News

The Zoning Adjustments Board on Thursday passed a motion to continue a use permit modification request for the South Berkeley Police Substation until the Police Department has met with community members in order to get their feedback on the plan. The change in use would allow expansion for employee lockers and vehicle storage. -more-

Every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday for the last 37 years, the New Light Senior Center, located in the South Berkeley YMCA, has provided seniors with healthy, organic, nutritionally balanced food at a low price. That might end on Sept. 1, when the program founded by former Councilmember Maudelle Shirek will have to close its doors because of funding problems. -more-

When filings closed for Berkeley’s incumbents in the mayoral, City Council, city auditor and School Board races Friday, four would-be candidates had dropped out. -more-

A year after Jerry Brown was elected mayor of Oakland, San Francisco publisher Phil Bronstein introduced him at a luncheon of the American Society of Newspaper Editors as a politician who was trying to get big money out of politics. -more-

The UC Berkeley Chancellor’s Community Partnership Fund will distribute $200,000 in Berkeley this year in the form of grants which will support 15 projects through partnerships between local community groups and the university. -more-

At the end of this month, a new free, public charter school open its doors in Oakland. Funded primarily by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the California Department of Education, Urban Renaissance School of Arts & Technology (often referred to as Urban but not to be confused with the San Francisco private school of the same name) is committed to preparing kids for college and having a small school community. Urban is dedicated to small class sizes, with no more than 25 students per class. The high school is open to students in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. -more-

Investigation continues -more-

Million-dollar cigarette -more-

Fire’s Damage Estimated at $1 Million -more-

A week after Nestle USA-owned PowerBar announced its move from Berkeley to Glendale, Calif., rival company ClifBar confirmed on Wednesday that it will be moving its Berkeley headquarters to Alameda, when the company’s current lease expires in July 2008. -more-

A Berkeley police patrol officer was suspended Wednesday, reportedly after a sting operation focusing on theft of evidence, the Daily Planet has learned. -more-

There seems to have been some confusion over the facts of the Condo Conversion Initiative, which will be before Berkeley voters on the Nov. 7 ballot. As a result, the city may be forced to hire outside attorneys to sue itself to correct possible errors. -more-

Broken Santa Rosa lights at the corner of Parker and Telegraph have been causing difficulties for blind people and other pedestrians. These lights, which are embedded in the roadway and activated by a push button, flash to notify drivers that pedestrians are coming and that they need to stop. On Tuesday morning, the Berkeley Office of Transportation was notified that the light at Parker and Telegraph streets wasn’t working. -more-

By Richard Brenneman -more-

As plans for development at the Ashby BART station continue under a city-designated task force, alternative groups are sprouting up in South Berkeley. -more-

The City of Berkeley’s future plans to re-negotiate its contract with Comcast Corporation, the current provider of cable video services in Berkeley, stand to be threatened if a state-level legislative bill demanding the elimination of the role of local government in the franchise process is passed as early as Monday -more-

Shattuck Cinema workers and union representatives met with management on Wednesday to negotiate pay raises, and other basic demands including uniforms and grievance procedures. -more-

Starting in May, Alameda County will have a new program to handle substance abusers, fulfilling the long-time dreams of Berkeley activists and city officials. -more-

A group of Oakland education and political leaders and activists have given state Sen. Don Perata until Aug. 16 to either meet with them directly or issue a statement opposing the pending sale of the Oakland Unified School District administration building and property and several adjacent schools. -more-

SB39, the bill that authorized the state takeover of the Oakland Unified School District, was introduced in abbreviated form in January 2003 by state Sen. Don Perata, with no details included. -more-

Gangs of three -more-

NACOZARI, Sonora, Mexico—Just days after conservative candidate Felipe Calderon declared himself the winner of Mexico’s July 2 presidential election, the Mexican federal labor board lowered the boom on striking miners. At Nacozari, one of the world’s largest copper mines, just a few miles south of Arizona, 1,400 miners have been on strike since March 24. On July 12 the board said they’d abandoned their jobs, and gave the mine’s owner, Grupo Mexico, permission to close down operations. -more-