
pleading for help and expressing my generaldispleasure with the mismanagement in Palo Alto
to Catherine Elvert, who I gather from a Googlesearch is a PR professional, with the note “Here
you go !!!” Were you getting your talking pointsin order, rather than focusing on helping your
citizens??2. 1 hour AFTER my THIRD desperate email
pleading for help (email stamp on my emailshows, "date: Feb 12, 2024, 2:05 PM"), Ed sent an
email (email stamp on Ed's email shows: "Sent:Monday, February 12, 2024 3:16 PM") to multiple
City of Palo Alto email addresses stating thatDean has spoken to me a couple times (NOT
TRUE!!!!!) and “No need for further prompting.Thanks all!” NOTHING HAD BEEN
ADDRESSED.
I close this 7th email to you as I have most of the emails
that came before it: I welcome any thoughts you have onthis matter.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 4:50 PM Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Ed,
Thank you for your note, however, I must be veryclear: I would much rather have a responsive, caring,
and ethical city government, than bring any thieves tojustice.
The stress from having our car stolen from in front of
our house pales in comparison to the stress andanguish we have experienced as a family in getting the
run around from CPAU and then being ignored byCity Hall, as I try to get safe and reliable power
delivered to the houses in my neighborhood.
Regarding the electrical issue: I should never havebeen this involved or have had to push so hard. This
is too much to ask from citizens. It is no way to run autility. But, to continue down that path: logically,
shouldn't the transformer also be replaced on the"secondary pole," where loose connections were also
found? If that was the "proper fix" on the first poleclimbed (i.e. PG&E minimum maintenance standards),
wouldn't it also be the "proper fix" on the second?
This is, of course, putting aside that perhaps this is along-standing issue, not unique to my block, which
has harmed many along the way.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Tue, Mar 5, 2024 at 12:28 PM Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@cityofpaloalto.org> wrote:
Dear Ms. Tamrazi,
I am so sorry to hear about your car being stolen. Ican only imagine how this has impacted you and
your family. While understanding nothing canmake up for such a violation, I hope the thieves are
quickly brought to justice.
Regarding your electrical issue, I have spoken toDirector Batchelor and understand he will be calling
you to follow up. I’m sorry to hear that theirreplacement of the electrical transformer did not
resolve the problem. I will stay in touch with himand happy to join a call as he works with you on
next steps.
Sincerely,
--Ed
<image006.png>Ed Shikada, City Manager
ICMA Credentialed Manager
(650) 329-2280 |
ed.shikada@cityofpaloalto.org
www.cityofpaloalto.org
<image007.png>
From: Patricia Judge Tamrazi<patricia.judge@gmail.com> Sent: Monday, March 4, 2024 9:27 AM
Some people who received this message don't often get email
from patricia.judge@gmail.com. Learn why this is important
To: Batchelor, Dean<Dean.Batchelor@CityofPaloAlto.org>Cc: Shikada, Ed<Ed.Shikada@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Stump, Molly
<Molly.Stump@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Burt, Patrick<Pat.Burt@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Kou, Lydia
<Lydia.Kou@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lauing, Ed<Ed.Lauing@CityofPaloAlto.org>; Lythcott-Haims,
Julie <Julie.LythcottHaims@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Stone, Greer <Greer.Stone@CityofPaloAlto.org>;
Tanaka, Greg <Greg.Tanaka@CityofPaloAlto.org>;Veenker, Vicki
<Vicki.Veenker@CityofPaloAlto.org>; City Mgr<CityMgr@cityofpaloalto.org>; Clerk, City
<city.clerk@cityofpaloalto.org>Subject: Re: Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing
brownouts
CAUTION: This email originated from outsideof the organization. Be cautious of openingattachments and clicking on links.
Good morning, City Council,
On Thursday night, our car got stolen from in frontof our house here in Palo Alto. It looks like it'stotaled. When we completely rewired the house lastyear, we future proofed to accommodate an EVcharger - 2 actually. However, CPAU is unable toprovide safe and reliable power to our house. Because of this, to our great disappointment, wecannot replace our gas powered car with an EV.
My husband is a physician - if he gets a call in themiddle of the night that someone is bleeding todeath and needs an intervention, and his EV didn'tcharge - well, that's a big problem!
City Council - I see your talking points onelectrification (I'm all for electrification). Youknow that your electrical infrastructure can't support
it.
This is the real world effect of your decisions: afamily that wanted to go electric cannot.
You remain silent, as I plead for your help,dating back to my first email to you on February 9. We are now on March 4.
As for my flickering lights here at 3409 Greer Rd. -the latest working theory from CPAU is that it iscaused by an air compressor at a theoreticalconstruction site nearby. (1) That's a laughabletheory. (2) My lights flicker evenings andweekends - which CPAU engineers have been told. Is the cause the 2 EVs charging in every driveway +an outdated electrical infrastructure that cannotsupport it?
I put in a Public Records Request related to mypower issues. (a) The response was a day late. (b)The response was blatantly incomplete.
I believe the public policy reasoning behindmunicipal utilities falling outside of regulation is (i)elected officials, who serve as the utlity's oversight,will be responsive (mine - you - are silent) and (ii)there are protections such as the Public RecordsRequest (my city obviously disregards its legalduties).
In speaking with utilities attorneys last week, onestated: When municipal utilities are good, they'rereally great. But when they're bad, it's abysmal.
I understand that you let Tesla jump ahead of therest of the city in the grid update. Maybe ElonMusk's words will resonate with you then - he said
that the world will face supply crunches inelectricity and transformers next year. What does
that result in? Flickering lights.
City Council - Could you please take steps to makeour municipal utility "really great," instead of
"abysmal"? Your constituents are depending onyou.
I welcome your thoughts.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Wed, Feb 21, 2024 at 9:24 AM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Good morning,
The lights continue to flicker here at 3409 Greer
Rd. I still have not heard anything substantivefrom anyone except for Dean.
City Manager Shikada and City Council - you are
the regulators of the Utilities Department,correct? Why have I still not heard back from
any of you with anything substantive? (The vastmajority of you, I have not heard anything at all.)
I still have not received any answer - is this a fire
risk? I am worried - I have 2 small children - Ihave expressed this and no one seems to care!
The transformer that I have been toldsupplies power to my house was switched out on
February 15. On February 14, the UtilitiesDepartment climbed another pole nearby
(described to me as my "secondary pole") andfound loose connections, which I've been told
were tightened. That's 2 out of 2 poles with looseconnections. Is routine maintenance being done?
Are there loose connections all over the city? Mylights continue to flicker - are other loose
connections causing this?
The "secondary pole" with loose connectionswould explain the problems the neighbors have
experienced on that side of my house: (1) oneneighbor's refrigerator went out and she had to go
buy a new one last weekend, (2) another neighborhad flickering lights (I discovered this by
overhearing him over the fence speaking tosomeone about his panel), (3) a third neighbor
had an outdoor light that was malfunctioning (shedescribed it as "acting weird"). These are the
things that I have heard only in passing -surprisingly, everyone has complete trust in Palo
Alto Utilities and does not blame the poor powersupply they are receiving. These 3 houses are in
addition to the 6 houses experiencing poor powersupply issues from the other pole (one of which
went through 3 refrigerators in January). So that's9 houses total with issues - and I imagine there
are more!
As an aside, shouldn't you disclose to yourcitizens these issues after you discover them?
Shouldn't you inform them that they have beenreceiving poor power supply and educate them on
the damage that has possibly (or likely) been doneto the appliances and electronics within their
home? I thought CPAU is supposed to do betterthan PG&E?
On February 14, I received a call from an
engineer to get my story to analyze the datacollected by the load logger on my house.
He was unaware that mine was not the only
house with flickering lights! How iscommunication that bad?! As a reminder, the
morning of February 9 was when I first emailedall of you to escalate this issue - at that time we
had 5 houses total with confirmed flickeringlights. The engineer was not informed that it was
not just my house with flickering lights - I had toexplain to him then send him notes!
On February 14, I was told that the wrong load
logger had been on my house since February 7. Itwas switched for the correct one, which I was told
would get better data.
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Mon, Feb 12, 2024 at 2:05 PM Patricia JudgeTamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello again, everyone,
As an update since my emails on Friday: Mylights continue to flicker after Thursday's
"Band-Aid fix," as described by CPAUemployees. Over the weekend, I discovered a
6th neighboring house with flickering lights.
My understanding is that flickering lights are asign of possible fire risk, as they are often
caused by loose connections that may arc.
Since I did not receive an answer from any ofyou on Friday regarding whether my neighbors
and I are at risk for fire, despite my desperateplea, I called the Fire Department this
morning to ask. I have been told that they are
looking into it.
I talked with Dean this morning, after I spokewith the Fire Department, and he is looking
into the issue. I do appreciate his call.
I still do not understand why CPAU's standardpractice falls below PG&E standards or how
that is acceptable?
The Metering Department has been out to pullthe load logger from my house and put a new
one. I understand they're analyzing the data. Why not just change out the transformer, as
PG&E would do?
Further, there seems to be no effectiveregulation of CPAU. I think you all (with the
exception of Dean and perhaps the CityAttorney) are responsible for oversight, but I
have not heard anything substantive from anyof you.
Quite honestly, I now feel incredibly unsafe
here in Palo Alto.
Does maintenance of the gas infrastructure alsofall below PG&E standards?
There is something up on the pole on Greer as I
walk my children to school that makes a lot ofnoise. Is it a transformer? Does the noise
mean it's old and in disrepair? I know if atransformer explodes, my children and I should
not be under it, as we will be harmed by the oilinside falling on us. Do I have to reroute our
walk to keep us safe? I trusted CPAU, andalthough I noted the sound every time I walked
under it, I didn't think twice about walkingunder it. Now, I do think twice.
The problems aren't just with the Utilities
Department. On December 19, the garbagecans were not collected in my cul-de-sac. My
elderly neighbor phoned daily, and the canswere not collected until December 23, after my
second elderly neighbor in the cul-de-sac calledon December 22 (so it took 3 days of calling,
plus it seems like it wasn't taken seriously untilthere was a second household calling). After
my experience with Utilities, I was sure toapologize to my neighbor for not calling as
well - I had never heard of anything like this! Recology always comes out the next day,
whenever there is an issue.
We just spent 2 years lovingly renovating ourEichler - it's our dream house and we intended
for it to be our "forever home." We movedhere from Redwood City for the schools and
also to be surrounded by a community ofsafety-oriented individuals (something that
became especially important in the pandemic). I am devastated to learn that CPAU standards
fall below PG&E standards. We are nowconsidering moving, but it would be very
difficult for us to do so financially.
I appreciate hearing any thoughts you mayhave?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 1:30 PM Patricia Judge
Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello everyone,
I know you're all busy and it's Friday, but Ireally do think this is urgent. Can someone
please get back to me?
I have 2 small children in my home, and I amworried about the safety of the electricity
being supplied to my home and the homesaround me. Am I at risk for fire? I've asked
this to CPAU multiple times, with noanswer. Am I safe to stay in my home over
the weekend?
I am lucky enough to have a very closefamily friend who is a retired PG&E
lineman. His partner has been in thehospital, I have just found out, so we were
only just able to reach him late morningtoday. He said that PG&E would have
changed out that transformer - that's whatTito said he is opting not to do and the 2
other employees at CPAU told me I should"plead my case" for. I had no idea what the
standard is, until now.
I am new to Palo Alto, having only ownedmy home for a little over 2 years, but my
understanding from fellow residents is thatCPAU is better than PG&E. Then why isn't
CPAU doing the minimum that PG&E woulddo?
As you can tell from my email below, I had
already lost faith - given prior interactions -that CPAU was fixing our problems. I
wasn't sure, though - maybe not replacing atransformer was a fix, which is why I
emailed you. Now, I have an opinion from aknowledgeable source that the transformer
should have been replaced.
After learning that CPAU is possibly notmeeting standard practice - and having not
heard back from anyone with higherauthority - I contacted the California Public
Utilities Commission and was disheartened(to say it lightly) to hear that they only
advocate for customers of shareholder ownedutilities - i.e., not CPAU. I was advised that
I need to appeal to the City - which, I think,is all you.
Is there anyone else, or any other entity,
to protect CPAU customers when there isevidence that a standard is not being met?
Am I reaching out to the wrong people forhelp?
Am I at risk for fire? Should I call the Fire
Department and ask? What does a "Band-Aid fix" versus a "real fix" mean, in terms of
safety? Should I leave my home? Are myneighbors safe?
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
On Fri, Feb 9, 2024 at 6:46 AM Patricia
Judge Tamrazi <patricia.judge@gmail.com>wrote:
Good morning, Dean,
I'm at my wit's end and writing to you,copying the City Manager, City Attorney,
and City Council, asking you to pleaseensure that my ongoing and severe
electrical issues at 3409 Greer Road are
fixed by CPAU. At least 4 of myneighbors are experiencing these same
issues (5 houses total). I have been told by2 CPAU employees that we are receiving a
"Band-Aid fix," not a real fix.
I am considering filing a lawsuit, givenhow grossly negligent and, frankly,
abusive, my interactions with CPAU havebeen. But - at this time - my focus is on
getting the electrical service to my houseand my neighbors' houses properly fixed.
Attached please find results from my smart
meter, pulled yesterday, February 8,showing severe brownouts to my home at
3409 Greer Rd. This smart meter was puton my house on February 7. As you'll see,
one brownout lasted 1 hour 9 minutes,which I have been told is "insane." For
those on the email without an electricalbackground, here is a quick primer on the
seriousness of brownouts.
I'm also attaching a video of one lightfixture at my house, illustrating the
severity of the flickering lights that I firstreported to CPAU on January 24. (Please
excuse the paint job - we just finishedcompletely renovating the inside and don't
have the nice weather yet to paint theoutside. That is a new light fixture,
installed last year.) As reported to CPAU,this has been happening throughout my
entire house, and we also heard exhaustfans throughout the house slowing down
and speeding up. My next door neighborhad the same experience.
From January 24 to the time this data was
looked at by CPAU yesterday, February 8,CPAU employees have denied that there
are any issues on CPAU's side.
Shockingly, they continued to deny this,even after being formally informed of 4
more houses with flickering lights. Untilyesterday afternoon when they finally
looked at the smart meter data from myhouse, various CPAU employees kept
telling me to call an electrician, which Idid (multiple, in fact).
As an aside, 1 week into my ordeal, one
neighbor called CPAU dispatch reportingflickering lights and was told to call back
when the flickering got worse. Everyknowledgeable person I have talked to -
with the exception of one CPAU employee- has thought that was absolutely reckless,
most laughing in disbelief.
Linemen came out yesterday to rectify thesituation, but I was told by 2 individuals
within CPAU that they were doing a"Band-Aid fix," not a real fix. I was told
by one well-meaning CPAU employee thatI should walk around the corner to where
the linemen were working and find a bigguy with a bald head named Tito to "plead
my case" for a real fix. That in itself isone of the craziest things I've ever heard!
Tito did not seem very receptive to this
(rightfully so because who am I as ahomeowner to tell him how to do his job?),
so, shaken up, I went home and called theCity Manager's office, pleading for an
advocate.
Ingrid, the administrative assistant, tookdown my story and my information, and I
have received attempted help from AlexGonzalez, Utilities Supervisor. Alex even
worked on my issue into the evening. However, Alex is not in charge of the
correct division of CPAU to address my
issue. This illustrates a continued lack ofunderstanding of my issue, at best, and
perhaps a continued lack of willingness torectify my issue. That is why I'm reaching
out to you.
Can you help?
With best regards,
Trish Tamrazi
3409 Greer Rd.
650-208-4802
From:Raymond Goins
To:Aram James
Cc:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Afanasiev, Alex; Angel, David; Baker, Rob; Bill Newell; Binder, Andrew;
Council, City; Daniel Kottke; Dave Price; DuJuan Green; Edie Keating; Enberg, Nicholas; Friends of Cubberley;
GRP-City Council; Human Relations Commission; Jay Boyarsky; Jeff Moore; Jeff Rosen; Josh Becker; Julie
Lythcott-Haims; Karen Holman; Lewis james; Linda Jolley; Lotus Fong; Palo Alto Free Press; Reifschneider,
James; Robert. Jonsen; Roberta Ahlquist; Rose Lynn; Salem Ajluni; Sally Lieber; Sean Allen; Sheriff
Transparency; Supervisor Cindy Chavez; Supervisor Otto Lee; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg; Susan Hayase; Tom
DuBois; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Perron, Zachary; citycouncil@mountainview.gov; dennis burns;
district1@bos.sccgov.org; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; kenneth.Binder@shf.sccgov.org; ladoris cordell; Foley,
Michael
Subject:Re: George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall survivor
Date:Monday, July 1, 2024 6:47:15 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
They can take their shots, but this generation ain’t blind, and will not settle for injustice
anymore
Raymond Goins
Silicon Valley De-Bug Community Organizer
For the hanged, and beaten.For the shot, drowned, and burned
For the tortured, Tormented, and Terrorized We Will Remember
With Hope because Hopelessness is the enemy of justiceWith Courage because Peace requires Bravery
With persistence because Justice Is a constant struggleWith Faith because we shall overcome!!!
On Mon, Jul 1, 2024 at 6:41 PM Aram James <abjpd1@gmail.com> wrote:George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall survivor
George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall surviv
https://www.latimes.com/la-influential/story/2024-06-30/george-gascon-los-angeles-county-
district-attorney
From:Aram James
To:<michael.gennaco@oirgroup.com>; Afanasiev, Alex; Angel, David; Baker, Rob; Bill Newell; Binder, Andrew;Council, City; Daniel Kottke; Dave Price; DuJuan Green; Edie Keating; Enberg, Nicholas; Friends of Cubberley;GRP-City Council; Human Relations Commission; Jay Boyarsky; Jeff Moore; Jeff Rosen; Josh Becker; JulieLythcott-Haims; Karen Holman; Lewis james; Linda Jolley; Lotus Fong; Palo Alto Free Press; Raymond Goins;Reifschneider, James; Robert. Jonsen; Roberta Ahlquist; Rose Lynn; Salem Ajluni; Sally Lieber; Sean Allen;Sheriff Transparency; Supervisor Cindy Chavez; Supervisor Otto Lee; Supervisor Susan Ellenberg; Susan Hayase;Tom DuBois; WILPF Peninsula Palo Alto; Perron, Zachary; citycouncil@mountainview.gov; dennis burns;district1@bos.sccgov.org; Figueroa, Eric; Tannock, Julie; kenneth.Binder@shf.sccgov.org; ladoris cordell; Foley,Michael
Subject:George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall survivor
Date:Monday, July 1, 2024 6:41:21 PM
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Be cautiousof opening attachments and clicking on links.
George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall survivor
George Gascón: Justice reformer, recall surviv
https://www.latimes.com/la-influential/story/2024-06-30/george-gascon-los-angeles-county-district-attorney
From:City Mgr
To:Council, City; Shikada, Ed
Cc:Executive Leadership Team; Clerk, City
Subject:City Council Bundle_July 1
Date:Monday, July 1, 2024 1:38:37 PM
Attachments:FW Decision On Churchill Grade Crossing.msgFW 100th Birthday proclamationcertificategreetings.msgFW Hawthorne traffic.msgRE Street light poles look terrible in my neighborhood. What is the schedule for painting them.msgimage009.pngRE Bills Philz building updates.msgRE Eyesore at burned Midtown Center.msgRE Plea to PROPERLY fix issues causing brownouts.msgFW Summer Heat.msgRE Rail Project- 3553 Alma st Palo Alto 94306.msg
Importance:High
Dear Mayor and Council Members,
On behalf of City Manager Ed Shikada, please see the attached staff responses to emailsreceived in the City.Council inbox through July 1.
Thank you,
Danille
Danille RiceAdministrative AssistantCity Manager’s Office|Human Resources(650) 329-2229 | danille.rice@cityofpaloalto.orgwww.cityofpaloalto.org