Davida Coady welcomes just about anybody into her drug and alcohol rehabilitation program at the Berkeley Veterans’ Building, but she isn’t rolling out the red carpet for the building’s newest arrival. -more-
The City Council approved a plan Tuesday to create a task force to review Berkeley’s Creeks Ordinance, leaving dozens of homeowners who packed the council’s chambers howling in disgust. -more-
Berkeley’s seven-year housing boom may be going bust, and Planning Director Dan Marks wants the regional agency which has pushed for ever more units to ease off their demands for more. -more-
Richmond City Councilmembers gave Berkeley developer James D. Levine the go-ahead Tuesday night for his plans to build a “world class” casino resort on the Point Molate shoreline. -more-
Berkeley residents will have their chance to weigh in on the proposed Southside Plan Monday night when the city Planning Department holds a scoping session in the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave. -more-
A decision to delay the battle for the city’s scarce affordable housing funds and allow one developer to overhaul its financing scheme months after the deadline has raised eyebrows among developers and some city housing commissioners. -more-
The transfer of toxic cleanup supervision at the Campus Bay site project in Richmond has been underway since Monday, a spokesperson for the state Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) in Berkeley said Thursday. -more-
Assemblymember Loni Hancock is criticizing the state response to a recent UC Berkeley computer hacking incident as too little and too late. -more-
After an exhaustive six-month search, KPFA has a new General Manager. -more-
NORTH KOREA -more-
Time for my Democratic friends, I think, to pause and take a breath. You’re beginning to freak me out, guys. -more-
In the wake of Bush’s victory, the question is what to do next. The usual answer—keep pressuring Congress and the president—is problematic, as the Republican leadership appears immune to reason or the popular will. But activists must remain engaged, as the prospects for making a meaningful difference in people’s lives were not erased on Tuesday. -more-
In the aftermath of the Republican victory on Nov. 2, Democrats are debating how the party should respond to the increasing political power of conservative Christians. Two alternative strategies have emerged: One is the “If you can’t beat them, then join them” position, which contends that Democrats should assert their own religiosity. The other is “retool the message,” which argues that Democrats lost because they weren’t clear, in general, on what they stand for—other than not wanting Bush to be president—and that, in specific, they did not offer a clear alternative to the Republican rant on “family values.” -more-
Enough already! The election was not rigged! I do not want to hear another conspiracy theory about what did or did not happen in Ohio or anyplace else. Conspiracy theories are about as useful at this juncture as holding another debate. -more-
I first heard of “Smart Growth” when Al Gore was campaigning in 2000. It was suggested then, that suburban cities should increase their share of density by reducing the size of building sites, (lots had become an acre and more in size), and by developing taller buildings in a more compact and concentrated town center. They claimed the goal was to preserve farm land and natural open space. That made sense didn’t it?! -more-
In her commentary “Defeat of Tax Measures Favors Individual, Not Common Good,” (Daily Planet, Nov. 5-8) Nancy Feinstein argues voters who rejected Measures J, K, L and M were motivated primarily by a desire to minimize their own tax burden. But an examination of the facts indicates this assumption is incorrect. In fairness to Ms. Feinstein it must be acknowledged that some voters did reject the taxes out of a selfish desire to minimize their taxes, but we need also recognize that others, such as seniors on fixed incomes, rejected J, K, L and M simply because they can’t afford to pay more. But these two explanations leave out the issue that may well have been the key factor in rejecting the taxes. The reality is that 71 percent of Berkeley voters willingly increased taxes to fund the school district, exceeding by 20 percent the number of voters willing to fund city coffers by voting for Measures J, K, L and M. Less then 38 percent of Berkeley voters supported a utility tax of about five dollars a month, while over 65 percent of them supported state tax increases to fund mental health and children’s hospitals. These results indicate a large number of voters were not opposed to taxes per se, but were instead opposed to how Berkeley spends our tax money. -more-
On a hill rising high above San Pablo Bay, Whitney Dotson stared out at an expanse of marshland along the eastern shore and could still see himself and his brother, Richard, as kids swimming in the grassy marsh channels in the early 1960s. -more-
Dan: “I know I’m a bastard, but even bastards need friends.” -more-
“There’s something awfully sad about happiness, isn’t there?” -more-
Picture this: Walks across moorland hills, a rich tapestry of color and texture; along meandering streams that cross fertile valleys of rich, green fields and isolated stone farmhouses; undulating footpaths along coastal cliffs overlooking the North Sea and sheltered fishing villages tucked away in protected coves. Returning each day to an eighteenth century Georgian mansion, your bedroom overlooking the Esk Valley and North York Moors National Park. Congenial company, comfort, and invigorating hiking in a dramatic natural setting. -more-
Bowing to public and legislative pressure, state officials Monday agreed to a change in jurisdiction over the toxic cleanup of Campus Bay, the South Richmond site where developers hope to build a condo project atop a hazardous waste dump. -more-
California Assembly Committee on Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials -more-
According to close observers of the Albany City Council race, voters sent a clear message last week by electing two new members who oppose large-scale waterfront development. -more-
The architects of a proposed ferry service from Berkeley to San Francisco unveiled their ridership study Saturday, saying that the Berkeley Marina is emerging as the leading site for the service. -more-
When the final gavel falls at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, a 21-foot high pedestrian footbridge could be coming to Hearst Avenue, new building guidelines could be in place on University Avenue, an architecturally significant cottage could be set for an expansion and a blueprint for revising the city’s 15-year-old creek law could be on the way for all of Berkeley. -more-
Two statewide organizations that advocate for a transparent political process are split over whether a request for Berkeley city councilmembers to vote on budgetary priorities in private violates state law. -more-
Faced with a still-precarious city budget situation and uncertainty over the direction of city waterfront development, Richmond voters last Tuesday re-elected virtually the same City Council that created the situation, with one notable exception: newcomer Gayle McLaughlin. -more-
The owner of an Oregon Street property where one UC student collapsed and later died—and where several student tenants were later arrested on drug dealing and illegal weapons charges—has called a meeting with neighbors of the property to hear their concerns about the incident. -more-
Battling bids for Point Molate, a choice piece of city-owned waterfront property sought by two rival suitors, will once again confront the Richmond City Council Tuesday. -more-
Members of Berkeley’s Planning Commission are scheduled to discuss two controversial issues Wednesday—revisions to the city Landmarks Ordinance and proposed changes to commercial parking regulations—and may discuss a third. -more-
After my husband’s accident, when he was transferred to Kaiser’s Redwood City Neurology Department, I was told not to leave valuables in his room. I was warned again when Ralph was sent to Kaiser’s Vallejo Rehabilitation Center. -more-
10:25 a.m. Cinnamon calls. She has hepatitis C and diabetes. She is hard of hearing, and lives in a coffin size space above a garage. She is worried about whether she will be able to get a real apartment with her five cats. She also is having a problem with a raccoon who is stealing the cat food. The raccoon is very aggressive and even climbs up the ladder into her loft. She is also worried about her daughter, who lives in Sacramento and was busted for amphetamines. She will be out of jail in December, but will come out without anything. She has lost custody of her children and will be homeless. Cinnamon called just to say hello and to hear a kind voice. -more-
The exit polls that showed a sweeping victory for Sen. Kerry on Nov. 2 were right. Unfortunately, the 2004 presidential election was cleanly stolen by Bush & Co. How, you say? With the help of Diebold, ES&S, Sequoia and SAIC, four interlocked secretive right-wing electronic voting machine manufacturers. We have entrusted the most important election task, that of actually counting and tabulating the vote totals to extremist organizations with secret proprietary vote-counting computer software with no auditable paper trail for hand recounts. How very convenient, how very clean, how very slick and with all the evidence of election rigging is buried deep on their computer hard drives. -more-
7 a.m. on election morning found me trudging through the frozen streets of Boulder, Colo. to the county Democratic headquarters. Twelve hours later, having dispatched hundreds of volunteers to Boulder and the surrounding counties, I helped shut down the office and then gleefully proceeded to the “victory” party. I thought we had won; the information we received during the day suggested that Kerry would carry Colorado and win overall. -more-
Berkeley, what are we seeing about ourselves this morning? Many of us woke up this morning feeling a deep depression about the state of our country, especially as we absorbed the vast numbers of people who supported the arrogant, self-serving, mean spiri ted leadership of our president. I, like many others in Berkeley, felt marginalized in my perspectives about everything from international policy and national priorities to individual and social concerns. But when I look at my own community, I see some of the same trends that I see in the national results. I am heart sick at the defeat of Measures J, K, L and M—which would have paid for youth programs, libraries, police, fire and other front-line services. In the decision to save those of us who might hav e had to spend a few hundred dollars a year, from having to spend those dollars, I see a community that is trying to “protect” individuals at the cost of our commonwealth. Sound familiar? -more-
Like at least half the nation, I woke up Nov. 3 stunned with the dreadful news that Kerry had conceded Ohio and Bush had somehow managed to carry the nation despite extensive organizing and united efforts by the left to change the course of our country. Leaving Ohio on the long trek home to Berkeley, the Kerry/Edwards lawn signs were tattered along the side of the Ronald Reagan highway here in Cincinnati, Ohio, and my Mazda wore its “Nothing Accomplished” bumper-sticker as a badge of defiance. Despite our failure to carry Southern Ohio, there are tremendously important lessons to extract from the past few weeks of our Get Out The Vote efforts, and we need to begin planning now to make the 2006 mid-terms a true turning point for our country. -more-
It has all the makings of a party: chips, pizza, beer, bourbon, a projection screen and an amp. The mood, however, is dour at Berkeley’s Graduate School of Public Policy. -more-
Now that the election is over, there is sure to be a push from the White House to abolish the scourge of the 2004 election season—political 527 groups. Doing this, however, would be a serious mistake. -more-
On Sept. 24 the Daily Planet published my letter wondering why the Berkeley Planning Department’s website no longer lists notices of decision (NODs) resulting from the recent approval or disapproval of use permits by the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB). The department’s website has a heading, “Current Development Projects, Notices of Decision and City Council Appeals,” but neither NODs nor appeals to the City Council are actually posted. -more-
Some 20 members of Neighbors on Urban Creeks attended the Oct. 19 City Council meeting determined to maintain our positive stance of preserving the environmental benefits of creeks without conflict with the reasonable enjoyment of our private property. We were hopeful of a supportive council response to the over 600 people who signed our petition, and the more than 125 people who subsequently sent in letters emphasizing that the task of revising the Ordinance should be given to the Planning Commission. We also had support for our position from nationally known planning and legal authorities who pointed out that the Creeks Ordinance involved land use issues and that legally they must be reviewed by the Planning Commission and from city staff. -more-
Mayor Bates’ proposals for (once again) more taxes to soothe the budgetary woes of the city have gone down in flames, and his response is, “I don’t think people fully understood what they were doing when they opposed taxes (Daily Planet, Nov. 5-8 p.18.).” Of course not. We’re all uneducated boobs in the city electorate who don’t know what’s best for us and who are unable to appreciate the magnitude of the goodness and mercy that our local government bestows upon us. I feel bad that I am such an ungrateful slob. I stay up at night worrying about such character defects. I even have asked for divine guidance to help me to understand what I am doing when I vote on local issues, but apparently it did not help my comprehension. I am so sorry I failed Mayor Bates and all his minions. -more-
The 20th annual Film Arts Foundation Festival Of Independent Cinema screens this weekend, Friday through Sunday, at San Francisco’s Roxie Cinema and Castro Theater, following a Thursday night gala at The Mighty Nightclub in the Design District. The festival features narrative, art, experimental and documentary films from around the world—including several by Berkeley and other East Bay filmmakers. -more-
Somehow I had missed, until just recently, the fact that skunks are no longer considered part of the weasel family. Skunks are now in the skunk family, and have been since 1997. Nobody tells me these things. -more-
Whatever happened to Measure H? It was supposed to be a slam-dunk good-government measure that Berkeley voters would certainly support: campaign financing for all, leveling the playing field, taking money out of politics. Supporters sent the Planet a passel of literate, well-reasoned opinion pieces. We got some full-page ads. Letters came home in the mail outlining why thinking people would have to vote yes on H. The Berkeley vote was billed as an opening salvo in a national movement to “clean up politics.” But Berkeleyans didn’t buy it. Measure H went down badly, getting only 40 percent of the vote. Why? -more-
As usual, our readers are doing a great job of analyzing the local election results in these pages, and we really don’t need to add much. We have just a few observations on the stylistic issues which affected the campaigns for local taxes. Our front page election night photos said it all. They were taken by a photographer who doesn’t cover city politics, didn’t necessarily know the names and numbers of the players, and just shot what he saw. In the Measure B victory photo we saw a bunch of happy parents lifting apple slices to toast their victory. Among them were fathers Dan Lindheim and Larry Gordon, who darn near drove us at the Planet crazy with a steady stream of letters, commentary pieces and “informational” phone calls. Voters who were paying any attention at all to local elections couldn’t miss the message; if they didn’t catch it in the Planet, they could have seen the hundreds of signs on their neighbors’ lawns around town. Good job, guys. -more-
