Full Text

Jakob Schiller:
           
          Ignacio Chapela, a professor at UC Berkeley who was recently denied tenure, speaks during a rally in front on California Hall Thursday morning where about 100 of his former students and supporters demanded the university reverse its decision.?
Jakob Schiller: Ignacio Chapela, a professor at UC Berkeley who was recently denied tenure, speaks during a rally in front on California Hall Thursday morning where about 100 of his former students and supporters demanded the university reverse its decision.?
 

News

Ousted Professor Holds Final Class By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday December 10, 2004

It began inside a classroom, where a world-renowned professor was holding his last session with students, barring a decision from UC Berkeley’s new chancellor. 

Then it moved outside as ever-growing numbers of students, academics and journalists marshaled for a march on California Hall. 

It climaxed in a chant outside California Hall, a cascading chorus of protest aimed at Chancellor Robert Birgeneau: “Justice Now! Justice Now! Justice Now! Justice Now!” 

For Ignacio Chapela, a member of the Cal’s department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management faculty since 1995, the day marked the end of the latest chapter of his battles for academic freedom and his challenges to an increasingly corporatized academic culture. 

An overflowing crowd of students, faculty, and supporters crammed into his last class. As the 8:30 a.m. class drew to a close, Chapella thanked the crowd and vowed to “keep raising hell.” After a standing ovation, the group led a march to the chancellor’s office in California Hall. There they protested Chapella’s dismissal and called on the university to grant him tenure. 

Chapela’s once-promising career at Berkeley foundered on two critical issues. 

When Swiss biotech giant Novartis (now renamed Syngenta) struck a five-year $25 million deal with the College of Natural Resources’ Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, Chapela was quick to criticize, citing the obvious potential of conflicts of interest and corporate control of research. 

His frankness did nothing to endear him to college Dean Gordon Rausser, one of the architects of the agreement. 

But the crowning blow followed from a discovery made by Chapela and one of his graduate students, David Quist, one of the founders of Students for Responsible Research. 

A native of Mexico, Chapela has remained deeply involved with his homeland, conducting research and helping indigenous people work toward economic self-sufficiency. 

Quist and Chapela discovered strands of genetically modified DNA in the genome of native strands of corn cultivated in the heart of the region where maize was first domesticated. 

Chapela and Quist submitted their findings to Nature, the British scientific journal which remains the world’s preeminent scientific publication. Their publication in November 2001 ignited a firestorm. 

Their discovery wasn’t the first instance of artificial genetic intrusion. Reports have surfaced of strands of DNA conferring resistance to the pesticide Roundup finding their way into the weeds the herbicide was designed to kill.  

But the Chapela/Quist discovery was especially troubling to the agribusiness giants whose patented strains of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are being spread throughout the world and generating huge profits. 

The implicit threat their research raised was of homogenized crops, of a reduction of genetic diversity that could render crops far more vulnerable because diverse varieties with a wide range of resistances would vanish into a giant genomic blender. 

The attack was instant and fierce. A British web site posted scathing critiques from non-existent scientists who turned out to be creations of a corporate advertising and Nature received letters, one from a UC Berkeley colleague of Chapela, who questioned the scientists’ methodology. 

In the end, Nature published a partial retraction—the first in the publication’s history—that advised readers to make their own interpretations of the findings. 

Other research has since verified their findings, buy the damage was already done. 

Chapela was already up for tenure when the Nature furor erupted, but the flap didn’t prevent department members from voting 32 to 1 in favor of tenure, followed by tenure recommendations from both his department chair and the dean of the College of Natural Resources. 

On Oct. 3, a five-member Campus Ad Hoc Committee voted unanimously in favor of tenure. 

The first blow came on June 5, 2003, when the university’s budget committee made a preliminary vote against tenure. 

Then, on Nov. 12, the vice provost asked the ad hoc panel chair to reevaluate tenure in light of new critical letter, prompting the resignation of the chair. 

After another negative vote from the budget committee, Chancellor Robert Berdahl denied tenure on Nov. 20, 2003, despite repeated tenure recommendations from the chair and dean. 

Chapela’s supporters are hoping for a more receptive hearing from new Chancellor Birgeneau, an academic with a history of involvement in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. 

Professors, journalists and supporters joined the regular student contingent for Thursday’s final class, an undergraduate course in environmental biology. They filled the seats, lined the walls and sat on the floor. 

The discussion was wide ranging—“part of the class is to show how environmental biology is connected to everything else”—and he invited all those in attendance, students and others, to comment on a current event and show its connection to environmental biology. 

One student raised the issue of Proposition 71 as corporate welfare, the voter-approved $3 billion in funding for stem cell research, embodied in the California Institute for Regenerative medicine. 

“It’s the bailout of an industry that was in pretty bad shape,” said Chapela. “It’s exempt from public scrutiny. The Legislature can scream and scream, but they really can’t do much.” 

Another student cited the Bush administration’s decision to undo protections for salmon spawning runs and to include hatchery populations in the census of wild salmon. 

Other issues raised included the implications of Bush administration research bunker-busting nuclear weapons and UC’s long-standing in nuclear weaponry and the planned nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. 

During the class volunteers passed out cut sections of ribbons, red and earthy green, and audience members tied them to their forearms, reminiscent of two forms of protein on which so much of life depends, hemoglobin and chlorophyll. 

As class drew down to the end, Chapela declared, “I will keep raising hell in different forms.” 

After a standing ovation, one after another, professors rose to pay tribute to their colleague. 

“Today is also my last class,” Professor Andrew Gutierrez told the crowd. Unlike Chapela, Gutierrez is retiring. 

“I have come to the conclusion that Aristotle could not have made tenure here,” he said. “Honesty is not something that’s appreciated at this campus. The Mario Savio Steps and the Free Speech Cafe are two monuments to hypocrisy.” 

Miguel Altieri, a professor of insect biology, urged the audience of “the need to remember that this is a public university. We cannot allow this hypocrisy.” 

Two weeks ago, Altieri said, he had written the new chancellor, “saying this was your chance. I didn’t even get a reply. The university does not belong to the university or to the corporations. It belongs to us.”  

Jennifer Miller, an assistant professor in the English Department, said that the last time she was in Chapela’s classroom she’d been lecturing on oppression 

“We are very, very lucky to have had Ignacio as a teacher,” she said.  

Miller recalled a time when she and Chapela had been serving on a committee and Chancellor Berdahl had asked them what might cause them to leave the university. 

“He said, ‘Is there something so wrong that it would cause you to leave?’ 

“Ignacio and I replied, ‘If there was something so wrong, the last thing we would do is leave. We would stay and fight.” 

Then everyone filed outside and began the march on California Hall. 

After a pair of chants calling for tenure, the audience listened as speakers addressed them through an amplified bullhorn. 

First up was Dan Siegel, Chapela’s attorney in his fight for tenure and a veteran of the ‘60s protest movement. 

“The last time I came to California Hall, I was sitting in,” he said. “I was arrested for protesting the actions of another chancellor.” 

Birgeneau, he said, “is caught in the conflict between doing the right thing and doing the expedient thing. As time goes on, we may need to escalate our tactics, but we will succeed.” 

Siegel pointed to another colleague of Chapela’s who had run afoul of corporate power, “Professor Tyrone Hayes of the Department of Integrative Biology, whose research discovered the unintended consequences of corporate intervention into biology.” 

Hayes discovered the effects of the pesticide Atrazine on frogs, which developed severe malformations when exposed to the toxins. 

Hayes then stepped forward. “If we lose Ignacio, diversity in the biological sciences will decrease by 50 percent. Isn’t it a coincidence that Ignacio and I have wound up on the wrong side of the same corporation that was funding research here at the university?” 

Hayes said he had consulted for Novartis and his work had been published in Nature and by the National Academy of Sciences. “I was lucky I had tenure; the vice chancellor wrote a letter saying I shouldn’t be doing any work here on campus. 

“This is bigger than frogs or corn.” 

David Quist, Chapela’s collaborator on the transgenic corn research, said Chapela’s tenure case should’ve been open and shut. “Then we get to the top levels of the administration and they show him the door.” 

Carolyn Merchant, professor of environmental history, philosophy, and ethics, said the denial of tenure is “unethical and unprecedented. I would urge the chancellor to look at the process and grant tenure, Right here. Today. Now.” 

“Something is rotten, not in Denmark, but here in Berkeley,” said Ethnic Studies Professor Carlos Munoz. “This case send a clear message that faculty who challenge the dominant paradigm are not welcome, especially if they don’t accept corporate funding.” 

Barbara Epstein, professor of history at UC Santa Cruz, blasted the tenure denial. “The university is egregiously violating its own rules. I hope this struggle continues.” 

Joe Nielands, emeritus professor of biochemistry, came to UC Berkeley in 1952. In a firm, clear voice, he decried “the privatization and the corporatization of the university,” harkening back to the days when the school’s funding came primarily from Sacramento. 

“The Budget Committee knows the chancellor wants to get his hands on that corporate loot. . . Chapela is exactly the kind of person we need around here. He has wisdom, and above all he has courage and integrity.” 

After more praise from John Garcia, instructor at the University of San Francisco, it was finally Chapela’s turn. 

It wasn’t his first time outside California Hall. After his denial of tenure, Chapela had brought a desk and held “office hours” outside administration headquarters in protest of the decision. 

Chapela said the idea of the march first came up Saturday, and when the word got out, e-mails and phone calls poured in from around the world. 

“You are standing here for many others,” he told the crowd. 

“At exactly the moment this was scheduled, the university scheduled another media event,” a press tour at the university Richmond Field Station, where the university is planning a major corporate/university research park adjacent to Campus Bay. 

“Now we are all students and teachers together, and I hope you will get the word out.” 

And then came the last chant, “We Want Justice!” repeated over and over again. 

While Birgeneau refused to meet with the protesters, one of his staff did agree to accept copies of a letter signed by 145 university professors and 174 others calling for a review of Chapela’s case and extension of his employment. 

Calls placed to the Chancellor’s office met with no response.?


Cottage Landmarked, But Addition Approved By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday December 10, 2004

Berkeley gained two new landmarks this week, one a massive structure familiar to all, the other a small redwood-shaded cottage in the hills. 

While the Webb Block—that exuberant red-faced curvilinear three-story turn-of-the-20th-century presence at the c orner of Ashby Avenue and Adeline Street—sailed through with nary a dissent after minimal discussion, such was not the case with the Edgar Jensen House. 

Indeed, by the time the dust settled, the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) handed proponents o f landmarking the home at 1650 La Vereda Road a Pyrrhic victory. 

The house received the designation, but commissioners approved a major expansion, the very thing that the landmarking advocates had hoped to stall. 

Marshaled against them were an 87-year-old grandmother, her multimillionaire son and daughter-in-law, two highly skilled attorneys and the president of the most powerful media relations firm in Northern California—an outfit which has played a major role in recent land use battles in Richmond. 

The dispute also spilled over into the Internet. A single, factually incorrect entry at reasononline, the web site of the libertarian magazine Reason, provoked 30 pages of comments. 

At issue was a small redwood home with two upstairs bedrooms, bu ilt in 1937, designed by William Wurster, a widely acclaimed modernist and former dean of the UC Berkeley School of Architecture. 

The furor began when John E. Holey, San Francisco-based architect for homeowner Marguerite Rossetto—mother and mother-in-law of WIRED magazine co-founders Louis Rossetto and Jane Metcalf, who live on the same street—filed plans to build a two-story addition to the structure. 

The elder Rossetto, who lives in Long Island and comes to Berkeley to visit her son and grandchildr en, has said she needs a downstairs bedroom for herself because she suffers from late-onset leukemia and has become too frail to regularly climb the stairs to the existing second-floor bedroom. The additional bedroom would be for her caretaker. 

Neighbors, including retired architect Christopher Adams and spouse Jane Adams, emeritus UC history professor Ruth Rosen and spouse Dr. Wendel Brunner, who is Contra Costa County Public Health Director, and Brian Viani attempted to meet with Rossetto and her son to discuss the planned alterations. 

Instead, architect Holey met with them, resulting in negotiations that failed to accomplish what the neighbors wanted, namely a more modest single-story addition. 

After the Zoning Adjustments Board approved the Rosset to plans, the neighbors appealed to the City Council and simultaneously filed an application to landmark the building. 

The City Council upheld the appeal on Nov. 12, referring the decision back to ZAB and handing the landmarks commission two months to ac t o n the application. 

When the Rossettos and their contingent appeared before the commission Monday, architect Holey offered an additional design for the remodel which would effectively create a modified mirror image clone of the original house connecte d by a breezeway. 

They had also paved the way for their presentation by purchasing a full page ad in last Friday’s Daily Planet. The paper had rejected an earlier, more inflammatory version, but the ad as published featured a stinging attack on the neigh bors, questioning their motives. 

Among those who came to testify for the Rossettos was Sam Singer, president of Singer Associates, the powerhouse San Francisco media relations firm which represents the ChevronTexaco refinery in Richmond in their battle a gain st the Point Molate casino, as well as Cherokee Simeon Ventures in their efforts to build a 1,330-unit housing complex above a buried mound of hazardous waste in South Richmond. 

Singer, a Berkeley resident, didn’t mention his business affiliation wh en he told the LPC that “the process has been hijacked” by the landmarking application. 

Also testifying against landmarking were two Rossetto attorneys, Rena Rickles and Pamela Duffy, who brought along a court reporter to provide a verbatim transcript of the proceedings. 

Architect Holey spoke against landmarking, saying it didn’t meet the criteria. 

One thing I don’t have is time, said Mrs. Rossetto, who said she had followed all the rules and “done all the things the city required to build my bedroom.” 

Say ing “I have never done anything to my neighbors,” she asked, “Why are they doing this? What kind of neighbors are they” to “have been abusing the planning process. . .and abusing me.” 

Former Landmarks Commissioner Richard Dishnica also testified on the R ossettos’ behalf, calling the landmarking application an abuse of the process, “unfair to the owner of the property.” 

Brunner said he hadn’t even been aware of the LPC until two or three months ago and said “it has never been the attention of anyo ne to prevent an additional ground floor bedroom.” 

“We have been unable to meet with Mr. Rossetto or Mrs. Rossetto. We had hoped to deal with this in a more neighborly manner,” he said. 

Christopher Adams, who helped write the landmark application, praised the existing structure as “an outstanding example of Wurster’s ability to design compact housing” and “a very important part of the neighborhood.” 

When the hearing closed, Commissioner Carrie OIson blasted critics of the landmarking process. “I think the ave rage citizen in Berkeley has no idea of what any of these processes mean. People are thrown into the process with a city staff that’s too busy to help them.  

“Please don’t come and tell us things are abused because someone in the neighborhood did n’t unde rstand the process,” she said. 

After a lengthy discussion, Commissioners Olson, Leslie Emmington, Aran Kaufer, Jill Korte and Richard Spaid (sitting in for member Pat Dacey) approved the landmark designation over the dissenting votes of Robert J ohnson, J ames Samuels, Fran Packard and Steven Winkel. 

The neighbors had only a few minutes to savor their victory before the commissioners voted unanimously to approve the two-story addition Holey had submitted the same day. 

The least contentious deci sion of th e night was the 15-minute hearing to landmark the Webb Block at Adeline and Ashby. 

Designed by Charles W. McCall for Christopher Webb, the building once housed the pharmacy of Thomas E. Caldecott, who later became the Alameda County Supervisor whose name graces the most famous of the East Bay tunnels. 

The building is now one of the major draws for antique shoppers from throughout the Bay Area. 

That the structure was just being landmarked was “one of those classic oversights,” said Commission er Olson. “I always thought it had been landmarked.” 

The structure, already on California Historic Resources Inventory, was landmarked by a unanimous vote. 

The commissioners didn’t have time to hear from more than one witness on another controversial landmarking, the proposals for the Celia’s Restaurant Building and Brennan’s Irish Pub in the 700 block of University Avenue. 

The hearing was postponed until the next LPC meeting in January.?S


Landmarks Battle Makes Web Waves By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday December 10, 2004

The day after Landmarks Preservation commissioners approved his mother’s plans for a two-story addition to her La Vereda Road home, WIRED magazine co-founder Thomas Rossetto was on the Internet, flaming her neighbors and the Berkeley landmarking process. 

“I am both exhilarated and depressed by the experienced [sic],” Rossetto wrote. “Exhilarated because we beat those motherfucking neighbors and my mother can build her bedroom. 

“And saddened to have witnessed first had [sic] a truly arbitrary, philistine process that must be repeated ad nauseum across America, and that causes neighborhood wars, promotes mediocrity (if not worse), and can leave people emotionally and financially ruined without even protecting the alleged purposes of the landmark ordinances.” 

Rossetto wrote to Nick Gillespie, who writes the “reason hit + run” column for wiredonline, the Internet site for the magazine Rossetto co-founded. 

Gillespie had written an error-laced entry (the Daily Planet is called the Berkeley Barb) on Rossetto’s mother’s problem with neighbors who had filed a landmarking application for her cottage. 

Rossetto entry referred to neighbors as “the local Soviet” and to the commission as “this kind of kangaroo court.” 

Near the end of his entry, Rossetto announced his intention to donate to the Institute for Justice, which describes itself as “the nation’s premier libertarian public interest law firm.” 

Economic libertarians oppose all governmental regulation of property use and hold that the courts, preferably privatized, are the proper former for arbitrating land use disputes. 

“Once again,” Rossetto concluded, “we are shown that tyranny is not just a national threat; it starts, and is perhaps most pernicious, on your own block.” 

The comment thread to Gillespie’s entry had reached 30 pages late Wednesday afternoon. 

Rossetto’s cause was also espoused by Mark Frauenfelder, author of the boingboing.net blog, who pleaded, “Let Louis Rossetto’s mom have her damn bedroom.” 

His entry was prompted by an e-mail from Rossetto, who described the struggle of “one of those good versus evil, little guy—actually little grandmother—versus City Hall kind of stories.” 

?


Coach’s Return Bodes Well for New Stadium By MATTHEW ARTZ

Friday December 10, 2004

When Cal named Jeff Tedford to coach its football team three seasons ago, the prospect of rustling up more than $140 million to rebuild the antiquated and often half-empty Memorial Stadium seemed like a hail mary.  

But now that Cal has re-signed the coach who filled the stadium and turned its moribund football program into a national title contender, Bear fans have reason to be confident that their stadium prayers might soon be answered. 

“We’re probably in the best position in decades to take this on,” said Dexter Bailey, Cal’s executive associate athletic director in charge of its fundraising drive for renovating the team’s 81-year-old facility. Already, he said, the university has raised $20 million without actively soliciting for donations. 

When Cal kicks off its official effort, expected to begin next year, Bailey can impress potential donors with a winning team, a proven coach, and a new chancellor who has a track record of supporting his athletic department. 

But while Bear fans, all too accustomed to waiting in line at the stadium’s multitude of port-o-potties, rejoice at the prospect of a first class facility, many Berkeley residents recoil at the notion of keeping the stadium in their back yard. 

They argue that the time is right to move the stadium from its current location in Strawberry Canyon directly on top of an earthquake fault and just beside residential communities, where neighbors often find themselves barraged with unwanted visitors for the team’s five to six home games every year. 

“I think the university is using Coach Tedford as an excuse to push for rebuilding at the current location instead of looking for the best possible site,” said Janice Thomas, who lives on Panoramic Hill, just beside the stadium. She and other residents have pushed for the university to consider building a new stadium on the Albany waterfront or the west side of campus, two options university officials have said were not under consideration. 

Stadium opponents are facing an unparalleled drive from boosters determined to keep Cal from returning to the basement of collegian football.  

Over the last five weeks, boosters raised $10 million dollars to keep Coach Tedford in Berkeley. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” said David Rosselli, the assistant athletic director in charge of major gifts. “There’s tremendous support to elevate the program into a national powerhouse and keep it there.” 

The money allowed Cal to sign Tedford to a five-year contract extension that will pay $1.5 million annually, nearly double his previous salary. The contract is comparable with salaries paid by some of the traditional football powers who were rumored to make a run at luring Tedford during the off-season. 

The university’s ability to pay top dollar for Tedford illustrates its sudden rise as a football power and an attractive partner to sports-loving corporations. Over the past year, the athletic department has signed 27 new corporate partnerships and seen its sponsorship revenue jump from $2.6 million a year to $4.3 million, said Director of Corporate Sponsorships Solomon Fulp. He attributed nearly all of the increased revenues to Tedford. 

Tedford has been clear that for him to stay at Cal, the university would have to upgrade Memorial Stadium, widely considered the most outdated facility in the Bear’s conference and a hindrance in recruiting top high school talent. 

Like his previous contract, Tedford’s new deal contains escape clauses if the university falls behind on stadium renovations, but at Monday’s press conference the coach appeared confident that the project was on track. 

“I’ve been encouraged by the direction that the stadium project is heading in,” he said.  

Competing design proposals are now before Chancellor Robert Birgeneau, Bailey said. At his previous job as the chancellor of the University of Toronto, Birgeneau championed an $80 million renovation to its football stadium to house both the university’s team and the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts. 

Any proposal for a renovated Memorial Stadium would include a seismic retrofit, luxury suites, new football offices, a new weight room, new locker room and possible academic space as well. 

Compounding neighborhood concerns, university officials have not ruled out handing the project over to a private developer, which several neighbors fear would result in more intensive use of a renovated stadium to maximize profit. 

Don Muret, facilities reporter for the Sports Business Journal, said that private developers building and operating on campus stadiums is a growing trend, but so far such proposals have been confined to basketball arenas that can more easily host a variety of events. 

“It’s becoming more common now that states have no public money whatsoever,” he said. 

Muret added that owners of recently renovated football stadiums have typically tried to book different events at the facilities. “Everyone is trying to get creative,” he said. “They try concerts, corporate hospitality meetings, even weddings.”


Council OKs Brower Sculpture, Puts Bridge on Hold By MATTHEW ARTZ

Friday December 10, 2004

A 175-ton sculpture honoring former Sierra Club President David Brower is coming to Berkeley, but where it will end up remains unknown. 

The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to accept the stone and bronze globe, commissioned by Brian and Jennifer Maxwell, founders of Berkeley-based Power Bar, Inc. 

In other matters, the council postponed a vote on the Foothill Bridge until Jan. 18, established a three-month rotation system for the title of vice mayor, approved an extra $727,000 to complete construction of Affordable Housing Associates’ Sacramento Senior Homes project and accepted $3 million in state grants to begin construction of sports fields along the end of Gilman Street just west of I-80. 

The Maxwell family, which is offering the sculpture free of charge, turned to Berkeley after the San Francisco Arts Commission rejected the sculpture designed by Finnish-American artist Eino. Several Berkeley residents were lobbying for the city to reject it too, arguing that the sculpture’s mass and inclusion of a figure of Brower scaling the globe weren’t a proper testament to his legacy.  

Born in Berkeley in 1912, Brower, who died four years ago, was one of the nation’s foremost environmental activists.  

Instead the council adopted a recommendation from the Civic Arts Commission to accept the work on several conditions. The Brower figure must be removed from the piece and the Maxwell estate must pay all placement and upkeep costs, the council said. Also, the future site must be professionally landscaped and include an educational component. 

The Civic Arts and Waterfront commissions now have to find a home for the 20-foot-tall sculpture. 

Councilmember Wozniak called on the commissions to find it a prominent home, perhaps in the planned David Brower Center, slated to be constructed at the Oxford Parking Lot. 

Several Waterfront Commission members have stated they didn’t want the sculpture on the city’s shoreline.  

Noting that much of Berkeley’s coast is landfill, Councilmember Betty Olds said, “If we’re talking 350,000 pounds, the first earthquake that thing is going to end up in China.” 

To which Mayor Tom Bates retorted, “It could become a traffic circle.” 

 

Foothill Bridge 

The council left the fate of a proposed pedestrian bridge over Hearst Avenue dangling for another month to give the three newly elected councilmembers a chance to tour the project site. 

Since construction began on the Foothill Housing Complex in 1988, UC Berkeley officials have sought unsuccessfully to build a bridge 21 feet over Hearst Avenue between Le Roy and La Loma avenues. The bridge would connect the La Loma Dormitory on the northern side of Hearst with the rest of the housing complex on the avenue’s south side. 

Tuesday was the third time this year that the council delayed a vote on UC Berkeley’s latest offer to pay $200,000 for pedestrian improvements on Hearst Avenue and give the city final say over the bridge’s design. 

Some councilmembers opposed to the bridge have expressed doubts that they could muster enough votes to deny UC an encroachment waiver. However, Jim Sharp, a bridge detractor who lives near the proposed site, said he was confident that the council would ultimately reject the bridge in the face of a threatened lawsuit from opponents. 

“I don’t think the council is willing to stick its neck out that far for the university,” he said.  

Alan Seher, attorney for the New Education Development Systems, Inc., said his client which owns 2717 Hearst Avenue, a landmarked building just uphill from the proposed bridge, has already agreed to fund litigation if the council issues the waiver. He maintained that the university could not legally qualify for the waiver according to the city’s municipal code because it would not be “substantially damaged” if the city refused the waiver, had not adequately studied other ways to improve pedestrian safety and disability access and would cause material damage to neighbors by building the bridge. 

University officials have argued that the bridge is necessary to give disabled students access to the La Loma dormitory, which is located on a steep grade, above the rest of the residence community and most of campus. 

 

Gilman Fields 

The council voted unanimously to accept a $3 million grant from the state Urban Parks Act program to pay for roughly half of the construction costs to build five athletic fields on the western edge of Gilman Street.  

Last year, the East Bay Regional Park District purchased the property from the Magna Corporation, owner of Golden Gate Fields. The fields are slated to be operated by the city. The $3 million grant should be enough to build three playing fields, however the park district lost out on a second grant for $2.5 million that would have paid for an additional two fields and other amenities. The district is now applying to for two separate state grants to raise an extra $2 million for the field construction. Field advocates hope the project will be ready by next fall. 

Sacramento Senior Homes 

The council voted 7-1-1 (Wozniak no, Olds abstain) to give an extra $727,072 from the city’s housing trust fund to Sacramento Senior Homes. The 40-unit project at the corner of Sacramento and Blake streets faced cost overruns when the developer, Affordable Housing Associates, had to delay construction while the city fought a lawsuit from neighbors opposed to the project. The neighbors lost their appeal of the case earlier this year. 


Planning Commission Eyes Landmarks Law Revisions By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday December 10, 2004

Faced with proposed changes to the Berkeley Landmarks Ordinance, Planning Commissioners posed questions and pondered options during a two-and-a-half-hour workshop session Wednesday. 

The proposed legislation, the product of three years of labor by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), would radically alter the way the city handles additions to and demolitions of buildings older than a half century. 

“It comes to us to consider the changes recommended by the LPC and to advise the (City) Council. At a future meeting we will advise staff concerning proposed changes, and hearings will follow,” said Planning Commission Chair Harry Pollack. 

Under the new ordinance, all property over 50 years old must be evaluated for landmarking potential. 

“We’re trying to make it so that it doesn’t slow down the planning department process in any way,” said LPC member Carrie Olson. “One of the biggest problems with the current process is that a (landmark designation application) can be filed even after the project goes to ZAB. We want it done right away.” 

One possible way to ease the process would be the creation of a comprehensive survey of the community, she said. 

Planner Gisele Sorensen said the last historical inventory of the city was made by the Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association in 1977 and hasn’t been updated since. 

Deputy City Attorney Zach Cowan said that a new survey could prove costly. Palo Alto, which has two-thirds of the buildings of Berkeley, spent three or four years on a survey that cost $1 million. 

Berkeley Planning Manager Mark Rhoades said the city has a lot of distinguished architecture as well as people who write about it, offering the opportunity to cobble together a list—but that still wouldn’t be enough. 

Planning Director Dan Marks said he was involved in a comprehensive survey when he was on the staff of the City of Fremont, but to duplicate the effort here would take years, “and the cost would be very high.” 

A survey would also need frequent updates, “and even then you can’t get a 100 percent guarantee.” 

Further complicating the process, Olson said, is that “a lot of what the preservation community looks at is not just architecture but history and culture.” As it is, preparing the documentation and writing a landmark application takes from 20 to 40 hours. 

“A survey isn’t a definitive answer, but it helps,” she said. 

Pollack said he was concerned with “the extent of information that can be provided to folks who want to do something to their property.” 

An additional complication is the amount of city staff time needed under the 50-year rule. Marks estimated the cost at $100,000. 

Livable Berkeley, an organization critical of the current landmarking process, was represented by two speakers, developer Ali Kashani and Alan Tobey. 

Kashani urged the commission to adopt strict standards of architectural integrity for all landmarks, but Olson said integrity was sometimes difficult to quantify and in some cases a connection to an historic event or personages could trump the issue. 

Kashani also urged the LPC to increase the frequency of their meeting because the current monthly meetings enable to panel to deal with only a third of their applications. 

A lot of questions remained unanswered, to be tackled when the Planning Commission holds its next meeting on Wednesday.›


Tradeswomen, Inc. Celebrates 25 Years By ZELDA BRONSTEIN

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

Since Nov. 2, progressives blogs have been rife with talk about how to build a broad-based coalition that can change the way we do business in this country. On the evening of Thursday, Dec. 2, Tradeswomen, Inc. showed how to walk such talk, as it celebrated its 25th anniversary with a joyous event at the Oakland Museum.  

Founded in 1979, Tradeswomen, Inc. is dedicated to getting women into the trades, keeping them there and developing tradeswomen’s leadership capabilities. On Dec. 2, the exemplary spirit in which it pursues these goals was palpable in the bustling good cheer at the crowded jazz reception in the Oakland Museum restaurant. There tradeswomen, tradesmen, apprentices, unionists, contractors, public officials, workforce advocates and friends of Tradeswomen, Inc. exchanged memories, congratulations and business cards.  

About 240 people, most of them from the Bay Area, attended the event, said Debra Chaplan, a member of Tradeswomen, Inc.’s board and a staffer with the State Building Trades Council, AFL-CIO, who helped organize the celebration. The State Building Trades Council is the umbrella organization for construction unions in California. The handsome program commemorating Tradeswomen, Inc.’s first quarter century of work included tributes from sixteen locals representing among them six unions, including the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the Plumbers & Steamfitters union, as well as greetings from the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council.  

In further testimony to Tradeswomen, Inc.’s extensive support network, the commemorative booklet also displayed congratulations from the City and the Port of Oakland, the National Economic Development and Law Center, PG&E, nine contractors in northern and southern California and EBMUD, among others. EBMUD pipeline superintendent Margo Schueler, a resident of West Berkeley, was among those at the festivities.  

Also in attendance was the City of Berkeley’s Building Official, a.k.a. the city’s chief building inspector, Joan MacQuarrie. MacQuarrie offered her own history as testimony to the Tradeswomen, Inc. crucial role. “I worked as a Muni driver, an auto mechanic, a BART mechanic, a carpenter and electrician,” MacQuarrie said. “Then I became a general contractor. None of that would have been possible without Tradeswomen, Inc. and its forerunner, Advocates for Women.”  

MacQuarrie got involved in the tradeswomen’s movement in the 1970s. A landmark achievement of that period, she recalled, was getting the California Apprenticeship Council in 1976 to institute goals and timetables for bringing women into the trades—the first time such a thing had happened in the United States.  

That victory and other hard-won accomplishments were made vivid when party moved into the museum’s James Moore Theatre. A video entitled “Women Building and Protecting California” showed tradeswomen doing just that in all manner of trades and contexts. Then, to applause and earsplitting whoops and whistles, Tradeswomen, Inc. paid tribute to individuals who have made special contributions to its mission.  

First to be honored was Robert Balgenorth, journeyman electrician and President of the State Building & Construction Trades Council of California, which sponsors the annual “Women Building California” conference. There followed recognition of teacher Eva Clark and counselor and employment specialist Richey Rice-Gore, both hailed as “tireless advocates” for bringing women into the trades. The evening ended with tributes to Tradeswomen, Inc.’s “founding sisters,” union electrician Molly Martin, workforce development specialist Salafai (Susie) J. Suafai, and former Regional Administrator of the United States Department of Labor Women’s Bureau in San Francisco Madeline Mixer.  

Molly Martin, the first female electrician for the City of San Francisco, founded and edited Tradeswomen Magazine, the only national publication of its kind, and along with many others helped to produce it for nearly twenty years.  

Susie Sufai helped start Tradeswomen, Inc. when she was Director of the Women in Apprenticeship Program, an organization funded by the United States Department of Labor to place women in nontraditional employment in the construction, manufacturing and automotive industries in the San Francisco Bay Area.  

As director of the Department of Labor’s San Francisco office, Madeline Mixer, a Berkeley resident, spent twenty years urging federal and state apprenticeship agencies and state apprenticeship councils to set, enforce and realize goals for women. She also established and continues to fund the publication of Pride and a Paycheck, a women’s support newsletter and guide to blue collar jobs. Mixer is currently working with another Berkeleyan, licensed plumber and contractor Naomi Friedman, to train women as apartment house managers, a project described in the Daily Planet last summer.  

The stories told by each of the honorees dramatized the challenges women faced in gaining entry into the trades and staying there in the face of male inhospitability, if not outright harassment. “Walking onto the job site—just going to work in the morning,” said Martin, “was a feminist act.”  

Is that still the case? Not to Mary Lieser, Vice President of the Northern California Regional Council of Carpenters. “It’s time to stop saying that tradeswomen are ‘non-traditional’,” Lieser remarked at the reception. “I’ve been a carpenter for nineteen years. We’re not un-traditional; we’re there.”  

Certainly one place that that women have arrived is the City of Berkeley’s building inspection department, where, Joan MacQuarrie reported, three of the eight building inspectors are women (until one recently got promoted out of the job, there were four). “The City of Berkeley made an effort to create a promotional ladder,” said MacQuarrie, “so that people, and women in particular, could move up into building inspector positions.”  

But the Berkeley story is hardly typical. Currently, women make up only about 5 percent of the trades workforce in California. That’s a huge improvement over when Tradeswomen, Inc. was founded, when almost no women were in the trades, and better than the 2 percent figure nationwide. But in 1983, 11 percent of apprentices in the trades were female. The decline reflects in part the California Apprenticeship Council’s elimination of the goals and timetables for women in the trades after the passage of Prop. 209 in 1996. 

And on the federal level, the tradeswomen movement recently suffered a major setback when the Bush administration axed 2004 funding for the Department of Labor’s Women in Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Occupations (WANTO) grants program—the only program of its kind. In both 2002 and 2003, Tradeswomen, Inc. received WANTO awards of $100,000—money that it used to develop and strengthen its connections with employers and labor unions in the greater Bay Area and throughout the state to bring more qualified women into high-wage, high-skilled trades careers.  

In the face of new challenges, Tradeswomen, Inc. remains committed to mission through the efforts of its paid staff of two and its hundreds of unpaid advocates in organized labor, business, education, government and the community at large. The organization’s next annual conference will take place in Sacramento on May 14-15, 2005. Its next brunch will be in San Francisco on Saturday, Jan. 29. For more information, including how to get Tradeswomen, Inc.’s newsletter, job announcements, publications and other kinds of information and assistance, call 891-8773, ext. 313 or go to www.tradeswomen.org on the Internet.  

 

©


Doran Named School Board VP After Emotional Meeting By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Friday December 10, 2004

The lingering effects of Berkeley’s hotly contested school board battle spilled over into the reorganization meeting of the newly-re-elected board Wednesday night, as members held a brief but emotional public battle over the board vice-presidency. 

In the end, Joaquin Rivera withdrew his candidacy moments before the board elected Terry Doran on a 3-2 voice vote, with Rivera and Shirley Issel voting against him. 

Before the vote, a defiant Doran accused fellow board members of “stooping to personal politics, pure and simple” and “acting out of spite,” but after the meeting he said he was “gratified” by his selection, and admitted that “had expected that there would be some fallout from the position I took during the November election.” 

Traditionally, Berkeley Unified School District board officers are elected on a normally non-controversial rotating basis, with the presidency and vice-presidency going to the members who received the highest citywide votes in the previous elections. 

That should have meant Nancy Riddle stepping up from the board vice-presidency to replace John Selawsky as president, and Doran moving into Riddle’s old position. And Riddle, in fact, was elected board president without opposition. 

But some board members apparently held lingering bad feelings from the recent elections, where Doran had publicly supported the unsuccessful candidacies of challengers Karen Hemphill and Kalima Rose over incumbents Rivera and Selawsky. And so shortly after Selawsky nominated Doran for the vice-presidency, board member Shirley Issel nominated Rivera for the post. 

Doran said after the meeting that he’d “heard there were some concerns about the election, and I was prepared to have no support for my election.” And during the debate—in which members sometimes talked directly to either Rivera or Doran with trembling voices—Riddle said, “I sort of saw this freight train coming since the night of the election” and apologized to viewers who “might be wondering why we’re having this uncomfortable discussion in public; the Brown Act prohibits us from working these things out behind the scenes.” 

Selawsky summed up the board’s dilemma at having to decide between close colleagues, telling Doran and Rivera that “I consider either one of you worthy and competent to represent this board.” Then, almost apologizing to Rivera, Selawsky said that he had “not heard any overwhelming arguments not to vote for Terry Doran.” He added that he “understood the emotions of some board members coming out of the election. I’ve shared some of those privately with my wife. But I don’t want to do anything to push any board member away.” 

But it was Issel who provided the most dramatic moments of the discussion, looking directly at Doran and telling him that “I don’t think you represent the views of the majority of the board. It’s disingenuous for you to campaign against board members and then think there won’t be consequences.” She added that Doran’s support against his board colleagues’ election was “unprecedented,” and told Doran that “you should take responsibility for your actions.” 

For his part, Doran argued that he would be able to put aside his differences to work in a leadership role with the board, and denied charges that his support for Hemphill and Rose signified a lack of confidence in the direction the school board has been taking. “I didn’t disagree with the direction of the board,” Doran said. “I didn’t think it was moving in that direction rapidly enough. I thought the challengers would have done a better job at that.” Doran added that “the people who elected me [two years ago] expected me to have my chance to be the public face of the board.” 

It was Riddle who apparently turned the tide. Saying that “I have a horrible feeling that I might be the swing vote—I’ve had that feeling since election night,” she said that she would “only vote to exclude any board member if he was completely out of the mainstream.” When that appeared to signal her vote for Doran—and Doran’s probable victory—Rivera immediately withdrew his name for consideration. Riddle called it “one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make.” 

Following the meeting, Doran said that “I think the discussion swayed some people.” 

After the battle over the vice-presidency, the remainder of Wednesday’s board meeting could only be anticlimactic. 

Following brief criticism from a few members, the board unanimously adopted Berkeley High School’s development goal site plan for the upcoming school year. Board member Riddle commented that the high school’s plan contained “no achievable, identifiable goals as we saw in the plans for the elementary sites,” but a school staff member said that “we just didn’t want to pull a number out of the air-like saying we could achieve 5 percent growth in test scores—that would be disingenuous. Give us another year to develop the state test score data, and we’ll be able to provide you with realistic goals.” 

And at board member Issel’s request, Superintendent Michele Lawrence said that future BHS plans would include more detailed proposals for a high school literacy program and an upgraded effort to increase attendance. 

The board also heard parent concerns that Berkeley High’s site plan’s funding favored small school participants over students in the academic choice “large school.” Superintendent Lawrence said the funding was more complicated than that, with monies earmarked for the small schools actually benefiting all of the high school’s students. Board members said they wanted to monitor BHS’ plan to make sure there was “some equity” in the funding. 

The board also agreed—on the consent calendar and without discussion—a request by American Federation of Teachers Local 6192 (the Berkeley Council of Classified Employees) to reopen talks concerning the recently-signed three-year contract between BUSD and its classified employees. 

Following the meeting, Superintendent Lawrence said such reopenings were “normal” for multi-year contracts as the parties attempt to adjust salary schedules and benefits to changing economic circumstances. “There’s no special significance to the opening up of the contract for renegotiation,” Lawrence said. “There may be some economic significance, however, depending on what happens when the actual talks get started. We just won’t know until we get into the negotiations.” 

BCCE President Ann Graybeal agreed that contract reopenings are “fairly standard procedure.” 

Among other things, BCCE is asking for some salary reclassifications and increased benefits for its represented workers. BCCE representatives did not make any presentations at Wednesday’s school board meeting. 

 

Å


John Muir Elementary Receives Two Academic Honors By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Friday December 10, 2004

Berkeley’s John Muir School—which earlier this summer had to fight off concerns that its student achievement might have been dropping—got vindication this week with the announcement that the College Avenue elementary was one of 35 California schools nominated for a national academic award. 

The nomination was made by California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell for the U.S. Department of Education’s 2004-05 No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Honors Program. 

John Muir principal Nancy D. Waters called the nomination “way too cool” and said that “we’re flying pretty high around here, right now.” 

The school was hit with another honor this week when the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) announced that Muir fourth-fifth grade teacher Marlo Warburton was one of some 450 California teachers achieving the prestigious NBPTS certification this year. Warburton has taught at John Muir for nine years. 

According to a news release sent out by the California Department of Education, Blue Ribbon Schools are “considered to be national models of excellence.” The 35 schools nominated by Superintendent O’Connell all have met Academic Performance Index (API) growth targets as well as federal Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) requirements. John Muir was one of only four schools nominated from Alameda County, and one of only nine schools nominated from the Bay Area. 

Nominated schools that meet both the U.S. Department of Education criteria and the 2005 AYP standards will be named next fall as Blue Ribbon Schools and honored at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. 

Waters said that “everybody’s really excited over here” concerning the nomination. “The kids are very proud of themselves for the work they’ve been doing, and the teachers are feeling validated that their time and effort is paying off. This has been a real collaborative effort, between certified teachers, classified staff, students, and their families.” 

Meanwhile, BUSD Superintendent Michele Lawrence said she was giving her “heartfelt congratulations” to Warburton for the NBPTS certification. “She is a wonderful teacher, and she deserves this recognition. She...is representative of so many excellent teachers that we have in the BUSD, and I hope that this encourages more of them to tackle this difficult challenge.” 

BUSD Public Information Officer Mark A. Coplan called the NBPTS certification “the highest credential in the teaching profession.” He said that certification “is achieved through a rigorous, performance-based assessment that takes between one and three years to complete and measure what accomplished teachers and school counselors should know and be able to do.” 

Only 3,000 California teachers have received the NBPTS certification, four of them—with Warburton—from the Berkeley Unified School District. 

Earlier this fall, the academic news from John Muir Elementary was more confusing and less pleasing, with the announcement that English Language Arts scores taken by the school’s fourth graders last May on the California Standards Test (CST) had dropped 30 percent from the year before. But school and district officials say the results were misleading and appeared to be contradicted by the fact that the school’s scores on the California Academic Performance Index (API) had gone up in the same period. School and district officials later said that the drop in John Muir’s school’s CST may have been caused by a problem with the test scoring procedure.›


Cody’s Books Employees Vote on New Contract By JAKOB SCHILLER

Friday December 10, 2004

After three months of heated negotiations, employees at Cody’s Books will be voting to ratify or reject a new union contract that cuts health care costs in half for employees who have families. 

The Service Employees International Union Local 790, and Andy Ross, owner of Cody’s, had been deadlocked until a compromise was reached in late November, according to John Supanich, the store’s magazine buyer and a member of the negotiating committee. 

“It was really contentious,” Supanich said. “Usually we wrap [contract negotiations] up in a month.” 

According to Supanich, employees were primarily concerned with re-writing the old contract’s health care policy. That contract, which only lasted a year, doubled health care costs for employees with dependents and reduced it for single employees, he said.  

In the new contract, Supanich said, all full-time employees will pay 10 percent of the premium plus a co-pay for each doctor visit. Part-time employees will pay slightly more. Supanich, for example, will pay $55 a month for himself and his wife instead of the $120 he now pays under the previous contract. Any increases in the premium would be absorbed by the employer. As a result, premiums would stay the same for employees throughout the two-and-a half-year contract. 

While employees understand health care costs are rising, Supanich said, they are unable to pay double the cost for health insurance with their current wages. He said workers start at around $8.30 an hour and can earn up to about $16 an hour. Eleven of the 60 people in the union support families on their wages. 

“We wanted it to be equitable, so the families were not paying more,” said Supanich.  

Ross said his concern is that the store’s health care costs have gone up “exponentially,” while business has either dropped or stagnated. Part of the problem he said, is a bad economy. 

Even as one of the largest independent bookstores, with 150,000 titles in their Telegraph Avenue location, the store has struggled to compete against large chains and the Internet. 

“It’s all about health care,” Ross said. “Workers do not want to lose their benefits and we need to do something we can afford.”  

Employees at the store have been unionized since 1992. Founded in 1956 by the Cody family, the Telegraph store was bought by Ross in 1977. A second branch on Fourth Street was opened in 1997.  

According to Ken Jacobs, who works for the UC Labor Center, the fight at Cody’s is part of a national trend. 

“[Health care] has been the central issue in almost every labor dispute in the county over the last several years,” he said. 

As health care costs rise, he said, employers have tried to shift the cost to employees. Employees have fought back, resulting in large strikes like the ones that consumed Southern California grocery markets and San Francisco hotels. 

When employers successfully shift the cost, the tax payers are forced to carry the burden as employees turn to public services like Medical for basic care, he said. 

Jacobs said the November defeat of Proposition 72, which would have required businesses with more than 100 employees to provide health care, was a lost chance for employers and unions to encourage reform. 

“Rather than getting into these knock-down fights, we need to see motion forward in employers working with the union in reforming costs,” he said.  

At Cody’s, Supanich said, he expects employees to ratify the contract and gave Ross credit for agreeing to an equitable solution. 

“In the end, we found some creative ways to solve things,” he said. “My sense is that he understood that the more he has a well-compensated and happy staff, the better it will be for him.” 

 

 


Election 2004: Why Kerry Lost By BOB BURNETT

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

It’s worth remembering that John Kerry came within 2.7 percentage points of beating an incumbent wartime president. Bush won, but his margin of victory was the smallest of any sitting president in more than 100 years. Rather than dwell in grief or anger, Democrats should take the time to understand why Kerry failed to win, because there are important lessons to be learned.  

Bush triumphed in a popularity contest: 93 percent of Republicans voted for him, while only 89 percent of Democrats favored Kerry. Exit polls indicated that a vote for Bush was primarily an affirmation; 81 percent of the president’s supporters said they voted for him, rather than against his opponent. In contrast, only 55 percent of Democrats voted for Kerry; 35 percent cast their vote because they were against a continuation of the Bush regime. 

This relative lack of enthusiasm for Kerry showed up dramatically when pollsters asked voters for reasons they voted for and against Kerry and Bush. The strongest justification to vote for Kerry was “health care,” which was mentioned by 26 percent of those polled. On the other hand 37 percent said the strongest reason to vote for Bush was “response to 9/11,” followed by “the war against terrorism” (32 percent), “decisive leader” (31 percent) and “his religious faith” (29 percent). When asked for reasons to not support Kerry, 36 percent of those polled responded, “flip-flopping on issues,” whereas 32 percent opined their justification for not supporting Bush was “Iraq and foreign policy.” 

There was a pattern: Kerry tended to get positive support for his policies and Bush for his personal qualities. The converse was also true: Kerry was criticized for his personal qualities, flip-flopping, and Bush for his policies. (Interestingly, only 11 percent of those polled saw Bush’s “rigid/stubborn leadership” as a negative.) While voters tended to see Kerry as more intelligent than Bush, and better able to express himself, Bush was viewed as the stronger leader and the most honest and religious. 

Thus, in the 2004 presidential campaign, George W. borrowed a page from Ronald Reagan: Voters tended to separate their favorable personal feelings for him from their unfavorable opinions of his policies. 

Voters found Bush to be more likable because he conveyed a “common man” persona, whereas Kerry came across as aloof—professorial. If the polls had contained the question, “Who would you rather go to a ballgame with, George Bush or John Kerry?” no doubt a strong majority would have preferred Bush.  

Exit polls showed a strong relationship between the level of education and candidate choice; the less education the voter had, the more likely he or she was to choose Bush. What appeared to be the “dumbing down” of the president was actually a strategy to make him more likable. 

The Kerry campaign was at a disadvantage because of the relative lack of appeal of their candidate. They further weakened the campaign by making three critical mistakes: First, they failed to make an issue of the Bush administration’s mishandling of pre-9/11 intelligence. There was a case to be made that from the moment they took office, George W. and his advisers were obsessed with Saddam Hussein and, therefore, committed a series of blunders: discounting intelligence that indicated that Al Qaeda was planning a major terrorist attack on the United States, following the wrong strategy in the invasion of Afghanistan that facilitated the escape of the top Al Qaeda leaders and the destabilization of the country, and rushing into an ill-conceived war in Iraq without a plan for the occupation. By attacking George W. on the issue of security, Kerry could have made a mockery of the notion that Bush “kept us safe.” 

The second mistake was in not responding swiftly, and effectively, to the Swift-boat ads. These ads, and the accompanying book, Unfit for Command, called Kerry’s honesty and patriotism into question, and tarnished his heroic image. 

Finally, the Kerry campaign never settled on a central campaign theme. For example, they touched on the issue of moral values and then backed away. At the Democratic convention, Kerry expressed what could have been a central theme in the campaign, “It is time for those who talk about family values to start valuing families,” which highlighted core progressive values such as fairness, protection, and equal opportunity. Then the campaign dropped the concept of “valuing families” and talked primarily about policies.  

In October, when George W. lambasted Kerry as a liberal, the Democratic challenger seemed unable to mount a defense; he did not offer a clear expression of progressive values or attack the Bush administration for investing in the powerful rather than in the people. The Kerry campaign ignored the reality that the label, liberal, does have a negative connotation to many voters who listen to Rush Limbaugh, watch Fox News, or read Ann Coulter. To these Americans being a liberal means being the bearer of a contagious immorality that subverts youth, weakens the family, and undermines the defense of the nation. 

For many Democrats, Kerry was a satisfactory rather than optimal candidate. Ultimately, his personality was not strong enough to compensate for the mistakes made by his campaign. 


Letters to the Editor

Friday December 10, 2004

TAX DOLLARS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Council Spends Our Tax Dollars. 

Appalled Citizenry Shocked at Victims paying for Robber’s Financial Problems. 

Robbers Jubilant About Decision. 

Rosemary Vimont 

 

• 

A CITY FOR EMPLOYEES 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Berkeley once was a city which provided basic city services to its residents and taxed them to pay for it. Now it has evolved into a city that provides free services, pensions and benefits to its city employees and cuts back basic city services to provide for it. 

There has been a fundamental change from serving residents to serving city employees. The City Council acts as decider and enforcer. 

The 50 year retirement age and full pensions paid for by the city cannot be justified by services rendered by city employees. The benefits are so large that they equal or exceed the total salary paid to city employees during their working years. It obviously is an excess benefit. 

The City of Berkeley is a non-profit public service organization. Under IRS Tax Code 501(c)(3) and Section 2370(d) of the California Revenue and Taxation Code, anyone receiving an excess benefit from a non-profit organization must pay it back or pay a 200 percent penalty and the persons authorizing the excess benefit payment must pay a 10 percent penalty unless the excess benefit is paid back. 

If I were a City Councilmember, I would be very concerned about this. 

When a person is taxed without their knowledge or consent to pay for something from which they will receive no benefit and then is held in enforced servitude to pay for that benefit under threat of confiscation of their property if they don’t pay up, that violates so many aspects of the U.S. Constitution that it seems highly probable to me that your pension contracts will be struck down by the courts. 

What a mess you created when you signed those contracts. 

Stephen Jory 

 

• 

INDIAN SOVEREIGNTY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The result of the Nov. 2 election should have many people resisting any attempt by President Bush to put conservative judges on the Supreme Court. These judges that Bush wants on the bench will roll back American Indian sovereignty, environmental laws, and civil and reproductive rights if they are confirmed. 

Contrary to what some people have said, this president doesn’t have any mandate to pick conservative judges that want to take us back to the bad old days of Jim Crow. 

Billy Trice, Jr. 

 

• 

HOMELESS IN BERKELEY? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The Daily Cal’s recent report titled “Berkeley Streets Mean To Homeless” poses a big question: If in fact the streets of Berkeley are so “mean” to the local homeless population, than why are there so many homeless people (800-plus) in Berkeley? There must be a better place, where the streets are much “nicer.” 

Obviously, any urban area coast to coast has their group of homeless persons, where, just like Berkeley, many are familiar faces, such as local residents around us. However, it has been very well known for years within the underground, somewhat younger “trendy homeless population” that such places as Berkeley, Santa Cruz, and even Venice, Calif. are somewhat more fashionable for the “chosen” element of the homeless population. 

The theory of social conditioning prevails and people of all different anti-social behavioral groups will gather when and where they see fit. Believe me, they’re all very aware of when and where the food services are available, as well as just where homelessness is more tolerated. 

It is probably time to take a closer look in our community to see who is really homeless by luck or more legitimate, seriously contributing factors, and who is merely posing as homeless by choice, perhaps for the pride of adventure or non-conformity. 

Michael J. Parker 

 

• 

DIRTY LITTLE SECRETS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The Dec. 7-9 article by Matthew Artz (“Rosy Budget Projections Tempered by Warnings”) revealed that the city manager’s latest report contains troubling news, namely “that parking fine revenues have, for many years, lagged behind expectations in contributing to the city’s coffers”.  

The real reason for this lag is just one more of the city’s dirty little secrets.  

Since 1996, a Community Service program has existed, which allowed parking violators to satisfy their parking citations by doing community service work. No income or vehicle registration eligibility requirements were established. In addition anyone could do the actual community service for the parking violator. Often non-resident owners of luxury cars had friends or others perform their community service. For example, in 2002 there were 898 community service contracts signed allowing 4,231 citations totaling $273,733 to be converted to community service hours. In 2003, 828 contracts were signed for 3,922 citations totaling $277,451. No doubt at least $2-3 million dollars in lost revenue has been experienced since 1996. In essence we have paid meter maids, at union wages, to issue tickets, to violators who never paid anything to the city. Not surprisingly a lot of them became recidivists, “working off” 10 or 20 tickets a year. 

The program was recently amended to limit community service, in lieu of paying fines, to low income Berkeley residents. Its full elimination would have made better sense considering that the council says we have no money for adequate fire and police protection. What other “dirty little secrets” don’t we know about? 

Miriam Wilson 

 

• 

VOTE COUNT DISPARITY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Bob Burnett’s article (“Election 2004: Another Look at the Disputed Vote Count,” Daily Planet, Dec. 3-6) article notes why so many of us do not have confidence in the announced election results, but then, without giving any reason why we should believe the election results, launches into his reasons for why Bush allegedly won. That leaves me still unconvinced. The election results were wildly different from the exit poll results. I have seen nothing to explain this. The so-called CalTech/MIT study has been shown to be flawed by a confused notion about the nature of the “final” exit poll data (which were not exit poll data but were a blend of exit polls and the reported results to bring the two into concurrence). Freeman and others have expressed their concern that the wide discrepancy between the exit poll and reported election results are statistically improbable, with odds of 250 million to one. 

There were many reports of election anomalies, such as touchscreens that recorded a vote for Bush when the voter had selected Kerry. Burnett does not address the implications of those troubling matters. He simply asserts that the documented irregularities don’t account for Bush’s alleged 3.3 million plurality. I don’t buy that assertion. Certainly we do not need 3.3 million individual reports of anomalies to question the reliability of the reported election results. If anyone reports that the machine recorded a vote for Bush when the voter was selecting Kerry, we can guess that many more such anomalies occurred, machines being machines that tend to do the same thing over and over. Especially under the time pressure that was reported (long lines, few voting machines, five-minute limits) in many heavily Democratic precincts, many voters may not have seen the error, may have been intimidated by the pressure to vote fast and move on, etc. The fact that many people reported such incidents in more than one state should be viewed as the tip of an iceberg. No one can know how large that iceberg is. All we know is that it exists. It really exists.  

That’s why we need good recounts wherever they can be done. I am very grateful to the Green and Libertarian parties for their willingness to take the lead in Ohio and to also pursue a recount in New Mexico. I am also very pleased to see that the Kerry campaign is supporting the recount effort in Ohio. 

Recounts are an important part of our electoral system. They will not take forever. Now is the time to focus on doing whatever we can to count this very flawed election as accurately as possible. There is no point in calling for a voter verified paper trail if we are unwilling to tolerate some uncertainty after election day. We need to use the paper trail to try to answer our questions. 

Another terrible problem in the 2004 presidential election is voter suppression—efforts to disenfranchise by means such as challenging registered voters inappropriately, telling people to vote on Nov. 3, undersupplying heavily Democratic precincts so as to promote long lines, etc., etc. Many of these problems will not be directly addressed by a recount. But the widespread occurrence of voter suppression adds to my conviction that this election must be recounted carefully. Recount is what we can do now. We must continue to work on all fronts to clean up and correct our very flawed electoral system. 

There are many good sources of information on the recounts. Two websites to check: www.usvip.org and www.votecobb.org. 

Judy Bertelsen 

 

• 

ED ROBERTS CAMPUS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Susan Parker, whom I admire very much, should be glad to know that she is quite mistaken about the concerns she expressed in her Dec. 7-9 column “Opposition to Ed Roberts Campus Masked in Historic Design Complaint.” 

Parker referred to the Nov. 15 Zoning Adjustments Board meeting, and stated that representatives of the neighborhood turned out “to protest the presence of the center in their community.” This is not at all correct. I wish that Parker had attended the meeting she wrote about, so that she could have heard neighbors voicing their support of the Ed Roberts Campus and their wishes to have it in their neighborhood. Since Parker last attended a community meeting, circumstances have changed greatly. As a resident of the area, I no longer know a single neighbor who opposes this project. Remaining neighborhood concerns are mainly with the city’s failure to follow the California Environmental Quality Act.  

Parker then states, “I don’t recall anyone saying that the building design did not fit in with the historic nature of the neighborhood, but now this is being used as another possible excuse for holding up the project.” But in fact Parker did attend the community meeting which took place about two years ago at the South Berkeley Senior Center. At this meeting, the project’s architect was asked by neighbors if he was open to modifying the design so that it would fit in better with the existing historic buildings. His response was “yes.” The request was not unreasonable, especially now that we know the State of California shares concerns about the design. 

The conclusion that we “just don’t want it in our neighborhood” is completely untrue, and doesn’t seem to be based on anything that’s happened in the last two years. I can understand why Parker has some strong feelings about this project, as everyone I know agrees that it is greatly needed. As a big fan of her column, I also realize how busy and hectic her life must be, and I understand her not having time to keep up with the events of these exhausting proceedings in the last couple years. But to name call, to paint as NIMBYs a neighborhood that recently welcomed several other responsible developments, is just not seemly, and it’s not right. 

Erica Cleary 

 

• 

UC LONG RANGE PLAN 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

By mid-February, the City Council will decide whether to sue the university over the adequacy of the environmental impact report (EIR) for the university’s 2020 Long Range Development Plan. The LRDP contains a 20 percent increase in UC space and facilities, and a 10 percent increase in campus users, mostly commuting research-related personnel. In a heartwarming—and rare—alliance with the sentiments of Berkeley citizens, the city’s response to the draft EIR last June was indignant, tough, and unequivocal in charging that the draft EIR is grossly inadequate on multiple levels. Though such a lawsuit is unlikely to derail the juggernaut of UC expansion entirely, it would probably lead to a moderated and much less damaging expansion of the Berkeley campus. 

The EIR is required under the California Environmental Quality Act. The beauty and power of CEQA is that it forces large project sponsors to search in good faith the project “alternative” that meets their goals with the least possible damage to the natural or human environment. It encourages the developer and the community to work together on creative solutions. EIRs rarely stop projects, nor are they intended to; properly done, they always improve them. However, the university 2020 LRDP EIR does not even pretend to search for less damaging means of achieving UC’s goals. And UC working with the community? Yeah, right. 

This decision will be one of the first opportunities the new council will have to show courage in the face of UC bullying, respect for the people of Berkeley, and determination to save the city from a literally unsupportable 2.2 million more square feet of UC expansion. If history is any guide, the council’s decision will be made behind closed doors, and councilmembers’ votes will remain unknown; an official vote may never even be taken. This is unacceptable. The citizens have a right to know their council members’ actions on such a monumental issue, so they can be held individually accountable at election time. 

Now is the time to let the City Council know your feelings about UC expansion and, even more important, to demand that decisions about UC be made by vote, and that the vote be made public. This will not tell UC anything it does not already know, but it will tell Berkeley citizens something they surely need to know about their elected representatives. 

Sharon Hudson 



Looking For an Exit From the Quagmire By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

UNDERCURRENTS OF THE EAST BAY AND BEYOND
Friday December 10, 2004

We’re trapped in a quagmire with no apparent strategy except one that has consistently failed, with leaders too distracted by their futures in the next elections to explore other choices, and a public left generally uninformed because the press only gives us the official line. 

And no, friends, if you thought we were talking about Iraq, you were mistaken. This is about Oakland, and our continuing discussion of what everyone calls the sideshows. 

Sideshows is one of those terms—like “freedom” or “racism” or “separation of church and state”—in which the various sides use the same words, but are clearly talking about vastly different things. It’s one of those “don’t ask, don’t tell” kind of things where everybody in the room is supposed to know what you mean—like talking about the “them” who are ruining things for the rest of us—except that we’re all not in the same room, and the “them” to you may not be the “them” that I’m talking about. In fact, it might actually be “me.” 

The Oakland Tribune almost always puts the term “sideshows” in quotes, as if there’s still some sort of debate going on in the newsroom about its meaning. For years we have asked—vainly—for an official definition from the Oakland Police Department. But between them, the police and the Trib seem to have worked out an unofficial, working definition. According to a Trib article this week, “Oakland police Lt. Dave Kozicki said it starts with unlicensed drivers driving recklessly, speeding and under the influence of drugs or alcohol, sometimes both, and leads to more serious crimes like murders, stabbings, sexual assaults and vandalism.” 

It’s hard to know exactly what Lt. Kozicki actually said—the sentence is not presented as a direct quote—but the code words are all there. Sideshows. Unlicensed drivers. Drugs. Alcohol. Murders. Stabbings. Sexual assault. It’s all presented as one giant, slippery slope. Start a sideshow and a girl is going to get raped. 

The average reader—safe in your home far from East Oakland—reads such a sentence and says, “My God! What animals! Of course we’ve got to stop this!” And that, of course, is reinforced by the Tribune’s reports of “residents” from ground zero of the sideshow—the Foothill/Havenscourt area-where “they complained [at a recent Neighborhood Community Policing Council] about the smell of burning tires that fills their homes, the noise from gunshots, thumping music and screeching wheels, and the sight of grown men and women urinating in their front yards.” 

We heard the same complaint a couple of years ago, at a city-sponsored town hall meeting on the sideshow problem held at Eastmont Mall. In response, an articulate young African-American woman—an admitted sideshow participant—said that she wouldn’t want anyone urinating in her yard either. She suggested that some of the stated problems might not have come from the sideshows but from other elements of Oakland’s street life, which sometimes gets confused and lumped in together by people who are not out there in the streets. She also said that the sideshows were developed by young people who were born in Oakland, live in Oakland, but are generally ignored and even actively discouraged by Oakland when it comes to providing safe social outlets. 

As if we needed another reminder of that official discouragement, we heard it—again—this week from Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, who the Tribune reports “scoffed” at those who have said sideshows are an outlet for young people with nothing else to do. “I reject that,” the Tribune quoted Mr. Brown as saying. “There are gangsters and hard-core criminals exploiting the sideshows ... doing carjackings and shooting people. Parents need to keep their children home, and if you’re over 18, have enough sense not to get in harm’s way. And sideshows are harm’s way.” 

It is true that the gatherings we generally identify as “sideshows” are more violent, and more dangerous this fall than the ones we witnessed two and three years ago. If you believe what the mayor and police officials say then this was inevitable, that unsanctioned, unsupervised street gatherings of black kids in Oakland was always going to lead to violence and death. 

If you’ve followed the history of the sideshows—or if you talk to some of the participants who have—you come up with a different conclusion. The sideshows, they say, began in isolated parking lots—not in the streets—by young people who were themselves worried about the violence in Oakland’s night scene, and took it upon themselves to organize safe social gatherings away from the drugs, the gunshots, and the fights. They policed their own events, and kept down trouble. We will never know what these late 90’s gatherings might have eventually turned into had we left these young people alone or—better yet—worked with them. Instead, the police drove them like animals out of the parking lots and into the streets, effecting arrests and confiscating cars, making illegal what was previously only innocuous. Gradually, as a result, many of the more responsible people who only wanted a place to safely socialize were replaced by people who were more excited by defying the police. Are we surprised at the result? 

If not surprised, we ought to be troubled. 

The Tribune reported a night of “‘sideshow’-related” violence in Oakland last weekend-again, the quotation marks around “sideshow” are theirs—in which two people were shot and killed and three officers were injured. It’s hard from the details in the story to know how much the two shooting deaths were related to the sideshows themselves. Was this a beef from an argument that grew out of the gathering itself and would not have happened if there hadn’t been a sideshow, or did this result from an older dispute that would have played out wherever the players met-in a club, on somebody’s front porch, or in a parking lot at Albertsons? We ought to know, before we lump these things all together. It makes a difference, in our response. 

We ought to be disturbed, too, about one of the reported attacks on the police last weekend. “The injury to the police officer occurred about 3:30 a.m. [early Saturday morning] at 90th Avenue and MacArthur Boulevard,” the Tribune reports. “Someone put a brick on a car’s accelerator, tied off the steering wheel and sent the vehicle down 90th Avenue toward several officers at high speed. The car struck a marked patrol car, injuring the officer inside. No one was arrested.” 

For several years, Oakland has declared the relatively-nonviolent sideshows a police problem, and have given the police virtual free reign in shutting them down. The suspension of civil liberties and millions of dollars in overtime later the sideshows have not been shut down, the talk of violence is becoming a self-fulling prophecy, and we are beginning to see ambushes of police on our city streets. 

Hasn’t the time long since come for Oakland citizens to come together—young and old in the same conversation in the same room—to talk about a different approach? 

 

?


Black and Blues in Berkeley: One Family’s Story By P.M. PRICE

THE VIEW FROM HERE
Friday December 10, 2004

My grandfather, George Price, followed my grandmother, Mary Perry, from Texas to Arkansas to Chicago to California, declaring to her mother—referred to as “Miss Maggie” even by her employer—that he would marry Mary or he wouldn’t marry at all. Mary had graduated from Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas and she advised her suitor that if he was planning on coming west to California he had better get an education and a good job. He did and they married and set up housekeeping, integrating their South Berkeley neighborhood in 1934. My father grew up in that house and my two children are growing up in the same house now.  

I think about my family’s history in this town that I love when I drive by Berkeley High, on the lookout for my teenage daughter and up into the hills to pick up my son from his elementary school. As I pass the construction site of the new Temple Beth El, I see a small boarded up shack off to the side that was at one time thought to house the very first African American residents of Berkeley. Pete and Hannah Byrne were enslaved by Napoleon Byrne of Missouri. He freed the pair and they accompanied the Byrne family by covered wagon to California in 1858. Pete was the groundskeeper, while Hannah cared for the children. What happened to Pete and Hannah after the Byrnes moved in 1880 is unknown. 

As I drive through their old neighborhood, I wonder if Pete and Hannah would be surprised to know that few other blacks have made their way up into these hills since then. Initially, legal segregation or “redlining” kept well-to-do blacks out of the Berkeley hills. Many moved to more hospitable areas in Oakland and Richmond. Today, not many black families live north of University and east of Shattuck. I have heard some remarkable stories from a few of those who do. One African American hill resident was mistaken for a servant, another had the police called on her, who accused her of trespassing in her own front yard.  

When I pick up my son from school, it is interesting to note which kids go home with a parent and which go home on the bus. It is even more interesting to observe who gets invited over for play dates and who doesn’t. My children have often been the only brown-skinned children invited to classmates’ homes and parties.  

Young children do not self-segregate. Their parents teach them, by example, that there are certain people we have over and break bread with and there are others whom we merely tolerate until private school or a good tracking program or college. I am reminded of recent efforts by a group of concerned parents to re-segregate our public schools, supposedly so that their children could attend their neighborhood schools. Perhaps these parent advocates place little value in having their kids associate with children who seem very different from their own.  

I wonder how many of these parents grew up here? How many are bringing attitudes and practices from the midwest, the south or even the “blue” east coast? How “Berkeley” are they? Are the traditional Berkeley ideals of the ‘60s and ‘70s passé? Unrealistic? Inconvenient? Which word would you choose?  

I watch my children navigate race and class issues, from my daughter at age 4 being told by a playmate that she couldn’t be the princess because she didn’t have long blonde hair, to my 10-year-old son recently telling me that the so-called smartest kid in his class said that he hated all the black boys. 

Who decides who can be a princess and who can’t or what makes a person “smart”? How meaningful is the correlation between power and color, between class and self-esteem? What direction do we want our town to move in? And what role will you play?


Police Blotter By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Friday December 10, 2004

Bank Robber Sought 

Police are seeking the public’s help in identifying the gunman who robbed the Wells Fargo Bank branch at 2144 Shattuck Ave. at 2:15 p.m. Dec. 2. 

Berkeley Police spokesperson Officer Joe Okies said the gunman stands about six feet tall and weighs approximately 205 pounds. He had scabs over his right eye and was carrying a black pistol in his waistband.  

He was wearing a blue jacket with gray stripes on the arms. 

Anyone with information is asked to call the Robbery Detail at 981-5742 or e-mail tips to police@ci.berkeley.ca.us. Tipsters may remain anonymous, Okies said. 

 

Pedals Away From Heister 

When a would-be robber tried to strongarm his ride away from a bicyclist near the corner of Shattuck and University avenues Tuesday, the would-be victim made his get-away on the very two wheels the robber wanted. 

 

Junior High Brandishers  

An anxious mother called Berkeley police Wednesday morning to report that two students, one carrying a knife, the other a wrench, had threatened her son at Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School. 

Officer Okies said police had no suspects.


Destructive Impact of the West Berkeley Bowl By JOHN CURL

COMMENTARY
Friday December 10, 2004

The West Berkeley Bowl supermarket, proposed for Ninth Street near Ashby, is on a very fast track. It is double the size of the University Avenue Andronico’s. According to industry standards, a supermarket that size is expected to generate more than 51,000 cars per week. That level of traffic would put an enormous strain on an already stressed system, and would transform the area, hampering industries, damaging the mixed residential neighborhood, and gridlocking commuters.  

The project will come before the planning commission at a “special” meeting on at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 15 at the West Berkeley Senior Center, 1900 Sixth St. (at Hearst). You wouldn’t know that from the notice on the city website, which states only that they will post the agenda of the meeting just five days in advance. That the city has quietly scheduled it right in the heart of the holiday chaos, when everybody is preoccupied, indicates that they want to minimize public scrutiny. 

This story started decades ago. Drive down Dwight below San Pablo and turn south on any local street before Seventh Street. You will find yourself in a neighborhood that looks basically industrial. On closer examination you’ll discover a thriving mix of industries, artisans, artists, creative start-ups, residents, recyclers, homes, schools, restaurants, almost anything you can imagine. It is a very fertile place. Most locals love the neighborhood. The atmosphere is relaxed and the scale is human. It is a good place to walk. 

The main ingredient almost all agree is needed, is a neighborhood supermarket. In 1993 this desire was written into the West Berkeley Plan. Three years later, developers proposed putting a big Lucky’s store in almost the same location as the Bowl, but community opposition quashed it in the bud. What the community wanted was a small supermarket, not a big box that would turn the area into a commercial zone. Years passed. Then when the Bowl made their first proposal, for a 27,000-square-foot neighborhood market, it sounded perfect, and the community expressed almost universal support. But suddenly they doubled the size to 55,000 square feet, and were proposing a big box catering to regional traffic, along with a warehouse and offices totaling over 92,000 square feet. Nonetheless, it was still the Bowl, maybe a little tainted by their recent attempts to bust the union, but some rough edges are understandable for a family business seguewaying up to the big leagues, no? It was still a community icon, offering the best produce anywhere.  

Well, the joke is that the Bowl—if built—will probably wind up being Lucky’s after all. The buzz has it that the family just plans to get the West Bowl started, then after a few years will cash out. The Bowl gets the use permit that Lucky’s was denied, th en we get Lucky’s through the back door. This is shaping up as a remake of the Reel Store transmogrifying into Hollywood Video. 

At a recent meeting with the architect, Kava Massih, the locals living and working in the adjoining Potter’s Creek neighborhoo d came out against any car access to the Bowl from the local streets, asking that all traffic be routed through Ashby or Seventh Street. That would limit damage to the neighborhood. However, all that traffic on the main arteries would make a difficult sit uation even worse for industries. The already-jammed intersections of Ashby/San Pablo and Ashby/Seventh would take big hits. Lower Dwight Way would be heavily impacted. Nonetheless, the Potter’s Creek neighborhood should be protected and there should be n o access from Heinz Street. 

But the Bowl itself would not be the end of it. Developers see it as an anchor to further regional retail development in the area.  

Just as perilous are the widespread repercussions of the changes that would have to be made t o the zoning ordinance and to the General Plan. To grant the Bowl a permit, zoning of the land would have to be changed from mixed use/light industrial (MU-LI) to commercial west (CW), and regulations would have to be changed to permit the warehouse in CW. To avoid being accused of “spot zoning,” they would have to gratuitously include adjoining properties in the zoning change. The city would also have to change the General Plan policy of maintaining the MU-LI boundaries. This is particularly dangerous be cause the policy applies to large areas of West Berkeley, and its removal could open the door to dismantling the district piecemeal. Other industrial neighborhoods immediately affected would be the Gilman area and lower University Avenue. 

A further impac t of the intense increase in traffic is air pollution. The most vulnerable victims would be the many children in the immediate area, concentrated in the French School on the corner of Ninth Street. This could possibly make the city vulnerable to a law sui t. 

From the city’s point of view, the main attraction seems to be sales tax for the General Fund. True, the city is hurting. But to turn the industrial zone and the Potter’s Creek neighborhood into a sacrifice area for the benefit some supposed greater g ood, is to take a low road unworthy of Berkeley.  

There is an alternative: Scale the West Bowl back to 27,000 square feet, as originally proposed. At that size it could be both a moderate financial success and a great social success. A store that size should generate half as much traffic, although some argue that the Bowl's popularity would draw excessive traffic no matter what its size. However, after the initial curiosity, if it’s too impacted, many people would stop coming, and traffic would probably diminish to manageable levels. 

But according to the architect, the Bowl owners have said that they will ditch the project if they can’t erect a big box and reap big bucks. Can this be the same store that once took satisfaction in providing the best foods at affordable prices, and in building community? 

Today the industrial zone shelters all the other diverse West Berkeley uses. Only by maintaining an environment in which industry can thrive, can economic, social, and ethnic diversity be maintained in th e area. If industry is pushed out of town, it will drag diversity with it.  

So that is what is before the planning commission and ultimately the City Council: Will the city open the door to the destruction of a successful neighborhood for the tinkle of a few gold coins? 

Come to the meetings and make your voice heard. 

 

John Curl is co-chair of the West Berkeley Association of Industrial Companies. 

 

 

 


The Stealth Plan to Bicycle-ize Marin Avenue By ZELDA BRONSTEIN

COMMENTARY
Friday December 10, 2004

On Tuesday, Dec. 14, city staff will ask the Berkeley City Council to give final approval to a plan to change Marin Avenue west of the Alameda to Tulare from four car lanes to two car lanes with a center left-hand turn lane and a bicycle lane on either side.  

The council should put off further consideration of this project until the people who will be most affected by it—thousands of North Berkeley residents—have been adequately notified and properly consulted. To date, such notification and consultation has been lacking, to say the least.  

Marin Avenue is the major east-west route into and out of North Berkeley. Everyday it’s traversed by 20,000 cars. City staff have been working on the proposed reconfiguration of the street with staff from the City of Albany for two and a half years, and longer than that, if you count the formulation of the Berkeley Bicycle Plan, which was adopted by the City Council in 2000. Yet today only a handful of North Berkeleyans are aware of the proposal to radically change Marin.  

On Oct. 21, the city’s Transportation Commission held a public hearing on the project. Staff sent notices only to households on or near Marin Avenue. To my knowledge, there was no announcement in any newspaper. Staff did not even directly contact the office of District 6 Councilmember Betty Olds.  

At least two North Berkeley residents—I was one—e-mailed the commission before the meeting and asked that the public hearing be continued until the North Berkeley public had been properly notified. My message noted that the public hearing was on the same night as the Thousand Oaks Neighborhood Association’s candidates forum, a meeting scheduled in August. These requests were not delivered by staff to the commission. Indeed, my e-mail doesn’t even appear in the packet of communications that I picked up a few days ago from the city planner in charge of the project, Heath Maddox.  

But staff’s failure to communicate the views of the citizens to the commission went far beyond the non-delivery of two e-mails. In fact, the commission never saw any of the e-mails or letters sent to the commission from the public.  

All it saw was a summary of public commentary prepared by Catherine Reilly, the planner from the Berkeley consulting firm, Design, Community & Environment, hired by the cities of Albany and Berkeley to analyze and facilitate the project. In a memo to Maddox dated Oct. 21—the same day as the public hearing—Reilly provided a bulleted list of arguments for and against the project that she had culled from the public’s communications.  

Having served almost seven years on the Berkeley Planning Commission, as well as having written and read numerous communications to the Berkeley City Council and many other Berkeley boards and commissions, I can say that I’ve never encountered this mode of transmitting written public comment to an official policymaking body. And for good reason: It makes a mockery of the public’s views.  

When I write to my official representatives or their appointees, I expect my words to reach them just as I set forth those words—with all the nuances and evidence (or lack thereof). I do not expect my ideas to be reconstructed by a consultant or a city staffer or anybody else. I bet every other person who communicated to the Transportation Commission about the Marin reconfiguration project had the same expectation, especially those who offered lengthy, meticulous critiques of the consultants’ and staff’s conclusion that the project would not significantly affect the environment and therefore would not require an environmental impact report (one North Berkeley author of such an assessment described himself as a retired traffic engineer).  

But the discounting of public opinion went even further. Not only did the consultant reduce each view, no matter how detailed or extensive, into one sentence or at most two; she never presented an overall tally of the pro- and anti-project communications.  

In fact, of the 24 letters addressed to the City of Berkeley, four supported the project, while twenty opposed it. Of the 24, 21 communications were signed by an identifiably North Berkeley resident; of those, three were in support and 19 in opposition. The figures for e-mails and letters sent to both Berkeley and Albany were even more lopsided: Out of 11 communications, one was for, and 10 were against. Six of the eleven were from North Berkeleyans; all six were against.  

In short, the members of the North Berkeley public who knew about the project overwhelmingly opposed the reconfiguration of Marin Avenue, and not only in writing: At the Oct. 21 public hearing, twelve North Berkeleyans spoke. Of the eleven whose positions I’ve been able to document, three supported the project, and the other eight opposed it.  

Yet in face of overwhelming public opposition, the Transportation Commission unanimously approved the proposal. The Transportation Commissioners could have—and should have—said: We need to see the actual communication from the public, not a consultant’s summary, and we need to see that communication well before the same evening on which we’re voting, so that we have time to ponder it. Better yet, they should have said that notifying households only along Marin west of the Alameda about a project that will affect thousands simply will not do—and then instructed staff to hold at least one well-noticed workshop on the reconfiguration of Marin Avenue, a workshop designed around real dialogue with the North Berkeley community.  

The commission neither said nor did any of the above. The City Council must do it instead.  

Supporters of this project are going to say: The train or rather the bicycle has already left the station; the City of Albany has given its final approval; Albany has a big grant for this project; Berkeley’s share of Marin is only a few blocks long; it would be awkward to bicycle-ize up to Tulare and then leave Marin from Tulare up to the Alameda in four car lanes. They are going to advertise the project’s supposed merits. They may even point to the statement in the consultants’ Initial Study that the Berkeley City Council has already approved this project—a claim that is highly dubious.  

All these arguments are beside the point. The immediate issue for the Berkeley City Council is not the merit of the project but the adequacy of the planning process. To give this proposal the final go-ahead now would amount to governance by fiat. The Berkeley Council’s first responsibility is not to the City of Albany or to hired consultants or paid staff; its first responsibility is to the people of Berkeley. When it comes to the reconfiguration of Marin Avenue, the way to carry out that responsibility is to hold off on a final council vote until this project has been adequately reviewed by the Berkeleyans whose daily lives it will profoundly affect.  

 

Zelda Bronstein, a former chair of the Planning Commission, has lived in North Berkeley since 1990.  

 

 

c


Berkeley Bakeries OfferArray of Holiday Treats By KATHRYN JESSUP

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

At Nabolom Bakery, Crow Bolt has been soaking nuts and fruits in vats of rum and schnapps for weeks to make fruitcake. Paul Masse has purchased his weihnachtsgewurze—a special German spice blend—to make Masse’s stollen bread and at Crixa Cakes owner Eliz abeth Kloian has pulled out her set of intricately carved molds for honey cake.  

“We really do up the holidays,” said Paul Masse, who, with his wife Marcia, runs Masse’s Pastries at Shattuck and Vine. “I used to work in Switzerland and I lean towards the more Germanic and French traditions.” 

Masse’s holiday offerings include stollen ($16), a fruited, spiced egg bread, bishop’s bread ($16), a Viennese-style sponge batter made with ground nuts and egg whites and studded with chopped chocolate, pine nuts, and rum raisins, and three types of buche de noel ($30-35), the French Christmas sponge cake filled with cream and topped with icing to look like a tree truck, complete with meringue “mushrooms.” 

The holiday season is upon us and Berkeley bakers are cast ing traditional European recipes anew. The results of some local baker’s top quality ingredients and careful technique are wonderful—old world favorites might have lighter textures and clearer flavors than they would in their countries of origin. 

“Our st ollen is not the really dense kind they sell a lot of in boxes at Cost Plus,” said Betsy Reihle, the baker at Fat Apple’s. “Those are really strongly flavored and could be a year-and-a-half old. Ours are lighter, they are really more of a fruited bread and we put in dark and gold raisins, almonds, and citron (candied peel of the citron fruit).” 

panettone, an Italian holiday bread similar to the lighter versions of stollen. “Panettone is the main holiday bread we make,” said Acme owner Steve Sullivan. “It is naturally leavened (using a bread starter) as opposed to a yeast bread or quick bread (made with baking soda or powder).” The result is rich, flavorful bread with a nice smattering of nuts and fruit. It makes a wonderful snack when sliced, toasted, but tered and served with hot tea. The bread is also delicious by itself, particularly when it is perfectly fresh. 

If you enjoy traditional Italian Christmas foods, baker Kloian at Crixa Cakes makes two versions of panforte, a highly spiced dense dessert bread, which should be thinly sliced and enjoyed with a glass of dessert wine. “We make it the old way, with honey,” said Kloian. “The classic Sienna has candied orange peel and toasted almonds.” She also makes a fig and walnut panforte, which she said, “is more softly spiced and has a hauntingly autumnal flavor.” 

Other spiced breads to try are Fat Apple’s pumpkin ginger bread and Acme’s pumpkin bread, which like their panettone is baked in paper molds, but has the flavor of pumpkin pulp and pie spices, raisins and cranberries. 

Crixa also makes old-fashioned honey cakes with spices. “We make them according to a traditional recipe in the old way using intricately carved molds,” said Kloian. “Each hand stamped cake is ready to eat, but like all spice cakes, will mellow with age.” The molds have designs with names such as: Barley Maid, Thistle Lad and The Tree of Life Heart. 

Masse’s makes an elegant cake that boasts the season’s spicy flavors: poached quince and ginger bread cake. The cake has a layer of lig ht Bavarian cream made with calvados (apple liqueur), which Masse said “mellows” the spice of the gingerbread cake. 

Christmas breads make wonderful gifts and are nice to keep stocked in your own home through the holiday season, particularly if you’ll hav e houseguests rooting around your kitchen for food. Cookies are another holiday staple that double as a gift. 

Fat Apple’s owner Hildegard Marshall, who is from Germany, sells enormous gingerbread cookies called Big Boys ($1.50) and also makes gingerbread houses ($34) decorated with icing and chocolate candies likely to capture the attention of children. Fat Apple’s also makes a variety of small holiday cookies, which they sell in tins ($12). “I’m from the Midwest,” said baker Reihle. “Cookies are really big there. You go to everybody’s house to visit and bring a tin of cookies.” Masse’s makes a wide range of holiday cookies and sells them in tins small ($12) and large ($24). 

Nabolom’s Danish butternut cookies ($1.50) are loaded with nuts and butter and rolled in powdered sugar. The bakery makes them year-round but the cookies make a handsome holiday platter when grouped together because they look like snowballs. 

Crixa Cakes offers chestnut kifli, which are Hungarian pastry crescents filled with chestnu t paste and Saint Nicholas gingerbread cookies. 

Even in the dead of winter, you can enjoy the flavor of raspberries. A number of Germanic Christmas recipes call for the berry in jam form. Fat Apple’s lattice topped Linzer tart is made with ground hazelnut pastry and raspberry marmalade. Nabolom makes raspberry spitzruben ($2.00) at Christmastime. The spitzruben has flavors similar to the Linzer tart, but it comes in bar cookie form. According to baker Bolt: “Half of the raspberry spitzrubens we sell get eaten right in the store.”  

Just as busy Berkeley residents depend on local bakeries for quality holiday treats, the bakeries depend on the season’s shoppers. Speaking of the recent financial woes of the 28-year-old collective bakery Nabolom, Bolt said, “We’re not totally out of the difficulty but we’re over halfway there. The holidays are really our peak season and a good one may get us out of our difficulty entirely.” Nabolom, which sells a rich, dense fruitcake ($10), traditional holiday pies ($20-$30), and two types of vegan pie, will stay open late on Christmas Eve.?


Castro Theater Screens Fuller’s Restored Masterwork By KEN BULLOCK

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

“Film is like a battleground: Love. Hate. Action. Violence. In one word—Emotion.” 

 

Newsboy, copyboy, teenage crime reporter, pulp novelist, “dogface,” screenwriter, producer, director. By the time he ad-libbed his rejoinder to the question “What is cinema?” that Jean-Luc Godard fed Jean-Paul Belmondo to ask him in Pierrot Le Fou (1965), Samuel Fuller had lived—and lived through—all those careers. 

But he hadn’t yet realized his long-envisioned lifetime project, The Big Red One, meant to be the epic odyssey of the foot soldier in the U.S. First Infantry Division, fighting from North Africa to Sicily and Italy, from Normandy across France and Germany to the liberation of the concentration camp at Falkenau in Czechia. It was a journey that Fuller had experienced as an over-age (30-ish) WWII enlistee.  

Even the eventual release of The Big Red One in 1979 was a poor studio cut with narration, not his intended masterwork. That delayed “scoop” of life and death on the front lines—where the only victory, as Fuller said, is survival—is finally out in a reconstructed version, seven years after Fuller’s death at 85. It was destined for DVD, but is onscreen now at San Francisco’s Castro Theatre, today (Friday) through Wednesday, Dec. 15. 

Starring Lee Marvin as a middle-aged sergeant with a squad of very young “dogfaces” (Mark Hamill, Robert Carradine, Bobby Di Cicco, Kelly Ward) thrown into battle after battle, the reconstruction—by film critic Richard Schickel—restores almost 50 minutes (15 scenes, as well as 23 extensions and inserts) to achieve a running time of 2 hours, 43 minutes—and a coherence missing from the original release, making what’s left of the narration redundant. 

In a brilliant performance, Marvin plays a WWI veteran (“brutalized in one war and coming back for more in the next,” as Fuller put it), tough but vulnerable, brooding over what he’s already seen. He is attacked in no-man’s land by a shell-shocked horse (“A horse has as much right to go crazy as a man does”). He kills a German soldier in the smoke, only to discover later that the war’s ended and the German was trying to surrender. He shepherds his young flock from their first beachhead in North Africa as raw recruits through their education in survival, in the vanguard of great armies, “where all you see—if you’re lucky—is the guy to your left and the guy to your right.” 

There’s a paradoxical sense of intimacy in vast landscapes, many close-ups crowded with figures in action. Fuller’s celebrated wild mood swings are in evidence: Overcoming an ambush on the same ground where Marvin killed his man a quarter century before, the squad assists a young Frenchwoman giving birth in a gutted Panzer tank. A kind of surrealism as well: North African irregulars on horseback attacking a German tank in the ruins of a Roman amphitheater—elaborate choreography—then cutting off the ears of the fallen enemy.  

Earlier films rehearsed The Big Red One’s themes—the sergeant (Gene Evans), suspicious and guilty over his own survival, first surfaces from a pile of corpses in Steel Helmet (1951), Fuller’s first commercial hit, set in Korea. Run of the Arrow (1957) has Rod Steiger as yet another sergeant, but in the Confederate Army, shooting the last shot of the Civil War, then heading West to join an Indian nation, avoiding Union citizenship. 

Other films had his tormented soldiers seeing action in Indochina, post-war Germany—even as an army unit-turned-bank robbers in occupied Japan. In the late ‘50s, Fuller thought he had a deal for his pet project, with John Wayne as producer, starring as the sergeant. But unable to find his story’s hook, Fuller balked and the Duke withdrew. Later, when Fuller offered Marvin the part, he got his answer with a phonecall: “This is your sergeant reporting!” 

“This is fictional life, based on factual death.” What film critic Kent Jones perhaps understates as “the slightly fabulous aspect” in Fuller’s storytelling came naturally to a man who’d been copyboy to Hearst editor Arthur Brisbane in the ‘20s, a crime reporter at 16, riding the rails to cover Ku Klux Klan rallies, the “Hoovervilles” of Depression America, the General Strike in 1934 San Francisco. 

“How did you like the flavor I got in the picture?” he used to ask. But that piquant taste, all his own, has been often misunderstood. Fuller was portrayed as “primitive” (misconstruing Andrew Sarris’ praise of him as “an authentic American Primitive”—“Primitive” as in “the style of late Medieval painters”), “brutal,” “The Ugly American” (Pauline Kael), or by the terribly mistaken epithets “reactionary,” even “fascist.” 

Fuller was intensely admired by younger filmmakers. Steven Spielberg, whose ideas for the opening of Saving Private Ryan certainly came in part from observations on war films that Fuller, survivor of Omaha Beach, used to make. Martin Scorsese, who in the introduction to Fuller’s memoirs, A Third Face, wrote, “It’s been said that if you don’t like the Rolling Stones, then you just don’t like rock and roll. By the same token, I think that if you don’t like the films of Sam Fuller, then you just don’t like cinema. Or at least you don’t understand it.” 

Fuller in public would often play the hardboiled cynic with relish. But behind the act was an unusually open, responsive person. “Not the usual Hollywood director,” said author Jim Kitses, who teaches at San Francisco State University, “an exemplary human being.” 

The Castro showing of The Big Red One (following its premiere at Cannes, Scorsese’s New York Film Festival and at the Rafael Film Center during the Mill Valley Festival) is the last film programmed there by Berkeley resident Anita Monga, recently controversially dismissed after 16 years at the landmark moviehouse.  

When she was programming for the York on San Francisco’s 24th Street, Monga showed a double feature of Fuller’s Shock Corridor (1963) and The Naked Kiss (1965), both then obscure films. I saw them, and was electrified, thinking that I had to meet Fuller. 

The opportunity came about a year later, in 1986, when he screened The Big Red One at Berkeley’s Pacific Film Archive. After the showing, a woman in the audience commented that it was the best “War Is Hell” movie she’d seen, but within a minute was shouting at Fuller, “Why have you not shown us the causes of war!”  

“Obviously, she’s never seen his other films!” somebody whispered. 

The audience was restive—but Fuller was almost courtly: “If I were to show all that, dear lady—politics, diplomacy, finance, the media—it would be such a long film, it’d never be released. And besides, all the politicians, diplomats, financiers, print and broadcast talent who’d see it have their excuse—that someone else would do what they had done if they hadn’t. Only an 18-year-old can’t make that excuse, it’s his life on the line. That’s why most films romanticize war as glorious—for the 18-year-olds.” 

Fuller continued, “When The Big Red One was screened privately for an audience of Pentagon officers, my old friend Patton, Jr. said afterwards, ‘To those of us who served in combat in the war, this is clearly the most authentic film about it. On the other hand, I wouldn’t want to show it on a recruiting mission. No young person would sign up.’ I went up to the podium, shook his hand, and said, ‘George, that’s the best compliment my film could ever have—because that’s why I made it.”


Terrific ‘Travesties’ Runs Wilde at Ashby Stage By BETSY M. HUNTON

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

So one of the things that happened during World War I was that a significant number of creative people took off to go live in Switzerland for the duration. Quite a few of those in flight turned out to have pretty significant names.  

Jump forward a few decades; in the ‘70s, Tom Stoppard, the contemporary British playwright who has established his own impressive reputation as a top-notch, fiercely intellectual, funny wordsmith, decided to toss three or four of the really big guys among those refugees into a play and jiggle it up and down to see what he’d get.      

What he got is a truly extraordinary piece of writing, Travesties, now playing in a terrifically staged production by the Shotgun Players at the Ashby Stage in Berkeley. 

The short form of this review of the play is to say simply that the play is brilliant: breath-takingly, and maybe sometimes even out-of-sight, brilliant. And the production is first-rate. Acting, costumes, and right up there with them, the stage setting itself, top-notch.  

The only problem is that Stoppard is so darn’ smart that he can expect a bit more out of you than you are really prepared to give. It can be a bit humbling. 

Alf Pollard, the set designer, has created a remarkable stage setting which, while essentially indescribable, manages to simultaneously convey both an early 20th century atmosphere and the disciplined chaos of the play itself. My favorites of the seemingly unrelated items strewn around the stage are the fairly modern toilet and a 1920s-style radio dangling in mid-air. (Don’t let the toilet scare you; it makes a perfectly good desk if you sit on it backwards. Besides, it’s a good place to hide a prop or two that you might need later in the play).   

The Ashby Theater’s stage is open and large. The space between the stage itself and the ceiling is enormous, but absolutely neither of these significant issues overwhelms the action of the play. It is a remarkable accomplishment for both set designer Pollard, and the director, Sabrina Klein.  

Shotgun has obtained a strong cast for Travesties, with excellent supporting work for the four main characters. Henry Carr (flawlessly played by John Mercer) holds together the play’s outrageous collection of ideas, people and pot-shots at the world in general. Like the other major roles, Carr is based on one of the real people who was in Switzerland during World War I. Mercer does an extraordinary job as an elderly man with an unreliable memory and a passion for flawless dress.  

Although he is a significant figure throughout the play, it seems appropriate to note that toward the beginning, Mercer successfully accomplishes the Herculean task of performing a four and a half page monologue without losing the audience.    

For reasons known only to Stoppard the three kingpins that he settled on to feature in the play are James Joyce (Kevin Kelleher), Lenin (Richard Louis James), and Tristan Tzara (Kevin Clarke). The first two characters may be a little large to swallow, but certainly need no introduction, of course. However, “Tzara,” “Who’s he?” 

Tzara was the founder of “Dada,” an artistic movement that has done its damage to our cultural scene and faded away—only to be replaced by other sources of mass confusion. Dadaism was apparently the first of the creative movements of the 20th century to take major steps away from the goal of portraying reality as most sane people experience it. 

The Luddites among us cringe at Tzara’s memory. But enough of all that.  

With a staggering leap that only a madman or a major theatrical genius would attempt, Stoppard elected to take this mish-mash of 20th century icons and deal with them ( who knows why?) in a play based on Oscar Wilde’s wonderful 19th century comedy The Importance of Being Ernest. In fact, so much of the humor in Travesties is based on Ernest that someone who is unacquainted with the earlier play may miss large chunks of some very good stuff in the evening’s entertainment. 

Anyway, by all that’s sane and logical, the whole thing should have fallen apart at the seams before the play ever saw the light of day. No way. It’s terrific, and Shotgun has done a major job of staging.  

 

 ù


Arts Calendar

Friday December 10, 2004

FRIDAY, DEC. 10 

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “The Beginning and the End” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

THEATER 

“The Play of Daniel” by the Aurora Theatre Company and The Pacific Mozart Ensemble at 8 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Through Dec. 11. Tickets are $22-$25. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Aurora Theatre “Emma” at 8 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $36. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley High School “O & E” An original interpretation of the Greek myth of Eurydice and Orpheus, at 8 p.m. Fri. and Sat., at Florence Shwimly Little Theater, Allston Way. Tickets are $5-$7. 332-1931. 

Berkeley Repertory Theater, “Polk County” A musical about aspring blues musician, Leafy Lee, at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. to Jan. 9. Tickets are $15-$60. 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org  

California Shakespeare Theater Student Company “As You Like It” Fri., Sun. at 7 p.m., Sat. at 2 and 7 p.m. at 701 Heinz Ave. Tickets are $3-$5. 548-9666. www.CalShakes.org 

Impact Theatre, “Meanwhile, Back at the Super Lair” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. through Dec. 11, at La Val’s Subterranean Theater, 1834 Euclid. Tickets are $10-$15. 464-4468. www.impacttheatre.com 

Shotgun Players “Travesties” by Tom Stoppard, at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. through Jan. 9. Free with pass the hat after the show. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Spoken Word with Shirley Phelps, Yolande Barial, Linda Joy Myers and Teresa LeYung Ryan at 7:30 p.m. at Kajukenbo Self Defense Center, 5680 San Pablo Ave. Oakland. $10-$20 sliding scale. 428-0502. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Ballet Theater “The Nutcracker” at 7 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Center for the Arts. Also on Sat. and Sun at 2 and 7 p.m. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $18. 845-4689. www.berkeleyballet.org  

Berkeley City Ballet “The Nutcracker” at 7 p.m. at Zellerbach Playhouse, UC Campus. Also Sat and Sun. at 1 and 5 p.m. Tickets are $15-$25. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Bella Musica performs Rachmanioff’s “All Night Vigil” at 8 p.m. at Arlington Community Church, 52 Arlington Ave., Kensington. Tickets are $12-$15. 

California Revels “The Winter Solstice” music dance and drama of 18th century Scotland. Fri. at 7:30 p.m., Sat.-Sun. at 1 and 5 p.m. through Dec. 19, at the Scottish Rite Theater, 1547 Lakeside Drive, Oakland. Tickets are $15-$42. 415-773-1181. www.calrevels.org 

Oakland Opera Theater “Rake’s Progress” by Igor Stravinsky, at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Thurs. - Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $22-$32. www.oaklandopera.org 

“Recommendations” new student choreography by UC Dept. of Theater and Dance at 4:30 and 8 p.m. in Zellerbach Room 7, UC Campus. Free. 642-9925. 

University Symphony performs Lutoslawski and Beethovan at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Brubeck Institute Jazz Sextet, featuring Christian McBride, at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10-$15. 845-5373. www.jazz- 

school.com 

Native Elements, reggae, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Lucy Kapansky, modern city folk, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $19.50-$20.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Bing Nathan/David Kahn Duo at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

DJ & Brook, jazz trio, at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

The Uptones, Minus Vince, Shitouttaluck at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

Calvin Johnson, Whysp, No Nothing Party at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

JP Orbit at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

Pitch Black, The New Strange, The Feed, rock, at 9:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $7. Canned Food Drive for the Alameda County Food Bank. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Bucho, Soul, hip hop, at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$7. 548-1159.  

Realistic at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Gato Barbieri at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $18-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Edge of the Bay, progressive music California at 8:30 p.m. at the 1923 Teahouse. Cost is $5-$10. www.epicarts.org 

SATURDAY, DEC. 11 

CHILDREN 

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Derique, the clown, at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $4 for adults, $3 for children. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Everyday Universe” new paintings by Justin O’Neill and Paula Malesardi. Reception for the artists at 5 p.m. at Gallery of Urban Art, 1266 66th St., Emeryville. Exhibition runs through Jan. 6. Gallery hours are Mon.-Fri. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. noon to 4 p.m. 596-0020, ext. 197. www.galleryofurbanart.com 

“Negotiating Desire” works in various media by Kirsten Stromberg. Reception at 5 p.m. at Arts and Consciousness Gallery, John F. Kennedy University, 2956 San Pablo Ave. 649-0499. 

“Watercolors of Imaginary” by Keith Wilson. The artist will be at Giorgi Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to answer questions about his work. 848-1228. www.giorgigallery.com 

THEATER 

Living Arts Playback Theater “Fathers and Daughters” at 7:30 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $12-$18, sliding scale. 655-5186. www.livingartscenter.org 

“Born to be King” a nativity pageant by Mary Ann Tidwell Broussard at 5:30 p.m. at Black Repertory Theatre, 3201 Adeline St. Tickets are $13-$15. 652-2120. www.blackrepertorygroup.org  

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “Violet Perfume: Nobody Hears You” at 7 p.m., “Danzón” at 8:50 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The Art of Face: A Mask, a Body, a Movement” with photographer and sculptor Leonard Pitt, at 8 p.m. at Giorgi Art Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. Cost is $12. 848-1228. www.giorgigallery.com 

Berkeley’s Poetry Walk comes to the Central Library at 2 p.m. with six poets reading their work in celebration of the publication of The Addison Street Anthology, edited by Robert Hass and Jessica Fisher. 981-6139.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Ballet Theater “The Nutcracker” at 2 p.m. followed by Sugar Plum Fairy Party at the Julia Morgan Center for the Arts. Other performances through Dec. 19. Tickets are $18. 845-4689. www.berkeleyballet.org  

Kensington Symphony with Bharati Soman, soprano, at 8 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 545 Ashbury Ave., El Cerrito. Donation $8-$10. 524-4335.  

Sacred & Profane “O Magnum Mysterium” at 8 p.m. at St. Ambrose Church, 1145 Gilman St. Tickets are $12-$18. 524-3611. www.sacredprofane.org 

University Symphony performs Lutoslawski and Beethovan at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Berkeley Community Chamber Singers at 3 p.m. at ACCI Gallery, 1652 Shattuck Ave. Free. www.accigallery.com 

Bay Area Classical Harmonies Christmas holiday program featuring liturgical music from many traditions at 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 114 Montecito Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $10-$15. 866-233-9892. www.berkeleybach.org 

Rose Street House of Music Concert with Irina Rivkin, Green & Root and others at 8 p.m. at 1839 Rose St. Donation $5-$20. 549-4000, ext. 687. 

Holy Names University Community Chorus Holiday Concert at 4 p.m. at Studio Theater, Valley Center, Holy Names University, 3500 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$15 at the door. 436-1330. 

PickPocket Ensemble at 9:30 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. Cost is $3. 843-2473. www.albatrosspub.com 

Lucy Kapansky, modern city folk, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $19.50-$20.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Last Band Standing Winners at 9 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $10. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Carlos Olivera, Brazilian guitarist, at 8 p.m. at the Jazz- 

school. Cost is $12-$18. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Palenque, Cuban son, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Salsa dance lesson with Wendy Ellen Cochran at 9 p.m. Cost is $13. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Dave Bernstein Quartet at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Mike Jung and Nate Cooper at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Jah Warrior Shelter at 10 p.m. at Club Oasis, 135 12th St., Oakland. Cost is $10. 763-0404. 

Iron and the Albatross, Rosin Coven at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $6. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

Accidental Beauties, Pebble Theory, Damond Moodie, urban alt rock, at 9:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $7. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Dominatrix, The Dead Betties, Jack Queen at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Saul Kaye Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

The Bittersweets, americana/ 

alt-country acoustic duo, at 8:30 p.m. at the 1923 Teahouse. Cost is $5-$10. www.epicarts.org 

SUNDAY, DEC. 12 

CHILDREN  

Dan Zanes & Friends perform children’s classics at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $24 available from 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Hanukkah Family Program A celebration of light and miracles with music, images and play from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. www.magnes.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Grids and Reflections” giclée color prints by Art Levit. Reception at 3 p.m. at Photolab Gallery, 2235 Fifth St. Runs through Jan. 22. Gallery hours are Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 644-1400. 

“Threshold: Byron Kim” Guided tour at 2 p.m. at Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “Cabeza de Vaca” at 4:30 p.m., “Return to Aztlan” at 6:40 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Young People’s Chamber Orchestra, holiday music at 3 p.m. at the Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave., Kensington. 524-3043. http://ccclib.org 

Bella Musica, “All-Night Vigil” by Rachmaninoff, at 4 p.m. at St. Mary Magdalen Church, 2005 Berryman St. Admission by donation. www.bellamusica.org 

Cantabile Choral Guild “The Seasons of Christmas” at 7:30 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Tickets are $6-$25. Preview lecture 30 minutes before the concert. Tickets are $6-$25. 650-424-1410. www.cantabile.org 

Voci, “Voices in Peace: Litanies and Lullabies” at 3 p.m. at Lake Meritt United Methodist Church, 1330 Lakeshore Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $15-$20, children under 12 free. 531-8714. www.coolcommunity.org/voci 

UC Choral Ensembles Holiday Concert at 3 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-3880. tickets.berkeley.edu 

Alexander String Quartet performs Brahms and Mozart at 4 p.m. at the Crowden Music Center, 1473 Rose St. Tickets are $12 for adults, free for children. 559-6910. www.crowdenmusiccenter.org 

Papa Gionni and guests at 2 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198. 

Acoustic Ace of Spades at 1 p.m. at MamaBuzz Cafe, 2318 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Free for all ages. 

Steven Bernstein “Diaspora Hollywood” at 8 and 9:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Fellowship Hall, 1924 Cedar St. Cost is $12 per show. Presented by The Jazz House. www.thejazzhouse.org 

Alexa Weber Morales, Latin jazz, at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $12-$20. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Patrick Landeza, Hawaiian Christmas concert at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $16.50-$17.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Café Bellie at 7:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Bellydance lesson at 6:30 p.m. Cost is $9. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Odd Shaped Case, Balkan music brunch at 10 a.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

MONDAY, DEC. 13 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Poetry Express, featuring Tanya Joyce and Ravi Shankar from 7 to 9:30 p.m., at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. berkeleypoetryexpress@yahoo.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Songwriters Symposium at 8:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

John Calloway and Diaspora at 4:30 at the Jazzschool. Cost is $12-$18. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Denny Zeitlin Trio with Buster Williams and Matt Wilson at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$14. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

TUESDAY, DEC. 14 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Owen Hill reads from “The Chandler Apartments” and other works at 7:30 p.m. at the Book Zoo, 2556 Telegraph Ave. #7. 883-1332. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Mamadou Diabate, Kora master, with guitarist Walter Strauss at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Lecture and demonstration at 8 p.m. Cost is $5 for lecture only, $15 for lecture and concert. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

 

Christmas Jug Band at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage Coffee House. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Charlie Hunter Trio at 8 and 10 p.m. Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $12-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Michael Wilcox and Sheldon Brown at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 15 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Star Alliance Peace Flag” on display at the Berkeley Main Library, 2090 Kittredge St., through Dec. 27 along with other Star Alliance memorabilia. www.staralliance.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“Political Art in California” with Dr. Peter Selz at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Arts Center at 7 p.m. 644-6893.www.berkeleyartcenter.org 

Café Poetry hosted by Paradise at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña. Donation $2. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Barbara Gates, Berkeley resident, on “Already Home: A Topography of Spirit and Place” journeys though the history of the Ocean View neighborhood, at 7:30 p.m. at Easy Going Bookstore, 1385 Shattuck Ave. at Rose, 843-3533. 

Berkeley Poetry Slam with host Charles Ellik and Three Blind Mice, at 8:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5-$7. 841-2082 www.starryplough.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Music for the Spirit Organ recital with John Stump performing works by Bach at 12:15 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Oakland, 2619 Broadway. 444-3555. 

Jules Broussard, Ned Boynton and Bing Nathan at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Tom Rigney & Flambeau at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun dance lesson with Cheryl McBride at 8 p.m. Cost is $9. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

La Peña AfroCuban Youth Ensemble at 7 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $8. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

La Verdad, salsa, at 8 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Gaucho Gypsy Jazz at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Whiskey Brothers at 9 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. 843-2473. www.albatrosspub.com 

Moonlife, Charlotte Summer, B! Machine, electric pop rock, at 8:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $4. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com


Rosa Parks Elementary Works Through Past Tensions By CATHERINE PRICE

Special to the Planet
Friday December 10, 2004

Anyone who thinks Franz Kafka’s writing is college-level material should stop by Margot Pepper’s second-grade classroom. Now in her eighth year teaching at the Rosa Parks Environmental Science Elementary School, Pepper uses Kafka’s short story “Metamorphosis” in a project about insects that exemplifies the school’s curriculum-wide integration of science and the environment.  

“I read the story aloud to them,” says Pepper. “At the moment when [the protagonist] turns into a cockroach, I ask them to finish the story themselves, using information about insects that they’ve learned in class.” The children, inspired by Pepper’s colorful laminated cutouts and enthusiastic enactment of the story, then research and write their own stories about what their lives would be as insects.  

Formerly the Columbus Environmental Science Magnet School, Rosa Parks is one of three elementary schools in Berkeley’s northwest zone and is in its fourth year of an improvement regimen mandated by the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act. Unlike California’s previous accountability standards, NCLB imposes up to five years of corrective measures onto schools that don’t meet their yearly progress goals, and ultimately can result in major restructuring of schools’ staff and curriculum.  

Staff and faculty at Rosa Parks are also struggling with the aftermath of a controversy last spring, when more than three quarters of the school’s faculty signed a “letter of no confidence” to Superintendent Michele Lawrence asking that Principal Shirley Herrera be transferred from the school for reasons including “unreliable leadership” and “inequitable treatment of students, teachers and staff.” 

Lawrence kept Herrera (now in her third year, she is the first principal since 1999 to last more than a year). Four teachers were involuntarily transferred and several others voluntarily left. This year, seven out of the school’s 16 teachers are new to Rosa Parks.  

Tensions from last spring still linger, but new programs and initiatives have meant that overall morale is high, say teachers and staff. 

“There’s been a lot of healing since last year,” says Tontra Love, an eighth-year kindergarten teacher at Rosa Parks. “People are trying to stay positive and move forward.” 

Love says she is excited about the new diversity training for the staff, as well as an early intervention plan to provide tutoring, counseling and other services to needy students. Pepper praises the faculty’s recent training in Guided Language Acquisition Design, which trains teachers to incorporate literacy skills into different classroom subjects, and helped inspire Pepper’s project on insects and Kafka. 

And a recent visit by Michele Borba, author of Building Moral Intelligence, gave Principal Herrera the idea to highlight a “characteristic of the month” in student-of-the-month assemblies, one of several new approaches the school is taking to encourage responsibility and respect among students.  

Students at Rosa Parks can also look forward to the continuation of other resources special to the school, including its curriculum’s focus on science and the environment, its Kids’ Village after-school program, its family resource center and its six-year dual-immersion language program in Spanish and English, which Rosa Parks is the only school in its zone to offer.  

Located at 920 Allston Way, Rosa Parks’ campus itself is unusual, built in 1997 after the previous buildings were deemed unsafe in the event of an earthquake. Its highlight is the Bayer Children’s Science Center, constructed with and supported by funds donated for the school’s environmental science curriculum. 

The center concentrates on weather and space, marine-life studies, and urban gardening and ecology. Designed to resemble a village, the classrooms themselves are arranged around an open basketball and playground, and each is contained in its own peak-roofed building with high ceilings, natural light, and a tucked-away outdoor alcove.  

If the school fails to meet its Adequate Yearly Progress—a standard of measurement used by NCLB—it will have to implement an alternative governance plan to be decided upon during the 2004-2005 school year. But still, hopes are high.  

“I’m very optimistic about the year,” says Herrera. “We’ve got great teachers and a great team spirit. We want what’s best for our children, and will work together to get there.” 

 

This is the third in a series profiling Berkeley elementary schools. The reports are written by students of the UC Berkeley Journalism School.Ã


Berkeley This Week

Friday December 10, 2004

FRIDAY, DEC. 10 

Flu Vaccination Clinic sponsored by the Berkeley Public Health Dept. from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Frances Albier Commnity Center, San Pablo Park, 2800 Park St., between Russell and Ward Sts. Suggested donation $5., no one turned away. For information call 981-5356 or Nurse of the Day Advice Line at 981-5300. 

Human Rights Day Celebration at 11:45 a.m. at Upper Sproul Plaza, UC Campus. 849-1752. 

“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Today: Relevant, not Quaint” with Rita Maran, UCB lecturer at 12:30 p.m. in the Fireside Room, Starr King Seminary, GTU, 2411 Le Conte Ave. Sponsored by Starr King School for the Ministry and Seminarians for Choice. 665-7785. 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Purnima Jka on the “Status of Women’s Rights” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $13, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925 or 665-9020. 

Human Rights Day with Michael Nagler and The Search for a Nonviolent Future at 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

Berkeley Design Advocates Design Awards to acknowledge significant projects completed within the past two years, at 5:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. Admission is free, with recommended donation of $5. berkeleydesignadvocates@yahoo.com 

Opera Piccola’s Holiday Benefit Party at 7 p.m. at U-Turn New and Recycled Clothing, 5251 Broadway, corner of Broadway and College Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $30 for adults, $5 for children age 9 and up, and are free to children through age 8. All proceeds will benefit Opera Piccola’s arts and education programs in underserved communities. 658-0967. www.opera-piccola.org 

Family Literacy Night and Scholastic Book Fair at 7 p.m. at the Downtown Berkeley YMCA, 2001 Allston Way. Winnie the Pooh will be the special guest. 665-3271. 

Not Your Mother’s Craft Sale and Party from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. 238-2200. www.museumca.org 

Holiday Wreath Making Class from 10 a.m. to noon at the Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. Cost is $25-$30. Registration required. 643-2755. 

“Alive in Limbo” a documentary on the Palestinian right of return at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $6-$8 sliding scale. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

“So How’d You Become an Activist?” with Peter Phillips, director of Project Censored and Alli Starr, co-founder, Art & Revolution, at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists, 1924 Cedar St., at Bonita. Donation $5. 528-5403. 

Free Fitness Tests for people 50 and over at 12:30 p.m. at the South Berkeley Senior Center. You will receive a personalized scores and tips on how to maintain or improve your fitness. 981-5367. 

Literary Friends meets at 1:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center for a Haiku poetry workshop with Connie Andersen. 549-1879. 

Berkeley Critical Mass Bike Ride meets at the Berkeley BART the second Friday of every month at 5:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Chess Club meets Fridays at 7:15 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Players at all levels are welcome. 652-5324. 

Celebrate a Humanistic Chanukah with Kol Hadash, the Bay Area’s only Jewish Humanistic Congregation, with a pot luck dinner and party with music by the Klezhumanists, 6 p.m. at the Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Ave. To RSVP call 428-1492. 

Women in Black Vigil noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. 845-1143. 

Meditation, Peace Vigil and Dialogue, gather at noon on the grass close to the West Entrance to UC Berkeley, on Oxford St. near University Ave. 655-6169. www.bpf.org 

SATURDAY, DEC. 11 

Berkeley Schools Informational Fair from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for families with children entering kindergarten and other newcomers to the Berkeley Unified School District. Learn about district-wide curricula and programs, talk with representatives from all 11 elementary schools, get a head start on the assignment system, and meet child care providers. at the Rosa Parks Environmental Science Magnet School, 920 Allston Way. 644-6504. www.berkeley.k12. 

ca.us/info_fair.html 

“The Commune: Histories, Legacies and Prospects in Northern California” A free workshop open to the public. Urban and rural communards, with some intact memories, especially welcome. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 223 Moses Hall, UC Campus. 642-2472. 

Berkeley Path Wanderers Walk exploring “Creeks, Paths, and History” with Friends of Five Creeks president Susan Schwartz. Meet at 10 a.m. at the main entrance of Live Oak Park Recreation Center, 1301 Shattuck. 848-9358. www.berkeleypaths.org  

Solo Sierrans Bayshore Walk in El Cerrito. A two hour walk along the Bay to Point Isabel on paved and level trail, wheelchair accessible. Rain cancels. Meet at 3:30 p.m. at small parking lot at Pt. Isabel. 234-8949. 

Kids Garden Club For children 7-12 years old to explore the world of gardening. We plant, harvest, build, make crafts, cook and get dirty! From 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$6, registration required. 525-2233. 

“Winter Blooms!” Free garden tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden. Sat. and Sun. at 2 pm. Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. 845-4116. www.nativeplants.org 

Holiday Decorations - Naturally Create wreaths and garlands using natural materials. Bring a pair of small hand clippers, a bag lunch, and a large flat box to take home your creations. From noon to 3:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. For adults and children 8 and over. Cost is $30-$61. Reservations required. 636-1684. 

East Bay Sanctuary Covenant’s Annual Craft Sale from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sat. and Sun. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Handcrafted items from indigenous co-ops in Central America, Haiti, Nepal, Afghanistan, Africa and other places at reasonable prices. Proceeds benefit Women’s Cooperatives all over the world. 527-0324. 

Berkeley Potters Guild Sale from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. and Sun. through Dec. 19. 731 Jones St. 524-7031. www.berkeleypotters.com 

Holiday Crafts Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Berkeley Farmers’ Market, Martin Luther King, Jr. Civic Center Park. 548-3333. www.ecologycenter.org 

Telegraph Avenue Holiday Street Fair, with over 200 street artists, merchants, community groups, musicians and other entertainers, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat. and Sun. to Dec. 19, and Thurs. and Fri. Dec. 23 and 24. 

Berkeley Artisans Holiday Open Studios Sat and Sun. from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For map see www.berkeleyartisans.com 

Albany Community Arts Show from noon to 6 p.m. at the Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Ave., Albany. 14 Albany artists will display paintings, prints, ceramics and jewelry. Work will be available for sale. The event is free and wheelchair accessible. 

Junior Rangers of Tilden meets Sat. mornings at Tilden Nature Center. For more information call 525-2233. 

Introduction to Permaculture Design A workshop on ecological landscape design basics from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave, near Dwight Way. Cost is $10-$15. 548-2220, ext. 233. www.ecologycenter.org 

Cape Ivy Removal in Joaquin Miller Park from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Free plant raffle during a break in the activities. Friends of Native Plants will have a propagation session from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Directions: from Hwy. 13 take Joaquin Miller exit and turn east up the hill. Park along Joaquin Miller near Sanborn Rd. and walk to the northeast corner (up hill left) of the intersection. greensatwork@yahoo.com  

SUNDAY, DEC. 12 

Early Morning Bird Walk Meet at 8 am. at Tilden Nature Center to walk around the mixed feeding flocks and discuss the ecology of these seasonal assemblages. 525-2233. 

Help Clean Up Castro Creek and its tributaries. Learn about the Dumping Abatement and Pollution Reduction Program and the trash assessment monitoring tool as we remove harmful trash. Refreshments, tools, and gloves provided. Call for meeting place. Sponsored by The Watershed Project. 231-9566. Elizabeth@thewatershedproject.org 

Decorate the “Lorax” Way Make holiday gift wrap and decorations from recycled materials. From 12:30 to 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Festivals of Light Explore festivals of the season with saffron buns, jelly donuts, marzipan pigs, poems, riddles, games and songs. From 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$7, registration required. 525-2233. 

Chanukah Celebration Presented by Chabad of the East Bay from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. 540-5824. www.chabadberkeley.com 

“Weapons of Mass Deception” with Ruth Rosen, S.F. Chronicle columnist at Women for Peace lunch, at noon at Café Venizia, 1799 University Ave. Cost is $37. For reservations call 849-3020. 

Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine College Open House from 6 to 8 p.m. at 2550 Shattuck Ave. Learn about how you can become a licensed acupuncturist. RSVP to 666-8248, ext. 106. 

MONDAY, DEC. 13 

Tea at Four Taste some of the finest teas from the Pacific Rim and South Asia and learn their natural and cultural history, followed by a short nature walk. At 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, in Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$7, registration required. 525-2233. www.ebparks.org 

World Affairs/Politics Discussion Group for people 60 years and over meets Mondays at 10:15 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic Ave. Join at any time. 524-9122. 

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. Join us to work on current issues around police misconduct. 548-0425. 

TUESDAY, DEC. 14 

Morning Bird Walk “Some Gulls I Know” Meet at the Berkeley Municipal Pier at 7:30 a.m. 525-2233. 

Return of the Over-the-Hills Gang Hikers 55 years and older who are interested in nature study, history, fitness, and fun are invited to join us on a series of monthly excursions exploring our Regional Parks. Meet at 10 a.m. at Tilden’s Inspiration Point to walk the scenic ridge lands. Registration required. 525-2233.  

“Exploring Pt. Reyes and Beyond,” a slide presentation by photographer-writer team Richard Blair and Kathleen Goodwin at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Berkeley High School Site Council meets at 4:30 p.m. in the school library. Agenda items include athletic eligibility requirements, report of the Positive Minds program, and data on student achievement. bhs.berkeleypta.org/ssc, bhssitecouncil@berkeley.k12.ca.us  

The Alexander Foundation for Women’s Health lecture on “Sexual Desire: From Romance to Physiology” at 6:15 p.m. at the Claremont Resort, 41 Tunnel Rd. Cost is $10-$15. 527-3010. www.afwh.org/about/ 

claremontlectures.htm  

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. 548-3991. www.berkeleycameraclub.org 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Dr. Robert Greer will speak about macular degeneration at 11 a.m. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 15 

Berkeley Communicators Toastmasters meets the first and third Wednesdays of the month at 7:15 a.m. at Au Cocolait, 200 University Ave. at Milvia. For information call Robert Flammia 524-3765. 

Mini-Farmers in Tilden A farm exploration program, for ages 4-6 years; accompanied by an adult. We will explore the Little Farm, care for animals, do crafts and farm chores. Wear boots and dress to get dirty! Fee is $3-$5. Registration required. 525-2233. 

Ujamaa Market Fest and Crafts Sale Celebrating collective economics, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Cole School Auditorium, 1011 Union St., West Oakland. www.mocha.org/projectyield/ujamaa.html 

San Pablo Avenue Roadway Rehabilitation Project meeting at 6 p.m. at the Ocean View School, 1000 Jackson St., Albany. Sponsored by the California Department of Transportation. 286-1313. www.dot.ca.gov/ 

dist4/sanpabloave 

Argosy University Information Sessions for degree programs in Psychology, Education and Business at 6 p.m. at 999-A Canal Blvd., Point Richmond. To RSVP or for directions to the school, call 215-0277. 

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday, rain or shine, at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze market, just west of the I-80 overpass. Everyone is welcome, wear comfortable shoes, sunscreen and a hat. 548-9840. 

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil at the Berkeley BART Station, corner of Shattuck and Center. Vigil at 6:30 p.m. followed by Peace Walk at 7 p.m. www.geocities. 

com/vigil4peace/vigil 

THURSDAY, DEC. 16 

Holiday Healthy Gift Sale from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Health Dept., 2180 Milvia St., 1st floor. Items include pedometers, bike helmets, bike accessories, and much more. 981-5367. 

San Pablo Avenue Roadway Rehabilitation Project meeting at 6 p.m. at the El Cerrito Community Center Council Chambers, 7007 Moeser Lane, El Cerrito. Sponsored by the California Department of Transportation. 286-1313. www.dot.ca.gov/dist4 

/sanpabloave 

FRIDAY, DEC. 17 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Brett Schnieder presenting a Magic Show. Children are welcome. Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $13, reduced price for children. Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For reservations call 526-2925.  

Philippine Textiles on display and for sale by the Filipino American National Historical Society from noon to 5 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Center. 499-3477. 

Holiday Healthy Gift Sale from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Health Dept., 2180 Milvia St., 1st floor. Items include pedometers, bike helmets, bike accessories, and much more. 981-5367. 

Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the North Berkeley Senior Center Celebration at 1:30 p.m. with entertainment and refreshments for all. 

Community Based Solutions to Ending Violence Against Sex Workers at 2 p.m. at Lutheran Church of the Cross, 1744 University at McGee. 981-1021. www.swop-usa.org  

Berkeley Chess Club meets Fridays at 7:15 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Players at all levels are welcome. 652-5324. 

Women in Black Vigil, from noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. wibberkeley@yahoo.com 548-6310, 845-1143. 

Meditation, Peace Vigil and Dialogue, gather at noon on the grass close to the West Entrance to UC Berkeley, on Oxford St. near University Ave. Sponsored by the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. 655-6169. www.bpf.org 

HOW TO HELP 

Alameda County Community Food Bank’s Annual Food Drive accepts donations of non-perishable food in the red barrel at any Safeway or Albertson’s. 834-3663. www.accfb.org 

Firefighters Toy Drive Donate new, unwrapped toys and canned food to any Berkeley fire station. For information call 981-5506. 

Find a Loving Animal Companion at the Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society Adoption Center, 2700 Ninth St. 845-7735. www.berkeleyhumane.org  

United Way Bay Area is recruiting volunteer tax preparers and greeters/interpreters in Alameda County to assist low-income families who are eligible for free tax assistance and refunds. No previous tax preparation experience is necessary. There is a special need for volunteers who can speak Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese. Training sessions begin Jan. 8. Register now by calling 800-273-6222. www.earnitkeepitsaveit.org  

CITY MEETINGS 

Public Housing Resident Advisory Board meets Mon., Dec. 13, at 4 p.m. at Berkeley Housing Authority, 1901 Fairview St. Sharon Jackson, 981-5472. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/publichousing 

Berkeley Housing Authority meets Tues., Dec. 14, at 6:30 p.m. in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. ww.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/housingauthority 

City Council meets Tues., Dec. 14, at 7 p.m in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil 

Citizens Humane Commission meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Katherine O’Connor, 981-6601. www.ci.ber 

keley.ca.us/commissions/humane 

Civic Arts Commission meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 6:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Mary Ann Merker, 981-7533. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/civicarts 

Commission on Labor meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 6:45 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Delfina M. Geiken, 981-7550. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/labor 

Disaster Council meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 7 p.m., at the Emergency Operations Center, 997 Cedar St. William Greulich, 981-5502. www.ci.berkeley.ca. us/commissions/disaster 

Homeless Commission meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Jane Micallef, 981-5426. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/commissions/homeless 

Mental Health Commission meets Wed., Dec. 15, at 6:30 p.m. at 2640 MLK Jr. Way, at Derby. Harvey Turek, 981-5213. www.ci.erkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/mentalhealth 

Planning Commission meets Wed., Dec. 15 at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Janet Homrighausen, 981-7484. www.ci.berkeley. ca.us/commissions/planning 

Design Review Committee meets Thurs., Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Anne Burns, 981-7415. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/designreview  

Fair Campaign Practices Commission meets Thurs., Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Prasanna Rasaih, 981-6950. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/faircampaign 

Transportation Commission meets Thurs., Dec. 16, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Peter Hillier, 981-7000. www.ci.berkeley.ca. 

us/commissions/transportation


Connecting Small Presses With Readers for 35 Years By MATTHEW ARTZ

Tuesday December 07, 2004

Small Press Distribution (SPD) is celebrating its 35th year as the nation’s only non-profit book distributor. 

“It’s one of the great resources in publishing,” said Robert Gluck, a poet and novelist, who has relied on SPD to distribute his works nationally since 1973. 

On Saturday Gluck was one of several authors to read from his latest work at SPD’s open house, which let dozens of local literature fans peruse its shelves of 250,000 volumes in search of books that can’t be found elsewhere. 

“This place is such a treasure,” said Dan Fisher, a local poetry writer. “Every small press book you could imagine is here. Even at Moe’s or Cody’s, it’s hit or miss.” 

SPD’s central mission is to get books of literary merit into bookstores, libraries and college reading lists by working as a distributor/wholesaler for over 500 small publishers.  

Since bookstores don’t have the resources to negotiate with multitudes of independent publishers, SPD gets books from the printer to the consumer.  

“If we didn’t exist these publishers wouldn’t sell books and then they wouldn’t exist,” said SPD Deputy Director Laura Moriarty. 

She said that currently the organization, comprised of six paid staffers and about eight volunteers, distributes 13,000 titles to bookshops and libraries in 36 states. SPD, which has a budget of just over $1 million, collects fees from publishers, but makes most of its money from sales, Moriarty said.  

SPD got its start when Peter Howard the owner of Serendipity Books and five independent Northern California publishers decided to join forces to get the work of local poets into book stores. 

The first employees stored the books in Serendipity’s retail store on shelving they built themselves, said Victoria Shoemaker, one of SPD’s founders and a former president of the board of directors. SPD has since moved several times before settling down at its current location in a West Berkeley warehouse. 

Over the years, the organization has distributed the works of Berkeley poets Devorah Major, Lyn Hejinian and Leslie Scalapino and served as a farm team for bigger publishing houses by distributing the early works of prominent authors like Michael Ondaatje, author of The English Patient. 

SPD has expanded from distributing solely poetry to other forms of literature and some non-fiction, which now accounts for about 40 percent of its sales, Moriarty said. 

As the organization matured it took on more publishers, but never turned a profit. Shortly after Howard decided to divest himself from the venture in 1979, SPD registered as a nonprofit, enabling it to qualify for state and federal grants which combine for about 25 percent of its funding.  

Public funding has helped keep the organization afloat in a publishing world that has been marked by increasing consolidation of publishers and book shops, making it increasingly difficult for distributors to find retail outlets for independent publishers. All of SPD’s early competitors have gone out of business, Shoemaker said. 

She added that in the past decade membership in the American Booksellers Association has dropped from 3,600 to 1,800 stores as chains pushed out independent shops.  

“Independent stores are our most reliable customers, so when they fold it makes business a lot harder,” Shoemaker said. Among SPD’s biggest customers, she said, are the New York Public Library and St. Marks Bookshop in New York. 

For small literary publishers who are more concerned with having their authors read than turning a profit, SPD provides an invaluable service. 

“We’d be nowhere without them,” said David Buck, editor of Tripwire, a Bay Area-based literary journal that SPD has sent to independent bookstores across the country and to a literature class at the University of Maine. 

Tobin O’Donnell, a founder of Low-Fidelity Press in San Francisco, said bigger distributors repeatedly rejected his firm’s books before he turned to SPD. “They just seemed excited that there was a new press that was publishing quality work,” he said. 

Moriarty, however, said SPD rejects about three times as many publishers as it accepts—about 100 rejections a year—either because they don’t find literary merit in their books or they simply can’t add to their roster. 

For writers like Gluck, who specializes in novels on romance and sexual obsession, SPD gives him an outlet in an industry that largely ignores mid-level novelists. 

“With the consolidation of publishers, the industry stopped caring about fiction because they didn’t think it was profitable,” he said. “SPD is essential for writers like me who have an audience of around 5,000 readers.” 

Cole Swensen, a poet and creative writing professor at the University of Iowa, doesn’t earn a living from her writing distributed by SPD, but is happy to know her works are on book shelves in cities across the country. 

“At times I’ve seen my writing in stores, and I think, wow, I had no idea they carried me here,” she said.


Five-Story Project Proposed For San Pablo Avenue Site By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday December 07, 2004

A controversial development project on San Pablo Avenue, first proposed in 1999 and then abandoned amid neighborhood opposition a year and a half ago, has taken on new life with a different developer. 

Berkeley’s Zoning Adjustments Board will consider Thursday the proposed 34-unit, five-story residential and commercial condominium project at the site of a former gas station at 2700 San Pablo Ave. 

City Planning Department staff are recommending approval. 

Just 17 months ago, neighbors defeated a similar rental project for a four-story 35-unit residential and commercial project at the same site, proposed by developer Patrick Kennedy’s Panoramic Interests and Jubilee Restoration, run by the Rev. Gordon Choyce. 

The new proposal calls for 18 one-bedroom apartments, 12 two-bedroom units and four street-level lofts (four live/work and one residential) in a 40,161-square-foot structure with 38 ground-floor parking slots. A cafe is planned for the ground floor corner at the intersection of San Pablo Avenue and Derby Street. 

Because the ground floor lofts include a second, residential level, they are counted as two-story units, and the developer is seeking approval of the project at five stories as a concession for offering inclusionary units affordable to families with incomes earning from 80 to 120 percent of area mean income. 

Six of the units, including one of the ground floor lofts, will be inclusionary units, affordable to low-income tenants, said Berkeley Senior Planner Greg Powell. “There will be affordable units on all floors and distributed throughout the building,” he said. 

The use permits and plans for the earlier projects were packaged with the land, and bought by the new developer, Curtis & Partners, LLC, of San Francisco, headed by Charmaine Curtis. A former executive with San Francisco developer AF Evans, Curtis started her own company earlier this year. 

Because of the additional floor and other changes, the project requires a modification to the previously issued use permit. 

“I became involved in the project after a friend told me about the site, and I contracted Patrick Kennedy. I’ve been working on it for nine months now,” Curtis said. 

She has a purchase agreement for the property, which has not yet closed. 

The project is her first since leaving AF Evans. “I’m focusing almost exclusively on entry-level urban infill projects,” she said, “and I hope to do more in Berkeley.” 

ZAB will consider a modification of the existing Kennedy/Choyce permit to accommodate the new design for the site from David Baker & Partners, a San Francisco architectural firm. Powell said the plan is more interesting than the previous plans. “David Baker does good buildings, and the individual units are bigger than before,” he said. 

Under the Permit Streamlining Act, ZAB has to act at Thursday’s session unless the developer agrees to an extension. 

Douglas Press, whose day job is serving as a lawyer for the state attorney general’s office, filed a lawsuit against the previous project in August 2002, along with three other area residents. 

“I’ve not received any notice on the new project, although I’d assume the city would realize I was an interested party,” Press said Monday. “What does it take to be known by the city as an interested party?” 

Powell said the city wasn’t required to notify Press because he lives more than 300 feet from the project, but “it probably would’ve been a nice thing to do.” 

He said that, in addition to mailings, posters were installed around the project area to notify residents. 

Press said his objections to the original project were raised by the project’s size, density and potential impacts on the surrounding community. “Our concerns were such things as increased traffic, shadow impacts and water concerns.” 

Helga Alessio, another of the litigants, said she wouldn’t contest the current project. 

“I fought for four years through two lawsuits, and I just don’t see any realistic chance of fighting it this time. I’ve given up on democracy in this city,” she said. “I’m very disillusioned by the process and I put way too much energy into it.” 

Panoramic originally acquired the property in 1998 and the original Kennedy/Choyce plans called for a 48-unit building, until they were scaled down to 35 by the time the City Council voted their approval on July 23, 2002, despite two petitions signed by more than 400 residents. 

The lawsuit followed a month later. 

Litigant Howie Muir also co-wrote an unsuccessful November 2002 ballot measure that sought to restrict the height of new buildings in the city and was the plaintiff in another suit challenging the city’s approval of a 40-unit low-income senior housing project at Sacramento Street and Dwight Way. 

At the time he filed suit, Muir lived a block-and-a-half up Derby Street from the project site; today he lives in Nevada City in the Sierra Madre, though he’s keeping tabs of developments in Berkeley. 

“Basically, the courts have held that because Berkeley is a charter city, staff is not bound by the West Berkeley Plan, the General Plan or any similar documents,” Muir said, “and the City of Berkeley has not demonstrated good stewardship for its citizens when it comes to land use. 

“The rules of the game in Berkeley are not published, and consequently they’re not accessible to the general public and are prone to manipulation by developers,” he said. 

“No one begrudged the idea of having low-income housing there. It was the sheer bulk of the project, and the way it ignored the context of the surrounding area of one- and two-story buildings.” 

At the time Kennedy and Choyce killed the project, litigant Julie Dickinson told the Daily Planet that neighbors would have accepted a three-story project, blaming Kennedy for his refusal to consider neighborhood pleas for a smaller building. 

“It was way too out of scale for the neighborhood,” she said. 

Monday DIckinson said she and other neighbors will challenge the project at Thursday’s meeting. 

“We wish we could’ve had some impact on the design. We’re glad to see condos and affordable housing, but there’s been no Environmental Impact Report. no discussion of the ramifications of actual construction in a neighborhood where parking is already difficult,” she said. 

Dickson said she was also concerned about the possible release of toxins released into the soil by leaking tanks from the gas station that stood on the site, and she says the ultimate goal of neighbors is the creation of a San Pablo Avenue are plan. 


City Manager Issues Rosy Budget Update, With Warnings By MATTHEW ARTZ

Tuesday December 07, 2004

An unexpected surge in tax revenues on property transfers could erase more than a quarter of the city’s projected $7.5 million deficit next year, according to a first quarter budget update released by the city last week. 

The report, recapping the city’s fiscal performance from July through September, shows that the Real Property Transfer Tax is running 33.7 percent above projections in the adopted budget. That would amount to about $2 million in unbudgeted revenues if the trend continues through the final three quarters, City Manager Phil Kamlarz wrote. 

However, the report also contained some troubling news. Revenue from parking fines, which for years has lagged behind expectations in contributing to the city coffers, is 6.3 percent lower ($585,000) than projections and parking officers have written two percent fewer tickets than during the same time period last year. 

Also the fire department spent 42 percent of its overtime budget in the first quarter. Kamlarz wrote that the department anticipates exhausting its entire overtime by the end of December, which is only halfway into the fiscal year ending in June. Projections show fire department overtime expenditures costing the city an extra $400,000 to $600,000. 

“We’ve been slammed with a lot of vacancies,” said Deputy Chief David Orth. 

In September the department had 18 firefighters on leave and seven job openings, he said. Six newly trained firefighters will begin work by Christmas. Because of additional retirements in December, Orth added, the department would have to hire more firefighters and probably wouldn’t be able to straighten out its overtime budget until June. 

Last June, the City Council approved the current 2005 fiscal year budget that closed a $10.3 million deficit in the city’s general fund. 

Overall, the city spent approximately 23 percent of its budget in the first quarter, essentially in line with projections. 

Although the city’s general fund is balanced for the current fiscal year, two special funds require emergency action, according to Kamlarz. Measure B, a fund supported by sales tax revenues, is in deficit and will require a mid-year $2 million cut in spending. The public works and transportation departments use the fund and are working with the city manager to identify expense reductions, Kamlarz wrote.  

The Central Services Fund, an internal services fund for mail delivery and in-house printing services, currently has a shortfall of around $240,000, according to Tracy Vesely, the city’s budget manager. 

While it’s too early to gauge how much money city taxes will generate this year, Kamlarz wrote that most are tracking close to budget estimates. First quarter returns for the hotel tax, utility users tax and interest income are on target, Kamlarz wrote, although year-end projections showed them coming in at a combined $573,000 below budget forecasts. The business license tax showed a low first quarter return, but Kamlarz wrote he thought it would track even with budget assumptions by the end of the fiscal year. 

Projecting city revenues has proven a difficult task for city officials. Last year, the city underestimated property tax revenue by $363,071 and property transfer tax revenue by $3.3 million, while overestimating income from the sales tax by $964,892, the hotel tax by $331,389, interest income by just over $1 million and parking fines by just under $2 million. 

With Berkeley still unable to collect its budgeted revenue from parking fines, Kamlarz wrote that the city was considering several reforms, including improving officer training, developing an employee recognition program to improve morale, adding field supervision, increasing officers’ hours and changing enforcement plans for parking meters. 

Kamlarz is scheduled to present a mid-year report in February that will include proposals for using unanticipated revenue such as the property transfer tax intake for critical projects and asking the council to approve mid-year expenditure reductions in operating funds running a deficit.›


Roberts Center Critics Appeal Project Approval By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday December 07, 2004

Critics of the Ed Roberts Campus recently approved by the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) for South Berkeley have appealed the Nov. 15 decision to the City Council. 

Stressing that they don’t want to stop or delay the project, neighbors Erica Cleary, Kathleen Croker, Robert Lauriston and Julie Twichell are challenging the way city staff and ZAB conducted the approval process. 

The Ed Roberts Center, to be built at 3075 Adeline St. at the site of the South Ashby BART on the east side of Adeline Street, will provide education, training and other services for the disabled. It’s named after the founder of Berkeley’s Center for Independent Living. 

Lauriston said the approval was in clear violation of the California Environmental Quality Act provisions that call for a 20-day period where the public can review all the relevant documents before a decision is made on the project. 

In the case of the Ed Roberts Campus those documents included an environmental impact statement (IS), a mitigated negative declaration (MND) and 21 separate documents referenced therein. 

Documents are to be posted at two places, the Berkeley Public Library and the city Permit Center. 

“They were four days late in posting the IS and MND and all the documents at the Permit Center and they never made the referenced documents available at the library. That meant that people who worked during the day had no access to the critical documentation,” Lauriston said. 

In addition, he said, “ZAB didn’t really fulfill its responsibility to deal with obvious omissions and errors in the impact statement.” 

Though not cited in the appeal, Lauriston said the city had said that the project, a modernistic glass-fronted design neighbors have said looks like an airport terminal, conflicts with the existing historical resources in a turn-of-the 19th century neighborhood. 

Lauriston and his friends also contend that the plan as approved violates the city zoning ordinance because it didn’t include use permits for some of the center services and business in a project that lies in a commercial zone on the west and in an R# residential zone on the east. 

“Those variances would also serve the useful purpose of further highlighting that the set of concessions granted to this project are as extraordinary as the project itself. . .and do not set a precedent for other projects,” Lauriston wrote.›


A Daily Planet Holiday Invitation

Tuesday December 07, 2004

For the holidays we at the Daily Planet want to give our readers an issue of their own. If you have a story you want to tell about something in the East Bay, about one of your favorite things, a recollection, or anything else you have wanted to see in the Planet, this is your chance. Send us your stories and poems and we will turn over our Dec. 24 issue to you. Get submissions to us by Friday, Dec. 17 for consideration.  

You can send items to us by e-mail at holiday@berkeleydailyplanet.com, or by mail at 3023A Shattuck Ave. 94705.e


Kerry Captured 90 Percent of Berkeley Vote By ROB WRENN

Special to the Planet
Tuesday December 07, 2004

John Kerry won 90 percent of the votes cast for president in Berkeley, while George Bush won the support of only 6.6 percent of Berkeley’s voters.  

Kerry received 54,409 votes, the highest number received by a Democratic presidential candidate in Berkeley in at least the last 30 years. 

While final certified results are not available in every state yet, it appears that Berkeley ranks number three among cities with populations of 100,000 or more nationwide in the percentage of votes cast for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. Among these larger cities, only Detroit, Michigan and Gary, Indiana (population: 102,746) provided higher percentages for Kerry. 

Kerry won 94 percent of the vote in Detroit and 92 percent in Gary, Indiana. Over 80 percent of the population in both cities is African-American. A major exit poll found that nationally, 88 percent of African-Americans voted for Kerry. In its support for Kerry, Berkeley edged out Washington D.C., another city with a large African-American population, where 89 percent voted for Kerry. 

Among cities with a majority of white residents, there is no question that Berkeley ranks number one in the nation in support for Kerry. 

Many observers have noted that Kerry was strongly supported by urban voters, while Bush drew his support primarily from rural and suburban areas.  

In New York City, voters favored Kerry over Bush by a 3 to 1 margin. In Boston, the ratio was about 3.5 to 1. It was 4 to 1 for Kerry in Philadelphia; 4.5 to 1 in Chicago, and better than 5 to 1 in Cleveland. But this pales in comparison to Kerry’s victory in Berkeley, where he received almost 14 votes for every vote cast for George Bush. Detroit, with close to 16 to 1, and Gary with a ratio of slightly more than 14 to 1, surpassed Berkeley. 

Berkeley also outdid San Francisco and Santa Cruz, both progressive-leaning California cities where Republicans are a small minority; in both cities, Kerry garnered 83 percent of the vote. And the percentage of the vote for Kerry here was higher than in other traditionally left-voting cities with major universities such as Cambridge, Massachusetts and Madison, Wisconsin. 

 

Nader rejected 

The key to Berkeley’s ranking near the top of cities supporting the Democratic candidate in this year’s presidential race was a shift away from voting for Ralph Nader and third party candidates.  

As the table that accompanies this article shows, GOP unpopularity is nothing new. Republican presidential candidates have not been popular in Berkeley in recent elections, though Bush’s percentage this year represents an all-time low point for GOP presidential candidates. 

What has changed is that there has been a sharp drop in the vote for Ralph Nader. In 1996, Nader came in second with almost 14 percent of the vote; while in 2000, he again came in second with a little over 13 percent of the vote.  

This year, Nader was not on the ballot, though he was running as a write-in candidate. The total write-in vote for president, not all of it for Nader, was 1.4 percent in Berkeley. Green Party candidate, David Cobb, got 1 percent.  

Clearly, a majority of the 7,100 Berkeley voters who supported Nader in 2000 decided to vote for Kerry this time around, even though California was considered to be a safe “blue” state. Revulsion against the Bush presidency certainly was at the heart of this shift. There are about 4,700 registered Green voters in Berkeley and it’s a safe bet that a large majority voted for Kerry. 

Bush was massively unpopular throughout Berkeley. He lost every precinct by huge margins. His very best precinct, where he managed a mere 15 percent of the vote (100 votes) was located in Fraternity Row. 

As for the precinct with the smallest number of Bush voters, the prize goes to precinct 431 in the LeConte neighborhood west of Telegraph where only 10 people voted for Bush. That precinct is home to Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates. 

For the smallest percentage of Bush voters, the prize goes to precinct 870 in the heart of South Berkeley, where the 19 votes for Bush amounted to only 2 percent of the 943 votes that were cast. 

While Berkeley has been sharply divided geographically in recent local elections between “progressive” areas in the flatlands and close to campus, and “moderate” areas in the hills, the differences in voting in national elections are very small.  

District 3 (South Berkeley and LeConte) was Kerry’s best district. Voters there were for Kerry over Bush by 93 percent to 3 percent. District 8 (mostly east of College including the hills above Claremont Ave.) was Bush’s best district. Voters there were for Kerry over Bush by 87 percent to 10 percent. Whatever their differences on rent control or other local issues, Berkeley voters share a strong dislike for Republicans in general and George Bush in particular. 

Up until the 1990s, Republican presidential candidates managed to score in the low double digits in Berkeley. Ronald Reagan received 9,844 votes, or 16 percent of those cast, in his successful 1984 bid for re-election. But since 1984 support for the Republican party has declined in Berkeley. 

 

Turnout up in Berkeley 

There was a jump in turnout in Berkeley compared to the last two presidential elections. 60,818 voters cast ballots in Berkeley this year, an increase of 11.2 percent over the 2000 election when George Bush won his first term in office. Turnout was higher than in any election since 1984. In both 1984 and this year, the presence of a right-wing Republican incumbent in the White House galvanized Berkeley’s left-of-center voters and resulted in high turnout. 

Some of this year’s increase in turnout is probably due to growth in Berkeley’s population since 2000, but most of it is attributable to a higher percentage of Berkeley’s voters going to the polls.  

Measuring and comparing turnout in Berkeley elections is complicated by the fact that voter rolls, especially in student areas, have tended to contain substantial numbers of voters who no longer live at the addresses where they are listed.  

According to the official statement of the vote recently posted on line by Alameda County’s Registrar of Voters, 77.3 percent of Berkeley’s registered voters turned out. But among people who actually still live in Berkeley, turnout was probably well over 80 percent.  

One student dormitory precinct reported that 726 of 1,246 registered voters voted, not a very impressive turnout in a hotly contested election. A close inspection of the voter list for that precinct would probably find a substantial number of names of former residents of that precinct’s high rise dorm. 

Absentee voting was also way up in Berkeley. In this year’s election, 37.2 percent of all the votes cast were absentee ballots. In the 2000 election, only 17.8 percent were absentee votes. 

Voting absentee was more common in the hills than in Berkeley’s flatland neighborhoods. In Council District 6, which includes the northeast Berkeley hills, 45.7 percent of the votes cast were by absentee ballot, while in Council District 2 comprising the southwest portion of Berkeley, 35.4 percent voted absentee.  

Absentee voting was least common in student areas, and especially in dormitory precincts, where in some cases fewer than 10 percent of votes were cast absentee.  

 

In an upcoming issue, Rob Wrenn will report on and analyze the results of local races in Berkeley, including the hotly contested tax measures.  


Hancock Fears New Hacking Bill May Go Too Far By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Tuesday December 07, 2004

A Southern California State Senator, reacting to last fall’s UC hacking incident, wants to repeal current California laws allowing state agencies to release social security numbers and other personal data to public and private sector researchers. 

State Senator Debra Bowen (D-Redondo Beach)—who has in the past authored laws restricting the use of Social Security numbers by businesses and government agencies—introduced SB 13 on the first day of the new legislative session this week. 

But a spokesperson for State Assemblymember Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley)—who has been working on this issue since the UC Berkeley hacking incident surfaced last month—says that while Hancock supports efforts to provide more security for personal data, “we don’t want to put a chill on needed research projects.” 

The sharing of Social Security numbers with private researchers by California public agencies became a political issue last fall when a hacker broke into a UC Berkeley computer that contained personal information of more than 600,000 California In Home Supportive Services (IHSS) workers and clients. The private information—including Social Security numbers, birthdates, and telephone numbers—had been placed on the computer by a Connecticut-based researcher working under contract with the state of California. 

Under current California law, state agencies may share such personal information with researchers, but the researchers must block out the information before placing it in a computer database. In this case, the personal information was not blocked out. 

No evidence has been presented that the hacker ever obtained the Social Security numbers or other private information on the hacked UC Berkeley computer.  

However this week, officials of the Department of Social Services announced that the state will spend close to $700,000 to mail warning notices to all 1.4 million individuals whose names and personal information were provided to the researcher. Last month, Assemblymember Hancock had called upon DSS officials to do such a mailing after DSS had decided to only do a media release and a web posting. 

As far as Bowen’s bill banning the dispersal of personal information to researchers, a release sent out by the State Senator’s office said the proposed bill would prevent state agencies from turning over personal information to anyone “unless it is required by law for law enforcement purposes.” 

Saying that Social Security numbers are “the one key criminals need to unlock someone’s entire financial history,” Bowen said that “the responsibility for safeguarding or removing [the numbers] shouldn’t have been on the researcher, it should have been on the state.” 

The senator added that while the Department of Social Services “may have had the authority to hand 600,000 names and Social Security numbers to the researcher, that doesn’t mean it was a smart thing to do. The state needs to take a hard look at its laws on data sharing, because most of those laws were written decades ago.” 

But Assemblymember Loni Hancock chief of staff Hans Hemann says that might go too far. 

“One of the fears that we have is that we don’t want to kill research projects that are going to give us important information,” Hemann said. “The state has data of various types of things that does need to be researched, and we just need to make sure that there are policies in place and enough security measures taken that these breaches don’t occur. But I’m sure that Senator Bowen is going to take that into account. 

“Loni wants to make sure that we have statewide protocols and procedures in place so that when people are using confidential identifying data for research, that information cannot be used for purposes of identity theft. We haven’t seen Senator Bowen’s bill yet, but we certainly are in favor of adopting such protocols and procedures that still allow research to continue.” 

Hemann said one of the problems with redacting Social Security numbers before giving data to researchers is that researchers need a tracking number to identify individuals in a data set. “I think what DSS did was rather than going in and creating 1.4 million new distinctive tags for each client or worker, they just sent along the Social Security number,” Hemann said. “If I recall correctly, in one of the briefings DSS representatives said that we could have and yeah, maybe we should have, included a different identifier with each of the clients.” 

He said that this is one of the problems which state and university officials are attempting to work out. 

Hemann said that since the hacking incident, Hancock’s office has been working with the Health and Human Services Agency and the Department of Social Services “to try and come up with a better mechanism so that data doesn’t get released. They have put together a task force to try to set standards so that these types of breaches don’t happen again. UC Berkeley is going through a similar review of their policies. Apparently when they looked at this project they viewed it simply from the individuals’ perspective—are there any concerns with the interviews that were going to take place between the researcher and the individuals—and they didn’t think about doing a review of the identifiable personal information. Of course, they now realize that they were lacking.” 

Hemann also gave insight into how the Social Security numbers and other personal information may have ended up on the UC Berkeley computer despite state policies prohibiting that practice. Hemann said it was his understanding that the IHSS data was placed by the private researcher on her own computer, which was then connected to the UC Berkeley system. 

“There was one point where she was having the computer installed on campus and had the university employee strictly followed the protocol and asked all the right questions, the data would not have been put in an area that would have been so vulnerable,” he said. “There was one question they failed to ask.” The question left unasked was whether the personal information had been redacted. 

Meanwhile, no arrests have been made in the Aug. 1 hacking incident that highlighted the problem in the first place. A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation office in San Francisco said that the FBI has an “ongoing investigation” in the matter. The spokesperson said no further details on the pending investigation could be released at this time. 

'


New Council to Choose Vice-Mayor Rotation By MATTHEW ARTZ

Tuesday December 07, 2004

Mayor Tom Bates has backed off, in the face of City Council opposition, from proposing that Councilmember Linda Maio succeed Maudelle Shirek as vice mayor when the new council convenes today (Tuesday), his chief of staff said Monday. 

Councilmember Betty Olds, a moderate, was preparing to stand by her three most progressive colleagues, Kriss Worthington, Dona Spring and Max Anderson, to keep Maio from being selected as vice mayor. 

The vice mayor is a ceremonial post responsible only for running meetings when the mayor is absent. But with several councilmembers—namely Worthington and Maio—seen as possible contenders for a mayoral bid in 2008, opponents to the nomination said they feared that the title could have given Maio a leg up if she chose to run. 

After former vice mayor Maudelle Shirek lost her reelection bid to Anderson last month, Mayor Tom Bates proposed that the council name Maio, a close ally of his on the council, as her successor. Spring responded with a competing item on Tuesday’s agenda calling for the vice mayor position to be rotated among council members as was the practice prior to the council’s electing Shirek to the post in 1996. Under Spring’s proposal councilmembers would receive either three or six-month terms as vice mayor. 

Shirek lobbied for the position in 1996, arguing that she had the longest tenure on the council. With Shirek gone, there is no one member with seniority. Maio, Spring and Olds are the longest serving members now, all elected in 1992. 

“Going back to the rotation system seems to be the most politically fair option,” Spring said. 

Before Monday’s turnaround by Bates, Maio had said she was honored that the mayor had nominated her, but that she wouldn’t want to pick a fight with colleagues over the position. She said she agreed with the four councilmembers opposing her nomination that “being vice mayor would definitely help position a person for a mayoral run.” 

Cisco DeVries, aide to Mayor Bates, said Monday that in the face of the substantial opposition, the mayor planned to propose a variation of a rotation system, proposed by Spring, instead of pushing for Maio to gain the title. 

Bates has also nominated her and Councilmember Gordon Wozniak to sit on the council’s agenda committee, which screens items before they reach the full council. Neither nomination has sparked opposition.  

Also on Tuesday’s agenda are scheduled votes on whether to accept a memorial sculpture honoring Berkeley native and former Sierra Club President David Brower and whether to allow UC Berkeley to build a pedestrian bridge over Hearst Avenue. 

The 175-ton, 20-foot high sculpture commemorating Brower was commissioned by Brian and Jennifer Maxwell, owners of Berkeley-based Power Bar Inc. After San Francisco rejected the sculpture, the Maxwell estate offered it to Berkeley and found a receptive host in Mayor Tom Bates, who has lobbied to find a home for it on Berkeley’s Marina. 

Last month a panel of the city’s Civic Arts Commission voted 6-2-1 to recommend that the city accept the sculpture, designed by Finno-American sculptor Eino, but attached several conditions. Among the commission’s requests were that the sculpture not include a replica of Brower scaling the massive stone and bronze globe and that the city consider other locations for it. The sculpture is currently disassembled in a San Francisco warehouse. 

Brower, born in Berkeley in 1912, died in 2000. 

Critics had argued that the sculpture’s bulk and Brower’s position scaling the globe weren’t an appropriate memorial to the environmentalist’s legacy. 

Also, after postponing a vote twice this year, the council will consider UC Berkeley’s construction of a pedestrian footbridge 21 feet above Hearst Avenue. The bridge would connect La Loma Dormitory on the north side of Hearst Avenue with the rest of the Foothill Housing Complex on the south side of the street. Currently no disabled students live in La Loma, UC officials say, because the area’s steep slope hinders the mobility of students who use wheelchairs. 

UC Berkeley has sought a city variance to build the bridge over city airspace since construction began on the residential community in 1988. Now the university is offering the city $200,000 in pedestrian improvements and final say over the bridge design. 

Some residents who live north of the campus oppose the bridge, which they argue would do little to help disabled students, since most would still choose not to live in the hills, and say that residents would still face the dangerous intersections on Hearst since the bridge would only be available for students. 

The councilmembers will review a survey of their top priorities for the coming year which was taken at the request of the city manager last month. Seven councilmembers participated, three of whom are no longer on the council. 

Among the items topping the list were construction of athletic fields near Gilman Street, a new police dispatch system, improving the city’s business climate, how to spend more than $3 million in parking improvements owed the city by Vista Community College, a pedestrian safety plan, and the planned downtown hotel/conference center. 

However two councilmembers, Kriss Worthington and Dona Spring, chose not to participate in the survey because they were unsatisfied with the list of priorities presented by the city manager and maintained that the vote should have been taken by the newly elected council. 

Setting priorities is the first step for department heads to craft their budgets for the next fiscal year. 

“If you ask the people of Berkeley what the city’s priorities should be, this list is a joke,” said Worthington, who said affordable housing and public safety should have been options. 

Maio said the city might want to change its approach to priority setting to make sure that the concerns of all councilmembers are considered. “If people aren’t going to participate maybe this isn’t the way we should do it,” she said.?


BUSD Classified Employees Ask To Reopen Contract By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Tuesday December 07, 2004

The Board of Education of the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD) will consider a proposal at this Wednesday night’s board meeting to reopen collective bargaining agreement with its classified employees. 

The meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. at the Old City Hall on Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

The request to reopen negotiations was made last month by Berkeley Council of Classified Employees (BCCE) field representative Richard Hemann in a letter to BUSD Superintendent Michelle Lawrence. BCCE, Local 6192, represents 360 instructional assistants and office workers in the school district. 

The BCCE-BUSD contract was approved by the board in April and runs through June of 2007. 

Representatives of the BCCE were not available for comment. 

In other action, the board will be asked to approve Berkeley High School’s revised Site Plan for 2004-05.  

Site improvement plans are required by the state superintendent’s office for all California public schools receiving state funds. Among other things, these plans track pupil achievement and progress toward meeting academic goals, progress in reducing dropout rates, expenditures per pupil and types of services funded, and progress toward reducing class sizes and teaching loads. 

Plans from all of the district’s schools were originally submitted to the board last June, but were sent back for improvements. 

Last month, the board accepted the revised school site plans from most of the schools in the district, but only after severely criticizing several of the plans, and after receiving assurances from Superintendent Lawrence that changes will be made in the future in the way the site plans are developed. 

Revised site plans are yet to be received by the board for Willard Middle School and Berkeley Alternative High School. Those will be brought before the board at its Dec. 15 meeting. 

In addition, even with all current board members returning for the new term, Wednesday’s agenda calls for the board to reorganize itself for the coming year, including selecting new officers. 

Meanwhile, the Board of Education has announced that it is presently soliciting applicants for membership on the BUSD Youth Commission, Facilities Safety and Maintenance Oversight Committee, the Peace and Justice Commission, and School Construction Oversight Committee. Participation on the committees are open to parents, students, and community members as well as all BUSD staff members who do not have conflicts of interest with the respective committee. Applications are available online at www.berkeley.k12.ca.us/SB/SB_advisory.html.›


Education Foundation Newsletter Wins Award for Excellence By J. DOUGLAS ALLEN-TAYLOR

Tuesday December 07, 2004

A Berkeley non-profit foundation set up to promote excellence in local schools has received that distinction itself—an award from the Public Education Network in Washington D.C. for Excellence in Communication. 

The Berkeley Public Education Foundation (BPEF) received this year’s Carmen A. Sarnicola Award for its fall 2003 newsletter in a national competition with 1,600 school districts in 33 states. The newsletter is distributed to households and businesses in Berkeley. 

BPEF was formed in 1983 with the stated mission of “restoring excellence in Berkeley public schools” in the wake of the cutbacks caused by the passage of Proposition 13. It’s main project is to provide classroom grants to teachers and volunteers. Other foundation projects include the Berkeley High School Health Center, the Berkeley Teachers’ Center, and the Longfellow Theater Capital Campaign. 

The Public Education Network is a national organization of local education funds. 

—J. Douglas Allen-TaylorC


Letters to the Editor

Tuesday December 07, 2004

KPFA 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The premise of your article “Two Groups Battle for KPFA Listener Board” by Jakob Schiller (Daily Planet, Dec. 3-6) is incorrect and therefore the whole article is based on a lie. The LSB does not order time changes for Democracy Now or any other program. The board merely affirms the democratic decision by the Program Council that moves Democracy Now to prime time in the morning and now to rebroadcast in the evening.  

Also, the article fails to note that electing the ‘pro-staff’ slate would replace the leadership on the board and all black leadership—the PNB director, the treasurer, the secretary, and the chair of the Outreach Committee (Tenderloin summit manager).  

If we cannot rely on Berkeley print media to be fair and balanced...who can we rely on? 

Warm regards, 

LaVarn Williams 

KPFA LSB Ttreasurer  

 

• 

ANTI-POWELL DOCTRINE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Mr. Rumsfeld’s military strategy in Iraq started with shock and awe and evolved into a long hard slog implementing, without intending to, a perversion of the Powell Doctrine: Invade with underwhelming force and don’t worry about exiting. 

Currently, Mr. Rumsfeld, ever the loyal minister, prepares for an election in Iraq on schedule, because “an imperfect election is better than no election.” Having learned nothing from Powell, a general who was once a hero, Mr. Rumsfeld cannot be expected to learn from the situation in the Ukraine where we see evidence that an imperfect election can be very, very bad.  

Marvin Chachere 

San Pablo 

 

• 

RAPE OF FALLUJAH 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Why are confederate cult Christians bragging about the rape of Fallujah? 

“American troops took Fallujah by storm this week,” bragged the evening news. “Airplanes strafed insurgents and tanks rolled through the streets.” 

Why would people who actually call themselves Christians want to make the rape of Fallujah sound like a good thing? You would think, after reading the teachings of Jesus every day like they claim to do, that they would have the good grace to shut up about it. 

Every night before we go to bed, let us take a minute to pray for George Bush’s dead...in Afghanistan, Israel, New York, Iraq, Palestine, Sudan, Nigeria, Columbia, Arlington... 

Last week a friend of mine found the decomposed body of a poverty-stricken and ill old man in her back yard—where he had gone to curl up and die. 

     America can—and must—do better. 

Jane Stillwater 

 

• 

VOTER FRAUD 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I admire both Bob Burnett and the Daily Planet for being willing to seriously consider the evidence of voter fraud. At a time when most of the major media (even the Bay Guardian) are unwilling to look at this evidence, this is a vital public service. 

The fact that all of the evidence gathered so far does not add up to 3 million stolen votes is not enough to dismiss the charges of voter fraud. It would be a miracle if an underfunded and ignored group of bloggers could have found every single example of fraud. No one expects the police to catch every single criminal. The most plausible conclusion is that what we found so far is just the tip of the ice berg. 

I found Burnett’s suggestion that the exit poll discrepancy was produced improper sampling of the suburbs and exurbs to be plausible. But Is there any evidence to back it up? If so, I would appreciate it if the Planet would publish it. If this is only a speculation, it is still more plausible that voter fraud is what made the difference, for there is, as Burnett points out, plenty of evidence for that. 

I also agree with Burnett that the Democrats would have better luck if they energized their base, rather than tried to appeal to the center. But that doesn’t mean that Bush actually won this election. 

Teed Rockwell 

 

• 

COUNT THE VOTES 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

On Bob Burnett’s conclusions that Bush won because the Republicans did a good job at getting out the vote, I just don’t get it. Elections are won by the candidate who gets the most votes, not a subjective opinion about how skillfully a campaign was run. The fact that the Republicans ran a good campaign is not evidence that they got more votes. The only way to know who got the most votes is to count the votes. 

Lynn Davidson 

 

• 

DEVELOPMENT 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

P. Levitt’s Nov. 23 reply suggests a misunderstanding of my Nov. 19 letter, and of other things. Allow me to clarify. 

Levitt says he’s “saddened to see our downtown movie theaters become less vital than Emeryville’s because it is too difficult to develop viably in Berkeley.” That’s odd: Berkeley’s last repertory theater (the Fine Arts) recently died because the city’s most vigorous developer handily tore down its building. 

If Berkeley’s first-run theaters are losing business to Emeryville—which I doubt—it’s likely because the latter offers much easier parking. Plus, maybe a place to get a bite after 9 p.m. 

UCLA’s moviegoing district really has declined, though—depressing nearby businesses and real estate. The New York Times attributes this (in a Dec. 1 article) solely to limited parking. 

Levitt also says he’s baffled by how one would define “a reasonable population size” for Berkeley. An easy answer would be some 102,000 to 117,000 people—its range over the last 35 years. 

I value living in a community small enough that city department heads return citizens’ phone calls. Since Levitt says he’s lived in Berkeley for 20 years, I bet he appreciates the same things I do. I don’t want to live in a big city run by an unresponsive machine. Aggressively growing the city’s population won’t spread its benefits, only destroy them. 

Over the Oakland border, mayor Jerry Brown is struggling to add 10,000 new residents to that city’s population of 400,000. Maybe Berkeley should add a proportionate 2,500 new residents. 

Beyond that, let’s help Jerry out by “franchising” Berkeley’s attractions into North Oakland and other neighboring cities. Probably I should volunteer in Oakland schools, and Levitt should keep an eye on the Richmond City Council. Some other Berkeley resident needs to open a tofu stand in El Cerrito. 

Levitt writes that “UCB’s population will continue to grow...We can only respond responsibly by planning well for that which is inevitable.” But that’s defeatist talk, and redundant besides. 

UCB’s growth can ultimately be controlled by riding herd on Sacramento to repeal UC’s archaic constitutional exemption from local planning regulations. The UCB campus is already one of the nation’s largest universities. It, too, needs to start “franchising” some of its prestige to other UC campuses whose host cities can better accommodate physical expansion. 

Levitt laments that “vigorous dialogue so quickly disintegrates into name calling.” That’s curious: He kicked off this exchange by dismissing existing residents as NIMBYs, and their dwellings as “urban blight, existing eyesores.” 

How shortsighted! California’s vernacular structures—which the late design historian Reyner Banham celebrated as “Dingbat Architecture of Freewayland”—are to be cherished. 

Finally, Levitt writes that architects and developers should not be viewed as “outside interlopers.” I disagree. Developers do nothing that government couldn’t do for itself—that is, they build stuff. By privatizing this basic function, they accumulate huge amounts of money. 

Then they distort the political system by playing kingmakers. Then they distort it further, calling in their chits by demanding zoning changes to make it easier for them to build still more stuff. Lastly, they have the gall to claim that this isn’t corporate welfare, but a public service! 

As for Berkeley’s crybaby architects, I’ll say it again: If they had any real talent, they’d have commissions. 

Marcia Lau 

o



Opposition to Ed Roberts Campus Masked in Historic Design Complaint By SUSAN PARKER

COLUMN
Tuesday December 07, 2004

I read in this very paper that the proposal to build the Ed Roberts Campus, the South Berkeley facility that will house a consortium of organizations serving the needs of the disabled, could be held up due to challenges from the California Office of Historic Preservation.  

Apparently, the state office does not concur with the city’s determination that the project will have no impact on historical resources in the area. Approval by this agency is critical in order for the project to receive federal funding.  

At a recent meeting of the Berkeley Zoning Adjustment Board, representatives from the neighborhood, which is located on the east side of the Ashby BART station, turned out again, as they have been doing for the past several years, to protest the presence of the center in their community. 

I did not attend the meeting, but I have attended many past meetings regarding this issue. At other gatherings homeowners in the quadrant bordered by Ashby and Alcatraz avenues, and Martin Luther King Jr. Way and Shattuck Avenue, protested that the proposed project would cause parking and noise problems. They suggested that it be built on the other side of Martin Luther King Jr. Way, by the MacArthur BART station, or somewhere else, just not near them. 

They argued that someone other than the City of Berkeley owned the airspace above the BART station, that cars with disabled plates and placards would suck up all their parking spaces, and that people in wheelchairs could be victimized by criminals and transients who hang around the transit hub and its adjacent parking lot. They suggested that housing disability-oriented organizations in one building smacked of ghetto-ization, and that BART is not wheelchair friendly and therefore having the campus built over the station would not be of much use to people traveling there from other parts of the East Bay. 

I don’t recall anyone saying that the building design did not fit in with the historic nature of the neighborhood, but now this is being used as another possible excuse for holding up the project. “We have a wonderful diversity of designs in our neighborhood,” someone said at the recent Zoning Board meeting. “The one thing we don’t have is anything that resembles this design. It doesn’t fit in.”  

I don’t live very far from this part of South Berkeley. A quick walk up the street from my house puts me in the neighborhood and has me passing the hideously purple Black Repertory Theater, the ugly South Berkeley United States Post Office, a variety of apartment buildings, washhouses, cleaners and pizza joints, a church and the turreted building across the street that houses Marmot Mountaineering and several other businesses. Residents are right on when they say there is “a diversity of designs” in this community. It looks a lot like all the other neighborhoods that surround it, including mine. 

I sympathize with the home owners. I don’t like the inconveniences that construction causes. I put up with a similar situation in that Oakland Children’s Hospital is less than two blocks from my house and often in the throes of remodeling. But you know what? I wouldn’t deny the people who use that facility a parking place in front of my home. And I wouldn’t have the gall to say that the hospital takes away from the historic ambiance of my neighborhood, even though it is big and ugly and it has a helicopter landing pad, and my house is an adorable, perky 1907 Victorian. 

I think it’s time that the people who live near the proposed building site of Ed Roberts Campus fess up. They just don’t want it in their neighborhood, and they will clutch onto any excuse not to have it. NIMBYism is alive and well in a lot of places, including this self-proclaimed, liberal-leaning, historically modified South Berkeley ‘hood. 


Police Blotter By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday December 07, 2004

Felon Bites Cop 

When police arrived at a residence in the 2100 block of Allston Way in response to a complaint of domestic abuse, one officer got more than he bargained for. 

Their arrival was sparked by an out-of-state call from the partner of the 22-year-old man who reported being abused by the suspect, said Berkeley Police spokesperson Officer Joe Okies. 

On arrival, the combative suspect sunk his teeth into one of the officers, adding a felony charge of assaulting a police officer to the charge of domestic abuse. 

 

Brick Assault Report 

A 61-year-old Berkeley man told police Thursday that he’d been struck in the head by a brick on Ashby Avenue near the intersection of San Pablo Avenue on the afternoon of Oct. 24. He was unable to offer a description of his assailants. 

 

Prostitution Sting 

Police arrested five women in a South and West Berkeley prostitution sting last Thursday. 

 

Rat Pack Robbers 

Officers arrested three suspects ages 23, 25 and 28 in two downtown Berkeley robberies early Friday morning. Another, younger, suspect remains at large. 

In the first incident, the quartet accosted a 29-year-old man on Shattuck Avenue near the Kittredge Street intersection about 1:52 a.m. and knocked him down and proceeded to kick him as they robbed him of his watch and jacket. 

In the second incident 20 minutes later, the quartet braced a 20-year-old woman near the corner of Shattuck and Allston Way and tried to grab her purse, succeeding after a brief tug of war. 

Officers conducting a search of the nearby area eventually nabbed the trio, who are facing charges of robbery and assault with a deadly weapon causing great bodily injury. The latter charge stems from the kicking attack, said Officer Okies. 

 

Steals on Wheels 

A man in his late teens to early 20s flashed a pistol at 50-year-old woman just as she extracted her cash from an autoteller machine just outside the Wells Fargo Bank in the 1000 block of University Avenue. 

The bandit escaped with the cash via bicycle. 

 

Stop Leads to Bust 

When police questioned a 20-year-old spotted near the corner of Channing Way and Atherton Street at 1:06 a.m., they quickly discovered three things: He was carrying stolen property and burglary tools, and was thus in clear violation of his probation from an earlier offense. 

He was escorted to new quarters, where he will have ample time to ponder his fate.›


Fire Department Log By RICHARD BRENNEMAN

Tuesday December 07, 2004

Fireplace Ash Triggers $1.1 Million Blaze, Destroys Cragmont Ave. Home 

Flames ignited by a box of fireplace ash placed under a wooden deck destroyed a million-dollar home in the Berkeley hills Sunday morning along with contents valued at $120,000. 

Deputy Fire Chief David Orth said the owner of the house at 524 Cragmont Ave. had cleaned out ashes from a fireplace fire from the night before and stored them in a box under the deck. 

“He was sitting at his computer when he saw smoke,” Orth said. “He evacuated himself and a tenant.” 

Within minutes, the flames had spread from the deck to another deck above and had penetrated the home bursting through two floors and on through the roof in multiple places. 

The home was fully engaged when engine crews arrived, and they battled the flames for more than two hours before bringing them under control at 11:48 a.m., Orth said. 

“We went through a lot of air bottles fighting that one,” said Orth. “There were heavy winds blowing right before the fire, but fortunately they’d died down. Otherwise we might’ve had real problems,” he said. 

The owner of the home, a writer, was distraught about the loss of manuscripts, Orth said.  

Mattress Gone, Home Saved 

A frayed electrical cord ignited a mattress in the rear of a home at 2531 Dana St. shortly before 8:25 a.m. on Nov. 29. The alert homeowner spotted the smoke and called the fire department. 

A few quick spritzes from a fire extinguished snuffed the flames, which were fully controlled a few short minutes later. 

Loss was mainly confined to the mattress, Orth said. 

 

One Remodel Leads to Another 

Residents of a home at 1480 Ninth St. had stowed most of their belongings in their converted garage for remodeling, but had forgotten to shut down their wall heater. Sometime in the cold night hours before 2:31 a.m. Saturday, the heater kicked in, igniting belongings stored next to it. 

Flames had spread to the kitchen when firefighters arrived. 

The blaze was fully controlled by 3:15 a.m. 

The homeowner received minor injuries in the incident and was treated at the scene, said Chief Orth. 

Damage to the contents—almost all of them having been moved to the garage—was estimated at $25,000, with structural damage estimated at $45,000. 

ª


Alquist-Priolo Bars Building On Faultlines By JANICE THOMAS

COMMENTARY
Tuesday December 07, 2004

To follow-up on Charles Smith’s reflections (Letters, Daily Planet, Dec. 3-6) about policies that would effectively prohibit building on earthquake faults, there is already such a policy, a law even, voted in by the state Legislature in 1972. It is the Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Zoning Act.  

To quote from UC Berkeley’s 2020 Long Range Development Plan’s draft environmental impact report (LRDP DEIR), “The act states that prior to project approval, cities and counties shall require a geologic report defining and delineating any hazard of surface fault rupture. No structures for human occupancy may be built across an identified active fault trace. Pursuant to the act, the State of California has delineated an Earthquake Fault Zone for the Hayward fault, which runs through the eastern portion of the UC Berkeley campus. This is the only Earthquake Fault Zone within the 2020 LRDP area.”(p. 4.5-3).  

UCB’s LRDP DEIR states furthermore that “the Hayward fault is most relevant to UC Berkeley, since it passes through the eastern part of the campus, under Memorial Stadium and close to Bowles Hall, the Greek Theater, and Donner Lab.” (p. 4.5-7; emphasis added).  

Finally, the UCB LRDP DEIR cites a USGS report which estimates that of the San Andreas fault, the Hayward-Rodgers Creek fault, and the Calaveras fault, the fault with the “highest probability of generating a M?6.7 earthquake before 2032…” is the Hayward (p. 4.5-7). 

For a graphic illustration of the fault running through the stadium, go to www.seismo.berkeley.edu/seismo/tour/stadium.html. 

Despite the presence of the Hayward fault running lengthwise through the stadium, despite the likelihood of a significant seismic event on the Hayward fault, and despite the state legislature’s action to discourage building in the Alquist-Priolo Zone, the university administration stubbornly refuses to look at alternative locations to rebuild its stadium. The Strawberry Canyon location is not just anywhere in the Bay Area, or anywhere in Berkeley, it is one of the highest risk areas around. Even worse, the risks are heightened by topography that interferes with emergency response to spectators and residents alike.  

Concerned neighbors have been effectively intimidated by the pro-sports sentiment surrounding the terrific football team and superb coaching staff. Those days are over. The university needs to find a safe location that does not increase the risk of injury and trauma to spectators and the thousands of people living in the surrounding neighborhoods (plural emphasized). To rebuild at the Strawberry Canyon location is sheer madness.  

 

Janice Thomas lives in District 8.›


Planning Department Website Watch By ZELDA BRONSTEIN

COMMENTARY
Tuesday December 07, 2004

As I’ve previously written in the Daily Planet, some time in the past year the Berkeley Planning Department removed from its website the lists of notices of decision that document the Zoning Adjustment Board’s recent approval of use permits.  

Because a ZAB action can be appealed to the City Council only for 14 days after a notice of decision has been issued, the timely posting of NODs, as they’re popularly known, is one of the planning staff’s most important responsibilities. Formerly NOD lists were mailed out to interested parties. With the advent of electronic communication, the mailings were discontinued, and the lists were posted on the Department’s website.  

The removal of the NODs from the department website was never formally announced or explained. Indeed, well after the NODs themselves had disappeared, the heading “Notices of Decision” still appeared on the website. Now planning staff have eliminated this incongruity: as of last week, the heading was also gone.  

In the wake of this latest disappearance, I e-mailed the city’s zoning officer, Debbie Sanderson, and asked why the department couldn’t resume posting a list of current NODs on its website.  

Sanderson gave me a reply worthy of Condoleezza Rice. First she informed me that “we put [the NOD list] on the website voluntarily to make it easier for the public to track projects. It is our long term goal to put the list back on the website, as soon as we can free up a little staff time to further develop the project tracking database that we’ve created.”  

I e-mailed back wondering why, if the department really wants to make it easier for the public to track projects, planning staff couldn’t post the NODs right now. Given that the lists rarely number more than twenty addresses and dates at a time, posting any one list couldn’t require more than five minutes. Why wait until the “project tracking data base” has been further developed—an undertaking that sounds pretty ambitious?  

In reply, Sanderson thanked me for my “response” and added that “we’ll consider posting some type of NOD list.” That was it.  

Having served almost seven years on the Planning Commission, I’m aware that the Planning Department is terribly shorthanded. But what we’re talking about here is not the revision of the city’s creek ordinance or the calculation of density bonuses or the rules governing historic preservation—just a few of the complex Berkeley land use issues awaiting resolution.  

By contrast, putting the NODs on the department’s website would seem to be a simple and straightforward task. If it’s more complicated than it appears, staff should say so. Otherwise, it looks as if Sanderson and her crew want to make it harder, not easier, for the public to track projects.  

Returning the NODs to the department website would be a welcome gesture of staff goodwill and responsiveness. It would convey an attitude just the opposite of the one expressed by the statement, “we put [the NOD list] on the website voluntarily.” The message there is: We do as we please—get it?  

I’m afraid I don’t get it. City staff’s job is to help the public, not to boss it. That’s the very different message sent by the six objectives of the General Plan’s Citizen Participation Element:  

1. Ensure citizen and community participation in General Plan and other planning tasks.  

2. Improve citizen participation in relationship to the crucial decision-making bodies in land use matters.  

3. Enhance notification, information, and process for citizen input in land use matters.  

4. Improve neighborhood participation in land use planning and decisions.  

5. Increase the use of new technology for citizen participation.  

6. Improve the role of cty administrative structure and staff in relationship to meaningful citizen participation.  

Berkeleyans committed to democratic governance and concerned about local land use should put the realization of these goals high among their political resolutions for 2005.  

 

Zelda Bronstein is a former chair of the Berkeley Planning Commission.


Berkeley’s Rent Control Ordinance Violates the U.S. Constitution By ROBERT CABRERA

COMMENTARY
Tuesday December 07, 2004

The Taking protections of our Federal (5th Amendment) Constitution is a significant protection and the envy of people throughout the world. In an era when property in parts of the world is taken by the use of force without just compensation to those displaced, this American right created in our constitution must be applied even under the most benevolent circumstances such as the good intentions of people like Chris Kavanaugh (Letters, Daily Planet, Nov. 19-22). 

However, rather than strengthening or merely preserving these protections, the trend is towards their eventual dismantling. Without property rights freedom is meaningless. 

Let me give you a real life example of the chaos that ensues without property rights. Many years ago I met a couple who had owned what they described as a very nice house somewhere in Cuba. They had worked all their lives to own it. One day during the Cuban revolution their maid and gardener refused to let them enter the house stating that since they had toiled in it for many years it rightly belonged to them more than to the holders of the title. The couple lost the house and belongings since there was no legal recourse; seeing the writing on the wall they left the island for the U.S. 

A couple of decades later they spoke with someone who told them that the maid and gardener had been soon evicted themselves and that a Cuban functionary had taken their place. The maid and gardener apparently had no legal recourse any more than the original owners. 

Rent control is merely the chipping away of the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution—and the chips are flying and taking us ever closer to the Third World Cuban chaos described above.  

On its face rent control is a clear violation of the Fifth Amendment which states: “nor shall private property shall be taken for public use, without just compensation.” 

Without being a lawyer, it is clear to anybody that a property placed under rent control is worth less and hence the owner is deprived of part of its value, hence it is unconstitutional under the Fifth Amendment. 

Rent control also violates another section of the U.S. Constitution (Bill of Rights) that provides in Section 10: No state shall pass any law impairing the obligation of contracts. In other words if a landlord and a tenant want to agree on a rent level and enter into an agreement, the state should not interfere. 

These basic property rights are self evident: If I own something you can't take it away from me (it is called stealing). If one person wants to voluntarily purchase a legal good or service from another, the government should not get in the way. 

From an economic standpoint, rent controls do not work. Look up rent control in the index of any Econ 101 text and you will see that it is routinely used as an example of why price controls in general do not work. Some even provide graphs to illustrate the failure. Here is an excerpt from one of these college books: “Ironically, although rent controls are often legislated to lessen the effects of perceived housing shortages, in fact, controls are a primary cause of such shortages.” 

In plain English: Rent control makes housing even more scarce. 

Rent control laws are passed with good intentions such as helping low income tenants. However since rent controls create shortages, for any given vacant apartment there will be many applicants and the landlord will invariably chose the most qualified which means that the poorest will be passed over.  

Rent control also creates the incentive for prospective tenants to pay “key money” to tenants who are about to give notice. When I lived in NYC many years ago, I gladly entered into an agreement with the departing tenant (Section 10 of Bill of rights mentioned above) to whom I paid one thousand dollars to obtain the studio apartment renting for $125 per month. This thousand dollar amount was my life savings at the time. 

The sad part about rent control is that the politicians and bureaucrats who politically or financially benefit from this failed housing policy will always want the public to focus not on the failure of rent control as public policy but on the housing provider. They will always characterize the tenant as victim and landlord as target. And since rent control is the crown jewel of Berkeley politics (tenants are more numerous that landlords), we can expect this state of affairs to continue. 

 

Robert Cabrera is a Berkeley resident. 


‘Play of Daniel’ Brings Medieval Liturgical Drama To Berkeley Church By KEN BULLOCK

Special to the Planet
Tuesday December 07, 2004

Combining spectacle and intimate moments of dialogue and soliloquy in song with an extraordinary processional chorus of 40, The Play of Daniel is at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Bancroft Way this week in a joint production by Aurora Theatre Company and Pacific Mozart Ensemble. 

The production, originally staged in the 12th century at Beauvais Cathedral in France, is back in Berkeley by popular demand after a successful 6-day run last year.  

Staged by UC Emeritus Professor Dunbar H. Ogden, The Play of Daniel makes use of different voices at different locations as well as the great chorus, moving through—and sometimes heard from outside—the sanctuary. In other words, the church becomes an instrument, with wonderful vocal effects achieved through exploiting different local acoustics. 

This outstanding—and deeply affecting—performance is the result of decades of research by Ogden (some of it summarized in his UC Press book, The Staging of The Play of Daniel in the Twelfth Century). Uncovering manuscripts of medieval liturgical dramas, Ogden discovered some had stage directions—and the directions could occasionally be traced to the particular church where the play was performed. Visiting these sites (in particular, Beauvais Cathedral, site of The Play of Daniel), Ogden discovered how the plays moved through the church, among the congregation, and how music and singing were enhanced by acoustical effects specific to the church’s architecture. 

It’s a powerful experience to hear this enormous chorus, often only a few feet away, as they wind their way through the audience, the sound of the voices surrounding the listeners, punctuated by solos from characters in the play. 

The play features the different personae from the Old Testament account of Daniel interpreting the mysterious words written on the wall at Belshazzar’s Feast, the Fall of Babylon and “Daniel in the Lions’ Den,” elaborated on by the medieval dramatists. 

Daniel the prophet, because of his divine rescue from the lions’ den and other travails, was used as figure of Christ’s resurrection (and his Harrowing of Hell) in medieval sermons and visual arts (church sculpture and stained glass windows; illuminated manuscripts). The Play of Daniel is performed during the most celebratory time of Western Christianity. 

Not like opera, oratorio, or other kinds of musical theater, The Play of Daniel is a unique combination of the performing arts with its own unity and effectiveness. There has been a tradition (or counter-tradition) of medieval music or miracle plays (like The Second Shepherd’s Play) performed at Christmas in reaction to the commercialization of the modern holiday. But none of these convey the great overall effect of the Aurora/Pacific Mozart production. 

New York Pro Musica presented a reconstruction of The Tale of Daniel (I saw it performed at Zellerbach during the 70s) that became famous and was considered ground-breaking by some, but it was more of a professional pastiche of disparate elements from different medieval sources. The staging of that play never carried the full integral power and authenticity of Ogden’s mounting of the script. 

The show features Ogden’s collaborator Henk Verhoef, visiting from Europe, singing and playing. Richard Grant, Pacific Mozart’s artistic director, presides over the voices of this “rebirth of drama in the West after the Dark Ages.” 

 

The Play of Daniel will be performed at 8 p.m. through Dec. 11 at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $22-$25. 843-4822, www.auroratheatre.org.Ã


Holiday Spirit is Alive at Two Historic Houses By STEVEN FINACOM

Special to the Planet
Tuesday December 07, 2004

The seasonal tradition of “decking the halls” makes December a particularly colorful time to visit local house museums decorated for Christmas tours and events. 

You’ll find contrasting, but equally interesting, holiday displays at two local houses, one in Oakland and another in Hayward. 

Dunsmuir House is clearly the queen house museum estate of the Oakland area, featuring not only a four story mansion but extensive grounds which trail down along a forked creeklet south of the Oakland Zoo and just over a hill from the ceaseless roar of Highway 580. 

Walking from the north entrance down to the four-story wedding-cake white structure that sits of the edge of an enormous meadow is a trip back in time. 

Today, the refurbished and furnished 1899 mansion is owned by the City of Oakland, managed by a nonprofit, and available for both private events and public touring.  

Christmas at Dunsmuir has become an East Bay tradition, extending this year over three December weekends. 

The centerpiece of the season is the amazing house itself, from Tiffany stained glass dome to original wine cellar. Special Christmas decorations range from the whimsical—a dining table set for characters from the Nutcracker, beneath Christmas carol garlands—to the breath-taking—a 25-foot-tall Christmas tree festooned with enormous red and gold ornaments rising up through the central stairhall. 

Each room has a different decorative theme and its own Christmas tree. Look for the tree in the library that subtly changes color, the amusing “dessert tree” in the kitchen, a bathtub filled with glass “bubbles,” and a tree showered by a perpetually moving snowfall in an upstairs side hall. 

A few tips for a visit. Adult tickets are a not-inexpensive $15, but only $11 ordered in advance. (There are also senior and junior discounts.) Entry to the house itself is timed, so make sure the ticket you get at the gate reflects a workable schedule for you.  

When you tour the main house, don’t rush. The one-way route wends its way through three floors, and there’s no going back.  

Pick-up the written guide sheet at the front door, but also chat with the docents stationed throughout the house. They can share stories about the house and furnishings that aren’t written in the guide.  

When we were there upstairs foot traffic was carefully regulated but there was gridlock in the basement gift shop, which doubles as the only open exit for tour goers. 

Make sure to leave time to walk around the much less crowded grounds, where holiday carolers are also strolling. There’s an entertainment tent with various performers; on arrival, check your program for performance times.  

Children’s activities are available and the newest building on the property, an event pavilion, hosts vendors selling handcrafted jewelry, specialty foods, dolls and stuffed animals, and various other items. 

A holiday tea—an extra $23 per adult—is served in the Dinkelspiel House at the northern end of the estate, while a la carte food is available to purchase in the Carriage House at the southern end of the grounds. 

In contrast to the bustle and stately opulence of Dunsmuir House, Hayward’s McConaghy House seems an oasis of quiet 19th century tranquility for the holidays.  

Built in 1886, the two story, 12 room, home with wrap-around porch once stood in the midst of expansive farmlands, a far cry from the gas stations, strip malls, and fast food outlets that now share Hesperian Boulevard.  

The same family of Gold Rush Scottish immigrants lived there up through the early 1970s and now it’s a house museum traditionally decorated for “Christmas 1886” with appropriate ornaments and traditions.  

When we visited on a recent weekend there was only one other guest (ironically, a docent from Dunsmuir). We had a leisurely three-person tour for only $4 per adult, led by a friendly, costumed, guide. 

From the double front doors of glowing stained glass to the costumed woman playing the piano in the music parlor, the house exudes an antique festive spirit. 

During the Christmas season the house is decorated as a 19th century farm family of respectable means might have furnished it. There are several Christmas trees, tables set for elegant meals, and much assorted and colorful bric-a-brac of the era.  

Concise placards posted outside each room explain the use and significance of the holiday decorations. 

The house includes a wonderful kitchen with wooden ice box, a butler’s pantry displaying the best china and glass, and a commodious second pantry with wide shelving and bins to store home-canned and produced goods. 

There are two downstairs parlors, one set up as a music room, plus a dining room and an office complete with cougar rug. 

Upstairs, four main rooms are furnished to display a typical master bedroom, a children’s nursery, and the bedrooms of a grown up son and daughter of the McConaghy family.  

The latter contains still life paintings of fruit from the farm by the daughter, as well as a vintage “walking Christmas tree.” Intended as a party costume, the armless attire festooned with ornaments looks a bit like a torture device for the wearer. 

Upstairs back bedrooms probably intended for servants are now fitted out as a small museum shop with Victorian-style decorative items, Christmas ornaments, and other gifts from teddy bears to mechanical toys; when we visited many items were on sale at half price. 

Two important outbuildings remain, a two room water tower and a carriage house containing stabling for four horses, a clever arrangement of chutes and mangers to distribute their feed from the hay loft above, and a display of farm equipment and carriages.  

 




Arts Calendar

Tuesday December 07, 2004

TUESDAY, DEC. 7 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Grids and Reflections” giclée color prints by Art Levit opens at Photolab Gallery, 2235 Fifth St. and runs through Jan. 22. Gallery hours are Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. 644-1400. 

THEATER 

“Big Time Fourth Graders Opera Company” performs at 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. at Malcolm X Arts and Academic Magnet School, 1731 Prince St. Also on Dec. 8 at 10:30 a.m. 644-6313. 

“The Play of Daniel” by the Aurora Theatre Company and The Pacific Mozart Ensemble at 8 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Through Dec. 11. Tickets are $22-$25. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

FILM 

Alternative Visions: “Murder and murder” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Chamber Perfor- 

mances “Duo Concertante” with Anita Fetsch Felix, violin and Wolfgang Fetsch, piano, at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Tickets are $20. 525-5211. www.berkeleychamberperf.org 

Arlo Guthrie and the Klezmatics perform the music of Woody Guthrie at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $28-$56. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Anoush and Brass Menagerie at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Balkan dance lesson with Norma Adjmi at 7:30 p.m. Cost is $9. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Alisa Fineman and Alex de Grassi, Jewish world music, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage Coffee House. Cost is $15.50- $16.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Jennifer Clevinger and Dennis Geaney at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

Patricia Berber at 8 and 10 p.m. Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Also on Wed. Cost is $10-$18. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Jazzschool Tuesdays, a weekly showcase of up-and-coming ensembles from Berkeley Jazz- 

school at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 8 

FILM 

Powerpoint to the People Live competition at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“Map of a Dream: The Best Poetry of Inside Out 2004” by students of Rosa Parks and Cragmont Elementary Schools at 6:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Center. A project of the Center for Art in Translation. 

“Paris Transforming: The Beauty and Horror of Urban Reconstruction” with photographer and sculptor Leonard Pitt, at 8 p.m. at Giorgi Art Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. Cost is $12. 848-1228. www.giorgigallery.com 

Cafe Poetry and open mic hosted by Kira Allen at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

“Foreign Affairs: Erotic Travel Tales” with editor Mitzi Szereto at 7:30 p.m. at Easy Going Travel Shop & Bookstore, 1385 Shattuck Ave. 843-3533. 

Berkeley Poetry Slam with host Charles Ellik and Three Blind Mice, at 8:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5-$7. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Wednesday Noon Concert, University Chorus and University Chamber Chorus sing choral music for the holidays at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Music for the Spirit Ron Mc- 

Kean, harpsichord, performs Bach and Couperain at 12:15 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Oakland, 2619 Broadway. 444-3555. 

“Choreography Workshop” by UC Dept. of Theater and Dance at 4 and 6 p.m., Bancroft Studio, UC Campus. Free. 642-9925. 

Jules Broussard, Ned Boynton and Bing Nathan at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Bernard Anderson & The Old School Band at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Swing dance lesson with Nick and Shanna at 8 p.m. Cost is $9. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Son de la Terra and Lado Oriente in a benefit concert for Chiapas at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $5-$10. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Orquestra America, salsa, at 8 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Ezra Gale Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Cris Williamson, Teresa Trull & barbara Higbie at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $20.50-$21.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Kieran Cross, Human Marvels, Gun and Doll Show at 8:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $4. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

THURSDAY, DEC. 9 

EXHIBITIONS 

Kala Art Annual Exhibition New work in a variety of media by Kala’s community of artists, opens with a reception at 6 p.m. at 1060 Heinz Ave. Gallery hours are Tues.-Fri. noon to 5:30 p.m., Sat. noon to 4:30 p.m. 549-2977. www.kala.org 

Works from the Oakland Art Association Reception at 4 p.m. at the MetroCenter, 101 Eighth St., Oakland, at the Lake Merrit BART Station. Exhibition runs Jan. 27. 464-7773. 

“Threshold: Byron Kim” Guided tour at 12:15 and 5:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “Streeters” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Artists’ Talk: Mary V. Marsh and Toru Sugita at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center. 644-6839. www.berkeleydartcenter.org 

Marianne Williamson on “The Gift of Change: Spiritual Guidance for a Radically New Life” at 7 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Sponsored by Cody’s Books. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

Rachel Ray introduces her $40 a Day and Minute Meals books at 12:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-5900. www.codysbooks.com 

Erin Van Rheenen on “Living Abroad in Costa Rica” at 7:30 p.m. at Easy Going Travel Shop & Bookstore, 1385 Shattuck Ave. 843-3533.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley High School Band and Orchestra Winter Concert, with Harrison Pugh, violin, at 7:30 p.m. in the Community Theater on the BHS Campus. 

Yo-Yo Ma and Emanuel Ax at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $50-$150 available from 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Lowiczanie Polish Folk Ensemble “Koledy” holiday music from Eastern Europe at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Hillside Club, 2286 Cedar St. Tickets are $8-$12, children free. 540-0835. www.polishfolk.net 

Sisters Morales, folk with Mexican roots at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Plays Monk with Ben Goldberg, Devin Hoff, Scott Amendola at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

Brian Kane, jazz guitar, at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

Julia Lau at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

Gato Barbieri at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $18-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

FRIDAY, DEC. 10 

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “The Beginning and the End” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

THEATER 

“The Play of Daniel” by the Aurora Theatre Company and The Pacific Mozart Ensemble at 8 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Through Dec. 11. Tickets are $22-$25. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Aurora Theatre “Emma” at 8 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $36. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley High School “O & E” An original interpretation of the greek myth of Eurydice and Orpheus, at 8 p.m. Fri. and Sat., at Florence Shwimly Little Theater, Allston Way. Tickets are $5-$7. 332-1931. 

Berkeley Repertory Theater, “Polk County” A musical about aspring blues musician, Leafy Lee, at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. to Jan. 9. Tickets are $15-$60. 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org  

California Shakespeare Theater Student Company “As You Like It” Fri., Sun. at 7 p.m., Sat. at 2 and 7 p.m. at 701 Heinz Ave. Tickets are $3-$5. 548-9666. www.CalShakes.org 

Impact Theatre, “Meanwhile, Back at the Super Lair” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. through Dec. 11, at La Val’s Subterranean Theater, 1834 Euclid. Tickets are $10-$15. 464-4468. www.impacttheatre.com 

Shotgun Players “Travesties” by Tom Stoppard, at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. through Jan. 9. No performances Dec. 23-26. Free with pass the hat after the show. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Spoken Word with Shirley Phelps, Yolande Barial, Linda Joy Myers and Teresa LeYung Ryan at 7:30 p.m. at Kajukenbo Self Defense Center, 5680 San Pablo Ave. Oakland. $10-$20 sliding scale. 428-0502. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Ballet Theater “The Nutcracker” at 7 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Center for the Arts. Also on Sat. and Sun at 2 and 7 p.m. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $18. 845-4689. www.berkeleyballet.org  

Berkeley City Ballet “The Nutcracker” at 7 p.m. at Zellerbach Playhouse, UC Campus. Also Sat and Sun. at 1 and 5 p.m. Tickets are $15-$25. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Bella Musica performs Rachmanioff’s “All Night Vigil” at 8 p.m. at Arlington Community Church, 52 Arlington Ave., Kensington. Tickets are $12-$15. 

California Revels “The Winter Solstice” music dance and drama of 18th century Scotland. Fri. at 7:30 p.m., Sat.-Sun. at 1 and 5 p.m. through Dec. 19, at the Scottish Rite Theater, 1547 Lakeside Drive, Oakland. Tickets are $15-$42. 415-773-1181. www.calrevels.org 

Oakland Opera Theater “Rake’s Progress” by Igor Stravinsky, at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Thurs. - Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. through Dec. 19. Tickets are $22-$32. www.oaklandopera.org 

“Recommendations” new student choreography by UC Dept. of Theater and Dance at 4:30 and 8 p.m. in Zellerbach Room 7, UC Campus. Free. 642-9925. 

University Symphony performs Lutoslawski and Beethovan at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Brubeck Institute Jazz Sextet, featuring Christian McBride, at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $10-$15. 845-5373. www.jazz- 

school.com 

Native Elements, reggae, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Lucy Kapansky, modern city folk, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $19.50-$20.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Bing Nathan/David Kahn Duo at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

DJ & Brook, jazz trio, at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

The Uptones, Minus Vince, Shitouttaluck at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

Calvin Johnson, Whysp, No Nothing Party at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

JP Orbit at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

Pitch Black, The New Strange, The Feed, rock, at 9:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $7. Canned Food Drive for the Alameda County Food Bank. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Bucho, Soul, hip hop, at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$7. 548-1159.  

Realistic at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Gato Barbieri at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $18-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Edge of the Bay, progressive music California at 8:30 p.m. at the 1923 Teahouse. Cost is $5-$10. www.epicarts.org 

SATURDAY, DEC. 11 

CHILDREN 

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Derique, the clown, at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $4 for adults, $3 for children. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Everyday Universe” new paintings by Justin O’Neill and Paula Malesardi. Reception for the artists at 5 p.m. at Gallery of Urban Art, 1266 66th St., Emeryville. Exhibition runs through Jan. 6. Gallery hours are Mon.-Fri. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. noon to 4 p.m. 596-0020, ext. 197. www.galleryofurbanart.com 

“Negotiating Desire” works in various media by Kirsten Stromberg. Reception at 5 p.m. at Arts and Consciousness Gallery, John F. Kennedy University, 2956 San Pablo Ave. 649-0499. 

THEATER 

Living Arts Playback Theater “Fathers and Daughters” at 7:30 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $12-$18, sliding scale. 655-5186. www.livingartscenter.org 

“Born to be King” a nativity pageant by Mary Ann Tidwell Broussard at 5:30 p.m. at Black Repertory Theatre, 3201 Adeline St. Tickets are $13-$15. 652-2120. www.blackrepertorygroup.org  

FILM 

Cine Mexico: “Violet Perfume: Nobody Hears You” at 7 p.m., “Danzón” at 8:50 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The Art of Face: A Mask, a Body, a Movement” with photographer and sculptor Leonard Pitt, at 8 p.m. at Giorgi Art Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. Cost is $12. 848-1228. www.giorgigallery.com 

Berkeley’s Poetry Walk comes to the Central Library at 2 p.m. with six poets reading their work in celebration of the publication of The Addison Street Anthology, edited by Robert Hass and Jessica Fisher. 981-6139.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Ballet Theater “The Nutcracker” at 2 p.m. followed by Sugar Plum Fairy Party at the Julia Morgan Center for the Arts. Other performances through Dec. 19. Tickets are $18. 845-4689. www.berkeleyballet.org  

Kensington Symphony with Sharati Soman, soprano, at 8 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 545 Ashbury Ave., El Cerrito. Donation $8-$10. 524-4335.  

Sacred & Profane “O Magnum Mysterium” at 8 p.m. at St. Ambrose Church, 1145 Gilman St. Tickets are $12-$18. 524-3611. www.sacredprofane.org 

University Symphony performs Lutoslawski and Beethovan at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Berkeley Community Chamber Singers at 3 p.m. at ACCI Gallery, 1652 Shattuck Ave. Free. www.accigallery.com 

Bay Area Classical Harmonies Christmas holiday program featuring liturgical music from many traditions at 7:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 114 Montecito Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $10-$15. 866-233-9892. www.berkeleybach.org 

Rose Street House of Music Concert with Irina Rivkin, Green & Root and others at 8 p.m. at 1839 Rose St. Donation $5-$20. 549-4000, ext. 687. 

Holy Names University Community Chorus Holiday Concert at 4 p.m. at Studio Theater, Valley Center, Holy Names University, 3500 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$15 at the door. 436-1330. 

PickPocket Ensemble at 9:30 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. Cost is $3. 843-2473. www.albatrosspub.com 

Lucy Kapansky, modern city folk, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $19.50-$20.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Last Band Standing Winners at 9 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $10. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Carlos Olivera, Brazilian guitarist, at 8 p.m. at the Jazz- 

school. Cost is $12-$18. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Palenque, Cuban son, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Salsa dance lesson with Wendy Ellen Cochran at 9 p.m. Cost is $13. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Dave Bernstein Quartet at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Mike Jung and Nate Cooper at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Jah Warrior Shelter at 10 p.m. at Club Oasis, 135 12th St., Oakland. Cost is $10. 763-0404. 

Iron and the Albatross, Rosin Coven at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $6. 841-2082. www.starryplough.com 

Accidental Beauties, Pebble Theory, Damond Moodie, urban alt rock, at 9:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $7. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Dominatrix, The Dead Betties, Jack Queen at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Saul Kaye Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

The Bittersweets, americana/ 

alt-country acoustic duo, at 8:30 p.m. at the 1923 Teahouse. Cost is $5-$10. www.epicarts.org?


Fierce Debate Rages Over Monarch Migration Pattern By JOE EATON

Special to the Planet
Tuesday December 07, 2004

My thanks to Tom Butt for the reminder that the monarch butterflies have returned to their winter bivouac in the eucalyptus grove at UC’s Richmond Field Station. 

And they’re presumably also back in their other regular spots, up and down the coast from Mendocino to Baja: the cypresses at Pacific Grove, the trees at Former Natural Bridge State Beach near Santa Cruz, Morro Bay, Santa Barbara. I wonder if the roost at the Gill Tract is still there, or the one I saw long ago on Treasure Island when the Navy was in charge. 

Writing about monarchs feels a bit daunting. They’ve inspired some really gifted people: W. S. Merwin (the essay called “The Winter Palace”, in his collection The Ends of the Earth), Robert Michael Pyle (Chasing Monarchs), Sue Halpern (Four Wings and a Prayer). And it’s easy to see why. They’re beautiful, singly or en masse, and their migration is a mind-boggling phenomenon. How do they find their way each fall to the same scatter of coastal groves, or the same fir-covered Mexican mountains? And remember, the fall migrants—great-grandchildren, at least, of the previous winter’s generation—have never seen Mexico or Monterey. Is the route hardwired in their poppyseed-sized brains? The scientists still aren’t sure. 

A lot of what we thought we knew about the monarch migration is debatable, it turns out. Monarch scholars, as Halpern’s book shows, are a contentious lot, with strong opinions. UC Santa Barbara emeritus professor Adrian Wenner doesn’t believe their travels are true migrations like those of birds and bats. (Wenner, who I met a few years back on Santa Cruz Island, is an interesting combination of iconoclast and curmudgeon. He’s also convinced Von Frisch was wrong about the dance-language of bees.) He thinks what’s actually happening, on the West Coast at least, is an annual range expansion and contraction. Wenner’s field studies in Santa Barbara indicate local monarchs disperse from their roosts long before they could survive a crossing of the Santa Ynez Mountains, with some remaining near the coast year-round. 

Wenner’s is a minority view: other monarchists, like Lincoln Brower, the dean of monarch studies, regard the butterflies’ journey as a directed migration. But he acknowledges mysteries about origins and destinations. For years the ruling paradigm had monarchs west of the Rockies traveling to the California coast in winter, and those east of the Rockies migrating to Michoacan. Brower calls this notion of a butterfly Continental Divide—which has even been written up in Sunset—“a virtual canon in American natural history.” The problem, as he and Robert Pyle both concede, is that there’s little empirical support for it. And if you listen closely, you can hear the paradigms shifting. 

Only a handful of western monarchs from outside California have been recovered at coastal roosts. Two schoolteachers in Boise, Idaho, released locally hatched monarchs that were later found in California, and a butterfly that Pyle tagged in Washington State reached Santa Cruz. However, other Boise monarchs turned up in southern Utah, which would certainly be the long way around for a California-bound migrant. Pyle spent the fall of 1996 following monarchs through the Great Basin and saw most flying a southeasterly vector, as if headed for Mexico. 

Brower suspects there are large-scale interchanges between western and eastern monarch populations. Although some have claimed differences in wing length (related to longer distances traveled?), eastern and western monarchs are very similar genetically. Then there are the events of 1996. Western monarch numbers had nosedived in the early ‘90s, possibly due to a protozoan disease contracted from eastern butterflies released in the west. In the winter of 1995-96, observers reported an all-time low at the coastal roosts. But the monarchs had bounced back by the following summer. Conversely, eastern butterfly watchers saw far fewer northbound migrants than normal, with a 90 percent drop in some northern states.  

Brower and Sidney Gauthreaux, who studies migrant birds, have pointed out that wind patterns along the Gulf Coast shifted to the west in the spring of 96, causing a major western fallout of eastern warblers. Could the same thing have happened to the monarchs? And does the smaller western population rely on periodic infusions of fresh blood from the east? If so, the fate of the monarchs wintering in California could be bound to that of the oyamel fir forests of Mexico, under siege by loggers despite their nominally protected status.  

Things are dicey enough already for the western monarchs. The disease remains worrisome, prompting Brower, Pyle, and other conservationists to warn against the practice of releasing commercially-bred monarchs at weddings and funerals, “like biodegradable balloons.” Western monarchs have also chosen some highly desirable coastal real estate to roost in. And their preference for eucalyptus—75 percent of all California wintering sites, according to a recent survey, with Monterey pine a distant runner-up—can be problematic.  

Nobody is neutral about eucs. To native-plant advocates, they’re flammable megaweeds. But monarchists see their good side. Writing in Wings, the journal of the Xerces Society (a fine organization dedicated to the conservation of insects and other invertebrates), Pyle and Muir Woods ranger Mia Monroe make the case for eucalyptus as monarch habitat: “It is likely that, had ‘eucs’ not been introduced, the phenomenon of mass-wintering monarchs would not exist in California today; one of our highest goals should be to nurture tolerance for essential stands of eucalyptus—sometimes even refreshing them—until we can restore mature groves of native species.” 

Sounds reasonable to me. Monarchs have probably graced our coast for millennia. (The records in Monterey go back to the 1860s, prior to which, according to local monarch buff Lucia Shepardson, “nothing smaller than a bear would have attracted the…[early settlers’] attention.”) If the price of keeping them around is tolerating a few eucalyptus groves, it seems well worth it. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

.


Berkeley This Week

Tuesday December 07, 2004

TUESDAY, DEC. 7 

Mid-Day Meander from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. at Pt. Isabel. Meet at the parking lot at the end of Rydin Rd. Canine companions welcome. 525-2233. 

Snowcamping 101 A training session and slide lecture with Jodi Bailey and Kalle Hoffman at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

“Water Follies: The Environmental Consequences of Groundwater Pumping” with Robert Glennon, Morris K. Udall Prof. of Law & Public Policy, Univ. of Arizona, at 5:30 p.m. in 10 Evans Hall, UC Campus. Sponsored by the Water Resources Center Archives. 642-2666. 

Red Cross Mobile Blood Drive from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Berkeley Repertory Theater, 2025 Addison St. 1-800-GIVE-LIFE. www.BeADonor.com 

Open House for Wu-Wei Acupuncture and Healing Center from 3 to 5 p.m. Learn about Chinese medicine. 520-7835. www.wuwei-acupuncture.com 

Family Story Time at the Kensington Branch Library, Tues. evenings at 7 p.m. at 61 Arlington Ave. 524-3043. 

Berkeley Salon Discussion Group meets to discuss “Why Should We Explore Outer Space” from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut St. Please bring snacks and soft drinks to share. No peanuts please. 601-6690. 

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. 548-3991. www.berkeleycameraclub.org 

Cantabile Choral Guild Auditions at 7 p.m. at All Souls Episcopal Church, 2220 Cedar St. To schedule an audition time call 650-424-1410. 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. We offer ongoing classes in exercise and creative arts, and always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 8 

Community Workshop on Lanmarks Preservation and Zoning Ordinance Amendments at 7 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Sponsored by the Planning Commission. 981-7419. 

Holiday Wreath Making Class from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. Cost is $25-$30. Registration required. 643-2755. 

“Ethical and Racial Diversity in the Jewish Community” with Booker Holton, Ph.D, at 11:30 a.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. Cost is $5. 848-0237.  

Life Line Screening for stroke at University Inn, 920 University Ave. Appointments begin at 9 a.m. Cost is $125. For information or to schedule an appointment call 1-800-697-9721. 

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday, rain or shine, at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze market, just west of the I-80 overpass. Everyone is welcome, wear comfortable shoes, sunscreen and a hat. 548-9840. 

Prose Writers’ Workshop An ongoing group focused on issues of craft. Novices welcome. Community sponsored, no fee. Meets Wed. at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Jewish Community Center, 1414 Walnut St. 524-3034. georgeporter@earthlink.net 

Poetry Writing Workshop, led by Alison Seevak, every second Wed. at 7 p.m. at the Albany Library, Edith Stone Room, 1247 Marin Ave. Registration required. 526-3700, ext. 20. 

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil at the Berkeley BART Station, corner of Shattuck and Center. Sing for Peace at 6:30 p.m. followed by Peace Walk at 7 p.m. www.geocities.com/vigil4peace/vigil 

THURSDAY, DEC. 9 

“Death of a Shaman” a film about the Mien people who came as refugees from Southeast Asia to Kansas, at 6:30 p.m. at the Ellen Driscoll Theater, Frank Havens Elementary School, 325 Highland Ave., Piedmont. Sponsored by the Appreciating Diversity Film Committee. 599-9227. www.diversityworks.org 

Going Local: The Power of Growing Food Locally A panel discussion with three food policy experts and activists who will explore the power of supporting locally grown food in the face of mounting industrialization of the world’s food system. At 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

West Berkeley Holiday Party from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Wells Fargo Bank, 1095 University Ave. at San Pablo. Sponsored by the West Berkeley Neighborhood Development Corporation. 845-4106. 

Community Menorah Lighting with music, clown, fire-juggler, dreidels and Chanukah gelt at 5 p.m. at Cody’s Books, 1730 Fourth St.  

Red Cross Mobile Blood Drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Pauley Ballroom, UC Campus. 1-800-GIVE-LIFE. www.BeADonor.com 

East Bay Mac User Group meets the 2nd Thursday of every month, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Expression Center for New Media, 6601 Shellmound St. http://ebmug.org, www.expression.edu 

FRIDAY, DEC. 10 

Human Rights Day with Michael Nagler and The Search for a Nonviolent Future at 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Purnima Jka on the “Status of Women’s Rights” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $13, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925 or 665-9020. 

Berkeley Design Advocates Design Awards to acknowledge significant projects completed within the past two years, at 5:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. Admission is free, with recommended donation of $5. berkeleydesignadvocates@yahoo.com 

Opera Piccola’s Holiday Benefit Party at 7 p.m. at U-Turn New and Recycled Clothing, 5251 Broadway, corner of Broadway and College Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $30 for adults, $5 for children age 9 and up, and are free to children through age 8. All proceeds will benefit Opera Piccola’s arts and education programs in underserved communities. 658-0967. www.opera-piccola.org 

Family Literacy Night and Scholastic Book Fair at 7 p.m. at the Downtown Berkeley YMCA, 2001 Allston Way. Winnie the Pooh will be the special guest. 665-3271. 

Not Your Mother’s Craft Sale and Party from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. 238-2200. www.museumca.org 

Holiday Wreath Making Class from 10 a.m. to noon at the Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. Cost is $25-$30. Registration required. 643-2755. 

“Alive in Limbo” a documentary on the Palestinian right of return at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave.Cost is $6-$8 sliding scale. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

“So How’d You Become an Activist?” with Peter Phillips, director of Project Censored and Alli Starr, co-founder, Art & Revolution, at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists, 1924 Cedar St., at Bonita. Donation $5. 528-5403. 

Free Fitness Tests for people 50 and over at 12:30 p.m. at the South Berkeley Senior Center. You will receive a personalized scores and tips on how to maintain or improve your fitness. 981-5367. 

Literary Friends meets at 1:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center for a Haiku poetry workshop with Connie Andersen. 549-1879. 

Berkeley Critical Mass Bike Ride meets at the Berkeley BART the second Friday of every month at 5:30 p.m. 

Berkeley Chess Club meets Fridays at 7:15 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Players at all levels are welcome. 652-5324. 

Celebrate a Humanistic Chanukah with Kol Hadash, the Bay Area’s only Jewish Humanistic Congregation, with a pot luck dinner and party with music by the Klezhumanists, 6 p.m. at the Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Ave. To RSVP call 428-1492. 

Women in Black Vigil noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. 845-1143. 

Meditation, Peace Vigil and Dialogue, gather at noon on the grass close to the West Entrance to UC Berkeley, on Oxford St. near University Ave. Sponsored by the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. 655-6169. www.bpf.org 

SATURDAY, DEC. 11 

“The Commune: Histories, Legacies and Prospects in Northern California” A free workshop open to the public. Urban and rural communards, with some intact memories, especially welcome. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 223 Moses Hall, UC Campus. 642-2472. 

Berkeley Path Wanderers Walk exploring “Creeks, Paths, and History” with Friends of Five Creeks president Susan Schwartz. Meet at 10 a.m. at the main entrance of Live Oak Park Recreation Center, 1301 Shattuck. 848-9358. www.berkeleypaths.org, f5creeks@aol.com 

Kids Garden Club For children 7-12 years old to explore the world of gardening. We plant, harvest, build, make crafts, cook and get dirty! From 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$6, registration required. 525-2233. 

“Winter Blooms!” Free garden tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden. Sat. and Sun. at 2 pm. Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. 845-4116. www.nativeplants.org 

Holiday Decorations - Naturally Create wreaths and garlands using natural materials. Bring a pair of small hand clippers, a bag lunch, and a large flat box to take home your creations. From noon to 3:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. For adults and children 8 and over. Cost is $30-$61. Reservations required. 636-1684. 

East Bay Sanctuary Covenant’s Annual Craft Sale from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sat. and Sun. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Handcrafted items from indigenous co-ops in Central America, Haiti, Nepal, Afghanistan, Africa and other places at reasonable prices. Proceeds benefit Women’s Cooperatives all over the world. 527-0324. 

Berkeley Potters Guild Sale from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. and Sun. through Dec. 19. 731 Jones St. 524-7031. www.berkeleypotters.com 

Holiday Crafts Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Berkeley Farmers’ Market, Martin Luther King, Jr. Civic Center Park. 548-3333. www.ecologycenter.org 

Telegraph Avenue Holiday Street Fair, with over 200 street artists, merchants, community groups, musicians and other entertainers, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sat. and Sun. to Dec. 19, and Thurs. and Fri. Dec. 23 and 24. 

Berkeley Artisans Holiday Open Studios Sat and Sun. from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. For map see www.berkeleyartisans.com 

Albany Community Arts Show from noon to 6 p.m. at the Albany Community Center, 1249 Marin Ave., Albany. 14 Albany artists will display paintings, prints, ceramics and jewelry. Work will be available for sale. The event is free and wheelchair accessible. 

Junior Rangers of Tilden meets Sat. mornings at Tilden Nature Center. For more information call 525-2233. 

Introduction to Permaculture Design A workshop on ecological landscape design basics from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave, near Dwight Way. Cost is $10-$15. 548-2220, ext. 233. www.ecologycenter.org 

Cape Ivy Removal in Joaquin Miller Park from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Free plant raffle during a break in the activities. Friends of Native Plants will have a propagation session from 1:30 to 4 p.m. Directions: from Hwy. 13 take Joaquin Miller exit and turn east up the hill. Park along Joaquin Miller near Sanborn Rd. and walk to the northeast corner (up hill left) of the intersection. greensatwork@yahoo.com  

Car Wash Benefit for Options Recovery Services of Berkeley, held every Sat. from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Lutheran Church, 1744 University Ave. 666-9552. 

SUNDAY, DEC. 12 

Early Morning Bird Walk Meet at 8 am. at Tilden Nature Center to walk around the mixed feeding flocks and discuss the ecology of these seasonal assemblages. 525-2233. 

Help Clean Up Castro Creek and its tributaries. Learn about the Dumping Abatement and Pollution Reduction Program and the trash assessment monitoring tool as we remove harmful trash. Refreshments, tools, and gloves provided. Call for meeting place. Sponsored by The Watershed Project. 231-9566. Elizabeth@thewatershedproject.org 

Decorate the “Lorax” Way Make holiday gift wrap and decorations from recycled materials. From 12:30 to 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Festivals of Light Explore festivals of the season with saffron buns, jelly donuts, marzipan pigs, poems, riddles, games and songs. From 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$7, registration required. 525-2233. 

Chanukah Celebration Presented by Chabad of the East Bay from 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. 540-5824. www.chabadberkeley.com 

“Weapons of Mass Deception” with Ruth Rosen, S.F. Chronicle columnist at Women for Peace lunch, at noon at Café Venizia, 1799 University Ave. Cost is $37. For reservations call 849-3020. 

Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine College Open House from 6 to 8 p.m. at 2550 Shattuck Ave. Learn about how you can become a licensed acupuncturist. RSVP to 666-8248, ext. 106. 

Chanukah Fair from 12:30 to 4 p.m. at the Berkeley Richmond Jewish Community Center 1414 Walnut St.  

MONDAY, DEC. 13 

Tea at Four Taste some of the finest teas from the Pacific Rim and South Asia and learn their natural and cultural history, followed by a short nature walk. At 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, in Tilden Park. Cost is $5-$7, registration required. 525-2233. www.ebparks.org 

World Affairs/Politics Discussion Group for people 60 years and over meets Mondays at 10:15 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic Ave. Join at any time. 524-9122. 

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. Join us to work on current issues around police misconduct. 548-0425. 

TUESDAY, DEC. 14 

Morning Bird Walk “Some Gulls I Know” Meet at the Berkeley Municipal Pier at 7:30 a.m. 525-2233. 

Return of the Over-the-Hills Gang Hikers 55 years and older who are interested in nature study, history, fitness, and fun are invited to join us on a series of monthly excursions exploring our Regional Parks. Meet at 10 a.m. at Tilden’s Inspiration Point to walk the scenic ridge lands. Registration required. 525-2233.  

“Exploring Pt. Reyes and Beyond,” a slide presentation by photographer-writer team Richard Blair and Kathleen Goodwin at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Berkeley High School Site Council meets at 4:30 p.m. in the school library. Agenda items include athletic eligibility requirements, report of the Positive Minds program, and data on student achievement. bhs.berkeleypta.org/ssc, bhssitecouncil@berkeley.k12.ca.us  

The Alexander Foundation for Women’s Health lecture on “Sexual Desire: From Romance to Physiology” at 6:15 p.m. at the Claremont Resort, 41 Tunnel Rd. Cost is $10-$15. 527-3010. www.afwh.org/about/ 

claremontlectures.htm  

Organic Produce at low prices sold at the corner of Sacramento and Oregon Streets every Tuesday from 3 to 7 p.m. This is a project of Spiral Gardens. 843-1307. 

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. 548-3991. www.berkeleycameraclub.org 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Dr. Robert Greer will speak about macular degeneration at 11 a.m. 845-6830. 

Acting and Storytelling Classes for Seniors offered by Stagebridge, at Arts First Oakland, 2501 Harrison St. Classes are held at 10 a.m. Tues.-Fri. For more information call 444-4755. www.stagebridge.org 

HOW TO HELP 

Alameda County Community Food Bank’s Annual Food Drive accepts donations of non-perishable food in the red barrel at any Safeway or Albertson’s. 834-3663. www.accfb.org 

Firefighters Toy Drive Donate new, unwrapped toys and canned food to any Berkeley fire station. For information call 981-5506. 

Find a Loving Animal Companion at the Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society Adoption Center, 2700 Ninth St. 845-7735. www.berkeleyhumane.org  

United Way Bay Area is recruiting volunteer tax preparers and greeters/interpreters in Alameda County to assist low-income families who are eligible for free tax assistance and refunds. No previous tax preparation experience is necessary. There is a special need for volunteers who can speak Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese. Training sessions begin Jan. 8. Register now by calling 800-273-6222. www.earnitkeepitsaveit.org  

CITY MEETINGS 

City Council meets Tues., Dec. 7, at 7 p.m in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil 

Commission on Disability meets Wed., Dec. 8, at 6:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Don Brown, 981-6346. TDD: 981-6345. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/disability 

Energy Commission meets Wed., Dec. 8, at 6:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Neal De Snoo, 981-5434. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/energy 

Library Board of Trustees meets Thurs. Dec. 8, at 7 p.m. at 1125 University Ave., Jackie Y. Griffin, 981-6195. www.ci.ber 

keley.ca.us/commissions/library 

Planning Commission meets Wed., Dec. 8, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Janet Homrighausen, 981-7484. www.ci.berkeley. ca.us/ 

commissions/planning 

Waterfront Commission meets Wed., Dec. 8, at 7 p.m., at 201 University Ave. Cliff Marchetti, 644-6376 ext. 224. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/waterfront 

Commission on Early Childhood Education meets Thurs., Dec. 9, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Angellique De Cloud, 981-5428. www.ci.berkeley. ca.us/commissions/earlychildhoodeducation 

Community Health Commission meets Thurs, Dec. 9, at 6:45 p.m. at the South Berkeley Senior Center. William Rogers, 981-5344. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/health 

Housing Advisory Commission meets Thurs., Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. at the South Berkeley Senior Center. Oscar Sung, 981-5400. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/housing 

West Berkeley Project Area Commission meets Thurs., Dec. 9, at 7 p.m., at the West Berkeley Senior Center. Iris Starr, 981-7520. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/westberkeley  

Zoning Adjustments Board meets Thurs., Dec. 9, at 7 p.m., in City Council Chambers. Mark Rhoades, 981-7410. www.ci.ber- 

eley.ca.us/commissions/zoning™


Opinion

Editorials

More of the Best to Come By BECKY O'MALLEY

EDITORIAL
Friday December 10, 2004

It’s been just about two years since we launched our crackpot scheme of reviving the Berkeley Daily Planet, which had gone under suddenly in November of 2002. We signed the papers on Dec. 12, the feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe, who according to legend appeared in the 16th century to a humble Mexican peasant and left a miraculous image of herself printed on his cloak. A day celebrating a miracle, in other words, fitting because it seemed that it would take a miracle to get the paper started again. 

And, in fact, it has been a miracle. The paper is thriving. We are lucky to be supported by Berkeley’s best businesses, not to mention some of the best businesses in Oakland, Albany, El Cerrito and Richmond. If you’re looking for pharmaceuticals, office supplies, real estate, books—whatever it is, you can find what you want, the best in every category, advertised in the Berkeley Daily Planet. We’ve gotten the reputation of being the best place for the best businesses to reach their best customers.  

We’ve had the best kind of help getting here, too. In the difficult months before our April 1 re-launch, dedicated friends helped with everything, including moving furniture when needed. One incredible piece of good fortune was finding our office in the heart of a lively Berkeley neighborhood on South Shattuck, with the world’s best landlord, Bob Sugimoto, who with his much-missed late wife Keiko made us feel right at home from day one. 

This steadily increasing base of support has made it possible for us to expand our news coverage well beyond what you might expect to find in the ordinary hometown paper. We’ve broken many stories which later appeared in the much-better-endowed metro dailies: Our slogan could be “you read it first in the Planet.” A recent case in point: Thursday’s New York Times carried a story about credit card switches affecting UC alumni association members which our correspondent broke in the Planet last week. Key stories about the intense development pressure on the north bay shore, including the Point Molate casino, were first reported in the Planet. There are many other examples of groundbreaking news stories, too many to list here. 

Our calendars are the most comprehensive and the most accurate in the Bay Area. Our arts coverage highlights unusual events you might not encounter in a more conventional publication.  

Our opinion writers are certainly the best. We’ve gotten some amazing commentary pieces contributed by locally and nationally renowned authors on all sorts of topics. Our letter writers often break local news before our reporters do, and we’re proud to make that possible.  

What’s next? We hope to continue making steady improvements in what we offer readers and advertisers. We’re starting a new feature: “Berkeley’s Best.” We’d like reader suggestions for topics, which could be anything from a fine business you patronize, to your child’s excellent teacher, a favorite croissant or a favorite tree in the Botanical Garden—anything, in other words, that you want to characterize as the best of its kind. Oh, and as usual, that’s the best of “Greater Berkeley”: not just inside the city limits, but also in neighboring towns. You can write up your nominee yourself, in 400 words or less, or you can simply tell us about it and we’ll write it up. You can send a picture, or we can take one for you.  

We also particularly want to expand our coverage of topics which interest the greater Berkeley area’s concerned and dedicated parents and their friends and supporters. We all care about education—the only Berkeley tax measure which survived the recent election was the one which benefits the public schools. Today’s issue contains the first step in that direction: a new regular column by P.M. Price, who has two kids in school in Berkeley.  

Between now and our second anniversary of publication in April, you’ll see even more new features and surprises. And of course, as always, we’d like your suggestions on what you’d like us to add. Without our faithful readers, who never hesitate to tell us what to do, we couldn’t have gotten here. 

 

—Becky O’Malley 

 


Changes Would Speed Landmarks Process By BECKY O'MALLEY

EDITORIAL
Tuesday December 07, 2004

On Wednesday of this week the Planning Commission has scheduled a workshop to discuss proposed revisions to the Landmark Preservation Ordinance. More hours of my life than I care to count, over a four-year period while I was on the Landmark Preservation Commission, were devoted to work on a revised LPO which was ultimately endorsed last summer by a majority of LPC commissioners. Practically every clause represents a compromise between commissioners who are dedicated to conserving old buildings as much as possible and those who regard some old buildings as opportunity sites for new construction. But like most compromises, the attempt to please everyone might turn out to have pleased no one. 

The Planning Commission has no actual authority over the Landmark Ordinance itself, which must be passed by the City Council, though it does approve any zoning ordinance revisions which are needed to implement it. But commissioners seem eager to conduct an exhaustive review of the full revised ordinance nonetheless. The Planning Commission has recently been dominated by commissioners who are gung-ho for curbing what they imagine to be the excessive power of preservationists. Several of them are veterans of the battle for the Temple Beth-El site, now under construction.  

Which means, probably, that the attempt to revise the LPO will drag on for many months more as planning commissioners attempt to get up to speed on its complex provisions. This laborious schedule is ironic in view of the supposed urgency with which the revision process was originally launched by the city attorney’s office.  

For some reason, the pressing need for a new ordinance seems to have evaporated. The cynical view, to which I have now been converted after voting for the revisions while I was on the LPC, is that most of the proposed changes were never actually needed, which is why city staff now seems willing to let the process drag on at the Planning Commission.  

One revision, and only one revision, is absolutely necessary. It could be enacted by the new City Council immediately, at their next meeting, if they so chose. The LPC must be given the authority to deny an application for demolition of a historic resource (usually a building). The Permit Streamlining Act guarantees that applicants for permits such as demolition permits will spend only a limited number of days in limbo, after which the city is required to tell them Yes or No. If the LPC could give applicants a clear No to demolition permit applications on occasion, the requirements of the Permit Streamlining Act would be satisfied. The applicant could then appeal the decision to the City Council, which might reverse it. Most of the other proposed changes to the ordinance are window-dressing, and could be accomplished by changes in procedures within the Planning Department, no legislation needed.  

The outstanding case in point at the moment is a controversial proposal to enlarge a seminal William Wurster cottage in the hills, which slipped by Planning Department staff without being flagged as a potentially historic resource. The current LPO requires all proposals to demolish buildings in commercial zones which are over 40 years old to come before the LPC for consideration for landmark designation (though the staff sometimes “forgets” to do even this.) Residential buildings don’t get this automatic scrutiny, but it would require no ordinance change for planning staff to compile a list of famous residential architects and to ask applicants if their house was designed by anyone on the list. That wouldn’t produce 100 percent correct results, but it would avoid many of the cases where unknowing desk staff endorses alteration or even demolition for an architecturally significant house, only to have better-informed citizens petition for landmarking after a permit is already in the works. This causes no end of grief for both applicants and opponents. 

We’re going to see a lot more attempts to demolish or alter Berkeley’s world-renowned historic housing stock if the real estate boom continues. Berkeley has not yet experienced the problems of Silicon Valley, where software mogul Larry Ellison got away with dismantling a Julia Morgan house in order to replace it with a megamansion of his own concoction. But as Berkeley becomes a preferred residential destination for the new rich of the Bush era, we’re seeing more such proposals from people who have much more money than taste. A wealthy Bush contributor has already grossly enlarged a formerly charming John Hudson Thomas house without benefit of LPC review.  

Here at the Planet, we were bemused last week when the applicant for the Wurster alteration project chose to take a full page heart-tugging ad worthy of the National Enquirer to denounce an op-ed opposing her plan. Our opinion pages were open to her, of course, but she and her advisors evidently thought a paid advertisement complete with photos would make more of a splash. The ad recited charges against project opponents which skirted the cliff of libel without actually falling over it, but since the targets were pillars of the Free Speech Movement, we figured they’d be able to take it in their stride.  

But still. How much easier it would have been if the applicant had been told, from the beginning, that since her house was designed by a significant architect the LPC would be taking a look at it for possible designation as a historic resource before her permit application went to the Zoning Adjustment Board for approval. The revised ordinance would make this procedure mandatory, but the planning department could implement it immediately on a voluntary basis, and it would prevent a lot of strife. 

 

—Becky O’Malley 

 

?