Marching to ReNew Orleans: 
              Clint Baker’s Brass Band marched in downtown Berkeley Friday as part of the Berkeley Public Library’s ReNew Orleans Jazz Festival. The festival began Thursday with two showings of a new film, New Orleans Music in Exile, depicting the lives of New Orleans musicians since Katrina. Photograph by Judith Scherr
Marching to ReNew Orleans: Clint Baker’s Brass Band marched in downtown Berkeley Friday as part of the Berkeley Public Library’s ReNew Orleans Jazz Festival. The festival began Thursday with two showings of a new film, New Orleans Music in Exile, depicting the lives of New Orleans musicians since Katrina. Photograph by Judith Scherr

Extra

Flash: West Berkeley Bowl Wins Approval

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 13, 2006

At around 12:15 a.m. Wednesday morning, the Berkeley City Council approved the West Berkeley Bowl project by a vote of 6-0-3 with Councilmembers Max Anderson, Dona Spring and Kriss Worthington abstaining. -more-



Page One

Magnes Museum Buys Historic Armstrong College Building

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 13, 2006

The Judah L. Magnes Museum is in escrow to purchase the historic Armstrong College building in downtown Berkeley, sources said Monday. -more-



OUSD Confirms Real Estate Negotiations

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Tuesday June 13, 2006

The state-appointed administrator of the Oakland Unified School District has confirmed that negotiations have begun with a developer over the sale or lease of prime Lake Merritt area land owned by the district, including the Paul Robeson Building administrative headquarters and several operating schools. -more-



Save Telegraph Event Draws Ideas, Concerns

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 13, 2006

The question of how to save Cody’s Books and rescue Telegraph Avenue brought a standing-room-only crowd of property and business owners, residents, street vendors, students and street people to Trinity United Methodist Church Thursday. -more-



Kitchen Democracy Cooks Up Civic Participation

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Tuesday June 13, 2006

They call themselves “the Kitcheneers.” -more-



Rick Ayers Bids Goodbye To Berkeley High School

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Rick Ayers is a mild-mannered, genial guy, just shy of 60, with an affinity for travel, opera and Greek tragedy. He is also, according to students at Berkeley High School, the Community Arts and Sciences Original Gangsta’. -more-



Features

Council to Discuss Yard Parking, Bowl, Budget

By Judith Scherr
Tuesday June 13, 2006

The question of whether property owners should be allowed to put parking on side or back yards “by right”—with a simple across-the-counter permit—or whether they should have to obtain Administrative Use Permits, which kicks in a process to alert neighbors of a project, is among the more thorny questions before the City Council tonight (Tuesday). -more-


Revised Transit Fee Program Before Planning Commission

By Suzanne La Barre
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Attempting to balance Berkeley’s ever-mounting gridlock with smart economic growth, the Planning Commission will consider a program that charges transit fees for future development projects. -more-


BHS Rowers Win Medals in National Youth Championship

Tuesday June 13, 2006

The Berkeley High School Men’s Lightweight 4+ boat powered its way to a gold medal at the U.S. Rowing National Youth Championship in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Sunday. -more-


Track Takes Legal Action to Block Albany Initiative

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Though foes of a planned mall at Golden Gate Fields collected enough signatures to qualify an initiative for the November ballot, the race track’s owners have filed a legal challenge. -more-


Police Blotter

Tuesday June 13, 2006

There’s no Police Blotter today because the Berkeley Police Department didn’t return calls from the Daily Planet. -more-


Fire Department Log

By Richard Brenneman
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Candles again -more-


Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Tuesday June 13, 2006

PUBLIC LIBRARY -more-


Commentary: Bowling for Dollars: A Rush to Judgment

By Dave Blake
Tuesday June 13, 2006

I have a particular fondness for the Berkeley Bowl. I fought the chair of the Zoning Adjustments Board and the mayor when they tried to approve a MacFrugal’s Bargain Closeouts at the Bowl’s current Oregon site a decade ago. The neighborhood, reeling from the closing of their Safeway, begged the city not to allow anything but a grocery store. Staff responded by commissioning a $25,000 report that “proved” no grocery store would ever be profitable there! -more-


Commentary: Is the West Berkeley Bowl Dead?

By Steven Donaldson
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Well let’s stand up and cheer! The Berkeley Bowl maybe withdrawing it’s application to build a new store in West Berkeley. No fresh organic produce, no great prices, no community meeting rooms, no food court, no quality shopping for West Berkeley. -more-


Commentary: Can’t We All Just Get Along?

By Sonja Fitz
Tuesday June 13, 2006

I thought I’d never encounter another community as gleefully contentious on an endless cornucopia of issues as the City of Berkeley. -more-


Commentary: Administrative Crisis and Defamation at the Berkeley YMCA

By H. Scott Prosterman
Tuesday June 13, 2006

The Berkeley Daily Planet published an article about the administrative problems at the Berkeley YMCA, noting that I had been expelled for writing a series of memos about problems there. The article noted efforts on the part of the Y administration to disrupt efforts to unionize workers. This alone, characterizes the administration at the Berkeley Y, and should give the City of Berkeley concern about supporting this organization. -more-


Commentary: Denial is Epidemic at the Berkeley YMCA

By Joseph Covino Jr
Tuesday June 13, 2006

At the so-called “Downtown” Berkeley YMCA suspended member Scott Prosterman’s abysmal but utterly unsurprising below par experience is, I can personally attest, par for the course—as is the absent or empty response members typically receive from the organization’s administration to their most compelling cares and concerns! -more-


Editorial

Editorial: Turning a Deaf Ear to the People’s Voice

By Becky O’Malley
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Have you ever had the feeling you’re sitting up on a hill observing two high-speed trains headed towards one another on intersecting tracks, with a collision all but inevitable? That’s the picture we’re getting of the ongoing interaction between Berkeleyans eager to preserve the city’s historic buildings and those who’d like to tear some of them down in order to make way for “progress,” variously defined as mall-type chain stores, lots of condos downtown, big new hotels or lebensraum for UC expansion. -more-


Columns

Column: The Public Eye: Campaign 2006: Sweet 16 Congressional Races

By Bob Burnett
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Democrats appear to be gaining momentum in their bid to wrest control of the House of Representatives from the Republicans. According to veteran D.C. prognosticator, Charlie Cook, there are now 46 House seats in play. -more-


Column: Contributing to the Democratic Process

By Susan Parker
Tuesday June 13, 2006

My friend Ronnie Caplane ran for Assembly representing Oakland’s 16th District. -more-


The Bottlebrush Tree: Cheerful Aussie Ragamuffin

By Ron Sullivan
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Bottlebrush trees are one of the bright, amusing notes on our streets, sporting those funny flowers shaped like, yes, bottlebrushes with perky little green-leaf tufts at their ends. They’re tough and not pest-prone, and easy enough to find in nurseries. Their hard little leaves and shreddy bark give them a ragamuffin air to match the spiky inflorescences. The red flowers attract birds—hummingbirds of course, but I’ve seen a stray Cape May warbler, a nectar-seeker in winter, using them too. -more-


Arts Listings

Arts Calendar

Tuesday June 13, 2006

West Coast Premiere for ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’

By Jaime Robles, Special to the Planet
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Freight & Salvage Coffee House Celebrates Its 38th Anniversary

By Galen Babb, Special to the Planet
Tuesday June 13, 2006

Events Listings

Berkeley This Week

Tuesday June 13, 2006

Back Stories

Opinion

Editorials

Editorial: Turning a Deaf Ear to the People’s Voice 06-13-2006

County Supes Approve Sequoia Voting Contract 06-09-2006

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor 06-13-2006

Commentary: Bowling for Dollars: A Rush to Judgment By Dave Blake 06-13-2006

Commentary: Is the West Berkeley Bowl Dead? By Steven Donaldson 06-13-2006

Commentary: Can’t We All Just Get Along? By Sonja Fitz 06-13-2006

Commentary: Administrative Crisis and Defamation at the Berkeley YMCA By H. Scott Prosterman 06-13-2006

Commentary: Denial is Epidemic at the Berkeley YMCA By Joseph Covino Jr 06-13-2006

Letters to the Editor 06-09-2006

Commentary: Sources of African-American Culture a Conundrum By Jean Damu 06-09-2006

Commentary: Art Center Needs More Money to Stay Open for 40th Anniversary By Kathleen Kahn 06-09-2006

Commentary: Eviction Threat Imperils Nexus Building By Robert Brokl 06-09-2006

News

Flash: West Berkeley Bowl Wins Approval By Judith Scherr 06-13-2006

Magnes Museum Buys Historic Armstrong College Building By Suzanne La Barre 06-13-2006

OUSD Confirms Real Estate Negotiations By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 06-13-2006

Save Telegraph Event Draws Ideas, Concerns By Judith Scherr 06-13-2006

Kitchen Democracy Cooks Up Civic Participation By Riya Bhattacharjee 06-13-2006

Rick Ayers Bids Goodbye To Berkeley High School By Suzanne La Barre 06-13-2006

Council to Discuss Yard Parking, Bowl, Budget By Judith Scherr 06-13-2006

Revised Transit Fee Program Before Planning Commission By Suzanne La Barre 06-13-2006

BHS Rowers Win Medals in National Youth Championship 06-13-2006

Track Takes Legal Action to Block Albany Initiative By Richard Brenneman 06-13-2006

Police Blotter 06-13-2006

Fire Department Log By Richard Brenneman 06-13-2006

Plans for Ashby BART Project Continues After Grant Denial By Richard Brenneman 06-09-2006

Radstons Quits After 98 Years in Berkeley By Riya Bhattacharjee 06-09-2006

West Berkeley Bowl Faces Mounting Challenges By Richard Brenneman 06-09-2006

Trustees Dismiss Library Head Griffin By Judith Scherr 06-09-2006

Public School Tutoring Industy Lacks Accountability, Students By Suzanne La Barre 06-09-2006

Downtown Planners Tackle Transportation, UC Polices By Richard Brenneman 06-09-2006

Voters to Decide Fate of BUSD Parcel Tax in November By Suzanne La Barre 06-09-2006

Berkeley Health Clinics Awarded State Grants By Riya Bhattacharjee 06-09-2006

Berkeley Art Center Hopes For More City Support By Judith Scherr 06-09-2006

Storm Drain Tax Off City Council Agenda for Now By Judith Scherr 06-09-2006

Libraries Lament Prop. 81 Defeat By Judith Scherr 06-09-2006

Columns

Column: The Public Eye: Campaign 2006: Sweet 16 Congressional Races By Bob Burnett 06-13-2006

Column: Contributing to the Democratic Process By Susan Parker 06-13-2006

The Bottlebrush Tree: Cheerful Aussie Ragamuffin By Ron Sullivan 06-13-2006

Column: Dispatches From the Edge: Afghanistan and the Ghost of Kipling’s ‘Kim’ By Conn Hallinan 06-09-2006

Column: Undercurrents: Reporting on Alameda County’s Election ‘Delay’ By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor 06-09-2006

Film Details the World of Wild Butterflies By Steven Finacom 06-09-2006

East Bay Then and Now: Maurice Curtis Brought Brief Splendor to Berkeley By Daniella Thompson 06-09-2006

About the House: Global Warming Begins (and Ends) at Home By Matt Cantor 06-09-2006

Garden Variety: The Jewel Box Dazzle of Broadway Terrace Nursery By Ron Sullivan 06-09-2006

Quake Tip of the Week: Will Your Home Survive? By Larry Guillot 06-09-2006

Arts & Events

Arts Calendar 06-13-2006

West Coast Premiere for ‘The Pilgrim’s Progress’ By Jaime Robles, Special to the Planet 06-13-2006

Freight & Salvage Coffee House Celebrates Its 38th Anniversary By Galen Babb, Special to the Planet 06-13-2006

The Bottlebrush Tree: Cheerful Aussie Ragamuffin By Ron Sullivan 06-13-2006

Berkeley This Week 06-13-2006

Arts Calendar 06-09-2006

Savion Glover, D’Rivera at SF Jazz Festival This Weekend By Ira Steingroot 06-09-2006

CalShake’s Presents ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ By Ken Bullock 06-09-2006

Film Details the World of Wild Butterflies By Steven Finacom 06-09-2006

East Bay Then and Now: Maurice Curtis Brought Brief Splendor to Berkeley By Daniella Thompson 06-09-2006

About the House: Global Warming Begins (and Ends) at Home By Matt Cantor 06-09-2006

Garden Variety: The Jewel Box Dazzle of Broadway Terrace Nursery By Ron Sullivan 06-09-2006

Quake Tip of the Week: Will Your Home Survive? By Larry Guillot 06-09-2006

Berkeley This Week 06-09-2006