[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 67 (Monday, April 19, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E414]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN HONOR OF THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF FOSTER CITY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JACKIE SPEIER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, April 19, 2021

  Ms. SPEIER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the City of 
Foster City on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of its 
incorporation as a city on April 27, 1971. This is a young city with a 
long history, and it all began as a salt pond.
  Leslie Salt Company sold its land, then known as Brewer's Island, to 
developer T. Jack Foster and a partner in 1958. The vision for the city 
was to develop a community that was more aesthetically pleasing, 
following an orderly development plan with neighborhoods that aged 
better over time. 218 surface acres of lagoons containing 425 million 
gallons of water were ultimately created within 4 square miles of land. 
Financing through bonds issued in the 1960's, totaling $88.5 million, 
drove the creation of Foster City. Adjusted for inflation, this sum 
would be the equivalent of $738 million in 2021 terms.
  Now 33,000 residents inhabit this glistening four square mile jewel 
adjacent to San Francisco Bay. Residents love their parks and 
waterways. There are 24 parks and tennis courts, basketball fields, 
soccer fields, trails, picnic areas and an unlimited number of smiles 
from residents. Throughout America, this past year has been challenging 
because we must either shelter in place or stay distant from one 
another when outside. Foster City's architecture makes it simple to 
maintain your mental health.
  You can walk a quiet street, go to a trail or park, ride a bike on 
flat ground throughout the city, and enjoy getting dunked in the bay 
when your kite sailing skills are overcome by Mother Nature. It's big 
news in Foster City when jellyfish show up in the lagoons. These 
marvelous creatures pose special challenges, but modern engineering and 
a bit of wisdom have kept them on the bay side of the levee system 
during most years. On occasion, one can even spot the descendants of 
Brewer Island's once most energetic and prolific of species: 
jackrabbits. There's a lot for a rabbit to love about the city, filled 
as it is by such greenery that it would make Peter Rabbit swap Mr. 
McGregor's garden for a city block in Foster City.
  This wonderful community loves its children. In normal times, youth 
sports are the center of community life for hundreds of families. Among 
the city's many wonderful attributes is that its inhabitants come from 
the four corners of the earth. If you are raised in Foster City and 
join a youth soccer league, you'd better be prepared for parents who 
grew up with a soccer ball in every closet. Coupled with all of the 
foreign languages heard on the streets and what you have is a city that 
celebrates global diversity and brings people together through sports 
and cultural programs that highlight the kindness of the human spirit. 
Global powerhouses Gilead Sciences and Visa International, companies 
that need to recruit talent globally, call Foster City home in part 
because it is so welcoming.
  Madam Speaker, I close with this other special note about Foster 
City. In 2003, the city redeveloped its original park and renamed it 
after the late Congressman Leo J. Ryan. As we know, Congressman Ryan 
served the people of Foster City and his district until his 
assassination on November 18, 1978. The people of Foster City did not 
have to rename a park in memory of a man who died a quarter century 
earlier, but they did. This tells you something about the character of 
civic leadership in this community. These good people realized then, 
and now, that public service is an honorable endeavor, and that those 
who seek justice and pay the heaviest price because of that most 
important of goals have died in service to every constituent, past, 
present and future. Foster City does not forget. It does not forget to 
enjoy life and it does not forget to honor life.
  In the decades to come, on the waterways and the roads, within the 
council chambers and city offices, and amongst the general populace, 
this community will thrive. Even when jellyfish bloom in the lagoons, 
the optimism that sparked the creation of this town never fades. Let us 
all wish Foster City and its residents another 50 years of friendship 
and progress.

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