News

The purple ribbons fluttering in the wind inside the Berkeley High School courtyard symbolized the loss of BHS Vice Principal Denise Brown for the entire Berkeley Unified School District Monday. -more-

Seven years ago, the Atlantic Monthly published “The Kept University,” a story about a $25 million five-year liaison between the giant Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis and California’s premier public university, UC Berkeley. -more-

With the final campaign expenditures for the November elections in on Jan. 31, it became definitive that the top spender was the losing challenger for District 7: George Beier. -more-

When Charles Hamilton teaches jazz at Berkeley High, every note has to be perfect. -more-

With a November deadline looming, the panel of citizens charged with helping the city draft a new downtown plan will pause to take stock Wednesday. -more-

The School Board will be meeting on Wednesday to receive information on the governor’s budget for fiscal year 2007-08, which was released on Jan. 10. -more-

With royal fanfare, British Petroleum just donated $500 million in research funds for UC Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of Illinois to develop new sources of energy—primarily biotechnology to produce biofuel crops. This comes on the anniversary of Berkeley’s hapless research deal with seed giant Novartis ten years ago. However, at half a billion dollars, the BP grant dwarfs Novartis’ investment by a factor of 10. The graphics of the announcement were unmistakable: BP’s corporate logo is perfectly aligned with the flags of the Nation, the State, and the University. -more-

The Zoning Adjustments Board will once again hear the request for a use permit for the conversion of Wright’s Garage on 2629-2635 Ashby Ave. into a multi-tenant commercial building on Thursday. -more-

East Bay Municipal Utilities District officials are urging their customers to ease off on the taps—at least until they can finish a much needed retrofit of the Claremont Tunnel. -more-

Steal music player, lose their bikes -more-

Some of Berkeley’s poorest older residents will soon be living in comfortable new quarters with the opening Thursday of the Margaret Breland Apartments. -more-

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-

Berkeley’s Transportation Commission joined the Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee (DAPAC) on Wednesday to talk about transportation conditions in downtown Berkeley and explore options for transportation improvements. -more-

To the great disappointment of those who had hoped to save the 53-year-old Bevatron building housing a particle accelerator, the Berkeley City Council voted 7-to-2 at its Tuesday night meeting to uphold the Landmarks Preservation Commission decision to require that the science practiced in the structure be memorialized, but that there be no requirement to preserve the structure itself. -more-

On Wednesday night, Neil Smith, director of educational services for the Berkeley Unified School District (BUSD), delivered a presentation on student data for eight different tests to the School Board. This is the first report of its kind that compiles all of these high-stakes tests. -more-

While most Berkeleyans may have found last week the same as any other week, Berkeley High School (BHS) students found it more stressful than usual—they took their semester finals. -more-

The Albany-Berkeley Soccer Club Panthers defeated the Elk Grove Attack 4-0 on Sunday to win the under-14 Boys Association Cup state soccer championship played in Danville. -more-

It’s too bad Molly Ivins could not have been in Washington for the peace march on Saturday. She would have appreciated the overall tone of the event: -more-

It took seven years of neighborhood complaints to shut down Dwight Way Liquors on Sacramento Street and that was too long, say members of Berkeley Alcohol Policy Advocacy Coalition (BAPAC). -more-