Contra Costa Herald

News Of By and For The People of Contra Costa County, California

Sunny outlook for solar power at Antioch, Lafayette BART stations

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On October 27, the Board of Directors authorized BART to enter into an agreement with Solar City to install, operate, and maintain solar panels at the new, upcoming Antioch station as well as Lafayette Station.

BART will purchase electricity generated from these two new installations, which once constructed will be the largest solar generation facilities on District property.  As an additional benefit to customers, the panel canopies will provide shade over a portion of the parking lots at each location.

“The BART to Antioch project is putting a brand new face on transit in eastern Contra Costa, and it’s exciting to see new, environmentally-friendly technologies like solar powering up these upcoming stations,” said BART Director Joel Keller.

The cost of the project will be paid from the energy operating budget, and will cost a cumulative $3.75 million and $3.85 million at Antioch and Lafayette stations, respectively, over the 20-year term of the agreement.

Construction of the panels is expected to be completed at Antioch station by fall 2017, and in Lafayette by late spring 2017.

Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office STARR 3 helicopter rescues injured hiker on Mt. Diablo trail

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helicopter-rescue

See link to video at the bottom of the article.

On October 20, 2016, at about 11:05 AM, the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (CON Fire) requested assistance from Sheriff’s Office STARR 3 helicopter. Firefighters hiked approximately 1.5 miles on a remote trail on Mt. Diablo to evaluate a hiker who was injured. CON Fire requested a short-haul rescue from STARR 3 because of the rugged terrain and distance and time it would have taken to carry the victim out.

As the video shows, STARR 3’s Tactical Flight Officer and onboard CON Fire Captain/Paramedic were short-hauled to the scene and secured the victim in a rescue device. The victim was extracted to awaiting firefighters and paramedics and transported to a local hospital.

Just two days later, STARR 3 performed another short haul rescue of an injured mountain biker at Briones Regional Park.

To view the video, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlND8CUWdNY

Senator Glazer named Legislator of Year by AMVETS

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Honored for Work on Resolution Rectifying Mistreatment of African-American Servicemen in WWII and for Calling Attention to Veterans’ Suicides

Sacramento, CA – Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, was named 2016 California Legislator of the Year by the AMVETS Department of California for his support of U.S. Veterans and his commitment to ensuring their concerns are heard.

The AMVETS honor is awarded to legislators “who have gone the extra mile to support California’s veterans and their families.”

Glazer authored SR 69, which called on the President of the United States to exonerate 50 African-American U.S. Navy Seamen and overturn their unjust convictions for mutiny. Glazer also won praise for bringing attention to the issue of 22 veteran suicides per day by participating in a challenge of doing 22 pushups each day for 22 days throughout his district and in Sacramento.

“Upon taking office, Senator Glazer immediately supported veterans by signing onto a legislative letter regarding funding for country veterans service officers, even before he had hired a staff,” said Lorraine Plass, the legislative chairperson of Team AMVETS. “Since then, he has enthusiastically fought to bring awareness to the epidemic of veteran suicides.”

Glazer said he’s been honored to work on behalf of veterans.

“These men and women deserve our respect and gratitude for serving our country and putting their lives on the line to keep our freedoms intact,” Glazer said. “I want veterans to know that I have their back and will stand up for them at every opportunity.”

 

Closed Pittsburg fire station to reopen after three years, will also serve Bay Point

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Residents of Pittsburg and Bay Point can breathe a little easier today, after Chief Jeff Carmen of the Contra Costa Fire Protection District announced that Station 87 would be reopened. Chief Carmen made his announcement at Tuesday morning’s meeting of the Board of Supervisors, acting as the County Fire Protection District Board of Directors.

“Thanks to the partnership with the City of Pittsburg and an improved economy, ConFire can fill a gap that has existed since the station was shuttered three years ago,” said Supervisor Federal Glover, in whose district the station is located.

Station 87, located on Leland Road and John Henry Johnson Parkway in Pittsburg, is expected to

be staffed and open for service by January 1, 2017. While the station was closed, it took two stations – one in Bay Point and one in Pittsburg – to answer the calls that normally would be serviced by Station 87.

“Without Station 87, fire services took longer to reach residents and businesses on the western half of the City,” said Pittsburg Mayor Ben Johnson. “We needed it to come back, and we’re pleased the County and the Fire District are able to restore this critical service to Pittsburg.”

Station 87 opened in 2000, serving the western end of Pittsburg and portions of Bay Point until the fire district’s finances forced its closure on July 8, 2013. The station closure, one of six that were shut down, was necessary because the district had failed to secure voter approval of a parcel tax in 2012 to address its budget woes.

In the years since the station closed, the ConFire has made several cost-saving changes, including partnering with a private contractor for ambulance service and seeking new revenue to

support its operations. The economic recovery has also helped.

For its part, Pittsburg’s City Council recently approved a new Fire Services Community Facilities District, which will collect a fee from every new home built in the city to support fire services. It is a model Contra Costa County is looking at duplicating, but for now, Pittsburg is the only city in the county to use this method to support fire services. For the past decade, Pittsburg has used a similar special district to support police services in newly developed areas of the City.

“With Prop. 13 limiting our property tax, which funds fire-fighting services, we need to find other funding sources,” said Glover. “Pittsburg’s special district fees is one way of making up the gap in what is collected and the market increases in wages and equipment.”

Three finalists announced for Community College District Chancellor, public forums scheduled

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The Chancellor’s Search Committee has announced the selection of three finalists for the position of Chancellor of the Contra Costa Community College District (District). The finalists are: Eugene Huff, Dr. Kindred Murillo, and Dr. Fred Wood.

The 20 members of the Search Committee have been working since May 24th to recruit and interview candidates and narrow their choices down to the top three.

Public forums have been scheduled at each college and the District Office on Monday, October 31, 2016, beginning at 8:30 a.m. The three finalists will make statements and answer questions from attendees. The public forums will be 50 minutes each and are open to the community, students, faculty and staff. A detailed schedule of the public forums is available at www.4cd.edu.

chancellor-public-forum-scheduleIf anyone is unable to attend the scheduled public forums, the public forums held at Contra Costa College will be streamed live, and links to these recorded public forums will be available on the District website. Online comments about the finalists will be accepted through November 1, 2016, 5:00 p.m.

The Governing Board will interview all three finalists on November 1, 2016, and conduct additional deliberations as needed. It is anticipated that a public meeting will be scheduled within a couple of weeks following the interviews at which time the Governing Board will take action on the Chancellor search.

The Chancellor serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the District and reports directly to the five-member elected Governing Board. The Chancellor, in collaboration with the three college presidents and other District leadership, is responsible for assessing, planning, organizing and evaluating the resources, programs and services of the District to meet the educational needs of the students and the community.

As the educational and administrative leader of the District, the Chancellor represents the District to community groups, business and industry, labor organizations, public school districts, the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges, the University of California, California State University, private colleges and universities, city and county agencies, and the California legislature.

Following are three finalists for Contra Costa Community College District Chancellor:

gene-huff-finalGene Huff has been with the Contra Costa Community College District since 2001. He has served as Executive Vice Chancellor, Administrative Services, since 2013, overseeing the fiscal services, human resources, information technology, police services and risk management areas for the District. He first served as a contract administrator, Vice Chancellor of Human Resources, in 2004 and has been the District’s chief negotiator since that time. Prior to joining the District, Huff worked for Whirlpool Corporation in operations and human resources for eleven years. Huff serves on the Executive Committee and Board of Directors for the Contra Costa County Schools Insurance Group, and chairs the District’s Retirement Board of Authority. He is best known for training and presenting on collective bargaining, and interest-based bargaining in particular, to human resources and other groups for almost a decade. He graduated from Purdue University with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in management.

dr-kindred-murilloDr. Kindred Murillo is a passionate college educator serving for twenty years in the California Community College System. Serving for the past five years as the Superintendent/President of Lake Tahoe Community College, Kindred has worked with the campus and the local community to financially stabilize the college through Measure F, transparent and accountable budgets, and a focus on scheduling for “student access and success.” Before arriving in Tahoe, she served as the Vice Chancellor of Administrative Services for Contra Costa Community College District. Kindred also served as the Vice President of Administrative Services at Pasadena Area Community College District. She was promoted to Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services when Copper Mountain Community College became a separate district. Kindred was hired as an adjunct faculty at Desert Community College District in 1996, served as a full-time faculty member, and moved into college administration in 2000. She brings a unique background to community college with 13 years of business and six years of governmental relations experience. Kindred is a product of the community college system, graduating from Barstow College with a liberal arts degree.  She completed her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at Redlands University and earned a Master of Science in Organizational Development and a doctorate in Organizational Leadership at Pepperdine University. Kindred enjoys spending time with her family riding bikes, hiking, and paddle boarding. She loves to read and is an avid seeker of knowledge.

dr-fred-woodDr. Fred Wood presently serves as Chancellor at the University of Minnesota Crookston (UMC). UMC, which was a two-year technical college beginning in 1966 and transitioned to a baccalaureate granting institution in 1993, is a work-force focused campus of the U of M system of which half of the degree seeking students are on-campus students and the other half are on-line. UMC offers an experiential learning based curriculum where on-campus students are required to complete an internship and currently offers 14 degrees fully on-line. Chancellor Wood joined UMC after a 26-year career at the University of California, Davis, where he served as vice chancellor of student affairs from 2007 to 2012, leading one of the largest student affairs portfolios in the nation. His career at UC Davis included other leadership positions, as well, such as interim vice provost for undergraduate studies and associate dean of the College of Letters and Science, while concurrently serving as a faculty member in chemistry. He began both his college education and professional career at the community college. Prior to UC Davis, Dr. Wood was a faculty member at North Idaho College and his first teaching assignment during graduate school was at Diablo Valley College. A first-generation college graduate, Chancellor Wood earned an A.A from Diablo Valley College, and B.S. and Ph.D. in chemistry from UC Davis. He is married and has three grown children. He enjoys hiking, biking and skiing with his family.

The Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD) is one of the largest multi-college community college districts in California. The CCCCD serves a population of 1,019,640 people, and its boundaries encompass all but 48 of the 734-square-mile land area of Contra Costa County. The District is home to Contra Costa College in San Pablo, Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, as well as educational centers in Brentwood and San Ramon. The District headquarters is located in downtown Martinez.

Following are the Members of the Chancellor Search Committee:

chancellor-search-committee-members

 

Congressman DeSaulnier receives “A” from National Education Association

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Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11), the only Bay Area member on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, received a perfect grade on the National Education Association’s (NEA) annual report card for the first session of the 114th Congress. The NEA is made up of 3 million members who are teachers and staff that work in every level of education, from pre-school to university graduate programs. Their Legislative Report Card measures Members of Congress’ overall support for public education and educators, with each Member receiving a letter grade of A, B, C, D or F.

“We know student success is highly dependent on early investment in their education. In my first year as a Member of Congress, I fought for a high quality and affordable education for every student in every classroom across the country. I am deeply honored to receive an A from the National Education Association and look forward to continuing to work with the NEA to improve our schools and prioritize student’s academic success,” said Congressman DeSaulnier.

“We commend Congressman DeSaulnier for listening to educators and getting the job done for students during the 114th Congress,” said Mary Kusler, NEA director of government relations. “The Congressional passage of the bipartisan Every Student Succeeds Act, which Rep. DeSaulnier supported, is a direct result of what is possible when legislators from both sides of the political aisle put students ahead of partisan politics especially in an era of gridlock in Washington. This result also is an unequivocal recognition that many lawmakers still believe educators – those who know the names of their students – are the most trusted professionals best equipped to make school and classroom decisions to ensure student success regardless of ZIP code. We hope that the bipartisanship displayed at times last year will lead to greater future collaboration. We will continue to work with all elected officials to ensure the success of every student in America.”

Congressman DeSaulnier’s measures to improve Head Start programs, protect student athletes from concussions, and strengthen students’ access to support and “wraparound” services like tutoring, counseling, and other extracurricular activities were successfully included in the Every Student Succeeds Act. Additionally, Congressman DeSaulnier recently completed his Education Listening Tour, during which he visited every school district and in California’s 11th Congressional District.

Belle ballot statement lie case continued to December, may change plea or face trial

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By Allen Payton

The latest court hearing in the Contra Costa District Attorney’s case against Contra Costa County School Board Member Jeff Belle, over a lie on his ballot his statement in 2014, was held on Monday, October 17th.  However, according to Deputy D.A. Steve Moawad, “it was put over” and “the next court date is December 15th.”

At that hearing, Belle will have to either change his plea from not guilty or the judge will set a date for trial, Moawad explained.

Belle was charged with lying on his candidate’s statement in his campaign for school board in 2014, for writing that he had a college degree, when he had not yet obtained one. That fact was revealed in an interview with this reporter for an article posted on the Antioch Herald website.

If convicted, the maximum penalty for lying on a ballot statement is a fine of $1,000.

Belle represents Area 5 on the county school board, which includes Bethel Island, Clyde, Knightsen, Oakley, and parts of Antioch, Bay Point, Brentwood, and Pittsburg

State Voter Information Guides in process of being mailed

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By Allen Payton

Some voters, including this writer, are wondering why we don’t have our copy of the State Voter Information Guide, yet, since absentee ballots are being mailed, beginning this week, and we already have a copy of the county voter information guide. (Yes, I know that was a run-on sentence. So, apologies to my high school English teacher, Jo Fyfe).

According to the California Secretary of State’s Elections Division, mailing of the State Voter Information Guides started on September 29th and ends on October 18th.

The Secretary of State’s office mails the state voter information guides to voters who are registered before the 60 day cut off. After that the counties mail them out.

If you don’t receive one by October 18th call 1-800-345-VOTE to get a hard copy mailed to you. In the meantime, you can read or hear the information in the guide online at http://voterguide.sos.ca.gov/en/alt-versions/.

 

Contra Costa voters can drop off mail-in ballots at Vote-N-Go boxes, including at county libraries, beginning this week

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Residents can save postage and time with this expanding vote-by-mail program

By Paul Burgarino, Community Education and Engagement Specialist, Contra Costa County Elections Division

Contra Costa residents will find it easier to vote in the upcoming November 8th Election, as the Contra Costa Elections Office once again partners with local agencies to provide convenient “CoCo Vote-N-Go” drop off locations, prior to and on Election Day.

There are six new drop-off locations in Contra Costa County for the November 2016 Election; the Discovery Bay Community Center, the Kensington Library, the El Sobrante Library, the Crockett Library, the Ygnacio Valley Library and the Dougherty Station Library.

Starting the week of October 10th, voters will find the drop-off boxes at these new locations, in addition to all Contra Costa city halls and the County Administration Building, located at 651 Pine St. in Martinez.

“We are excited to expand the CoCo Vote-N-Go program into some of Contra Costa’s local library branches for voters to safely drop off their vote-by-mail envelopes,” said Joe Canciamilla, Contra Costa Registrar of Voters.  “We urge voters to take advantage of this service.”

“The drop off locations at our libraries stretch into the deep parts of the county,” said County Librarian Melinda Cervantes. “We are thrilled to take part in this program and provide an additional service to our communities.”

Contra Costa voters can drop their ballots at any location, regardless of where they live. The distinguishable boxes will be available during the location’s normal business hours.

The postage for vote-by-mail envelopes this election is 68 cents; however, the drop-box service eliminates the need for those stamps. Staff members will have the popular “I Voted” stickers available for those who drop off their ballots.

For more information about voting by mail, call 925-335-7800 or visit the Elections Office website at www.cocovote.us.

New Orleans Coroner may not release cause of College Board Trustee Nejedly’s death for two to four months

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John. T. Nejedly

John. T. Nejedly

By Allen Payton

In an effort to determine the cause of death of Contra Costa Community College District Trustee John T. Nejedly, while he was in New Orleans over the weekend, following a conference, inquiries were made to both the New Orleans Police Department and New Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office, today.

“The New Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office releases the names of victims,” said Dawn Massey, Senior Public Information Officer in the New Orleans Police Public Affairs Division. “We’ve had a couple of unclassified deaths that came in over the weekend.”

Unclassified means there was no obvious signs of death.

When asked for information about Nejedly’s death, Gayell Johnson of the Coroner’s Office said, “Once the person is autopsied it takes awhile to determine the cause of death. That is not something we know at this time.”

The Nejedly case “came in as a UI which is ‘under investigation’,” she added.

When asked how many days that will take, Johnson replied, “You mean how many weeks. The usual time is eight to sixteen weeks” for the results of the autopsy to be released.

However, his body can be released once the autopsy is completed, which is within 24-48 hours, so a memorial service can be held, she added.