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Councilmember Max Anderson, left, and a Berkeley Flea Market stalwart who calls himself “Buffalo Soldier 92 and 93” listen as Mayor Tom Bates responded to a critic of the city’s handling of development on the main Ashby BART parking lot. Photograph by Richard Brenneman.
Councilmember Max Anderson, left, and a Berkeley Flea Market stalwart who calls himself “Buffalo Soldier 92 and 93” listen as Mayor Tom Bates responded to a critic of the city’s handling of development on the main Ashby BART parking lot. Photograph by Richard Brenneman.
 

News

Plans for Ashby BART Project Continues After Grant Denial

By Richard Brenneman
Friday June 09, 2006

Despite rumors to the contrary, the Ashby BART Task Force is very much alive—though in what form and to what ends remain open questions. 

Members and concerned neighbors gathered in the South Berkeley Senior Center Monday night for their first meeting since Caltrans denied a city request for $120,000 to plan a development at the station’s main parking lot. 

Mayor Tom Bates and City Councilmember Max Anderson were also on hand, to expand the scope of the city’s focus from the BART station parking lot to the entire Adeline Street corridor from Ward Street to the Oakland border. 

And to do it, they said they’d ask their fellow councilmembers for support and money—with the possibility of applying for another Caltrans grant in October to tackle the parking afresh. 

Bates said he was especially interested in the area where Adeline merges with Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 

“It’s an incredible piece of property,” he said, “and it needs to be examined.” 

Just what form the planning process might take is undecided, he said. “All bets are off, and we need to hear from all points of view.” 

The mayor said he and Anderson “need to go back and look at the city’s budget, to see if there’s money available. And Max and I are prepared to do that.” 

One thing that is off the table, said Bates, is eminent domain. “We are not going to us it. Full stop,” he said. “What we are talking about is the public right of way . . . curb to curb.” 

One possibility, he said, would be closing one set of lanes of the divided Adeline Street, and relating them adjacent to the other set, opening up the site and most of the median to develop—perhaps as a strip park and shopping area.  

“Where Adeline and MLK merge, it is a major wide boulevard. I would like to slow it down and make it more livable and beautiful,” Bates said. “I would like people to study it, I want ideas. I want people who live there.” 

Many of the public who spoke and some members—including Co-Chair Toya Groves—said they wanted to see the task force enlarged to include more residents of the immediate area. 

“We should add members from the community, then go ahead with creating a vision for the neighborhood,” said Groves, who suggested adding Elaine Green, Kenoli Oleari, and several others who have shown up for the meeting. 

The panel currently contains only one African American, yet the project is in the heart of one of Berkeley’s key African American neighborhoods—a point raised by critics at the group’s meeting two weeks earlier. 

“I think the task force as currently constituted could do the job,” said Bates. 

“I will fight for the existence of this task force,” said Anderson, rejecting any suggestion that its composition should be changed. 

Ed Church, the consultant who selected nominees for the group, had refused to announce criteria for member selection or specify a size for the task force before the panel was named—a source of ongoing criticism. 

While Bates and Anderson have said the task force was created by the resolution the city council passed in December when it authorized applying for the Caltrans grant, critics likes Osha Neumann and Robert Lauriston disagree. 

Neumann, who lives across MLK from the BART station, is attorney for Community Services United, the coalition of non-profits that sponsors the flea market. Lauriston, who lives east of Adeline, is the organizer of Neighbors of Ashby BART, a coalition of neighbors which formed to challenge the building of 300-plus condos and retail shops over the main BART parking lot. 

That was the project spelled out in the Caltrans grant, though Bates and Anderson have said 300 would be the maximum number of units, rather than the minium as specified in the grant proposal. 

While Bates said he was open to any project, Anderson said he wanted to see housing, especially for “people who work at the university, child care providers, people who work for the city, many of whom make $25,000 to $40,000 a year.” 

Anderson said providing housing at a major transit hub would reduce car use and emissions in a neighborhood with troublesome asthma levels—though one angry audience member who said he had a child with a serious asthma problem asked how adding the cars needed by the occupants of 300 or so new apartments could reduce exhaust.  

Many of the African Americans who came Monday were participants in the Berkeley Flea Market, whose members played a major role in the verbal outbursts during the last task force meeting. 

One flea market participant, who identified himself as “Buffalo Soldier 92 and 93,” interrupted frequently, drawing angry glances and sharp words from Anderson and even causing the usually unflappable Bates to momentarily lose his composure. 

He was also critical of Neumann, repeatedly declaring that the attorney represented CSU and not the vendors. 

Co-chair John Selawsky said everything should be on the table, but didn’t give outright endorsement to expanding the committee’s membership. 

Another member, Mike Friedrich of Livable Berkeley, initially suggested the task force report back to the City Council and then suspend meeting until the council gave it new directions. 

When it came time for a vote on disbanding, only Friedrich voted yes. He later voted with the majority to meet again in two weeks. The Senior Center had already been reserved before the word on the grant came down from Sacramento. 


Radstons Quits After 98 Years in Berkeley

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday June 09, 2006

It’s the end of an era for yet another independent Berkeley retailer.  

Radstons Office Plus, celebrating its 98th birthday this year, will shut the doors to its 1950 Shattuck Avenue retail store on July 14. Founded in 1908, the store is in its third generation of ownership. 

“It’s difficult to point a finger at any particular reason for the closure,” said Diane Griffin, president of Radstons. “Let’s just say that it’s all things Berkeley, topped off with the fact that our lease ran out. We just couldn’t afford to pay the prohibitive increase in rent anymore as there wasn’t enough profit out of our downtown retail store. I hope both my father and grandfather who ran the business before me are looking down and understanding the decision we had to take.” 

Under Griffin, Radstons became a major, independently owned provider of business products to offices around the Bay Area. According to Griffin, the store closure will allow resources to be more focused on its core delivery business in Hercules, which accounts for 90 percent of the company’s sales and caters to public institutions and small- to medium-sized, independently owned businesses.  

The decision to close the store was made by Griffin and her husband Sterling in April when they realized that they would not be able to sign another five-year lease.  

“It was painful to say the least,” she said. “After the state health building opposite to the store closed down we just didn’t get enough foot traffic anymore. In this age of instant gratification, where everything is done over the Internet, it is extremely difficult to sell office products at retail.” 

Mayor Tom Bates, in a telephone interview, said, “We are sorry to hear that Radstons is closing down because it’s not being able to continue with its lease. It was an integral part of downtown Berkeley. Times are definitely changing and the downtown area is seeing a whole lot of changes everyday. There are some positive things happening as well—such as boutique hotels, condos, and jazz clubs that will hopefully help to make the place more attractive.” 

The city’s commercial department is now taking bids from office suppliers for an annual contract of $500,000 under which the city will be buying office supplies. Usually preference is given to local merchants for contracts under $25,000, but in this case the contract value is higher. Griffin said he is hopeful that Radstons’ commercial business will win the bid. 

All current employers at Radstons Berkeley location will be out of their jobs on July 14, but they will all receive severance packages.  

Terence Epps, who has been with the store for the last six years, lamented the closure. “I am going to be pounding on the pavements as of July 15,” he said. “What makes me sad to see this place go is that it offered a very unique retail experience.” 

According to Zelda Bronstein, Berkeley mayoral candidate and former Planning Commission chair, the loss of Radstons is a variation of the loss of Cody’s. “Here we have another longtime, respected Berkeley retailer shutting down. Phoenix Opticals and Cody’s both closed down, and now it’s Radstons. It’s really sad that this is happening in Berkeley, a city know for its independent spirit.” 

Alison Paskal, who works for UC Berkeley, was picking up stationary at Radstons on Thursday afternoon. “The city needs to be involved to support these businesses and to keep it a city free from stores you’ll find at shopping malls,” she said. “Therein lies the charm of Berkeley.” 

Gary Shows of Alko Office Supply Store in downtown Berkeley—the sole remaining independent office supply store in the city—said times were rough for them as well. 

“Although being the only office supply store left now might help us, there is more stationery than customers,” Shows said. “Half of my block is empty with Eddie Bauer and Gateway moving out. Shoppers need to be downtown to come into the store and that’s not happening anymore.” 

Shows commented that the city used to buy office supplies from local stores more actively about ten years ago but that changed after the big box stores came into the picture. The same, he said was the situation with UC’s procurement department. 

“UC Berkeley is aggressively trying to get departments to buy from Office Max, with whom they established a contract in January 2005,” he said. “They have suddenly stopped supporting us. My customers from UC have received letters telling them they shouldn’t buy from local stores. It’s fast becoming a situation where local resources are no longer being kept in the community.” 

 


West Berkeley Bowl Faces Mounting Challenges

By Richard Brenneman
Friday June 09, 2006

Will there be a new Berkeley Bowl market in West Berkeley or not? 

Though city officials say owner Glen Yasuda hasn’t withdrawn his application to build a store and warehouse complex at Ninth Street and Heinz Avenue, they also say the project faces serious roadblocks. 

The first issue is rising construction costs, says city Economic Development Director Dave Fogarty. 

The second issue—and by far the more politically charged—is union representation of future workers. 

“There’s no way this City Council will pass a general plan amendment without assurances that they comply with fair labor standards,” said City Councilmember Dona Spring. 

The issues will come to a head at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting, where councilmembers will be asked to vote on amendments to the city’s General Plan and Zoning Ordinance and to endorse a use permit for the project. 

To help them in their decisions, councilmembers will be pondering 3,000 pages of documents on the complex battles that have dogged the project’s progress. 

Fogarty said he has been in frequent contact with Dan Kataoka, the Bowl’s general manager, and with Glen Yasuda, who owns the store with his spouse, Diane. 

“They have not notified the city that they are withdrawing their application,” said Fogarty. “That would require a formal letter. But Ben has indicated they are unhappy.” 

“We have not heard anything formally from them, but it is my understanding that the project is still on,” said Dan Marks, the city’s Director of Planning and Development. 

 

Construction costs 

The biggest hurdle, Fogarty said, has been the sharp increase in construction costs since the Yasudas purchased the West Berkeley site in May 2002. 

“They submitted their application in November 2002, and here we are finally getting ready to vote on it on Tuesday, June 13, 2006. That’s a lot of time,” Fogarty said. 

In the interim, economic factors both in the United States and in China—where a massive building boom is consuming a huge share of the world’s concrete and steel—have seen construction prices soaring. Because the manufacture of both materials requires massive amounts of energy, skyrocketing energy prices have boosted prices even higher. 

Current plans calls for a total of 97,970 square feet in two buildings and 201 parking spaces, 99 of them in an underground lot. 

The complex would feature both a retail store and warehouse facilities to serve both the new store and the existing store at Oregon Street and Shattuck Avenue. 

“The type of construction they’re planning, with an underground parking lot that requires excavation and lots of concrete, the prices have gone way up. Contractors can charge premium prices,” he said. 

Fogarty said he has seen the estimates contractors have given the store, but wouldn’t comment on the numbers, beyond saying they are “very high.” 

 

Troubled labor history 

A study in contradictions, the Bowl is both the epitome of the socially conscious grocery store, offering an incomparable array of organic and hard-to-find goodies, and, critics say, the prototypical union-busting firm—forced finally to accept a contract in the face of federal action. 

Workers had rejected the union by a 119 to 70 vote in 2003, but the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that managers employed unfair labor practices. The store paid settlements to two pro-union workers fired during the organizing effort. 

A second vote last August resulted in a 107-13 vote in favor of a contract with the United Food and Commercial Workers Butcher’s Local 120 last August. 

That pact excluded employees at the proposed West Berkeley store. 

Zoning Adjustments Board member David Blake brought up the union issue during the May 11 hearing where construction and the project’s Environmental Impact Report were approved. 

“We were told the labor issue has not been resolved,” said Blake. 

“The Berkeley Bowl philosophy has always been to allow the employees to make the decision,” said Dan Kataoka, manager of store at 2020 Oregon St. “It is not right for the people of this board or people in the audience to impose their will on our employees.” 

Fogarty said Kataoka has told him “they feel chagrined about the NLRB decision. They know they did things they shouldn’t have done, because there was a period when they had no legal representation.”  

Blake asked if the old store would be closed if the new one wasn’t organized. 

“We will not close it,” said Kataoka. “It will be our core store.” 

ZAB member Andy Katz called for a “card check,” a process by which employers recognize a union if a majority of workers sign cards certifying their desire for a union. 

“No.” said Kataoka. “We believe in the democratic process,” that is, holding an election. 

Fogarty said Thursday that union elections have faced long delays in recent years. 

“Because the NLRB is controlled by the Republicans, elections take a long time these days,” he said. 

Delays pose problems for union organizers, because of the high turnover typical of the grocery business, he said. 

“A huge percentage of elections now don’t result in union representation,” he said. 

One rumor circulating Thursday had Yasuda pulling his plans for the retail store but using the site only for a warehouse—a move that would not require a change from the existing zoning, and which would strip the council of its power to impose a pro-labor condition. 

“The city doesn’t have to give a zoning change unless it feels it is getting something of equal value in return,” said Blake. The thing of value could be a pro-union requirement. No zoning change, however, means no gift—potentially short-circuiting a pro-labor requirement. 

 

Other opposition 

The store has run into other opposition, both from those who oppose the location outright and from neighbors who like the store but want assurances that traffic impacts will be mitigated. 

The most vocal opposition has come from merchants, industries and artists who oppose the location and the rezoning that will reduce the amount of space zoned for manufacturing and light industrial uses in West Berkeley. 

Other objections focus on traffic impacts on the already crowded Ashby and San Pablo avenues. 

More focused opposition has come from administrators and the parents of students at the Ecole Bilingue de Berkeley, better known as the French School, which is located catercorner from the store site at Ninth and Heinz. 

School-related objections seek protections for students who arrive and leave the school during weekdays. 

But many West Berkeley residents say they welcome the store, which will bring fresh food into an area of the city currently without a grocery store. 

If past meetings of the Planning Commission and Zoning Adjustments Board where the project was discussed are any indication, the public comment section at Tuesday night’s council meeting could be memorable.


Trustees Dismiss Library Head Griffin

By Judith Scherr
Friday June 09, 2006

After almost two years of staff-management strife, a page has turned at the Berkeley Public Library: Wednesday evening the Board of Trustees announced the departure of the embattled library director and the appointment of an interim replacement.  

It took a joint meeting of the City Council and Board of Trustees to approve a settlement with Director Jackie Griffin, who had threatened to sue the city if she were fired and another closed-door session of the library board to approve the temporary appointment of Interim Director Roger Pearson. 

Griffin’s four years and 10 months at the library brought the controversial and expensive Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) check-out system, staff cut-backs and a host of complaints from library workers who say their input was ignored and that they faced retaliation for speaking out. While her last official day at work is today (Friday), she was not at the library on Thursday. Attempts to reach her for comment were unsuccessful. 

While workers and union representatives greeted the decisions with optimism, they told the Daily Planet they would not be satisfied until the violations they say they suffered under the ousted management have been rectified. 

Andrea Segall, librarian and union shop steward, said in an interview outside the council-trustee closed-door meeting that negative letters in personnel files should be removed, people with requests to transfer away from managers with whom they are in conflict should be honored, and people whose promotions were denied because of conflict with Griffin should be promoted. 

A majority of the staff signed a statement of no confidence in Griffin, delivered to the City Council and Board of Trustees in April. 

“The employees are thirsty for someone to listen to them, to be receptive to their ideas,” said Anes Lewis-Partridge, senior field representative from Service Employees International Union 535, addressing the Board of Trustees during the public portion of their meeting. 

The hope is that new management “will come with an open mind and open ears,” she said. 

In the settlement agreement signed by Griffin and her attorney Jonathan Siegel, Griffin promises not to sue the city. Reached by phone on Thursday, Siegel declined to say on what grounds Griffin, an at-will employee, had threatened to sue. 

The settlement leaves Griffin on the city payroll using accrued vacation time until the end of June. She will also be paid $34,000, equal to three months salary, get airfare and hotel expenses at a library conference in New Orleans for $1,500 and receive medical benefits for six months equal to $6,200. 

Emerging from the closed-door session, trustees introduced Interim Director Pearson to the group of library workers and the union representative who had remained in the lobby during the more-than-two-hour trustees’ executive session. 

Pearson “will meet the needs of our great community,” said Trustee Vice Chair Terry Powell. 

Pearson retired as Sonoma County Library director in 2001 and since has served as interim library director in Spokane, Wash.; Dixon; Kansas City, Mo.; Sonoma County and at the College of Marin.  

“I’m in a dream career, I get to meet so many people all over the country,” Pearson told the Daily Planet, adding that he did not want to talk more about the job until he has signed papers and is in the position. 

Until Pearson steps in around July 1, Trustee Chair Susan Kupfer and Vice Chair Powell will manage the library and have the authority to designate managers to act in their stead. 

Passing the resolution to delegate that authority (the vote was 4-1 with Trustee Ying Lee in opposition) sparked some controversy during the Trustees’ open session. 

Lee argued that decisions should be made in consultation with all five trustees. “I hope this is a new chapter,” Lee said. “I want to be sure there is a clean slate.”  

About a dozen library workers came by the meetings, many sitting on the carpet outside the closed sessions at the sixth-floor city administration building meeting room. As they watched the closed doors, they shared hopes with each other about how they’d like to see the library—one where managers were out front with patrons and library workers, and where library workers would have time to spend with patrons, recommending books and helping to find them on the shelves.  

Lewis-Partridge told the Daily Planet that the removal of the director was just the first step. The fight would not be over until conditions improve at the library. 

“We said from the very beginning that we’re not going away,” she said. 


Public School Tutoring Industy Lacks Accountability, Students

By Suzanne La Barre
Friday June 09, 2006

This is Part Two of a two-part series on tutoring. Part One ran in the June 6 issue. 

 

Aracely Rodriguez used to struggle with math—adding and subtracting fractions was especially irksome. Since starting an after-school tutoring program, though, she’s confident she’s improving. 

“I needed a lot of help with fractions, but Mr. H is helping me, so now I’m doing better,” she said, proudly pointing up the As she’s been getting on her report card.  

Rodriguez, a student at Sobrante Park Elementary School in Oakland, attends small group tutorials twice a week as part of a No Child Left Behind initiative that requires underperforming schools to offer free supplementary educational services to low-income students. 

Her tutor Victor Hernandez, or “Mr. H” as she calls him, is a former middle and high school teacher now working part-time for a tutoring company while he goes to culinary school. He believes after-school intervention is a boon to his students, many of whom are English language learners and have fallen behind in traditional classrooms. 

“It’s helpful with regard to helping students take standardized tests and gives them a little more latitude” to learn in a safe environment, he said. 

Anecdotal evidence aside, there is little accountability built into the No Child Left Behind program. Poor planning and management difficulties, low participation rates, high costs and a lack of comprehensive research round out a laundry list of complaints critics levy against a program often billed as a hallmark of No Child Left Behind, the federal education reform law signed into effect in 2002 that is ironically touted for claiming accountability as a central piece.  

“In theory, it’s a very good idea for our school programs. You name students whose parents can’t afford extra help outside school,” said Niambi Clay, program manager for the Oakland Unified School District (OSUD) supplementary educational services office. “But in terms of implementation, it can be an absolute nightmare.” 

Through No Child Left Behind, students who attend schools that have failed to meet adequate yearly progress (AYP) goals for three consecutive years—like Sobrante Park—are eligible for free, private tutoring. Parents pick the provider, and the federal government, through Title I funds, picks up the tab. 

The federal government allocated $2.5 billion dollars for schools to contract with tutoring companies this year, the Associated Press reported in April. In the current school year, OUSD, one of the largest districts in California, earmarked approximately $5 million in Title I funds for tutoring. 

Typically, Oakland students receive 20 to 60 hours of one-on-one, small group or web-based tutoring a year. Vendors, who must be approved by the state Department of Education, generally administer pre- and post-tests to measure improvement in the area of math or reading or both. The expectation is that tutoring bolsters individual student performance, thereby helping schools to meet their AYP goals. 

The school district is charged with informing parents about tutoring options, a lengthy process unto itself that involves communicating with school sites, posting information on the web, holding tutoring fairs and initiating other coordination efforts. Once parents select a provider, a chorus line of bureaucratic legwork ensues. District staff process applications, negotiate agreements and correct errors, like when ineligible students enroll or parents mistakenly sign students up with more than one vendor. To shoulder the workload, OUSD set up a new office with new staff, comprised of a program manager and an administrative assistant, whose salaries are drawn from the reallocation of Title I funds. 

Schools are also digging into their own pockets to cover management costs. Jefferson, Oakland’s largest elementary school, uses Higher Ground Neighborhood Development Corp, a non-profit education services group, to manage the school’s 13 providers, of which five operate on-site. Coordinator Amber Blackwell said the nonprofit received $20,000 for the 2005-2006 school year. 

Higher Ground also contracts with Sobrante Park, where about a sixth of the student population receives free tutoring. Principal Marco Franco dipped into school site funds to hire a coordinator—at $40,000 a year, he said—because program management grew too burdensome for existing staff. “It’s a terrible logistical monster,” he said. 

Given the red tape districts and schools must penetrate, the school year is often well underway before tutoring sessions begin. Sometimes, they commence as late as January or February, Franco said.  

A Civil Rights Project study at Harvard University found similar management troubles in 11 large school districts across the country, including the Los Angeles and Fresno unified school districts. 

The study underscores one of the program’s additional shortcomings: low participation rates. Between 16 and 20 percent of those eligible actually participate, said Gail Sunderman, who conducted the research, in a phone interview this week.  

In Oakland, more than 11,000 students are eligible through the free or reduced lunch program. The district can accommodate 3,380, and about 30 fewer actually use the services, Clay said.  

The state average is bleaker. Out of 800,000 eligible students, 98,000, or a little more than a tenth, are served. 

Neither Oakland nor the state keeps statistics on the demographics of students who participate. Nonetheless, some say those struggling the most in school aren’t the ones benefiting.  

“I think they should make the kids who need it go,” said Jose Garcia, whose son attends an after school reading course at Jefferson. “It’s not right that there are all these services, and they don’t use it.” 

Susan Lee, a fifth-grade teacher at Jefferson, said just two of her students are enrolled in free tutoring, though neither is in need. One is already a strong student, and the other suffers from an attention deficit, which is best addressed with behavioral therapists not academic tutors, she said.  

The students she would like to see receive tutoring aren’t getting it because parents are too busy to sign their children up or are otherwise uninvolved in school, she said. 

In other words, parents don’t know what they’re missing—literally, in fact, since according to Sunderman, “There’s still no research on whether or not (the program) is effective.”  

Part of the problem is that states are charged with evaluating tutoring providers, but very few, including California, have done so, she said.  

In California, vendors must highlight the effectiveness of their pedagogical methods before the Department of Education (CDE) grants approval for operation in public schools, renewable after two years. Providers are not, however, beholden to specific standards therein, such as small class sizes or hours of service. The state has no system in place for evaluating providers on whether they improve academic performance, and has not removed a single company from the list of state-approved vendors for failing to furnish adequate services, said Jerry Cummings, program consultant for the CDE Title I policy office, which oversees the program. 

California is not alone. According to a study by the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now and the American Institute for Social Justice, only about a quarter of surveyed states had completed provider performance evaluations in the 2003-2004 school year, and just three said they had taken action against noncompliant vendors. None had evaluated the cost of supplying the services compared with academic improvements. 

“This is a particularly disturbing fact, given the amount of money spent on these programs,” the studies’ authors wrote.  

Beginning in October, the CDE will require all tutoring companies to submit data on what services they offered for the prior year, how many students they served and figures on academic performance.  

That still won’t determine whether the tutoring is worth its salt, though. Many schools offer other forms of intervention, meaning an uptick in test scores could be the product of any number of factors. 

At Sobrante Park, site funds are expended on art, music, writing and library facilities. The school has seen a 200-point improvement in academic achievement over five years on a statewide performance index ranging from 200 to 1,000. Franco credits his own programs. 

“We’ve grown from internal interventions rather than these (NCLB) programs,” he said, adding later, “It’s not that they’re totally irrelevant, but given the return, it’s just not ideal.”


Downtown Planners Tackle Transportation, UC Polices

By Richard Brenneman
Friday June 09, 2006

Berkeley Transportation Commissioner Rob Wrenn charged Wednesday night that “UC Berkeley uses the programs least likely to succeed” to reduce car use by students, faculty and staff. 

The occasion was a joint meeting of the commission with the Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee (DAPAC), the group formulating a new plan for an expanded city center. 

Mandated by the settlement of a city’s lawsuit against the university, DAPAC was created to find a way the city can live with the university’s planned expansion into the downtown. It has been meeting with established city commissions to seek information and policies to incorporate into the new plan. 

Bus Rapid Transit 

While the agenda ranged across a variety of topics, most of the interest Wednesday focused on the issues of plans for Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), parking and the university’s role in the city’s traffic congestion. 

Jim Cunradi, manager of AC Transit’s BRT program, described plans for the system that is planned to run from the downtown BART station in Berkeley, then along Telegraph Avenue into Oakland, and then along International Boulevard to the Bayfair BART Station in San Leandro. 

The system would provide for faster, more reliable bus service—shortening travel times and increasing ridership by a combination of dedicated bus lanes, traffic signal controls and a new rapid boarding fare payment system.  

If all goes as planned, the system could be up and running in later 2009. 

“It’s the best combination of technologies you can do for the bus” and would eliminate about 10,000 car trips a day, he said. 

BRT, conceived by officials in Curitiba, Brazil, who couldn’t afford to build a subway system, is catching on around the world, with systems planned or in operation in cities Tehran to Paris and San Francisco, where a BRT route is planned along Van Ness Avenue. 

Cunradi said specifics are still under discussion, including the precise routing as it loops through downtown Berkeley—with a hub at the BART plaza. 

“I’m in complete agreement,” said Wrenn. “We need BRT.” 

Transportation Commission Chair Sarah Syed said ACT transit should expand BRT service to University Avenue to connect with the 72 Rapid line on San Pablo Avenue and perhaps on to the marina, where a ferry terminal is planned. The 72 Rapid service uses the same traffic signal controls planned for the BRT line. 

While she said she liked the concept of BRT, DAPAC member Lisa Stephens feared that creation of the dedicated lanes would eliminate some of the street trees on Shattuck—a concerned shared by DAPAC member Linda Jewell. 

“I think it will come down to pitting trees against the bus,” Jewell said.  

Another concern was the closure of the two-lane stretch of Telegraph south of the university to through traffic, Cunradi said. 

Because of their concerns about crime, merchants “want eyes on the street,” he said. The possibility of allowing through traffic after 6 p.m. is one option under consideration. 

 

UC policies  

UC Berkeley “has an excellent transportation demand management (TDM) policy, but it gets grief anyway,” said university planner Jennifer McDougall. 

But Wrenn charged that the university consistently downplays the positive effects of programs designed to encourage mass transit use “to make it look like transportation incentives do no good.” 

McDougall acknowledged that on any given weekday, about 4,100 university employee and student cars are parked on city streets or in private or city garages and lots. 

The university is now planning to add 2,300 spaces in its Long Range Development Plan for 2020. That number would be cut by 500 if BRT is implemented by 2010, she said. 

Jesse Arreguin, a transportation commissioner and a student, said the existing Class Pass and Bear Pass programs were deplorably inadequate. 

“The University of California needs to be a leader in alternative transportation,” he said. 

One solution would be to raise campus parking rates, using the funds to bankroll transit programs. New building programs should also include funds to provide traffic mitigations, he said. 

“The whole network of bus service for downtown and the university needs to be upgraded,” said Transportation Commissioner Nathan Landau. 

 

Parking, other issues 

According to the experts, the solution to everyone’s favorite gripe, downtown parking, is to build less of it, while increasing population density. 

John Holtzclaw, chair of the Sierra Club Transportation Committee, cited figures showing that residents of dense urban neighborhoods use their cars far less that residents of “urban sprawl” suburbs such as San Ramon.  

“I recommend higher density housing,” he said, citing the Gaia Building as a good example. 

“Don’t be afraid of narrowing streets and widening sidewalks,” he said. 

Greg Tung, an urban designer from San Francisco, focused on streetscape design, and Dave Campbell of the Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition briefly addressed bicycle planning. 

The public will be able to join in the planning process during a special Downtown Visioning Workshop from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, at the Berkeley High School Library, near the corner of Allston Way and Milvia Street.


Voters to Decide Fate of BUSD Parcel Tax in November

By Suzanne La Barre
Friday June 09, 2006

It’s official: a renewed parcel tax to support Berkeley’s public schools will go before voters this November.  

On Wednesday, the Berkeley Board of Education unanimously approved language for a measure that will renew two existing parcel taxes, the Berkeley Schools Excellence Project (BSEP) and the bridge Measure B of 2004, set to sunset in 2007. 

The new measure, BSEP of 2006, maintains the current tax rate, and is expected to supply the district with about $19.6 million a year for 10 years. The tax will primarily fund small class sizes, music and visual and performing arts, school libraries and professional development.  

Board directors must finalize the approved language by passing a resolution at the June 21 board meeting. 

If passed, about two-thirds of the funding, or $12.7 million, will go toward maintaining small student to teacher ratios: 19:1 for kindergarten through third grade, 26:1 for grades four and five; and 27.5:1 for the remaining grades, save B-Tech, where the ratio would be 18:1. 

A quarter of the funds will support music and visual and performing arts, libraries, parent outreach and school site coffers. The remaining budget will fund professional development and implementation, including the cost of staffing a public information officer and others.  

The tax would be levied per square-foot on private and commercial properties. Low-income seniors qualify for an exemption. 

Directors heralded the measure as a compromise. 

“No one individual, no one group, no one organization gets everything they want in this measure,” said Director John Selawsky. “But if you look at it in its entirety, everyone gets something. I think we need a little perspective here.” 

Elementary school and middle school students spoke at Wednesday’s meeting in support of the measure, as did a handful of adults, including school board candidate Karen Hemphill: 

“I am very pleased and happy that the board is going ahead with approving the tax measure for the Berkeley Unified School District,” she said. “Adequate funding is absolutely necessary (for school programs), and this is a good step in that direction.” 

The language of the ballot initiative did not go uncontested, however. The president of the Berkeley Federation of Teachers (BFT), the union representing 700 teachers, counselors, librarians and others, criticized the measure for expressing small class sizes in terms of “goals” rather than solid figures and for not placing a cap on fiscal emergencies. 

“It is our opinion that compared to the current BSEP, the district has proposed language that loosens—and not tightens up—accountability,” said Barry Fike. 

Directors acknowledged the criticism, but said Wednesday that flexible language serves as a safeguard against future unknowns.  

The board will maintain its commitment to class sizes unless there is a severe fiscal crisis, said Director Nancy Riddle, who is up for reelection in November. 

Director Shirley Issel, who will also vie to maintain her seat on school board this fall, concurred. “You’re going to have to trust us,” she said.  

Yolanda Huang, a former BUSD parent and organizer of Berkeleyans Endorse School Management Accessibility, Accountability, Responsiveness and Transparency (BeSMaart), doesn’t buy it. The district has asked for the public’s trust in the past and has not upheld its end of the bargain, she said, citing poor management and planning of school maintenance operations.  

“I want to spend this money on kids,” she said. “I just want to make sure the kids benefit and it isn’t diddled away on administrators.”  

A poll conducted in March found that among 600 potential voters more than 75 percent would support the tax. The measure needs a two-thirds majority to pass. 

On Tuesday, Bay Area voters approved eight of 12 tax measures to support public schools, including $435 million in bond money for Oakland Unified School District facilities, the largest bond ever passed for Oakland schools.  


Berkeley Health Clinics Awarded State Grants

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday June 09, 2006

The California Health Facilities Financing Authority announced last week that Berkeley’s LifeLong Medical Care clinics will receive a $408,374 grant and the Berkeley Free Clinic will receive $35,264 out of the $40 million grant money issued statewide. 

According to LifeLong Medical Care acting CEO Melissa Schoen, the grant will be used for critical facility and information technology upgrades and replacement of outdated medical and dental equipment in four of LifeLong’s health clinics: West Berkeley Family Practice, Berkeley Primary Care, the Downtown Oakland Clinic, and LifeLong Dental Clinic. 

“For 30 years, LifeLong has provided high quality health and social services to underserved people of all ages,” Schoen said. “These grants will enable us to continue to care for those who are low income and without health insurance, and work to eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care.” 

A major provider of medical services to the uninsured and to those with complex health needs in the East Bay, LifeLong provided approximately 101,000 primary care visits to nearly 17,000 people, among whom nearly half were uninsured, in 2005. 

Schoen added that regular care prevented debilitating consequences that are costly to the patient and to California’s health care system. “Each time a patient chooses to use our primary care services rather than hospital emergency rooms, everyone benefits,” she said. 

Dr. Shirley Livingston of Lifelong Dental Clinic said that a lot of equipment at the clinic was archaic and breaking down which interfered with patient care. 

“Most of our patients, who come from financially underprivileged sections of society, are in a catch-22 situation,” she said. “Since we function on a very tight budget we have to make the most of grants like this, which are few and far between. This will help us to get new hand pieces and dental chairs, as well as lighting structures which we immediately need.” 

Julie Sinai, senior aide for Mayor Tom Bates, called the clinics in the city a “safety net for the lower income and the under-served” and said that it was extremely important and valuable for the city that the grants had been awarded to these four clinics.


Berkeley Art Center Hopes For More City Support

By Judith Scherr
Friday June 09, 2006

When Berkeley Art Center Director Robbin Henderson came to the City Council, beret in hand, asking councilmembers to restore funding slashed three years ago, the unanimous body moved the question to the growing list of projects to be considered when the council puts together its final budget this month or next. 

The 19-year-old center, that Councilmember Linda Maio calls “a gem of an arts institution,” is located in a small building beside Codornices Creek in North Berkeley’s Live Oak Park. Its programs are intended, for the most part, for a local audience, and it is an art gallery as well as a venue for spoken word and music.  

The center was founded in 1967 as a city program, staffed by city employees. But when Proposition 13 hit, a number of city programs were cut, including the arts center. “They closed and locked the building,” Henderson said. 

But within a year, a group emerged that would create the nonprofit which now runs the center. Henderson worked there from 1979-1984 and again from 1991 to the present.  

The center survives on small contracts from the city to work with youth, hold film festivals, educational events, exhibitions and more. The city funds one-fourth to one-third of the center’s costs. The rest comes from grants and contracts.  

“Almost everything is free except the concerts,” Henderson said. The center is asking the city for $20,000, which will bring city funding up to the rate at which it funded the center several years ago. While expenses are growing, other grant funds are dwindling, Henderson said. 

Current exhibits include designs in kelp by local artist Lucy Traber. 

“Traber has been working with kelp for over forty years. Her work, Kelp: Pods & Vessels, combines a feeling of prehistory with contemporary art forms,” says a note on the center’s website, www.berkeleyartcenter.org.


Storm Drain Tax Off City Council Agenda for Now

By Judith Scherr
Friday June 09, 2006

A plan to put a $50-per-homeowner levy on the November ballot to upgrade the Berkeley’s 100-year-old storm drain system is water under the bridge, at least for now, says Councilmember Linda Maio. 

After meeting Wednesday morning with creeks and good government advocates, Maio said she’s convinced that “what we need is a much larger watershed plan and to build education around that plan.” 

Maio originally intended to ask the City Council next week to put a measure on the November ballot asking voters to approve new taxes to upgrade the city’s sometimes failing system of storm drains, pipes and culverts. 

On Tuesday, with 69.3 percent voter approval, neighboring Albany passed a $96-per-homeowner tax to repair its street and fund storm drain infrastructure upgrades. 

After meeting with the group that included representatives from the League of Women Voters, Friends of Five Creeks and others, Maio decided to put the tax measure on hold for two years, giving her time to broaden and refine her concept. 

The goal of the more comprehensive measure will be not only to upgrade the infrastructure, but to filter storm water through the soil, reducing the volume as it hits the storm drain system—and when it does go into the system, it will be much cleaner.  

“In the end, we can do the job better and easier,” said Susan Schwartz of Friends of Five Creeks, among those meeting with Maio. “It’s a long-term fix to allow water to soak into the soil rather than filling the culverts and flooding west Berkeley.” 

Responsibility for better watershed management falls both to the homeowner and the city, Maio said, noting that homeowners should use permeable surfaces when building driveways or patios. 

In fact, at the Tuesday council meeting, she will introduce a resolution requiring that new and replacement driveways and parking spaces be made of permeable materials. 

Developers can reduce runoff into the storm water system by creating “green roofs,” where water is filtered through planters before going into the soil, Schwartz noted. 

It also may be possible, Schwartz said, for the city to build planted, below street level traffic circles and street medians that would catch rain runoff from the streets and filter it through the soil, before it gets to the storm water system. 

And Maio said she wants the city to explore using porous material to pave streets and sidewalks.  

Creative watershed projects are not waiting for Maio’s 2008 ballot measure. Friends of Five Creeks and the nonprofit Save the Bay are working on plans to open up Schoolhouse Creek where it emerges from a pipe at the foot of Gilman Street and runs into the Bay. 

At high tide the drainpipe is submerged and causes backup and flooding in West Berkeley. The project to daylight the mouth of the creek and create a salt marsh that would filter the water as it enters the Bay would be funded by state bond money, Schwartz said.


Libraries Lament Prop. 81 Defeat

By Judith Scherr
Friday June 09, 2006

With the defeat of the library bond measure on Tuesday’s ballot, there will be no expansion at the West Berkeley Library. There will be no new space for computers or for kids to sit and read, no new room for the literacy program and its tutors, according to library officials. 

“All kinds of wonderful things won’t happen,” said West Branch Manager Marge Sussman.  

While Prop. 81 failed statewide, with 47 percent of the voters approving the measure, Alameda County voted in favor of the measure by 60 percent. “That was our big chance,” Sussman said. 


Joint Berkeley City Council and Board of Library Trustees Special Meeting June 7

Tuesday June 06, 2006

The Berkeley City Council and Board of Library Trustees will meet in a special closed session on Wednesday, June 7, to consider threatened litigation by attorney Jonathan Siegel on behalf of Library Director Jackie Griffin. This announcement was received by the Planet at 5:41 a.m. on June 6, too late to include in our Tuesday edition. The meeting will be held at 5 p.m. in the sixth floor Conference Room, 2180 Milvia St. The meeting will begin with a Public Comment Session.


Time’s Up for Clean Money in November

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The Berkeley City Council last month asked for the city’s Fair Campaign Practices Commission to analyze a proposal to place public financing for the mayor’s office on the November ballot. But the council directive has been stalled by City Attorney Manuela Albuquerque, who says her office has insufficient time to prepare the ballot measure. 

The commission had planned a special June 7 meeting to address the issue, but, according to FCPC Chair Eric Weaver, a Friday afternoon e-mail from Deputy City Attorney Kristy van Herick advised against the meeting. 

“It seems to be a political decision by the city attorney,” said Sam Ferguson, a Berkeley resident who has been active on the question of “clean money” elections. “That seems to be going against the will and the advice of the City Council,” Ferguson said. 

At its May 23 meeting, on the recommendation of Mayor Tom Bates, the council modified a ballot measure proposal written by councilmembers Darryl Moore, Max Anderson and Kriss Worthington to allow public financing for all elected Berkeley offices. The amended proposal only referred public financing of the mayor’s race to the Fair Campaign Practices Commission. 

“The city attorney will be reporting to City Council at its meeting on June 13 that there is insufficient time to review and prepare this item for the November 2006 election. This will likely make any such special election meeting moot,” the e-mail said. 

The committee, which will nevertheless meet and discuss the issue in regular session June 22, will make a recommendation to the City Council regarding the public financing of elections, after which the council must vote on the ballot measure before its mid-July recess. 

In a phone interview Monday morning, Albuquerque said at first she had thought there would be a faster way to write the ballot measure, but it was complicated by the fact that the measure would amend Berkeley election law. The modifications would have to be cross-referenced and integrated into the city charter, she said.  

“Proponents underplay the complexity,” she added. 

“Nobody’s saying it’s simple; but there’s still a month and a half to do it,” Ferguson countered. 

Learning from a reporter that the City Attorney planned to put the measure on hold, Councilmember Darryl Moore said, “That’s ridiculous. I thought we referred it within the deadline.”  

Moore said he thought the city attorney should have told the council at the time that there was a problem. 

If the city attorney’s office can’t do it, it is still possible for the city to contract out to have it written, Moore said. 

Mayor Bates agreed, saying, “If it does go forward, we can contract out.” 

At the same time, the mayor said, “I’m not wild about going forward with it,” since the ballot measure’s supporters continue to call for public financing for all offices and not simply for the office of the mayor. 

Bates said he did not want to see a ballot measure to publicly finance all offices in Berkeley since it would not be backed by the full council and would not have a strong campaign behind it. He said his fear is based on a possible backlash caused by the statewide public financing measure being put forward by the California Nurse’s Association for the November ballot. 

“There’s incredible opposition to that measure,” he said, noting that there will likely be a very negative statewide campaign against it. 

Ferguson said, however, that while he and other supporters prefer the ballot measure to include all Berkeley electoral races, if the council’s final vote is to recommend the narrower mayor-only public financing, “We are willing to support whatever goes. It’s not about a difference of opinion. It’s about getting it on the ballot in the first place.”  

Moreover, he said, responding to the mayor’s notion that the CNA ballot measure might cause heavily-financed negative campaigning against public financing: “Berkeley voters are too intelligent. They will see through that.”  

 


Free Tutoring Becomes Big Business in Public Schools

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Christina Paniagua’s daughter, a fifth-grader at Jefferson Elementary School in Oakland, needed extra help with reading, so Paniagua attended a school fair to find out about free private tutoring services available on-campus. 

When she arrived, she was barraged with tutoring companies handing out fliers and logo wares—pens, pencils and books—in attempt to sway parents to sign up for their program. Paniagua, who speaks minimal English, wasn’t sure how to differentiate between the companies; eventually, she settled on one because “the people at the table convinced” her to. 

Tutoring fairs are part and parcel of a prominent feature of No Child Left Behind: free supplementary educational services for the nation’s low-income students who attend underperforming schools. Proponents tout the law for offering federal Title I funds to help those most in need and empowering parents—who select tutors—to influence their children’s learning. 

But critics say the law has hatched a culture of capitalism in public education, evidenced by aggressive marketing among providers—some of whose qualifications are questionable. 

“It is not anything out of the world of education,” said Arlene Graham, director of Art, Research & Curriculum (ARC) Associates, a nonprofit tutoring provider in Oakland. “It’s out of business and marketing.” 

Nowhere in the East Bay is that more apparent than in the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD), a 42,000-student school district that allocates nearly $1,500 in Title I dollars per student for after-school tutoring. About 3,350 students participate, meaning private tutoring in Oakland is a $5 million a year industry and growing. Compare that with Berkeley Unified School District, which spends around $60,000 a year for the same services. 

Parents select tutors from a list of state-approved providers, which charge anywhere from $25 to $90 an hour, according to Niambi Clay, an OUSD program manager. Students typically receive 20 to 60 hours of instruction a year. 

This year, 40 companies vied to tutor students in OUSD and 25 secured contracts. When No Child Left Behind was signed into law in 2002, Oakland contracted with just three vendors, one provider said. The number of companies providing tutoring services has since mushroomed; in 2005-2006, the California Department of Education approved about 70 vendors. 

Vendors are nonprofits, for-profit and faith-based groups. To receive state approval, they must show they are founded on research, designed to improve academic achievement and meet other standards. 

That does not, however, guarantee quality control. Sobrante Park Elementary School Principal Marco Franco complained that just about anyone can start a tutoring company and bill it as a professional organization.  

“Some are better than others,” he said. “But this (is the) nature of No Child Left Behind—these people are coming out just because it’s an opportunity to make money. It’s as sad as that.” 

Platform Learning, a New York-based corporation that launched tutoring under the auspices of the federal law in 2003, was ousted from the Chicago schools in 2005 over complaints of large class sizes, tutor shortages, tutors canceling classes and administrative snafus. The same company was the largest provider in Oakland last year; it is no longer on the list of California-approved vendors.  

Competition among those that are approved is fierce. At the beginning of the 2005-2006 school year, three districtwide tutoring fairs and countless site-level events were held to persuade parents of eligible students to enlist in tutoring programs. Vendors set up shop in libraries and cafeterias, luring parents in with logo swag and raffles that some say advertised an iPod, an Xbox or a $100 credit card as the grand prize. 

Therein lies a problem, critics say. At tutoring fairs, many parents are unable to distinguish between providers, don’t speak English or are otherwise unclear about what they’re enrolling for—and, the best prizes don’t necessarily presage the best tutors. 

Like Christina Paniagua, Ana Luisa Becerra looked into free tutoring throught the Oakland school district because her child struggled with reading. 

Becerra, who does not speak English, attended a fair at Jefferson Elementary School and a selected a company for her fifth-grade daughter Dayana because representatives at the table gave her an application. Dayana never finished the program, though. Some boys in her tutoring group were mean to her, and the adults in charge never addressed the problem, she said. Next year, Becerra will seek out a different company if tutoring is offered at the middle school Dayana is slated to attend. 

Tutoring fairs prove particularly daunting for some nonprofits, whose salesmanship lacks the glossy finesse of their business-savvy counterparts. Graham, a former Oakland schools administrator, signed on to offer tutoring through No Child Left Behind because it seemed like a natural progression from the general education services ARC Associates offers, she said, but she wasn’t prepared for the promotion wars that ensued. 

“This is competitive,” she said. “We could sink because I don’t know anything about marketing.” 

ARC Associates has made a name for itself in Oakland as a dependable provider, and relies on word-of-mouth to secure participants. That may be a better bet, anyway, because as vendors, teachers and administrators have pointed out, parent attendance at fairs is spotty at best. 

“Those generally have limited success because parents don’t show up for them,” said Mark Lemyre, CEO of Reading Revolution, which serves five elementary schools in the Oakland school district. 

So vendors try other tactics. They visit schools, pass out fliers and solicit principals. 

Allendale Elementary School Principal Steven Thomasberger bemoaned the companies that have called him on his cell phone, at home and have camped out in his office, waiting to sell him on their services: “They were so aggressive and obnoxious,” he said. 

Another principal described the vendors as “vultures coming out of the woodwork.” 

Lemyre conceded, “The warmth with which we are received varies from school to school.” 

For tutoring companies, the incentive to conduct aggressive marketing campaigns is simple. They need to enroll enough students to earn a profit. If they can’t, the business venture is no longer lucrative, and they consolidate services or decamp altogether.  

This year, tutors from two companies declined to continue their program or failed to show up at tutoring sessions at Allendale when they were unable to recruit enough students, Thomasberger said.  

“If it’s not financially feasible, they beg off,” he said. 

More and more, vendors are discovering that financial gain is not a shoo-in. Education Station, the largest provider to serve Oakland—and one of the first—is up for sale by parent company Educate, Inc. because the cost of developing and operating the No Child Left Behind enterprise has proved “detrimental to consolidated operating performance,” a 2005 company press release said. 

Reading Revolution, another founding provider, has seen business in Oakland fall off, due to increased competition and other factors, Lemyre said. 

“Programs are increasingly becoming less profitable,” he said. “In general, it’s certainly not the most lucrative line of business for us, but it’s marginally profitable.” 

Still, it’s no drop in the bucket. PLATO Learning, a Minnesota-based provider approved in Oakland, raked in $3.7 million for federally funded tutoring services in 2004, the Associated Press reported in April. The No Child Left Behind arm of Education Inc. logged about half a million dollars in revenue the same year. 

That’s money which schools could be using to fund their own after school programs, Thomasberger said. 

“If you contract out with other kinds of services, you don’t have the same control,” he said. “I’d rather have that money to put my own tutoring program together.” 

 

Part II will look at implementation roadblocks and the efficacy of private tutoring through No Child Left Behind.


Landmarks, Condo Conversion Likely to Make Ballot

By Richard Brenneman and Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 06, 2006

A small revision of the city’s Landmarks Preservation Ordinance (LPO) appears headed to the November ballot: supporters turned in 3,200 signatures on Monday. 

And an initiative that would allow the conversion of 500 Berkeley apartments into condominiums each year could pass its first hurdle this week when supporters turn in signatures to place the measure on the November ballot. 

 

Landmarks law 

Co-chair Roger Marquis and supporter Julie Dickinson gave City Clerk Sara Cox the petitions for the Landmarks update. 

“It looks like you’re in good shape,” Cox told Marquis. 

“I guess I could make one more run through City Hall,” he replied. “I wonder if Tom Bates is in his office?” 

“A sense of humor never hurts,” Cox replied. 

Mayor Bates is the least likely signatory of the Landmarks Preservation Ordinance 2006 Update Initiative. The petition is a direct response to the mayor’s own proposed new ordinance. 

The mayor’s version, with some tweaks by City Councilmember Laurie Capitelli, would limit the power of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), the body charged with implementing the law, and transfer more of its responsibilities to city staff. 

The Bates version would also greatly increase the commission’s workload, say critics, by forcing the panel to review minor alterations to non-landmarked buildings. 

Both the LPC and the Planning Commission had prepared versions of a new ordinance, mandated, the City Council said, to bring the existing law in line with the state Permit Streamlining Act, which sets deadlines and time limits on how long the city can take to process construction applications. 

Marquis and Co-Chair Laurie Bright said their initiative resolves all the legal issues. 

The LPC has found itself increasingly at odds with the council and Planning Commission. 

The council has overturned several designations of structures of merit—one of two city landmark categories—that were created in response to development proposals. 

That category was created to allow for designation of buildings that may have been altered since their construction so that they are less pristine that those that qualify for the landmark designation—although both categories are entitled to the same protections under city law and the California Environmental Quality Act. 

The mayor’s proposal would have eliminated the category except in the city’s few historic districts, though city planning staff has prepared two versions of the ordinance, including one alternative that would basically leave the category intact. 

The mayor’s proposal also creates a new process called a Request for Determination that would allow a property owner to ask the LPC for a preliminary evaluation of whether a structure might qualify as a landmark. 

Several LPC members have said that process, plus the need to review routine construction permits, would place an impossible burden on a commission whose monthly meetings usually end near midnight. 

The mayor’s proposal has the strong backing of developers, who have been the loudest voices raised against the current ordinance and the commissioners who oversee its application. 

Rena Rickles, an Oakland attorney who is the developers’ lawyer of choice in battling the commission, has told the City Council that the structure of merit should be abolished. 

“[W]e are trying to find a new path that recognizes the importance of protecting neighborhood character but acknowledges that it is sometimes a different issue than historic preservation,” wrote the mayor in introducing the original draft of his proposal. 

LPC members Lesley Emmington and Patti Dacey, among others, have argued that because many structures in the city’s “flatlands” have been altered in comparison to those in the city’s hills, the structure of merit is essential to preserving neighborhood character in city’s middle- and working class-neighborhoods. 

Cox said that now the petitions are in her hands, the identities of signatories are granted absolute confidentiality “equivalent to a vote.” 

Supporters were required to submit 2,007 valid signatures, or five percent of those who voted in the last general election. The figures rise to 10 percent for a special election, and 15 percent if the petition calls for a charter amendment, Cox said. 

 

Condo Conversion 

Condo conversion initiative spokesperson David Wilson said his petitions would be turned in “early this week.” 

Berkeley’s current ordinance limits condominium conversion to 100 units per year. The initiative would allow up to 500 conversions when the vacancy rate is at 5 percent, as established by independent analysis. 

The initiative sets a conversion fee of $8 per square foot, whereas the present ordinance sets the fee at 12.5 percent of the selling price. 

The initiative gives tenants the right of first refusal and offers a 5 percent discount to tenants who lease an apartment, but mandates that the tenants leave the unit if they do not opt to purchase it. However, if they are forced to leave the unit, they receive 2 percent of the selling price. 

At present, a tenant whose unit is rent-controlled and who declines the purchase of the unit is given the right to lifetime occupancy subject to rent increases allowed by the rent stabilization board. (Units built since 1988 do not fall under the rent stabilization ordinance.) 

Rent Stabilization Board member Jason Overman opposes the initiative, which he says sets up a false dichotomy between those who aspire to own their own homes and apartment dwellers. Instead, Overman advocates city assistance to first time homeowners. Further, he said he doesn’t see the need to raise the limit beyond 100 conversions per year to what he said would be “opening up the floodgates to having lots of rental units taken off the market.” 

Speaking for those circulating the initiative, Wilson said that, in fact, easing condominium conversion provides the best path to homeownership. A $400,000 condominium could cost less than rent, he said. 

While some opponents say that the most affordable apartments—those under rent control—will be the first to be converted to condos, Wilson said that is a moot point, since, given the restrictions on rent control, only about 20 percent of Berkeley’s apartments are below market rate. 

And while it is true that a tenant may face eviction because of a homeowner move-in, when a unit is converted, “the tenant can go out with $8,000—that is not at all bad,” he said. 

Opponents of the initiative “are going to try to turn the initiative into a landlord versus tenants issue,” which, Wilson said, it is not. Noting that the percentage of apartment dwellers has diminished to 38 percent with respect to homeowners, Wilson said: “There is no conceivable loser.”  

 

 


Clerk: Berkeley Won’t Get IRV This Year

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Although Berkeley voters called for Instant Runoff Voting when they passed Measure I in March 2004 by 72 percent, IRV will not happen in 2006, according to City Clerk Sara Cox. 

“There’s no time to put it in place,” Cox said by phone on Friday. The process, including going out to bid for machines that can perform IRV, then negotiating a contract for them, cannot be put in place before November, Cox said. 

Instant Runoff is a system whereby voters rank candidates by preference: voters indicate their first choice and can rank their second, third or more preferences. This eliminates the need for a runoff, which generally attracts fewer voters. Berkeley’s adopted measure calls for the implementation of Instant Runoff Voting “when voting systems and equipment make it technically feasible.” 

It includes a clause mandating the system only if “the city will not incur additional election cost.” 

Alameda County voters are using a paper ballot for the primary today (Tuesday). Ballots will be counted by scanners located in Oakland. Each polling place has an electronic touch screen machine leased for the June election, which many disabled voters can use without assistance.  

Meanwhile, at a special meeting Thursday, the county supervisors will consider choosing between two voting machines, Diebold Election Systems of Texas and Sequoia Voting Systems of  

Oakland. 

“The two top machines do not have the software [for IRV]” said Dave MacDonald, acting Alameda County Registrar of Voters. 

Election Systems and Software (ES&S) machines are authorized uniquely for the county of San Francisco, which has run two IRV elections. 

“To use them [in Berkeley] the state has to agree,” MacDonald said. 

City Councilmember Kriss Worthington is part of a group of citizens that had been meeting with former acting Alameda County Registrar of Voters Elaine Ginnold, now the Marin County registrar, on efforts to implement IRV.  

Learning from a reporter that officials said IRV will not be implemented this year, Worthington said: “Someone has decided we’re not going to do this. It’s disrespect of 72 percent of the voters.”  

Worthington said he had been under the impression that the Secretary of State was reviewing the city’s request for certification of the ES&S system, but Jennifer Kerns in the Secretary of State’s communications office said that is not so.  

“There’s been no request to review the question,” Kerns told the Daily Planet.  

Ginnold told the Daily Planet on Friday that she had passed Berkeley’s request to implement IRV voting on to County Counsel Richard Winnie. But, in a phone interview, Winnie called the former acting registrar “confused,” and said the county is concentrating on other election-related countywide issues. 

“We’ve been struggling to find the proper equipment to conduct an election this fall,” he said. The county has been looking for machines with both a paper trail and access to the disabled, he said. 

These issues must be considered, “before we consider IRV,” he said, adding, “Berkeley can conduct its own election.” 

Worthington said he had understood that the county was helping Berkeley at this stage, but argued, nevertheless, that there is a way for the city to run its own elections in November. The state would have to certify the ES&S machines, as it had for San Francisco. The cost of Berkeley running its own elections would be equal to or less than funding run-off elections, Worthington said. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Streaking Seniors Find Doors Locked at BHS

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The annual senior streaking tradition at Berkeley High School nearly went awry Monday when students descended upon the school ready to flaunt skin, only to find out the doors were locked. 

Dressed in masks, capes and smeared in body paint, streaking students circulated the school moments before lunch Monday, attempting to gain entry into the locked school. They eventually found an in on Allston Way, but not before attracting the attention of several security guards. 

After a speedy run around campus—with onlookers aplenty—15 naked seniors were caught. It is unclear how many students were involved. 

Those caught streaking will not graduate from high school or participate in senior activities unless they complete 40 hours of community service on campus by June 15, said Berkeley High School Vice Principal Denise Brown 

“While people say it’s just running naked, it’s still breaking the rules,” she said. 

Senior streaking is a tradition at Berkeley that dates back roughly 20 years, Brown said, but in recent years, students have become more sophisticated about their execution. 

They plan well in advance (they have meetings, she said), and on the day of the event, they skip school in the morning, pile out of cars around lunchtime and race through campus stark naked, crossing their fingers that they skirt security. 

In April, Berkeley High School Principal Jim Slemp and the student activities director warned seniors against upholding the tradition. Students received written statements about possible consequences—which are the same every year, Brown said—if they are caught. 

The school’s primary concern is safety, she said. 

“There are so many kids, and it’s so out of control,” Brown said. “They go to someone’s house (beforehand), they’re drinking and doing drugs. I’m just afraid someone’s going to get hurt.” 

She recalled that a student fell last year and was kicked in the side as fellow streakers fled by. 

Rick Ayers, lead teacher of the small school Community Arts and Sciences, said he generally avoids the senior streaking fiasco, though he isn’t sure why administrators don’t just let students get it out of their system. 

Debian Watts, a freshman, found the event amusing. His friend Robert Edwards, a sophomore, joked, “They was real butt, booty naked” before handing down an opinion: “It was weird.” 

Freshman Monique Williams, said it was definitely “different. I just saw a whole bunch of people and I was kinda’ scared.” 


UC Downtown Hotel Project Moves Closer to Reality

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 06, 2006

UC Berkeley’s plans for a high-rise hotel and conference center in downtown Berkeley are moving closer to reality, a university official said Monday. 

“There’s nothing signed yet, but we are in general agreement on the broad issues,” said UC Capital Projects Senior Planner Kevin Hufferd. 

Carpenter and Company, the Boston developer working with the university on the project, has scheduled a June 14 reception to unveil their preliminary plans. 

“We are committed to designing the downtown hotel/conference center consistent with the Berkeley Planning Commission Task Force recommendations,” wrote company President Dick Friedman in a letter to City Councilmember Kriss Worthington.  

The task force he cited was the UC Hotel Task Force, set up by the Planning Commission to offer guidelines for the project, planned for the northeast corner of Shattuck Avenue and Center Street. 

“There’s been no formal application,” said Berkeley Planning Director Dan Marks. “We’ve had some informal conversations, and we have suggested they need to fold the project into the downtown planning process.” 

Carpenter and Company has already picked a name for the new facility—the Berkeley Charles Hotel, named for Charles Square in Boston, where the company has headquartered. 

“We are very excited about this opportunity and want to share our enthusiasm with you and other community leaders,” Friedman wrote. 

During the June 12 reception and conference in the Berkeley Rep’s Roda Theatre, Friedman said his company would be “introducing our team and company background as well as our vision of the Berkeley Charles Hotel.” 

Marks said the hotel project would need several zoning ordinance modifications, “and if they want those, they need to engage in the downtown planning process.” 

That process, embodied in the Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee, is currently engaged in shaping a new plan for an expanded downtown area. 

That plan is mandated as one of the terms of the settlement of a city lawsuit filed against the university’s Long Range Development Plan for 2020, which includes a massive expansion of university use in the downtown. 

The hotel complex would be located at the site of the current Bank of America branch. 

Hufferd agreed. “This has to work through the planning process,” he said. 

If approved, the project would add a third highrise to the intersection that already houses Berkeley’s two tallest commercial buildings, the Wells Fargo Bank and Power Bar buildings on the western side of Shattuck. Another high-rise, the nine-story Berkeley Arpeggio condos, is scheduled to rise soon in the middle of the block of Center Street immediately to the west. 

“I’m not sure when there’ll actually be a ground-breaking,” said Hufferd. “There’s still a lot to work out.” 

Carpenter and Company has worked closely with Starwood Resorts, the parent company of the firm, which is the planned operator of another hotel planned for downtown Berkeley, the revamped Shattuck Hotel, also on Shattuck a block to the south.


BUSD Board to Finalize Tax Measure Wednesday

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The Berkeley Board of Education is expected to finalize language Wednesday for a renewed parcel tax measure that would supply Berkeley schools with an estimated $19.6 million a year. 

The measure, slated for the ballot this November, would combine and extend two existing taxes, scheduled to end in 2007, for 10 years. The measure would levy a square-footage tax on individual and commercial properties at a rate that would increase with the cost of living. Low-income seniors are eligible for an exemption. 

About $12.7 million, or two-thirds of the funding, would go toward class size reductions, a quarter would fund school excellence programs such as libraries, parent outreach and music and visual and performing arts, and less than a tenth would provide for professional development.  

A survey released in March found that more than three-fourths of Berkeley voters would support a renewed school parcel tax. 

Support is not unanimous, however. One opponent claims the language of the measure would allow the district to spend funds at its leisure and fails to adequately detail auditing requirements. 

The Berkeley Board of Education meets Wednesday at 7 p.m., at 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. For more information, call 644-6206.  

 


ZAB Considers Berkeley Toyota For Former Berkeley Tire Site

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) is slated to reconsider a use permit for a vacant site on University Avenue that allows Toyota of Berkeley to operate an automobile sales and service facility.  

The board issued Toyota of Berkeley a use permit for 1865 University Ave., last occupied by Berkeley Tire, but a neighbor appealed that decision on discrepancies in the permit application, insisting that tires are still sold at the site. 

The City Council heard the appeal in April and referred the issue back to ZAB, which will decide, for a second time Thursday, whether to approve the use permit. 

In an applicant’s statement dated May 24, applicant Tim Southwick said he plans to use the facility primarily as a car dealership and service center—what the building was designed for in 1946—though he will also sell and service tires as an ancillary business. 

Berkeley Tire is located on the north side of University Avenue, amid other commercial buildings. 

Residential buildings are to the rear of the site along Berkeley Way, the street on which the neighbor appealing the case resides.  

The Zoning Adjustments Board meets Thursday at 7 p.m., at 2134 Martin Luther King Jr. Way. 


Downtown Planners, Transportation Committee to Hold Joint Meeting

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The committee helping formulate the new downtown plan will hold a joint meeting with the city Transportation Commission Wednesday. 

The meeting, which focuses on transportation issues to be addressed in the plan, follows by a week another joint session with the Landmarks Preservation Commission which addressed historical structures in the downtown. 

The Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee was created as a result of the settlement of a city suit over UC Berkeley’s plans for development through 2020. 

The university plans to add about a million square feet of office, museum and other space in the downtown within that period. 

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave. at the corner of Martin Luther king Jr. Way. 

Scheduled speakers include: 

• John Holtzclaw of the Sierra Club Transportation Commission speaking on transportation and land use; 

• AC Transit Project Manager Jim Cunradi and planning consultant Sam Zimmerman-Bergman of Community Design + Architecture planning consultants speaking on Bus Rapid Transit and alternative proposals for the downtown BART plaza; 

• Greg Tung of Friedman, Tung and Bottomley, a San Francisco planning firm, addressing the design of boulevards and streets to handle multiple modes of transit; 

• Dave Campbell of the Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition discussing bike plans and possible improvements, and 

• A speaker talking about “City-UC Transportation Demand Management.” 

• James Patton of the Oakland Pedestrian Safety Project has been tentatively booked to talk about pedestrian issues. 

Parking will be addressed in a future session, reported Matt Taecker, the planner hired to assist in creating the downtown plan.


People’s Park Activist Arrested

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Disabled People Outside Project activist Dan McMullen was informed last week that he could either pay $10,000 in bail money or face arrest for violating an earlier probation by getting arrested at People’s Park on April 30. 

According to eyewitness reports, the People’s Park incident involved McMullen transporting his two sons in a trailer attached to his wheelchair, when he was informed by two UC officers that vehicles or carts were not allowed in People’s Park. 

When McMullen refused to move his wheel chair, he was ordered to procure his I.D., and when he refused to do so it resulted in a physical confrontation with the officer, leading to his getting handcuffed. 

The UC police have withdrawn their charges against him for trespassing, resisting arrest, and battery on a peace officer. 

Captain Mitch Celaya of the UC Police Department told the Planet that according to the charge sheet, McMullen will appear in court on July 5 to hear charges related to violation of probation only. 

Celaya added that by getting arrested at People’s Park, McMullen had violated an earlier probation.


Shoddy Reconstruction Angers Afghans

By Fariba Nawa, New America Media
Tuesday June 06, 2006

KABUL, Afghanistan—I am writing this in my apartment in one of the “posh” new buildings constructed in 2004 near downtown Kabul. The shiny structure is five stories tall with tinted windows. My roommate and I pay $300 a month in rent, the going price in such buildings. Few locals can afford such relative luxury—a civil servant's salary is just $50 a month. And this is no Trump Towers.  

Foreign dignitaries and television cameras see only the shiny windows and new-looking construction. Inside, our bathroom drains emit the stench of sewage because of faulty plumbing. The pipes in the walls leak constantly, and the lightest touch sends disintegrated wallboard cascading to the floor. There's no insulation in the walls, and the gaps in our misshapen door and window frames allow icy winds to blow directly into the apartment. As temperatures drop below zero in the winter, we get 15 hours of power for the week.  

Very little in Afghanistan could be considered well-made. Soviet-era construction is notoriously flimsy. But for sheer lack of durability, you need look no further than some of the reconstruction projects undertaken in just the last few years.  

For example, a U.S.-funded highway in the northern provinces of Afghanistan is disintegrating even before it has been completed. By the time construction materials were purchased, project money had trickled through so many agencies and contractors that all those contractors could afford were second-rate goods. The resulting paved road is little improvement over the dirt one it replaced.  

The $15 million for the project originally came from USAID, which gave it to the United Nations Office of Project Services, which in turn hired the Louis Berger Group as a consultant. The UN also contracted with the Turkish firm Limak to build the road itself, and Limak hired an Afghan-American company, ARC Construction Co.  

Where did the money go? Between USAID at the top and ARC Construction at the bottom, most of it was siphoned off for “overhead” and profits. Louis Berger reports that $4 million alone was spent on setting up and moving the mobile camp that housed employees, and on importing construction equipment from Turkey. Another $1.6 million has gone to the salaries of 12 Afghan and three international inspectors. The laborers who work on the road, on the other hand, are paid about $90 a month, without insurance or worker's compensation. Between 2002 and 2005, 80 people—about 18 expatriates, and the rest Afghans—were killed working on Berger-supervised projects in Afghanistan.  

After the expenses, salaries and profits have been taken out, there isn't enough money to build a decent road. Without maintenance—which has not been funded—the road will not last more than five years, according to one of the engineers.  

The Berger Group insists it is not beholden to political promises or even community expectations, but that it answers to a higher power: the spending cap on its contracts.  

“I understand their problems and needs, but I also have an obligation to keep within the budget of the taxpayers' money,” said Peter Pengelly, Berger's project manager in the camp. “To the community, we're guilty until proven innocent.”  

The community to which Pengelly refers includes about 1,000 drivers, farmers and other concerned Afghans who signed a petition complaining that the road is substandard, and demanding what they were promised. Drivers say the gravel on the road has punctured their car tires and broken their windows, and that potholes create hazards and delays.  

But the real discontent is about water. The road is built close to mud homes, which have been here for decades. The old dirt road was low and allowed run-off to drain away. The new road is built atop a raised berm, blocking drainage. If a heavy storm strikes, the villagers fear the mud homes they built with their hands will collapse.  

They submitted their petition to the governor of Sar-e Paula province, but the governor has no power over the single major highway in his jurisdiction, which was designed and built by outsiders.  

“USAID can take advice and suggestions from the Afghan government, but they don't have to listen to it,” said one of the contractors. “USAID will spend the money in the way they want.”  

On a sunny Friday morning last October, three villagers dug a ditch right through the new roadbed in an effort to create a drainage canal before the rainy season. They were arrested for damaging public property.  

The contractors pointed out that, according to an obscure and rarely-enforced Afghan highway law, no structure may be with in 30 meters of the road. Therefore, they argued, it was not the builder's responsibility to deal with homes that may flood because they are too close to the road -- even though the homes were there first.  

Two months later, the frustrated villagers dug a new ditch in the road.  

Because the road is guaranteed for a year against defects, Limak, with the advice of the Berger Group, agreed to build 63 new concrete culverts. When the culverts proved to small too accommodate the water flow, the contractors built additional ones next to them (and billed for it). Limak and the Berger Group point to this as a moment of altruism, rather than poor advanced planning.  

The whole project began as a campaign promise from Hamid Karzai, who could offer big infrastructure improvements since the Bush administration had the aid money to back him up. The locals helped elect him, but today many of them believe they were hoodwinked. They are left with a crumbling eight-meter wide gravel road, and a healthy case of buyer's remorse.  

 

This article was excerpted from “Afghanistan, Inc.: A CorpWatch Investigative Report,” by Fariba Nawa, a freelance journalist living in Kabul who researched the foreign reconstruction of Afghanistan for six months.


Not on List? Request Provisional Ballot

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Berkeley City Clerk Sara Cox said that if voters’ names do not appear on the voters’ list at the polling place where they believe they are registered, they have the right to ask for a provisional ballot. 

Cox warned there could be a large number of people whose names have been left off the voter rolls this year due to changes in voting registration procedures and changes in personnel at the Alameda County Registrar of Voters’ office. 

 


Candidates Can Substitute Signatures for Fee

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Candidates for office in Berkeley are required to pay a $150 filing fee when they take out nomination papers. However, in lieu of paying the fee, they can collect signatures. 

“Each valid signature will reduce the filing fee by $1,” says a memo from the City Clerk’s office. 

The signature in-lieu-of filing fee period opened June 2. Forms can be obtained from the City Clerk and must be filed by July 27. 

The nomination period opens July 17 and closes August 11. Nomination papers must be obtained from the City Clerk 


Police Blotter

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Rape suspect arrested 

Police are asking the public’s help in locating any other victims of a man they’ve arrested for the April 11 rape of a woman in North Berkeley, reports Berkeley police spokesperson Officer Ed Galvan. 

Adamu Chan, 30, has been charged with assaulting a Berkeley woman he lured into his residence after they had shared coffee. 

The Alameda County District Attorney’s office has charged him with rape, false imprisonment, oral copulation and menacing. 

His victim, a Berkeley woman in her 30s, has only a limited grasp of English, Galvan said. She identified Chan as her attacker from a photo lineup, in which the unique tattoos that adorn both of his arms and his upper chest were clearly visible. 

Galvan said investigators are concerned that there may be other victims, also unfamiliar with the language and or who may be afraid or unable to contact police. 

Anyone who may have been a victim of the suspect or knows anyone who may be a victim is asked to contact the Berkeley Police Dept. Sex Crimes Unit at 981-5735. 

 

Middle school heist 

A gang of five juveniles robbed another Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School student of his cell phone last Tuesday afternoon at the school, his coach told Berkeley police. 

 

Belated robbery report 

After mulling the incident for three days, a 26-year-old Berkeley woman finally decided to call police about the man with the scruffy beard who had tried to rob her near the corner of Adeline and Russell streets on May 26. 

The man, professing to be holding a concealed handgun, demanded her valuables, and after she called his bluff, the fellow departed, apparently as empty-handed as before. 

 

Photograph of Adamu Chan


Opinion

Editorials

County Supes Approve Sequoia Voting Contract

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday June 09, 2006

A divided Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Thursday to approve a $13.25 million, three-year voting machine contract with Sequoia Voting Systems of Oakland, ending, for the present, the county’s relationship with controversial Diebold Election Systems. 

Supervisors Alice Lai-Bitker, Gail Steele, and Scott Haggerty voted for the contract; Supervisors President Keith Carson and Supervisor Nate Miley voted against it. 

Following Thursday’s vote, an angry Carson said, “I’ve been consistent [in voting against electronic voting machines]. I haven’t bullshitted people like some people are bullshitting here today.” 

Carson left the supervisors immediately after the vote on the contract to go into closed session, and was not available to comment on who he was directing his “bullshitting” comment to. 

However, they seemed to be a direct reference to Supervisor Gail Steele, who, along with Carson, voted last March against entering contract negotiations with both Diebold and Sequoia. 

While Miley voted to approve the contract negotiations last March, both he and Haggerty indicated that they were doing so only to keep the county’s options open for the November election, and both said they reserved the right to vote for or against the actual proposed contract when it came before them. 

The county expects to be reimbursed by the federal government for $8.7 million of the purchase under the Help America Vote Act, with another $3 million coming from Diebold for a buyback of the electronic voting machines that were purchased from the company and have been in use in Alameda County for the past several elections. 

Berkeley attorney Lowell Finley of Voter Action organization said prior to the supervisors’ vote that if the supervisors approved the Sequoia contract, his organization would file a lawsuit in state court to block their implementation. 

Last March, Voter Action filed a state lawsuit against Alameda County and other California counties to block the implementation of the Diebold electronic touchscreen voting systems. That lawsuit has yet to be heard. 

Shortly before the supervisors vote, Supervisor Steele downplayed the lawsuit threat, saying that “there’s going to be a lawsuit from somebody, no matter what we do.” 

In approving the contract, supervisors upheld the staff recommendation to purchase the Sequoia machines, but ignored a crowd of public speakers asking the county to reject both Sequoia and Diebold. 

Under the new contract, voting in Alameda County for the next three years will be similar to what occurred in last Tuesday’s election, with most voters marking paper ballots to be counted by electronic scanners, and disabled voters having access to electronic touch screen voting machines. 

The difference this November will be that the scanners and voting machines will be provided by Sequoia instead of Diebold, and scanners will be available in each precinct. Under the new system, voters themselves will insert their paper ballots into the scanners. In Tuesday’s election, the ballots were not counted at the precincts, but at a central location in Oakland. 

While the new Sequoia voting system will not be capable of conducting Instant Runoff Voting in time for the November elections, when the City of Berkeley will be electing Councilmembers, School Board members, and the mayor, the contract calls for the machines to be upgraded to IRV capability by the end of next year. 

In addition to the recommended contract, supervisors approved two additions of their own: an amendment by Lai-Bitker that staff conduct its own independent security testing of the Sequoia machines, and an amendment by Haggerty that the county registrar of voters office conduct a “100 percent manual count” of the votes cast on touchscreen voting machines in November’s election to make sure that the electronic count given by the machines is accurate. 

Lai-Bitker said she wanted the independent testing because “even though I have been convinced by county staff that the security for the Sequoia machines is adequate, we need to have our own testing so that the public will be assured that the vote count will be accurate.” 

Immediately before the vote to approve the Sequoia contract, supervisors rejected on a 2-3 vote a substitute motion by Miley to enter contract negotiations with ES&S voting systems’ AutoMARK machines. These machines—which would have been provided primarily for disabled voters—allow voters to use a touchscreen to mark their ballots. 

Unlike the Sequoia and Diebold touchscreen systems, the ES&S AutoMARK machines print out a marked paper ballot when the voter is finished, allowing for a separate counting process from the machine on which the ballots are marked. Miley and Carson voted for the AutoMARK contract, and Haggerty, Lai-Bitker, and Steele voted against it. 

A crowd of voting activists spoke during the public comment period prior to the board vote, with speakers divided between those urging supervisors to adopt the AutoMARK system and those urging a return to hand-counted ballots. The only speakers in favor of either the Sequoia or Diebold contracts were representatives of those two companies. 

The Diebold touchscreen machines became obsolete when the State of California passed a law requiring a verifiable paper trail on all electronic voting machines beginning in January of 2006. The Diebold machines previously used by Alameda County do not possess a verifiable paper trail. 

A Diebold spokesperson said Thursday that there was a possibility that the Alameda County Diebold machines could be modified to include verifiable paper trail capability, but not in time for the November election.


Commission Landmarks UC Memorial Stadium

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 06, 2006

UC Berkeley’s Memorial Stadium joined the ranks of Berkeley’s landmarks Thursday by a unanimous vote of the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC). 

A proposal to landmark another big building nearby—the Bevatron building at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory—was continued for another month. 

Another request, to designate the troubled Iceland skating rink, was delayed until August at the owner’s request. 

The commission also took comments on two draft environmental impact reports, one involving university projects at and near the stadium and the other for the block-square, two-building, five-story condo-over-retail complex planned for 700 University Ave. 

After hearing heated remarks from angry neighbors, the commission nonetheless gave their approval to the illegal demolition of a landmarked cottage in the Sisterna Tract historic district—though not without harsh words for the developer. 

 

Memorial Stadium 

“Memorial Stadium is already a landmark in the common sense of the term,” said John English, author of the designation proposal. “I urge you to make it official.” 

With the demise of Kezar Stadium in San Francisco and major alterations at Stanford Memorial Stadium, the Berkeley facility “is the region’s only intact surviving coliseum-style stadium,” he said. 

The elegant Romanesque coliseum at the foot of the Berkeley hills is the creation of architect John Galen Howard, a polymath who founded the architecture department at the university and wrote epic poems about Italian Renaissance architect/artist Filippo Brunelleschi and the Classical Greek sculptor Pheidias. 

Howard occupies a leading place in the pantheon of Berkeley architectural greats, along with Bernard Maybeck and Julia Morgan—who studied with Howard.  

The LPC’s decision comes as the university is planning massive developments at and near the stadium, including the addition of a row of press boxes and luxury sky boxes above the stadium rim and a 186,000-square-foot athletic training center against the stadium’s western wall. 

Jennifer McDougall, a UC Berkeley planner who attended the meeting, said, “The university respects the structure and is fine with having it landmarked,” though she did contest some of the application’s description of the surrounding spaces. 

Michael Kelly of the Friends of Piedmont Way—the street that is also a landmark—agreed with English that the trees, including native Coastal Oaks, were a special feature that deserved attention in the landmark application. 

Commissioners Steven Winkel, Lesley Emmington and Carrie Olson said they agreed, and more specific language was added to the resolution, which passed on a unanimous vote. 

At Emmington’s suggestion, the commission voted to send the news to the state Office of Historic Preservation, with a request to add the site to the California Historic Register. 

An application to include the stadium on the National Register of Historic Places is also under way. 

 

Bevatron delay 

Commissioners delayed a vote on landmarking the Bevatron, a particle accelerator at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that was the site of historic discoveries into the inner workings of the atom that led to Nobel Prizes for Berkeley physicists. 

Proponents have spoken as much about their fears of public health hazards resulting from demolition as they have about their desires to preserve the structure for its historic merits, and Emmington told them they should address their comments to the LPC on historic issues alone. 

That didn’t stop speakers from devoting much of their remarks to their worries about possible exposure to lead, radioactive particles and asbestos during demolition, and their concerns about the dangers of hauling thousands of truckloads of debris down crowded city streets.  

The delay, approved on a 5-2 vote with Chair Robert Johnson and Fran Packard in opposition, was granted to allow proponents to try to obtain more information from federal records. 

 

2104 Sixth St. 

“I’m appearing on behalf of Adolf Hitler, Ghenghis Kahn and anybody else you can blame for anything,” declared attorney John Gutierrez, who represents Gary Feiner, the developer who is converting two Victorian cottages in the Sisterna Tract historic district into duplexes, and his architect, Timothy Rempel. 

Gutierrez was responding to what he characterized as “slanderous remarks” from neighbors, who have found little to like about the project, its developer and its architect. 

“Their track record is not one that gives us confidence,” said Neal Blumenfeld, who owns a cottage adjacent to the other Feiner duplex at 2108 Sixth St. 

“If there’s money floating around, that seems to win,” said neighbor Sarah Satterlee. “I would like to see that not happen any more.” 

“I feel insulted. You should feel insulted. They knocked down a landmarked building,” said Jano Bogg, a neighbor who also lost his fence to the unannounced demolition. 

The landmark demolition in question didn’t involve the complete destruction of the cottage, but it did entail the destruction of the roof and most of the siding, including key architectural features. 

Rempel, who lives a block and a half away, has said he hadn’t been aware of the roof demolition, which he and Gutierrez blamed on the contractor. 

While Commissioner Olson has described the demolition as the first of its kind in her long experience on the commission, the LPC voted its approval—though their resolution included the provision that the city hire an architect of its choice at the developer’s expense to visit the site twice a week and report on compliance. 

Winkel also pointed out that unpermitted demolition is a crime under city code, punishable by fine and imprisonment. 

 

EIR comments 

More comments on the university projects came from the public during the open comment session at the start of the meeting than came from the commissioners during the formal hearing later because the LPC addressed its concerns to the university in greater detail during an April hearing. 

The university’s EIR draft involves massive construction and demolitions required to renovate the stadium, construct a 911-space semi-underground parking lot just north of the stadium, and build a new “connection” building joining offices and functions of the Boalt Hall Law and Haas Business schools. 

Johnson said the report failed to offer any justification for the elevated sky and press boxes that would have added 50 percent to the stadium’s western wall, a notion that he said is “getting away from the whole egalitarian idea of the stadium.” 

“The project is putting the whole setting at risk,” said Emmington. 

Olson said more attention needed to be given to Piedmont Way in light of earlier repairs that had led to the loss of historic trees. 

Emmington said the draft EIR for the 700 University Ave. condo project failed to give adequate consideration to three existing buildings on the site, one a landmark, another a former landmark and a third—Brennan’s Irish Pub. 

The building that houses Celia’s Mexican Restaurant had been declared a Structure of Merit until the City Council reversed the decision, and the old South Pacific railroad station is a current landmark. 

Several commissioners said they’d like to see the station—currently earmarked as the future site of the to-be-demolished Brennan’s—returned to station use. 

Developer Dan Deibel of Urban Housing Group said the railway wasn’t interested. 

Johnson and Winkel said they were both concerned about the mass of the buildings, given the neighborhood.


Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Friday June 09, 2006

• 

YOUTH OPPORTUNITIES 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Your recent article on summer activities for Berkeley teens omitted one very important resource. The Berkeley Public Library’s database of local organizations and services, the Berkeley Information Network (BIN), can help teens easily locate organizations needing volunteers or summer camps or plenty of other entertaining summertime activities.  

Check out the library’s website at www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org and click on Berkeley Information Network (or the link for Community Organizations). Enter the subject “volunteer” and you’ll find over 100 local organizations that seek help. Or enter “summer camps” for details on 65 nearby camps for teens and over 100 for children. And there’s lots of information on local sports and recreation possibilities, plus local museums, parks, bookstores, and fairs.  

If you don’t have internet access at home, come to the Central Berkeley Public Library or your neighborhood branch library for information, or call the BIN at 981-6166.  

Jane Scantlebury  

BIN Coordinator  

 

• 

CANCEROUS CAR  

CONCENTRATION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

In your recent issues Michael Katz has informed us of the many ways our city’s planners and politicians are closing streets, building “busways,” and eliminating parking in the downtown and along Telegraph Avenue. But while this is going on, our planners and politicians are ignoring the greatest peril of all: the Cancerous Car Concentration on 4th Street. Not only can cars drive and park on 4th Street, but behind the shops are free parking lots. The result? Hundreds of yuppies are invading our city, recklessly spending money on books at the other Cody’s, lattes at Peets, meat at Cafe Rouge, bibelots at the Gardner, and bargains at Crate & Barrel, thoughtlessly leaving sales tax in their wake as they drive away. Surely our city can save this part of town as well. Fourth Street is narrow but could be striped for bus-only and bike lanes if all parking were removed. Developers are waiting to convert the parking lots into five-story apartments with a proper compliment of them accessible to “low” income. With only a little effort this part of town can soon match Shattuck and Telegraph avenues. What is the city waiting for?  

Christopher Adams 

 

• 

AC LINE ON TELEGRAPH 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As Michael Katz states, an AC bus line lane though Telegraph is ludicrous: you would breathe the fumes. His example of a functioning cool neighborhood in Philadelphia is a starting point for a vision of a Telegraph that would make Berkeley proud. And, for success, parking must be a part of this vision.  

Al Geyer 

 

• 

BIKE PARKING 

Editors, Daily Planet: Michael Katz’s May 30 opinion piece, “Downtown Will Be Berkeley’s Next BART Fiasco,” stated that the bike parking at the Civic Center Garage is “attended.” But is it? Or is it just that the bike parking is located within sight of the garage parking attendant? 

Truly attended bike parking involves a human being taking responsibility for the security of the bicycles involved. As I understand it, the Civic Center Garage does nothing of the sort. It’s park at your own risk. 

A bike rack within sight of a auto parking attendant is not my idea of truly secure bike parking. The Berkeley BART bike station does provide secure parking and doesn’t absolve itself of all responsibility if a theft or loss—an extremely unlikely possibility—does occur. 

Individual bike lockers also provide adequate secure parking for bicycles. Bicycle racks, however close they are to a garage attendant, have their place, but are inherently less secure than lockers or true attended bike parking,  

Scott Mace 

 

• 

ILLEGAL PETITIONING 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Ten days ago I encountered two petition-circulators for the proposed ordinance relating to condo conversions and terminating basic rent control protection in Berkeley. One was a group at a card-table at the Berkeley Bowl, the other a single young man (who said he was paid, when asked) at Andronico’s (Acton and University). Neither petitioner included a (required) copy of the ordinance, neither would provide a name and address of the source of the petition or a place where more information could be obtained, both displayed summaries of the ordinance that omitted its provisions relating to rent control, and the group at Berkeley Bowl flatly and specifically misrepresented these provisions verbally and also misrepresented the current status of rent control as the proposed ordinance bears on it.  

If this isn’t illegal it ought to be. What proportion of the signatures on the petitions filed were thus fraudulently obtained, one wonders? 

The proposed ordinance is itself decepetive, concealing the end of fundamental Berkeley rent control protections within the Trojan Horse of a supposed boon to condo buyers. The device itself confesses the bad faith of the proposal’s authors, who prefer to remain unidentified, at least by the two petition circulators I encountered. And I can certainly understand why. 

Jim Powell 

 

• 

THRIVE, DEMOCRATS 

Editors, Daily Planet: Damn, Democrats are dumb! We offer California two WWMs (weaselly white males), one a developer’s flunky and the other a techie who job-hopped until he hit the jackpot, who then savaged each other until they both look like roadkill next to Ahnold. My private fantasy: given the state’s penchant for Hollywood politicos, the obvious choice should have been Allison Janney - tall, commanding, energetic. I can hear the slogan now: C.J. for Governor—THRIVE!  

Jerry Landis 

 

• 

LANGUAGE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I am a recent (one year) resident of Berkeley, and I appreciate access to reading this paper, especially Douglas Allen-Taylor. Another of my favorites is the Friday garden article. 

I would like to share my opinion about the June 20 article “The Place to Look for Unusual Garden Tools.” I would like to make a suggestion that in the future the writer and editors consider the audience they are writing to. As a person of part Asian descent i was surprised at some choice of words : esoteric, obscure, clever, kinky, cheap. I have found Hida Tools to be exquisite, well designed, carefully crafted and of good value. I have also found the people at Hida helpful to answer any questions I had about tools I am not familiar with. I ask you to consider if there is some unaware race/cultural bias. 

May Kandarian 

 

• 

TRAFFIC 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Last week a dear friend was hit by a car and thrown from his wheelchair while crossing the street, even though he had a green light and was in a crosswalk. This was the third time he had been hit in the Southside area, even though he only crosses major streets at signalized intersections and is extremely wary of approaching vehicles. 

I do a lot of walking in the North Oakland/Berkeley area, and I have learned to avoid crossing in front of waiting vehicles unless I have made eye contact with the driver, yet I have had dozens of near misses, one of which included feeling the rubber bumper brushing my calf and the driver entirely unaware that I was there. 

The problem is that defensive driving is not enough. A defensive driver is only looking out for vehicles as large and powerful as his own. What about the pedestrians, strollers, bicycles, pushcarts, and wheelchairs, which are smaller and more vulnerable and have to use the same roadway? 

Things have gotten so bad that nothing less than the level of public awareness campaign that has so greatly reduced smoking will make the streets safe for all who use them. Every entity on the road needs to be aware of all the other users, no matter how large or small, no matter how powerful or fragile. Sidewalk encroachments and obstruction violations need to be enforced, so that wheelchairs, strollers, and pushcarts do not have to detour into the street. Construction detours need to provide safe alternate routes for pedestrian traffic, bearing in mind that bus riders and others may need to be on a particular side of the street. 

One way to beat the rising price of gas is to encourage more people to walk, cycle, and use public transportation, but if the streets are not safe for those who are not sheltered by their personal metal bubbles, more and more cars will continue to fill the roads.  

Marcella Murphy 

 

• 

TUTORING 

Editors, Daily Planet: Regarding the Article “Free Tutoring Become Big Business in Public School” by Suzanne La Barre. For most parents who have search the maze of tutoring services provided by public schools, the story only touches on this complex issue. Tutoring service and the amount of monies allocated vary from county to county and school to school. The reasons for choosing services play a key role in the cost and fee for said service. For parents whose children fall within the No Child Left Behind and/or attend a school that have been named as Needs to Improve, there are a many choices. However, the funding is limited to a maximum of two years, when using services outside your public school.  

For a list of the tutors, start by going to the website, ED.gov. Click the “Parent” link, and scroll through the link to Options for parents guidelines for the services provided through No Child Left Behind. 

There is also a link that lists services provided by state. This link gives you a map of the U.S., where you then click CA, after which a county or school district link is then given. From there information and programs can be found for the school your child attends. 

Other options include the use of academic summer programs which can cost the same as a tutoring program for parent who are paying full price or sliding scale fees. Such programs include the Cal State East Bay program for children ages four years through high school and the Summer Young Writer Camps for middle-school children. 

A Charlene Matthews 

 

• 

PUBLIC  

TRANSPORTATION 

Editors, Daily Planet: In his commentary opposing AC Transit’s proposal to implement BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) on Telegraph Ave, Mr. Katz says—with approbation, I presume: “I can tell you that on South St. (Philadelphia commercial district) you’ll find: Cars, cars, cars on the street. Parking, parking, parking at the curb...” 

Mr. Katz has ignored an important bonus of transit oriented development on Telegraph, i.e. a reduction in pollution, congestion, and carbon dioxide emissions. A passenger on a bus produces one half the CO2 emissions per mile as a passenger in an automobile according to the American Public Transportion Association (“Conserving Energy and Preserving the Air We Breathe” (http://www.publictransportation.org/reports/index_energy.asp).  

We can no longer afford to debate the merits of the automobile vs. transit. The threats from global warming make it urgent that urban planners make a reduction in CO2 emissions a top priority and this means finding a way to integrate transit into all urban designs in such a way as to reduce automobile travel. 

Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are now higher than at any time in the last 650,000 years. According to the National Resources Defense Council report “Global Warming and the Golden State,” increased CO2 levels will be responsible for the following changes in California: 

1. More precipitation will fall as rain than as snow, increasing the risk of floods. 

2. There will be a shorter snow season because snowfall will start later and snow will melt earlier. 

3. With less snow in the mountains, there will be less fresh water available in the summer, when it is most needed. 

4. Sea levels will rise, threatening low-lying communities and the many species that rely on California’s rich wetland ecosystems. 

5. Warmer coastal waters could cut of the supply of nutrients to California’s marine ecosystems, with harmful effects on the state’s ocean economy. 

Report can be downloaded from http://www.environmentaldefense.org/pubarchive.cfm?subnav=list&t=65&tname=Global%20Warming&campaign=299&page=2. 

Transit is also important to older Americans: more than one in five (21%) Americans age 65 and older do not drive. 

I urge Mr. Katz to reconsider his opposition to BRT. 

Leonard Conly 

 

• 

LOST CAT 

Editors, Daily Planet: This is an appreciation note to many of my North-Central Berkeley neighbors. Since my cat Spike went missing a month ago, I’ve received phone calls almost every day, responding to my posters with possible sightings or useful suggestions, including contacting Berkeley’s Animal Care facility, where staff and volunteers have also been helpful and kind. 

The only negative event was when some students of M. L. King School thought it would be amusing to phone me with a purported play-by-play of trying to catch Spike, only to see him hit by a car. This turned out to be bogus. 

His brother Butch is still grieving. I haven’t give up; Spike’s sturdy and kind people in this neighborhood (centered on Lincoln and McGee) set out food for cats, and there are fountains, etc. where he could get water. I think he’s making it out there, and just doesn’t know how to find his way home. He’s a long, lean grey and black tabby with very pronounced stripes on his face and back. If spotted, please call 548-1206. 

Dick Bagwell 

 

• 

APOLOGY 

Editors, Daily Planet:  

My apologies to MICHAEL Katz for getting his name wrong in my letter. (I was taking Mr Katz to task for errors of fact and a gross mischaracterization of my father’s enthusiasm for the David Brower Center.) I had his LAST name wrong in a draft of my letter, which just goes to show it’s a good thing I’m a professor (where my written work is carefully scrutinized) not a journalist, who, writing for the Planet at least, can say pretty much anything that pops into his head. 

Barbara Brower 

 

• 

LIBRARY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

In your June 6-8 2006 issue of the Daily Planet I was delighted and also saddened to read the letter to the editor “Public Libray” by Gene Bernardi. I am in total agreement with Mr. Bernardi’s note on the fictional success of the BPL and their inexpert, incompetent Director Jackie Griffin and her management of the BPL. While visiting North Branch last week, I noticed only two library assistants work there. When I worked there from 1989 to 1994, there were four of us and we worked our fingers to the bone: has the patronage of this libray lessened so much in the last 12 years? I think not.  

Furthermore, the visitations of a small number of teenagers have required patrons to request a security guard to deter this group of intractable and rude teenagers—a situation that never occured when there were more staff there as well as a teenage librarian, where today there is not thanks to Jackie Griffin. The 64 percent of the BPL staff that signed the Statement of No Confidence have company in the general public, to whom Ms. Griffin is also answerable. “We” are still watching you, Ms. Griffin, and your grade is still “F”. Do us a favor, Ms. Griffin, and Leave BPL. 

If the BPL is seeking an (over-qualified) replacement for Ms. Griffin, I can think of no one better than a certain library technician currently at West Branch whose exemplary spirit and knowledge of BPL would place BPL back where it belongs—in the hands of qualified librarians and technicians and assistants whose dedication to Berkeley and its bibliophiles would return to us what we have lost in the hands of a director whose lack of confidence is approaching that of another inept director, President George W. Bush. 

Mark K. Bayless 

 

• 

 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The treatment of the Peruvian presidential election is indicative of the media’s manipulation of public perception. Two weeks ago the NY Times purveyed an article suggesting that if Alan Garcia beat out Ollanta Humala in Peru the cause would be the “intervention” of Venezuela’s leftist President, Hugo Chavez. Chavez endorsed Humala. Associated Press, June 5, ran with Alan Garcia’s victory chant that “Peruvians had sent an overwhelming message Sunday to Chavez that they wanted no part of the ‘strategy of expansion of a militaristic, retrograde model that he has tried to impose in South America.’”  

That’s all b.s. I visited Peru in September before Humala appeared out of nowhere. His rejection by many urban Peruvians was fairly predictable. Humala is from a military family which has advocated imprisonment of gays and killing of opponents. Peruvians had seen enough horrors from both sides during the Sendero Luminoso (shining path) period, including severe corruption and a dirty war of terror by their government. Humala scared them, and Garcia used the Chavez endorsement to increase fears. But Chavez is immensely popular in the region. He does not represent the militaristic politics that Garcia or the US claim. He has instead supported the education, empowerment, health and success of common people. That Chavez chose to endorse Humala because of his nationalism was Chavez’ big mistake. However, it is the US and Alan Garcia whose propaganda simplified this into Peruvians voting against Chavez. By their logic Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales of Bolivia only won elections because George Bush supported their opponents.  

 

Marc Sapir 


Commentary: Sources of African-American Culture a Conundrum

By Jean Damu
Friday June 09, 2006

Thank you for Mr. Allen-Taylor’s stimulating review of Charles DeBose’s The Sociology of African-American Language. Not long ago I submitted a book review to a left leaning, youth oriented newspaper in San Francisco but was informed they don’t print book reviews. So thank you for encouraging us all to put our thinking caps on. 

The issues of African-American language and by extension all black culture in the U.S. and its relative dominance when counterposed to other cultures is one that has long fascinated me. I was never one to simply believe the vast differences in African-American and white cultures were simply reflections of race. These beliefs were reinforced more than thirty years ago when I traveled to Cuba for the first of many subsequent trips. In 1974 I was astounded to see and hear black and white Cubans dancing, singing and speaking exactly the same. If you closed your eyes or listened to the radio it was impossible then, as it is today, to know if you’re listening or watching an Afro-Cuban or white Cuban. “How is this possible?” was a question I asked myself for many years. 

These kinds of observations and issues, in my opinion, lie at the heart of the great conundrum in this country over African-American language and culture. Why is black culture so different from white culture and why do whites so often mimic black culture? For instance, why do so many white singers always try to sound like Mary J. Blige but you never hear any black singers trying to sound like Frank Sinatra? 

It is not clear to me, from reading Allen-Taylor’s review that DeBose addresses these questions. Framing the peculiarities of Ebonics as simply a reaction to the oppressor is not a full-fledged response. Allen-Taylor’s anecdote about being in the inner city and hearing young black males practicing their rap is accurate but not nearly as interesting to me as being in the inner city and hearing white youth, Philipino, Cambodian and Viet Namese youth talking exactly as if they are black. To me that condition dramatizes exactly what is America. 

Consider that in the late eighteenth century English tourists in America often wrote home and complained that Americans were debasing themselves and losing the ability to speak English. “They speak just like the slaves!” was a complaint often heard then. Therefore the development of African-American language has long been in existence and its influence on whites as well as other cultural aspects is without question. Why was this never the case in Cuba and other place like Cuba? Why is it so apparently unique here? 

I have come to believe, and my understanding has been facilitated by the critical race theory movement, that the answers to these long unanswered question lie in the way in which slavery was administered. 

In most of the colonies that became the United States, Europeans significantly outnumbered Africans. Therefore, in order for the elite Europeans to maintain control and power the definition of who was considered white was constricted. Anyone with one drop of African blood was deemed black. Originally the Irish and Italians were not considered white. However, in order that the various groups of Europeans become considered white, European culture atrophied in the cause of creating white solidarity. 

For the Africans the situation was reversed. In the face of brutal, white oppression racial solidarity made it necessary for the various African nationalities to become black, or negro or colored. For the Africans, culture—language dance, music—became the tool of racial solidarity. In almost mathematical terms, to the degree the the blacks were oppressed, to the same degree the culture was fortified. For instance it is often said the Blues, considered by many the bedrock of all modern music, was a response to the federally endorsed campaign of lynchings of African-Americans.  

Likewise, on the other side of the coin so to speak, in the late 1950s white DJs across America were vilified and subjected to political and economic sanctions for their part in the so-called payola scandal, accepting money and gifts for playing pre-selected records on the radio. What the DJs were really being castigated for, however, was nothing more than playing black music for white audiences, or enhancing the africanization of American culture, a process that really began in 1619, when it is claimed, the first Africans were brought here from Angola and continues to this day, most recently with the Hyphy movement. 

Time and space do not allow a close look at Cuba and her assimilated sisters Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela etc., except to say they are mirror images of the United States in that anyone with one drop of white blood is considered white, the precise opposite of here. In those countries assimilation has been used to keep blacks on the bottom and whites on top, thereby giving the lie to those who promote multiculturalism and colorblind policies here. Ward Connerly, do I have your attention? I didn’t think so. 

The great Ebonics brouhaha of the mid-1950s was a progressive and right-headed attempt, I think, to recognize the real conditions of African-American students and use it to their advantage, namely to recognize Ebonics as a tool and use it to teach standard English. The great irony in that situation, however, was that the proposal that was submitted to the Oakland Board of Education was poorly written and caused confusion that allowed many to reject and ridicule the movement. Too bad, it would have been a huge step forward. 

The issue of African-American language is an important issue, especially when reviewed in context of the African American condition. I’m looking forward to reading DeBose’s book. My hope is that through the study of our language he begins to confront the real reasons why African-Americans have always, forever and continue to be marginalized in America.


Commentary: Art Center Needs More Money to Stay Open for 40th Anniversary

By Kathleen Kahn
Friday June 09, 2006

Next year, the Berkeley Art Center hopes to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The Center, housed in a small gem of a Ratcliff building beside the creek in Live Oak Park, has been displaying the work of Berkeley artists since 1967. But the prospects for a 2007 celebration are far from certain. The more likely scenario is that Berkeley’s municipal art gallery will be forced to close down before its anniversary date arrives. Its budget has been shrinking every year and if the city cannot restore the grant for the coming year to the 2001 level, the Center will not be able to keep its doors open. 

The loss would be a sad one for the entire city. The Center has been a civic showcase for a wide range of Berkeley artists, bringing some of them to national prominence. Each year it sponsors a Youth Art Festival; this year over 200 Berkeley High student artists exhibited their work. Recently it began a series on “Berkeley Treasures,” work by internationally acclaimed artists who may not have received the attention they deserve in their hometown. Work includes the photographs of Brenda Prager, who created the Addison Street Windows, and the crafts of Kay Sekimachi and Bob Stocksdale.  

BAC’s 2001 exhibition, “The Whole World Is Watching: Peace and Social Justice Movements of the 1960s and 1970s” just completed a five-year national tour, including runs at the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis and the California African American Museum in Los Angeles. Last year’s “From Isolation to Connection: Artists Living with Psychiatric Disabilities” received unusual acclaim and funding.  

Other shows have focused on issues of special appeal to Berkeley’s multicultural values. “Ethnic Notions: Black Images in the White Mind” explored the perpetuation of racism through caricature and stereotype. “Asian Roots, Western Soil” celebrated the contributions of Japanese aesthetics to American culture. 

The Center presents a wide range of art, including films, chamber music, plays, dance, and discussions. But while its ambitions have grown, its non profit resources have steadily shrunk, forcing its budget from $169,000 in 2004 to $154,000 in 2005 to $140,000 in 2006. The city’s contribution has decreased as well, from $92,000 in 1979 to $68,000 in 2001, to $42,000 last year. With the paid staff down to one and a half persons, there is nothing more to cut. If the city cannot restore the $20,000 per year reduction it made five years ago, the Center will likely close its doors this summer. 

This happened once before: in 1978, following the cutbacks forced by Proposition 13, the Center closed for a year. With the building locked down, BAC’s redwood-shaded area alongside Codornices Creek became a littered hideout for drug dealers. One of Berkeley’s treasures—an extraordinarily beautiful spot in an extraordinarily beautiful city—turned into a hazard, a danger to avoid. 

We urge the Council and the mayor to act as good stewards of Berkeley’s artistic and architectural heritage, and keep the Art Center open. For more information about the Berkeley Art Center, call 510/644-6893.  

 

Kathleen Kahn is on the board of the Berkeley Art Center.


Commentary: Eviction Threat Imperils Nexus Building

By Robert Brokl
Friday June 09, 2006

A unhappy milestone has just passed. On May 31, our latest 15-year lease on Nexus from the Berkeley-East Bay Humane Society expired. Although Nexus is attempting to negotiate with the Humane Society to purchase the property, the Humane Society had indicated they intended to place a metal fence around the vacated building on June 1. That fence did not go up on that date, but who knows about tomorrow?  

In a variation of the Drayage demise facilitated by the city of Berkeley allegedly for the Drayage’s code violations, the Humane Society has offered to place a fence around the building to attempt to mitigate their non-compliance with the legal requirement for seismic upgrading of the landmarked Austin Building structure, originally Standard Tool & Die. The city waived fines placed against the Humane Society and accepted the fence placement as a temporary seismic remedy. This is despite the fact that the Building and Safety Division of the city’s Planning and Development Department has indicated some 50 buildings—many presumably occupied—in Berkeley are out of compliance with the unreinforced masonry seismic retrofit requirement. Vacant buildings are prone to blight and fire and several vacant structures have burned in West Berkeley. Where is the guarantee a fence will protect passers-by and parked cars from collapse of the brick façade of the steel-frame building, if an earthquake occurs before the building changes hands and the seismic upgrades proceed?  

As the building owner, the Humane Society could have applied for another waiver of the arbitrary “deadline” but didn’t. As the tenants negotiating to buy the building, we asked to apply for the extension but were not allowed to by the Building Division.  

The boarded-up Drayage is squatted, according to a former resident. In the case of vacant buildings, “accidental” fires often result in cleared sites which are easier to sell and build upon. The agreement reached between the Building Division and the Humane Society provides for no mechanisms for safeguarding the emptied-out buildings.  

 

ZONING PROTECTION:  

Nexus is also—theoretically!—protected by the arts and crafts ordinance and the protective zoning that requires comparable replacement space for arts and crafts uses elsewhere in West Berkeley if those uses are removed from their existing location. The sale of Nexus to some developer other than Nexus certainly raises that distinct possibility. Nexus and its community gallery are specifically referenced in the West Berkeley Plan. Some 25 artists and woodworkers currently use Nexus, many more over several decades. Many of the artists are UC Art Department graduates. The Nexus Gallery has been subsidized by Nexus Institute for years, providing exhibit/performance space for thousands since the early 1980s when the Gallery opened. Countless classes and open studios by Nexus artists have also occurred over the years.  

Jim Hynes, Assistant to the City Manager, affirmed the “protected use” of the 19,000 sq. ft. the Nexus occupies in a July 23, 2004 memo. Notable West Berkeley activists such as former Planning Commission member/woodworker John Curl and photographer/Nexus Neighbor/West Berk-eley Association of industrial Companies (WeBAIC) member Rick Auerbach have spoken out repeatedly in support of Nexus, most recently on May 24 when John Curl spoke at the Art Commission meeting. The continuing existence of Nexus runs counter to the trend in West Berkeley and elsewhere of upscale "life style lofts", but many of the new residents welcome the amenity of Nexus, attending Nexus events and openings and supporting the landmark nomination.  

 

CIVIC ARTS COMMISSION STEPS TO THE PLATE:  

 

At their May 24 meeting, the Civic Arts Commission heard from John Curl and several Nexus artists, where the Nexus situation was agendized as an action item. A strong letter of support was endorsed unanimously, calling for delay of the Nexus evictions, affirming the protected arts and crafts use under the zoning, and calling upon displaced artists and craftspeople to be relocated in comparable space in West Berkeley before any eviction can happen.  

This letter of support and concern has been forwarded to the City Council for action.  

 

WE ARE NOT “HOBBYISTS”—NEXUS ARTISTS SHOW AND TEACH WIDELY:  

 

Nexus Artist Co-President Carol Newborg is included in the exhibit "beyond Boundaries", a show of installation and multidisciplinary work, at the SFMOMA Artists Gallery in Fort Mason, San Francisco, June 7—30, opening Wed., June 7. Lisa Kokin is featured in "Menagerie" at the San Francisco Museum of Craft and Folk Art in August , and Robert Brokl is artist-in-residence at the new de Young Museum June 14-30. Caitlin Mitchell-Dayton provided the real paintings and drawings for the fictional art student/up-and-coming art world star in the just-released "Art School Confidential." Sharon Siskin is an assistant professor at USF who for many years organized exhibits in the Nexus Gallery by her students who were HIV-positive or had AIDS.  

 

CAN YOU STILL HAVE AN “ARTS DISTRICT” WITHOUT ARTISTS?  

 

Nexus thrived for over 30 years because it was able to put down roots at a time before West Berkeley became the developer magnet it is now. The artists who maintained studios there—despite the unheated, even funky conditions—flourished, developing their craft and sharing it with the greater community in Berkeley and beyond.  

If removed from Nexus and my studio of 24 years, I hope to continue as an artist elsewhere, but I will be forced out of Berkeley. The Drayage tenant attorney says 90% of the former Drayage residents have relocated outside of Berkeley. This is not just our personal loss. I would suggest Berkeley will be poorer as well. Its elected officials and staff provide lip service toward support for arts and artists but in reality mostly just stand by as the well-established Nexus cooperative of 25 artists and woodworkers and a community gallery are forced out to make way for—no mystery here—yet more life-style lofts. Maybe one day—too little too late—there will be a City-sponsored program to “reintroduce” artists in West Berkeley, their former “natural habitat,” long after they went extinct.  

 

Robert Brokl is a Nexus building artist.


Letters to the Editor

Tuesday June 06, 2006

BEARING  

RESPONSIBILITY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Whatever the conduct of the Oakland Police Department in chasing suspects may be, J. Douglas Allen-Taylor makes a fatal mistake in his criticism of the department by reframing the debate to make it appear that the police are responsible for the deaths of innocents in those chases (“Two More Innocent Bystanders Die in High Speed Chase,” June 2, 2006). He somehow manages to twist the facts—disputed as they are—to say that “. . . two innocent young people are dead and another is in critical condition in the hospital because the City of Oakland has decided that ‘blaring loud music’ is a serious offense. At least, it is in the sideshow zones of East Oakland.” 

At the end of the day, even for infractions as minor as playing music too loud from one’s car, our society operates on the predication that citizens, when pursued by the police, must comply. Does this assumption discredit the possibility that beat officers—and even command staff—enforce laws in an arbitrary fashion, profile suspects based on race, class and other factors, and treat certain communities as war zones, deserving of either neglect or brutal crackdowns? Absolutely not. Does it deny the rights of citizens to fight charges brought against them, to seek redress in the courts when the police abuse their authority? No. 

Just last week, I was pulled over by a BPD officer. Driving legally and under the speed limit, I did not know why I was being pulled over (it turned to be a fix-it ticket for faulty brake lights). Does Mr. Allen-Taylor really mean to suggest that if I had decided to run rather than pull over when the flashing lights appeared behind me and the siren “whooped,” I would somehow have been absolved of the consequences of my actions once the chase began, just because the police officer chasing me might not have been doing the right or legal thing? 

Make no mistake—when innocent people die because someone has decided to flee rather than comply when the police try to pull them over, there is only party responsible for those lost lives—the one who runs. 

Daniel Jimenez 

 

• 

BERKELEY BOWL 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

The West Berkleley Bowl project, as proposed, will bring more harm to the city than it will bring benefits. 

The City Council should reject the environmental impact report as prejudiced and inadequate. It starts with the unreasonable premise that the store, although near I-80, would not have a significant regional draw, and therefore arrives at the unreasonable conclusion that it would not have severe unmitigatable impacts on the intersection of 7th and Ashby. The EIR’s extreme underestimation of traffic congestion in that intersection is meant to mislead the public and the City Council as to the actual unmitigatable impacts: the enormous traffic jams that will harm many existing businesses, harm commuters, and harm the entire city. 

This project is much larger than any other supermarket in Berkeley. At the public hearing on June 11, I will urge Council to reject the proposal and to tell the applicant to resubmit it as a request for a zoning variance conditioned on the project scaled down to the size of Alternative C, which is in scale with Berkeley’s other supermarkets, and would cause commensurately less impact. 

The council should not change the zoning of the property. The industrial businesses of the area rely on the City to maintain a friendly environment, and to do this they need industrial zoning. West Berkeley is the only place in the city where industries and arts and crafts can exist. Their continued existence provides diversity and richness, and makes our economy strong. While much of America is closing and offshoring industry, Berkeley should be dancing to beat of a different drummer: instead of dismantling the zone parcel by parcel, we should instead be a leader in proactively planning an industrial zone for the 21st century. 

John Curl 

 

• 

UC SUPPORT CODY’S? 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

As one of many Berkeley citizens who care deeply about our town, our cultural treasures, and our future, I am requesting that you take a positive step on behalf of UC Berkeley students, faculty, and the entire city community by helping to keep Cody’s Bookstore on Telegraph Ave.  

Simply put, you can direct the UC Libraries to buy some portion of their books at Cody’s. Right now, as you may know, purchases are made through national book sources. This practice does nothing to support local businesses. 

There always is a symbiotic relationship between any university and the town in which it is established. The school needs the employees, public services and amenities of the surrounding community. The townpeople needs the jobs, the ambience, the cultural assets of the university. And students, especially, need the town for its offerings of bookstores, restaurants, movies, parks. It has always been this way—it’s a normal relationship. And the current contentious relationship between Berkeley town and gown needs some serious mending.  

Local business thrives from both communities. When the university withdraws any significant portion of its operating expenditures from the town, there is animosity, economic decline, and in this case, a significant loss of a cultural treasure. Since textbook stores sell only textbooks, a first-class book store is a learning opportunity where students, just blocks away, have the opportunity to browse the many gems of an extraordinary bookstore which offers not only the new books just out, but their authors who arrive 18 to 20 times a month to meet readers and potential readers. This is a valuable learning process for everyone. 

To some extent, every university within a small town is a “company town,” and that certainly is true in Berkeley. But the university’s recent policies of dominance and disdain for Berkeley citizens seem to be taking a leaf from the corporate goal of money uber alles. It is not an attitude conducive to good relationships. You have the power to repair that situation.  

If Cody leaves the Avenue, that area will be a much lesser event. We urge you to do your utmost to help the store stay where they have been for 50 years as a cultural icon.  

Joan Levinson 

 

• 

CODY’S 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

How ’bout Stoney Burke’s Satire Hall of Fame idea for Cody’s!? With underground parking all the way to China. Personally, I would like to see it in the old KPFA/Eddie Bauer space. A nice little “lower Manhattanish” museum right at a BART stop. 

Arnie Passman 

 

• 

IMMIGRATION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I have sent the following letter to our President, Vice President, the First Lady, 50 Governors, 99 Senators, and 250 Representatives. Only about five have replied, all saying it was someone else’s department. No one cares. I know he can’t be the only one this is happening to.  

 

I am writing this letter because of something that happened last week. 

My son-in-law is Mexican. He has been married to my daughter for over six years. He has his A number and he has permission (or did have) to be in the U.S. He was in Tucson Arizona, when the police picked him up. He told them he had his A number, and had permission to be here. They told him they didn’t care; they put handcuffs on him and beat him. Finally, they put him across the border. He had to walk three days to get to his hometown.  

My grandkids, especially the eight- and seven-year-old keep asking when their dad is coming home. Do you have a good answer for them?  

What is he supposed to do now?  

He wasn’t supposed to be sent back there anyway, he was supposed to come back to his wife and kids. Are you going to let him back across as easily as the government threw him across to Mexico? 

I wrote a few people and no one has the guts to answer me or they just don’t give a damn. Is this how they are going to treat any of the Mexicans who become legal? If it is, why should they even bother to become legal in the first place? 

Thank you for any information you can give me. I would really like to see my son-in-law back home with his children where he belongs, he shouldn’t have been treated that away. He is a good decent family man. 

Kathy Charlton  

 

Ed. Note: If you have any ideas, we’ll forward them on to Ms. Charlton. 

• 

PUBLIC LIBRARY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

One would like to believe that the Berkeley Public Library Trustees are just as concerned with fact as fiction. However, Library Trustee Chair Kupfer’s Op. Ed. (”Berkeley Public Library is still a vibrant institution”, Planet 5/23-25/06) suggests otherwise, being filled with fiction: 

Fiction 1. “. . . library is on sound fiscal footing . . . There is an operating surplus for fiscal 2006”.  

The Library Fund Forecast In the 5/23/06 City Council Budget Packet shows a projected annual shortfall for 2006 of $479,703. The Library Finance Manager in  

her 4/19/06 report stated “the Berkeley Public LIbrary has a structural deficit caused by growing expenditures which are outpacing revenue . . . the Library cannot grow out of the structural deficit by adding more revenue. . .” 

Fiction 2. “. . . conflicts between staff and management . . . are personnel matters involving specific individuals . . .” 

64 percent or almost two-thirds of the Library’s employees have signed a statement of no confidence as follows: “We find the management of the Berkeley Public Library as provided by Library Director Jackie Griffin, to be a liability for the organization and a misuse of the public trust”. (Planet 4/21-24/06) 

Fiction 3. “. . . community feedback is being sought on a variety of proposed initiatives.”  

What initiatives and how is feedback being sought? 

Fiction 4. RFID “is . . . an attempt to eliminate repetitive injury of front desk staff, ease processing of increased limits on checkouts . . .” 

The repetitive injury is the Library Director’s and now a Library Trustee’s repetition of a totally discredited basis for RFID. Director Griffin told the Trustees in Dec. 2003 that there were $1 million in Workers Compensation claims for the past 5 years mostly due to repetitive stress injuries. Actually the total RSI claims for the 5 years were $167,871, and there is no evidence those were caused by bar code scanners. (See “RFID Should be Cancelled Immediately”, Planet 3/4-7/05) 

In the spring of 2005 a Library Manager touted the alleged ability of RFID self checkout machines to check out a large stack of books, CDs, DVDs all at once. Now patrons are instructed to place only one item at a time on the machine. Also patrons are asked to bring DVDs, CDs and videos to a library employee at the desk for checkout. 

Fiction 5. “RFID . . . can be impemented without invading our privacy rights . . .” 

The ACLU’s and Electronic Frontier Foundation’s vigorous campaigns against RFID suggest otherwise. They believe RFID contributes to an evolving Surveillance Society. Also see “The End of Privacy? a chip that could track your every move”, Consumer Reports (June, 2006, p.33).  

Gene Bernardi 

SuperBOLD  

Berkeleyans Organizing for Library Defense  

Corrine Goldstick 

 

• 

CORREX 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Here is a correction to the letter from Alan Collins published on 2 June. Cody’s building is not owned by Andy Ross. He has the same landlord that we had 29 years ago and pays a high rent. 

Pat Cody 

 

• 

POLITICAL DREAMERS 

Editors, Daily Planet:  

So Ignacio De La Fuente considers Ron Dellums a “dreamer,” eh? Well, that’s not so unusual, especially when you consider that every living thing has been known to do that every now and then, from the earliest embryo to come into existence to those of us walking around today, whether dreaming of surviving a good long life, finding food, shelter, and heat, or liberating oneself from oppressive conditions (or persons), or founding promised lands of all sorts (our own U.S.A., for example). 

Dreams are a spark from which many things can and have come about—one might hazard a guess that De La Fuente himself has dreamed quite a few times, be it of leading a union, or becoming a city councilmember, or president of a board(!)—or even being head schoolhouse bully. 

Everyone has dreams; it’s part of maintaining one’s life and sanity to dream of better days and ways and of, as another “dreamer” Jesse Jackson put it, “keeping hope alive.” Those who dismiss or destroy dreams (or dreamers) are essentially schoolhouse bullies—and we have far too many of those in charge of things already (a big factor in the high proliferation of bullying referred to by P.R. Price [June 2-5]). 

Garrett Murphy 

 

• 

AN ASSUMPTION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I enjoyed Bob Burnett’s fine article on Al Gore and I intend to see the movie, An Inconvenient Truth. However there is one error in the article which should be corrected. He states “Of course, in the alternative universe where Gore won the 2000 election, 9/11 would still have happened”. 

I don’t think 9/11 would have ever happened. When President Gore was informed by the CIA briefing that Al Qaeda was about to launch attacks on American cities by airplane, he would have immediately picked up the phone and told the heads of all the airlines to instruct their pilots to keep the cockpit doors locked at all times. 

The hijackers could not have got into the cockpit. They didn’t have guns. Anyway, the FBI man sitting in front of the plane, sent by President Gore, would have wrestled the hijacker to the floor. In case a hijacking happened anyway, President Gore would have let NORAD do its job and fighter jets would have chased down the plane. 

The World Trade Center would still be standing. There would be no PATRIOT act, no war in Afghanistan or Iraq, and certainly no War Without End. Of course, Saddam would still be abusing the Iraqi people, just as the Bahdar Brigade is now doing in Iraq; the Taliban would still be abusing Afghan women, just as the U.S.-backed warlords are doing now. The hideous dictator of Uzbekistan would still be boiling people alive, as he is still doing, the Burmese junta would still be mistreating its own people, and Israel would still be abusing the Palestinians. It would not be a perfect world. 

However, the reputation of American would not be in shreds, and most Americans would still believe that their country had a future. 

Dolores Plumb 

 

• 

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I just saw the movie An Inconvenient Truth. It is an excellent production.  

It’s ironic that Gore, who “lost” the 2000 election, is now showing  

the leadership on global warming what we should be getting from Bush. Instead, Bush is trying to build religious intolerance into the constitution with his marriage amendment. Some of the religious right say that Katrina was divine punishment for allowing gay marriage. Will they see a message from God when the sea level rises all over the planet?  

Gore says he has been discouraged by widespread ignorance and denial about global warming. The movie makes it clear that carbon dioxide is climbing and the warming is happening. We may see a sudden rise in sea level, in the next five years. We’ll get a surge if a few chunks of shelf ice the size of Rhode Island break off and encounter a patch of heated sea water. The extra fresh water will also alter ocean currents; the California coast could lose its coolant.  

Meanwhile, Exxon-Mobil will keep on making money and paying for its propaganda. And most Americans will keep on paying Exxon whatever it asks for gas. Meanwhile, Berkeleyans will continue to ignore the TDM study, which called for a “modest mode shift” from cars to transit. 

Berkeley is one of the cities which ratified Kyoto but Berkeley keeps on favoring the car culture: Parking first! No dedicated bus lanes for the BRT! Maybe we’ll get serious about cutting emissions when the waves start lapping over the feet of the Marina’s guardian statue. If you see the movie, you’ll see that the sea could really rise that much. 

Steve Geller 

 

 

• 

GAY MARRIAGE 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Oppose the federal marriage amendment.  

The constitution of the United States must not be amended to allow discrimination against our gay-born children. To do this is to criminalize the most beautiful document that our founder fathers created. “Freedom and equality for all citizens of the United States.”  

We do not know why our children are gay. Whether it is genetic, hormonal, or whether something occurs during the critical time of fetal development, we do not know. What we mothers can tell you with absolute certainty is that it is inborn. Millions of children were born, are being born and will be born sexually different. It can happen in any family and there is no choice involved.  

Homosexuals like all human beings need companionship. They have the right to marry and live a happy life of equality, respect and love, as much as any other citizen. If God did not want the existence of homosexuality, he would not have created it. The fact is, homosexuality exists in every sector of society, in all professions and trades. Even in the animal kingdom.  

We parents and relatives of our gay children have sat in silence with our hearts bleeding as we saw our children being harassed, persecuted, killed, injured and discriminated because they had the misfortune of being born sexually different. Also, we have seen the agony of our gay children wanting to be sexually normal, and their pain when they face the reality of their sexuality in their adolescent years—some committing suicide, others faking being straight to avoid harassment and discrimination, others trying to change into a sexuality that belongs in their physical bodies but not in their inner self, only to suffer silently at their futile attempts.  

Marina Vasquez  

Mother of a gay son 

 

• 

PRESCHOOL  

CAREGIVERS 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

I hear there is a proposal to require credentialing for pre-school caregivers. We all believe in credentialing, but we need to know what skill is most important for pre-school caregivers: that is sensitivity to the unspoken needs of a child. 

The second most important skill is the heart to give a child open attention even when the caregiver is stressed or worn out. The desire to reach out to the community for support is another important skill. 

Along with these skills, the pre-school caregiver certainly needs to know the developmental stages of the child and tested techniques for providing children challenges and opportunities. But the ability to make a child feel secure is essential. Pre-school caregivers should be selected not only on the basis of their credentials but also for their capacity for nourishing human relations. 

Romila Khanna 

 

• 

CONDO CONVERSION 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

In their respective May 26 letters, both David M. Wilson and John Blankenship (”Correcting Chris” and “Condo Response”) criticize me for suggesting that a coordinated, “calibrated campaign” is now underway seeking to dismantle Berkeley’s long-established condominium conversion public policy. 

With all due respect to both gentleman, rather than using the term “calibrated campaign”, perhaps “interesting coincidence” would have been more appropriate: two pro-conversion commentaries published several weeks apart in the Daily Planet, and then the recent launch of a pro-conversion ballot measure petition campaign.  

Reasonable people may disagree, but this series of above events strikes me, again, as a very interesting coincidence. 

The proposed ballot measure would allow the annual conversion of hundreds and hundreds of existing affordable rental units across Berkeley into condominiums. 

In a complaint directed at me, Mr. Blankenship states that he does “not belong to the Berkeley Property Owners Association (BPOA)”. At absolutely no point in my May 23 letter did I state that Mr. Blankenship is a BPOA member. 

I stated only that Mr. Blankenship’s op-ed commentary happened to appear at the same time as the recent launch of a pro-conversion petition campaign that includes individuals belonging to or associated with BPOA members. 

Chris Kavanagh 

 

• 

STOP SIGN 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

Has anybody seen the speed limit sign on Colusa Ave in the Thousand Oaks area of Berkeley. Some enterprising individual has whited out the S and the D. It now reads “Pee Limit 25mph”  

I know the city of Berkeley is fanatic about regulating our lives, but this exceeds our personal limits of tolerance. Perhaps the city, in its wisdom, after careful study and environmental impact reviews in the costs of thousands of dollars, believes that individuals can actually pee at a rate of between 20 and 25 mph. I personally think these studies must be flawed and through personal experience and observation, at no cost to the taxpayers I might add, believe there is no individual whose flow can exceed 3mph.  

Another concern I have is enforcement. Who, among city staff, would want the task of enforcing this ordinance? I imagine there would be a high employee turnover rate and an unusually large amount of workers compensation claims. One can only imagine the nature of such claims.  

Has the Creeks Ordinance Committee even bothered to look into the significant impact such a flow might have on our creeks and waterways? Have they even considered the financial impact and limitations on property owners if one is not allowed to build within a certain distance of such a flow? And, of course, where are our concerns for the wildlife, the birds and fish, upstream and downstream?  

I do feel comforted that some enterprising nonprofit developer, who wants a free land grab gift from the city of Berkeley, will set up some sort of ecological or urological nonprofit corporation for the public good, throw in some public housing for the downtrodden, burden the taxpayers of Berkeley to pay for this generosity, and tell us we don’t really need a place to park our cars.  

Since I have not seen the pee limit signs anywhere else in Berkeley, I must assume that the city, after careful deliberation, decided that the residents of the Thousand Oaks area of the city are a more rebellious lot and need far more regulation than the more law abiding citizens of our other districts. I’ve even heard it rumored that the city is planning to seize all property along Colusa Avenue under eminent domain to insure that it will be a pee free zone. I can only hope these rumors are false.  

Remember folks, if you are pissed off, don’t be, its regulated.  

Paul M. Schwartz  

 

• 

COACHING IN THE PARK 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

It was relatively quiet here in the San Pablo Park neighborhood across from the field where Berkeley High School practices and plays its home games. 

It seems the same coach that was here Thursday (5/25) at 1:20 p.m. is back this morning at 10:45 a.m. on the Memorial Day holiday pitching batting practice to several young men who bear a strong resemblance to members of the BHS baseball team. 

In an opinion piece published in The Berkeley Daily Planet on 5/19. In that article the head coach of the BHS team represented that “. . . San Pablo Park is a public park which our teams are generously allowed to use between the hours of 4 and 7 p.m. in the afternoon from February through May. Any activity that occurs on that field outside of those hours is not associated with Berkeley High School.” 

The fact is that such appearances, at various times during the day and on weekends, is fairly typical. 

But then, I’m sure there’s a perfectly logical explanation. 

Neil Cook 

 

 

• 

IRRADIATING  

BERKELEY 

Editors, Daily Planet: 

A few nights ago, May 25, the Zoning Adjustments Board did their customary rubber stamping on two of three cell tower applications. A total of 17 antennae were approved for the top of the Bekins Storage building at 2721 Shattuck, which already has at a few. Although the building is zoned commercial, the immediate area—excluding the strip of commercial buildings along Shattuck—is predominantly residential. My sympathies go out to those folks living in the shadow of this radiation hot zone. My hope is that neighbors will appeal this decision to the City Council and mount the kind of resistance brought forth by the St. Ambrose neighborhood.  

Much, if not most, of the public comment revolved around fears of the health effects of cell towers, but ZAB as a group were uninterested, claiming the familiar copout that their hands were tied because of the FCC rule that bars municipalities from denying a cell tower application on the basis of environmental considerations. They were determinedly unfamiliar or uninterested in the Supreme Court ruling of early last year that protects cities from legal damages for “WRONGFULLY” denying (i.e. for health and safety reasons) cell tower applications.  

Another no-fly zone in the heads of ZAB commissioners, as well as Berkeley City staff, is the well-established California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) concept of “cumulative impact.” It was briefly noted that by staff and ZAB’s current appraisal methods there is no cutoff as to the number of cell towers allowable in Berkeley, so full speed ahead and cumulative impacts be damned.  

BUT, in what I believe is a landmark decision, the ZAB denied the application for three antennae atop the steeple of St. Ambrose Church on Gilman St. The ZAB based their decision on the fact that this area is zoned as residential.  

My congratulations to the neighbors of St. Ambrose Church as well as my hope that, should the decision be appealed to City Council, they will again prevail. I think the potential public relations debacle for AT&T Wireless makes that a strong possibility.  

I also hope that they offer their stunningly well co-coordinated efforts in support of the neighbors of Bekins Storage on Shattuck. This is a city wide issue. Perhaps one day the many disparate neighborhoods will coalesce into one large irresistible political force to—yes I know it’s but a dream—prevent future towers and remove of existing ones.  

Power to the People. 

Peter Teichner 

 

 


Commentary: Ballot Language for Parcel Tax Should Be Clear to Pass

By Stevie Corcos
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Last Wednesday night, I went to the school board’s public hearing to express my concern about how the superintendent’s proposed new parcel tax of over $19 million would be spent.  

I was even more concerned over what I heard and learned at this public hearing. The superintendent’s proposed parcel tax will allow the school district to deduct a significant amount of money for overhead, administration and other expenses rather than provide directly for children’s learning. These deductions include: 2 percent right off the top, then $3,000 per classroom for “direct support”, and then 7 percent for “indirect support.” “Direct support” isn’t defined 

Then I heard the president of the teachers’ union state his concern over school district finances because the school board has never refused a single one of the Superintendent’s requests for additional administrative staff, or for administrative staff salary increases. 

When the school board members responded, not one said anything contrary. Shirley Issel stated that all increases were made to save money, which I did not understand. Both Issel and director Rivera made statements about the integrity of the school board. 

In November of 2004, I opposed BUSD’s parcel tax measure because the language in the ballot measure was too loose and not detailed enough in what the money could be used for. The funding title says “class size reduction” but the actual parcel tax language states that the monies can be used for “all costs attendant . . . including operational and professional development . . . and other costs associated with the opening or maintaining of classrooms . . .” 

This language in effect permits the school district to spend the money on practically anything, including custodians, light bulbs, telephone lines, or mowing the grass. Parcel taxes should not be used for upkeep. We already provide $4 million a year in a separate parcel tax for maintenance. This new parcel tax must be used to benefit the children directly.  

I want to know that the children are benefiting directly. The language of the parcel tax must be re-written to insure that the monies are used for children and not upkeep. If an independent audit committee and an independent auditor were closely monitoring the school system for efficiency, effectiveness and assurance that programs are reaching the stated objectives, and if the independent audit committee then publicly reported their findings, then that would be a reliable, and trustworthy assessment and public report. But the current parcel tax does not have such a structure. It has a section with the title “audit committee” but without genuine details. 

If BUSD was a corporation with an annual budget of $100 million, federal law would require it to have an independent audit committee and to conduct reviews for efficiency and effectiveness. I think BUSD should take the high road, and show us, that it values our tax dollars, and that it is doing the right thing. 

I am a long-time Berkeley resident. My children attended Berkeley public schools. One grandson recently graduated from Berkeley High and a second enters Berkeley High next September. I am a retired music teacher, and have been involved with children and the schools of Berkeley for 50 years. I know that many of us older, retired people look carefully at how we agree to spend our dollars. I want to know that the money I give the school district is not wasted and is well spent on children in a way that benefits their minds. Children’s education is really what is important. 

Therefore, I urge the school board to adopt proposed language changes made by the Berkeley Organization Be Smaart including: 

1. The specific and detailed independent audit committee and audit requirements. 

2. Clarifying and limiting what and how the money can be spent. 

3. Reducing the term of the parcel tax to 4 years, so that we can review what’s going on more frequently. 

Copies of BeSmaart’s proposed revisions and the superintendent’s version will soon be up on the website: www.kitchendemocracy.org. 

 

Stevie Corcos is a Berkeley violinist.


Commentary: Bus Riders Need Equal Access to Funds

By Keith Carson
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Fifty years ago, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, and public transportation, more specifically buses, became the stage from which the civil-rights movement was launched. The paradox is that today discrimination is alive and well in mass-transit bus service. In the Bay Area, for instance, a federal civil-rights lawsuit is pending in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, charging that the Bay Area’s Metropolitan Transportation Commission (which plans and allocates the majority of funding for the area’s transit needs) supports a “separate and unequal transit system” that discriminates against poor transit riders of color.  

I am proud to write that the Alameda County Board of Supervisors joined a growing chorus of East Bay elected officials—more than thirty in the last year alone—who have called on the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) to treat low-income bus riders equitably in its funding practices. On May 23, by a vote of three to one, our board adopted a resolution requesting that MTC increase the allocation of public funds so that low-income and minority AC Transit passengers receive a substantial increase in subsidy per transit trip from MTC to approach parity in the subsidy levels provided to users of BART and Caltrain.  

We did so to reinforce the cry for fair treatment by those who depend on the bus daily to conduct one’s basic needs, among which are getting to work or school every day. Most of these families are fighting their way out of poverty, yet they are the first to suffer from service cuts and fare hikes. More often than not, these individuals live on the margins. If bus service is not made more reliable and inexpensive, moderate income folks will not use it and lower income folks, with no alternatives, will continue to pay more for less service. Those of us who are already ravaged by the increases in gas prices, housing prices, the closing of our inner city schools, bear the brunt of these decisions. The bottom line is that society pays either way: we pay on the front end with the increasing costs as I just described, or we pay on the back end with increasing high school drop out rates, unemployment, and violence in our communities. These are the costs of disparity; more often than not, these are the ones living on the margins. 

Supporters of our resolution note that funding decisions by MTC have left AC Transit bus riders with lower per-passenger subsidies, and lower levels of service, than the predominantly affluent riders of BART and Caltrain. While AC Transit bus riders receive a per passenger public subsidy of $2.78, BART and Caltrain passengers receive subsidies of $6.14 and $13.79, respectively.  

I believe that the Bay Area has two “separate and unequal” transit systems: an expanding rail system, Caltrain and BART, for relatively affluent communities, and a less financially supported bus system for low-income people. Over sixty percent of adult riders of AC Transit are transit-dependent, and over seventy percent are from households with extremely low or very low incomes. In short, a majority of AC Transit’s passengers depend on AC Transit’s vital bus services. In addition, about eighty percent of AC Transit’s riders are people of color. These passengers receive a fraction of the public subsidy that riders of Caltrain and BART enjoy, and have experienced a steady reduction in essential transit services while their rail counterparts have benefited from expanded service. 

The resolution that we at the Alameda County Board of Supervisors passed requests that the Metropolitan Transportation Commission make use of its extensive authority in the area of transportation finance, project planning and selection, and legislative advocacy to ensure that each transit passenger, regardless of income or ethnicity, receives an equitable subsidy of public dollars and equal access to vital transit services. I believe that until public transit is free for all, we must work towards the goal that everyone in the Bay Area has equal access to a first-class, safe, dependable public-transit system.  

To get a copy of the resolution or to find out more, please e-mail Lara Sim on my staff at lara.sim@acgov.org. 

 

 

Keith Carson is President of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors


Commentary: A Traditional Neighborhood at Ashby BART

By Charles Siegel
Tuesday June 06, 2006

It is possible to build housing at Ashby BART to create a sizable neighborhood park, and to make the neighborhood more livable. Let me describe what could be done in a sketchy way, using approximate numbers.  

 

Narrowing Adeline  

We can give ourselves more land to work with by narrowing Adeline adjacent to the BART parking lot.  

This part of Adeline used to be three lanes in each direction but was restriped so that it now has two very wide lanes and a bike lane in each direction. It also has a bleak looking mall in the center of the street.  

If we made it into a normal four-lane street, we could narrow it by about 30 feet. It is at about the same level as the deck that would be built over the BART parking lot for the development, so the land that is no longer needed for the street could be added to the project area.  

This would add over an acre to the project area, increasing it from about five to over six acres. 

 

Housing and Park  

This expanded site could give us two-and-a-half acres for housing and over three-and-a-half acres for a park.  

Two-and-a-half acres would be enough to build 250 units of housing at 100 units per acre—close to the “maximum of 300 units” proposed for the site.  

By comparison, the Trader Joe's project at University Avenue and MLK is on one acre of land and has over 150 units in five-story buildings. Housing at Ashby could not be this dense, because we have to put the resident parking at ground level rather than underground. But 100 units per acre is less than two-thirds of the density of the Trader Joe’s project, and we could easily accommodate it in four- and five-story buildings.  

The rest of the site—over three and a half acres—could be used for a neighborhood park similar to Willard Park. This is more than two-thirds the total current area of the BART parking lot, enough land for the flea market. On weekdays, when the flea market is not operating, this park would give the neighborhood badly needed open space where it now has an ugly parking lot. 

 

Restoring Urban Fabric  

The park should be in the center of the site, and housing should be at the north and south ends of the site.  

It is better to have this sort of park surrounded by housing than to convert the entire parking lot into a park because the housing provides “eyes on the street” that make the park safer. 

Housing should be of buildings with small footprints, compatible with the scale of the neighborhood. For example, there should be four or five buildings facing Ashby, rather than one mega-building that fills the entire block.  

There should be shopping on the ground floor of the housing facing Ashby Avenue. Currently, drivers treat Ashby as a freeway. With shopping on both sides, Ashby would become an old-fashioned neighborhood shopping street. When they pass this sort of shopping street, drivers tend to slow down and watch for pedestrians—as they do on San Pablo Avenue between University and Addison, which is a pleasant place to walk and shop even though it is a state highway like Ashby. There should also be some shopping at the southern end of the site, where Adeline and MLK meet. Currently, there is commercial zoning on both sides of the street here, but the street is so wide that it is hard to cross. If we put some shopping in the middle and made Adeline narrower, more people would walk here.  

We should break up the large parking lot site into smaller blocks by creating pedestrian walkways that line up with the surrounding streets. There should be stop signs or stop lights where these cross streets meet Adeline, in order to knit the urban fabric together by making it easier to cross. Though MLK has heavier traffic, it should also be possible to add at least one traffic light there.  

 

A Shared Vision  

Ideas like this vision of a traditional neighborhood are the first step in creating a vision of what should be developed at Ashby BART, and I hope that other people come up with other positive visions.  

New urbanist planners have found that the best way to create a shared vision is by having a charrette where planners do drawings that let residents see what their suggestions would look like. The city should do this sort of envisioning for Ashby BART.  

People tend to panic when they hear abstract numbers like 100 units per acre, but they are pleased when they see what a traditional neighborhood with 100 units per acre would actually look like. It reminds them of North Beach or of some other turn-of-the-century neighborhood that they love.  

 

Charles Siegel is a Berkeley resident.


Columns

Column: Dispatches From the Edge: Afghanistan and the Ghost of Kipling’s ‘Kim’

By Conn Hallinan
Friday June 09, 2006

“He sat, in defiance of municipal orders, astride the gun Zam-Zammah on her brick platform opposite the old Ajaib-Gher—the Wonder House as the natives called the Lahore Museum. Who hold Zam-Zammah, that ‘fire-breathing dragon,’ hold the Punjab; for the great green bronze piece is always first of the conqueror’s loot.” 

So Rudyard Kipling opens his Magnus opus—Kim—the tale of Kimball O’Hara, orphan of an Irish Color-Sergeant in England’s colonial army, then warring with the locals in India’s northwest frontier. It is a story of the 19th century “Great Game,” when the Russians and British blackguarded one another in remote villages and frozen passes, fighting for glory, empire, and the crossroads of Central Asia. 

The Imperial War Museum in London still celebrates the men of the Black Watch regiment, the fusiliers, and the dragoons who fought a seemingly endless war along what is now the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan. There are no monuments, however, to the real victims of the “Great Game,” the Pushtun, the Tajik, the Hazara and the Uzbeks, pitted against one another in a deadly chess game played by men whose capitals lay half a world away.  

How just like the old days it must be for British Lieutenant General David Richards, commander of North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces in southern Afghanistan. NATO, taking over from the United States, is pouring troops into Helmand Province, 8,000 of which will be British.  

Speaking in Kandahar, not all that far from England’s old colonial fortress at Quetta, he announced, “I have the force, the rules of engagement, and the caveat-free environment to do everything I need.”  

One wonders what Greek commander in Alexander’s army made that same speech, what Soviet general thought he also had “the force” and a “caveat-free environment” to do as he pleased. 

In truth, General Richards holds exactly the ground he stands on—so long as it isn’t nightfall. After four years of war, the United States-led coalition is scrambling to contain a spreading insurgency, not only in the south, but the north and the east as well. In late May, Taliban insurgents overran a district capital in Oruzgan Province, and according to the Financial Times, a government presence doesn’t exist outside the Helmand Province capital of Lashkar Gar. Two weeks ago Kabul exploded, with tens of thousands of people stoning American military vehicles and chanting for foreign troops to leave. 

This ground and history is familiar for the British. It will be, after all, England’s fourth war in Afghanistan. 

The first (1838 –42) was ignited when the Brits forcibly installed Shah Shujah as the Afghan king. That went rather badly, and riots finally forced the British out of Kabul in 1842. As the army was retreating to India, it was ambushed, overrun and destroyed. The war ended when the English marched back, ravaged Kabul, burned the great bazaar, and killed 20,000 Afghans. 

The second war was in 1878 when the British seized the Khyber Pass, and the third in 1919 when the Afghans had the effrontery to demand control of their own foreign affairs.  

The current fighting is described as a “resurgence” by the fundamentalist Taliban, but one needs to be very careful when it comes to dissecting the sources of post-colonial wars. The “Taliban” are overwhelmingly Pushtun, the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan. What people don’t generally know is that while religion does play a role in all this, the present fighting is a case of nursing the pinion that impelled the steel. And who is better at that than the British? 

When India and Pakistan were partitioned in 1947, the British Foreign Office insisted that the Pushtun had to choose between Pakistan or India, rather than joining their brethren in Afghanistan. The English—ever the masters at using ethnicity to keep people divided and weak—knew the Pushtuns would remain fiercely independent of the Pakistani government in the Punjab. At the same time, Afghanistan would be splintered between four ethnic groups, divisions Whitehall could always use to manipulate the politics of Central Asia. 

What the British did not figure on was that in 2006 they would be fighting the same people who kept the colonial graveyards of India well populated with the young lads from Cork, Dundee and Suffolk who came down from the high passes in wooden boxes. 

The event that touched off the riots in Kabul was an auto accident between a U.S. military convoy and Afghan civilians. When angry people began gathering, U.S. troops opened fire. By the time the riots were over, almost 200 people had been wounded, and at least 20 killed. 

But demonstrators were also protesting an air attack that killed 16 civilians in the village of Tolokan in Helmand Province. It was not the first such incident. At least 33 other civilians were killed in an air strike May 21, and villagers are reportedly streaming into Kandahar to avoid the bombings. 

U.S. spokesman Col. Tom Collins said the deaths in Tolokan were the fault of the Taliban: “The ultimate cause of why civilians were injured and killed is because the Taliban knowingly, willfully chose to occupy the homes of these people.” 

Collins’ statement was a violation of international law, regardless of what the Taliban did.  

Article 48 of the 1977 addition to the Geneva Conventions, Part IV, states “The parties to the conflict shall at all times distinguish between the civilian population and combatants and between civilian objects and military objectives and accordingly shall direct their operations only against military objectives.” 

Article 50 is even more explicit: “The presence within the civilian population of individuals who do not come within the definition of civilians does not deprive the population of its civilian character.” 

In short, if insurgents are mixed up with civilians, you can’t call in air strikes, period. Anyone who does should be hauled before the International Court at The Hague. 

The bombings and the anger generated by the occupation are not the only things that fueled the Kabul uprising. The city has a 50 percent unemployment rate, and 40 percent of the population goes hungry.  

Some in Afghanistan are doing quite well, particularly if they have anything to do with the drug trade. The Taliban initially suppressed opium production, but war, coupled with a failure to adequately fund a program aimed at weaning farmers off poppy growing, means Afghanistan is now once again the world’s largest producer of opium. 

Opium profits not only fuel the insurgency, they fill the coffers of the United States-supported warlords who are once again in power. It was the corruption and violence of those warlords that originally laid the ground for the Taliban takeover. The only thing keeping the warlords in power today is the U.S. and NATO armed forces. 

Zam-Zamman breathes fire no more, replaced by F-15s and AC-130U “Spooky” guns ships spitting artillery rounds and 40 mm cannon shells. The efficiency of death has evolved, but the “game” is the same and for the people of Afghanistan, it is a story as old as their origins. 

Mullah Mohammed Kaseem Faroqi, the Pushtun Taliban commander in Helmand Province, recently told the London Times, “My message to Tony Blair and the whole of Britain is, ‘Do not send your children here. We will kill them.’” 

And so they will, though dead Afghan children are likely to outnumber them. It is time to retire the “Great Game” to the pages of history and literature and bring the troops home.


Column: Undercurrents: Reporting on Alameda County’s Election ‘Delay’

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Friday June 09, 2006

The job of the news media is supposed to be to report on the news as we find it. 

But sometimes, some of us in the profession get a little excited and report on the news as we want it to be rather than as it actually is, so that the reporting or editing process itself can push reality in the direction we want it to go. Our good friends at Fox “News” Channel are most often accused of this overeagerness to shape rather than to reflect. 

So did our other friends at the San Francisco Chronicle over the way Alameda County chose to count our votes in the other night’s elections. 

In case you have not been following these events, Alameda County chose to move to electronic touchscreen voting several years ago, purchasing the machines put out by the Diebold company (the same company whose owner pledged to work for a George Bush victory). 

But when a new California law went into effect in January, mandating that all electronic voting machines produce a paper trail to prove that the electronic vote count has not been tampered with, Alameda County was forced to abandon the old Diebold machines, which did not have such a paper trail. Because the county could not purchase the new machines by last Tuesday’s primary election, the county decided to conduct the election with hand-marked paper ballots counted by scanners at a central location in downtown Oakland. 

But for some reason, the folks at the Chronicle did not seem to understand—or communicate—those simple facts in their recent election stories. 

In a June 2 Chronicle article a few days before the election entitled “Hand Count Of Alameda Ballots Could Delay Election Results,” Associated Press writer Samantha Young wrote that “Alameda county’s return to low-tech voting Tuesday could make for a long evening for poll workers and leave the neck-and-neck Democratic gubernatorial primary undecided overnight.” Ms. Young added that “the county's inability to quickly process paper ballots after shelving its electronic voting machines may make Alameda the determining factor because 5.7 percent of the state’s registered Democrats live there,” and also noted that the county “is in a jam because they do not have enough optical scanners to count the ballots at all polling places.” 

Note the code words here that all denote bad things happening or projected to happen by the Chronicle: “delay,” “low-tech,” “long evening,” “undecided,” “inability to quickly process,” “shelving,” “in a jam,” and “do not have enough.” 

On the Wednesday following the election, the Chronicle published a story by staff writer Rick DelVecchio telling us that the predicted result had, indeed, occurred, the headline reading that “Hand-Counting Delays Results In Alameda County.” “Alameda County election workers were hand-counting some 200,000 ballots late Tuesday,” Mr. DelVecchio wrote, “and county officials said the job would take hours to finish—long enough to delay close gubernatorial and Oakland mayoral contest final results until late this morning.” 

Whether or not that statement was actually correct depends upon your definition of the word “delay.” 

At 11 o’clock on Tuesday night, a time when most voters stay up to view the election results on the news, almost none of the closely-contested Oakland mayoral race votes had been counted (Dellums was leading De La Fuente 44 percent to 36 percent, with less than 1 percent of the total in). But the lack of substantial results at 11 o’clock is hardly unusual in any close election, regardless of how the votes are being counted. 

At 8 o’clock on Wednesday morning, when I got to my computer and went to the Alameda County Registrar of Voters website, more than 98 percent of the precincts had been counted in the mayoral election. Within a half an hour, that figure had jumped to 100 percent, with Dellums winning 50.2 percent of the unofficial count. So by the time most people were leaving for work in the morning the day after the election, the available vote totals were in and reported. 

We also learned that the race was still undecided, and that absentee and provisional ballots were yet to be counted.  

Again, in a close election (“close” being the amount of votes Mr. Dellums needed to avoid a runoff), having a race undecided by the morning after the election is not unusual. 

So the uncertainty of the final outcome has less to do with the “delay” in counting the votes—this is the time provisional ballots are counted, under any circumstances—but with the closeness of the race itself. And given that a November runoff may be necessary, and the new mayor will not take office until next January in any event, what’s the problem with the wait of a day or so to determine the outcome? 

And one must remember that the “delay” in the Oakland results were only in the mayor’s race. In the Districts 2 and 6 Council races, the 16th Assembly seat race, and the Measure A and B bond elections, the results were available about the same time as coffee and eggs and the Chronicle article on Wednesday morning announcing that “Hand-Counting Delays Results”.  

Meanwhile, there were other problems with the Chronicle’s reporting on Tuesday’s elections in Alameda County. 

“The delay,” Mr. DelVecchio wrote in his Wednesday story (there’s that word again) “was triggered by the county's decision in March to get rid of its high-tech, touch-screen voting machines, which were widely criticized because they couldn't produce paper records.” This makes it look like Alameda County had a choice in the matter. 

In fact, as we have noted above, Alameda County could not use the Diebold touchscreen machines any more because of a change in state law, so there was no “decision to get rid of” the Diebold machines by Alameda County. The decision was made by the state legislature, and affected any county using a touchscreen screen without paper trail capabilities. 

And in her June 2 Chronicle article, Ms. Young wrote that Alameda County officials “hope to sell or trade the [Diebold] touchscreen machines for upgraded models that meet the new requirements. The new machines should be delivered before the November election, although the county is still in negotiations with several companies.” 

That gives the impression that Alameda County is contemplating the continued use of touchscreen voting machines as the general method of voting for the November elections and beyond. 

Actually, what Alameda County decided on at a special Thursday Supervisors meeting this week is the continued use of paper ballots for most voters in the November election and beyond, along with the purchase of scanning machines so that each precinct would have its own scanner (remember, last Tuesday, all of the scanning was done by a limited number of scanning machines at a central location in Oakland). Touchscreen voting machines will also be used in November, but only a limited number designed specifically to accomodate handicapped voters who come to the polls and desire to vote without assistance. Given the success of Tuesday’s elections—and the lack of significant delay in reporting the results—county supervisors could have even voted to save money by not purchasing any new scanners and continue to do a centralized vote count with the scanners the county already has. 

In any event, it is “interesting,” isn’t it (always a word I like to use), that the Chronicle seems so obsessed about vote-count delays in Alameda County that never actually happened, and that the Chronicle articles seem so bent towards pushing the Alameda County to purchase electronic touchscreen voting machines that the county has not determined that it needs. 

One wonders why. 


Film Details the World of Wild Butterflies

By Steven Finacom
Friday June 09, 2006

It’s a tough world for the seemingly fragile butterfly. 

Not only must butterflies go through repeated and incredible physical changes to reach adulthood, but at every stage they’re beset by predators and threats from the weather, chemicals and pesticides, lack of suitable food, and encroachment on habitat by humans and invasive plants. 

A new film, directed and produced in the Bay Area by Oaklander Bill Levinson, provides a provocative and visually rich look at the familiar insects and the cycles of their lives. 

In The Company of Wild Butterflies can be seen locally this Saturday in San Francisco or next Tuesday, June 13, along with a special tour at the UC Botanical Garden (See sidebar). 

Levinson, who has other documentary film work to his credit, became fascinated with butterflies at the Berkeley garden of his sister, UC-trained Sally Levinson, who characterizes herself as a “consulting entomologist.” 

He began to film, up close, the habits and transformations of the wild butterflies she welcomes to her yard and often raises indoors during their pre-flight stages. 

The result, with the expert assistance of his sister and others, is a sympathetic and engaging documentary illuminating the multiple lives of butterflies and what they need to survive and co-exist in a world dominated by humans. 

It’s likely that no other creature with which humans come in regular contact goes through such complex change as the butterfly. It experiences four distinctively different stages of life: egg, larva, chrysalid, and winged adult. 

The changes are startling in form and scale. The film notes that if a human infant grew as fast as a caterpillar, it would achieve not only adulthood, but some ten tons in added weight, within a few weeks. 

The core and exotic beauty of the documentary is the presentation of the butterfly life cycle, shifting back and forth between various locally familiar species, including fawn brown buckeyes, yellow and black anise swallowtails, orange and black painted ladies, orange and silver fritillaries, cabbage whites, and monarchs. 

Amazing transformational moments are detailed on film, from tiny, translucent, caterpillars chewing their way out of egg shells, to an older growing, caterpillar molting off its tight skin, to the adult butterfly emerging from its chrysalid case. 

The film is most engaging and informative in capturing the nuances of each stage. For example, the molting caterpillar pulls its brain backwards, out of its hard exoskeleton “skull.” 

Detailed close-up images have caused some buzz in the entomological community, including a newly molted caterpillar inflating the spines that protect it from insect and bird predators, and caterpillars preparing for the chrysalid stage by shedding their skins and attaching themselves to twigs. 

The survival of butterflies is tied to the survival of their “host plants.” Many butterfly caterpillars are adapted to eat only one species or variety of plant. 

If a native plant loses ground to habitat destruction, the butterfly loses right along with it. 

And, as speakers in the documentary note, modern gardening, particularly in public spaces like schoolyards and parks, often disdains butterfly food plants as “weedy” and undesirable, replacing them with plants that are “pretty” or “low maintenance” but entirely useless to native insects. 

A few local butterflies have adapted, making the transition from one host plant to another. 

For instance, those large yellow and black anise swallowtails that are some of the showiest butterflies in the East Bay used to live on native yampah, but now thrive on fennel, a ubiquitous “invasive” typically found in local vacant lots and along roadsides. 

And cabbage whites, themselves exotic non-natives in California, don’t exclusively dine on cabbage anymore, but also favor garden nasturtiums. 

Throughout the film, common myths about butterflies are gently debunked. 

For example the adult female, flitting from plant to plant, isn’t primarily looking for flower nectar to drink. That ranks a distant third, after finding a mate and suitable host plants on which to lay eggs. 

The film presentation is very straightforward, with no fancy graphics, just a few subtitles and arrows to point out key features. 

Some entomological humor creeps in through the section titles, including “Exoskeletons in the Closet” and “Extreme Makeovers” along with descriptions of adult butterfly mating rituals including what’s called “bar hopping.” 

The narration is clear and simple, but doesn’t talk down to the viewer. A lot of technical terms pop up, from cremaster, to proleg, to instar, but are reasonably understandable in the context of the presentation. 

This is truly a local documentary. Almost all of the filming was done in Oakland or Berkeley, much of it in the Willard neighborhood, with a few excursions to San Francisco, San Bruno Mountain, and the Antioch Dunes. 

The latter two settings present discouraging scenes as butterfly seekers trudge by meadows overrun with invasive, butterfly-unfriendly, weeds and hillsides scraped down to bare earth to make way for new housing developments. 

There are cameo appearances by locals including San Francisco environmental activist Barbara Deutsch and Jerry Powell, a professor emeritus at UC Berkeley and a nationally known butterfly expert. 

The film closes with encouragement to the viewer to “begin with the smallest steps in our own backyards” to help native butterflies survive. 

Most important, this means planting some larval food plants, and keeping the garden free of chemical pesticides. 

The narrator also notes that the “smallest plot of unused land, public or private, can often be a haven for butterflies.” 

A narrow sideyard, the verge between curb and sidewalk, or a few feet along the edge of a school play yard, as at Le Conte Elementary in southeast Berkeley, can effectively serve this purpose. 

 

In the Company of Wild Butterflies screens Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Exploratorium in San Francisco, with Bill and Sally Levinson present. Museum admission charge. 

The UC Botanical Garden screens the film Tuesday, June 13, at 7 p.m. At 6 p.m. Sally Levinson, and local landscape and butterfly habitat designer Andy Liu who also consulted on the film, will lead evening tours of butterfly friendly plants in the garden. $10 general public, pre-registration required. For more information, see http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu. 

The film may also be purchased or rented from Bullfrog Films, at www.bullfrogfilms.com. 

 

Photograph by Steven Finacom 

A West Coast Lady nectars on lantana, a good plant for generalized butterfly gardening.


East Bay Then and Now: Maurice Curtis Brought Brief Splendor to Berkeley

By Daniella Thompson
Friday June 09, 2006

In 1881, Irish-born playwright George H. Jessop wrote a minor comedy-drama titled Sam’l of Posen, the Commercial Drummer whose lead character, a shrewd Jewish peddler with a heart of gold, attains bourgeois respectability by means of little wiles interleaved with honesty. 

The play might have gone nowhere but for a fortuitous pairing with the perfect actor, and both became roaring successes. The actor was Maurice B. Curtis (c. 1850–1920), born Mauritz Strelinger in Bohemia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. 

When Mauritz was a child, the Strelingers immigrated to Detroit, where his two younger brothers, Charles and George, were born. Mauritz’s father, Julian, owned a brewery that in 1893 would become Mutual Brewing Co. Mutual’s beer kegs carried the tagline “Pure & without drugs or poison.” 

Mauritz may have picked up some of his father’s theatricality, for in 1870 he was already an actor. His level-headed brother Charles, on the other hand, entered the hardware business and went on to become president of Charles A. Strelinger Co., tools, supplies, and machinery. 

Mauritz spent the years between 1870 and 1881 as a bit player, having acquired the stage name M.B. Curtis, which he would use in his personal life as well. The spectacular nationwide success of Sam’l of Posen made an entrepreneur of Curtis. He purchased the rights to the play and toured with it for years, often updating the plot and changing characters to keep it from going stale. 

His touring eventually brought Curtis to San Francisco, where he developed a wide circle of acquaintance. It didn’t take long for him to appear in Berkeley, and not in a theatrical production. In 1887, he bought, then sold at a profit, land on the waterfront and on Dwight Way. 

Caspar Thomas Hopkins was eager to unload 60 acres in Peralta Park that his California Insurance Company had acquired as collateral for a delinquent loan. Curtis snapped them up. At the same time, he purchased an undivided half interest in the adjoining John Schmidt farm and acquired additional lots from John F. Rooney. 

The movers and shakers of Berkeley knew a good thing when they saw it and recruited Curtis to volunteer as President of the nascent Berkeley Electric Light Company. His fame helped raise funds. Mixing philanthropy with a sound marketing sense, Curtis gave Berkeley an elegant firehouse at Sixth Street and Bancroft Way, dedicated on Oct. 2, 1887 as Posen Chemical Station No. 1, after the evergreen play. 

The actor’s promotional flair was also evident in Peralta Park. The subdivision map dated March 1, 1888, shows only three streets within the tract. Curtis and Posen avenues intersect in the north central portion (now part of Albany). 

At the southwestern end, the short block of Albina Avenue runs from Hopkins Street to Codornices Creek. Albina De Mer was the stage name of Marie Alphonsine Strelinger, Curtis’s Canadian-born wife. A subsequent map, dated 1890, shows the new Fleurange Avenue (now Acton Street) to the west, and a year later Carlotta and Joseph avenues had been cut—all three streets named after actors or characters in Curtis’s productions. 

Curtis planned an elegant subdivision anchored by a luxurious resort hotel. He organized the Peralta Park Hotel Company and began construction in 1888. In addition to its fantastic turreted exterior, the hotel boasted sixty bedrooms and twenty bathrooms—an unheard-of luxury. By 1889, construction was far along, and Curtis had his own house built at 1505 Hopkins Street (current site of the Immanuel Southern Baptist Church). It was erected by Lord & Boynton, builders, at a cost of $4,500. 

The house, in Stick style with neo-Gothic elements, featured a prominent square tower with a tall, pointed roof. Behind the house was a barn with a water tank and mill on top of it. There was a chicken yard and a conservatory. Palms and umbrella trees alternated on the sidewalk, and four young eucalyptus trees festooned with ivy served as a green front gate. A grove of eucalyptus grew in the rear. 

While construction was proceeding, Curtis talked the Claremont, University and Ferries Railway into running a branch horsecar line out Sacramento Street to Hopkins. He also organized a West Berkeley bank. To promote his play at the Bush Street Theatre, Curtis raffled lots in the paper town of Sam’l of Posen, western Tehama County, among the ticket buyers, then charged the winners a $2 recording fee. 

The town was never built, and delinquent property tax bills for the nearly 10,000 lots mounted for almost half a century before the land was purchased at a discount and sold to a used car dealer who came up with the very same promo idea. 

Curtis was riding high when on the night Sept. 10, 1891, he was caught in a bizarre incident in front of the Mission Street police station and accused of shooting Officer Alexander Grant to death. The scandal wreaked havoc with Curtis’s theatrical career and toppled his highly leveraged house of cards. Almost immediately, he sold his house with its contents to John H. Bolton. 

Bolton’s son Arthur, who as an adolescent slept in the tower room, would in 1899 build his own house—a brown shingle—at 1700 La Loma Avenue on the Northside. An early member of the Hillside Club, Arthur Bolton would serve on the committee that designed the Hillside Club Street Improvements in the Daley’s Scenic Park tract, paying for the land surveying from his own pocket. He also planted a copse of redwoods on the corner of La Loma and Le Conte avenues. 

In 1893, following a protracted murder trial, Maurice Curtis was found not guilty. By then he had lost most of his investments, including the Peralta Park Hotel, which was renamed Peralta Hall and became Colonel Homer B. Sprague’s School for Girls and later Dunn’s School for Boys. 

In 1903, the Christian Brothers purchased the property and started what is now St. Mary’s College High School. A fire ravaged the turrets and superstructure in 1946, but the main floors continued to be used until 1959, when the building was demolished and replaced with a modern structure. 

As for M.B. Curtis, the peripatetic actor continued touring with “Sam’l of Posen” and making deals. In 1893, he traded his Fresno ranch and vineyard for the Driskill Hotel in Austin, Texas. The hotel was sold at auction the following year. 

In the late 1890s Curtis became a theatrical manager, founded the All Star Afro-American Minstrels, and for several years took companies on tour to New Zealand and Australia. Some of the artists he managed accused him of cheating and absconding.  

In 1899, Curtis starred in a film about himself. The 1900 census found him and his wife in Berkeley again, but not for long. In 1910 Curtis portrayed his stock character in the movie “Samuel of Posen.” He ended his days a pauper in Los Angeles. 

 

This is the second part in a series of articles on Peralta Park. 

 

 

Photograph Courtesy of Beautiful Berkeley  

The Peralta Park Hotel near completion in 1889. 

 


About the House: Global Warming Begins (and Ends) at Home

By Matt Cantor
Friday June 09, 2006

Although I am generally sympathetic with the varied plights of the home buyer, I have to admit, in all my curmugeonitude that I have no tears to shed for anyone in Berkeley that has to meet the requirement of our RECO ordinance. 

No, I’m not talking organized crime (although I have more and more trouble distinguishing between government and organized crime as the days flow by—that’s RICO, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations), but I date myself (and I had a very nice time too, thank you very much). 

I’m talking about our Residential Energy Conservation Ordinance. When I look down the list of requirements that compliance entails, it’s just beyond me to feel anything other than pride and pleasure that we finally institutionalized some of the things that we were all talking about so passionately back in the ‘70s. 

This is the rubber on the road and it’s nicely presented and fairly non-violent. There are even spending limits for every house that rough out to less than 1 percent (actually 0.75 percent) than the purchase price for a house. So when you buy your little bungalow for $700K (amazin’ ain’t it!) you won’t have to pay more than about five thousand dollars to comply. 

Actually, a lot of the RECO jobs end up costing far less than that. It’s also something that only has to be done once per sale cycle and since RECO rules don’t change very fast, a house can actually change hands several times without having to do very much at all. 

But none of these things are the thrust of my arguments in favor of RECO. They are the simple and vital care of the planet. If any of you haven’t yet seen Al Gore’s movie An Inconvenient Truth, it’s time to rush out and see it. One thumb up from this reviewer. 

We who live in the developed world should be doing all we possibly can to help reverse the harm we’re doing to our atmosphere and the RECO ordinance focuses almost exclusively on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from your house (or the power-plant that feeds your house) and it does so in the best possible way, by conserving the heat that you’ve already placed in your house.  

In other words, it doesn’t force you to turn your heat down, your lights or your shower off after 5 minutes. 

It just makes sure that these processes don’t liberate any more excess heat than is necessary. Furthermore, the benefits to you are more than spiritual—there are real financial benefits to be had as well. 

A well-insulated house costs a lot less to heat and the cost of insulating your home is going to come right back to you in terms of our rapidly increasing PG&E bills. 

So, when you complete your RECO checklist, you get to feel good about helping the earth, good about the cost savings you’ll experience and good about making some capital improvements in your house. So, what has to be done to comply? 

First and foremost is attic insulation. Attics, when they meet accessibility requirements, have to be insulated to R-30. This can be done with blown-in cellulose (which I’m not crazy about), blown-in fiberglass, fiberglass batts (my favorite, especially when they’re fully surrounded with a plastic film) or any of the newer breed that’s coming down the pike including (no joke) recycled denim jeans (you get extra credit if your old lady embroidered ecology symbols on them first). 

Insulating the attic is the prime expense in most RECO lists and it does a great deal of good by keeping the warmth inside the house. 

You can do this job yourself but be cautious about the respiratory effects of dealing intimately with fiberglass or the detritus in your attic. A respirator is de-regeur, as well as long sleeve everything when doing this job. 

The list also includes wrapping your water heater in a blanket (unless it’s inside the heated part of the house). The hot and cold pipes attached to this also need a little bit of insulation (2’ in each direction). Very simple. A damper is needed for your fireplace. 

If you don’t have one, there are two relatively simple solutions. One is a damper installed at the top of the chimney (controlled by a cable that drops down into the fireplace), or a set of glass doors. The latter can be done by you, if you choose, but an expert might be the better choice for the former. 

Toilets, showerheads and sink faucets need various restrictors to control excessive water use. These are all very simple and in most cases just require a little device to be screwed on, which lowers the use of water. 

For showering this can be a bit of a hardship but a review of the best low-flow showerheads should result in at least one good choice. Toilets get dams to lower the amount of water (unless they are already 1.6 gallon types). 

By the way, I’d like to say, for those of you who have had a bad experience with low-flow toilets that these have improved greatly in the last few years and the early models which failed to do the job on the first try have been replaced by ones that actually work.  

The last things on the list are these: check your ducts for leaks and insulate them with at least R-3 (about 1” thick) insulation. This may mean no work at all if your system is relatively modern. 

Next is insulation on a hot-water heating system (almost nobody has these and anyone who has an uninsulated hydronic system needs this anyway (and badly). Then there is the requirement to put flourescents in common areas on your multi-family common areas (the laundry room in the duplex). 

This is super easy and it makes so much sense. I’ve got compact flourescents (free from Ranch 99!) in my laundry room and it’s just fine. 

I don’t do much reading down there anyway and then I don’t have to yell at my kids when they leave the light on. The last one is exterior weather-stripping. This one matters a lot. Many exterior doors leak lots of heat and the small cost of this job has big returns. 

When you think about this simple list of things to do, think about the fact that hundreds of thousands of people have already died in Iraq over a war which mightn’t have been fought at all if we didn’t feel that we needed all that oil. Also, think about the shrinking polar ice caps and planet your children will have to adopt from their foolish parents. 

RECO is like a kindergarten course in the reduction of global warming. If you live in Berkeley and have to meet these regs, raise your head high and do it with pride. 

 

 

Got a question about home repairs and inspections? Send them to Matt Cantor, in care of East Bay Real Estate, at realestate@berkeleydailyplanet.com.


Garden Variety: The Jewel Box Dazzle of Broadway Terrace Nursery

By Ron Sullivan
Friday June 09, 2006

Broadway Terrace Nursery is a tad off my regular circuit, and it had been too long since I’d dropped in when I dashed there last Saturday. It was just before closing time—a good time to watch the staff get its collective mettle tested. I was as impressed as I’d been on the regrettably few occasions I’d visited before.  

As I cruised around the tiny lot snapping photos, which I do by way of taking notes, I got one polite “Are you finding what you want?” from a staffer, but wasn’t sniffed after; these folks clearly don’t have Homeland Security ambitions. (Nursery folks are generally less paranoid than the usual retailer, in my experience.)  

Mostly, they were busy with customers. I cocked an ear and heard lots of particular requests and helpful advice going on. “My situation is…,” earned a guided tour with specifics about preferences, tolerances, and ultimate sizes of the plants. 

Well, that sounds more stiff than what I was listening to: lots of enthusiasm on both sides. 

This is a boutique nursery, one that caters to a local clientele and uses knowledge of its needs and the area to infuse what’s clearly a very individual sense of style. 

It’s been on the site for decades, through at least two owners, and has a comfort in its sense of place that allows for flights of imagination. 

One thing that shows itself immediately is an interest in foliage color. “Of course,” a staffer told me, “almost everyone here has lots shade in their yards.” Foliage provides zing in shade where many plants won’t bloom, and adds to a gardener’s color palette. 

Between the size of the place—it’s a fraction of a little pie-slice lot where two streets angle off into the Oakland hills—and all this foliage color, the place has a jewel-box dazzle.  

I have a shady spot in the front yard that I’m stuffing with cannas and tropicals and heucheras (coral bells), and the last do very well there so I’ve been watching the market for heucheras for a few years now. 

Several nurseries, including the Proven Winners/Proven Selections folks, have been having a good time with those: yellows, purples, purple-and-silvers, golds with red undersides, and hybrids with tiarellas (sugar scoops) called “heucherellas” that produce variegations and interesting leaf shapes. 

It’s a bit like the effect the recent flowering of microbrews has on us beer-lovers.  

Broadway Terrace has a couple of heuchera and heucherella cultivars that I hadn’t seen before. Someone’s watching that line carefully, along with other foliage delights.  

There are also lots of variegated foliages: even a striking variegated red-top photinia, of all things, with green-and-cream leaves, blushing new growth, and an open habit that makes it a whole different plant to my eye. 

It’d make a nifty focal shrub, with attentive pruning.  

There are flowering plants, too, and trees, edibles, and a seed and tool collection—including a good assortment of Felco pruners—that rewards attentive browsing. Barn swallows nest in several spots in the shop’s eaves. Go give your eyes a treat. 

 

 

Broadway Terrace Nursery 

4340 Clarewood Drive, Oakland  

(corner of Broadway Terrace) 

658-3729 

Mon.–Sat. 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 

Sun. 9 a.m.-5 p.m


Quake Tip of the Week: Will Your Home Survive?

By Larry Guillot
Friday June 09, 2006

Area governments say that 150,000 homes in the Bay Area are going to be uninhabitable after the Hayward Fault ruptures, the fault about which USGS seismologist Tom Brocher says, “It’s locked and loaded and ready to fire.” 

How about it? No more denial, get your bids and get that retrofit done.  

If you want to know more about retrofits and how they work, there’s a free seminar this Saturday morning, June 10, at 10 a.m. at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda, Berkeley. 

It will cover the basics and make you knowledgeable about choosing a retrofit contractor.  

A Red Cross survey found 80 percent of Bay area homeowners are not ready for a Big One. The retrofitted houses are the ones that will survive. 

 

Larry Guillot is owner of QuakePrepare, an earthquake consulting, securing, and kit supply service in the east bay. www.quakeprepare.com 


The Public Eye: Telegraph Avenue’s Hope: Buzz, Not Busway

By Michael Katz
Tuesday June 06, 2006

The good news is that Telegraph Avenue and the Southside commercial district are doing just fine. 

The bad news is that they’re doing fine in Philadelphia. 

Shockwaves are still reverberating from the announced shutdown of Cody’s on Telegraph. Unless some angel and community goodwill conspire to save the bookstore, Berkeley will lose a cherished, bedrock institution. (Any angels reading this are invited to materialize at the community meeting on June 8, 7 p.m., at Trinity Church on Bancroft Way at Dana Street.) 

Cody’s current owner attributes the store’s negative balance sheet to obvious causes: Internet booksellers and the Telegraph Ave. commercial area’s decline. But neighboring merchants blame that very decline partly on parking difficulties. 

Remarkably, some city officials think Telegraph’s “cure” is to make automobile access and parking even more difficult, by cooperating with AC Transit’s wasteful proposal to implement “Bus Rapid Transit” (BRT) on Telegraph, just a few blocks beside BART. 

A bad version of this proposal would create bus-only lanes on Telegraph, and on Bancroft Way, Durant Avenue, or both. This would remove at least one vehicle lane, and some parking, from each street. A worse version would also block Bancroft Way to through-traffic at Telegraph. Because people would find it harder to drive to stores and restaurants, these options ought to kill off a few more Southside businesses. 

The really bad version would entirely ban cars on Telegraph, from Haste Street north—creating a “pedestrian-transit mall,” and extending historic campus creep. As we’ll see below, from other cities’ experiences, this would likely turn Telegraph into a ghost town. 

Leave things to Berkeley’s mayor, and he may yet kill off Moe’s, Shakespeare & Co., Amoeba, and Rasputin. Our youth might soon have to buy their bongs in San Leandro (whose officials were rebellious enough to flatly reject AC Transit’s proposed bus-only lanes). That’s a long trip that might not even be safe. 

You say you want a retailution? If Berkeley’s top officials and their advisors were really on the Bus (to quote a 1960s shorthand for enlightenment), they’d carefully study the success of Philadelphia’s South Street. This 1-1/2-mile commercial, restaurant, and entertainment strip feels more like Telegraph Ave. than Telegraph itself, with elements of San Francisco’s bustling Valencia, Mission, and Fillmore Streets thrown in. 

Funky music shops, jazz clubs, counterculture cafes, and tattoo parlors blazed a trail there in the ‘60s for chain outlets later on. But although the boho vibe is gradually migrating elsewhere, everyone seems to be basically thriving. Thrift stores, traditional Jewish delis, and ‘50s-flavored basic appliance dealers have all hung in. A large Tower Records store—and a separate Tower Classical annex—are both still doing fine. Two voodoo-supply stores serve their particular community. The South St. business district promotes itself visibly and capably. 

Now this is in a metropolitan area that lacks many of our assets: It’s more starkly segregated. And lacking hot new industries, Philly has fought stagnation for decades. The city has been sustained by a cluster of universities, but intriguingly, South Street is across town from “University City” (or “U.C.”). Meanwhile, Berkeley’s core retail districts can’t find that old black magic to retain the captive market of 43,000+ people who study or work at our own U.C. 

South St. also steadily attracts visitors from Philadelphia’s suburbs, and even from the New Jersey suburbs. Plus lots of tourists. It’s a regional destination, as Telegraph once was. 

I don’t claim to know all the secrets of South Street’s ongoing vigor. But its rebirth was launched by the same 1960s spirit of rebellion that shaped today’s Telegraph Ave. Neighbors of South Street fought and killed that era’s version of AC Transit’s gleaming busway promises—a freeway extension, ironically, that Philadelphia planners had proposed as a replacement for South St. 

I can tell you that on South Street, you’ll find: Cars, cars, cars on the street. Parking, parking, parking at the curb. People, people, people on the sidewalks. Very few vacancies. 

What you won’t find is bus-only lanes. Starting around 1976, Philadelphia did try a bus/pedestrian “transitway” on venerable Chestnut Street a half-mile north. This killed off a premium retail corridor. The city later returned Chestnut to mixed use—a debacle that you can read about on discussion boards like phillyblog.com. 

Chicago came close to similarly killing its main drag, State Street, with a bus/pedestrian mall. Many other North American cities, including Toronto and Vancouver, tried this folly on principal retail streets in the 1970s—only to reverse course when it nearly destroyed commerce. People simply wouldn’t shop where they couldn’t park. Thriving boulevards became sterile, desolate, and forbidding places. 

But some Berkeley officials, planners, and transportation enthusiasts seem to have just thawed out from 30 years’ cryonic suspension. They think this tried-and-failed notion is some shagadelic, hot new thing. 

In reality, I count only a handful of people who are convinced that little Berkeley needs bus-only lanes on Telegraph, or on Shattuck downtown, or anywhere else. Bus Rapid Transit is great technology, but it should be implemented on corridors that BART doesn’t serve—where it could really take lots of cars off the road, by giving motorists a needed alternative. AC Transit proposed a redundant Telegraph/downtown route for its own purposes, not ours. 

Unfortunately, in a long-running Berkeley farce, the few with the most outlandish and unfounded notions have been given the inside track. How many gaping storefronts will it take to recognize the error of empanelling marginal folks—who are proud of making every day “Buy Nothing Day”—to guide policy for commercial districts? 

Meanwhile, several thousand city residents have signed petitions, at places like Moe’s and Caffe Strada, opposing lane removal for the hell of it. Smart university city. Pretty smart City Council. Let’s assume they can count. 

 

 

Michael Katz advises against eating cheesesteak, but endorses all things Ben Franklin. 


Understanding The Shoes of North Oakland

By Susan Parker
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Three quarters of the miseries and misunderstandings in the world would finish if people were to put on the shoes of their adversaries and understood their point of view. 

-Mahatma Gandhi 

 

Standing on the platform at the MacArthur BART station, I saw two teenage boys waiting for the train. They were dressed in baggy shirts and pants, caps on sideways, belts slung low on their hips. There was nothing unusual about their attire except for their shoes. They wore a different brand and style of sneaker on each foot. One of them sported a black shoe on his leftfoot, and a white shoe on his right. The other kid was similarly shod with sneakers that didn’t match. 

Over the weekend my 16-year-old friend Jernae stopped by for a visit. Her feet were encased in things that resembled mini bumper cars: enormous, shiny red plastic-looking sneakers, the kind Shaq and Allen Iverson wear. 

“What’s with the sneaks?” I asked as she kicked them off and sprawled on my couch. 

“Boys’ shoes,” she said, throwing her hands behind her head, and crossing her legs. “All the girls wear ‘em.” 

Just then my housemate Andrea came downstairs. “Nice shoes,” she said to Jernae. “Look at me, I can’t even find two that match.” 

She pulled up her pajama bottoms to reveal a sparkly yellow rubber flip flop on one foot, and an orange plastic thong adorned with a fuzzy flower on the other. 

“You’re right in style,” I said. “Saw something similar at the BART station just the other day.” 

“Shoes are my passion,” she said, “you know that. But my feet are all swelled up and I’m about to get a bucket and soak these puppies.” 

“My feet hurt, too,” said Jernae. “Can someone bring me a soda and some chips?” 

The next day I met my friend Sue for lunch. “I’ve got the most comfortable shoes!” she exclaimed. “Aren’t these cute?” 

She pointed down at her feet. She was wearing wide, dull green clogs that looked like a miniature version of apparatus you might find on a children’s playground. I’d seen these shoes before, in gardening magazines and once on a friend, who wore them to a Halloween party. She was dressed as the Easter Bunny and she sported the same holey plastic clogs that Sue had on, only hers were hot pink. 

“Crocs,” said Sue after I failed to acknowledge how cute her feet looked. “Thirty dollars. You can wear them in the rain, and they come in every color imaginable.” 

“Great,” I said with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. “But you gotta admit, they’re damn ugly.” 

“I don’t think they’re ugly at all,” said Sue. “They’re incredibly comfortable. Here, try them on.” 

“No thanks,” I said. “I’m saving my feet for something more attractive, perhaps in two different colors, or Shaq-like. 

“You should keep an open mind,” said Sue. “These shoes could change your life.” 

Yesterday I took my dog for her usual walk to Genova’s Delicatessen. On the way we often pass by Vincent, an elderly man who sits most mornings at the bus stop by the post office on Shattuck, smoking bummed cigarettes, and reading old newspapers. Vincent always says hello, pets Whiskers, and gives us his daily blessings. This time I noticed Vincent wasn’t wearing his worn-out, hand-me-down sandals. He was shod in a pair of scuffed, but fashionable Crocs! 

“You’ve got new shoes!” I shouted. 

“Yeah boy, you know about these things? Most comfortable shoes ever. Got ‘emfrom somebody who was ‘bout to toss ‘em. Threw away my sandals and made these my summertime shoes. May even wear them into fall and next winter, that’s how much I like ‘em.” 

“You know, Vincent, I thought they were women’s shoes.” 

“Hell, no,” said Vincent. “They’re universal! Girls wear ‘em, boys wear ‘em, and old folks too. You oughta get yourself a pair. They’ll change your life.” 

“I’ve heard that before,” I said. 

“Well then,” he said. “You oughta listen.” 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


The Bluebird of Hostility: Getting an Evolutionary Edge

By Joe Eaton, Special to the Planet
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Unless you’ve been living in a cave since 1979, you have undoubtedly seen the Mad Bluebird. It was captured by aspiring wildlife photographer Michael L. Smith on a cold February day in Maryland. The subject, a male eastern bluebird, feathers fluffed out, sits on a fence post glowering at the camera. The Mad Bluebird has been very good to Smith, enabling him to quit his day job as an electrician. Over 100,000 signed prints have been sold, and the image appears on calendars, coffee mugs, and all kinds of tchatchkes. The royalties by now must be considerable.  

That bluebird’s actual emotional state at the time is, of course, open to conjecture. But the image came to mind recently when I read about a really ingenious study of our own local species, the western bluebird, that appears to demonstrate a connection between the evolution of behavioral traits—in this case, aggressiveness—and physical characteristics.  

What scientists mean when they talk about evolution depends on the scale of the process. Macroevolution is what drives the dramatic changes that cross major taxonomic boundaries: fish into four-limbed amphibian, feathered dinosaur into bird, hoofed land mammal into whale, ape into hominid. Microevolution is more subtle. It’s what Peter and Rosemary Grant spent years studying in the Darwin’s finches of the Galapagos, as chronicled in Jonathan Weiner’s book The Beak of the Finch: incremental changes in the size and strength of the bird’s beaks, tracking the vagaries of climate—El Niños and La Niñas—that determined the kinds of seeds that were available for food.  

Give it long enough, and microevolution can produce a new species. You can imagine a scenario in which a population’s lifestyle becomes so specialized that it no longer interacts with its parent stock and becomes reproductively isolated. But it’s just as likely to act as a stabilizing force, with small changes varying around a long-term norm. As the Grants found, incipient species can begin to diverge, then merge back if the environmental forcing conditions reverse themselves. 

How does all this apply to western bluebirds? Renee Duckworth, an evolutionary ecologist at Duke University—and, as a loyal North Carolina alumnus, it pains me to admit that anything good can come out of Duke—did her field work in Montana. She found that bluebirds varied in aggressiveness, although I’m not sure how that was scored. (And yes, I’ve seen bluebirds being aggressive; not long ago I watched one chasing an interloping house wren away from its nest tree). The more aggressive birds seemed to get the choicest territories, in open meadows. Those lower in aggressiveness made do with closed forest areas. 

Those two environments make different physical demands on a foraging bluebird. In meadows, bluebirds hover above the grass to snag insects; in forests, they glean bugs and berries among the branches of trees. Duckworth measured the two populations and discovered that the among the aggressive meadow-nesting birds, individuals with longer wings and tails—better suited for hover-foraging—succeeded in raising more offspring than their shorter-winged-and-tailed neighbors. 

In Darwinian terms, the longer-winged birds were more fit than the others. Evolutionary fitness isn’t just about personal survival—that would make it the tautology that creationists claim it is. It’s about how many copies of your own genes you leave in the world. If more aggressive, longer-winged bluebirds have more offspring, those traits will increase in frequency within the meadow-nesting population. (Wing and tail proportions seemed to make no difference for the nestling-survival rates of the forest-nesters). 

So, according to Duckworth, aggressiveness drives habitat choice, which affects physical proportions. Could this process ultimately turn meadow-nesting and forest-nesting bluebirds into different species? Not likely, because neither habitat is stable over the long term: forest fires keep shaking up the mix. The isolation that is a key part of the speciation process is only temporary. 

It’s an intriguing set of findings: a salutary reminder that behavior evolves too, and that differences in behavior can translate into physical differences. You have to wonder how much our own evolution owes to some remote ancestor having been bolder, or more curious, or more socially-skilled, or just plain meaner than the competition. 


Arts & Events

Arts Calendar

Friday June 09, 2006

FRIDAY, JUNE 9 

THEATER 

Altarena Playhouse “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” at 8 p.m. Fri. and Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. 1409 High St., Alameda, through June 11. Tickets are $12-$15. 523-1553.  

Berkeley Rep “The Glass Menagerie” at 8 p.m. at the Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St. Tickets are $59. Runs through June 18. 647-2949.  

Berkeley Rep “The Miser” at 8 p.m. at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. Tickets are $53. Runs through June 25. 647-2949.  

California Shakespeare Theater “The Merry Wives of Windsor” at the Bruns Amphitheater, 100 Gateway Blvd., Orinda. Tues.-Thurs., 7:30 p.m., Fri.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 4 p.m. through June 25. Tickets are $15 and up. 548-9666.  

Masquers Playhouse “The Fantasticks” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond. Tickets are $18. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

Shotgun Players “King Lear” Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. to June 18. Tickets are $15-$30, reservations suggested. 841-6500.  

FILM 

Isabelle Huppert: Passion and Contradiction “The Lacemaker” at 7 p.m. and “Loulou” at 9:10 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Shan Sa reads from “The Empress” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

E. Lynn Harris reads from “I Say a Little Prayer” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 

Douglas Coupland introduces is novel of the digital age “jPod” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Tammy Hall Quintet featuring Helena Jack at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6233. 

Oakland Opera “X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X” at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro Opera House, 201 Broadway, through Sun. Tickets are $32-$36. 763-1146. 

Peter Hallifax and Julie Jeffrey, viols at 11 a.m. at Loper Chapel, Dana at Durant. Tickets are $7-$10. 220-1195. 

Janine Johnson, harpsichord at 5 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-1520.  

Flauti Diversi “Counterpoint: Bach and The Beatles” at 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Tickets are $10-$12. 527-9840. 

Atris, Brides of Obscurity at 9 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $8-$10. 848-0886.  

Hurricane Sam Rudin and the Hotshots at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ.  

West Coast Beatbox Battle at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $11-$13. 525-5054.  

Adrianne, singer-songwriter, at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

High Country, bluegrass, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Josh Workman & Perry Thoorsell Duo at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

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

Barry Syska & Friends at 8:30 p.m. at Epic Arts 1923 Ashby Ave. Cost is $5-$10. 

Rockermoms Benefit Concert at 7:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Late Show at 11 p.m. with Vince Charming and the New Americans. Cost is $5. 841-2082.  

Fleshies, Toys That Kill, Kreamy ‘Lectric Santa at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $5. 525-9926.  

Sleepy Alligator, Famous Last Words at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $8. 451-8100.  

San Pablo Project, Latin funk, reggae, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Gary Burton Quartet Revisited at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$65. 238-9200.  

SATURDAY, JUNE 10 

CHILDREN  

Jose-Luis Orozco and the Children of Centro Vida at 10 a.m. at La Pena Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $8 adults, $5 children, and $25 families 525-1463.  

Early Music for Families Young musicians will demonstrate instruments used to play Renaissance and Baroque music at 2 p.m. at International House, Bancroft and Piedmont. Free. 848-5591.  

THEATER 

“Lily, The Felon's Daughter” 19th Century fun, frolic and music, at 8 p.m., Sun. at 3 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, 1 Lawson Road, Kensington. Suggested donation is $20. 524-2912.  

EXHIBITIONS 

“Expect Respect: The Power, Joy, and Dignity of Being a Woman” Reception for the artists at 2 p.m. at Prescott-Joseph Center for Community Enhancement, 920 Peralta St, Oakland. 835-8683.  

“Fresh Paint - Second Coat” Meet the artists from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m at Piedmont Lane Gallery, upstairs, 4121 Piedmont Ave. Oakland. www.3lisha.com/freshpaint 

East Bay Open Studios Sat. and Sun. For maps and times see www.proartsgallery.org 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “Three Colors: Blue” at 8:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Rhythm and Muse “In Celebration of Swimming” spoken word and music at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park. Donations appreciated. Benefits public pool use for homeless and low-income youth. 644-6893. 

J. Othello will read from and discuss his book “The Soul of Rock ‘N Roll: A History of African Americans in Rock Music” at 2 p.m. at the Oakland Public Library, West Auditorium, 125 14th St. 238-3134. 

Alexander Polikoff describes “Waiting for Gautreaux: A Story of Segregation, Housing, and the Black Ghetto” at 4:30 p.m. at at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852.  

Sean Wilsey explains “The Thinking Fan’s Guide to the World Cup: 32 Writers on 32 Countries” at 7:30 p.m. at at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Philharmonia Chamber Players “Viva Vivaldi: Concerti by Candlelight” 10:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $20-$40. 642-9988.  

Kensington Symphony in a program honoring Robert Schumann at 8 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 545 Ashbury Ave., El Cerrito. Suggested donation. $10-$15. 524-9912. 

La Peña 31st Birthday An evening of performances by artists and groups who have had a long association with La Peña at 6 p.m. at La Peña. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Emma’s Revolution Benefit Concert at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Friends Church, 1600 Sacramento St. at Cedar. Tickets are $20 and up at Cody’s Books.  

Charles Hamilton Jazz Ensemble at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6233. 

“Lost Tales: Glimpses from 1000 Ramayanas” Classical Indian dance at 4 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Theater, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $12-$18. 338-4538. 

St. Ann Consort O Wondrous Novelty: Masterpieces of Monastic Chant at 1 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $8-$15. 717-9422 

Pacific Collegium, Motets of Couperin le Grand, Bernier, and others at 3 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $10-$15. 459-2341. 

Baroque Etcetera “Pallas Nordica: A Swedish Queen in Rome” at 3 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10. 540-8222. 

Voci Women’s Vocal Ensemble “Aphrodesia” at 7:30 p.m. at The Marsh, 2118 Allston Way. Tickets are $20-$50. 800-838-3006. 

Babatunde Lea Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $10. 841-JAZZ.  

Damond Moodie at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

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

Robin Flower & Libby McLaren at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Kalas, Ragweed, 100 Suns at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $8. 451-8100. 

Ed Saindon and Dick Whittington at 8 p.m. at the Jazz- 

school. Cost is $20. 845-5373.  

Ben Stolorow, solo piano, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

Best Friends, The Morning Benders, Birds and Batteries at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082.  

Punks for Pets Benefit for the Berkeley East Bay Humane Society with The Uptones, The Plus Ones, Abi Yo Yo’s at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

BabShad Jazz at 8 pm. at the Sea Mi Restaurant, 856 San Pablo Ave. 845-5692. 

SUNDAY, JUNE 11 

CHILDREN 

Circus Clowning A showcase by the students of the Clown Conservatory at Circus Center at 2 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $7.50 children, $12.50 adults. 925-798-1300.  

FILM 

“Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till” at 2 p.m. at Parkway Speakeasy Theater, 1834 Park Blvd., Oakland. Discussion to follow. 848-1994.  

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “Decalogue 7 and 8” at 3 p.m. and “Decalogue 9 and 10” at 5:15 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Gabriela Taylor reads from “Geckos and Other Guests: Tales of a Kuaa’i Bed & Breakfast” at 5 p.m. at Black Oak Books, 1491 Shattuck Ave. 486-0698. 

Bill Buford describes “Heat: An Amateur’s Adventures as Kitchen Salve, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

The “Farewell” Consort to celebrate Pastor Jim Stickney’s many years of support for early music at 7:30 p.m. at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, 1501 Washington Ave., Albany. Suggested donation $10-$1. 525-1716. 

San Francisco Choral Artists “Partly Cloudy With a Chance of Song” at 4 p.m. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 11 Montecito Ave., at Bay Place, Oakland. Tickets are $18-$25. 415-979-5779. 

Horizon Woodwind Quintet at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, Live Oak Park, 1275 Walnut St. Cost is $8-$10. 

Seda Ensemble, Persian classical music at 7 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $25. 925-798-1300. 

Young People’s Symphony Orchestra Pops Concert at 2 p.m. at Greek Orthodox Church, 4700 Lincoln Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $10-$15. 849-9776. 

Junior Recorder Society Concert at 5 p.m. at International House, 2299 Piedmont Ave. Free.  

Renaissance and Traditional Music from the British Isles and Scandinavia at 2 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-3864. 

Galileo Project “Liebesmahl: Feast of Love” Sat 3 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10-$15. 787-9956.  

Sweet Hope and Bitter Despair: the Ayres of England’s Golden Age at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, corner of Bowditch and Durant. Tickets are $8-$10. 415-565-3274.  

King’s Trumpetts & Shalmes at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 415-665-2083.  

“A Visit to Paris” Concert of French music at 2 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 201 Martina St., Point Richmond. Tickets $10 at the door. 237-5551.  

Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St.. 981-6233. 

Rachel Efron Quintet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ.  

Gift Horse at 11 a.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

Americana Unplugged: Jacob & Harry at 5 p.m. at Jupiter, 2181 Shattuck Ave. 655-5715.  

Tanaora at 4:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool, 2087 Addison. Cost is $12-$15. 845-5373.  

Leftover Dreams, music from The Great American Songbook at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. 

MONDAY, JUNE 12 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Poetry Express with John Rowe at 7 p.m, at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. 644-3977. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Parlor Tango, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Mark Murphy at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$18. 238-9200.  

TUESDAY, JUNE 13 

CHILDREN 

Desert Dave and his pets kick-off the Kensington Library’s Summer Reading Program at 6:30 p.m. at 61 Arlington Ave. 524-3043. 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski Early Works: Program 3 at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The State of Democracy Today” with Cecilia Tichi & Iain Boa at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Andrew Dean Nystrom introduces his “Top Trails Yellowstone Grand Teton National Parks” with a slideshow at 8 p.m at Mrs. Dalloway’s, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Laurie R. King introduces her new crime novel “The Art of Detection” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500.  

“Works In Progress” Women’s Open Mic at 7:30 p.m. at Montclair Women’s Cultural Center, 1650 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $5.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Singers’ Open Mic with Ellen Hoffman at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ.  

Uncle Earl at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

Michael Coleman Trio Jazz Jam at 8 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Bring your instrument. 451-8100.  

Debbie Poryes & Friends, jazz, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Walter Savage Quartet at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $6-$10. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Edge of Desire: Recent Art in India” opens at the Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. Cost is $5-$8. 642-0808. 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “Camera Buff” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Café Poetry hosted by Kira Allen at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña. Donation $2. 849-2568.  

Rabbi Michael Lerner will read from “The Left Hand of God: Taking Back Our Country from the Religious Right” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Alison Bechdel introduces her memoir “Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500.  

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  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Luke Westbrook at 8:30 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $5. 451-8100. 

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

Dick Conte Trio & Dick’s Birthday Party! at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ.  

Goapele at 8 and 10 p.m. through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $15-$24. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

THURSDAY, JUNE 15 

THEATER 

San Francisco Recovery Theatre “The Spot” A teenage couple’s lives change dramatically when she gets pregnant. Thurs. and Fri at 8 p.m., Sat. at 2 and 8 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $18. 1-866-468-3399. 

FILM 

Isabelle Huppert: Passionand Contradiction “Madame Bovary” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Janine Brown & Lucy Traber 2005 Members’ Showcase Winners. Artist discussion at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park. Free, donations appreciated. 644-6893. 

“Expect Respect: The Power, Joy, and Dignity of Being a Woman” Artists panel discussion at 5:30 p.m. at Prescott-Joseph Center for Community Enhancement, 920 Peralta St, Oakland. 835-8683.  

Sandy Tolan reads from “The Lemon Tree: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East” at 7 p.m at Mrs. Dalloway’s, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Maqams/Modes: The Music of the Jews in the Land of Islam with Prof. Martin Schwartz, at 6:30 p.m. at the Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. Cost is $6-$8. 549-6950.  

Mike Madison will discuss “Blithe Tomato: An Insider's Wry Look at Farmer’s Market Society” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Word Beat Reading Series on “The Lion Speaks: An Anthology for Hurricane Katrina” at 7 p.m. at Mediterraneum Caffe, 2475 Telegraph Ave. 526-5985. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Steve Traylor-Ramirez at 8 p.m. at La Peña. Cost is $8-$10. 849-2568.  

Slaid Cleaves at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

“Slave, The Funk Party” at 8 p.m. at Kimball’s Carnival, 522 2nd St., Oakland. Tickets are $25-$35 from ticket web.  

Atmos Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Houston Jones at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Mr. Lexicon, The Late Night Dates at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082. 

Swoop Unit at 8:30 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $6. 451-8100. 


Savion Glover, D’Rivera at SF Jazz Festival This Weekend

By Ira Steingroot
Friday June 09, 2006

This weekend as part of the San Francisco Jazz Festival, the Herbst Theatre will feature tap dancer extraordinaire Savion Glover on Saturday and Latin saxophone and clarinet virtuoso Paquito D’Rivera on Sunday. 

 

Savion Glover 

Tap dance is a quintessentially American art form, the dance analog to instrumental jazz. The roots of tap go back at least to the cakewalk of the 1890s, but when sound film entered the scene in 1929, fans all over the world had a chance to see and hear the great tappers do astounding feats with their astounding feets. 

Bill “Bojangles” Robinson danced up and down a flight of steps just on his toes. John Bubbles added heel taps to create rhythm tap. Dancers like Honi Coles and Cholly Atkins, who followed up on Bubbles innovations, were just as suave and sophisticated as Astaire and Kelly. 

Eventually, Cholly became the choreographer for all the Motown groups. The Nicholas Brothers added acrobatics. By the Forties, when Bird and Diz were inventing bebop, dancers like Baby Lawrence and Bunny Briggs followed their lead and invented paddle and roll, a step that fit with the new rhythms. 

Today we have Savion Glover who has bundled up all the steps and styles of the past and carried them into the present. 

Nothing of the past has been lost, but something brand new has been added. Savion is the greatest living tap dancer because he is the most innovative and contemporary. 

The last time he was in the area, at the Marin Center Veterans Memorial Auditorium in November, he presented a program of tapping to the classics. This could easily have been effete, but Savion had me convinced during Mozart’s Divertimento in D major, that he was right and everyone else had missed Mozart’s rhythmic and percussive genius. 

His own rhythmic and percussive genius along with remarkable grace, energy and improvisational genius are not to be missed. 

 

Paquito D’Rivera  

Alto saxophonist and clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera was born in Cuba in 1948. In fact he celebrated his 58th birthday just this week on June 4. 

As a child prodigy in his native Cuba he often played with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra, sometimes premiering works by top Cuban composers. His father, a tenor saxophonist, introduced him to jazz and he learned more from the radio show “Willis Conover Jazz Hour” which was broadcast to Cuba by the Voice of America.  

Curiously, the Voice of America was barred by law from broadcasting in the United States, so Conover’s show, arguably the best jazz programming ever broadcast on radio, had a tremendous impact outside of the United States while we suffered here with very little decent jazz radio at that time. Paquito was a founding member of the Orquesta Cubana de Musica Moderna. He went on to be a founding member of Irakere in 1973. 

The group also included such future stars as trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and pianist Chucho Valdes. After defecting in 1980, Paquito moved to New York and was soon playing with Dizzy Gillespie, a musician who adored Cuban music and was adored in Cuba. Paquito, who brings his quintet to the festival, is certainly the greatest Latin alto player of all time, combining Cuban roots, bebop and his own personal lyricism. 

 

Savion Glover presents two shows on Saturday, June 10, at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m., at Herbst Theatre, San Francisco. 

On the following night, Sunday, June 11, at 7 p.m., Paquito D’Rivera brings his quintet to Herbst Theatre. 

For more information call 415-788-7353 or visit their website at sfjazz.org. 

 

 


CalShake’s Presents ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’

By Ken Bullock
Friday June 09, 2006

In any of Shakespeare’s comedies, some of the “low” characters are usually referred to as clowns. In CalShake’s new production of The Merry Wives of Windsor, there’s a different generic term for funnymen and women: puppets. 

And they’re puppets of all sizes, from the “weathercock” messenger Robin, fluttering above the heads of actors, fellow puppets and audience, to Pistol, shaped eponymously like a swaggering blunderbuss, to that character Orson Welles referred to as The Bard’s greatest creation, great in girth, forgivable faults and “only deliberately a clown,” symbol of the Merrie Olde England already waning by Tudor times: Sir John Falstaff, here a veritable blimp, worthy of being a float in Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. 

The story of Merry Wives is simple, yet the plot’s filled with amorous and domestic complications. Like a Chinese box puzzle, the play must dismantle itself before it’s clear who’s fooling who. 

However, everybody seems to trick Falstaff, who lumbers along good naturedly at the center of things, heaped with abuse, derision and laughter for the foibles of his vanity. Funnyman Ron Campbell is encased in the huge, billowing frame of the Falstaff zeppelin, characteristically muttering countless asides to himself, and finally emerging in a lather at curtain call.  

The biggest go-around is Falstaff’s burlesque wooing of the Merry Wives themselves, Mistresses Page and Ford (Catherine Castellanos and Delia MacDougall), thinking to gain both love and money (to fuel his profligate roistering) by divide-and-conquer tactics. 

The wives’ own counter-plot leads the grand buffoon on as does the botched counterintelligence of jealous Master Ford (Anthony Fusco) who alternately goads on Falstaff while in disguise and roars in vengefully to catch him in flagrante, only to come up empty-handed. All the while, Falstaff is consigned to various ignoble—and painful—backdoor exits as dirty linen and in elephantine drag, always in the nick of time. 

The final indignity to Sir John proves to be a group masquerade, in which fantastic spirits haze the butt of so many jokes, who, finally wised up, exclaims, “I do begin to perceive that I am made an ass.”  

A great deal of the fun of this version is got by the effects of live actors relating to puppet, in particular, Delia MacDougall and Anthony Fusco (who plays Master Ford with all the stops out, more cartoon character from Fractured Fairy Tales than either clown or puppet, in a hilarious performance of manic virtuosity). This develops a rhythm all its own that interweaves with the plot and the outlandish chatter issuing from the puppets of all shapes and sizes. 

Danny Sheie and Lorna Howley lend their voices particularly well to their animate charges, though the cookie-cutter cruciform Welsh preacher Hugh Evans veers between Scots and Swedish more than cymrophone, dandling a rosary and crucifix suspicious in Elizabethan hands. 

John Ludwig, Chris Brown and Jason Hines have come up with quite a brood of puppets, which both clash and blend in with their human brethren under Sean Daniels’ direction. 

Despite its declaration of a proud puppet geneology leading back to the Puritan closing of the theaters and resultant Shakespeare Fests, there are moments when the proceedings seem more like a Vegas floor show with Muppet knock-offs. Neither are the Elizabethan “vagaries of falling in love, and tensions within marriage as an institution” explored or revealed comically, in particular, as resident dramaturg Laura Hope artfully expounds in the program, stitching the season’s plays thematically together. 

But the real accent is on fun for everyone, a carefree opener for the season under the summer sky in the hills outside Orinda. For that, the show goes over like a ton of bricks, as intended. 

 

California Shakespeare presents The Merry Wives of Windsor at the Bruns Amphitheater, 100 Gateway Blvd., Orinda, Tues.-Thurs 7:30 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 4 p.m., through June 25. For more information, call 548-9666 or see www.calshakes.org.


Film Details the World of Wild Butterflies

By Steven Finacom
Friday June 09, 2006

It’s a tough world for the seemingly fragile butterfly. 

Not only must butterflies go through repeated and incredible physical changes to reach adulthood, but at every stage they’re beset by predators and threats from the weather, chemicals and pesticides, lack of suitable food, and encroachment on habitat by humans and invasive plants. 

A new film, directed and produced in the Bay Area by Oaklander Bill Levinson, provides a provocative and visually rich look at the familiar insects and the cycles of their lives. 

In The Company of Wild Butterflies can be seen locally this Saturday in San Francisco or next Tuesday, June 13, along with a special tour at the UC Botanical Garden (See sidebar). 

Levinson, who has other documentary film work to his credit, became fascinated with butterflies at the Berkeley garden of his sister, UC-trained Sally Levinson, who characterizes herself as a “consulting entomologist.” 

He began to film, up close, the habits and transformations of the wild butterflies she welcomes to her yard and often raises indoors during their pre-flight stages. 

The result, with the expert assistance of his sister and others, is a sympathetic and engaging documentary illuminating the multiple lives of butterflies and what they need to survive and co-exist in a world dominated by humans. 

It’s likely that no other creature with which humans come in regular contact goes through such complex change as the butterfly. It experiences four distinctively different stages of life: egg, larva, chrysalid, and winged adult. 

The changes are startling in form and scale. The film notes that if a human infant grew as fast as a caterpillar, it would achieve not only adulthood, but some ten tons in added weight, within a few weeks. 

The core and exotic beauty of the documentary is the presentation of the butterfly life cycle, shifting back and forth between various locally familiar species, including fawn brown buckeyes, yellow and black anise swallowtails, orange and black painted ladies, orange and silver fritillaries, cabbage whites, and monarchs. 

Amazing transformational moments are detailed on film, from tiny, translucent, caterpillars chewing their way out of egg shells, to an older growing, caterpillar molting off its tight skin, to the adult butterfly emerging from its chrysalid case. 

The film is most engaging and informative in capturing the nuances of each stage. For example, the molting caterpillar pulls its brain backwards, out of its hard exoskeleton “skull.” 

Detailed close-up images have caused some buzz in the entomological community, including a newly molted caterpillar inflating the spines that protect it from insect and bird predators, and caterpillars preparing for the chrysalid stage by shedding their skins and attaching themselves to twigs. 

The survival of butterflies is tied to the survival of their “host plants.” Many butterfly caterpillars are adapted to eat only one species or variety of plant. 

If a native plant loses ground to habitat destruction, the butterfly loses right along with it. 

And, as speakers in the documentary note, modern gardening, particularly in public spaces like schoolyards and parks, often disdains butterfly food plants as “weedy” and undesirable, replacing them with plants that are “pretty” or “low maintenance” but entirely useless to native insects. 

A few local butterflies have adapted, making the transition from one host plant to another. 

For instance, those large yellow and black anise swallowtails that are some of the showiest butterflies in the East Bay used to live on native yampah, but now thrive on fennel, a ubiquitous “invasive” typically found in local vacant lots and along roadsides. 

And cabbage whites, themselves exotic non-natives in California, don’t exclusively dine on cabbage anymore, but also favor garden nasturtiums. 

Throughout the film, common myths about butterflies are gently debunked. 

For example the adult female, flitting from plant to plant, isn’t primarily looking for flower nectar to drink. That ranks a distant third, after finding a mate and suitable host plants on which to lay eggs. 

The film presentation is very straightforward, with no fancy graphics, just a few subtitles and arrows to point out key features. 

Some entomological humor creeps in through the section titles, including “Exoskeletons in the Closet” and “Extreme Makeovers” along with descriptions of adult butterfly mating rituals including what’s called “bar hopping.” 

The narration is clear and simple, but doesn’t talk down to the viewer. A lot of technical terms pop up, from cremaster, to proleg, to instar, but are reasonably understandable in the context of the presentation. 

This is truly a local documentary. Almost all of the filming was done in Oakland or Berkeley, much of it in the Willard neighborhood, with a few excursions to San Francisco, San Bruno Mountain, and the Antioch Dunes. 

The latter two settings present discouraging scenes as butterfly seekers trudge by meadows overrun with invasive, butterfly-unfriendly, weeds and hillsides scraped down to bare earth to make way for new housing developments. 

There are cameo appearances by locals including San Francisco environmental activist Barbara Deutsch and Jerry Powell, a professor emeritus at UC Berkeley and a nationally known butterfly expert. 

The film closes with encouragement to the viewer to “begin with the smallest steps in our own backyards” to help native butterflies survive. 

Most important, this means planting some larval food plants, and keeping the garden free of chemical pesticides. 

The narrator also notes that the “smallest plot of unused land, public or private, can often be a haven for butterflies.” 

A narrow sideyard, the verge between curb and sidewalk, or a few feet along the edge of a school play yard, as at Le Conte Elementary in southeast Berkeley, can effectively serve this purpose. 

 

In the Company of Wild Butterflies screens Saturday at 2 p.m. at the Exploratorium in San Francisco, with Bill and Sally Levinson present. Museum admission charge. 

The UC Botanical Garden screens the film Tuesday, June 13, at 7 p.m. At 6 p.m. Sally Levinson, and local landscape and butterfly habitat designer Andy Liu who also consulted on the film, will lead evening tours of butterfly friendly plants in the garden. $10 general public, pre-registration required. For more information, see http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu. 

The film may also be purchased or rented from Bullfrog Films, at www.bullfrogfilms.com. 

 

Photograph by Steven Finacom 

A West Coast Lady nectars on lantana, a good plant for generalized butterfly gardening.


East Bay Then and Now: Maurice Curtis Brought Brief Splendor to Berkeley

By Daniella Thompson
Friday June 09, 2006

In 1881, Irish-born playwright George H. Jessop wrote a minor comedy-drama titled Sam’l of Posen, the Commercial Drummer whose lead character, a shrewd Jewish peddler with a heart of gold, attains bourgeois respectability by means of little wiles interleaved with honesty. 

The play might have gone nowhere but for a fortuitous pairing with the perfect actor, and both became roaring successes. The actor was Maurice B. Curtis (c. 1850–1920), born Mauritz Strelinger in Bohemia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. 

When Mauritz was a child, the Strelingers immigrated to Detroit, where his two younger brothers, Charles and George, were born. Mauritz’s father, Julian, owned a brewery that in 1893 would become Mutual Brewing Co. Mutual’s beer kegs carried the tagline “Pure & without drugs or poison.” 

Mauritz may have picked up some of his father’s theatricality, for in 1870 he was already an actor. His level-headed brother Charles, on the other hand, entered the hardware business and went on to become president of Charles A. Strelinger Co., tools, supplies, and machinery. 

Mauritz spent the years between 1870 and 1881 as a bit player, having acquired the stage name M.B. Curtis, which he would use in his personal life as well. The spectacular nationwide success of Sam’l of Posen made an entrepreneur of Curtis. He purchased the rights to the play and toured with it for years, often updating the plot and changing characters to keep it from going stale. 

His touring eventually brought Curtis to San Francisco, where he developed a wide circle of acquaintance. It didn’t take long for him to appear in Berkeley, and not in a theatrical production. In 1887, he bought, then sold at a profit, land on the waterfront and on Dwight Way. 

Caspar Thomas Hopkins was eager to unload 60 acres in Peralta Park that his California Insurance Company had acquired as collateral for a delinquent loan. Curtis snapped them up. At the same time, he purchased an undivided half interest in the adjoining John Schmidt farm and acquired additional lots from John F. Rooney. 

The movers and shakers of Berkeley knew a good thing when they saw it and recruited Curtis to volunteer as President of the nascent Berkeley Electric Light Company. His fame helped raise funds. Mixing philanthropy with a sound marketing sense, Curtis gave Berkeley an elegant firehouse at Sixth Street and Bancroft Way, dedicated on Oct. 2, 1887 as Posen Chemical Station No. 1, after the evergreen play. 

The actor’s promotional flair was also evident in Peralta Park. The subdivision map dated March 1, 1888, shows only three streets within the tract. Curtis and Posen avenues intersect in the north central portion (now part of Albany). 

At the southwestern end, the short block of Albina Avenue runs from Hopkins Street to Codornices Creek. Albina De Mer was the stage name of Marie Alphonsine Strelinger, Curtis’s Canadian-born wife. A subsequent map, dated 1890, shows the new Fleurange Avenue (now Acton Street) to the west, and a year later Carlotta and Joseph avenues had been cut—all three streets named after actors or characters in Curtis’s productions. 

Curtis planned an elegant subdivision anchored by a luxurious resort hotel. He organized the Peralta Park Hotel Company and began construction in 1888. In addition to its fantastic turreted exterior, the hotel boasted sixty bedrooms and twenty bathrooms—an unheard-of luxury. By 1889, construction was far along, and Curtis had his own house built at 1505 Hopkins Street (current site of the Immanuel Southern Baptist Church). It was erected by Lord & Boynton, builders, at a cost of $4,500. 

The house, in Stick style with neo-Gothic elements, featured a prominent square tower with a tall, pointed roof. Behind the house was a barn with a water tank and mill on top of it. There was a chicken yard and a conservatory. Palms and umbrella trees alternated on the sidewalk, and four young eucalyptus trees festooned with ivy served as a green front gate. A grove of eucalyptus grew in the rear. 

While construction was proceeding, Curtis talked the Claremont, University and Ferries Railway into running a branch horsecar line out Sacramento Street to Hopkins. He also organized a West Berkeley bank. To promote his play at the Bush Street Theatre, Curtis raffled lots in the paper town of Sam’l of Posen, western Tehama County, among the ticket buyers, then charged the winners a $2 recording fee. 

The town was never built, and delinquent property tax bills for the nearly 10,000 lots mounted for almost half a century before the land was purchased at a discount and sold to a used car dealer who came up with the very same promo idea. 

Curtis was riding high when on the night Sept. 10, 1891, he was caught in a bizarre incident in front of the Mission Street police station and accused of shooting Officer Alexander Grant to death. The scandal wreaked havoc with Curtis’s theatrical career and toppled his highly leveraged house of cards. Almost immediately, he sold his house with its contents to John H. Bolton. 

Bolton’s son Arthur, who as an adolescent slept in the tower room, would in 1899 build his own house—a brown shingle—at 1700 La Loma Avenue on the Northside. An early member of the Hillside Club, Arthur Bolton would serve on the committee that designed the Hillside Club Street Improvements in the Daley’s Scenic Park tract, paying for the land surveying from his own pocket. He also planted a copse of redwoods on the corner of La Loma and Le Conte avenues. 

In 1893, following a protracted murder trial, Maurice Curtis was found not guilty. By then he had lost most of his investments, including the Peralta Park Hotel, which was renamed Peralta Hall and became Colonel Homer B. Sprague’s School for Girls and later Dunn’s School for Boys. 

In 1903, the Christian Brothers purchased the property and started what is now St. Mary’s College High School. A fire ravaged the turrets and superstructure in 1946, but the main floors continued to be used until 1959, when the building was demolished and replaced with a modern structure. 

As for M.B. Curtis, the peripatetic actor continued touring with “Sam’l of Posen” and making deals. In 1893, he traded his Fresno ranch and vineyard for the Driskill Hotel in Austin, Texas. The hotel was sold at auction the following year. 

In the late 1890s Curtis became a theatrical manager, founded the All Star Afro-American Minstrels, and for several years took companies on tour to New Zealand and Australia. Some of the artists he managed accused him of cheating and absconding.  

In 1899, Curtis starred in a film about himself. The 1900 census found him and his wife in Berkeley again, but not for long. In 1910 Curtis portrayed his stock character in the movie “Samuel of Posen.” He ended his days a pauper in Los Angeles. 

 

This is the second part in a series of articles on Peralta Park. 

 

 

Photograph Courtesy of Beautiful Berkeley  

The Peralta Park Hotel near completion in 1889. 

 


About the House: Global Warming Begins (and Ends) at Home

By Matt Cantor
Friday June 09, 2006

Although I am generally sympathetic with the varied plights of the home buyer, I have to admit, in all my curmugeonitude that I have no tears to shed for anyone in Berkeley that has to meet the requirement of our RECO ordinance. 

No, I’m not talking organized crime (although I have more and more trouble distinguishing between government and organized crime as the days flow by—that’s RICO, Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations), but I date myself (and I had a very nice time too, thank you very much). 

I’m talking about our Residential Energy Conservation Ordinance. When I look down the list of requirements that compliance entails, it’s just beyond me to feel anything other than pride and pleasure that we finally institutionalized some of the things that we were all talking about so passionately back in the ‘70s. 

This is the rubber on the road and it’s nicely presented and fairly non-violent. There are even spending limits for every house that rough out to less than 1 percent (actually 0.75 percent) than the purchase price for a house. So when you buy your little bungalow for $700K (amazin’ ain’t it!) you won’t have to pay more than about five thousand dollars to comply. 

Actually, a lot of the RECO jobs end up costing far less than that. It’s also something that only has to be done once per sale cycle and since RECO rules don’t change very fast, a house can actually change hands several times without having to do very much at all. 

But none of these things are the thrust of my arguments in favor of RECO. They are the simple and vital care of the planet. If any of you haven’t yet seen Al Gore’s movie An Inconvenient Truth, it’s time to rush out and see it. One thumb up from this reviewer. 

We who live in the developed world should be doing all we possibly can to help reverse the harm we’re doing to our atmosphere and the RECO ordinance focuses almost exclusively on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from your house (or the power-plant that feeds your house) and it does so in the best possible way, by conserving the heat that you’ve already placed in your house.  

In other words, it doesn’t force you to turn your heat down, your lights or your shower off after 5 minutes. 

It just makes sure that these processes don’t liberate any more excess heat than is necessary. Furthermore, the benefits to you are more than spiritual—there are real financial benefits to be had as well. 

A well-insulated house costs a lot less to heat and the cost of insulating your home is going to come right back to you in terms of our rapidly increasing PG&E bills. 

So, when you complete your RECO checklist, you get to feel good about helping the earth, good about the cost savings you’ll experience and good about making some capital improvements in your house. So, what has to be done to comply? 

First and foremost is attic insulation. Attics, when they meet accessibility requirements, have to be insulated to R-30. This can be done with blown-in cellulose (which I’m not crazy about), blown-in fiberglass, fiberglass batts (my favorite, especially when they’re fully surrounded with a plastic film) or any of the newer breed that’s coming down the pike including (no joke) recycled denim jeans (you get extra credit if your old lady embroidered ecology symbols on them first). 

Insulating the attic is the prime expense in most RECO lists and it does a great deal of good by keeping the warmth inside the house. 

You can do this job yourself but be cautious about the respiratory effects of dealing intimately with fiberglass or the detritus in your attic. A respirator is de-regeur, as well as long sleeve everything when doing this job. 

The list also includes wrapping your water heater in a blanket (unless it’s inside the heated part of the house). The hot and cold pipes attached to this also need a little bit of insulation (2’ in each direction). Very simple. A damper is needed for your fireplace. 

If you don’t have one, there are two relatively simple solutions. One is a damper installed at the top of the chimney (controlled by a cable that drops down into the fireplace), or a set of glass doors. The latter can be done by you, if you choose, but an expert might be the better choice for the former. 

Toilets, showerheads and sink faucets need various restrictors to control excessive water use. These are all very simple and in most cases just require a little device to be screwed on, which lowers the use of water. 

For showering this can be a bit of a hardship but a review of the best low-flow showerheads should result in at least one good choice. Toilets get dams to lower the amount of water (unless they are already 1.6 gallon types). 

By the way, I’d like to say, for those of you who have had a bad experience with low-flow toilets that these have improved greatly in the last few years and the early models which failed to do the job on the first try have been replaced by ones that actually work.  

The last things on the list are these: check your ducts for leaks and insulate them with at least R-3 (about 1” thick) insulation. This may mean no work at all if your system is relatively modern. 

Next is insulation on a hot-water heating system (almost nobody has these and anyone who has an uninsulated hydronic system needs this anyway (and badly). Then there is the requirement to put flourescents in common areas on your multi-family common areas (the laundry room in the duplex). 

This is super easy and it makes so much sense. I’ve got compact flourescents (free from Ranch 99!) in my laundry room and it’s just fine. 

I don’t do much reading down there anyway and then I don’t have to yell at my kids when they leave the light on. The last one is exterior weather-stripping. This one matters a lot. Many exterior doors leak lots of heat and the small cost of this job has big returns. 

When you think about this simple list of things to do, think about the fact that hundreds of thousands of people have already died in Iraq over a war which mightn’t have been fought at all if we didn’t feel that we needed all that oil. Also, think about the shrinking polar ice caps and planet your children will have to adopt from their foolish parents. 

RECO is like a kindergarten course in the reduction of global warming. If you live in Berkeley and have to meet these regs, raise your head high and do it with pride. 

 

 

Got a question about home repairs and inspections? Send them to Matt Cantor, in care of East Bay Real Estate, at realestate@berkeleydailyplanet.com.


Garden Variety: The Jewel Box Dazzle of Broadway Terrace Nursery

By Ron Sullivan
Friday June 09, 2006

Broadway Terrace Nursery is a tad off my regular circuit, and it had been too long since I’d dropped in when I dashed there last Saturday. It was just before closing time—a good time to watch the staff get its collective mettle tested. I was as impressed as I’d been on the regrettably few occasions I’d visited before.  

As I cruised around the tiny lot snapping photos, which I do by way of taking notes, I got one polite “Are you finding what you want?” from a staffer, but wasn’t sniffed after; these folks clearly don’t have Homeland Security ambitions. (Nursery folks are generally less paranoid than the usual retailer, in my experience.)  

Mostly, they were busy with customers. I cocked an ear and heard lots of particular requests and helpful advice going on. “My situation is…,” earned a guided tour with specifics about preferences, tolerances, and ultimate sizes of the plants. 

Well, that sounds more stiff than what I was listening to: lots of enthusiasm on both sides. 

This is a boutique nursery, one that caters to a local clientele and uses knowledge of its needs and the area to infuse what’s clearly a very individual sense of style. 

It’s been on the site for decades, through at least two owners, and has a comfort in its sense of place that allows for flights of imagination. 

One thing that shows itself immediately is an interest in foliage color. “Of course,” a staffer told me, “almost everyone here has lots shade in their yards.” Foliage provides zing in shade where many plants won’t bloom, and adds to a gardener’s color palette. 

Between the size of the place—it’s a fraction of a little pie-slice lot where two streets angle off into the Oakland hills—and all this foliage color, the place has a jewel-box dazzle.  

I have a shady spot in the front yard that I’m stuffing with cannas and tropicals and heucheras (coral bells), and the last do very well there so I’ve been watching the market for heucheras for a few years now. 

Several nurseries, including the Proven Winners/Proven Selections folks, have been having a good time with those: yellows, purples, purple-and-silvers, golds with red undersides, and hybrids with tiarellas (sugar scoops) called “heucherellas” that produce variegations and interesting leaf shapes. 

It’s a bit like the effect the recent flowering of microbrews has on us beer-lovers.  

Broadway Terrace has a couple of heuchera and heucherella cultivars that I hadn’t seen before. Someone’s watching that line carefully, along with other foliage delights.  

There are also lots of variegated foliages: even a striking variegated red-top photinia, of all things, with green-and-cream leaves, blushing new growth, and an open habit that makes it a whole different plant to my eye. 

It’d make a nifty focal shrub, with attentive pruning.  

There are flowering plants, too, and trees, edibles, and a seed and tool collection—including a good assortment of Felco pruners—that rewards attentive browsing. Barn swallows nest in several spots in the shop’s eaves. Go give your eyes a treat. 

 

 

Broadway Terrace Nursery 

4340 Clarewood Drive, Oakland  

(corner of Broadway Terrace) 

658-3729 

Mon.–Sat. 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 

Sun. 9 a.m.-5 p.m


Quake Tip of the Week: Will Your Home Survive?

By Larry Guillot
Friday June 09, 2006

Area governments say that 150,000 homes in the Bay Area are going to be uninhabitable after the Hayward Fault ruptures, the fault about which USGS seismologist Tom Brocher says, “It’s locked and loaded and ready to fire.” 

How about it? No more denial, get your bids and get that retrofit done.  

If you want to know more about retrofits and how they work, there’s a free seminar this Saturday morning, June 10, at 10 a.m. at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda, Berkeley. 

It will cover the basics and make you knowledgeable about choosing a retrofit contractor.  

A Red Cross survey found 80 percent of Bay area homeowners are not ready for a Big One. The retrofitted houses are the ones that will survive. 

 

Larry Guillot is owner of QuakePrepare, an earthquake consulting, securing, and kit supply service in the east bay. www.quakeprepare.com 


Berkeley This Week

Friday June 09, 2006

FRIDAY, JUNE 9 

Impeachment Banner Fridays at 6:45 to 8 a.m. on the Berkeley Pedestrian bridge between Seabreeze Market and the Aquatic Park, until impeachment is realized. www. Impeachbush-cheney.com 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon is cancelled today. For information on future events, please call 526-2925.  

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

Women in Black Vigil, from noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. 548-6310. 

SATURDAY, JUNE 10 

Live Oak Park Fair Sat. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. featuring 125 artists and craftspeople. Free. Free shuttles provided from the North Berkeley BART Station to the park. 898-3282. www.liveoakparkfair.com 

Repainting Willard Community Peace Labyrinth from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Willard Middle School, Telegraph Ave. between Derby and Stuart. Volunteers needed. 526-7377. 

Health Fair with informational workshops, screenings, fun and giveaways for the whole family from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the social hall and parking lot of 6401 San Pablo Ave., Oakland.  

Walk on the Wild Side A 5.5 mile hike over varied terrain to investigate wildlife, wildflowers and a wild watershed. Meet at 9 p.m. at the Wildcat/Alvarado staging are in Tilden Park. Bring a sack lunch, water and sunscreen. 525-2233. 

“Backyard Habitat” a workshop to learn about the wildlife native to the area, what they need to secure food and shelter from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at De Anza High School, 5000 Valley View Road, Richmond. Free. 665-3538. www.spawners.net 

Full Moon Walk at John Muir National Historic Site A walk to the top of Mt. Wanda, in Martinez, to see the full moon, and nocturnal animal life along the way. Free, but reservations required. 925-228-8860. 

Mini-Farmers in Tilden A farm exploration program, from 10 to 11 a.m. 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 $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Cerrito Creek Work Party Meet at at 10 a.m. at the end of Adams St., one block west of San Pablo, to remove invasives. 848-9358. www.fivecreeks.org 

La Pena’s 31st Birthday Open house and performances by artists and groups who have had long association with La Peña, at 6 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Free. 654-9587. 

Jeremy’s One Man Show with giant origami, juggling, magic, comedy, unicycling, at noon at El Cerrito Library, 6510 Stockton Ave., El Cerrito. Free for grades 6 -12. 526-7512.  

Emergency Preparedness Class on Light Search & Rescue from 9 a.m. to noon at 997 Cedar St. Free, but registration required. 981-5506.  

Berkeley History Center Walking Tour: “Explore the New Berkeley City College Building” has been postponed to July 22. 848-0181.  

Walking Tour of Jack London Waterfront Meet at 10 a.m. at the corner of Broadway and Embarcadero. Tour lasts 90 minutes. For reservations call 238-3234.  

East Bay Baby Fair Resources for pregnancy, birth and parenting from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. 540-7210. 

Vegetarian Cooking Class on Breakfast and Brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St. Cost is $45. 531-2665.  

Cooking the African Way A demonstration on how to make nutritious Nigerian Yoruban food at 1 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, Martin Luther King Jr. Branch, 6833 International Blvd. 615-5728. 

New Business Startup Expo Meet new local entrepreneurs and learn how to start your own business, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland City Hall. 879-4020. 

Learn to Row Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Jack London Aquatic Center, 115 Embarcadero, Oakland. 208-6067. 

Suppressed Histories: Japan with Max Dashu on women in Japanese culture and history at 7:30 p.m. at Ancient Ways, 4075 Telegraph, Oakland. Suggested donation $10-$20. 

Great War Society East Bay Chapter meets to discuss “Myths of WWI” at 10:30 a.m. at 640 Arlington Ave. 527-7118. 

SUNDAY, JUNE 11 

Community Labyrinth Peace Walk at 3 p.m. to rededicate the Willard Community Peace Labyrinth, Willard Middle School, Telegraph Ave. between Derby and Stuart. 526-7377. 

Trees are Treasures Learn about the diverse tree species in Tilden on a 2 mile walk at 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center. 525-2233. 

People’s Park Community Garden Tour Learn about native and edible plants with long time gardener, Terri Compost. Hear some history and find out how to get involved and garden in this unique and special place. Meet at 1 p.m. at the South West (Bongo Burger) corner of the People’s Park Community Garden. 658-9178. 

Green Sunday Election Wrap-Up with Wilson Riles, former Oakland City councilmember and mayoral candidate, and and J. Douglas Allen Taylor, Berkeley Daily Planet staff writer, at 5 p.m. at Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph Ave. at 65th in North Oakland. 

Make Your Own Liquid Fertilizers A workshop to learn how to turn weeds and other natural byproducts into plant fertilizers. Bring 2 liter plastic bottles, old hoses or bicycle tubes, cardboard or newspaper, large containers or 5 gallon buckets with lids, misc. tools, and leave with a system of your own. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Berkeley Eco-House, 1305 Hopkins St. Cost is $1, sliding scale, no one turned away. 547-8715. 

Architecture Tour of the Oakland Museum’s Building and Gardens at 1 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

“Disaster Then and Now: Ready or Not?” Earthquake discussion at 2 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

Art Book Sale including catalogs, journals and magazines from the Museum’s own collection as well as donations from private collections. From 1 to 4 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

“Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till” film screening at 2 p.m. at Parkway Speakeasy Theater, 1834 Park Blvd., Oakland. Discussion to follow. 848-1994. 

Red Cross Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman. To make an appointment call 526-4811. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace Meet at 3 p.m. at the colonnade at the NE end of the lake. 763-8712.  

Sunday Summer Forum: Towards a More Just World with Pierre Laboissiere, Haiti Action Committee, at 9:30 a.m. at Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, 1 Lawson Rd., Kensington. 525-0302, ext. 306. 

Tibetan Buddhism with Readings from Voice of the Buddha on “Buddha’s Enlightenment” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812.  

MONDAY, JUNE 12 

World Affairs/Politics Discussion Group for people 60+ years old meets at 10:15 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic Ave. Cost is $2.50. 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, JUNE 13 

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 as we circumnavigate Round Top, one of the highest peaks in the Berkeley hills and a center of ancient volcanic activity. From 10 a.m. to noon. To register call 525-2233.  

Civil Liberties Film Series “The Exonerated” followed by a talk with Natasha Minsker, ACLU Death Penalty Project, and Barbara Becnel, co-author with Stanley “Tookie” Williams, at 7 p.m. Richmond Public Library, Madeline F. Whittlesey Room, 325 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond. 620-6561. 

Berkeley High School Site Council meets at 4:30 p.m. in Room D218 of the Admin building. The agenda includes 10th grade counseling (SB813), Site Plan Subcommittee report, School Governance Council Proposal. 525-0124. 

Raging Grannies of the East Bay invites new folks to come join us from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. to sing (any voice will do), help plan our next gig, or write outrageously political lyrics to old familiar tunes, at Berkeley Gray Panthers, 1403 Addison St., in Andronico’s mall. 548-9696. 

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

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14  

Walking Tour of Old Oakland uptown to the Lake to discover Art Deco landmarks. Meet at 10 a.m. in front of the Paramount Theater at 2025 Broadway. Tour lasts 90 minutes. Reservations can be made by calling 238-3234. 

“Winged Migration” A documentary dedicated to birds and their long-distance flights at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland. Donations of $5 accepted. 

“How to Run a Successful Co-op and the Co-op Movement,” with Lisa Bruzzone and Cathy Goldsmith of The Cheese Board, at 1:30 p.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic. All welcome. 524-9122. 

East Bay Genealogical Society with Caroline Earhart on her family quilt “My Family’s Road to California” at 10 a.m. in the Library Conference Room of the Family History Center, 4766 Lincoln Ave. Oakland. All welcome. 635-6692. 

Celebrate Flag Day at Habitot Children’s Museum by creating a giant community flag from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 2065 Kittredge St. Cost is $5-$6. 647-1111. 

“Girl, I’ve Been Through A Lot..” Poetry workshop for girls age 13 to 17 at 4 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, Room 219, 125 14th St. 238-3134. 

Traditional Dances to Reconnect with the Earth at 10:30 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic, Albany. Donation requested. Come alone or with friends. No special agility required. 528-2261. 

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze Market, just west of the I-80 overpass. 548-9840. 

The Berkeley Lawn Bowling Club free instruction every Wed. and Sat. at 10:30 a.m. at 2270 Acton St. 841-2174.  

Fresh Produce Stand at San Pablo Park from 3 to 6:30 p.m. in the Frances Albrier Community Center. Sponsored by the Ecology Center’s Farm Fresh Choice. 848-1704.  

Jewish Community Federation of the Greater East Bay Annual Meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Congregation Beth El, 1301 Oxford St.  

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, JUNE 15 

Family Day at UC Botanical Garden with hands-on activities from 10 a.m. to noon at 200 Centennial Drive. Cost for one parent and one child is $14-$18. Additional adult or children per family are $7 each. Registration required. Space is limited. To register call 643-2755. 

Embracing Diversity Films “Out of the Shadow” a documentary of a woman with paranoid schizophrenia, at 7 p.m. at Albany High School Library, 603 Key Route Blvd. Please enter through gym doors on Thousand Oaks Blvd. Suitable for children over 12. Free. Discussion follows. 527-1328. 

World of Plants Tours Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 p.m. at the UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. Cost is $5. 643-2755. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

Historical & Current Times Book Group meets on Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Albany Library, 1249 Marin Ave. 548-4517. 

CITY MEETINGS 

Council Agenda Committee meets Mon. June 12, at 2:30 p.m., at 2180 Milvia St. 981-6900. 

Youth Commission meets Mon., June 12, at 6:30 p.m., at 1730 Oregon St. Philip Harper-Cotton, 981-6670.  

City Council meets Tues., June 13, at 7 p.m in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil 

Commission on Disability meets Wed., June 14, at 6:30 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Don Brown, 981-6346. TDD: 981-6345.  

Homeless Commission meets Wed., June 14, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Jane Micallef, 981-5426.  

Planning Commission meets Wed., June 14, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Janet Homrighausen, 981-7484.  

Police Review Commission meets Wed., June 14, at the South Berkeley Senior Center,. 981-4950.  

Waterfront Commission meets Wed., June 14, at 7 p.m., at 201 University Ave. Cliff Marchetti, 981-6740.  

Design Review Committee meets Thurs., June 15, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Anne Burns, 981-7415. 

Transportation Commission meets Thurs., June 15, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Peter Hillier, 981-7000.  

West Berkeley Project Area Commission meets Thurs., June 15, at 7 p.m., at the West Berkeley Senior Center. Iris Starr, 981-7520.


Arts Calendar

Tuesday June 06, 2006

TUESDAY, JUNE 6 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski Early Works: Program 1 at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“A Celebration of Jaime de Angulo” presented by Malcom Margolin, Stefan Hyner, and Steve Dickison at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Jason Roberts introduces “A Sense of the World” a biography of the blind explorer James Holman, at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

Linda Donn reads from “The Little Ballonist” at 7 p.m at Mrs. Dalloway’s, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Oakland Opera “X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X” at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro Opera House, 201 Broadway. Tickets are $32-$36. 763-1146. 

Artists’ Vocal Ensemble, “Music of the Apocalypse” at 5:30 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft at Ellsworth. Tickets are $10-$20 at the door. 717-9422. 

Ensemble Cerumina “Music across the Alps” at 8 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, 2316 Bowditch Ave. Donations appreciated. 459-1582. 

Alta Sonora and Women’s Antique Vocal Ensemble “Viaggio: a Musical Tour of Renaissance Italy” at 8 p.m. at International House, Bancroft and Piedmont. Tickets are $10-$15. 233-0868.  

Singer’s Open Mic with Ellen Hoffman at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ.  

PhilipsMarine, jazz, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Yoshida Brothers at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $20. 238-9200.  

Michael Coleman Trio Jazz Jam at 8 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Bring your instrument. 451-8100.  

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 7 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Stitches in Time I: Food and Identity” Textile and multi-media works about food and cultural identity. Reception at 1:30 p.m. at Richmond Health Center, 100 38th St., enter at 39th and Bissell, Richmond. 231-1348. www.artschange.org 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski Early Works: Program 2 at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Greg Palast introduces “Armed Madhouse: Who’s Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats, Bush Sinks, The Scheme to Steal ‘08, No Child’s Behind Left, and Other Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Class War” at 12:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

Ivan Doig reads from his new novel “The Whistling Season” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698. 

Nando Parrado describes “Miracle in the Andes” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

James Carroll describes “House of War: The Pentagon and the Disastrous Rise of American Power at 7:30 p.m. in the Large Assembly, First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way at Dana. Donation $10. 845-7852. 

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  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Oakland Opera “X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X” at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro Opera House, 201 Broadway. Tickets are $32-$36. 763-1146. 

Berkeley Baroque Players at 8 p.m. Pre-concert talk at 7 p.m. at International House Auditorium, 2299 Piedmont Ave. Tickets are $10-$15. 272-9147. 

Vox Populi Vocal Ensemble “Sacred music of Guillaume Dufay” at 6 p.m. at Chapel of St. Joseph of Arimathea, 2316 Bowditch St. Tickets are $10-$12. 843-3608.  

Bay Area Classical Harmonies Music for the Dead from Bach to Byzantine Chant at 6 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $12-$18. 868-0695  

Carol Denney at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

Calvin Keys Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ.  

Whiskey Brothers, old time and bluegrass, at 9 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. 843-2473.  

Home at Last Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Juio Bravo, salsa, at 8 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Grant Geissman at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $10-$18. 238-9200.  

THURSDAY, JUNE 8 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Future Tense” sculpture installations, constructions and mixed-media works by four artists opens at 6 p.m. at Kala Art Insitute, 1060 Heinz Ave. 549-2977. www.kala.org 

FILM 

“New Orleans Music in Exile” a film by Robert Mugge at 2 and 7:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 3rd Flr. Community Room, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6233. 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “The Double Life of Véronique” at 7 p.m. and “Blind Chance” at 9 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Michael Pollan reads from “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” at 7 p.m at Mrs. Dalloway’s Literary and Garden Arts, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Harlyn Aizley talks about “Confessions of the Other Mother: Non-Biological Lesbian Mothers Tell All” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Ramor Ryan introduces his new book “Clandestines: The Pirate Journals of an Irish Exile” at 7:30 pm. at AK Press Warehouse, 674-A 23rd St., Oakland. 208-1700. 

Chris Abani and Colin Chandler introduce their new books “Becomming Abigail” and “Iron Balloons” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Ensemble Vermillian Seventeenth Century Italian Chamber Music at noon at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $15. 559-4670. 

The Golden Age of Spain with Karol Steadman soprano, at 1 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10-$15. 805-773-1057. 

Mahan Esfahani, harpsichord, at 2 p.m. at Loper Chapel, Dana and Durant. Tickets are $10-$20. 240-418-9585. 

Pedro Jesús Gómez, lute and vihuela “The Lyre of Orpheus” at 5 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-3864.  

The Albany Consort Great Concertos and Cantatas at 6:15 at University Lutheran Chapel, 2425 College at Haste. Tickets are $15. 408-773-0375.  

Howard Kadis, lutenist, at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, Dana and Durant. Tickets are $10-$15.  

De Profundis Low Sounds Only at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10. 459-7462. 

Baroque Cabaret with Sheli Nan and the Musicians Angelic at 8 p.m. at Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Tickets are $20-$25. 919-4493.  

The Klez-X at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Steve Gannon Monday Blues Band at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Be Brave Bold Robot, Dustin Aaron, Drunken Boat at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $6. 841-2082. 

Hwy 42, Cult of Sue Todd, Toofless Sean Corkery at 8 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $5. 451-8100.  

Gary Burton Quartet Revisited at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$65. 238-9200.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Michael Pollan reads from “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” at 7 p.m at Mrs. Dalloway’s Literary and Garden Arts, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Harlyn Aizley talks about “Confessions of the Other Mother: Non-Biological Lesbian Mothers Tell All” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Ramor Ryan introduces his new book “Clandestines: The Pirate Journals of an Irish Exile” at 7:30 pm. at AK Press Warehouse, 674-A 23rd St., Oakland. 208-1700. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Ensemble Vermillian Seventeenth Century Italian Chamber Music at noon at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $15. 559-4670. 

The Golden Age of Spain with Karol Steadman soprano, at 1 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10-$15. 805-773-1057. 

Mahan Esfahani, harpsichord, at 2 p.m. at Loper Chapel, Dana and Durant. Tickets are $10-$20. 240-418-9585. 

Pedro Jesús Gómez, lute and vihuela “The Lyre of Orpheus” at 5 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-3864.  

The Albany Consort Great Concertos and Cantatas at 6:15 at University Lutheran Chapel, 2425 College at Haste. Tickets are $15. 408-773-0375.  

Howard Kadis, lutenist, at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, Dana and Durant. Tickets are $10-$15.  

De Profundis Low Sounds Only at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10. 459-7462. 

Baroque Cabaret with Sheli Nan and the Musicians Angelic at 8 p.m. at Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. TIckets are $20-$25. 919-4493.  

The Klez-X at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Steve Gannon Monday Blues Band at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Be Brave Bold Robot, Dustin Aaron, Drunken Boat at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $6. 841-2082. 

Hwy 42, Cult of Sue Todd, Toofless Sean Corkery at 8 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $5. 451-8100.  

Gary Burton Quartet Revisited at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$65. 238-9200.  

FRIDAY, JUNE 9 

THEATER 

Altarena Playhouse “You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown” at 8 p.m. Fri. and Sat., 2 p.m. Sun. 1409 High St., Alameda, through June 11. Tickets are $12-$15. 523-1553.  

Berkeley Rep “The Glass Menagerie” at 8 p.m. at the Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St. Tickets are $59. Runs through June 18. 647-2949.  

Berkeley Rep “The Miser” at 8 p.m. at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. Tickets are $53. Runs through June 25. 647-2949.  

California Shakespeare Theater “The Merry Wives of Windsor” at the Bruns Amphitheater, 100 Gateway Blvd., Orinda. Tues.-Thurs., 7:30 p.m., Fri.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 4 p.m. through June 25. Tickets are $15 and up. 548-9666.  

Masquers Playhouse “The Fantasticks” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond. Tickets are $18. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

Shotgun Players “King Lear” Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. to June 18. Tickets are $15-$30, reservations suggested. 841-6500.  

FILM 

Isabelle Huppert: Passion and Contradiction “The Lacemaker” at 7 p.m. and “Loulou” at 9:10 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Shan Sa reads from “The Empress” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

E. Lynn Harris reads from “I Say a Little Prayer” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 

Douglas Coupland introduces is novel of the digital age “jPod” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Tammy Hall Quintet featuring Helena Jack at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6233. 

Oakland Opera “X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X” at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro Opera House, 201 Broadway, through Sun. Tickets are $32-$36. 763-1146. 

Peter Hallifax and Julie Jeffrey, viols at 11 a.m. at Loper Chapel, Dana at Durant. Tickets are $7-$10. 220-1195. 

Janine Johnson, harpsichord at 5 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-1520.  

Flauti Diversi “Counterpoint: Bach and The Beatles” at 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Tickets are $10-$12. 527-9840. 

Atris, Brides of Obscurity at 9 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $8-$10. 848-0886.  

Hurricane Sam Rudin and the Hotshots at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ.  

West Coast Beatbox Battle at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $11-$13. 525-5054.  

Adrianne, singer-songwriter, at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

High Country, bluegrass, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Josh Workman & Perry Thoorsell Duo at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

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

Rockermoms Benefit Concert at 7:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Late Show at 11 p.m. with Vince Charming and the New Americans. Cost is $5. 841-2082.  

Fleshies, Toys That Kill, Kreamy ‘Lectric Santa at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $5. 525-9926.  

Sleepy Alligator, Famous Last Words at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $8. 451-8100.  

San Pablo Project, Latin funk, reggae, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Gary Burton Quartet Revisited at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$65. 238-9200.  

SATURDAY, JUNE 10 

CHILDREN  

Jose-Luis Orozco and the Children of Centro Vida at 10 a.m. at La Pena Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $8 adults, $5 children, and $25 families 525-1463.  

Early Music for Families Young musicians will demonstrate instruments used to play Renaissance and Baroque music at 2 p.m. at International House, Bancroft and Piedmont. Free. 848-5591.  

THEATER 

“Lily, The Felon's Daughter” 19th Century fun, frolic and music, at 8 p.m., Sun. at 3 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, 1 Lawson Road, Kensington. Suggested donation is $20. 524-2912.  

EXHIBITIONS 

“Expect Respect: The Power, Joy, and Dignity of Being a Woman” Reception for the artists at 2 p.m. at Prescott-Joseph Center for Community Enhancement, 920 Peralta St, Oakland. 835-8683.  

“Fresh Paint - Second Coat” Meet the artists from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m at Piedmont Lane Gallery, upstairs, 4121 Piedmont Ave. Oakland. www.3lisha.com/freshpaint 

East Bay Open Studios Sat. and Sun. For maps and times see www.proartsgallery.org 

FILM 

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “Three Colors: Blue” at 8:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Rhythm and Muse “In Celebration of Swimming” spoken word and music at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park. Donations appreciated. Benefits public pool use for homeless and low-income youth. 644-6893. 

J. Othello will read from and discuss his book “The Soul of Rock ‘N Roll: A History of African Americans in Rock Music” at 2 p.m. at the Oakland Public Library, West Auditorium, 125 14th St. 238-3134. 

Alexander Polikoff describes “Waiting for Gautreaux: A Story of Segregation, Housing, and the Black Ghetto” at 4:30 p.m. at at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852.  

Sean Wilsey explains “The Thinking Fan’s Guide to the World Cup: 32 Writers on 32 Countries” at 7:30 p.m. at at Cody’s Books on Telegraph. 845-7852. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Philharmonia Chamber Players “Viva Vivaldi: Concerti by Candlelight” 10:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $20-$40. 642-9988.  

Kensington Symphony in a program honoring Robert Schumann at 8 p.m. at Northminster Presbyterian Church, 545 Ashbury Ave. El Cerrito. Suggested donation. $10-$15. 524-9912. 

La Peña 31st Birthday An evening of performances by artists and groups who have had a long association with La Peña at 6 p.m. at La Peña. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Emma’s Revolution Benefit Concert at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Friends Church, 1600 Sacramento St. at Cedar. Tickets are $20 and up at Cody’s books.  

Charles Hamilton Jazz Ensemble at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6233. 

“Lost Tales: Glimpses from 1000 Ramayanas” Classical Indian dance at 4 p.m. at the Julia Morgan Theater, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $12-$18. 338-4538. 

St. Ann Consort O Wondrous Novelty: Masterpieces of Monastic Chant at 1 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $8-$15. 717-9422 

Pacific Collegium, Motets of Couperin le Grand, Bernier, and others at 3 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $10-$15. 459-2341. 

Baroque Etcetera “Pallas Nordica: A Swedish Queen in Rome” at 3 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10. 540-8222. 

Voci Women’s Vocal Ensemble “Aphrodesia” at 7:30 p.m. at The Marsh, 2118 Allston Way. Tickets are $20-$50. 800-838-3006. 

Babatunde Lea Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $10. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Damond Moodie at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

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

Robin Flower & Libby McLaren at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Kalas, Ragweed, 100 Suns at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $8. 451-8100. 

Ed Saindon and Dick Whittington at 8 p.m. at the Jazz- 

school. Cost is $20. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Ben Stolorow, solo piano, at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

Best Friends, The Morning Benders, Birds and Batteries at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082. www.starryploughpub.com 

Punks for Pets Benefit for the Berkeley East Bay Humane Society with The Uptones, The Plus Ones, Abui Yo Yo’s at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

BabShad Jazz at 8 pm. at the Sea Mi Restaurant, 856 San Pablo Ave. 845-5692. 

SUNDAY, JUNE 11 

CHILDREN 

Circus Clowning A showcase by the students of the Clown Conservatory at Circus Center at 2 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $7.50 children, $12.50 adults. 925-798-1300.  

FILM 

“Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till” at 2 p.m. at Parkway Speakeasy Theater, 1834 Park Blvd., Oakland Discussion to follow. 848-1994.  

Against Indifference: The Cinema of Krzysztof Kieslowski “Decalogue 7 and 8” at 3 p.m. and “Decalogue 9 and 10” at 5:15 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Gabriela Taylor reads from “Geckos and Other Guests: Tales of a Kuaa’i Bed & Breakfast” at 5 p.m. at Black Oak Books, 1491 Shattuck Ave. 486-0698. 

Bill Buford describes “Heat: An Amateur’s Adventures as Kitchen Salve, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St.  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

The “Farewell” Consort, a festival to celebrate Pastor Jim Stickney’s many years of support for early music at 7:30 p.m. at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, 1501 Washington Ave., Albany. Suggested donation $10-$15 to benefit the St. Alban’s disabled access fund. 525-1716. 

San Francisco Choral Artists “Partly Cloudy With a Chance of Song” at 4 p.m. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 11 Montecito Ave., at Bay Place, Oakland. Tickets are $18-$25. 415-979-5779. 

Horizon Woodwind Quintet at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, Live Oak Park, 1275 Walnut St. Cost is $8-$10. 

Seda Ensemble, contemporary Persian classical music at 7 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $25. 925-798-1300. 

Young People’s Symphony Orchestra Pops Concert at 2 p.m. at Greek Orthodox Church, 4700 Lincoln Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $10-$15. 849-9776. 

Junior Recorder Society Concert at 5 p.m. at International House Auditorium, 2299 Piedmont Ave. Free.  

Renaissance and Traditional Music from the British Isles and Scandinavia at 2 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 549-3864. 

Galileo Project “Liebesmahl: Feast of Love” Sat 3 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapel, Bowditch at Durant. Tickets are $10-$15. 787-9956.  

Sweet Hope and Bitter Despair: the Ayres of England’s Golden Age at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph of Arimathea Chapell, corner of Bowditch and Durant. Tickets are $8-$10. 415-565-3274.  

King’s Trumpetts & Shalmes at 8 p.m. at Trinity Chapel, 2320 Dana St. Tickets are $10-$15. 415-665-2083.  

“A Visit to Paris” Concert of French music at 2 p.m. at First United Methodist Church, 201 Martina St., Point Richmond. Tickets $10 at the door. 237-5551.  

Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion at 8 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St.. 981-6233. 

Rachel Efron Quintet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Gift Horse at 11 a.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

Americana Unplugged: Jacob & Harry at 5 p.m. at Jupiter, 2181 Shattuck Ave. 655-5715.  

Tanaora at 4:30 p.m. at the Jazzschool, 2087 Addison. Cost is $12-$15. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Leftover Dreams, music from The Great American Songbook at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. 1111 Addison. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org


Arts: Malcolm X the Opera at Oakland Metro

By Ken Bullock
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Joseph Wright as Malcolm Little, from the depths of a prison cell, sings, “You want the truth, but you don’t want to know,” as he contemplates his change from “country boy” newly arrived in Boston to “Detroit Red,” hustling the Harlem streets, on the verge of a conversion that will make him into Malcolm X. His is the powerful voice that will express African-American rage and hope as portrayed in Anthony Davis’ lucid and compelling opera X, based on Malcolm’s autobiography and performed by the Oakland Opera Theater through June 11 at the Oakland Metro Operahouse near Jack London Square. 

“It’s a story of transformation,” Davis said of the opera, which besides his score, has the book by his brother Christopher Davis (an actor-director), and has a libretto by their cousin, poet Thulani Davis. “It’s a heroic story; he goes through the fire to realize who he is. It’s our heroic story for African-Americans, which is how I realized it could be an opera. Its spirituality really is operatic.”  

And its high point is the scene of Malcolm’s conversion by Elijah Muhammed (played by splendid tenor Darron Flagg) to the Nation of Islam. The scene is deftly staged, with Malcolm ascending up the tiers of a set dominated by a smiling Elijah at the pyramidal apex, gradually putting on glasses, taking up the Book, and intoning the Creed. This is after his long-lost brother Reginald (Jason Jackson) has introduced him to Elijah’s version of Islam in his cell. Malcolm was initially incredulous, a trapped con-man who thinks he knows all the angles: “You talk in riddles about truth and a man ... what’s the game? ... Soon I will ask him how empty it feels to be the god of an empty man like me.” 

This epiphany is counterpointed by Malcolm’s later acceptance into orthodox Islam, when he is sent by his wife Betty Shabazz (Angela Baham) to take the Hajj to Mecca after his lonely walk away from Elijah and after being censured for his famous reaction to JFK’s assassination: “America’s climate of hate coming back on itself ... chickens coming home to roost.” 

This is a quieter, contemplative moment, as Malcolm feels the solidarity of all humanity—and then returns to a chorus of reporters harrying him: “Mr. X! Mr. X! Mr. Malcolm X!” 

“You always ask what you already know,” parries Malcolm, who reintroduces himself with his name of El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, “a man of peace [whom] they do not know . . . he is already free.” This is before his assassination, which he has predicted: “We do not know which mask evil wears . . . These men do not wear white hoods but hide on the street in suits.” 

The cast of 20 reflects both the depth of the storytelling and the importance of the chorus. Singers emerge from the chorus to solo or to silently play incidental roles, and the chorus itself is an integral part of the movement of the piece, both musically and in story, moment by moment tightly joined to—and boosting—the expressiveness of the principals. 

The score and exposition of Malcolm’s life prove complex rhythms, both dense and crystal clear with harmonies always shifting, surging forward in power, then quieter, more contemplative—floating upward and away, dreamlike, or dropping into modal harmonies that subtly restore the tension with syncopated rhythmns. 

Intensity marks certain scenes from the beginning with Duana Davis excellently portraying in voice and harried stance Malcolm’s mother, awaiting his Garveyite preacher father’s return home in Michigan, long after dark, only to learn of his death under a streetcar, which she attributes to the Klan, who have terrorized the family before. 

Her resulting breakdown and the breakup of the family by a white social worker (Lisa Bolin), eventually send Malcolm, suitcase in hand, to his adult sister Ella (Lori Willis) in Boston, where he’s introduced to the street by a chorus of players, one of whom (not clearly credited!) lays it on him in a brilliant aria detailing the modus operandi and demeanor of the hustler. 

Malcolm had always said his distinction as a leader was his familiarity with streetlife and its awful draw for black youth.  

Throughout, Joseph Wright gracefully portrays Malcolm’s transformation, richly singing and intoning his speeches and commentaries on “bad times” that are briskly but coherently touched on, four decades of radical change that pass by in quick vignettes more like the tableaux of “pregnant moments” of classical modern dramaturgy. 

The superb orchestra, hidden away in a loft, under the musical direction of Deirdre McClure with the assistance of Skye Atman, brilliantly plays a spectrum of musical forms, including touches of jazz which the composer hoped would parallel the history that unfolds, with excellent work by trumpeter, vibraphonist, bass and drums, reeds and keyboards. 

X should be seen and heard, as a seminal work in contemporay American culture—yet the Oakland Opera Theater production seems to be the first full staging since its premiere in New York in 1986. This is a rare—unfortunately rare—and important event. 

 

The Oakland Opera presents X, the Life and Times of Malcolm X, through June 11, 8 p.m., Sun. 2 p.m., at the Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway, Oakland. For more information, call 763-1146 (between 2-6 p.m.) or see www.oaklandopera.org. 

 

Photograph of Joseph Wright as Malcolm X, by Ralph Granich.


Book Review: Author Examines African-American Language

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Tuesday June 06, 2006

If you live anywhere near the inner city or have occasion to have business there, this may have happened to you. Walking down a street near dusk you meet a young African-American man, clothes sagging, walking toward you. As you get closer, you can hear him talking, and, although you can’t make out the words, it seems as if he may be signaling commands to one of his partners who may be behind you, or else he’s crazy and talking to himself. In either case, it doesn’t seem good. 

You contemplate breaking and running, but you don’t want to embarrass yourself if you’re wrong and, besides, what would be the use (he is, after all, a young black man and he can almost certainly beat you to the corner, flat out). So you continue to walk, stomach queasy, heart thumping in your chest. And as you come closer, the young man’s words become clearer, and suddenly, it comes to you. 

Oh, snap! you say (or oh, goodness! if you don’t happen to be black yourself). You’ve heard this before! He’s not signalling and he’s not crazy, and if he’s armed with anything, it’s with harmony, as Naughty by Nature used to say. He’s rapping. 

It happens a thousand times every day—maybe a hundred thousand—young African-Americans—men, mostly—sitting somewhere or walking down the street, practicing their raps. 

There have been at least three great fusions of African and European cultures during the four centuries of the American experiment: music and dance, sports, and language. 

In football and basketball especially, it is widely acknowledged and accepted that African-American athletes have virtually revolutionized the way games are played. The fusion of what was thought to be the incompatable African and European music scales on the Southern slaverytime plantations—the creation of the bended so-called “blue” notes—led to the sound explosion that gave birth to both blues and jazz and most modern American music. The same is true for dance, where it is difficult to imagine what American dance forms would be like without African infusion. 

In each of these areas, black performers and performance are universally accepted and applauded. 

Only in the area of language is there still considerable controversy, even though  

listening to the young rappers roaming the inner city streets, studios, and stages, you are immediately struck by their complex rhythm patterns and the sometimes mind-numbing, warp-speed blending of rhyme and word-sound and cultural context. 

To succeed in this game clearly takes intelligence. Moreover, rap is only the latest in a long line of African-American mastery of English wordforms while bending and blending it to their own particular ends, from black preaching to Brother Rabbit storytelling. Why, then, does so-called “Black English” get such a bad rap? 

In his newly-published book The Sociology of African American Language (Palgrave Macmillan, 2005), Berkeley linguist Charles DeBose attributes that to the “stigma” that European American slavemasters imposed upon their African captives. 

“When a particular language, or way of speaking the common language of a society, is associated with persons of elite status,” he writes, “the ability to speak the language, and to speak it ‘correctly,’ may serve a legitimating function. That is, the superior position of the dominant group is justified by their ‘proper’ speech; and the subordinate position of marginalized groups is legitimated by the characterization of their language in such pejorative terms as ‘poor,’ ‘slovenly,’ ‘broken,’ ‘bastardized,’ and ‘corrupt.’ … In slave society, … hegemony was exercised through the power of words like ‘savage,’ ‘primitive’ and ‘heathen,’ used in conjunction with the presupposition that being ‘civilized’ is a prerequisite to full participation in American democracy. … In the present Post Civil Rights era, the stigmatization of Blackness as a rationale for denial of full and equal status in American democracy has outlived its purpose. 

Nevertheless, the idea that African American language is tantamount to ‘Bad English’ remains embedded in the hearts and minds of the public.” 

Instead, DeBose argues that there is no such thing as “bad English” or “broken English” that “deviates” from the norm, but rather that American English—as all language—is divided into distinct dialects, each of which has its own set of complex—and within itself “correct”—rules of grammar. 

In the world of linguists, all of us speak dialects. The stigma against Black English, he says, is not an objective linguistic formation, but is the last residue of the system designed to keep people in slavery by convincing them of their own inferiority. 

Nowhere was that stigma more apparent than in the 1996 political firestorm over the Oakland Unified School District’s ebonics controversy. 

“Citing the continued poor educational performance of African-American students in its area schools,” this reporter wrote at the time, “the Oakland Board passed a resolution that: (1) the primary language of a majority of African-American students is not English, but a heretofore little-known language called Ebonics; (2) Ebonics is ‘genetically based’ in Africa; and (3) the Oakland Public Schools would be directed to set up training programs for teachers so that they could instruct African-American students using the language of Ebonics, both to maintain ‘the richness and legitimacy’ of Ebonics itself and to help the students learn English. Finally, and perhaps most provocatively, the Oakland board suggested that funding for the Ebonics program could come from federal education ‘second language’ funds earmarked for students whose primary language is not English. For a while after that it was hard to sort everything out, what with all the hollering and the blood and the hum of the chainsaws. In a fierce-hot reaction that rolled over the country and back with interwarp speed, Oakland's Ebonics policy was both ridiculed and denounced on talk shows and op-ed pages and in newsgroups everywhere.” 

DeBose devotes a full chapter to the Oakland Unified ebonics issue, explaining both the positives and the pitfalls of Oakland’s approach from a linguist’s point of view, with an emphasis on analyzing it as what he calls “a case study of language planning.” 

DeBose uses the controversy to advance his contention that what he describes as the “surface differences” between what is commonly known as Standard English and the dialect that most African-American children speak at home and among their peers “are [not] of a sufficient magnitude to constitute a barrier to teaching and learning” in and of themselves. Instead, DeBose advances the argument that “whatever language barrier might exist consists mainly of teacher attitudes. … [T]he teachers’ lack of knowledge of the linguistic nature of Black English causes them to react to it in the speech of students in ways that are detrimental to the learning process.” 

In other words, he says, the fundamental Oakland Unified ebonics proposal that “training programs for teachers [be set up] so that they could instruct African-American students using the language of Ebonics, both to maintain ‘the richness and legitimacy’ of Ebonics itself and to help the students learn English” was fundamentally correct. 

But the Oakland ebonics contoversy, as important as it continues to be in the discussion of Black English, is only a small portion of DeBose’s book, where he presents a history of African American language, breaks down its peculiar grammar and structure in a chapter engagingly and appropriately entitled “We Be Following Rules,” and closes with a detailed invitation to readers to join him “in an imaginary journey from the status quo of American educational policy to a possible future in which African American language is seen by the average person asi it is presently seen by linguists: as an instance of normal language.” 

“The Sociology Of African American language” is an academic book, and readers not familiar with that style of writing will find the going a little dense. But as DeBose argues, the put-down of black language is part of “the stigmitation of Black American identity [that] has functioned historically to exclude persons of African descent from full participation in American life. The stimatization in question is so deeply embedded in the fabric of American society that its full significance has tended to escape the attention of scholars of African American language.” 

In this book, DeBose attempts to help correct that oversight, so that in advancing the acceptance of black speech by the linguistic academic community, the advancement of Black America itself will eventually be enhanced.  

 

Charles DeBose reads and discusses his new book The Sociology of African American Language at La Peña, 3105 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley on Thursday June 8, 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. 

 

 

 


The Bluebird of Hostility: Getting an Evolutionary Edge

By Joe Eaton, Special to the Planet
Tuesday June 06, 2006

Unless you’ve been living in a cave since 1979, you have undoubtedly seen the Mad Bluebird. It was captured by aspiring wildlife photographer Michael L. Smith on a cold February day in Maryland. The subject, a male eastern bluebird, feathers fluffed out, sits on a fence post glowering at the camera. The Mad Bluebird has been very good to Smith, enabling him to quit his day job as an electrician. Over 100,000 signed prints have been sold, and the image appears on calendars, coffee mugs, and all kinds of tchatchkes. The royalties by now must be considerable.  

That bluebird’s actual emotional state at the time is, of course, open to conjecture. But the image came to mind recently when I read about a really ingenious study of our own local species, the western bluebird, that appears to demonstrate a connection between the evolution of behavioral traits—in this case, aggressiveness—and physical characteristics.  

What scientists mean when they talk about evolution depends on the scale of the process. Macroevolution is what drives the dramatic changes that cross major taxonomic boundaries: fish into four-limbed amphibian, feathered dinosaur into bird, hoofed land mammal into whale, ape into hominid. Microevolution is more subtle. It’s what Peter and Rosemary Grant spent years studying in the Darwin’s finches of the Galapagos, as chronicled in Jonathan Weiner’s book The Beak of the Finch: incremental changes in the size and strength of the bird’s beaks, tracking the vagaries of climate—El Niños and La Niñas—that determined the kinds of seeds that were available for food.  

Give it long enough, and microevolution can produce a new species. You can imagine a scenario in which a population’s lifestyle becomes so specialized that it no longer interacts with its parent stock and becomes reproductively isolated. But it’s just as likely to act as a stabilizing force, with small changes varying around a long-term norm. As the Grants found, incipient species can begin to diverge, then merge back if the environmental forcing conditions reverse themselves. 

How does all this apply to western bluebirds? Renee Duckworth, an evolutionary ecologist at Duke University—and, as a loyal North Carolina alumnus, it pains me to admit that anything good can come out of Duke—did her field work in Montana. She found that bluebirds varied in aggressiveness, although I’m not sure how that was scored. (And yes, I’ve seen bluebirds being aggressive; not long ago I watched one chasing an interloping house wren away from its nest tree). The more aggressive birds seemed to get the choicest territories, in open meadows. Those lower in aggressiveness made do with closed forest areas. 

Those two environments make different physical demands on a foraging bluebird. In meadows, bluebirds hover above the grass to snag insects; in forests, they glean bugs and berries among the branches of trees. Duckworth measured the two populations and discovered that the among the aggressive meadow-nesting birds, individuals with longer wings and tails—better suited for hover-foraging—succeeded in raising more offspring than their shorter-winged-and-tailed neighbors. 

In Darwinian terms, the longer-winged birds were more fit than the others. Evolutionary fitness isn’t just about personal survival—that would make it the tautology that creationists claim it is. It’s about how many copies of your own genes you leave in the world. If more aggressive, longer-winged bluebirds have more offspring, those traits will increase in frequency within the meadow-nesting population. (Wing and tail proportions seemed to make no difference for the nestling-survival rates of the forest-nesters). 

So, according to Duckworth, aggressiveness drives habitat choice, which affects physical proportions. Could this process ultimately turn meadow-nesting and forest-nesting bluebirds into different species? Not likely, because neither habitat is stable over the long term: forest fires keep shaking up the mix. The isolation that is a key part of the speciation process is only temporary. 

It’s an intriguing set of findings: a salutary reminder that behavior evolves too, and that differences in behavior can translate into physical differences. You have to wonder how much our own evolution owes to some remote ancestor having been bolder, or more curious, or more socially-skilled, or just plain meaner than the competition. 


Berkeley This Week

Tuesday June 06, 2006

TUESDAY, JUNE 6 

REMEMBER TO VOTE TODAY 

“Pack Light, Pack Right” Tips for comfort on the trail at 7 p.m. at from 10 to 11 a.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Senior Housing Alternatives with Panelists from Claremont House, Piedmont Gardens, Salem Lutheran Home, St. Paul’s Towers, Cardinal Point and Sunrise at 1:15 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5190. 

Tuesday Tilden Walkers Join a few slowpoke seniors at 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot near the Little Farm for an hour or two walk. 215-7672, 524-9992. 

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

Berkeley Discussion Salon on “Travel and Favorite Vacations” at 7 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. at Rose.  

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 7 

Walking Tour of Old Oakland around Preservation Park to see Victorian architecture. Meet at 10 a.m. in front of Preservation Park at 13th St. and MLK, Jr. Way. Tour lasts 90 minutes. Reservations can be made by calling 238-3234. www.oaklandnet.com/walkingtours 

“Earthlings” a documentary on the industries which rely on animals for profit at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., Oakland. Donations of $5 accepted. 

“Girl, I’ve Been Through A Lot ...” Poetry workshop for girls age 13 to 17 at 4 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, Room 219, 125 14th St. 238-3134. 

Classes in English and Citizenship offered by the Oakland Adult Education program Mon.-Fri. from 6 to 9 p.m. Free. Register at Lincoln Elementary School, 225 11th St., room 205. 879-8131. 

Environmental Health for Children Bring toys, pottery and lunch boxes from home and the Berkeley Public Health Dept. will test them for lead, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Habitot, 2065 Kittredge St. Cost is $5-$6. 647-1111. 

American Red Cross Blood Services Volunteer Orientation at 10 a.m. in Oakland. We need your help with blood drives all over the East Bay. 594-5165.  

Red Cross Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Oakland State Building, 2nd floor, 1515 Clay St. To make an appointment call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE.  

Swami Khecaranatha Kundalini Yoga Talk at 7 p.m. at Sacred Space Yoga Sanctuary, 816 Bancroft at 6th. Free. 486-8700.  

“Organizing Your Time and Energy” at 6 p.m. at The Breema Clinic, 6201 Florio St., Oakland. 428-1234.  

Fresh Produce Stand at San Pablo Park from 3 to 6:30 p.m. in the Frances Albrier Community Center. 848-1704.  

THURSDAY, JUNE 8 

Save Telegraph A community meeting with Pat Cody, Andy Ross, neighbors, business people, shoppers, authors, street artists and students at 7 p.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church, 2362 Bancroft Way. For more information call City Councilmember Kriss Worthington at 981-7170. 

Voting Machines at Alameda County Supervisors Meeting will discuss the purchase of Diebold and Sequoia voting machines. Make your feeling sknow at Public Comment at 11 a.m. at Supervisors’ chambers, 1221 Oak St., 5th Floor, Oakland. 

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll explore the nature area ponds from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Tilden Explorers An after-school nature adventure program for 5-7 year olds, who may be accompanied by an adult. We will explore the ponds and learn about aquatic insects from 3:15 to 4:45 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8, registration required. 636-1684. 

Alternatives to War Through Education A project of Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors at 7:30 p.m. at the Niebyl Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. The speaker will be Eduardo Cohen on “The Selling of War and US Foreign Policy: Propaganda, Racism and News Media Complicity.” 649-1696. 

“The Sociology of African American Language” Prof. Charles DeBose reads from and discusses his new book at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. 654-9587. 

East Bay Mac Users Group presents QuickBooks/Quicken at 6 p.m. at Expression College for Digital Arts, 6601 Shellmound St., Emeryville. http://ebmug.org 

An Evening of Chocolate, demonstration class, with Alice Medrich at 7 p.m. at Epicurious Garden, 1511 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $100. All proceeds support the Berkeley High School Development Group. 464-1181. 

FRIDAY, JUNE 9 

Impeachment Banner Fridays at 6:45 to 8 a.m. on the Berkeley Pedestrian bridge between Seabreeze Market and the Aquatic Park, until impeachment is realized. www. Impeachbush-cheney.com 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon is cancelled today. For information on future events, please call 526-2925.  

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

Women in Black Vigil, from noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. 548-6310. 

SATURDAY, JUNE 10 

Live Oak Park Fair Sat. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. featuring 125 artists and craftspeople. Free. Free shuttles provided from the North Berkeley BART Station to the park. 898-3282. www.liveoakparkfair.com 

Repainting Willard Community Peace Labyrinth from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Willard Middle School, Telegraph Ave. between Derby and Stuart. Volunteers needed. 526-7377. 

Health Fair with informational workshops, screenings, fun and giveaways for the whole family from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the social hall and parking lot of 6401 San Pablo Ave., Oakland.  

Walk on the Wild Side A 5.5 mile hike over varied terrain to investigate wildlife, wildflowers and a wild watershed. Meet at 9 p.m. at the Wildcat/Alvarado staging are in Tilden Park. Bring a sack lunch, water and sunscreen. 525-2233. 

“Backyard Habitat” a workshop to learn about the wildlife native to the area, what they need to secure food and shelter from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at De Anza High School, 5000 Valley View Road, Richmond. Free. 665-3538. www.spawners.net 

Full Moon Walk at John Muir National Historic Site A walk to the top of Mt. Wanda, in Martinez, to see the full moon, and nocturnal animal life along the way. Free, but reservations required. 925-228-8860. 

Mini-Farmers in Tilden A farm exploration program, from 10 to 11 a.m. 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 $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Cerrito Creek Work Party Meet at at 10 a.m. at the end of Adams St., one block west of San Pablo, to remove invasives. 848-9358. www.fivecreeks.org 

La Pena’s 31st Birthday Open house and performances by artists and groups who have had long association with La Peña, at 6 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Free. 654-9587. 

Jeremy’s One Man Show with giant transforming origami, juggling, magic, comedy, unicycling, at noon at El Cerrito Library, 6510 Stockton Ave., El Cerrito. Free for all in grades 6 through 12. 526-7512.  

Emergency Preparedness Class on Light Search & Rescue from 9 a.m. to noon at 997 Cedar St. Free, but registration required. 981-5506.  

Berkeley History Center Walking Tour: “Explore the New Berkeley City College Building” from 11 a.m. to noon. Cost is $8-$10. 848-0181.  

Walking Tour of Jack London Waterfront Meet at 10 a.m. at the corner of Broadway and Embarcadero. Tour lasts 90 minutes. For reservations call 238-3234.  

East Bay Baby Fair Resources for pregnancy, birth and parenting from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. 540-7210. 

Vegetarian Cooking Class on Breakfast and Brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St. Cost is $45. 531-2665.  

Cooking the African Way A demonstration on how to make nutritious Nigerian Yoruban food at 1 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, Martin Luther King Jr. Branch, 6833 International Blvd. 615-5728. 

New Business Startup Expo Meet new local entrepreneurs and learn how to start your own business, from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland City Hall. 879-4020. 

Learn to Row Day from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at The Jack London Aquatic Center, 115 Embarcadero, Oakland. 208-6067. 

Great War Society East Bay Chapter meets to discuss “Myths of WWI” at 10:30 a.m. at 640 Arlington Ave. 527-7118. 

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, JUNE 11 

Trees are Treasures Learn about the diverse tree species in Tilden on a 2 mile walk at 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Community Labyrinth Peace Walk at 3 p.m. to rededicate the Willard Community Peace Labyrinth, Willard Middle School, Telegraph Ave. between Derby and Stuart. Guided by Margie Adam. 526-7377. 

People’s Park Community Garden Tour Learn about native and edible plants with long time gardener, Terri Compost. Hear some history and find out how to get involved and garden in this unique and special place. Meet at 1 p.m. at the South West (Bongo Burger) corner of the People’s Park Community Garden. 658-9178. 

Green Sunday Election Wrap-Up with Wilson Riles, former Oakland City councilmember and mayoral candidate, and and J. Douglas Allen Taylor, Berkeley Daily Planet staff writer, at 5 p.m. at Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph Ave. at 65th in North Oakland. 

Make Your Own Liquid Fertilizers A workshop to learn how to turn weeds and other natural byproducts into plant fertilizers. Bring 2 liter plastic bottles, old hoses or bicycle tubes, cardboard or newspaper, large containers or 5 gallon buckets with lids, misc. tools, and leave with a system of your own. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Berkeley Eco-House, 1305 Hopkins St. Cost is $1, sliding scale, no one turned away. 547-8715. 

Architecture Tour of the Oakland Museum’s Building and Gardens at 1 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

“Disaster Then and Now: Ready or Not?” Earthquake discussion at 2 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

Art Book Sale including catalogs, journals and magazines from the Museum’s own collection as well as donations from private collections. From 1 to 4 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Free. 238-3818. 

 

“Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till” film screening at 2 p.m. at Parkway Speakeasy Theater, 1834 Park Blvd., Oakland. Discussion to follow. 848-1994. 

Red Cross Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman. To make an appointment call 526-4811. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace Peace walk around the lake every Sun. Meet at 3 p.m. at the colonnade at the NE end of the lake. 763-8712. lmno4p.org 

Sunday Summer Forum: Towards a More Just World with Pierre Laboissiere, Haiti Action Committee, at 9:30 a.m. at Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, 1 Lawson Rd., Kensington. 525-0302, ext. 306. 

Tibetan Buddhism with Readings from Voice of the Buddha on “Buddha’s Enlightenment” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812.  

MONDAY, JUNE 12 

World Affairs/Politics Discussion Group for people 60+ years old meets at 10:15 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic Ave. Cost is $2.50. 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. 

CITY MEETINGS 

Joint Meeting of the Transportation Commission and the Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee, Wed. June 7, at 7 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-7487. 

Commission on the Status of Women meets Wed., June 7, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5190.  

School Board meets Wed. June 7, at 7:30 p.m., in the City Council Chambers. 644-6147. 

Community Health Commission meets Thurs., June 8, at 6:45 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5356.  

Zoning Adjustments Board meets Thurs., June 8, at 7 p.m., in City Council Chambers. Mark Rhoades, 981-7410.