MAC Meeting: Rodeo Parade Returns; Code Enforcement

The Rodeo Parade will be back this year, after not being held in 2024 and years of diminishing attendance.

The former Castro Valley Rodeo Parade, had been organized by the Rotary Club and was held in conjunction with the Rowell Ranch Rodeo each May for over 40 years.

After a year off, the Pro Rodeo Parade will now be under the direction of the Rowell Ranch Rodeo committee and be the cornerstone of the newly-created “Castro Valley History Festival,” according to organizer Mel Speed, who presented the plans to the Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council at their meeting Monday night.

This year’s festival and parade will be held on Saturday, May 10th from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. along Castro Valley Boulevard, with the Rodeo the following weekend.

The festival will include music, food, and booths with vendors and education material about the town’s rodeo and agricultural past. Speed, who also organizes the light parade, said the route will be similar to minimize disruption to side streets downtown.

Speed added that he felt like moving the parade from morning to evening will increase attendance, as people are busier weekend mornings with errands, kids’ sports, and generally just living their lives.

“I’m hoping by moving to an evening event, we’ll see a huge change and see the community coming out to support it,” said Speed. “I’d love to see a couple thousand there.”

The MAC was enthusiastic about a return for the parade and said it stands to be a great event.

“I’m excited about the parade,” said MAC member Dan Davini. “I’m glad it’s going to be coming back.”

Later at this week’s meeting, the MAC heard another update from the County Code Enforcement Agency on their ongoing project creating a policy on un-permitted street vendors.

The County estimated that there are over 100 illegally operating street vendors in Alameda County, mostly in Oakland but they are known to operate in Castro Valley- notably in the Safeway parking lot. The County and the Mac have said they are trying to maintain a balance of safety/ rule enforcement and sympathy for the vendors who are often people from low-income and immigrant backgrounds.

Edward Labayog, County Code Enforcement Manager, said the County is currently in the process of drafting an ordinance for sidewalk vendors.

The MAC again noted that as long as Code Enforcement works a typical workday, there can be no real meaningful enforcement, as evenings and weekends are left uncovered.

The MAC further expressed frustration that, even when violators are identified, the County doesn’t seize their food so they could potentially go back to selling unlicensed food and other items moments after being confronted by Code Enforcement and the County doesn’t fine or cite offenders- currently the County tries to “abate” the issue by talking with and identifying those in violation.

“I think the community is getting tired of the same story,” said MAC Chair Chuck Moore.

Valerie Strother, Supervising Environmental Health Specialist with Alameda County Health, said there were “layers of issues” to deal with in crafting a potential ordinance.

“We are working as diligently as we can,” said Strother.

Moore said that brick-and-mortar restaurants would be shut down for some of the violations vendors get away with.

“This is very, very, very frustrating,” said Moore. “We want to help the vendors get into compliance, we want results.”

Enforcement is complaint-based and may be submitted online at acgov.org/cda.planning/codeenforcement or by calling (510) 670-5460.

Finally, the MAC heard an update of the ongoing Economic Development Strategic Plan- the County’s document which is designed to attract new business and boost the economy around town.

The first stage of creating the Plan was a demographic and workforce analysis. In Castro Valley, the population is currently around 70,000, up from just over 60,000 a decade ago. The median household income is $132,000, up from $105,000. The majority of Castro Valley residents are white and Asian, and housing is over 70 percent owned rather than rented.

The County says next steps for economic growth include creating an area-wide strategy and identifying opportunity sites and conducting case studies.