News

For an all-too-brief and shining moment Friday noon, Sproul Plaza reverberated with the rhetorical fireworks that made Berkeley synonymous with radical ideas during the 1960's. -more-

One long-standing bone of contention that the City Council might be able to resolve Tuesday is new zoning rules for University Avenue. After five months of debate, the Planning Commission reached a compromise last July that aims to decrease the scale of new buildings on the avenue. -more-

Why would the Berkeley City Council ask voters to disregard long-standing city tradition and move mayoral elections to coincide with the vote for president? -more-

Thanks to the city of Berkeley’s loose interpretation of one of its laws, along with support from the community and Elmwood commercial district, the Nabolom cooperative bakery says it will likely stay open after initially announcing that it was on track to go out of business by January. -more-

Berkeley Unified School District has received a Golden Carrot—a top national award for food service—from the Washington, D.C.-based Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). -more-

Facing the loss of a truck company if they don’t accept a reduction in salary, Berkeley firefighters have agreed to come to the negotiating table. -more-

Voters in Alameda and Contra Costa counties will be asked to consider a wide array of ballot measures in the Nov. 2 election. Two of these (AA and BB) are regional measures to be voted on by residents across both counties. One measure (CC) is a regional measure to be voted on only by residents in the East Bay Regional Park District Zone 1 (generally the western areas of Alameda and Contra Costa counties). One measure (J) will be voted on by residents of Contra Costa County. Albany, Berkeley, El Cerrito, Emeryville, Oakland, and Richmond residents will all be voting on individual measures for their cities. The Berkeley ballot measures were detailed in the last issue of the Daily Planet. -more-

MEASURE B -more-

Editors, Daily Planet: -more-

South Berkeley needs and wants a strong, active, thoughtful and experienced voice advocating for us to get affordable housing, transportation, public safety, and economic development improvements. I will continue to be an activist, focused on practical effective work. My City Council office will take leadership in advocating for the needs of individuals and groups in our district and our city. -more-

South Berkeley needs care and attention. We don’t need grand ideological schemes; we need real problem solving, community building and a responsive City Council. These are the reasons why I have the support of District 3 neighborhood leaders, school advocates, local businesses, and civic arts directors. I have lived in the heart of South Berkeley for 23 years, meeting my husband here, raising two sons, and buying a fixer-upper. -more-

Voters throughout the Bay Area received their ballot pamphlets last week—many finding that they seemed heavier than usual. It wasn’t just their imagination. -more-

I am writing to ask for your vote in support for Measure B, “Protecting Quality Education in Berkeley’s Public Schools.” Measure B would bring $8.3 million of critically needed funds into the schools for each of the next two years, reversing the most dev astating impacts of recent budget cuts. -more-

Editors, Daily Planet: -more-

When young psychiatrist Neal Blumenfeld read that students had staged a protest at Sproul Plaza, he drove his Triumph TR-3 sports car as close as he could get to the campus, then walked over for a first-hand look. -more-

Down at the end of Berkeley’s new Arts District on Addison Street, the East Bay Media Center has compiled a wide-ranging lineup of new talent for this weekend’s 11th Annual Berkeley Video and Film Festival. -more-

We don’t hear much about the Anti-Trust Acts these days, and not too much about labor unions and their political action committees. -more-

When I told friends I was flying back East with my two and a half year old nephew, Bryce, they looked at me like I was crazy. -more-

TUESDAY, OCT. 12 -more-

We have a few civic olive trees in Berkeley—the ones in concrete planters on lower Sproul Plaza and a few on the borders of the parks strip along Hearst between MLK and Sacramento come to mind. Those are all fairly young. There are older ones around, mostly privately owned. -more-

TUESDAY, OCT. 12 -more-

Before a single vote has been counted in Berkeley, clear winners have emerged in the race to raise money for city council elections, according to campaign contribution and expense reports released Tuesday. -more-

When Michael Shaub moved into his home in North Berkeley last year, he didn’t know his pricey new address would cost him the chance to vote in Berkeley on Election Day. -more-

City housing officials have launched an investigation into the Gaia Building’s electric apartment heaters following a complaint from tenant Thomas Miller. -more-

Confronted by too many unresolved questions, the Richmond City Council Tuesday delayed a vote on the sale of Point Molate until they can get more answers. -more-

Despite dire warnings from firefighters, the City Council Tuesday voted 6-2 Tuesday to shut down one of its two truck companies during evening hours unless the firefighters’ union agrees to a salary giveback. -more-

In a bit of political theater that could reverberate in the District 3 City Council race, Councilmember Maudelle Shirek infuriated several progressives Tuesday by casting the deciding vote against a proposal to strengthen the rights of tenants facing evictions. -more-

The Howard Automobile Building, one of Berkeley’s last remaining Art Deco/Moderne buildings, may be pulled from the tax rolls and reincarnated as a tax-exempt Institute of Buddhist Studies. -more-

If ballot measures are the true measure of citizen voter participation, and citizen voter participation is the true measure of democracy, then the Nov. 2 election would seem to confirm the City of Berkeley as the democratic (small “d”) capital of the East Bay. -more-

As reported in Tuesday’s Fire Log in the Planet, revelers at Willard Park last Saturday afternoon were ordered to vacate by Berkeley police. As they cleared the park, they looked up at the sky to see: not a bird, not a plane, but a MedEvac helicopter touching-down on the park’s grassy knoll. -more-

Board Approves After School Fees -more-

The Free Speech Movement’s (FSM) 40th anniversary commemoration ends Sunday with gatherings for the veterans of the movement in Strawberry Canyon and a similar get-together for SLATE activists in Stiles Hall. -more-

The United States House of Representatives voted 402 to 2 this week to defeat a bill to reinstate the military draft. The Republican Party insists that this vote ought to end any speculation that the President has any plans to start up the draft again. -more-

Everyone who lived through the McCarthy Cold War period in the U.S. knows that an FBI on the prowl for “communists” soon goes after “fellow travelers” and anyone on a list of “subversive organizations.” Many intelligent, politically-active writers, actors, and scholars left the U.S. to avoid blacklisting and possible criminal charges because of their beliefs and activities. -more-

Wanted: Bank Robbers -more-

Berkeley firefighters faced a frantic afternoon Thursday. -more-

BERKELEY POLICE -more-

The debate’s about to start and I’m stuck in traffic, cursing, pounding the wheel, and trying very hard not to get into an accident. Damn the drivers clogging the road. They should be home watching, or at least pulling over to let those of us through who do want to watch, like they would for an ambulance or a fire truck. I’m racing to a global emergency. -more-

These are responses to questions posed to City Council candidates by readers of the Berkeley Daily Planet. Questions can be sent to opinion@berkeleydailyplanet.com. -more-

As the time for the big debate grew near, Democratic partisans acknowledged that it would be an “all or nothing” event for John Kerry. He was behind in most polls and his followers needed a victory to boost their sagging spirits. The angular Senator from Illinois did not disappoint his supporters. With his back against the wall, Kerry did what he had to do—clearly won the debate. -more-

ANTI-SELAWSKY -more-

District 6 starts at the northern side of Hearst Avenue and the eastern edge of Oxford Street and runs north to Cedar Street. It jogs up Cedar to Spruce Street and then continues along the eastern edge of Spruce all the way up to Tilden Park. District 6 has a diverse population that includes students, professors, homeowners and tenants. -more-

Why vote for me? I promise to fight against high property taxes and for the improvement of city services. I oppose all the city tax measures as many of us are living on fixed incomes and we’re already paying one of the highest property tax rates in the state, enough already. However, I do endorse Measure B because this time it will be spent in the classroom. -more-

I’m running for City Council with the number one priority of improving the lives of District 2 residents. My experience, energy, and enthusiasm prepare me to be a strong and effective voice for District 2. -more-

For some Berkeley residents, football season at the University is about as welcome as a visit from the Republican National Convention. They’re regular autumn gripes about home game day noise, crowds, and traffic or the philosophical meaninglessness of college sports. -more-

“That’s enough!” A voice rings out from the back of the Lissiter Auditorium at Mills College, angrily moving forward through the house. The audience, just seated, was waiting for the play (TheatreFIRST’s Joe Egg) to begin, finding itself suddenly to be the play, for the moment. -more-

FRIDAY, OCT. 8 -more-

Yet another casino is being floated for the East Bay, this one near the Oakland airport. -more-

Some towns fade with unfulfilled dreams. Luckily, Benicia is not one of them. While no longer California’s state capital, the original capital building, now a State Historic Park, provides a rare look back into Benicia and California’s history. While no longer a major military outpost, Benicia’s contribution to 19th century military history is well exhibited at the Historical Museum at the Camel Barns. And, while no longer an international port, Benicia’s former industrial section now houses a thriving arts and crafts community. -more-