Friends of Save Union City Hills

12/17/2025

https://tricityvoice.com/mowry-village-housing-project-approved-by-newark-city-council/

Mowry Village Housing Project approved by Newark City Council: Mowry Village Housing Project passed with a 3-1 vote on Dec. 11

07/09/2025

https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/07/08/opinion-tax-silicon-valley-big-tech-rescue-bart-bay-area-transit/

BART director says Apple, Alphabet, Nvidia, Intel, Cisco, HP, Meta gave back little to communities that need help most.

05/28/2025

Dear Friends,

Thank you for providing comments and expressing deep concerns about the higher fire hazard designation of our hillsides. You can do this one more time at tonight’s May 27th Union City Council meeting starting at 7 p.m. noted at the bottom of this email.

You can see the before and now fire hazard designations using this map!

https://osfm.fire.ca.gov/what-we-do/community-wildfire-preparedness-and-mitigation/fire-hazard-severity-zones

Good news is that the California State Marshal recommendations are likely being accepted tonight to change from moderate to a high fire hazard zone in our hillsides. Local governments cannot downgrade any areas identified by California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection, CAL FIRE.

Union City could upgrade to a Very High Severity Zone as circumstances are dramatically changing with a proposal to develop the hillsides. The City of Fremont has already upgraded their fire hazard to prevent a robust fire emergency response, reduce costs and liabilities. Fremont’s upgrade of their hills as a very-high-fire severity hazard is above what CAL FIRE recommends. Cities can upgrade!

https://www.fremont.gov/residents/emergency-preparedness/wildfire

Union City should follow Fremont and designate a very high fire hazard for new development proposed in the hills that could follow more strict codes and safety measures such as 100 feet of defensible space to better manage and prevent trees/vegetation to rapidly transmit fire to nearby vegetation and structures.

Public comments can be heard tonight to protect our hillsides. Thank you for your continued support!

Liz Ames, P.E.

Chair, Save Our Hills

BART Director

510.371.1311

Union City Agenda May 27 – Item 7.4 - Waive Full Reading and Introduce by Title Only an Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Union City Designating Local Responsibility Area Fire Hazard Severity Zones

https://unioncity.novusagenda.com/agendapublic/MeetingView.aspx?MeetingID=1906&MinutesMeetingID=802&doctype=Agenda

An individual speaker shall have three minutes to address the Council on non-agenda items under the Oral Communications section of the agenda. The Chair may, in their discretion, lower the time limit to less than three minutes based on the number of speakers and/or business to be conducted by the Ci...

07/14/2024

Capitol Corridor South Bay Connect Project is a massive rail project along the coast from Oakland to Newark adding passenger rail and freight train enhancements to reduce 13-minutes off your commute at the cost of $1 billion and another $3 billion to be spent from Newark to San Jose planned later on. The proposal is to eliminate Centerville and Hayward train stations and replace these two stations with one Ardenwood Park and Ride train station near Highway 84.

Comments on the South Bay Connect draft environmental impact report are due July 15, Monday at 5 PM and many are pleading to get a time extension with no success.

Please review the petition link below and pass it on to others.

https://www.change.org/p/say-no-to-a-1-billion-passenger-rail-project-to-save-13-minutes


You don't have to contribute to us or change.org and hope the information helps you decide on better transportation choices!

Change.org is the world’s largest petition platform, using technology to empower more than 200 million users to create the change they want to see.

06/13/2023

Save Ramirez Farm!

City council meeting tonight! Join Us!

Tuesday, June 13, 6 PM to organize comments, Council meeting starts at 7 PM

Where: the steps of Union City City Hall
34009 Alvarado-Niles Rd., Union City

———————

Thank you again Logan High School students, the community and leaders for your work to save Ramirez Farm located on the outskirts of Fremont and Union City, near Old Alameda Creek and Quarry Lakes.

These cities plan to close the farm by the end of this year. Why? The cities are creating the rise of environmental and social injustice with their pursuit of housing and a Highway 84 bypass designed for 35,000 vehicles per day, coined Quarry Lakes Parkway. This Highway 84 bypass links to Niles Canyon and Interstate 880/Highway 84 interchange at Decoto Road.

We live in a very special place challenged by rising environmental and social pressures. This farm is a testament of our strong agricultural past of the region. We often lose sight of our history and essence. The farm serves as a connection to our water resources, how we sustain our food supply and honor the daily lives of those before us.

MTC is asking cities to submit priority conservation areas right now, but Union City and Fremont refuse and support a development deal and to close the farm by the end of this year!

We must stop the State of California/CALTRANS, owner of the farm and farmhouse, to do a deal with Union City for housing and a highway 84 bypass, Quarry Lakes Parkway. Please ask our council members to not shut down the farm this year, create an opportunity and conserve 140-year-old-farm and farm house during this environmental crisis. Let’s not plan for a future of highway connections that will destroy Ramirez farm.

Thank you for all your work, making signs and spreading the word via social media and emails.

Liz Ames
BART Director
Chair, Save Our Hills

03/29/2023

Thank you, Liz Ames!

BART's governing board voted unanimously Thursday to partially support legislation that would bolster the powers of the agency's office that oversees internal audits and investigations.

11/10/2022

11/08/2022

VOTE FOR LIZ!!

Let’s generate NEW ideas/ NEW revenues for BART and our cities without asking the voters for a bail out!

I am a fiscal hawk with a focus on good budgetary and financial policies. I am a staunch supporter of public safety.

Ames earned the support of fiscally conservative BART Directors Deborah Allen and John McPartland along with the BART police union!

I stand by what the East Bay Times report - Liz Ames willing to stand up for fiscal transparency and for our riders.
article_BART AC_Transit_candidates.pdf (ames4change.com)

I am fighting for Public Safety - new fare gates - to prevent fare jumpers and lawlessness on our trains and in our stations!

We have safety and financial concerns with Union City allowing maximum flexibility for Developers to build in our hills and using our $300- $700 million in local taxes to build Highway 84 passing by Union City BART.

Developers will advertise this highway as easy access to Niles Canyon SR 84, Mission Boulevard, I-880 and to fire-hazard areas within the Fremont/Union City Hills. This is A HUGE PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERN.

https://www.pge.com/pge_global/common/pdfs/outages/enhance-powerline-safety-settings/epss-planning-maps-alameda-county.pdf


Major development proposal calls for 350 homes in Union City hills – Silicon Valley

Highway 84, Quarry Lakes Parkway (formerly East West Connector) is not a transit project. It’s a citywide master plan of increased sprawl, roadway building, maintenance and operations. A poor choice. Vote NO on Measure Z.

With your help, we can build healthy places for children, families and our workforce to walk and enjoy our downtown, new jobs and Build a Better BART station for pedestrians.

Let’s stay ahead of the issues. Please Vote for Liz Ames as BART Director and NO on Z.

Yours.
Liz Ames
BART Director
Chair, Save Our Hills
Endorsed by BART Police Officers Ass

10/24/2022

JOIN US – 4 PM RALLY, Wednesday, October 26! Corner of Decoto Road and Alvarado-Niles Road in Union City

Vote NO on Measure Z: say No to development in the hills using a highway.

Say NO to your taxes supporting hillside sprawl and massive traffic producing roads.

Let’s hear from YOU!

We don’t need more highways, roads, cars, traffic congestion and hillside sprawl.

Please VOTE NO on Measure Z and Vote for Liz Ames for BART Director.

Let’s create new pedestrian-scale development, streets and pedestrian and bicycle paths that will facilitate access to transit and movement within the area and improved streetscapes; and parks, plazas, and open spaces to improve our quality of life and bring in NEW revenues.

Thank you for your support and please tell your friends and family!