News

The California Supreme Court ruled on Thursday against California enacting ordinances allowing the seizure and forfeiture of vehicles used in picking up prostitutes or buying drugs, thus effectively ending the City of Oakland’s 10-year experiment in the practice. -more-

The Berkeley Transportation Commission’s transit subcommittee debated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) on the Southside with Berkeley residents Wednesday. -more-

Flanked by high-priced consultants tasked with bolstering a “troubled” housing authority suffering from years of neglect, and facing a new board apparently ready to work through volumes of (sometimes contradictory, some say) HUD regulations, Berkeley Housing Authority (BHA) Executive Director Tia Ingram reported at the Monday BHA board meeting on the progress of the newly indepen-dent agency. -more-

A proposal to rezone parts of West Berkeley for car dealerships drew massive, vocal public opposition at Berkeley’s Plan-ning Commission Wednesday night. -more-

Greenhouse gases and Bus Rapid Transit dominated the first half of Wednesday night’s Berkeley Planning Commission meeting which drew a packed house to the North Berkeley Senior Center. -more-

The state’s Brown Act and the Public Records Act aim to maximize the ability of citizens to participate in community affairs. -more-

A community meeting which officials said they called Tuesday evening to assess general library needs was part Berkeley Library lovefest, part rally to save the South Berkeley Branch Library. -more-

A 22-year-old homeless woman was arrested early Thursday for the sexual abuse of a 14-year-old Berkeley boy, six weeks after she was caught with the same youth along an Oregon highway. -more-

Oakland Unified School District officials and at least some board members were keeping close-mouthed at the end of this week about allegations of possible improper relations between a male school board member and a 17-year-old female Oakland area high school student. -more-

Elephant Pharmacy is hosting an electronic recycling drop-off day on Saturday. The pharmacy, at 1607 Shattuck Ave., will be accepting computers, TVs, stereos, and all other electronic equipment from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. -more-

By Cynthia Johnson -more-

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland-Berkeley) came to the Berkeley Technical Academy on Martin Luther King, Jr. Way along with a number of other public officials on Friday to announce that a group of nonprofit organizations would receive a $300,000 San Francisco Foundation grant “to promote civic unity and engagement” in West Berkeley. -more-

As Berkeley’s planning commissioners prepare for a public hearing on a plan to rezone two hunks of West Berkeley for car sales, embattled activists have questions. -more-

A residential development company founded by Los Angeles billionaire Eli Broad purchased property owned by the state-operated Vallejo City Unified School District last year, raising questions about the relationship between Broad and his urban public education Broad Foundation as well as about the sale of property of school districts taken over by the State of California. -more-

An IT worker, a former Chamber of Commerce president, an NAACP activist, an advocate for the disabled, a former librarian and a former city councilmember are among the candidates vying for the Board of Library Trustees. -more-

The Berkeley Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) will hear the request for a use permit to convert Walter Ratcliff’s landmark Fidelity Bank Building into a mixed use development Thursday. -more-

Peralta Community College District officials released their first comprehensive report last week on how much Measure A facilities bond money the district plans to spend on each of its four campuses, but quickly backtracked when trustees complained that the board had never authorized such an allocation plan. -more-

A 21-year-old Berkeley woman was fatally shot to death Saturday as she rode in a car heading north on Martin Luther King Jr. Way in North Oakland. -more-

A subcommittee of Berkeley’s Transportation Commission will meet with Southside residents tonight (Tuesday) to hear their concerns about Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). -more-