[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 176 (Wednesday, November 14, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2403]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 13, 2007

  Mr. LANTOS. Madam Speaker, it gives me tremendous pleasure to share 
news of a special Golden Anniversary occurring in my home district in 
California. The City of Pacifica, a jewel along the coast of the 
Pacific Ocean, celebrates 50 years of incorporation as an independent 
municipality on Nov. 22 of this year. In 1957, people along the Coast 
decided that they were tired of being second-class San Mateo County 
residents. The seaside villages and valley communities stretching from 
the Daly City border south to the Devil's Slide were fearful of being 
used as a dumping ground by their more prosperous and established 
neighbors. In fact, the City of San Bruno actually wanted to annex 
parts of the area for landfill purposes, a notion incomprehensible 
today.
  Madam Speaker, those fiercely strong-minded Coastsiders held 
meetings, hired consultants, used graduate students to prepare surveys, 
canvassed their neighbors, and, in short, did everything they could to 
assess the possibility of incorporating as a city. There was an active 
resistance, as well, with a strong contingent of people who wanted 
things to stay the same. Let me say, Madame Speaker, with no small 
amount of pride, that the people who live in this special area have 
long been known to be politically active, inquisitive and resourceful. 
It actually took two separate elections before a majority, of only 
about 500 votes to be precise, decided to incorporate.
  But once the decision was made, Madame Speaker, the people in this 
gorgeous geographical area of California embarked on a public adventure 
that created one of the truly unique cities in America, if not the 
world. Ahead of its time in many ways, the new city was christened 
``Pacifica'' to highlight the ocean next to it as well as the 80-foot 
statue by sculptor Ralph Stackpole that represented the people of the 
Pacific Rim at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure 
Island in 1939 and 1940. The very first mayor was a woman, Jean 
Fassler, starting a city tradition of politically active women sitting 
on the council. While Pacifica made international news in 1992 for 
having an All-Women City Council, it is often overlooked that the city 
has never actually had an All-Men elected body.
  Madam Speaker, let me paint a picture of the history of this region. 
In 1769, a group of explorers led by Don Gaspar de Portola viewed San 
Francisco Bay from a point now known as Sweeney Ridge, which is within 
the eastern boundary of Pacifica and is part of the Golden Gate 
National Recreation Area, a part of the National Parks Service system 
with a tremendous influence on Pacifica's natural beauty. Panoramic 
views of the Bay Area greet hikers who make the climb up Sweeney Ridge. 
The Portola Discovery Site has been designated as a National Landmark. 
It is my great pleasure to have had a leading role in expanding the 
Golden Gate National Recreation Area to include this beautiful site, 
along with other open spaces in the region.
  Starting in 1785, crops were planted in San Pedro Valley at an 
outpost of Mission Dolores. In 1839, Don Francisco Sanchez was given a 
Mexican Land Grant with boundaries similar to the present City boundary 
lines. In 1846 he moved into the Sanchez Adobe, which is currently 
maintained as a San Mateo County Museum and park on Linda Mar 
Boulevard.
  This coastal area remained for years primarily an agricultural Eden 
until the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Land speculators, stimulated 
by the construction of the Ocean Shore Railroad, subdivided and 
developed a series of small coastside communities with the hope of 
creating a suburban population for San Francisco. The vision then was 
to establish a tourist and commuter heaven along the Pacific Ocean. The 
Little Brown Church, Anderson's Store and San Pedro School (which later 
became City Hall) date from this period. In 1908, Henry Harrison 
McCloskey, an attorney for the Ocean Shore Railroad, built a castle-
like home which still dominates a hill above Sharp Park. Mrs. Honora 
Sharp donated 410 acres to the City and County of San Francisco to 
develop a recreation area, which became the Sharp Park Golf Course and 
the Rifle and Archery Range.
  Subdivisions were eventually created, although long after the demise 
of the Ocean Shore Railroad in 1921, to meet the needs of young 
families of returning World War II veterans. In less than a decade from 
its 1957 incorporation, the population had grown to 35,000 people. It 
has taken four more decades to increase that number by 5,000. This 
statistic alone points to one of the special qualities of Pacifica.
  Pacifica is made up of 10 communities, including Edgemar, Pacific 
Manor, Manor Village, Westview, Sharp Park, Fairway Park, Vallemar, 
Rockaway Beach, Linda Mar and Pedro Point. Residents continue to 
identify with the specific personalities of their neighborhoods while 
maintaining a certain pride in being from Pacifica.
  Green and white became the City colors and the fuchsia was designated 
as the City flower. ``Wisdom in Progress'' became the City slogan, 
although ``Scenic Pacifica,'' later suggested by Carl McCarthy, is more 
widely used. In 1970, Balaguer, Spain, the birthplace of Portola, 
became the Sister City of Pacifica.
  Madam Speaker, I want to share the news that in recent years Pacifica 
has completed a number of notable projects such as: the Calera Creek 
Water Recycling Plant--April 2001; Friendship Playground--June 2001; 
New Pacifica Police Station--November 2002; Pacifica State Beach 
Improvement Project; Rockaway to Crespi Multi-use Trail and Crespi to 
Pedro Point Multi-use Trail--October 2004; Pacifica Skatepark--December 
2005; Calera Creek Water Recycling Plant Photovoltaic Project--July 
2006; Esplanade 500 Block Blufftop Enhancement Project and the San 
Pedro Creek Flood Control Project and Fish Ladder renovation. These 
projects bring attention to the most successful aspect of Pacifica's 
existence-this is a city far ahead of its time in the way it 
capitalizes on maintaining strong environmental and ecological 
priorities.
  Madam Speaker, it is my great privilege to have represented the good 
citizens of Pacifica for more than half of the city's existence. It has 
also been my great honor to assist the city in achieving many of its 
goals, most recently the construction of the $300 million Devil's Slide 
Tunnels transportation project.
  The natural beauty of Pacifica, with its lovely cool climate, 
delightful valleys and hills and most of all, its innovative, talented, 
active and wonderful residents, helps it stand out as one of my 
favorite places in the world. I invite my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives to join me in wishing the City of Pacifica and its 
inhabitants a Happy 50th Anniversary and a successful journey through 
the 21st Century.

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