The effort is part of a new campaign underway by the city — dubbed goBerkeley — and is funded by federal grants to help staff analyze data, collect input from the public and study the impact of changes to parking-as-usual; drivers can expect to see changes start in … Continue reading »]]>

A driver unable to find a spot in The Elmwood parks instead in the crosswalk. Emilie Raguso took the photos that accompany this article.

Later this year, three Berkeley business districts will experiment with new approaches to parking aimed at reducing double parking and circling, and making it easier for visitors to find a metered spot.

The effort is part of a new campaign underway by the city — dubbed goBerkeley — and is funded by federal grants to help staff analyze data, collect input from the public and study the impact of changes to parking-as-usual; drivers can expect to see changes start in September and last for a year.(...)

Read the rest of Parking changes slated for 3 Berkeley business zones (1,014 words)

By emilie. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Downtown Berkeley, goBerkeley, Parking in Berkeley, Southside, Telegraph Avenue, The Elmwood

According to court documents, Roy Lee Savage, 42, stabbed another man twice with an 8-inch knife while the victim was sitting in a van in the 1600 block of 63rd Street on April 19.

“Doctors reported that the knife cut through his entire liver and punctured his small intestines,” according to the … Continue reading »]]>

Image: Google Maps

An Oakland man with eight prior felony convictions has been charged with the attempted murder of another man after a nearly deadly attack in South Berkeley in April.

According to court documents, Roy Lee Savage, 42, stabbed another man twice with an 8-inch knife while the victim was sitting in a van in the 1600 block of 63rd Street on April 19.

“Doctors reported that the knife cut through his entire liver and punctured his small intestines,” according to the documents. The injury exposed the victim’s internal organs and resulted in a 3-centimeter-in-diameter wound, which penetrated 15 centimeters. Authorities say Savage also stabbed the victim in the arm, cutting through his entire arm with the 12-centimeter-deep injury, puncturing his armpit near a main artery.(...)

Read the rest of 8-time felon arrested after attempted homicide (421 words)

By emilie. | Permalink | 6 comments |
Post tags: Attempted homicide, Berkeley crime, Berkeley Police Department, Berkeley stabbing, Roy Lee Savage

Berkeley Unified Board President Karen Hemphill said the board had been impressed with Evans’ experience and achievements, as well as his reputation for forging … Continue reading »]]>

Donald Evans, most recently chief of the Hayward school district, is Berkeley’s new public school Superintendent.

The Berkeley Unified School Board on Wednesday night formally appointed Donald Evans as the new Berkeley superintendent of schools by approving his contract. Evans, who was has been superintendent of the Hayward Unified School District for the past two years, will take up the position on July 1.

Berkeley Unified Board President Karen Hemphill said the board had been impressed with Evans’ experience and achievements, as well as his reputation for forging fruitful partnerships and having a collaborative leadership style. In Hayward, Evans held two town hall meetings for the community every year, for example.

“When we look at his body of work, he ticks a lot of the boxes that we wanted in Berkeley,” Hemphill said.

One of Evans’ last tasks in Hayward was submitting a plan to the district to raise the achievement levels of African American students, an issue of direct relevance to Berkeley.(...)

Read the rest of Hayward chief named Berkeley schools superintendent (298 words)

By Tracey Taylor. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Berkeley School Superintendent, BUSD, Donald Evans

But despite the … Continue reading »]]>

Projects like Code for America develop civic apps and technology tools. Berkeley has fallen far behind leading cities. Photo: eekim

Discussion about potential rival ice cream stores on Telegraph Ave. consumed nearly two hours of the Berkeley City Council meeting on Tuesday night, with supporters of the two retailers crowding the chamber. For the first public hearing on the city’s budget for fiscal years 2014 and 2015, and comments on the citywide work plan for FY2014? Less than an hour in a council chamber emptied of the public, but with every city department head in attendance.

But despite the apparent lack of public interest, a lively debate sprung up among council members about how the city should be using technology.

“We’ve cut our employees and we’ve cut our days of work and we’ve been able to maintain core services very well,” said Councilmember Susan Wengraf. “But as we continue to cut and try to be more effective we have to pay more attention to our technology department. This is basically the circulation system of the entire city. The key to becoming more effective in the future is to implement better use of the Internet and to get more efficient programs for whatever the city has to do.”(...)

Read the rest of Berkeley council looks to IT to transform city operations (559 words)

By lance. | Permalink | 10 comments |
Post tags: Laurie Capitelli, Susan Wengraf

Kate O’Connor, manager, Animal Care Services, said that her department estimated there were about 40,000 dogs … Continue reading »]]>

Animal services head Kate O’Connor in front of the new animal shelter. Photo: Emilie Raguso

Raised fees for a number of city services were agreed on Tuesday night by the City Council with relatively little debate and no public comments. Dog licenses will at least double: from $7.50 to $15 for a one-year altered dog licence and from $18 to $40 for a three-year altered dog license. Fees for animal adoptions from the city shelter are also going up.

Kate O’Connor, manager, Animal Care Services, said that her department estimated there were about 40,000 dogs in Berkeley. In FY12, 1,722 animal permits were issued (virtually all for dogs — she said only two cat licenses were issued). O’Connor’s estimate was that 20-25% of Berkeley’s dogs are licensed, which Councilmember Laurie Capitelli pointed out is probably an overestimate given the number of issued licenses. (...)

Read the rest of Dog licence fees to rise, other Berkeley Council decisions (573 words)

By lance. | Permalink | 22 comments |
Post tags: Berkeley City Council, License fees

For the ninth time in two years, a significant number of Sutter Health nurses, including many who work at Alta Bates in Berkeley, have walked out, this time for seven days, protesting what they say are highly unreasonable contract demands by their employer, as well as what they see are its attempt to “bust the union.”

Meanwhile, AFSCME’s patient care and service workers at five UC medical centers, … Continue reading »]]>

Nurses on the picket line outside Alta Bates hospital in Berkeley on Wednesday May 22. Photo: Tracey Taylor

Two separate groups of medical staff have gone out on strike in Berkeley.

For the ninth time in two years, a significant number of Sutter Health nurses, including many who work at Alta Bates in Berkeley, have walked out, this time for seven days, protesting what they say are highly unreasonable contract demands by their employer, as well as what they see are its attempt to “bust the union.”

Meanwhile, AFSCME’s patient care and service workers at five UC medical centers, as well as the UC Berkeley Student Health Center, went on a two-day strike yesterday. Health care professionals who are members of UPTE-CWA agreed to go on a one-day sympathy strike yesterday to show their support for their AFSCME colleagues.

Nurses began the 7-day strike at five East Bay Sutter hospitals on Friday May 16, and expect to return to work on Friday this week. The walkout affects more than 3,100 registered nurses (RNs) as well as respiratory, X-ray and other technicians, at Alta Bates Summit facilities in Berkeley and Oakland, Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley, and Sutter Delta in Antioch, according to the the California Nurses Association/National Nurses United.(...)

Read the rest of UC, Sutter nurses on strike over contracts, patient care (949 words)

By Tracey Taylor. | Permalink | 35 comments |
Post tags: Nurses' strike, Sutter Health

The BHS team, known as Coup, beat the nine-time winners from Alameda in the finals 11-6, which puts them at 18-3 on the season and ranked 13th in the nation.

The team now move on to the Western United States Championships in Corvallis, Oregon, on June 1-2, and hope to bring home another victory as they … Continue reading »]]>

The Berkeley High Ultimate Frisbee team at the State Championships last weekend, which they won. Photo: Larry Orman

The Berkeley High School Ultimate Frisbee team were crowned State Champions this past weekend after competing in the California State Championship tournament in San Luis Obispo.

The BHS team, known as Coup, beat the nine-time winners from Alameda in the finals 11-6, which puts them at 18-3 on the season and ranked 13th in the nation.

The team now move on to the Western United States Championships in Corvallis, Oregon, on June 1-2, and hope to bring home another victory as they faces off against powerhouse rivals from across the western United States.(...)

Read the rest of BHS Ultimate team are state champs, rank 13th in nation (338 words)

By Tracey Taylor. | Permalink | One comment |
Post tags: Berkeley High Coup, Berkeley High School, Ultimate Frisbee