KEVIN LEE FREEMAN, pictured in a 1999 arrest photo, a well known Telegraph transient, was killed last Friday in his Santa Rita jail cell.
KEVIN LEE FREEMAN, pictured in a 1999 arrest photo, a well known Telegraph transient, was killed last Friday in his Santa Rita jail cell.

Page One

Killing of Berkeley Man Raises Questions About County’s Prison Policies

By JOHN GELUARDI
Friday May 16, 2003

For the last 25 years, Kevin Lee Freeman, who was murdered allegedly by his cell mate at Santa Rita Jail last Friday, was a fixture on Telegraph Avenue where he panhandled, kept to himself and collected dozens of citations for alcohol-related misdemeanors. -more-



Berkeley This Week

Friday May 16, 2003

COMMUNITY MEETINGS -more-



Letters to the Editor

Friday May 16, 2003

A USEFUL TOOL -more-



Exhibitions

Friday May 16, 2003

ACCI Gallery -more-



Arts Calendar

Friday May 16, 2003

FRIDAY, MAY 16 -more-



Morning Bomb Scare Clears Civic Center

By JOHN GELUARDI and AL WINSLOW
Friday May 16, 2003

The Berkeley Police Department’s Bomb Squad detonated a suspicious cardboard package on the steps of the Civic Center Thursday after evacuating the first two floors and closing down traffic in front of the building. -more-



Avert Budget Crisis For Public Library; Adjust Parcel Tax

By JOSEPHINE ARASTEH
Friday May 16, 2003

We all take the Berkeley Public Library for granted. The Central Library and branches are open Monday through Thursday until 9 p.m., with shorter hours Friday and Saturday, and open on Sunday at Central. It’s all there for us — the ever helpful reference section, the book information desk, great book collections, both technical and casual, magazines, newspapers, an extensive collection of videos, CDs and musical scores; not to mention easy access to computers. And there are special events to please everyone — storytelling for children, live musical events, timely lectures and meetings. Library access is free to everyone, including the unemployed who are trying to get their lives back together. -more-



Where Italian Buffalo Tread

By DAVID D. DOWNIE Featurewell
Friday May 16, 2003

"Bambola! Rossa! Tragedia! Veloce! Come on, gals, it's time to be milked..." The water buffalo milkman coaxed and wheedled his charges in a rich Neapolitan accent. It sounded like surreal poetry. "If you don't call them by name they won't come," he said. "They're gentle, lovable creatures." Soon, big-lashed Bambola and her sister water buffaloes sauntered from their wading pool to be relieved of their afternoon's milk, the makings of what might just be the world's best mozzarella. -more-



Davis Holds Line at UC Cuts — For Now

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday May 16, 2003

Four months after proposing a $300 million cut for the University of California, Gov. Gray Davis spared UC from further reductions this week in the May revision of his annual budget. -more-



Californians Must Engage In Battle for Fair Tax Plan

By WILMA CHAN
Friday May 16, 2003

With the war winding down, focus is shifting to the home front, to a sagging national economy and state deficits that threaten basic human services, and the need for an effective plan to restore our economy in a way that is fair to all taxpayers. -more-



UC Regents Oppose Connerly Race Initiative

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday May 16, 2003

The University of California Board of Regents dealt a symbolic blow to one of its own Thursday, coming out in formal opposition to Regent Ward Connerly’s controversial Racial Privacy Initiative. -more-



Lab Officials Use ‘Science Fair’ to Avoid Foundry Issue

By JANICE THOMAS
Friday May 16, 2003

The stage was set for chaos and confusion to be followed by anger and grief. Concerned citizens had been told by Mayor Tom Bates that the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory would hold a public meeting to discuss the proposed molecular foundry. Citizens were skeptical because they had received invitations for a broadly conceived “Conversation about Lab Activities” to discuss the proverbial kitchen sink including not only “Nanoscience and the Molecular Foundry” but “Energy Efficiency and the Berkeley Lamp, other Scientific Initiatives, Fire Protection and Vegetation Management, and Science Education Programs.” -more-



City Expedites Permit Process But Cannot Save Doyle House

By ANGELA ROWEN
Friday May 16, 2003

A plan brokered between Mayor Tom Bates, developer Patrick Kennedy and preservationists to move the 19th-century home of Berkeley pioneer John M. Doyle to another location appeared to be dead this week when organizers discovered that moving the structure would require a 20-day waiting period. -more-



Features

Fifty Teachers Rehired, Two Top Posts Left Open

By DAVID SCHARFENBERG
Friday May 16, 2003

Fifty pink-slipped teachers got their jobs back Wednesday and 18 to 20 more may have their layoff notices rescinded by June, schools Superintendent Michele Lawrence announced this week. -more-


Commission Roundup

Friday May 16, 2003

PEACE AND JUSITCE (5/5) -more-


Berkeley Residents Will Walk for Cancer Fundraiser this Weekend

— David Scharfenberg
Friday May 16, 2003

They will walk all night in a fight against cancer. -more-


Police Blotter

By JOHN GELUARDI
Friday May 16, 2003

Daylight Beating -more-


UnderCurrents

From J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday May 16, 2003

President Uses Al Qaeda As Scapegoat for Violence

By WILLIAM O. BEEMAN Pacific News Service
Friday May 16, 2003

President Bush characterized the May 12 suicide bombing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as being carried out by “killers whose only faith is hate.” In fact, the devastating attack was a calculated, political act that was probably not orchestrated by al Qaeda and not directed primarily against the United States. -more-


After Years Waiting, Our First Walk in the Park

From Zac Unger
Friday May 16, 2003

The balcony of my apartment overlooks a Berkeley park with swings, a grassy field and a jungle-gym. Every day it’s packed with happy parents, and the laughter of kids filters up through the windows into our living room. For three years my wife and I have been looking down on that park, wishing we could be there with the rest of the normal families. -more-


Five-Story Complex Set for Edge of Downtown

By JOHN KENYON Special to the Planet
Friday May 16, 2003

Longtime Berkeley-area residents surely are familiar with the old 1950’s strip mall at Martin Luther King, Jr. Way and University Avenue, popularly known as Grand Auto (for its former tenant) — that long facade of glass and aluminum set back behind parking which signals, driving south, the transition from residential tree-lined Old Grove to the busy commercial arterial. Few, however, are aware of a project in the pipeline that will replace that innocuous one-story frontage with a five-floor cliff of stores and apartments sited right up against the Martin Luther King, Jr. Way sidewalk. -more-


City Manager Will Hold Public Meetings to Answer Citizens’ Budget Questions

By JOHN GELUARDI
Friday May 16, 2003

The City Manager presented his proposed biennial budget to the City Council on Tuesday complete with plans to deal with an expected $4.7 million deficit next year and a possible $7.6 million next year. -more-


Migrants Risk Death Daily Seeking Jobs in United States

By MARY JO McCONAHAY Pacific News Service
Friday May 16, 2003

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico — In this crowded, bustling town, migrants gather to collect their strength and make connections that will take them across the watery border and safely by road — they hope — to work or join family and friends in the United States. The horrific discovery of a trailer truck filled with dead and dying undocumented migrants near Victoria, Texas, about four hours north, is a vivid picture of the risks they face. Yet, even images of blue-gloved officers picking about for evidence as bodies of the suffocated lay still on the ground — photos running in newspapers throughout Latin America — are unlikely to deter the kind of expectant travelers who reach this town. Future Victorias loom. -more-


Students Charge Coca-Cola with Persecution

By ANGELA ROWEN
Friday May 16, 2003

A group of UC Berkeley staff and students, concerned about the persecution of Latin American trade unionists, confronted a Coca-Cola Company representative this week at a campus meeting about the abuses. -more-


Summer Noon Concerts in Downtown Berkeley

Friday May 16, 2003

The Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) presents Summer Noon Concerts 2003, a unique series of nine free concerts, Thursdays at noon in June & July, beginning June 5th. From Rhythm & Blues to Brazilian capoeira, these concerts at the Downtown Berkeley BART Plaza (Shattuck Ave. at Center St.) are a showcase of the culturally rich performing arts in Berkeley. This outdoor summer celebration of Berkeley-based musicians & dancers is just a small sampling of the performing arts happening nightly in clubs, cafes, schools, theaters and concert halls in Downtown Berkeley. -more-


Editorial

With In-Law Units Easier To Build, Some Complain Of Crowded Neighborhoods

By ANGELA ROWEN
Friday May 16, 2003

The Planning Commission, prompted by concerns aired by community members and government officials during a public hearing on Wednesday, asked department staff to examine the possibility of reducing the minimum size allowed for accessory dwelling units, also known as in-law or secondary units, to encourage the development of more such units. -more-


Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

With In-Law Units Easier To Build, Some Complain Of Crowded Neighborhoods 05-16-2003

With a Waiting List of Suitors Author Searches for a Good Time 05-13-2003

News

Killing of Berkeley Man Raises Questions About County’s Prison Policies By JOHN GELUARDI 05-16-2003

Berkeley This Week 05-16-2003

Letters to the Editor 05-16-2003

Exhibitions 05-16-2003

Arts Calendar 05-16-2003

Morning Bomb Scare Clears Civic Center By JOHN GELUARDI and AL WINSLOW 05-16-2003

Avert Budget Crisis For Public Library; Adjust Parcel Tax By JOSEPHINE ARASTEH 05-16-2003

Where Italian Buffalo Tread By DAVID D. DOWNIE Featurewell 05-16-2003

Davis Holds Line at UC Cuts — For Now By DAVID SCHARFENBERG 05-16-2003

Californians Must Engage In Battle for Fair Tax Plan By WILMA CHAN 05-16-2003

UC Regents Oppose Connerly Race Initiative By DAVID SCHARFENBERG 05-16-2003

Lab Officials Use ‘Science Fair’ to Avoid Foundry Issue By JANICE THOMAS 05-16-2003

City Expedites Permit Process But Cannot Save Doyle House By ANGELA ROWEN 05-16-2003

Fifty Teachers Rehired, Two Top Posts Left Open By DAVID SCHARFENBERG 05-16-2003

Commission Roundup 05-16-2003

Berkeley Residents Will Walk for Cancer Fundraiser this Weekend — David Scharfenberg 05-16-2003

Police Blotter By JOHN GELUARDI 05-16-2003

UnderCurrents From J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 05-16-2003

President Uses Al Qaeda As Scapegoat for Violence By WILLIAM O. BEEMAN Pacific News Service 05-16-2003

After Years Waiting, Our First Walk in the Park From Zac Unger 05-16-2003

Five-Story Complex Set for Edge of Downtown By JOHN KENYON Special to the Planet 05-16-2003

City Manager Will Hold Public Meetings to Answer Citizens’ Budget Questions By JOHN GELUARDI 05-16-2003

Migrants Risk Death Daily Seeking Jobs in United States By MARY JO McCONAHAY Pacific News Service 05-16-2003

Students Charge Coca-Cola with Persecution By ANGELA ROWEN 05-16-2003

Summer Noon Concerts in Downtown Berkeley 05-16-2003

Proposal Cuts Pay To Save Teachers By DAVID SCHARFENBERG 05-13-2003

Berkeley This Week 05-13-2003

Arts Calendar 05-13-2003

Letters to the Editor 05-13-2003

Planning Commission Considers Clearing Path To Second Housing Unit By ANGELA ROWEN 05-13-2003

Rush to Meet Deadline Ought Not Prevent Review Of ADU Rules Proposal By BARBARA GILBERT 05-13-2003

Council Faces City Manager’s Budget; 23 Positions Lost in Deficit Crunch By JOHN GELUARDI 05-13-2003

Fair Process and Public Notice: A Wish for a Better Neighbor By ANNE WAGLEY 05-13-2003

UC Softens SARS Ban; Policy Still Draws Ire By DAVID SCHARFENBERG 05-13-2003

Foundry Opponents Claim Berkeley Lab Skirted Public Process By JOHN GELUARDI 05-13-2003

Woolf’s Rich Prose Style Lost in Stage Adaptation By BETSY M. HUNTON Special to the Planet 05-13-2003

Where Fennel Grows, There Dance Butterflies By JOE EATON Special to the Planet 05-13-2003

Summer Noon Concerts in Downtown Berkeley 05-13-2003