For a fun-filled and close-up look at how Pleasanton operates, don't miss the city's open house from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. tomorrow at the municipal Operations Service Center, located just off Valley Avenue at 3333 Busch Road. A walk through the maze of separated repair shops and paint stations at the center, itself, is amazing, and mechanics, sign painters, street maintenance crews and even the guys who hang the sign in the middle of night every Monday morning under the Main Street arch will be on hand to explain their work. Hundreds turned out two years ago for a similar event hosted by the police department. Public Works held its own open house a year earlier, with traffic engineers explaining the intricacies of the city's videocams and other traffic monitoring devices--not always to every driver's satisfaction--that determine if you'll get the green light or a red as you approach busy intersections. The success of these two programs prompted City Manager Nelson Fialho to put them all together in one public event, and that's tomorrow.

Read the full story here Web Link posted Friday, May 2, 2008, 12:00 AM