Last Week in Albany: Elections, Parents Head to Sacramento, Garden Swap and So Much More

Last week was big for the arts, gardens and education on Albany Patch. 

Parents headed to Sacramento to protest the governor's proposed cuts to childcare subsidies. The Waterfront Committee got one step closer to crafting a dog walking policy at the Albany Bulb.

In arts, the Foyer Gallery hosted a new show by Michele Bachmeier, and the Arts Committee put the finishing touches on its Public Arts Master Plan. The plan goes before City Council on Monday. We'll be taking a closer look at Bachmeier as well. In addition to being an artist, she's also a long-distance runner and local Little League coach, not to mention a mom. How does she find the time?

Transition Albany hosted a green building event at the library, and we also posted a column by the group about garden sharing in Albany. Did you know the city has a food map that aims to note all the food growing in town? We also posted a photo gallery of deer in Albany yards -- some neighbors report an uptick in sightings. What about you? One local resident said she also spotted a coyote in town recently, and wondered if there have been other sightings.

The weekly garden swap outside the community center drew more than a dozen people. The same night, Tuesday, also drew dozens to a quarterly clothing swap in the library. More on that tomorrow.

Albany Patch also launched a new photo gallery about "Old Parked Cars" in the city. We're looking for your stories about classic cars to expand the column.

Filing season for those hoping to run for election this fall began last week, and we posted our first round-up about who has taken out papers to get involved. What are the big issues in the coming election from your perspective?

It was a big week for Albany Little League All Stars, as the 12s were eliminated in a game against South Oakland, and the juniors went on to win the District 4 championship. They competed today in Petaluma, and we hope to have that story for you tomorrow. 

We posted the latest from columnist Steve Trutane about how to balance an active fitness routine with a busy home life. We'd love to hear from you if you have tips on how you find this balance in your own life. 

Friday we started a new daily feature called "Who's Who in Albany." We'll feature your friends and neighbors daily throughout the work week. See the first edition here.

This morning we shared a first-person essay from Albany writer Laurel Benjamin about the end of an era for Albany poetry at the library. Did you know Albany has a Poet Laureate? We'll be looking more closely at that in the near future as well. 

Albany Patch is also working with the Police Department to figure out the best way to bring you daily crime notes. Is this something you're interested to read? 

One of the stories we posted for launch, about the Albany Pool, has been generating a good conversation about the status of the pool, and how it has been viewed in the community. Feel free to dive in.

Albany residents made use of our free announcements section to share news about National Night Out (Aug. 3), an upcoming urban bicycle tour, the opening of a new herbal medicine shop, the ribbon cutting at Aangan restaurant, how to host an exchange student and how to win a free day at Golden Gate Fields. There are monthly fundraising events coming up for the Albany Education Foundation at the Solano Grill & Bar. It's so nice to hear your news items! Please keep 'em coming. 

Our listings section, which includes all local businesses, schools and governments resources, is growing too. There are a ton of new photos on White Lotus Thai Cuisine's page, a new listing added for Berkeley Hills Realty and many new photos on the pages for the Albany Historical Society and the Albany Police Activities League. All these additions are coming from the public, which is wonderful to see.

Events in the city included a lot of summer camp fun, classes in cooking and parenting, sports opportunities in yoga and judo, and a ton of other ways to get out in the community. This is a bit down the road, but make sure to mark your calendars for free concerts at Golden Gate Park starting in August. Find details here. Posting to the events calendar is free and a great way to get the word out about your events. You can also find movie times for the Albany Twin in our calendar. Let us know if there are events we're missing.

Albany Patch is up to 128 fans on Facebook. The 200th fan will get a gift certificate to a local shop -- please let your friends know! On Twitter, we have 74 followers so far -- if you know Albany folks who tweet, please let them know about Patch. As for readers of Albany Patch, our unique visitors have been increasing on an almost daily basis. Next week, look for fliers around town to help spread the word even more. We're also looking for local writers and bloggers who write about Albany, or who want to get involved with Patch. 

Did you know you can leave notes on the profiles of other Patch users? It's a nice way to stay in touch with neighbors. We'll be highlighting various features of the site as time goes by. It's also very easy to share your feedback about how the site works in numerous places on these pages. Please don't hesitate to send in your thoughts.