Home to Grove Street Park, the South Berkeley Library, the Ashby BART Station and a struggling shopping area, District 3 sits roughly between Ellsworth and Sacramento streets and Dwight Way and the Oakland border. According to the 1990 census, the area had a median income lower than the city’s as a whole and home values were also below the rest of the city. The area is home to a little less than half the city’s African American population, a reminder of the times when African Americans were unable to live east of Martin Luther King Jr. Way. -more-

Tuesday, Oct. 3

School bond numbers are misleading -more-

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Seven members of Berkeley’s “Bike the Bridge Coalition” were arrested and charged with felony conspiracy after they tried to bike across the Bay Bridge Monday morning in the middle of rush hour traffic. They were protesting a range of bike issues including Gov. Gray Davis’ veto of Senate Bill 1629, the “Good Roads Bill.” -more-

Residents near Grove Street Park don’t want convicted drug offenders hanging out in their neighborhoods. So neighborhood activists went with Mayor Shirley Dean, Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek and Councilmember Kriss Worthington to meet with the District Attorney. -more-

Forgive ninth-grader Craig Long for having to have his mother bring him up to speed on the academic achievement gap issue. He stays pretty busy in his advanced placement classes, especially geometry, he said. -more-

A teenage girl was attacked and raped Friday about 7:30 p.m. near the Ohlone park baseball diamond at Delaware and Sacramento streets. -more-

On a chilly Sunday night, Nigerians of all ages came out to the Independence Day celebration in El Cerrito to watch ancestral dances, eat home-cooked spicy soup, and strut their stuff in the colorful traditional costumes of their nation in transition. -more-

A fresh breeze from the Andes blew over UC Berkeley’s International House Thursday evening. -more-

Monday, Oct. 2

Nearing the end of her life and plagued with senility, my grandmother fell into a strange state of grace. At 95, she believed herself a young woman again living in her hometown in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. -more-

Two weeks ago, Cal punter Nick Harris was heralded as a Heisman Trophy candidate. This week, after failing to get off three kicks, he’s just another problem for head coach Tom Holmoe to worry about. -more-

The University of California system has formed an internal task force to investigate whether its nine campuses are under reporting the number of on-campus rapes and sexual assaults. -more-

Perennial powerhouse St. Mary’s High witnessed an unwelcome, yet eerily familiar spectacle last Saturday afternoon as Archbishop Riordan High (San Francisco) put together the kind of punishing offensive exhibition that St. Mary’s fans have grown used to their own Panthers imparting. Powered by a dominant defensive line and a very methodical “seven minutes and a cloud of dust” Wing-T offense, Riordan (4-0) ran for 364 yards en route to a 28-7 victory in a non-conference meeting between the two schools. -more-

Even City Council members agree their meetings are too long. Agenda items get pulled for a variety of reasons and end up stuck in what seems a permanent backlog. -more-

In a game interrupted by an on-field fight and two confrontations between the referee and University of San Diego coaches, Cal sophomore Laura Schott shined through the distractions with a hat trick, leading the Bears to a 3-0 win in the championship game of the Golden Gate Classic -more-

LIVERMORE — Scientists at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory are dabbling in a bit of Buck Rogers technology as they develop a series of test laser guns for the military. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Attorneys for Napster Inc. were due back in court Monday to justify the reprieve the company won in July that kept its wildly popular Internet music-sharing service up and running. -more-

OAKLAND — State officials confirmed they have begun investigating health and safety issues involving facilities caring for the developmentally disabled which contract through a nonprofit agency. -more-

FOLSOM — California has had a rough summer in terms of power consumption, with warm temperatures throughout the state causing consumers to crank up air conditioners, sapping electricity supplies. -more-

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LOS ANGELES — Three years ago, Xochitl Rodriguez left her human resources job and decided she wanted to teach. Without classroom experience or teaching courses, Rodriguez was hired by the Los Angeles Unified School District and was placed in charge of 20 kindergartners. -more-

LOS ANGELES — A study that contradicted earlier reports that the gnatcatcher was near extinction will not influence a decision to set aside nearly 800,000 acres in Southern California for the tiny songbird. -more-

SACRAMENTO — A proposed expansion of San Francisco International Airport would be exempted from California’s main environmental law, under a bill signed Saturday by Gov. Gray Davis and authored by the leader of the Senate. -more-

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Saturday, Sept. 30

Lisa Taylor’s curiosity made her take a Yoga class 11 years ago. The former modern dancer now teaches at two Yoga centers in Berkeley. For her, Yoga is not just a job. It’s a way of life, affecting her at both physical and spiritual levels. -more-

Bad management real reason theater may close -more-

A last-minute header goal by sophomore forward Laura Schott gave Cal a come-from-behind victory over Colorado College Friday afternoon at Edwards Stadium. Cal defeated the Tigers 2-1 in the opening game of the Golden Gate Classic and improved their record to 9-0-1. -more-

A collection of green houses and small classrooms at the corner of Hearst Avenue and Oxford Street, better known as the Oxford Tract, will be replaced with a three-story structure and a 200-space underground parking lot, if a UC Berkeley plan bears fruit. -more-

Everyone loves a second chance. A second chance at a job interview, a second opportunity to take a test, another shot at introducing yourself to that beautiful someone… who doesn’t like second chances? On Thursday night, the Berkeley High defense forced five turnovers to give its offense not just two but five chances to move the football. But the Berkeley Yellowjackets (0-4) failed to capitalize and the Livermore Cowboys (3-1) left nothing to chance with a 15-0 victory. -more-

Holocaust experts and activists detailed the difficulties of earning recognition and reparations for non-Jewish victims of Nazi war crimes during a panel discussion at the Castro Theatre. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – An audit of government agencies in California shows that some, such as police departments and school districts, denied people access to information that is clearly defined in state statutes as public. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – A judge said Friday he will reduce the $121 million in punitive damages that a jury awarded to 17 black workers who were discriminated against at a Wonder Bread plant. -more-

SAN LEANDRO – A carjacking suspect is probably kicking himself after police said he tried to carjack an undercover car. -more-

JOLO, Philippines – The Philippine military eased some restrictions Friday on news coverage of its assault on Muslim rebels holding 17 hostages on a southern island, but continued to limit communications. -more-

SACRAMENTO – The disposal fee for old tires is going up next year to pay for an expanded regulation and cleanup program aimed at illegal tire piles. -more-

EL SEGUNDO – Mattel Inc. has found a buyer for the Learning Co., the software unit that lost hundreds of millions of dollars and led to the resignation of the toymaker’s chief executive and other top officials. -more-

BOSTON – Buy low, sell high: It’s a homeowner’s dream that is coming true in this city thanks to soaring property values. But while sellers profit, the poor struggle to pay rising rents. -more-

PASADENA – Latino activists protested outside Republican Party offices, trying to drudge up support for a bill that would make permanent residency possible for hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO – David Hostler first learned the troubling news when he journeyed more than 3,000 miles from his Hoopa Valley reservation, California’s largest, to dig through troves of tribal artifacts on display and in storage at Harvard University. -more-

SACRAMENTO – Researchers from the University of California, Davis, are preparing for a new expedition to the Sea of Cortez, six months after five of their colleagues died in a boating accident there. -more-

SACRAMENTO – Gov. Gray Davis has vetoed increases for injured and unemployed workers despite complaints that California’s benefits are among the nation’s lowest. -more-

UKIAH – It was 1967 and young prosecutor Tim Stoen was sitting in the Mendocino County Courthouse, being quizzed by a roomful of officials for a new job representing the poor. Afterward, one of the interviewers approached him with outstretched hand. -more-

Multicolor campaign signs have begun sprouting on telephone poles and in front yards, but you really know it’s election season when colorful accusations burst onto the scene. -more-

Friday, Sept. 29

Letter obsessed using usual tactics -more-

Ebony Museum of Arts -more-

The Berkeley High women’s water polo team lost 9-6 to DeAnza in what amounted to a scrimmage Thursday afternoon. -more-

“Institutional expansion” or “livable neighborhood”? -more-

As the Cal Bears head into their Pac-10 opener on Saturday, most of the questions concerning the offense haven’t been answered by the team’s first three games. Can Kyle Boller bring the offense together? Will any receivers distinguish themselves as starters? Will the Bears ever make a long-range field goal? -more-

Talks between the Berkeley Unified School District, Mayor Shirley Dean’s office and the Downtown Berkeley Association over a proposed food court at Berkeley High School have taken on the proportions of a Bill Clinton speech – they keep going and going and going. -more-

Cal announced today that two members of its freshmen class, defensive tackle Jonathan Giesel and running back Pana Faumuina, had suffered injuries in the last two weeks and would be lost for the season. Both are eligible to apply for medical redshirt status and are expected to return in full health next fall as redshirt-freshmen. -more-

Come this evening and it’ll be a scant 239 years until the world is disrupted by the Y6K problem on the Jewish calendar. -more-

The tour and cruise operator, Red and White Fleet, was ordered Thursday by the state Public Utility Commission to continue running its weekday ferry service from Richmond to San Francisco. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — Pedestrians are more likely to get hit by a car in Sacramento County than any other place in California, according to a new study released Thursday. -more-

MARTINEZ — The night before she was last seen alive, Selina Bishop thought she had resolved an argument with her boyfriend over his “big plan” and was under the impression they were going to go away somewhere together, her diary shows. -more-

SAN DIEGO — Despite the rise in home ownership across the country, blacks and Latinos were nearly twice as likely to be turned down for mortgage loans than whites, according to a study released Thursday. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis signed legislation Thursday allowing independent voters to participate in primary elections, moving to salvage a wide-open process thrown out by the U.S. Supreme Court. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Targeting a major cause of California air pollution, state regulators approved a plan Thursday to cut soot from diesel engines 75 percent over the next decade. -more-

WASHINGTON — Capping a bitter 12-year battle, the government on Thursday approved use of the abortion pill RU-486, a major victory for abortion-rights advocates that could dramatically alter abortion in this country. -more-

CARSON CITY, Nev. — Marijuana is on the ballot across the West this fall, from proposals to allow its medicinal use in Colorado and Nevada to measures that would let it flourish in Alaska and the pot-growing “Emerald Triangle” of Northern California. Recent polls suggest the proposals are likely to pass in both Nevada and Colorado. In the past four years, similar medical-marijuana measures have become law in California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Maine and Hawaii. -more-

Ah, the good old days when a smoker could buy a cigar for a nickel and you really could spend only a nickel or a dime in a five-and-dime store. When it came to gardening, it seemed that the grass was greener, the sweet corn was sweeter and the apples were redder – or were they? -more-

After months of emotional debate, the Swink residence was designated a “structure of merit” Tuesday by the City Council. The 8-1 vote upholding an earlier Landmarks Preservation Commission decision, ended a pitched battle between building owner Joe Cox, who opposed the designation, and residents and business owners near the 1525 Shattuck Ave. property. -more-

Thursday, Sept. 28

Minimum wage must be living wage -more-

Trestin George has more experience than the average first-year starter. The St. Mary’s tailback slid into the starting role just before last year’s playoffs when senior Eddie Smith went down with an injury. George started the Panthers’ final six games, gaining more than 200 yards in three of those games. -more-

Dr. Brian Natrass had an epiphany when University of London Professor Gordon Goodman, speaking to the leaders of the Earth Council in 1993, said that by the end of 2001 humankind would be lucky if there are 100 million people left on the planet. -more-

California senior goalkeeper Maite Zabala was named Pac-10 Player of the Week for her performance at the adidas Bay Area Classic Tuesday by the conference office. -more-

As UC Berkeley retrofits its campus, and looks for space to house displaced students and staff, the “surge” is being felt far from the campus. -more-

Criminals love her, the innocent crave her attention, and the judicial system isn’t complete without her. -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal jury on Wednesday convicted a San Francisco housing executive of 30 felony counts of bribery and making false statements in connection with a scandal that netted 22 people. -more-

San Jose — A San Jose landlord has been ordered to spend 60 days under house arrest in one of the dilapidated buildings she owns. -more-

It was 70 degrees as George W. Bush campaigned in California on Wednesday, focusing on education. It was barely in the 50s in Wisconsin where he’ll be on Thursday, talking about fuel prices. -more-

The Associated Press -more-

SACRAMENTO — Doctors, health officials and drug companies are starting a statewide campaign Thursday warning patients and physicians not to overuse antibiotics. It is a concern Rebecca Strain-Kale knows all too well. -more-

LOS ANGELES — Defective attic furnaces have caused dozens of house fires in California in the past 10 years but the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission was forbidden by law from warning consumers, the federal agency said Wednesday. -more-

LONG BEACH — Greenpeace activists unsuccessfully tried to board a tanker filled with a million barrels of crude oil Wednesday, then followed the 900-foot vessel as it made its way toward anchor. -more-

SACRAMENTO — Saying the flag salute is a worthy tradition, Gov. Gray Davis has vetoed a bill that would have allowed schools to substitute a Declaration of Independence excerpt for the Pledge of Allegiance. -more-

RIVERSIDE — Riverside County voters will say good-bye to those familiar paper ballots when they go to the polls in November, instead choosing candidates and issues by computer in the largest application of electronic voting in the nation. -more-

Hundreds of demonstrators swarmed through the streets Tuesday night in an action they dubbed “Reclaim the Streets” – one part protest of International Monetary Fund and World Bank policies and the other part street party, said Joe Hill, an alias used by one of the organizers. -more-

Wednesday, Sept. 27

The national controversy about the Boy Scout policy of excluding gays has focused on the right of a private organization to decide who its members are, or on discrimination and bigotry, depending on which side of the issue you fall on. At the eye of this storm, however, is the alleged immorality of homosexuality - and neither side is saying much about that. -more-

Even if they can’t change the fact that the federal government gives inadequate money for affordable housing, people can fight at the local level to determine where housing money is spent, Sean Heron, executive director for East Bay Housing Organizations, told some 20 people gathered Monday evening at the North Berkeley Senior Center. -more-

The Ed Roberts Campus will be a good neighbor to South Berkeley -more-

As the anniversary of the Oct. 20, 1991 Oakland-Berkeley hills fire approaches, area residents and firefighters watch the browning of vegetation around them and assess today’s fire danger. -more-

SACRAMENTO — California’s rural counties launched a major court fight Tuesday against the ambitious CalFed water accord, labeling it an effort to grab control over northern groundwater and send it to powerful southern water districts. -more-

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An investigation into West Coast gas prices has found oil industry practices that raise “competitive concerns” with the Federal Trade Commission, an FTC official said Tuesday. -more-

SACRAMENTO — California’s median household income exceeds the national average, while the percentage of poor residents has declined, Census Bureau data released Tuesday shows. -more-

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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has added five cities – Denver; Fort Worth, Texas; Jacksonville, Fla.; Sacramento, Calif.; and Seattle – to its list of metropolitan areas identified as at risk of overbuilding of commercial properties. -more-

California’s science education standard was graded the highest of the states in a report released Tuesday evaluating the teaching of evolution in the states. -more-

Councilmember Kriss Worthington walked with other breast cancer prevention advocates from Old City Hall to the City Clerk’s office Monday to place a resolution on cancer prevention on the Oct. 10 City Council agenda. Claiming that current breast cancer programs target early detection, not prevention, advocates want the city to “reduce or eliminate its toxic practices by enacting changes such s banning the use of PVC plastic in new construction an working with public facilities and institutions to switch to safer alternative products and methods.” -more-

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco musicians who had vehemently protested the closing of a rehearsal warehouse have decided to take the money and run. -more-

SACRAMENTO – California will try to slow the proliferation of area codes by allowing separate codes for devices such as pagers and cellular telephones. -more-

A panel of experts from the growing field of death and dying addressed some 70 people Wednesday night at Herrick Hospital in an effort to stimulate public dialogue about a part of life most of us put off as long as possible. -more-

A small number of patients stopped taking their AIDS drug cocktails and still managed to keep the virus under control, researchers say in one of the first studies to suggest that people with HIV may not have to be on medication for the rest of their lives. -more-

OAKLAND — An Alameda County supervisor interrupted the board's meeting today to express outrage over Gov. Gray Davis’ veto of a bill that would have given foster parents more say in the care of their children. -more-