Discovery Bay Press_01.29.10

THIS WEEK

FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A

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Vol. 8, No. 5 YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER January 29, 2010

Power in the paint

Libertys big girls asserted their altitude and kept the scrappy Panthers from controlling the backboard and the scoreboard.

Page 1B

Business .............................8ACalendar ..........................19BClassifieds ........................12BCop Logs ..........................15AEntertainment ................18BFood .................................10BHealth & Beauty ...............8BMilestones .........................7BOpinion ...........................14ASports .................................1BWebExtras! .......................1B

INSIDE

Sell stuff! Post FREE online classi eds.Its just one of many things you can do as a member! Sign in today at www.thepress.net. See page 17A.

Digging deep for Haiti aid

Opportunities abound for East County residents to join the international effort to relieve the suffering in Haiti.

Page 7A

Life to get a liftThis years Relay for Life event will use the theme of birthdays to emphasize the need to wage war on a prime cause of death.

Page 3A

The top-secret world of Camp Tracy

About 350 people came together on Sunday for a rare glimpse into the sometimes opulent, sometimes shadowy past of the Byron Hot Springs, also known as the top-secret World War II prisoner interrogation center called Camp Tracy.

The occasion was a visit to the former resort by Army Maj. Alex Corbin, author of the book The History of Camp Tracy: Japanese WWII POWs and the Future of Interrogation. The guest of the East Contra Costa Historical Society (ECCHS) and the Tracy Historical Society, Corbin reveals how the former resort, whose natural sulfur springs and mud baths attracted celebrities such as Clark Gable, Charlie Chaplin and Mae West in the 1930s, was put to another use in the 1940s: gently wresting military secrets from Japanese soldiers and sailors in an operation so secret that its existence was virtually unknown until just a couple years ago.

Corbin, a military intelligence offi cer whose duties have included helping to clean up Iraqs Abu Ghraib prison following the 2004 prisoner abuse scandal, discovered the existence of the Camp Tracy operation while doing research for

his masters thesis. Painstaking research through declassifi ed materials and a nationwide hunt for former soldiers stationed there uncovered the fact that, unlike the harsh coercive tactics used in Iraq, the work at Camp Tracy utilized kindness, friendliness and cultural understanding to glean important information about Japanese morale,

ship armaments and military installations.Threats and physical coercion were not

necessary, Corbin told the crowd gathered in the rubble-strewn lobby and peering down from the second-fl oor balcony. Courtesy and kindness

by Rick LemyreStaff Writer

Maj. Alex Corbin, right, shares a laugh with 94-year-old Al Nipkow dur-ing a presen-tation on the former POW interrogation center Camp Tracy, where Nipkow worked and about which Corbin has written a book.Photo by Richard Wisdom

see Secret page 18A

Town celebrates communityIt was a night of celebration,

congratulation and camaraderie as Discovery Bay residents feted their own last weekend during the annual Chamber of Commerce State of the Town gala. The event, emceed by 2009 Chamber Presi-dent Chris Steele and held at the Discovery Bay Country Club, was an opportunity to honor and thank those who continue to support and improve the community.

Awards were handed out in three categories: Citizen of the Year, Business of the Year and Teacher of the Year.

Teacher of the Year, Stacie Maslen, was recognized for her un-wavering commitment to education and her students. The eighth-grade Excelsior Middle School teacher thanked the community and her district for the honor.

I feel blessed every day, said Maslen. I have had many of your

children and will have many more of yours in the future; I love what I do. Thank you for honoring me.

A familiar face in the com-munity and especially at Discovery

Bay Elementary School, Denise Dimock was honored as Citizen of the Year, in part for her organiza-tion of the schools popular Boov-ille Halloween event, her work on

the schools Web site and her ongo-ing work and organization in plan-ning for the Friends of the Delta Public Library.

Chris and Erica Cookson, owners of the Boardwalk Grill, took home honors as Business of the Year not only for their popular cuisine but for their ongoing gen-erosity of time and resources to myriad community events.

The evening also offered an op-portunity for guests to hear updates on the town from local and county offi cials who notwithstanding the economy remain upbeat and positive.

With all the bad we have seen this year, we will continue to move the chamber forward, said 2010 Chamber President Greg Spivak. This is the year we get back on track.

Other speakers echoed the sentiment, as did General Manager Virgil Koehne, who briefed the au-

Rita Caruso, left, vice president of the Discovery Bay Chamber of Commerce, shares a smile and congratulatory moment with newly-honored Citizen of the Year Denise Dimock.

Photo by Rick Lemyre

by Ruth RobertsStaff Writer

see Community page 18A

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CSD balks at new developmentPointing to a tepid economy and worries

over sewer and water capacity, the Discovery Bay CSD withheld its blessing last week on a proposed 67 home subdivision in the west end of town.

William Schrader, representing Dis-covery Bay Partners, LLC, spoke during the CSDs regular meeting on Jan. 20, outlining his plans for the Newport Pointe development and answering questions from the board and audience.

Ive been working with the Department of Conservation and Development (DCD) for several years now on plans for this project, which is designed for movedown buyers ag-ing baby boomers who want to downsize but dont want to leave Northern California and their kids and grandkids, said Schrader. I re-ally think Ive designed a really nice project for the last (Discovery Bay) intersection here.

But most of the CSD board seemed less concerned with the aesthetics of the project than its functionary services. The fi rst and easiest question is water and sewer availabili-ty, said CSD Vice President Mark Simon. If there is no available sewer capacity at this time, then as far as Im concerned there is nothing to talk about.

Director Ray Tetreault agreed. Unless this development could pay to expand our treatment plant, at this point, as far as we can tell, it cant go forward.

Discovery Bay General Manager Virgil Koehne confi rmed that the town currently does not have the necessary water or sewer capabilities to support the new development without some upgrades to the Newport water treatment facility, which would serve the pro-posed area.

Schrader said that he has engaged in numerous conversations with the Hofmann

Company regarding the expansion of the Newport plant and believes the changes could be implemented. He was invited to address the CSD board by Koehne in response to a request by the DCD to the CSD to provide comment on the proposed development. While the CSD does not have the power to ac-cept or reject the project the fi nal decision is made by the county the CSD boards in-

put is taken into consideration by the county Board of Supervisors.

I spoke to the DCD and asked them for some information on this project because I knew there was a lot of (public) interest in this project, said CSD President Kevin Graves. They welcomed our concerns and comments and they said it was very timely because it was still very, very early in the process. I reiterated that we (CSD) wanted to be involved in the process every step of the way so that these concerns can be addressed, whether it is ap-proved by the county or not.

Likening the Newport Pointe project to the nearby Hofmann-built homes in Dis-covery Bay West as well as the Ravenswood development, Schraders plans include houses ranging in size from 2,220 to 2,800 square feet roughly 3.35 homes per acre as well as fi ve acres of dedicated wetlands, solar capacity for the homes and a neighborhood dog park.

This was the second pitch by Schrader, who came before the CSD in February of 2008 with plans for a 77-lot development on the same 20 acres, located between Newport Drive and Bixler Road.

The removal from the project of 10 homes, which were slated as affordable hous-ing apartments, is the result of a recent ruling by a Los Angeles court that threw out the rental portion of its affordable housing ordi-nance, declaring that it violated state law.

New case law is putting the inclusionary housing into jeopardy and so I was asked by

CSD President Kevin Graves points out the boundaries of a proposed housing development on 20 acres between Newport Drive and Bixler Road in Discovery Bay.

Photo by Richard Wisdom


see CSD page 18A

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Tornado sightings stir up East County residents

New fire board to meet

A National Weather Service tornado warn-ing for far East County expired last weekend with no reports of any funnel clouds touching down, although locals got an eyeful.

A severe thunderstorm, Doppler radar and reports from weather spotters of a funnel cloud near Brentwood triggered the warning Saturday at around 1:20 p.m. It lasted about 40 minutes.

John Fink of Brentwood was on Marsh Creek Road near Sellers Avenue when he spot-ted a huge wall cloud that dumped so much hail and heavy rain traffi c was forced to stop. As he snapped photos of the clouds, he spotted a fun-nel cloud.

I had to look at it two or three times while thinking: am I really seeing what Im seeing? he said. It crossed the road right in front of me. I was scared to death. It was crazy.

Fink said he did not see the twister reach the ground. It came close, but it didnt touch down, he said. In addition to sending his pho-tos to the Press, Fink sent them to KTVU, which resulted in a request for his photos from CNN a few minutes later.

Discovery Bay resident Danielle Cushman was also taking photos. It was amazing. They went right over my house off of Preston and Newbury, Cushman wrote in an e-mail to the

Press. I have lived here 13 years and only known of a tornado to hit Contra Costa one other time, in Brentwood. It hit Perez Nursery pretty hard. Today I must have seen a dozen clouds try to form. The pictures do not do it justice. To see them form and dissipate and then form again

was so cool and interesting.Torrential rains temporarily fl ooded roads

in the Byron area, and hail accumulated on Vasco Road near Camino Diablo. No major

Following this weeks ap-pointment by county supervisors of the fi nal two members the new governing board of the East Con-tra Costa Fire Protection District, the board will hold its fi rst meet-ing on Wednesday, Feb. 3.

Chris Finetti of the Town of Discovery Bay and Robert Kenny of Bethel Island were tabbed by supervisors Mary Piepho (Dis-trict III) and Federal Glover (Dis-trict V) to represent the unincor-porated areas of far East County on the new board. Last year, the City of Brentwood named Mayor Bob Taylor, Vice Mayor Erick Stonebarger and councilmen Chris Becnel and Bob Brock-man as its representatives, while Oakley named Mayor Pat An-derson, Vice Mayor Jim Frazier and Councilman Kevin Romick to the panel.

The meeting will convene Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. at 101B Sand Creek Road in Brentwood. Agen-das will be available Friday, Jan. 29 at the ECCFPD offi ces, 134 Oak St. in Brentwood.


see Tornado page 16A

Cory Hunt and his father, Jim, caught this image of a funnel cloud over Brentwood Saturday afternoon. The funnel didnt touch down but created some excitement for many people who witnessed the rare for Contra Costa County cli-matological event.

Photo courtesy of Cory and Jim Hunt


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Because she has recently lost loved ones to cancer, 5-year-old Drew Morganstein a kin-dergartener in Carol Elders class at Timber Point Elementary is very aware of the disease. She told her mom, Amy, that she wanted to help those who lose their hair because of the medicine, and immediately put her tresses where her words were, donating 8 inches of hair to Pantene Beauti-ful Lengths, which makes wigs for cancer patients (learn more at www.pantene.com). Discovery Bay now has a 5-year-old angel with a darling new hair-cut and a very proud Mom. Good job, Drew!

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Cut-above caring for cancer patients


Relay for Life 2010 kicks off

A world with less cancer is a world with more birthdays, so it seems proper that the joy of birthdays is this years theme for the American Cancer Societys Relay for Life.

The nationwide fundraiser kicks off locally in Brentwood with a get-together at Nines restaurant on Feb. 2 at 7 p.m.

Were using that wonderful theme to help kick off our 2010 event, said Brentwood Relay Event Chair Joy Ben-son. Were going to have cupcakes and candles for everyone who attends. All are

welcome.The gathering will feature the Bristow

Middle School Band playing a variety of birthday-related pieces.

But the real purpose of the meeting, said Benson, is to celebrate those who are returning to the Relay and introduce to the Relay those who have never participated.

The reason for this (Feb. 2 meeting) is to give people a little of the Relay experi-ence, said Benson. What we mostly want to do is just get more information out into the community, help people fi nd out about the Relay, how the teams operate, and let them know how much fun it all is. Its a real

celebration. Now in its sixth season, the Brent-

wood Relay for Life chapter has much to celebrate. Last year the group raised more than $230,000 for the cause, bringing its to-tal to an unprecedented $1 million over the past six years. Last fall at the Relay Summit held in Los Angeles, the Brentwood chap-ter was honored for its success.

We got the Thanks a Million award, which is given to relays that have earned a million dollars in their lifetime, said Ben-son. Less than 1 percent ever do that, and

Participants join in sup-

port as they take a lap

during the Survivors

Walk at last years Relay

For Life event at Liberty

High School.

Press file photo


see Relay page 18A

Henny and Penny will need to wait two more weeks to fi nd out if theyll be al-lowed to stay in a residential neighborhood in Brentwood, or if theyll need to start a search for a new home from scratch.

The Brentwood City Council Tues-day, absent Councilman Erick Stonebarger, deadlocked 2-2 on whether to relax zoning ordinances to allow chickens but not roost-ers to be kept on lots of less than 20,000 square feet. Councilmen Chris Becnel and Bob Brockman voted in favor of reducing the lot size required for keeping three chick-ens to 6,000 square feet, as long as the coop was at least 5 feet from the property line and 15 feet from neighboring structures. Coun-cilman Brandon Richey and Mayor Bob Taylor voted to keep the current standards, resulting in a tie and automatically moving the issue to the next meeting for a tie-break-ing vote by the full council.

Chicken leftovers at Council meeting


see Chicken page 18A

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FHA CHANGESThe Federal Housing Administration

(FHA) recently announced some changes to the way it does business. The FHA is a big deal nowadays because they are insur-ing about one-third of all new mortgages, and the majority of loans to first-time buyers. When the credit markets seized up during the credit crisis, the federal government loosened the purse strings at the FHA in order to keep the flow of home loans going.

Well, the FHA is starting to show some pretty severe financial strains as they continue to lose money. Almost 20% of all FHA-insured loans are currently in default. So they are taking some steps to try to avoid a taxpayer bailout in the near future. The good news is that they did not change their minimum down payment, which is still just 3.5%. There was talk of them rais-ing this to 5%, and this may still happen in the future. But for now, its still 3.5%.

What they are changing is their fees for their insurance premiums. They used

to charge 1.75% of the loan amount, but that will be raised to 2.25%. This amount can be financed in the loan, so its not an out-of-pocket expense for the borrower.

Another change is that borrowers will need to have at least a 580 credit score to qualify for an FHA loan. If your credit score is lower than 580, you will need to come up with at least 10% down.

Another change that is being dis-cussed is limiting the maximum the Seller can credit back to the Buyer for closing costs. Currently they will allow up to 6% in credits, but that will more than likely be reduced to a maximum of 3%. It looks like they are going to roll out the first changes I outlined above first, then add in the reduc-tion to 3% credits later this year.

If you have questions on this or any other real estate topic, call me at (925) 240-MOVE (6683). To search the MLS for free and view virtual tours of homes for sale, go to: www.SharpHomesOnline.com. Sharp Realty

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Community stepsup to help Haiti

Local groups and organizations have been digging deep into their hearts and pockets to bolster the humanitarian effort in Haiti. Some have already collected and sent packages or contributed dollars toward relief aid, while others continue to gather supplies for the long-term recovery. Heres a sampling of East County residents gener-ous efforts:

Lending a hand Fifth-graders in Greg Carmons class at Pioneer Elementary in Brentwood have chal-lenged themselves to raise money for UNI-CEF relief efforts in Haiti. The class chose UNICEF because 100 percent of donations gathered will go to help the children in need. So far the class has collected more than $100 from recycling projects that the students had been planning to use toward their Walk

Students in Greg

Camerons fth-grade

class at Pioneer

Elementary School in

Brentwood have col-

lected more than $100

for relief efforts in

Haiti.

Photo courtesy of Stacie Robles


see Haiti page 17A

8A | THEPRESS.NET BUSINESS JANUARY 29, 2010

National firm embraces Brentwood

Curran & Connors, a national advertis-ing and marketing fi rm, has offi ces in New York City, Atlanta, Denver and Brentwood not Hollywood suburb Brentwood, but far East County Brentwood, home of a rich agri-cultural history and CornFest.

So what is a big ad fi rm doing out here away from the big city? According to Justin Barker, regional vice president of Curran & Conners creative services, the company de-cided to relocate its Bay Area design depart-ment in order to enhance its employees qual-ity of life.

Weve been in the Bay Area, based out of San Bruno, for more than 10 years, said Barker, but after establishing our presence in the area, we realized that the design de-partment could be located anywhere, and we wanted to give our employees the opportunity to increase quality of life by relocating to city with affordable housing, good schools and a family-friendly atmosphere.

Curran & Connors relocated the Bay Area design department to Brentwoods Sand Creek Business Center in August of 2008. While none of the employees lives in Brent-wood, all enjoy the reverse commute from Antioch and Clayton.

Barker said while the fi rm looked for a new location in Concord and Walnut Creek, Brentwood was most appealing because the city is continuously growing, and Curran & Connors would like to contribute to the

growth of Brentwoods economic develop-ment.

As part of its commitment to the com-munity, the Brentwood offi ce has recently established a partnership with Heritage High School to create an internship program for as-piring graphic designers.

Hazel Wetherford, assistant to Brent-woods economic development manager, said Brentwood would like to attract more busi-nesses like Curran & Connors. Clients who come to Brentwood to meet with companies such as Curran & Connors not only directly boost the local economy; theyre exposed Brentwoods desirable qualities and spread

the word, encouraging more fi rms to relocate here.

Based from Long Island, N.Y., Curran & Connors operates more than a dozen of-fi ces nationwide and caters to more than 350 clients annually, including Levi, Activision, Southwest Airlines and Kelloggs. The Brent-wood graphic design department creates annual reports and corporate literature for west-coast companies such as Safeway and Diamond Foods. The fi rm also designs Web sites, corporate power point presentations, and other interactive media such as e-cards and fl ash presentations.

Barker said Curran & Connors has en-joyed more than 40 years of success as one of the nations top design and communication companies because of its commitment to cus-tomer service.

Design is subjective and there is a lot of fl exibility to be creative, but the most im-portant thing is to communicate the clients message, Barker said. You can create a re-ally aesthetically pleasing annual report, but if you arent able to bring the companys mes-sage to life, then the report is no good to the client. What we do here is design a product that makes a companys vision a reality.

While no locally-based businesses appear to be in need of an annual report, Barker said hed like to collaborate with local businesses on Web design and other interactive media suitable for smaller businesses.

For more information about Curran & Connors, visit www.curran-connors.com.

To comment, visit www.thepress.net.

BARKER

by Samie HartleyStaff Writer

The thousand-mile Baja pen-insulas offshore island beaches, mountainous spine and waters teeming with wildlife offer ad-venturous travelers a host of op-portunities for exploration. Pad-dling on Bajas Sea of Cortez is a sea kayakers and nature lovers dream.

On Feb. 4 at 7 p.m., REI in Brentwood presents Vicki Smith, avid kayaker and former REI Ad-ventures guide, who will share her experience and insight on outdoor adventures in central Bajas natu-ral and cultural wonders. Come kayak the Sea of Cortez near Lo-reto, ride mountain bikes along old missionary trails, and snorkel off pristine island beaches.

Smith will discuss efforts to protect whales and centuries-old mural rock art, and give you tips on ecologically- and cultur-ally-sustainable Baja travel. For more information on this free presentation, call 925-516-3540. REI Brentwood is located at 2475 Sand Creek Road in the Streets of Brentwood lifestyle center.

Getting the best out of Baja

JANUARY 29, 2010 EDUCATION THEPRESS.NET | 9A

Whiplash -- What is the Best Type of

Treatment?Whiplash usually occurs when the head is suddenly whipped or

snapped due to a sudden jolt, usually involving a motor vehicle collision. However, it can also occur from a slip and fall injury. So the question on deck is, which of the health care services best addresses the injured whip-lash patient?

Th is question was investigated in a published study titled, A symp-tomatic classifi cation of whiplash injury and the implications for treat-ment (Journal of Orthopaedic Medicine 1999;21(1):22-25). Th e authors state conventional [medical] treatment utilized in whiplash care, is disap-pointing. Th e authors reference a study that demonstrated chiropractic treatment benefi ted 26 of 28 patients with chronic whiplash syndrome. Th e objective of their study was to determine which type of chronic whip-lash patient would benefi t the most from chiropractic treatment. Th ey separated patients into one of 3 groups: Group 1: patients with neck pain radiating in a coat hanger distribution, associated with restricted range of neck movement but with no neurological defi cit; Group 2: patients with neurological symptoms, signs or both in association with neck pain and a restricted range of neck movement; Group 3: patients who de-scribed severe neck pain but all of whom had a full range of motion and no neurological symptoms or signs distributed over specifi c myotomes or dermatomes. Th ese patients also described an unusual complex of symptoms, including blackouts, visual disturbances, nausea, vomiting and chest pain, along with a nondermatomal distribution of pain.

Th e patients underwent an average of 19.3 adjustments over the course of 4.1 months (mean). Th e patients were then surveyed and their improvement was reported:

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Th ese fi ndings show the best chiropractic treatment results occur in patients with mechanical neck pain (group 1) and / or those with neuro-logical losses (group 2). Th e exaggerated group (group 3) was the most challenging and, the only group where a small percentage worsened. Th e good news is, the number of cases that responded well to chiroprac-tic treatment (groups 1 & 2) far out number those that dont (group 3). Hence, most patients with whiplash injuries should consider chiro-practic as their fi rst choice of health care provision.

If you, a loved one, or a friend is struggling with whiplash residu-als from a motor vehicle collision, you can depend on receiving a multi-dimensional chiropractic assessment and therapeutic approach at this offi ce. We sincerely appreciate your confi dence in choosing our offi ce for your health care needs!

YOU MAY BE A CANDIDATE FOR CHIROPRACTIC CARE FOR WHIPLASH!

FOR A FREE NO-OBLIGATION CONSULTATION CALL

516-5813Jardin Family Chiropractic

7351A Brentwood BlvdBrentwood, CA 94513

24% Asymptomatic24% Improved by Two

Symptom Grades24% Improved by One

Symptom Grade28% No Improvement

GROUP 1



Symptom Grade6% No Improvement

GROUP 2



Symptom Grade64% No Improvement9% Got Worse

GROUP 3

Edna Hill takes Center Stage again

As if a 23-point increase on the Aca-demic Performance Index wasnt enough to demonstrate that Edna Hill Middle School is doing something right, the Brentwood school was recently redesignated as a School to Watch Taking Center Stage by the Cali-

fornia League of Middle Schools.Were absolutely thrilled, said Prin-

cipal Kirsten Jobb. This is a great accom-plishment.

Jobb and her staff received the good news earlier this month after a representa-tive from the California League of Middle


see Edna Hill page 13A

Proud Bobcats, from left, Edna

Hill Principal Kirsten Jobb, Erika Chavez,

Matt Egger, Zachary

Peterson and Vice Principal Amy Wallace

bask in the Schools to

Watch spot-light. Edna Hill

was redesignat-ed as a School

to Watch for 2010.

Photo by Samie Hartley


Trying to stay afloat intodays job market?

In todays rising tide of unemployment, getting a job or holding on tothe one you have has never been more difficult and stressful. To helpour readers weather these unsettling times, weve partnered with theJob Journals award-winning website to bring you comprehensiveinformation on employment opportunities, job-search strategies, careerplanning, upcoming job fairs, and workplace issues for Northern Californiajobseekers. The lifeline you need to find rewarding work and fulfillingcareers, keep up to date with the latest employment trends, and follownews stories that reveal the hidden job market, is only a click away.

Trying to stay afloat intodays job market?

Six offi cials discussed the crisis of the collapsing Delta ecosystem for three hours before a packed audience at the Antioch His-torical Museum Saturday morning with little agreement on how to save the premiere waterway on the West Coast but with lots of fi ngers pointing at those contributing to the problem.

The biggest culprit is water-thirsty crops, according to Dr. Lawrence Kolb, former as-sistant director for the Water Quality Board. The real root problem we have in California is we take too much water out of the Delta for agriculture, he said. Farmers use about 80 percent of the water. A lot of water gives us limited social return. All of the crops amount to about 2 percent of the states economy.

About 40 percent of the water that farmers use goes to four low-value crops: cot-ton, rice, alfalfa and irrigated pasture. These crops are about 13 percent of the value of ag-riculture but they use 40 percent of the water. Agriculture is a fairly small player in the eco-nomic picture of California especially these low-value crops. They are really expensive to grow, heavily mechanized and dont provide much employment. We arent giving up that much (economically) if we have to cut back (water to farms).

But Kari Fisher, representing the Cali-fornia Farm Bureau Federation, begged to differ. Water is liquid gold, she said. With-

out water, irrigated agriculture would not ex-ist. California is the nations leading agricul-tural and dairy producer. One out of every six jobs in California is tied to agriculture in some way. A high priority should be placed on efforts to ensure a reliable water supply.

Fisher said that while agriculture uses 80 percent of the developed water supply in California, it only uses 41 percent of the total rainfall and water storage in the state. Nearly half of the water goes into the envi-ronment such as lakes, streams and ground-

water. Farmers and ranchers actually use water very wisely, she said, which prompted some in the audience of about 150 people to laugh.

She said that the states water delivery system, which hasnt been improved in 40 years, is outdated and insuffi cient. Three years of drought have resulted in water cutbacks to Californias $37 billion agricultural industry. This has resulted in crops being abandoned, orchards being torn down, hundreds of jobs lost and increasing food costs, she said.

But many local offi cials, fi shing orga-nizations and environmental groups be-lieve that the Delta fi sh are the ones getting shortchanged while too much of their water is sucked south to Central Valley farms and Southern California residents and business-es.

Theres a basic problem with fi sh: fi sh dont have opposable thumbs; they cant write checks and they cant vote, said David Nesmith, representing the Environmental Water Caucus. So when it comes to a choice between water for fi sh and water for people, guess who wins. Darwin and I are working on this. We dont like dams; we dont like the peripheral canal and (other water) diversions. The best dam sites are already built. The reli-gion that Governor Schwarzenegger belongs to is if you pour concrete, water will appear behind it.

The solution, he said, is to increase wa-ter recycling, increase the effi ciency of urban and agricultural water use and improve man-agement of groundwater supplies. And, like nearly everyone at the forum, Nesmith is op-posed to taking more water from the Delta due to the impact on fi sh. The Delta smelt has almost fl atlined, he said, adding that a recent survey almost couldnt fi nd any.

State legislators, who passed fi ve water bills in November, are on the right track in solving the problem, according to Gregory Gartrell, assistant general manager for the Contra Costa Water District. They dont fi x

Lots of fingers, no solutions at forum

Photo by Dave Roberts

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

see Forum page 20A

Environment-alist David Nesmith tells the audience at a Delta forum that sh get shortchanged because they cant write checks or vote.


LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICESLEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICESLEGAL NOTICESLEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALE T.S No. 1245383-14 APN: 034- 300-057 TRA: 19020 LOAN NO: Xxxxxx3393 REF: Rice, Scott A IMPORTANT NOTICE TO PROPERTY OWNER: YOU ARE IN DE-FAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DAT-ED October 05, 2006. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. On February 11, 2010, at 1:30pm, Cal-Western Reconveyance Corporation, as duly appointed trustee under and pursuant to Deed of Trust re-corded October 13, 2006, as Inst. No. 2006-0325261 in book XX, page XX of Of- cial Records in the of ce of the County Recorder of Contra Costa County, State of California, executed by: Scott A. Rice and Jeri B. Rice, Husband And Wife, As Joint Tenants, will sell at public auc-tion to highest bidder for cash, cashier s check drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or fed-eral credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association, or savings bank At the court street entrance to the county courthouse, 725 Court Street Martinez, California, all right, title and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust in the property situated in said County and State described as: Com-pletely described in said deed of trust The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real prop-erty described above is purported to be: 242 Mercedes Court Oakley CA 94561 The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common des-ignation, if any, shown herein. Said sale will be held, but without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regard-ing title, possession, condition or en-cumbrances, including fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust, to pay the remaining principal sums of the note(s) secured by said Deed of Trust. The total amount of the unpaid balance of the obligation secured by the property to be sold and reasonable es-timated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the Notice of Sale is: $641,225.75. If the Trustee is unable to convey title for any reason, the successful bidders sole and exclusive remedy shall be the return of monies paid to the Trustee, and the successful bidder shall have no further recourse. The bene ciary under said Deed of Trust heretofore executed and delivered to the undersigned a written declaration of Default and De-mand for Sale, and a written Notice of Default and Election to Sell. The under-signed caused said Notice of Default and Election to Sell to be recorded in the county where the real property is located. Regarding the property that is the subject of this notice of sale, the mortgage loan servicer as de ned in civil code a7 2923.53(k)(3), declares that it has obtained from the commis-sioner a nal or temporary order of ex-emption pursuant to civil code section 2923.53 and that the exemption is cur-rent and valid on the date this notice of sale is recorded. the time frame for giving a notice of sale speci ed in civil code section 2923.52 subdivision (a) does not apply to this notice of sale pursuant to civil code sections 2923.52. For sales information: Mon-Fri 9:00am to 4:00pm (619) 590-1221. Cal- Western Reconveyance Corporation, 525 East

Main Street, P.O. Box 22004, El Cajon, CA 92022-9004 Dated: January 19, 2010. (R-284598 01/22/10, 01/29/10, 02/05/10) Oakley Press No. 03-0477 Publish Dates: January 22, 29, February 5, 2010

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALETS No. 09-0089871 Title Order No. 09-8-255623 Investor/Insurer No. 140289964 APN No. 085-213-012-9 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 06/23/2006. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. Notice is hereby given that RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A., as duly appointed trustee pursuant to the Deed of Trust executed by: SERWA DADZIE AND CHARLES E SMITH II, WIFE AND HUSBAND, ALL AS COMMU-NITY PROPERTY, dated 06/23/2006 and recorded 06/28/06, as Instrument No. 2006-0203516-00, in Book , Page ), of Of- cial Records in the of ce of the County Recorder of Contra Costa County, State of California, will sell on 02/26/2010 at 10:00AM, At the Court Street entrance to the County Courthouse (corner of Main and Court Street), 725 Court Street Martinez, CA 94553 at public auction, to the highest bidder for cash or check as described below, payable in full at time of sale, all right, title, and interest con-veyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust, in the property situated in said County and State and as more fully described in the above referenced Deed of Trust. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 1325 MONTEZUMA ST, PITTSBURG, CA, 945652472. The under-signed Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. The total amount of the unpaid balance with interest thereon of the obligation secured by the property to be sold plus reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the No-tice of Sale is $421,480.17. It is possible that at the time of sale the opening bid may be less than the total indebtedness due. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept cashiers checks drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal sav-ings and loan association, savings as-sociation, or savings bank speci ed in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state. Said sale will be made, in an AS IS condition, but without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regard-ing title, possession or encumbrances, to satisfy the indebtedness secured by said Deed of Trust, advances thereun-der, with interest as provided, and the unpaid principal of the Note secured by said Deed of Trust with interest thereon as provided in said Note, plus fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. DATED: 09/25/2009 RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. 1800 Tapo Canyon Rd., CA6-914-01-94 SIMI VALLEY, CA 93063 Phone: (800) 281 8219, Sale Information (626) 927-4399 By: - Trustees Sale Of- cer RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. is a debt collector attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. ASAP# 3423751 01/29/2010, 02/05/2010, 02/12/2010 An-tioch Press No. 06-1617 Publish Dates: January 29, February 5, 12, 2010

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME

STATEMENT File #F-0009038-00 The name of the business (es): Your Fam-ily Pool Service Located at: 2420 Sand Creek Road, C-1 #199 In: Brentwood, CA 94513 Is hereby registered by the fol-lowing owner(s): Frank Marshall, 925 Crescent Drive, Brentwood, CA 94513. This business is conducted by: an In-dividual The registrant commenced to transact business under the cti-tious business name or names listed above on: N/A. Signature of registrant: Frank Marshall This statement was led with Stephen L Weir, County Clerk Of Contra Costa County on: De-cember 28, 2009 By: Mary Imbrie, Deputy Expires: December 28, 2014 Brentwood Press No. 02-1273 Publish: January 8, 15, 22, 29, 2010

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALE T.S. No. GM-183294-C Loan No. 0307620886 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST DATED 9/16/2004. UNLESS YOU TAKE AC-TION TO PROTECT YOUR PROPERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CON-TACT A LAWYER. A public auction sale to the highest bidder for cash, cashiers check drawn on a state or national bank, check drawn by a state or fed-eral credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan as-sociation, or savings association, or savings bank speci ed in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state, will be held by the duly appointed trustee. The sale will be made, but without covenant or warranty, expressed or implied, regard-ing title, possession, or encumbrances, to satisfy the obligation secured by said Deed of Trust. The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrect-ness of the property address or oth-er common designation, if any, shown herein. TRUSTOR: ASAD TAHERI, AN UNMARRIED MAN Recorded 9/22/2004 as Instrument No. 2004-0365028-00 in Book -, page - of Of cial Records in the of ce of the Recorder of Contra Costa County, California, Date of Sale: 2/26/2010 at 10:00 AM Place of Sale: At the Court Street entrance to the County Courthouse, 725 Court Street (corner of Main and Court Street), Martinez, California Property Address is pur-ported to be: 1939 BADGER PASS WAY ANTIOCH, California 94531 APN #: 055-350-013 The total amount secured by said instrument as of the time of initial publication of this notice is $400,415.00, which includes the total amount of the unpaid balance (including accrued and unpaid interest) and rea-sonable estimated costs, expenses, and advances at the time of initial publica-tion of this notice. Pursuant to California Civil Code 2923.54 the undersigned, on behalf of the bene ciary, loan servicer or authorized agent, declares as fol-lows: [ 1 ] The mortgage loan servicer has obtained from the commissioner a nal or temporary order of exemption pursuant to Section 2923.53 that is cur-rent and valid on the date the notice of sale is led; [ 2 ] The timeframe for giving notice of sale speci ed in sub-division (a) of Section 2923.52 does not apply pursuant to Section 2923.52 or 2923.55. ETS Services, LLC Date: 1/20/2010 2255 North Ontario Street, Suite 400 Burbank, California 91504- 3120 Sale Line: 714-730-2727 Omar Solorzano, TRUSTEE SALE OFFICER ASAP# 3419224 01/- 29/2010, 02/05/2010, 02/12/2010 An-tioch Press No. 06-1617 Publish Dates: January 29, February 5, 12, 2010

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALETS No. 09-0071986 Title Order No. 09-8-209095 Investor/Insurer No. 11608347 APN No. 055-240-031-9 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 06/27/2006. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. Notice is hereby given that RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A., as duly appointed trustee pursuant to the Deed of Trust executed by: DOROTHY MAE MARSHALL, AN UNMARRIED WOMAN, dated 06/27/2006 and recorded 07/03/06, as Instrument No. 2006-0209623-00, in Book , Page ), of Of cial Records in the of ce of the County Recorder of Contra Costa County, State of California, will sell on 02/26/2010 at 10:00AM, At the Court Street entrance to the County Courthouse (corner of Main and Court Street), 725 Court Street Martinez, CA 94553 at public auction, to the highest bidder for cash or check as described below, payable in full at time of sale, all right, title, and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust, in the property situated in said County and State and as more fully described in the above referenced Deed of Trust. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 2516 STANFORD WAY, ANTIOCH, CA, 94531. The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common des-ignation, if any, shown herein. The total amount of the unpaid balance with inter-est thereon of the obligation secured by the property to be sold plus reasonable estimated costs, expenses and ad-vances at the time of the initial publica-tion of the Notice of Sale is $863,054.87. It is possible that at the time of sale the opening bid may be less than the total indebtedness due. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept cashiers checks drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association, or savings bank speci ed in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state. Said sale will be made, in an AS IS condition, but without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regard-ing title, possession or encumbrances, to satisfy the indebtedness secured by said Deed of Trust, advances thereun-der, with interest as provided, and the unpaid principal of the Note secured by said Deed of Trust with interest thereon as provided in said Note, plus fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. DATED: 08/30/2009 RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. 1800 Tapo Canyon Rd., CA6-914-01-94 SIMI VALLEY, CA 93063 Phone: (800) 281 8219, Sale Information (626) 927-4399 By:-- Trustees Sale Of- cer RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. is a debt collector attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. ASAP# 3424937 01/29/2010, 02/05/2010, 02/12/2010 An-tioch Press No. 06-1617 Publish Dates: January 29, February 5, 12, 2010

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALETS No. 09-0131910 Title Order No. 09-8-391774 Investor/Insurer No. 110976578 APN No. 053-530-007-3 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 08/03/2005. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC

SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. Notice is hereby given that RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A., as duly appointed trustee pursuant to the Deed of Trust executed by: KATHRYN BOWMAN, AN UNMARRIED WOMAN, dated 08/03/2005 and recorded 08/11/05, as Instrument No. 2005-0301297-00, in Book , Page ), of Of cial Records in the of ce of the County Recorder of Contra Costa County, State of California, will sell on 02/26/2010 at 10:00AM, At the Court Street entrance to the County Courthouse (corner of Main and Court Street), 725 Court Street Martinez, CA 94553 at public auction, to the highest bidder for cash or check as described below, payable in full at time of sale, all right, title, and interest conveyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust, in the property situated in said County and State and as more fully described in the above referenced Deed of Trust. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real prop-erty described above is purported to be: 2316 CRYSTAL COURT, ANTIOCH, CA, 945318949. The undersigned Trustee dis-claims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. The to-tal amount of the unpaid balance with in-terest thereon of the obligation secured by the property to be sold plus reason-able estimated costs, expenses and ad-vances at the time of the initial publica-tion of the Notice of Sale is $748,981.11. It is possible that at the time of sale the opening bid may be less than the total indebtedness due. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept cashiers checks drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal savings and loan association, savings association, or savings bank speci ed in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state. Said sale will be made, in an AS IS condition, but without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regard-ing title, possession or encumbrances, to satisfy the indebtedness secured by said Deed of Trust, advances thereun-der, with interest as provided, and the unpaid principal of the Note secured by said Deed of Trust with interest thereon as provided in said Note, plus fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. DATED: 12/09/2009 RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. 1800 Tapo Canyon Rd., CA6-914-01-94 SIMI VALLEY, CA 93063 Phone: (800) 281 8219, Sale Information (626) 927-4399 By:-- Trustees Sale Of- cer RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. is a debt collector attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. ASAP# 3424609 01/29/2010, 02/05/2010, 02/12/2010 An-tioch Press No. 06-1617 Publish Dates: January 29, February 5, 12, 2010ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE

OF NAME PETITIONER OR ATTORNEY: Ashley Williams, 30 Brush Creek Court, Pitts-burg, CA 94565 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF CONTRA COSTA, 725 Court St., Martinez, CA 94553 PETITION OF: Ashley Wil-liams FOR CHANGE OF NAME ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NUMBER: N09-2033 TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: 1. Petition-er: Ashley Williams led a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Present Name: a. Brook-lynn Donique Boganey to Proposed

Name: Brooklynn Donique Mayweath-er 2. THE COURT ORDERS that all per-sons interested in this matter shall ap-pear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. NOTICE OF HEARING a. Date: 2/11/10 Time: 9:00 a.m. Dept. 60 Room 102 b. The address of the court is same as noted above. 3. a. A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition in the following newspaper of gen-eral circulation, printed in this county: BRENTWOOD PRESS b.Father names on birth certi cate must be personally served. Date: December 17, 2009 Judith A. Sanders, Pro tem Judge of the Su-perior Court Brentwood Press No. 02-1273 Publish Dates: January 8, 15, 22, 29, 2010

NOTICE OF TRUSTEES SALETS No. 09-0129096 Title Order No. 09-8-384547 Investor/Insurer No. 657DH0089 APN No. 076-690-051-8 YOU ARE IN DEFAULT UNDER A DEED OF TRUST, DATED 07/05/2006. UNLESS YOU TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT YOUR PROP-ERTY, IT MAY BE SOLD AT A PUBLIC SALE. IF YOU NEED AN EXPLANATION OF THE NATURE OF THE PROCEEDING AGAINST YOU, YOU SHOULD CONTACT A LAWYER. Notice is hereby given that RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A., as duly appointed trustee pursuant to the Deed of Trust executed by: DAVID J. TANTI, AN UNMARRIED MAN, dated 07/05/2006 and recorded 08/02/06, as Instrument No. 2006-0244470-00, in Book , Page ), of Of cial Records in the of ce of the County Recorder of Contra Costa County, State of California, will sell on 02/26/2010 at 10:00AM, At the Court Street entrance to the County Courthouse (corner of Main and Court Street), 725 Court Street Martinez, CA 94553 at public auction, to the highest bidder for cash or check as described below, payable in full at time of sale, all right, title, and interest con-veyed to and now held by it under said Deed of Trust, in the property situated in said County and State and as more fully described in the above referenced Deed of Trust. The street address and other common designation, if any, of the real property described above is purported to be: 2005 SAN JOSE DRIVE UNIT 155, ANTIOCH, CA, 94509. The undersigned Trustee disclaims any liability for any incorrectness of the street address and other common designation, if any, shown herein. The total amount of the unpaid balance with interest thereon of the obligation secured by the property to be sold plus reasonable estimated costs, expenses and advances at the time of the initial publication of the No-tice of Sale is $244,746.12. It is possible that at the time of sale the opening bid may be less than the total indebtedness due. In addition to cash, the Trustee will accept cashiers checks drawn on a state or national bank, a check drawn by a state or federal credit union, or a check drawn by a state or federal sav-ings and loan association, savings as-sociation, or savings bank speci ed in Section 5102 of the Financial Code and authorized to do business in this state. Said sale will be made, in an AS IS condition, but without covenant or warranty, express or implied, regard-ing title, possession or encumbrances, to satisfy the indebtedness secured by said Deed of Trust, advances thereun-der, with interest as provided, and the unpaid principal of the Note secured by said Deed of Trust with interest thereon

as provided in said Note, plus fees, charges and expenses of the Trustee and of the trusts created by said Deed of Trust. DATED: 12/10/2009 RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. 1800 Tapo Canyon Rd., CA6-914-01-94 SIMI VALLEY, CA 93063 Phone: (800) 281 8219, Sale Information (626) 927-4399 By:-- Trustees Sale Of- cer RECONTRUST COMPANY, N.A. is a debt collector attempting to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose. ASAP# 3424386 01/29/2010, 02/05/2010, 02/12/2010 An-tioch Press No. 06-1617 Publish Dates: January 29, February 5, 12, 2010ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE

OF NAME PETITIONER OR ATTORNEY: EVAN-GELINE RIVERA PENAFIEL, P.O. Box 225, Orinda, CA 94563 SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF CON-TRA COSTA, 725 Court St., Martinez, CA 94553 PETITION OF: Evangeline Ri-vera Pena el FOR CHANGE OF NAME ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE FOR CHANGE OF NAME CASE NUMBER: N10-0025 TO ALL INTERESTED PERSONS: 1. Peti-tioner: Evangeline Rivera Pena el led a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows: Pres-ent Name: a. Evangeline Rivera Pena el (AKA) Eve Pena el to Proposed Name: Eve Magalona Rivera 2. THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter shall appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be grant-ed. NOTICE OF HEARING a. Date: 3/5/10 Time: 9:00 a.m. Dept. 60 Room 102 b. The address of the court is same as not-ed above. 3. a. A copy of this Order to Show Cause shall be published at least once each week for four successive weeks prior to the date set for hearing on the petition in the following newspa-per of general circulation, printed in this county: BRENTWOOD PRESS Date: Jan-uary 8, 2010 Judith A. Sanders, Pro tem Judge of the Superior Court Brentwood Press No. 02-1273 Publish Dates: Janu-ary 15, 22, 29, February 5, 2010NOTICE OF PROPOSED ORDINANCES

SUMMARY OF PROPOSED ORDINANCE NO. 878

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BRENTWOOD APPROV-ING A REZONE (RZ 09-08) TO AMEND CHAPTERS 17.210, 17.220, 17.230 AND 17.240 OF THE BRENTWOOD MUNICI-PAL CODE BY ADDING A PROVISION AUTHORIZING THE CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT PROCEDURE FOR THOSE USES NOT SPECIFICALLY IDENTIFIED AS BE-ING CONDITIONALLY PERMITTED. THE FOREGOING ORDINANCE was in-troduced with the rst reading waived at a regular meeting of the Brentwood City Council on the 26th day of January, 2010, by the following vote:AYES: Council members Becnel, Brock-man, Richey, TaylorNOES: NoneABSENT: StonebargerABSTAIN: NoneATTEST:/s/_______________________Cynthia Garcia, CMCAssistant City ClerkCerti ed copies of the full text of the pro-posed ordinances are posted and may be read in full in the City Clerks Of ce at 708 Third Street, Brentwood, California, or a copy may be obtained from that of- ce based on the Citys actual cost for duplicating. Proposed date of adoption by City Coun-cil: February 9, 2010Brentwood Press No. 02-1273Publish Date: January 29, 2010

Oakley council updates General Plan

Discussions surrounding the Oakley General Plan have been a hot topic in town for months. The City Council voted Tuesday to approve amendments to the General Plan, but the approved changes were not the revi-sions some residents have been hoping for.

Several residents have called for revi-sions to the General Plan to address density issues in the city, but this weeks amendments were made to bring the citys constitution of development up to code to conform to laws that went into effect earlier this year.

Community Development Director Re-becca Willis said the General Plan is like a blueprint for city development: Its a very important planning document, and its im-portant that we keep it current with state and local laws that effect us. What we are doing tonight is a conformance exercise.

Willis explained that city staff reviewed all the changes to state, county and local laws that recently went into effect this year and

updated the General Plan where necessary. One of the changes was made to the Health and Safety Element of the General Plan to bring that chapter into conformance with Assembly Bill 162 regarding fl ood hazards and fl ood control management.

The approved clarifi cations made to four elements of the General Plan were mainly syntactic changes to provide internal consistency and clarity, but resident Brad Nix said the approval of the amendments showed how easy it is to amend the General Plan.

I want to thank the council for dem-onstrating just how easy it is to do a Gen-eral Plan amendment, Nix said. Previously weve heard on other topics about how diffi cult it is to revise the General Plan; how expensive it is. This demonstrates that its ac-tually quite easy. It also demonstrates that its quite cheap.

Nix, chairman of the Committee to Stop Rosewood, has urged the council to re-vise the General Plan to change the density of the proposed Rosewood Estates project, which would place 76 houses on 13.9 acres

of land, complying with the single-family high-density designation as specifi ed in the General Plan. Residents in the area have asked the council to amend the General Plan and rezone the land to reduce its density.

However, City Manager Bryan Mont-gomery said a substantial change, such as amending the General Plan to alter land-density designation, is a far more compli-cated process than the compliance revisions proposed at Tuesdays meeting.

This is merely a conformance update to the General Plan, Montgomery told the council. Mr. Nix certainly knows this, having served on the council for eight years, that if you want to do a substantial update or change to the General Plan, it requires numerous public hearings as well as environ-mental review. What is being modifi ed in this conformance update is merely accepting and utilizing the current CEQA document that exists under the General Plan. It would cost much, much more to pull anything out of the General Plan or modify it to a signifi cant de-gree because of that environmental and pub-lic review process. This is not that process.

Councilwoman Carol Rios said the matter before the council was an exercise in good housekeeping. Were just bringing ourselves into compliance and conformance with what has happened over the past few years, and I dont see it as the amendment that some people want to identify it, Rios said. To me this is good housekeeping. We have a chance, because of the economic downturn, to go back and make sure that we are in compliance that weve dotted all our Is and crossed the Ts. Weve had time to go back and process and make sure that our documents are correct and orderly and that there is no confusion.

Vice Mayor Jim Frazier agreed: I ap-preciate the term housekeeping. Were just trying to keep up with what were legally sup-posed to do.

The city hosted a General Plan work-shop last November, and Montgomery said a second installment is planned for February.

To review the updated General Plan incorporating Tuesdays approved revisions, visit www.oakleyinfo.com.



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Trevors Weekly Mortgage MattersBy Trevor Frey

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Mini-Eagle Lenders do not have the power or authority to fund, service, own, or even underwrite FHA loansall they can do is originate FHA loans through their Mortgagee sponsor. Th eir fi les must be brokered out and sent off to who knows where many times FHA fi les are sent to southern California or even out of state as far as Texas to be underwritten and funded by a Non-Supervised sponsor. With the Mini-Eagle Lender not truly in control of anything, the opportunity for delay and frustration

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Top of the Food Chain

Like their counterparts at Liberty High School, jazz band students at Heritage High are steadily raising funds for their trip to the 2010 Pacifi c Basin Music Festival in Hawaii in March.

Both bands were accepted to the presti-gious international music program, in which students collaborate with musicians from Australia, Japan, Singapore and the King-dom of Tonga. It will cost each student ap-proximately $1,500 to pay for admission to the program, airfare to Hawaii, meals and personal expenses.

Heritage has been hosting fundrais-ing events all school year, but as the trip is only seven weeks away, the band is kicking its fundraising into high gear with a special Spring Swing Fling on Friday, Feb. 5.

Weve done a lot of fundraising in the past year, said Heritage Band Director Steve Ernest. Weve held car washes, sold cookie dough, worked the CornFest cleaning up trash, and weve done guest performances at the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce mixer and at the Streets of Brentwood, but we wanted to put together one last big event that the entire community can enjoy.

The Spring Swing Fling will be an eve-ning of fi ne dining and dancing. Guests will be treated to a lasagna dinner while the Heri-tage Jazz Band plays classic swing songs. The students will be joined by the Summerset Big Band, which will help keep the party going while Cozette Hileman of Red Door Dance Studio provides ballroom dance lessons so that guests will be jumping and jiving like the pros.

Tickets are $15 for adults, $25 for a cou-ple and $10 for students and seniors. Guests are encouraged to dress in swing-era apparel as awards will be given for best dressed.

This is our last big push for fundrais-ing, said Ernest Weve been chipping away at the cost, but $1,500 per student is a lot of money with the way things are with the econ-omy. The students are really excited, though. Weve got 43 students signed up to go to Ha-waii, and it should be an experience of a life-time. Were all looking forward to it.

The Spring Swing Fling will be held at the Brentwood Senior Center, 193 Griffi th Lane, from 6:30 to 10 p.m. All proceeds will be donated to the Heritage High School Jazz Band.

For more information, e-mail Liz El-sasser at [email protected].


Swing Fling to boost Heritage Hawaii trip


Students from the Heritage High School Jazz Band will host a Spring Swing Fling to raise money for the bands trip to Hawaii in March.

Press file photo

Schools visited the campus to check out Edna Hills programs, which initially helped it earn the Schools to Watch designation in 2007. Schools are up for redesignation every three years.

As one of only 27 middle schools in the state to currently hold the title, Edna Hill has demonstrated that it puts programs in place to foster academic excellence, devel-opmental responsiveness and social equal-ity, which are essential to student success.

State Superintendent Jack OConnell

wrote in a press release that Schools to Watch represents a commitment to excel-lence: These middle schools teach deeply to standards, assess ongoing student prog-ress, and use data to make decisions. They develop confi dent and capable adolescent citizens, differentiate instruction for all learners, and provide effective interventions to struggling students and English learn-ers.

One key prerequisite for being named

Edna Hill from page 9A

see Edna Hill page 16A

14A | THEPRESS.NET JANUARY 29, 2010

OPINIONEDITORIALS, LETTERS & COMMENTARY National

AwardWinning NewspapersHave you got something to say? Visit www.thepress.net and let your thoughts be known.

City should condone more coopsLast nights City Council meeting was a roller-coaster

of highs and lows for those of us supporting the proposal to amend Brentwoods chicken ordinance. In the end, we were disappointed to see the council split with a 2-2 vote and the item moved forward to the next meeting. At least the proposal was reverted back to the original 6,000-square-

foot lot requirement extending the rights of far more property owners than the 10,000-square-foot proposed by the Planning Commission.

To be fair, during its Jan. 5 public hearing, the Planning Commission read several e-mails opposing any change in ordinance. These e-mails were spurned by the circulation of a letter, via a Shadow Lakes/Deer Ridge/Brentwood Hills Neighborhood Watch e-mail tree, which presented gross misinformation as fact. We feel this narrow scope of opposition led the Planning Commission to deviate from the 6,000-square-foot lot recommendation by the Land Use and Development Committee. Much of the opposing argu-ment suggested chickens incur blight. Chickens do not incur blight; people incur blight.

Many fail to take into consideration that three chickens hardly constitutes much beyond a hobby, which is the best way to describe this level of participation in local sustain-ability and slow food. People involved in raising backyard fl ocks take a much different approach than those interested

in commercial poultry production.Hobbyists can readily discuss the difference between

Cochins, Barred Rocks, Americaunas and Polish hens. They name their birds and can point out their distinct personali-ties. Extensive forethought goes into coop design. Most are interested in harvesting the nitrogen-rich manure for com-posting and amending their gardens rather than disposing of it into landfi lls or sewers.

The eggs their birds produce are cherished for their rich orange yolks, lower cholesterol and lack of antibiotics and other chemicals. In short, chickens for the hobbyist are more akin to pets with benefi ts and, contrary to what naysayers would like people to believe, can actually be benefi cial to the environment.

While poorly maintained coops can be offi cious, they are no more unsavory than poorly maintained kennels, parks littered with dog feces, or planter beds used as litter boxes. The unfortunate reality is, just as there are those who fail to take responsible care of their dogs and cats, there will be those whose chickens will not be properly cared for. This is why we fully support language in the Brentwood Munici-pal Code providing recourse for those affected by negligent animal owners. However, the rights of those who would be responsible owners should not be infringed upon to address the unconscientious few.

The argument has been posed that there is a place for agriculture and residents here pay a premium to not live amongst it. While we have already pointed out that a hand-ful of chickens does not constitute farming, we would also emphasize Brentwoods agricultural roots. We are among

the many who cherish Brentwoods blending of modern development with the rural suburban setting far removed from the congestion of the greater Bay Area.

Few cities boast such a diverse environment as Brent-wood, yet other cities such as Pleasanton, San Ramon and Alameda cities whose housing and property values exceed Brentwoods embrace the sustainable lifestyle and allow their residents to keep chickens. Brentwood should not turn its back on those who would like the opportunity to experi-ence the joy of producing their own healthy alternative to factory-farmed eggs. This opportunity should be extended to a greater number of residents than the few who are lucky enough to have large lots.

In conclusion, we ask council members to vote affi r-matively on the change in zoning. There is little we can say or do which would change the minds of those who oppose any change in zoning due merely to the prejudice of their perception. We are disappointed a Neighborhood Watch e-letter was used to promote opposition to the ordinance change, but we do not believe this narrow opposition repre-sents the greater voice of the citizens of Brentwood. We are familiar with a far more tolerant and accepting Brentwood.

Furthermore, we steadfastly stand by the rights of property owners to conduct themselves as they lawfully choose, in the privacy of their back yards, so long as they do not negatively affect their neighbors. We believe the change in zoning would have little net effect in enforcement requirements and would only improve upon the image of Brentwoods ideals of heritage, vision and opportunity.


by Aaron and Dana HardyBrentwood residents

Smarting from new meterEditor:

When PG&E installed a Smart Meter on the electric panel on our house, our bill more than doubled. We werent using any more electricity, but suddenly we had to pay almost triple the amount we had been paying. Today they installed a Smart Meter on the gas meter. All other things remain-ing the same; $10 says our bill will be more next month. This sounds bogus to me!

Shaunika DearmanAntioch

Walmart expansion balloon should be popped

Editor:The Walmart on Antiochs traffi c-

impacted Lone Tree Way has received a go ahead from the Antioch Planning Com-mission to expand the existing 141,499-square-foot store to 175,073 square feet, making it the fi rst Supercenter in the East Bay and an added draw to citizens and non-citizens residing in cities other than Antioch.

Hopefully, opponents will appeal the expansion to council, although, due to an-ticipated economic benefi ts to the city, I cant predict the outcome. Even pro-labor supporter Reggie Moore may be tempted aboard this time despite having opposed expansion when he ran for council.

Mr. Moore, a meter reader for PG&E, was at that time president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 444. Moore vehemently criticized Walmarts late $50,722 campaign donation to Manny Soliz, a former city council member run-ning for re-election. Soliz lost by fewer than 100 votes to Moore, who subse-quently acknowledged that half of his $32,000 campaign was fi nanced by union donations.

I fi nd numerous reasons, in addition

to the traffi c impact on Lone Tree Way, as to why any Walmart expansion should be denied, none of which were addressed in the staff report or by the Planning Com-mission:1. Superstores drive out existing retail centers. Raleys, Safeway and Lucky are al-ready hanging on by a thread as evidenced by the fact that locating grocery outlets farther out in southeast Antioch resulted in the closure of stores such as the Mt. View Market on 10th Street and Lucky on Somersville Road.2. 80 percent of Walmart suppliers are based in China and 70 percent of the goods on their shelves come from China. In Washington, D.C., Walmarts PAC uses money and infl uence to oppose strength-ening U.S. port security.3. The U.S. Department of Labor has fi led wage and hour violations against Walmart, which in 2005 paid a $11 million fi ne for hiring illegal labor; i.e., undocu-mented immigrants working for a janito-rial contract service hired by Walmart in 21 states. In California, Wal-Mart has appealed a $192 million award for not providing employee meal and rest breaks in accordance with California labor law.4. Walmart is constantly criticized for lack of adequate security measures, being more interested in profi ts than in customer protection. In hindsight, even the current

Walmart should have been required to hire security personnel and have moni-tored cameras and enhanced lighting in the parking area in order to prevent purse snatching and assaults.

Barbara ZivicaAntioch

Cut chickens some slackEditor:

In response to your article on January 22, Council public hearing puts chicken on the menu by Rev. Austin Miles: there are a few things that must be said.

First, the chance that anyone is going to become ill because of a chicken in their neighbors yard is silly. Youre about just as likely to becoming sick from the neighbors dogs as a neighbors chicken. You must also remember that the chickens are on the neighbors property, not yours.

Chickens should be allowed to reside in any yard that meets the requirements that were presented on Jan. 26.

Maria Balderrama, age 14Brentwood

Scouts give thanksEditor:

Boy Scout Troop 152 is pleased to share the news of another great success with our Christmas tree lot. From fami-

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A sampling of recent law enforcement activity reported by East County police de-partments.BRENTWOODJan. 15, 12:27 a.m. On Brentwood Boulevard, a subject struck his victim in the arm with a metal object. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Jan. 15, 4:38 p.m. A resident of Lone Tree Way found ammunition in her residence and turned it in for destruction.Jan. 15, 8:10 p.m. An unidentifi ed person left a threatening note on the doorstep of a resi-dent of Cheshire Drive.Jan. 15, 10:28 p.m. An unidentifi ed per-son stole the registration tabs from a vehicle parked on Village Drive.Jan. 16, 1:07 a.m. On Lone Tree Way at Can-ada Valley Road, a subject stopped for vehicle code violations was found to be driving on a suspended license.Jan. 16, 10:57 a.m. A vehicle stolen from a resident of Indiana Avenue was recovered in the city of Walnut Creek.Jan. 16, 2:22 p.m. A subject was apprehended after stealing merchandise from a business on Sand Creek Road. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Jan. 16, 2:23 p.m. A red bag was found hang-ing on a fence post on Grant Street at Martin Place. Jan. 16, 3:34 a.m. A driver who struck a light pole on East County Club Drive was charged with DUI. He was arrested and released on a Promise To Appear.Jan. 16, 4:26 p.m. On Walnut Boulevard, a subject was found to be driving under the in-fl uence of alcohol. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Jan. 16, 6:23 p.m. On Balfour Road, a driver who collided with another vehicle, causing mi-nor damage, left the scene without identifying himself.Jan. 16, 8:03 p.m. On Sand Creek Road at the Highway 4 Bypass, a subject stopped for a vehicle code violation was found to have an outstanding no-bail warrant. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Jan. 17, 7:17 a.m. An unidentifi ed person used the personal information of a resident of Legacy Street in an attempt to obtain credit.Jan. 17, 8:43 a.m. An unidentifi ed person stole a locked vehicle parked in front of a resi-

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