Plan calls for more housing less parking
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Rumitones, Stamenphones and Orbitones have no place alongside violins, trombones and tympanis in a traditional orchestra or band. Yet these experimental instruments, the creative offspring of sound sculptor Ela Lamblin, play their own strains of beautiful music. -more-
924 Gilman Street Oct 5: Subincision, Gary’s Agenda, Eugene (+ tba); Oct 6: Tight Brothers from Way Back When, Smash Your Face, Cherry Valence, Bare Bones; Oct 12: One Line Drawing, Funeral Dinner, Diefenbaker, Till 7 Years Pass Over Him; Oct 13: Dead and Gone, Cattle Decapitation, Vulgar Pigeons, Wormwood, Antagony; Most shows are $5 and start at 8 p.m. unless otherwise noted. -more-
Prep of the week -more-
Berkeley Unified School District Superintendent Michele Lawrence told the school board Wednesday that staff layoffs or a hiring freeze may be necessary by the end of 2001 to protect the district’s finances from revenue shortfalls due to state budget constraints and deficits expected to be uncovered in this year’s trouble-plagued budget. -more-
Hornets sweep doubles, stay undefeated in league play -more-
•See related story, “Domestic Violence,” Page 3. -more-
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OAKLAND – -more-
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A 63-year-old Florida man lay near death Thursday with an extremely rare and lethal form of anthrax that could be a weapon in the hands of terrorists. U.S. health officials said there was no evidence of terrorism, but the FBI and CDC were called in to investigate. -more-
SAN DIEGO — The U.S. terror investigation that has hauled in hundreds of Middle Easterners is being conducted with closed court hearings and sealed documents on a scale legal experts say may be unprecedented. -more-
MOJAVE — A rocket-powered plane with famed pilot Dick Rutan at the controls soared over the Mojave Desert Thursday in the first major flight for an aerospace company developing engines for orbital launches. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Victims of hate crimes arising from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have a new hotline for help in California. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Seven California counties are not requiring drug testing for offenders who avoid jail under the state’s sweeping drug treatment program, according to a new report. -more-
SANTA CRUZ — A Santa Cruz middle school student who used his home economics skills to bake brownies for a school trip added an extra ingredient — marijuana. -more-
Autumn is the perfect time for renewing your home, because it’s so easy to do it in a natural way. Take a walk in your yard and gather the materials to get started. Leaves, berries, and late-season flowers are perfect for adding natural detail. -more-
It’s among the worst surprises to confront homeowners: a contractor files a lien to collect unpaid money on a home improvement or remodeling job. -more-
Hydrotherapy dates back to the Roman Empire. In the beginning, pools filled with warm water were crafted of stone. -more-
FRESNO — More than 300 people attended Thursday the funeral of a slain Arab-American shopkeeper whose relatives believe was the victim of a hate crime. -more-
NEW YORK — Investors newly enthusiastic about tech stocks extended the sector’s rally Thursday after Dell Computer became the second big high-tech firm in as many days to issue a positive earnings outlook. Blue chip stocks had a modest retreat. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — It didn’t take long after Napster went offline in July for a crop of upstarts to fill the online song-swapping void. -more-
Kass Schwin, president of Vital Vittles, has gradually evolved from a baker to a problem solver. Over the past 25 years operating Berkeley’s homegrown organic bread business, she thought she had been through it all. -more-
After trailing 13-9 in the first game Tuesday, the Berkeley Yellowjackets women’s volleyball team scored 14 unanswered points on their way to a three-game victory over the Alameda Hornets. -more-
Following is Vice Mayor Maudelle Shirek's statement delivered at the Congressional Black Caucus Convention last week in Washington, D.C. -more-
MUSIC
The progressive faction on the City Council prevailed Tuesday by approving a controversial redistricting plan that one moderate councilmember called “the most outrageous public policy” she had seen since being elected to the council. -more-
The Cal women’s volleyball team (4-5) broke a four-match losing streak by defeating visiting Saint Mary’s (2-9), 3-0 (30-24, 30-28, 30-25), Tuesday evening at Haas Pavilion. -more-
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A major makeover of one of the city’s most central downtown blocks will be on the agenda when the city’s Zoning Adjustments Board meets tonight. -more-
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Faced with slim pickings in the search for a new associate superintendent for finances, the Berkeley School Board on Wednesday was expected to approve a $23,000-per-month contract with a Southern California consulting firm to carry out the district’s financial functions in the short term. -more-
At midnight on Saturday, the Shattuck Down Low Lounge, Berkeley’s newest downtown nightclub, pulsed with activity. But outside, the streets stood silent. Theatergoers exiting Shattuck Cinemas bee-lined to their cars, and the manager at nearby Original Mel’s Diner closed up for the night. Even Starbucks, a bastion of insomnia, slumbered in the dark. -more-
LOS ANGELES — The Senate may have moved to normalize trade relations between this country and Vietnam, but lingering hostility and the current state of trade with the Asian nation may block any windfalls for California firms looking to cash in on the agreement. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Walt Disney Co. took big financial hits at its theme parks and ABC television network after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks but has seen steady recovery during the past two weeks, a company executive said Wednesday. -more-
CHICAGO (AP) — In its latest concession to the severe dropoff in air travel, United Airlines said Wednesday it is discontinuing its United Shuttle brand at the end of October and incorporating at least some of those flights into United and United Express flights. -more-
OAKLAND — Kaiser Permanente won the bidding war to assume the lease for a high-tech warehouse formerly used by Webvan, the now bankrupt online grocer. -more-
SAUSALITO — Like many on the West Coast, amateur radio operator Robert Sanford was roused from his bed around 6 a.m. on Sept. 11. -more-
SACRAMENTO (AP) — Citing the increased costs, Gov. Gray Davis vetoed bills Wednesday that would have encouraged medical students to practice in underserved areas and discouraged mothers from abandoning newborns. -more-
SACRAMENTO — State agencies filed more than $1 billion in claims against Pacific Gas and Electric Co. in federal bankruptcy court Wednesday, the deadline for seeking such payments. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Emergency closure of offshore state rockfish and lingcod fisheries is necessary to offset high early season catches and protect the species from dangerous overfishing, state Department of Fish and Game officials said Wednesday. -more-
Hundreds of Berkeley High students came home a day early from a Yosemite National Park field trip Monday after other park guests complained of noise, threats and vandalism. -more-
A Shattuck Avenue pizza shop that opened for business in August has become Alameda County’s first restaurant to be certified “green” by the Bay Area Green Business Program. -more-
Dissatisfied with the university’s draft Environmental Impact Report on the various construction projects proposed for the northeast quadrant of the UC Berkeley campus, the City Council voted unanimously in executive session Tuesday to seek outside legal counsel to advise them on how best to respond to the environmental document. -more-
The “Blake-O’Malley” redistricting plan squeaked by with a 5-4 margin Tuesday night, to the outrage of the moderate council faction. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Some of the nation’s most kid-friendly cities are struggling to keep their children. Recent census figures show they aren’t faring too well. -more-
A man was the victim of a car-jacking early Sunday morning at the corner of Curtis Street and Hearst Avenue, according to police. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Hotels across California saw some of the lowest occupancy rates in a decade after the terrorist attacks and have moved quickly to lay off workers and retool marketing plans, industry officials said Tuesday. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — State power regulators on Tuesday settled a suit by Southern California Edison, allowing the utility to pay its estimated $3 billion debt in part by retaining record rate hikes levied on customers this spring. -more-
LOS ANGELES — Dr. John Cunningham Lilly, who championed the study of interspecies communications during a career that probed the mystery of human consciousness, has died. He was 86. -more-
SACRAMENTO — It will take three weeks for the National Guard to phase in increased security measures at all 30 California commercial airports, officials said Tuesday. -more-
POMONA, Calif. (AP) — Rodney King, victim of the police beating that led to the 1992 Los Angeles riot, pleaded innocent Tuesday to a misdemeanor charge of being under the influence of the drug PCP. -more-
SACRAMENTO (AP) — Arizona Sen. John McCain is returning a favor to California Secretary of State Bill Jones. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court said Tuesday that the Environmental Protection Agency cannot be sued to enforce clean water laws. -more-
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A federal judge unsealed 20 of 22 documents sought by Asian-American advocacy groups trying to prove racial profiling in the prosecution last year of nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee. -more-
BOSTON — Acting Gov. Jane Swift unveiled new security steps Tuesday that include a new chief of security at Logan International Airport, where hijackers boarded the two planes that smashed into the World Trade Center. -more-
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Imagine crossing Puget Sound aboard the ferry Microsoft, or hopping the Starbucks for a weekend in the San Juan Islands. Tight budgets have state officials looking at selling advertising — including naming rights — on Washington state’s fleet of ferries. -more-
NEW YORK — The city easily sold $1 billion in bonds Tuesday to meet immediate costs from the World Trade Center disaster, selling out in just two hours as investors placed $4 billion worth of orders. -more-
SACRAMENTO — State revenues tumbled far below forecasts in the past three months and budget officials warn that emergency reserves could dry up if the economy continues to sag. -more-
ANAHEIM — Two high-profile restaurants are closing their doors at Disney’s California Adventure after failing to pack in big enough crowds at the struggling theme park. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — EMI Recorded Music will license its extensive artist catalog to pressplay, the online service that hopes to bring legitimate music downloads to consumers before year’s end. -more-
While the city has taken steps to close down the last of Berkeley’s mobile food vendors, the City Council offered a temporary reprieve Tuesday for a popular organic food cart. -more-
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Parents and advocates of Latino students will gather Sunday at Rosa Parks Elementary School to exchange ideas with Michele Lawrence, the Berkeley Unified School District’s new superintendent, on possible remedies for the students’ unique difficulties in the school system. -more-
By Judith Scherr -more-
Editor: -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Despite efforts to persuade people to abandon their cars and take mass transit, walk or ride a bicycle, 82 percent of Bay Area commuters drive or ride in a motor vehicle, according to Commute Profile 2001. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — California officials agree the state’s general fund must be repaid for the nearly $9 billion the Department of Water Resources has paid for electricity, but months-long debates over the details continue to slow progress. -more-
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Hispanic group filed a federal lawsuit Monday charging that congressional and state Senate redistricting plans approved by California lawmakers dilute the power of Hispanic voters. -more-
SACRAMENTO — Gov. Gray Davis signed a flurry of bills Monday including a measure boosting unemployment benefits, four energy-related measures and an effort to prevent meningitis outbreaks. -more-
McALLEN, Texas (AP) — About 2 million Mexicans failed to convert their border-crossing cards into new high-tech IDs by the Oct. 1 deadline, and hundreds were turned back Monday when they tried to get into the United States. -more-
NEW YORK — New York City offered $1 billion in bonds for sale Monday to start paying for the aftermath of a terrorist attack Mayor Rudolph Giuliani branded “maniacal” during an address to the United Nations. -more-
BOSTON (AP) — The head of security at the city’s Logan Airport is being ousted, three weeks after terrorists crashed two planes hijacked from the airport into the World Trade Center, an official in the governor’s office said Monday. -more-
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — State lawmakers were upset about a ban of on-air displays of patriotic symbols by newscasters at a TV station owned by the University of Missouri-Columbia. -more-
NEW YORK (AP) — Few criminal trials have taken place in the city since the attack on the World Trade Center because the Police Department, stretched to maintain high security, could not free up officers to testify. -more-
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — The talk show “Politically Incorrect” has been temporarily taken off the air in Springfield because of viewer complaints about comments made by host Bill Maher after the terrorist attacks. -more-
SACRAMENTO — A special Assembly task force studying effects of September’s terrorist attacks on California’s economy and public safety will begin hearings this month in Sacramento and Los Angeles, Assembly leaders said Monday. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Plaintiffs in chemical exposure cases against Pacific Gas and Electric Co. that inspired the movie “Erin Brockovich” still could receive $160 million in settlement money, though a portion could be delayed by a decade under the utility’s bankruptcy recovery plan. -more-
REEDLEY, Calif. (AP) — The family of an Arab-American shop owner killed during the weekend thinks he was the victim of a hate crime. -more-
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The state Department of Transportation said Monday it canceled a total of 111 fraudulently issued driver’s licenses as part of an investigation into its Pittsburgh office. -more-
The glow of short, white candles dimly flickered onto a mother holding her baby. The tiny girl shivered in the humid Burmese evening. -more-
When Alta Bates Summit announced its plan to consolidate services between its two facilities — Alta Bates Medical Center in Berkeley and Summit Medical Center in Oakland — East Bay lawmakers cried foul. -more-
My mother's voice on the telephone crackled with anxiety. -more-
Husky hex continues as Bears lose early lead -more-
The Berkeley Unified School District had to fill almost a fourth of its school principal jobs this year, and faced a shortage of candidates that administrators say is getting worse. -more-
Housing officials presented a plan Tuesday to restructure the troubled Berkeley Housing Authority, which they say is on the verge of collapse because of years of “ineffective and inefficient” organization. -more-
Local artists and residents gathered Friday night at the Pro Arts Gallery in Oakland to combine their energies to create posters, collages and pictures that represented their anti-war and peacemaking expressions in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks. -more-
One East Bay community service agency is looking for volunteers to help serve the 500 meals a day that it is now able to make for people with HIV/AIDS, seniors and homebound or critically ill patients. -more-
Maximum benifits would jump by $100 per week next year -more-
“Pro forma” results usually look better than official GAAP numbers; tech companies looking at -more-
When Alta Bates Summit announced its plan to consolidate services between its two facilities – Alta Bates Medical Center in Berkeley and Summit Medical Center in Oakland – East Bay lawmakers cried foul. The plan, which calls for “Centers of Excellence” to be instituted at both hospitals, seemed to break an agreement the hospitals made with the community at the time of their merger in 1999. -more-
Cal Ink: Etched into the history of the 20th century -more-
LOS ANGELES — Even as networks delay or drop potentially sensitive episodes and clip violent scenes in terrorism’s immediate wake, network executives expressed uncertainty Tuesday about how deep or lasting the effects of Sept. 11 will be. -more-
Berkeley comes back to beat -more-
The Berkeley Unified School District filed suit in Alameda County Superior this week to recoup money mistakenly paid to dozens of service employees. -more-
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Editor: -more-
On Wednesday, members of California Peace Action, an anti-war group, reported that their group had received several hateful e-mails over the last few weeks, some of which may have risen to the level of threats. -more-
Dear Tom and Ray: -more-
SAN JOSE — With the high-tech industry settling down and the economy slowing, Silicon Valley can expect slower growth over the next 10 years, according to a study released Friday. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Natural gas prices are dropping nationwide, and two California utilities say their customers can expect substantially lower heating bills — a relief after gas bills exploded last winter by as much as 150 percent. -more-
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The state Department of Education may have to reclaim $750,000 it mistakenly awarded to San Joaquin Valley schools after a scoring error on a standardized test. -more-
TOPEKA, Kan. — A female state senator says she views women’s suffrage as a sign that American society doesn’t value the family enough but she wouldn’t deprive women of the vote. -more-
PORT GIBSON, Miss. — A jury awarded $100 million Friday to plaintiffs who claimed a drug-maker pushed sales of a heartburn drug even as the federal government moved to ban it. -more-
LOS ANGELES — In the nation’s “new kind of war” on terrorism, defense spending is likely to focus as much on information and surveillance as bombs and bullets. -more-
POUND RIDGE, N.Y. — Sooner or later a gardener finds the need to keep a journal. From simple jottings in a notebook to entries in a computer database, today’s diary helps to grow tomorrow’s garden. -more-
White flowers and leaves are not the first things that come to mind when planning a colorful garden. Nonetheless, they can really spruce up a flower bed. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — The Golden Gate Bridge will reopen to pedestrian and bike traffic Monday, but for reduced hours. -more-
SAN FRANCISCO — Supermarket giant Safeway Inc. on Friday announced higher quarterly profits amid weakening sales growth that executives said should continue as consumers react to the economic fallout from this month’s terrorist attacks. -more-
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — State officials ruled Wednesday that adults at Orchard Elementary School improperly interfered with student exams to boost test scores and declared the small school ineligible for thousands of dollars in test-related bonuses. -more-
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Strom Thurmond returned to his job Wednesday, one day after fainting in the chamber and being taken to a hospital. -more-
Last week, the Berkeley City Council passed one of the first municipal food policies in the country. The policy will bring fresh, local and organic foods to the institutional food programs run by the city. The policy will also support activities that contribute to healthful eating patterns for city residents and support small scale, regional sustainable agriculture. -more-
SACRAMENTO — A letter from Southern California Edison, linking support for its so-called “bailout bill” to national security in the wake of terrorist attacks, is being hammered by opponents as a desperate act and cynical offense to thousands of Americans killed Sept. 11. -more-
15,00 people gather at Dolores Park to protest U.S. presence in Afghanistan -more-
LOS ANGELES — An Iranian national who allegedly threatened to “kill all Americans” when he was caught smoking on an international flight was ordered held without bail Friday after a prosecutor argued his actions threatened thousands of lives. -more-