Tag Archives: Max Anderson
Police union: Should Berkeley have Tasers?
The Berkeley Police Officers Association has sent out a survey to 19,000 Berkeley residents asking them their opinion on police use of Tasers.
The BPA posed seven questions in a March 27 email survey to see whether the community considers Tasers as way to assist police and protect suspects, or the opposite.
“This is a very initial step to find out what the community sense is … and go from there,” said Sgt. Chris Stines, the president of the BPA, which represents more than 150 rank-and-file officers. … Continue reading »
Acheson Commons sent back to Berkeley zoning board
A 205-unit apartment complex planned for downtown Berkeley is going back to the city’s Zoning Adjustments Board after an appeal before the City Council on Tuesday night.
Acheson Commons, at 2133 University Ave., was approved by the zoning board in December, but appellants questioned numerous aspects of the project and the council voted unanimously to ask the board to take another look. (See project materials on the city website. The complete administrative record is available here.)
According to the staff report prepared for Tuesday’s special session, the project is set to increase annual tax revenue by $57,000 and bring in $360,000 to support the city’s Streets and Open Space Improvement Plan. (Update, 1 p.m.: A representative for the developer, Mark Rhoades, said the per-year tax basis increase is closer to $600,000. Scroll down to see a chart of the five-year financial projections he provided.) … Continue reading »
Ambitious public works program falls short of need
The public works capital improvement program was the focus of the budget worksession that preceded Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. Public Works Director Andrew Clough and his colleagues presented an ambitious roster of projects for the next five years, but cautioned that the plans do not keep up with the city’s needs.
“The city’s public infrastructure is indeed suffering,” Clough said. “But all is not grim. We’re here not only to tell you what we don’t have, but also what we have done and what we plan to do.” … Continue reading »
Council asks for 1-year moratorium on post office sale
The Berkeley City Council adopted a resolution Tuesday night to ask the U.S. Postal Service to press the pause button on its plans to relocate its downtown services and sell the Allston Way facility — for at least one year.
Members of the public who hope to keep the post office open were more subdued than those who attended a meeting in late February, with just a handful of people speaking about the historic building’s importance and why it should maintain its postal services. But they cheered and clapped throughout the meeting as council members expressed unanimous support to fight to keep the building open.
The postal service has said, in a written statement, that the building will likely be sold because of a “26-percent drop in total mail volume over the past three years, brought about by the diversion to electronic communication and business transactions.” … Continue reading »
Berkeley Library wants your feedback to improve services
The Berkeley Public Library has set up a 25-question survey to get the scoop from local residents about how they see and use library programs, events and facilities.
Through Feb. 19, Berkeley library users can fill out the brief online survey or a paper version of the survey at all library locations. (Take the online survey here.)
According to a notice sent Wednesday from Councilman Max Anderson‘s office, the library “will be seeking community input on how to improve Library services and communications.” … Continue reading »
The most important stories in Berkeley in 2012
Berkeley in 2012 was filled with drama — a contested election, a failed nomination for a new school superintendent, a few missteps by the Chief of Police, and major changes at the University of California, among other events. Here’s a recap of the issues that had the deepest impact on Berkeley, plus a few fun ones thrown in.
City Government
The year got off to a tragic start with the untimely death of 37-year-old City Clerk Deanna Despain. She fell down the stairs of her Oakland home on Jan. 8. Her husband discovered her body when he returned from a late-night meeting. Their daughter was soundly asleep upstairs. Since then, Mark Numainville has been filling in as acting city clerk. In May, after serving as interim city manager for six months, the City Council appointed Christine Daniel permanently to the job. She replaced Phil Kamlarz, who had held the city’s top job for eight years. … Continue reading »
Berkeley will seek to shutter 3PG cannabis collective
Despite pleas that Perfect Plants Patients group was a good neighbor, the Berkeley City Council Tuesday night voted that the cannabis collective was in violation of the city’s zoning laws.
The determination at the end of a public hearing paves the way for the council to vote on a resolution Nov. 27 to order the closure of the collective, located at 2840-B Sacramento Street.
The news came as a relief – if overdue – to neighbors of 3PGs, who have been pressing Berkeley for more than a year to shut down the business. Since 3PGs opened in September 2011, neighbors report they have seen increased hand-to-hand drug sales along Sacramento Street, spotted people smoking pot in their cars, and noticed more drug paraphernalia on the streets. … Continue reading »
Berkeley says “no” to federal immigration detainers
In a surprising twist, the Berkeley City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to decline requests from U.S. immigration officials to apply more stringent detention rules to arrested individuals depending on citizenship status.
Advocates in attendance said the council made a landmark policy decision believed to be the most comprehensive and definitive in the nation as far as refusing altogether to cooperate with a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) program to detain and potentially deport non-citizens who are arrested.
The decision will, at least initially, have a limited impact given that the vast majority of these individuals ultimately are turned over to county agencies that do cooperate with the feds. Advocates said they believe, however, that the decision will have a ripple effect throughout the state to convince other jurisdictions to take a similar stand. … Continue reading »
Anderson and Belser vie for District 3 council seat
There isn’t a big policy divide between two-term incumbent Max Anderson and challenger Dmitri Belser in the race for the District 3 City Council seat.
The South Berkeley district is one of the more diverse in the city, both racially and socioeconomically. Although crime rates are down (as they are throughout Berkeley), crime remains a major issue in the district. Commercially, attention has been focused on developing the Lorin District as a true commercial hub.
Both Belser and Anderson talk about the importance of providing a voice for South Berkeley, reducing crime and supporting local businesses. For voters figuring out which candidate to support, it comes down to judging Anderson’s record against what Belser claims is a fresh approach. … Continue reading »
No and Yes on Measure S, Moore campaigns kick off
Under bright blue skies, an arc of orange balloons, and the sound of the Brass Liberation Band, the “No on S” campaign held its campaign kick-off rally in Constitution Square near the Berkeley BART station on Sunday.
About three dozen people, ranging from City Council member Max Anderson to homeless advocates, from those living on the street to Scoop Nisker, the author and former KFOG news announcer, gathered to express opposition to Measure S, which would make sitting on a sidewalk in a commercial district illegal between 7 am and 10 pm.
“The business community may be distressed about the financial prospects of their businesses, but this isn’t an answer to that,” said Anderson. “I refer to it (the sitting ban) as snake oil. It’s a kind of non-applicable solutions to problems that don’t exist.” … Continue reading »
Disability advocate challenges Max Anderson for council
Dmitri Belser runs a program that makes technology accessible to disabled people, he chaired Berkeley’s Commission on Disability, he renovates dilapidated Victorian homes, and he has raised two sons.
Now he wants to be the District 3 city council member.
“I’ve been frustrated for a long time with how District 3 has been represented,” Belser told Berkeleyside in an interview conducted amid dangling wires, creaking floorboards, ladders and drop cloths at a 62nd Street Victorian he’s refurbishing with his life-partner and campaign manager, Tom White. The couple lives a few blocks south-west on Parker Street near Shattuck Avenue.
“I’ve heard from a lot of my neighbors and a lot of people in this district that they don’t get responses” from Council Member Max Anderson, he said, contending that Anderson, in office since 2004, has been ineffective in solving issues of crime and helping the struggling business district at Adeline and Alcatraz.
“If there’s one skill that I have, it’s customer service,” he said. “I know how to respond to people.”
Belser, executive director at the Center for Accessible Technology (CAT), pointed to his work helping to get the Ed Roberts Campus project built. The campus, above the Ashby BART station, houses nonprofits serving the disabled community, including the CAT. Belser chairs the Ed Roberts Campus board. … Continue reading »
Max Anderson kicks off Council re-election campaign
The Max Anderson campaign kickoff was held at La Peña on Sunday. Photo: Frances Dinkelspiel
In a campaign kickoff filled with poetry, tears, fried chicken, Acme bread, and a huge Sweet Adeline’s chocolate cake, Max Anderson launched his third bid for City Council Sunday night.
Dozens of local politicians, union activists, and residents of south Berkeley gathered at La Peňa Cultural Center to show their support for Anderson, who has represented District 3 since 2004. So far, he is running unopposed.
“This is the kickoff, so we’re kicking it off,” said Anderson as he stood before the crowd, surrounded by his election staff, his wife Linda Olivenbaum, daughter Marisha Anderson, and other family members. “We’re kicking it in the streets.”
Supporters had gotten on the stage throughout the evening to testify to Anderson’s willingness to support the weak and helpless, including African-American babies, whose survival rate in Alameda County is lower than average, struggling students, African-Americans suffering from hypertension, and the disabled. … Continue reading »
Berkeley residents tackle safety issues after shootings
Two weeks after two multiple shootings rattled south-west Berkeley residents, more than a hundred neighbors gathered in the gym at Berkeley Youth Alternatives on Bonar Street on Monday evening, just a few yards away from the first shooting, to discuss possible causes, as well as preventive measures.
According to the police, none of the men shot on the nights of March 2 and March 4 were local. They simply liked to hang out on the 2200 block of Bonar and on the 2100 block of 7th Street. Both incidents, which do not appear to be connected, are still being investigated, according to Berkeley Police Lt. Dave Frankel who addressed the meeting. BPD does not believe they are gang-related and, Frankel added, not all the victims are “being cooperative”. … Continue reading »
