New Councilmember Angela Andrews sworn in as retiring Councilmember Al Mendall steps down

HAYWARD, Calif., Dec. 16, 2020—Angela Andrews took the oath Tuesday as a newly elected Hayward City Council member, and retiring Councilmember Al Mendall stepped down after two terms of service on the City’s legislative body.

Returning Councilmembers Elisa Márquez, Mark Salinas and Francisco Zermeño also were sworn in to new four-year Council terms following their re-elections in the Nov. 3 municipal election.

And Councilmember Aisha Wahab was voted Mayor Pro Tempore by her colleagues on Tuesday and will serve in the vice mayor role on the seven-member Council for the next year.

Andrews was a member of the Hayward Planning Commission when she won election to the Hayward Council and becomes the City’s first African American female Councilmember.

She works as Capital Program Manager for the West County Wastewater District based in Richmond, Contra Costa County, and holds a Masters in Planning degree from University of Southern California and a Bachelors of Arts degree in political science and sociology from University of California, Los Angeles.

Prior to her appointment to the Planning Commission in September 2018, Andrews served as an appointed member of the City’s Keep Hayward Clean and Green Task Force.

The City Council is expected to appoint a new Planning Commissioner to complete the remainder of Andrews’ four-year Commission term early next year.

Before stepping down Tuesday, Councilmember Mendall was recognized for his contributions and accomplishments by numerous Hayward residents, elected and appointed government officials, and members of other Bay Area boards and agencies on which he has served.

A recurring theme was Mendall’s leadership on environmental action—which is credited with helping to transform Hayward into a recognized municipal leader in environmental protection and climate protection.

Indeed, just last month, Hayward was singled out as being among just 88 cities worldwide and only four in the San Francisco Bay Area to receive a grade of A in 2020 for leadership on environmental action from the nonprofit organization CDP.

The A-List designation recognized Hayward for causes championed by Councilmember Mendall, including moving Hayward electricity customers to entirely carbon-free sources of power through City membership in East Bay Community Energy; municipal investment in on-site renewable energy generation, and the City’s adoption of new residential building standards to phase out reliance on natural gas.

CDP, formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project, is a not-for-profit charity based in the United Kingdom that runs a global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regions to manage their environmental impacts.  Other Bay Area cities making CDP’s A-List for 2020 were San Francisco, San Jose, Berkeley and Windsor in Sonoma County.

Though he has stepped down from the Council, Mendall will continue to serve Hayward by representing the City on the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency.