News

A blaze triggered by a faulty water heater demolished a $1.3 million home in the Berkeley Hills early Tuesday morning, reports Deputy Fire Chief David P. Orth. -more-

A developer unveiled Friday plans for a 5.5-acre, two-block corporate, retail, condo and artists’ development for West Berkeley. -more-

Berkeley officials are planning another lawsuit against UC Berkeley’s development plans—this time challenging the quarter-billion-dollar complex planned for the Memorial Stadium area. -more-

Aimee Allison is hoping that the third time is the charm. Pat Kernighan is hoping that history keeps repeating itself. -more-

There were no surprises at the Berkeley Citizens Action Endorsement convention Sunday afternoon, with the 30-year-old group that once was Berkeley’s progressive electoral powerhouse endorsing longtime members Mayor Tom Bates, and City Councilmembers Dona Spring, Kriss Worthington and Linda Maio. -more-

Oakland’s massive Oak-to-Ninth development project entered familiar territory this week with another citizen lawsuit filed in Superior Court against the controversial project. -more-

For neighbors of UC Storage at Ward Street and Shattuck Avenue, approval of placing 18 antennas atop the four-story building is the last straw. -more-

Planning commissioners face two action items on the agenda Wednesday. -more-

Creation of a major new UC Berkeley museum complex on Center Street inched a step closer Monday with the close of applications for the position of project architect. -more-

Two 19-year-old men were convicted today of second-degree murder for beating and kicking a 100-pound homeless woman to death in Berkeley last year. -more-

Berkeley’s City Club and the First Church of Christ, Scientist are among 25 Bay Area architectural and historic treasures competing this fall for one million dollars in grant funding from the American Express Foundation through the National Trust for Historic Preservation. -more-

Reorganization of the Nutrition Services Department, a progress report from the B-Tech, and a presentation by the Life Academy at Berkeley High School were highlights of the BUSD Board meeting on Wednesday. -more-

Since 1973, the Berkeley community has been able to air complaints in public against its police officers and compel them to respond. But a recent California Supreme Court decision may have knocked the teeth out of the ordinance that created Berkeley’s Police Review Commission. -more-

Prakash Stephen Pinto wants the deserted glass-strewn lot at San Pablo Avenue and Harrison Street near his Stannage Avenue home replaced by shops and new housing, but he told the City Council Tuesday night that the project before them “is a serious detriment to the neighborhood.” -more-

With the specter of Proposition 90 lurking in the wings, Berkeley’s City Council Tuesday passed a conditional new law governing the sizes of apartment and condominium buildings. It attempts to reconcile conflicts between size bonuses offered by the state of California and the City of Berkeley as a reward for the provision of affordable housing. -more-

In an effort to bring public awareness to the issues involved in critical contract talks between the City of Oakland and the powerful Oakland Police Officers Association, members of the Black Elected Officials of the East Bay sponsored a public forum Wednesday night on the contract negotiations. -more-

Berkeley should be ready to boost downtown parking prices for a host of reasons, declared members of the panel charged with developing a new plan for downtown Berkeley Wednesday night. -more-

Some library activists have been watching the search process for a new library head and say they don’t like what they see. -more-

A Federal Court in San Francisco denied a request by Oakland-based environmental nonprofit Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) on Wednesday for a preliminary injunction against Berkeley-based Pacific Steel Casting (PSC) citing insufficient evidence that CBE would prevail on the merits of its arguments. -more-

Opponents of Oakland’s massive Oak to Ninth development project have amended their California Superior Court complaint against the project, asking that the court invalidate the City Council’s approval of the project because the final version of the project agreement was never available to the council or the public at the time of the council vote. -more-

A 15-year-old Berkeley High School student was assaulted Tuesday afternoon near Planet Juice in downtown Berkeley. -more-

Berkeley police are offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the killer of a 23-year-old Oakland man who was shot in Berkeley Sept. 4. -more-

The plight of artists seeking to live and work in West Berkeley is the subject of a special meeting to be held this afternoon (Friday). -more-

Upside the head -more-