Berkeley High School graduation June 14, 2013 at the Greek Theater. Photo: Frances Dinkelspiel

This week marks the end of the school year and Berkeleyside ran many school-related stories. Probably the most uplifting was an article on how B-Tech principal Sheila Quintana turned around the dismal graduation rate. Two years ago only seven out of 60 seniors graduated while in 2013, 62 students out of a class of 73 seniors graduated. Quintana said it is not good enough: “I want all 73 seniors graduating.”

We also ran an article on Janet Huseby, who as outreach and volunteer coordinator for Berkeley High has been one of the most public faces of the school. She is stepping back from that position to focus on helping with college essays. In other news, Willard Middle School is getting a new principal, Debbie Dean, and the bodies of two chicks stolen from an outdoor chicken coop at Rosa Parks Elementary School were discovered buried on campus.

As for comment generators, John Seal’s review of the pro-nuclear power documentary Pandora’s Promise got numerous comments as did an article on changing parking policies in Berkeley.

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Millstone, 1999 by Hung Liu, an Oakland artist who collaborates closely with Berkeley’s Paulson Bott Press. This week we wrote about the press and Liu’s relationship with its two founders.

This week’s most read article was our story about a young couple charged with elder abuse after authorities say they took about $842,000 from a man they were helping, some of which was spent on tuition at UC Berkeley and an Audi luxury coupé.

While just six months ago our weekly Bites column was reporting on as many restaurant closings as openings, recently the balance has swung in favor of launches. This week that includes new ventures from Bittersweet, Toast, Ramen Tomo, Smitten ice cream, and The Station. … Continue reading »

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Spring by Robert Trachtenberg. See his latest column, full of sumptuous photos, by clicking photo above.

This week provided two contrasting views on the role of urban farming.

Occupy the Farm is back in the news. The group is trying again to plant crops on vacant UC Berkeley property on San Pablo Avenue in Albany. The activists have been there off and on since May 11 and Cal has plowed up the crops three times.

Urban Adamah, which leases land from Wareham Development for its 1-acre urban farm on Parker and San Pablo Avenue, announced this week it is in contract to buy a 2+ acre parcel on Sixth and Harrison streets from the U.S. Post Office. The cost is $2.1 million and the group has until Aug. 4 to raise the funds. … Continue reading »

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Eucalyptus trees in Claremont Canyon will be cut down to make room for native species and reduce fire risk if FEMA funding is approved. Photo: Tracey Taylor

The plan by UC Berkeley to reduce fire risk in Claremont and Strawberry canyons by eradicating non-native trees has attracted both praise and criticism from neighborhood groups. Over 22,000 eucalyptus, Monterey pine and acacia trees will be chopped down, making room, according to the university, for native trees like oak and California bay laurel.

A homicide on Grizzly Peak Boulevard early last Sunday morning closed the road for much of the day as police investigated the crime. On Wednesday, police released details of the suspect in the killing of 21-year old Fremont student Alverto Santana-Silva. Berkeleyside’s Emilie Raguso also analyzed the 25% rise in robberies in Berkeley this year. According to Berkeley police, most of the robberies involve pedestrians walking alone while carrying a cell phone that’s visible. The opportunity to target victims in this position may be on the increase as more and more people buy smart phones and tend to use them on the go.

The future of the old Cody’s building on Telegraph continues to concern our readers (71 comments and counting). Ken Sarachan, owner of the building, received approval to open his Mad Monk Center for Anachronistic Media from the Zoning Adjustments Board.

What posts stood out to you this week? Are there other stories you’d like to see? Let us know in the comments or by writing to us at editors@berkeleyside.com. 

Do you appreciate hearing about the news in your community through Berkeleyside’s work? If so, please consider becoming a supporter of Berkeleyside. Become part of the conversation. Help a local news site thrive.

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Officials will gather at 12:30 p.m. May 11 to officially open the new South Branch library. This is the entrance. Photo: Frances Dinkelspiel

As usual, news centering around crime grabbed readers’ interest this week. Our detailed timeline of what happened to Xavier (Kayla) Moore before dying in police custody drew numerous comments. There was the curious story of two Berkeley residents caught with a cache of guns; the sad tale of a former Berkeley High School student who was gunned down in Oakland at 17; and the show of force of Berkeley police outside the funeral of a 19-year old man at the McGee Avenue Baptist Church. A pedestrian who was struck by a car was also critically hurt and police were on the hunt for a man who might have been trying to abduct two middle-school girls.

On the city front, our story on Bicycle to Work Day posed the question of how bike-friendly Berkeley could be. It drew a lot of comments. Families rallied to save the school district’s edible food programs, and medical cannabis supporters held a press conference to criticize U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag’s most recent attempt to rein in Berkeley Patients Group.

The Berkeleyside editors also wrote a letter informing readers about all the news we have scrambled to bring you recently. Please take a look — and please help keep us going by donating or becoming a monthly subscriber. Thank you.

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Indian Rock in Berkeley. This week a writer reflected on what she would miss after she had left the city. Photo: Daniel Parks

Our number one story for pageviews this week was our Bites column: a weekly round-up of all the exciting things happening on the food scene in the inner East Bay — which just goes to show that our readers appreciate the good things in life, including, NOSH, our spin-off site dedicated to all things delicious.

Nikki Hodgson’s essay reflecting on all the good things she would miss when she moved from Berkeley to Boulder, Colorado, clearly struck a chord. Who wouldn’t feel nostalgic for Tilden Park, Berkeley Bowl, surplus Meyer lemons, and our city’s “quiet corners of refuge.” … Continue reading »

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Staffer Lincoln and student in the Willard Middle School edible garden on April 13. Photo: Kaia Diringer

This week, a campaign by community members to save Berkeley Unified’s cooking and gardening programs caught readers’ attention. The nationally recognized programs are about to lose funding and, unlike last year, no last-minute reprieve of federal funds is expected. The story garnered nearly 100 comments. Earlier this month about 120 parents at Longfellow Middle School met with school reps to learn why the programs are set to lose $1.9 million of U.S. Department of Agriculture funds, and what potential solutions may be. … Continue reading »

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Pappy’s on Telegraph Ave. threw this man out after he was reported to have caused a disturbance on the evening of April 5. Police ultimately sent him on his way after he calmed down. One of a set of photos featured in our ’12 hours on patrol with the Berkeley Police’ report by Emilie Raguso.

Eating and drinking dominated this week.

Our most read story was Berkeleyside Nosh’s cool, interactive Drinking in Berkeley map. The map highlights spots around town where you can taste beer or wine, go to a bar, or buy your favorite tipple to drink at home. There’s a drinks renaissance happening in Berkeley, and clearly our readers want in. The map will be updated regularly and is accessible from the Nosh homepage.

Next up in pageview rankings was our report on the proposal to put a beer garden with food trucks on a corner lot in West Berkeley. Commenters were mostly in favor of the idea, and the story was heavily “Liked” on Facebook

A close third in terms of popularity was Emilie Raguso’s photo feature ‘12 hours on patrol with the Berkeley Police‘ (above). Some readers expressed concern about the publication of a few of the images, while one reader said thank you for ‘putting a face on the BPD.’

Do you appreciate hearing about the news in your community through Berkeleyside’s work? If so, please consider becoming a supporter of Berkeleyside. Become part of the conversation. Help a local news site thrive.

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Premier Cru on University Avenue, designed by David Trachtenberg and built by Kaufman Construction, won a Berkeley Design Advocates award. Story here. Photo: BDA

As usual, the most commented-upon posts this week centered around the city and crime. Readers had lots of opinions about the Berkeley Police Association’s survey on Tasers. They also talked about the mock active-shooter-in-school drill that multiple police agencies conducted this week. Reaction was mixed to the Berkeley City Council’s decision to raise residential parking permit fees by $10. Ditto for UC Berkeley’s plan to build a $15 million aquatics center on Bancroft Way near Oxford.

The food news in Berkeley continues to astonish. This week Berkeleyside reported on the imminent opening of a new big-city pizzeria, Build, on Shattuck and Bancroft. The Mead Kitchen, which will make a honey-based wine, is set to come in May.

The most delightful story of the week (we think) was Paul Kamen’s April Fool’s article on a cruise ship visiting Berkeley’s waterfront. We are still smiling.

Do you appreciate hearing about the news in your community through Berkeleyside’s work? If so, please consider becoming a supporter of Berkeleyside. Become part of the conversation. Help a local news site thrive.

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Cal baseball had its first-ever night home game on Thursday, losing to USC, 4-3. Photo: Ted Friedman

The most unusual story of the week was unquestionably the mystery of eight-year old Nadine Hairston, struck in her leg by an arrow while playing on the whale outside the Lawrence Hall of Science on Tuesday. The arrow was identified as shot from a crossbow, but University of California police are still investigating the incident. Anyone with information should call the UCPD on 510-642‑6760.  … Continue reading »

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Whimbrels by Elaine Miller Bond

The biggest news of the week was the resignation of Berkeley Unified School District President Leah Wilson effective March 31. She is taking a job as Court Executive Officer for the Alameda County Superior Court and was advised that the role presented a potential conflict of interest in future litigation.  ”It’s beyond bittersweet,” said Wilson. “It’s an incredible career opportunity and at the same time it has resulted in my not being able to fulfill the commitment I had made.”

Readers had a lot to say about an effort by Jefferson School fourth graders to bring back their classmate Rodrigo Guzman from Mexico. Rodrigo, who moved to Berkeley when he was 18 months old, was denied reentry into the United States because his parents’ visas had expired. The City Council passed a resolution asking the U.S. government to consider a humanitarian response to the family’s plight. They also had strong opinions about the new highrise proposed for downtown Berkeley.

The city seemed to go beer crazy this week. Sierra Nevada announced it will set up a tasting room on Fourth Street near University Avenue. The city approved Rare Barrel, which will brew sour beer at 937 Carleton St. Officials also approved an application for a nano-brewpub in the Lorin District at 1763 Alcatraz Ave.

Berkeleyside tried something new: An “Ask Me Anything” session with CPA Hank Levy, who answered all sorts of questions from readers. Hank, who owns Henry C. Levy & Co, focused on questions relating to taxes.

And once again we had a stunning photo essay by Elaine Miller Bond, this one on shorebirds.

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Our photo essay on Berkeleyans leaping across fires for Persian New Year proved immensely popular this week. Photos: Kaia Diringer

Two crime and two food-related stories dominated this week.

The shocking news today that two employees at Berkeley music and dance institution Ashkenaz were in hospital with serious wounds after they were shot during an armed robbery in the early hours clearly grabbed everyone’s attention.

And another alarming crime happened on Wednesday when a high-school student was robbed and pistol whipped in the middle of the day just a few hundred feet from his school in central Berkeley.

The news that a Berkeley couple who run a popular Alameda restaurant were opening a beer garden and burger spot on Sacramento was greeted with near-unanimous approval; while the possible arrival of a Starbucks on Telegraph and Ashby had one coffee shop owner concerned.

Do you appreciate hearing about the news in your community through Berkeleyside’s work? If so, please consider becoming a supporter of Berkeleyside. Become part of the conversation. Help a local news site thrive.

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