The Week

First-graders Samantha Myers and Peter Reifenstein dig for bugs during gardening class Monday at Malcolm X Elementary School.
Riya Bhattacharjee
First-graders Samantha Myers and Peter Reifenstein dig for bugs during gardening class Monday at Malcolm X Elementary School.
 

News

Berkeley Urged to Adopt Sweat-Free Ordinance

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Tuesday April 07, 2009 - 03:52:00 PM

Community leaders, labor rights activists and garment workers from Central America urged Berkeley city officials to pass a sweatshop-free ordinance at a Tuesday press conference at Old City Hall. -more-


EPA Will Not Monitor Berkeley Air Quality

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Tuesday April 07, 2009 - 09:53:00 AM

Berkeley didn’t make the list of schools selected last week for outdoor air quality monitoring by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and a local environmental group isn’t happy about the omission. -more-


Office Depot Will Reimburse Berkeley for Overcharges

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Monday April 06, 2009 - 05:19:00 PM

The City of Berkeley is expecting a small amount of budget relief this month—$289,000 in refunds for overcharges on office supplies by Office Depot. In a memo this week from City Manager Phil Kamlarz to Mayor Tom Bates and the Berkeley City Council, Bates said Office Depot had agreed to refund the money by April 17. -more-


Court Upholds Berkeley's Decision to Revoke U-Haul Use Permit


By Riya Bhattacharjee
Saturday April 04, 2009 - 10:50:00 PM

The California Court of Appeal upheld last week the Berkeley City Council's decision to revoke U-Haul's use permit for its San Pablo Avenue location. -more-


School Lunch Program on Path to Sustainability

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Saturday April 04, 2009 - 10:25:00 AM

Starting next year, Berkeley Unified School District’s food services program will have to pay for itself, but district officials say they won’t let finances undermine quality. -more-


Agency Picks Fishing Pier for Berkeley Ferry Terminal

By Richard Brenneman
Friday April 03, 2009 - 03:09:00 PM

Directors of a regional agency voted to build a new pier south of the Berkeley Marina fishing pier to serve as the hub for a new ferry service. -more-


Berkeley Unified Will Receive $2.4 Million in Stimulus Funds Next Month

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Friday April 03, 2009 - 03:08:00 PM

Berkeley Unified School District is set to receive a healthy chunk of change next month. -more-


Grant Death a ‘Tragic Error,’ BART Lawyers Tells Court

Bay City News
Friday April 03, 2009 - 04:13:00 PM

An attorney for BART said in a legal filing today that the shooting death of Oscar Grant at the hands of BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle in Oakland on New Year’s Day was “a tragic error” and Grant’s own actions contributed to the tragedy. -more-


LBNL Biofuel Partner Warns of Bankruptcy

By Richard Brenneman
Saturday April 04, 2009 - 10:14:00 AM

Pacific Ethanol, a partner with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in developing a pilot plant to turn plant fiber into fuel, may be heading for bankruptcy court. -more-


Company Delays Sale of Golden Gate Fields

By Richard Brenneman
Saturday April 04, 2009 - 10:15:00 AM

With creditors clamoring in the wings and unhappy with plans to sell off Golden Gate Fields and other key assets of troubled Magna Entertainment, the company agreed Friday, April 3, to delay a key court hearing until April 20. -more-


Downtown Plan Hearing Set for Monday Evening

By Richard Brenneman
Thursday April 02, 2009 - 01:26:00 PM

Friends and foes of the Planning Commission’s rewrite of the Downtown Area Plan can share their views with commissioners during a special hearing Monday night, April 6. -more-


Proposal Would Raise West Berkeley Skyline

By Richard Brenneman
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:16:00 PM

City planning staff have dropped a bombshell on anxious West Berkeley activists: a proposal that would double the height of new buildings and potentially open the area to office complexes. -more-


Adult Education Program Faces Severe Budget Cuts

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:20:00 PM

State budget cuts will force the Berkeley Unified School District to cut more than $1 million from its adult education program. -more-


Safeway to Unveil Latest Design for College Avenue Store

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:21:00 PM

Safeway will unveil the latest design for its College Avenue store April 29 at the Claremont Hotel in Oakland, even as neighbors complain that they are being left out in the cold. -more-


Spate of Accidents Prompts Schools to Launch Traffic Safety Program

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:21:00 PM

Citing a sudden rise in accidents involving Berkeley Unified School District students, Superintendent Bill Huyett announced at the Berkeley Board of Education meeting Wednesday, March 25, that the district would work with traffic safety groups to educate children about bicycle and pedestrian safety issues. -more-


Berkeley Students Honor Cesar Chavez

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:21:00 PM

“Determination” was the word of the day at Malcolm X Elementary School Monday, March 30, the eve of Cesar Chavez’s 82nd birthday. -more-


Merchants Attempt to Revive Solano Avenue Amid High Vacancy Rate

By Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:22:00 PM
Antonio Robles arranges hand-crafted lilies from Guanajuato at Casa Oaxaca, which sells arts, crafts and jewelry from Mexico.

Rather than wait for the government to jump-start a struggling economy, a group of merchants on Solano Avenue have decided to take matters into their own hands. -more-


Economy May Lead City to Change Office Development Policy

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:22:00 PM

Is the City of Berkeley moving in the direction of opening up more of its commercial business districts towards street-level office use? That seemed to be the indication during the last two months as the City Council considered, but ultimately rejected, granting a first-floor office space permit for a building on Solano Avenue. -more-


Golden Gate Fields Owner Nixes Annual Report

By Richard Brenneman
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:23:00 PM

Depending on the outcome of bankruptcy actions in U.S. and Canadian courts, the would-be owners of Albany’s Golden Gate Fields say that once they acquire the property, they intend “to immediately commence seeking all required approvals to develop the property for commercial real estate uses.” -more-


Chu Boosts Berkeley Lab Projects; Foes Fear Strawberry Canyon Impacts

By Richard Brenneman
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:23:00 PM
Yellow balloons float above the Strawberry Canyon hillside next to the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden, marking the site of a new lab just funded by Secretary of Energy—and former LBNL director—Steven Chu.

Plans for one new building at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) were soaring this week, just one week after another had received a major cash boost, thanks to the lab’s former boss. -more-


Legislators Send Mixed Messages on Budget Ballot Measures

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:24:00 PM

State legislators representing Berkeley and Oakland constituents in Sacramento gave a mixed message on the upcoming May special election to local progressive activists last week, uniting in opposition to a proposition that would impose a permanent cap on state spending, but dividing over a ballot measure that would siphon money from the state lottery. -more-


Another Rough Month for The Mainstream Media

By Richard Brenneman
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:24:00 PM

In 2008, reports Paper Cuts, a weblog that tracks U.S. newspaper closings and staff reductions cost, the country’s papers lost at least 15,859 jobs. -more-


Berkeley Man Raised to County Judgeship

Bay City News
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:25:00 PM

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has announced the appointment of Paul D. Seeman of Berkeley to a judgeship on the Alameda County Superior Court bench. -more-


Jewish Blessing of the Sun Ceremony April 8

By Steven Finacom Special to the Planet
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:25:00 PM

As the sun rises above the Berkeley Hills on the morning of Wednesday, April 8, some local Jews will gather at the Berkeley Marina to greet it and carry out, atop Berkeley’s newest piece of land, an ancient religious ritual held at 28 year intervals. -more-


Berkeley Grad Student Reported Missing

Bay City News
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:25:00 PM

El Cerrito police are asking for the public’s assistance in locating a 24-year-old woman who was reported missing March 10. -more-


Last Three Home Invasion Suspects in Custody

Bay City News
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:26:00 PM

The last three suspects in a home-invasion robbery and torture case in the Berkeley hills last month have turned themselves in, Berkeley police spokesman Andrew Frankel said today. -more-


High School Couples Robbed at Grizzly Peak

By Richard Brenneman
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:26:00 PM

Three high school-age couples parked on a romantic spring Saturday night on a Grizzly Peak Boulevard turnout suddenly found themselves in a most unromantic encounter—a stick-up. -more-


Berkeley Police Search Tilden Park for Evidence

Bay City News
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:26:00 PM

Berkeley police are in Tilden Regional Park in the Berkeley hills for a second straight day to look for evidence in an old case in which new information has emerged, police spokesman Officer An-drew Frankel said Wednesday. -more-


Hearing in UC Murder Case Postponed Until May

—Riya Bhattacharjee
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:26:00 PM

At a March 20 hearing, Judge Morris Jacobson of the Alameda County Superior Court ordered a witness to appear for the May 18 preliminary hearing of Berkeley resident Andrew Hoeft-Edenfield. -more-


BAHA Spring House Lecture Tour Gets Under Way

By Steven Finacom Special to the Planet
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:27:00 PM

This year’s annual Berkeley Architectural Heritage Association (BAHA) Spring House Tour takes place Sunday, May 3. The tour extends broadly over the architectural spectrum, with homes from the Maybeck era to the “Mid-Century Modern” period, all concentrated in the North Berkeley hills. -more-


Opinion

Editorials

Now It’s West Berkeley’s Turn to Be Colonized

By Becky O'Malley
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:32:00 PM

During my midlife career break, which lasted about 18 years, we ran a small software development group. We started on Telegraph in the late 1970s, upstairs in the brick building which now houses Rasputin’s at the corner of Channing. At that time the building was owned by a southern California cheap- clothing chain which absolutely didn’t get Berkeley. They attached no value to the upstairs offices, so we were able to rent vast spaces with high ceilings, big windows and crown molding for about 30 cents a square foot, with no lease. We bought some used metal desks and a big table, and we were in business. -more-


Cartoons

Berkeley's Dangerous Newsracks

By Justin DeFreitas
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 10:14:00 PM

Public Comment

Letters to the Editor

Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:43:00 PM

MARINE RECRUITING CENTER -more-


Density, Schmensity

By Albert Sukoff
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:32:00 PM

Sometimes when a large majority of a group holds the same opinion, the opinion takes on the aura of fact. It can even become a group mantra. Such is the case with the supposed fact that “Berkeley is dense.” -more-


Making Electronic Voting Transparent and Public

By Judy Bertelsen
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:33:00 PM

In late November, 2008, the California Humboldt County Registrar of Voters and a group of citizen volunteers working together as the Election Transparency Project detected an error in the November 4 final vote tally: 197 ballots had been eliminated by the Premier (formerly Diebold) electronic election system. How was this possible? The quiet story of the Election Transparency Project demonstrates that true election transparency is possible now, given the winning combination of strong commitment by a County’s Registrar of Voters and generous volunteer citizen effort, including volunteer technical expertise. -more-


The ‘Karmic Justice’ of Lovelle Mixon’s Act

By Joseph Anderson
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:33:00 PM

This perspective might be very hard for many sociopolitically naive white people to read. But it’s very important to understand the sheer depth of negative feelings that many people of color (even those with no criminal record) have against the police. This is due to lifelong and often unpredictable, almost always potentially life-threatening, negative experiences (from petty to lethal), that they or their loved ones and friends, as people of color, have had from the police. -more-


Shooting at OPD Officer’s Funeral Goes Unreported

By Jean Damu
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:34:00 PM

The Oakland Police Department suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the foot when it further racialized the March 28 shootings by rescinding Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums’ invitation to speak at the public funeral of the four officers who were gunned down. -more-


On Tristan’s Case, Barbara Lee Gets in Gear

By Henry Norr
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:34:00 PM

What a difference a week makes! In the previous issue of this paper, I criticized Rep. Barbara Lee for, among other things, failing to speak out promptly and strongly after Israel forces critically injured one of her constituents, Tristan Anderson, by firing a high-velocity tear-gas canister at his head in the aftermath of a non-violent demonstration in the occupied West Bank. -more-


The More They Change, the More They Stay the Same

By Robert Cabrera
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:35:00 PM

When it comes to Berkeley rental property owners, the more things change the more they remain the same. At the council meeting of March 24, the agenda included a proposed increase in the yearly fee landlords pay to maintain the Rental Housing Safety Program. Other agenda items covered discussed a common theme, the state of the economy, local unemployment and how it affects small businesses. The council went as far as helping developers allowing the deferral of permit fees up to $200,000. This is essentially an interest-free loan to large developers for the duration of a project. One member of the public objected and claimed the city ran the risk of never collecting these fees as had been the case with a large developer. One council member eloquently defended a local electrical contracting business which threatened to leave its Berkeley location. The councilperson added how the city must be willing to work with the business community in these rough economic times. -more-


Behind the Lyrics: Alcohol Marketing and Youth

By Sarah Rodriguez
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:35:00 PM

Can’t tell you what I learned from school -more-


Columns

Public Eye: Employee Choice — Which Side Are You On?

Bob Burnett
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:29:00 PM

In 1941, the Almanac Singers made famous the 1930s protest song, “Which Side Are You On.” -more-


Now That We Have Our Monster, We No Longer Care

J. Douglas Allen-Taylor
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:30:00 PM

One universal human truth has been made manifest—once more—by the MacArthur shootings. While we can accept and even embrace flaws in our heroes, we are only comfortable when we can place those we wish to consider villains beyond all possibility of redemption and understanding. We wish no complications to dampen the fires of our rage. We want our bad men unsympathetic and monstrous, abandoned even by God and all the angels, like Grendel, the creature in Beowulf: -more-


Wild Neighbors: In the Shrike Zone: Losing the Loggerhead?

By Joe Eaton
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:43:00 PM
Loggerhead shrikes have learned how to use barbed wire

I miss shrikes. The loggerhead shrike, the local representative of this anomalous family of killer songbirds, used to be easier to see in the East Bay. This winter it was noteworthy when a single bird showed up at the Berkeley Meadow. We can still reliably find them in rural areas like the Altamont Hills, but they’ve become less common along the coast. -more-


East Bay Then and Now: ‘Soap King’ R.P. Thomas Settled in the Berkeley Hills

By Daniella Thompson
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:40:00 PM
Captain Thomas on his estate, La Loma Park.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a series on Captain R.P. Thomas and La Loma Park. -more-


About the House: Introducing the On-Demand Water Heater

By Matt Cantor
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:42:00 PM

A Buddhist walks up to the hot dog vendor and says “make me one with everything.” (Long pause). The vendor takes his money but fails to return his change. The Buddhist says, “Hey buddy, where’s my change?!” to which the vendor replies, epicanthically, “Change must come from within!” -more-


Arts & Events

Arts Calendar

Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:38:00 PM

THURSDAY, APRIL 2 -more-


Michael Brown’s ‘Memories and Dreams’

By Ken Bullock Special to the Planet
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:36:00 PM

Under a street sign reading “Abbey Road,” the stage is lined with hanging ukeleles, as proprietor Mike Da Silva of the Da Silva Ukelele Co.—and host to an unusual series of performances on Eighth Street—introduces Michael Brown, performing his solo show, Memories and Dreams of the Twentieth Century: Storeis and a Couple of Songs, which runs again this Friday and Saturday, April 3 and 4. -more-


‘Basha’ of Minsk and Petaluma Plays Berkeley City Club

By Ken Bullock Special to the Planet
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:39:00 PM

Kenya, 1912. The young Jewish woman from Russia stands with a suitcase, concerned about the man staring at her, trying to talk to her—until he shows a picture he has of her. “Jesus, Mary and Joseph, it’s you!” she exclaims. “I believe I have the wrong party,” he replies, a Talmudic scholar wondering if this could be his promised bride ... -more-


Pocket Opera’s 30th Theater Season Features ‘La Favorita’

By Ken Bullock Special to the Planet
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:40:00 PM

Donald Pippin started performing with chamber and Renaissance music and one-act operas in 1954, first staging Pocket Opera at North Beach’s Old Spaghetti Factory, in the back—or “flamenco”—room, in 1960. In 1968, he introduced his own translations of operas, now numbering something close to the scriptural three score and ten, four volumes of which are now available from Pocket Opera Press (As the Lights Go Up: Tales from the Opera), along with his oral history of the intrepid little company, A Pocketful of Wry, sponsored by the Bancroft Library, as well as sales (and rentals) of various individual libretti. -more-


Around the East Bay: Forwards, Backwards — 'The Last Five Years'

Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:37:00 PM

Masquers Playhouse, in Point Richmond, has its own pleasing community-theater style, which they’re bringing to the unusual off-Broadway musical of 2002, The Last Five Years, by Jason Robert Brown (Parade, Songs for a New World, 13). The show is about the marriage of a novelist and an aspiring actress—from his point of view, from first meeting to break-up; from hers, backwards, from the end to the beginning. The score’s been called “one of the brightest of the 21st century.” Director Daren A. C. Carollo says it’s perfect for the Masquers, “with one of the most intimate venues in the Bay Area—and this is an intimate musical.” Musical direction by Pat King. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through through May 3; 2:30 p.m. this Sunday. 105 Park Place, across from Hotel Mac. $18. 232-4031. www.masquers.org. -more-


East Bay Then and Now: ‘Soap King’ R.P. Thomas Settled in the Berkeley Hills

By Daniella Thompson
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:40:00 PM
Captain Thomas on his estate, La Loma Park.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first in a series on Captain R.P. Thomas and La Loma Park. -more-


About the House: Introducing the On-Demand Water Heater

By Matt Cantor
Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:42:00 PM

A Buddhist walks up to the hot dog vendor and says “make me one with everything.” (Long pause). The vendor takes his money but fails to return his change. The Buddhist says, “Hey buddy, where’s my change?!” to which the vendor replies, epicanthically, “Change must come from within!” -more-


Community Calendar

Wednesday April 01, 2009 - 09:39:00 PM

THURSDAY, APRIL 2 -more-