The Opinion Pages

Editorials

Editorial: Educating Artists the Hard Way

By Becky O’Malley
Friday March 23, 2007
March is Arts Education Month, according to press releases from the City of Berkeley, Alameda County and county education superintendent Sheila Jordan. It’s a cause everyone can get behind: kids and arts, what’s not to like? We’d like to get on the bandwagon too, before it’s too late. We believe that art is good for kids, and kids are good for art. We’ll even endorse the slogan some creative PR firm dreamed up: “Art IS education.” Of course it is. -more-

Letters

Letters to the Editor

Friday March 23, 2007

Reader Commentaries

Commentary: Development Bonanza Behind Artist Housing

By John Curl
Friday March 23, 2007
“We want to turn this into a new type of artists’ community,” said Doug Herst, owner of 5.5 acres of industrial land in West Berkeley, speaking at a special meeting at City Hall. He came over as a nice guy, and he really seemed to like artists and the arts. Sounded great. Until he unveiled the real project: a million square feet of mostly commercial, office, and residential development, with only seven thousand square feet for arts/crafts workshops, and only 20 percent of the residential units as artist live/work studios. -more-

An Open Letter to Mayor Bates

By Carlos Rivas
Friday March 23, 2007
Dear Mayor, -more-