Alonzo Carter was named as the new Head Coach for Berkeley High’s football program on Wednesday. -more-

With at least six residential development projects and one cathedral either proposed, approved or actually under construction within 800 feet of Lake Merritt, and the City of Oakland’s zoning code in something of a shambles, close to 150 Oakland residents came out to the Lake Merritt Garden Center on Wednesday night to share their issues about high-rise development around the lake. -more-

To build or not to build is the question North Shattuck residents and business owners find themselves asking about the proposed $3.5 million dollar plaza that would transform Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto to streetscape by closing off Shattuck Avenue between Vine and Rose street. The pedestrian plaza will be constructed on what is now a paved service road adjacent to the existing shops on the east side of Shattuck Avenue between Vine and Rose Streets. -more-

“To stop an illegal and unjust war, the soldiers and service members can choose to stop fighting it,” First Lt. Ehren Watada. -more-

After months of grappling, Pacific Steel Casting Co. (PSC) and non-profit Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) entered into a consent decree in Federal Court on Monday that would bring about specified emissions reductions, create a scrap metal inspection program, and establish a joint consultation committee to recommend and oversee ongoing pollution reduction efforts. -more-

As we had feared, Molly Ivins died on Wednesday. The anti-war war columns that we’d requested on Tuesday as a way of carrying on her last campaign have been coming in, and we’ll be printing one in every issue for a while as a tribute to her. We’ve also gotten, unsolicited, a good number of letters just expressing the writer’s appreciation for Molly herself, which we’ll add to our letters pages, some in print and all on the web. The Texas Observer, where she worked for many years and continued raising money for after she moved on, has put together an affecting memorial at texasobserver.org, another good place for readers to send their comments on Molly herself. -more-