The City of Richmond and the National Park Service are looking for people who lived in Richmond’s 11 World War II-era housing projects in the 1940s and 1950s. -more-

A packed house loaded with questions about UC Berkeley’s new role in the downtown planning process greeted City Planner Dan Marks and Tom Lollini, his university counterpart, at the Planning Commission Wednesday. -more-

State regulators Tuesday backed a recommendation by Berkeley preservationists in the raging battle over a city ordinance designed to preserve historic buildings. -more-

Berkeley High sophomore Rio Bauce, 15, has assigned himself a daunting task: winning the right for 17-year-olds in the city to vote in school board elections. -more-

Plans to demolish a West Berkeley landmark and replace it with a manufacturing plant came to an abrupt halt Wednesday morning after the building’s owner intervened. -more-

With newcomer Councilmember Pat Kerninghan urging fellow members to “just pass this and move on to more constructive things; I’m tired of the negative press Oakland is getting on this,” Oakland City Council passed a slightly modified version on first reading of Mayor Jerry Brown’s sideshow ordinance Tuesday in a rare morning meeting. -more-

Because of an editing error, an article in the July 12 issue incorrectly stated that the Albany councilmember who charged St. Mary’s College High School representatives with reneging on an agreement was not the same councilmember who charged that city staff encouraged the school to break their deal with the city. In both cases, the councilmember was Robert Lieber, the only councilmember quoted in the article. -more-

Berkeley’s Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) added two new properties to the city’s list of official historic resources, one over the owners’ wishes and the other with the owner’s blessings. -more-

Downtown Berkeley has snagged a new business—albeit one that was already operating in the city. -more-

The City Council unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging residents to boycott Berkeley Honda, which they accused of union busting. -more-

Berkeley Minicar -more-

How many Japanese city councilmembers can fit in a Berkeley City Hall elevator? -more-

Last Thursday morning in London, my wife Lisa and I left our three children to hail a taxi near the apartment we had rented. Eli, who is 20, had offered to take our twins Annie and Lucy to Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum as a treat for their twelfth birthday. All three were excited about seeing the statues of everyone from the Queen to Johnny Depp. -more-

Construction overcharges continued to be the theme at the Peralta Community College District Trustee meeting Tuesday night, with trustees sparring with Chancellor Elihu Harris and staff over the Vista College construction project. -more-

http://www.jfdefreitas.com/index.php?path=/00_Latest%20Works -more-

TRAFFIC CIRCLES -more-

Last summer, just before dusk, my 15-year-old daughter, Liana, and her friend Kate were standing in front of Berkeley High School (BHS), waiting for Kate’s dad to pick them up. A car pulled up to the curb near them and parked. -more-

I went out on the corner after dark on July 4 to watch the folks in my neighborhood set the sky aflame with fireworks, one of the most brazen displays of non-cooperation with authority since Mr. Ghandi led his followers down to the seashore to mine salt. -more-

Youthful Arsonists -more-

An op-ed by Jonathan Wornick appearing in the July 12 Daily Planet opposing Berkeley’s recently passed resolution supporting a U.S. Department of -more-

Over two decades ago Bobby Sands, a member of the IRA, was arrested and put in jail by the British government. He later went on a hunger strike demanding to be freed. Margaret Thatcher, holding the British prime minister office at the time, refused to ca ve in to his demand until Sands finally died in prison as a result. -more-

Lies, damn lies, statistics, and then studies. Twice in last week’s Daily Planet letters section a deceptive 2002 parking study was cited as proving there is no need for more parking in the downtown area. Why, parking is plentiful, they claim, and an adjacent claim is always on its heels, that parking spaces “cost” $25,000 each, garage parking spaces $50,000 or more. -more-

West Campus Neighbors who oppose the Berkeley Unified School District’s plans to move light industrial uses and heavy vehicle storage into their neighborhood are beginning to feel a bit like kids at a carnival watching a grifter executing a shell game. Just as they think they have a line on what the district is up to, the district switches direction. A few examples: -more-

I know that many citizens in Berkeley must be confused about the revisions to the Landmarks Preservation Ordinance. What in the heck are we doing? -more-

The gutsy Berkeley Opera is taking on Wagner again, this time with its own reduced version of Die Meistersinger. Olivia Stapp had the opportunity to interview Artistic Director Jonathan Khuner after one of the recent rehearsals. -more-

Woman’s Will, the Oakland-based all-female Shakespeare company, celebrates their eighth season of free performances of Shakespeare In The Park with performances of Richard III this Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. in John Hinkel Park. -more-

Harold Lloyd, one of the greatest comedians of silent film, is poised for a comeback. In anticipation of the November release of more than two dozen of his films on DVD, Pacific Film Archive and San Francisco’s Castro Theater are screening some of the comedian’s best features. -more-

FRIDAY, JULY 15 -more-

FRIDAY, JULY 15 -more-