Contra Costa Herald

Undercover investigators seize hundreds of pounds of dangerous fireworks in sales busts

By Steve Hill, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District

CONCORD, CALIF., July 4, 2021 – Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (Con Fire) today announced its fire investigators, working undercover, have made multiple fireworks-related arrests in the days leading up to the Independence Day holiday. The law enforcement actions resulted in hundreds of pounds of dangerous fireworks being removed from community streets.

In their continued efforts to take dangerous fireworks off our streets, Con Fire investigators have conducted the following fireworks enforcement actions in recent days:

July 2, 2021 – Hercules Ave. at San Pablo Blvd., Hercules

Con Fire investigators researched and located a social media post advertising illegal fireworks for sale in Contra Costa County. Working undercover, they made contact with the seller and arranged a purchase in the City of Hercules. Surveillance was established at the seller’s residence during which the seller was seen transferring substantial amounts of fireworks from his garage to his vehicle.

En route to the intended meet, investigators initiated a stop, and identified the seller as a Hercules resident who led investigators to fireworks caches at his residence and the residence of another suspect also in possession of a significant amount of illegal fireworks.

In total, 157 pounds of fireworks were confiscated from the two locations

Both individuals were cited on scene. The names of the involved individuals are not being released at this time due to the ongoing nature of the investigation.

July 3, 2021 – 8000 block of Brentwood Boulevard, Brentwood

Con Fire investigators researched and located a social media post advertising illegal fireworks for sale in Contra Costa County. Working undercover, investigators contacted the seller who was identified to be in the City of Brentwood.

After coordination with East Contra Costa Fire Protection District, a purchase was arranged. Investigators established surveillance at the location arranged. Meeting with the seller, investigators confirmed illegal fireworks were being sold and detained the seller. The illegal fireworks were confiscated, and the seller was issued a citation on scene.

July 3, 2021 – 1600 block Century Oaks, Brentwood

Following an investigative lead, working in cooperation with Brentwood Police, undercover Con Fire investigators made contact with a resident of Antioch. This individual confirmed the tip Con Fire had obtained, offering illegal fireworks for sale. The seller insisted on meeting at a location within the City of Brentwood, where investigators established surveillance ahead of the meet. Meeting with the seller, investigators confirmed illegal fireworks were being sold and detained the seller.

During the investigation, it was learned additional fireworks were stored at the suspect’s home in Antioch. A search of that home recovered additional fireworks. In total, 101 pounds of illegal fireworks were confiscated and the seller was issued a citation.

Arrested for fireworks sales was Gabriel Ramirez, 25, a resident of Antioch.

Con Fire investigators continue to work to remove dangerous fireworks from our communities’ streets, along with putting those who traffic them, out of business. Residents can help them in this important public safety mission by reporting illegal fireworks sales to the Arson Tip Line at 1-866-50-ARSON.

Use of fireworks of any type is illegal in Contra Costa County and exceedingly dangerous during these drought conditions. Con Fire urges anyone observing fireworks being used to report this to their local law enforcement at 1-833-885-2021 and to report all fires immediately to 911.

Con Fire’s Fire Investigation Unit asks residents to help them fight fireworks crime across the county by reporting all fireworks sales to the Arson Tip Line at 1-866-50-ARSON. They caution residents not to hesitate on information that seems too little or unimportant to matter, adding some of the most valuable tips come from residents who were not aware what they saw was very important to the investigation of an incident.

At 1-866-50-ARSON, residents can leave a recorded message about fire-related criminal activity in English or Spanish. Tips can be anonymous, but all tips are treated confidentially. Fire investigators sometimes need additional information, so inclusion of name and phone number is encouraged.

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Following is the text of the Declaration of Independence in celebration of Independence Day, July 4th, 2020:

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated:

Column 1

Georgia:

Button Gwinnett

Lyman Hall

George Walton

Column 2

North Carolina:

William Hooper

Joseph Hewes

John Penn

South Carolina:

Edward Rutledge

Thomas Heyward, Jr.

Thomas Lynch, Jr.

Arthur Middleton

Column 3

Massachusetts:

John Hancock

Maryland:

Samuel Chase

William Paca

Thomas Stone

Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:

George Wythe

Richard Henry Lee

Thomas Jefferson

Benjamin Harrison

Thomas Nelson, Jr.

Francis Lightfoot Lee

Carter Braxton

Column 4

Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris

Benjamin Rush

Benjamin Franklin

John Morton

George Clymer

James Smith

George Taylor

James Wilson

George Ross

Delaware:
Caesar Rodney

George Read

Thomas McKean

Column 5

New York:

William Floyd

Philip Livingston

Francis Lewis

Lewis Morris

New Jersey:

Richard Stockton

John Witherspoon

Francis Hopkinson

John Hart

Abraham Clark

Column 6

New Hampshire:

Josiah Bartlett

William Whipple

Massachusetts:

Samuel Adams

John Adams

Robert Treat Paine

Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:

Stephen Hopkins

William Ellery

Connecticut:
Roger Sherman

Samuel Huntington

William Williams

Oliver Wolcott

New Hampshire:

Matthew Thornton

From the website: www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/declaration.html

Happy Independence Day from the Contra Costa Herald!

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Many Californians are looking forward to a three-day weekend this year for Independence Day. Even though people are eager to travel and get together with family and friends, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) is urging motorists to slow down and enjoy the holiday.

From 6:01 p.m. on Friday, July 2, through 11:59 p.m. on Monday, July 5, the CHP will observe a Maximum Enforcement Period (MEP) focused on speed enforcement. To keep the roadways safe for everyone, all available officers will be watching for motorists who are distracted, speeding, or driving under the influence (DUI). CHP officers will also be on alert for aggressive driving and acts of road rage.

With many motorists expected on the roadways, patience will be key. Allow yourself plenty of time to get to your destination and avoid unsafe driving behavior such as tailgating. Remaining calm and courteous behind the wheel reduces your risk of an unpleasant encounter with other motorists. If you feel you are at risk, call 9-1-1.

“Saving lives is a priority for our officers,” CHP Commissioner Amanda Ray said. “Motorists will help make everyone’s holiday safer on the road by observing the speed limits, avoiding distractions, staying sober, practicing patience, and being courteous to other drivers.”

During the 2020 Independence Day MEP, at least 36 people were killed in crashes on California roadways. The CHP also made 738 arrests for DUI of alcohol and/or drugs.

This year’s Independence Day MEP also coincides with a speed-related traffic safety effort that the CHP is participating in along with the Oregon State Police and the Washington State Patrol along Interstate 5, which passes through all three states. Officers in the three states will focus on speed violations along the entire stretch of Interstate 5.

“By getting the message out, we are hoping for voluntary compliance from motorists,” added Commissioner Ray. “However, officers will be looking for anyone who is speeding or driving impaired and posing a danger on the roadways.”

The most recent nationwide data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows one-fourth of traffic fatalities in 2018 were the result of speeding. In fatal crashes in 2018, nearly half (48 percent) of speeding drivers in passenger vehicles were not using seat belts at the time of the crash.

The mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security.

 

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13 provisions included in the INVEST in America Act

Washington, DC – Today, July 1, 2021, 13 initiatives authored by Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (D, CA-11) and aimed at promoting sustainable transportation and improving access to safe and reliable public transit were included in the INVEST in America Act (H.R. 3684), which passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 221-to-201. The INVEST in America Act is a $715 billion surface transportation reauthorization and water infrastructure bill that will create good-paying jobs to rebuild and reimagine America’s surface transportation infrastructure, with investments in roads, bridges, transit, rail, and drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. 2021 Fact Sheet for INVEST in America Act

“California has long been a model for the country in the transportation space, particularly when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and investing in public transportation. The INVEST in America Act aligns with and furthers California’s goals through bold, innovative legislation that would put millions of Americans to work, speed up our economic recovery, and follow through on our commitment to reduce emissions with transformative investments in cleaner transportation,” said DeSaulnier.

DeSaulnier’s measures included in the bill would aid the transition to environmentally clean modes of transportation, improve accessibility of reliable and efficient public transit, increase road safety, and save taxpayer money. Among those provisions are:

• Electric Vehicle (EV) Infrastructure Enhancement:Based on Congressman DeSaulnier’s Clean Corridors Act (H.R. 2012), the bill would quickly build out EV charging infrastructure nationwide to allow more Americans to shift to environmentally-friendly modes of transportation, saving gas money and our planet, while also creating jobs. The Biden Administration has signaled that this is a top priority.
• Improved Transportation System Connectivity:Would provide grants to implement better public transportation investment allowing us to create a more interconnected, innovative, and efficient public transportation system that will in turn get more cars off the road, reduce congestion, create more equity, and help fight climate change. This language is part of Congressman DeSaulnier’s Jobs for a Carbon Free Transportation System Act and Incentivizing Value Capture for Greener Transportation Act (H.R. 2205).
• Greater Transportation Accessibility:Originally included in Congressman DeSaulnier’s COMMUTE Act (H.R. 3581), this provision would enhance transportation planning and equity by improving access to essential services like jobs, health care and childcare facilities, and affordable housing.
• Enhanced Trucking Safety and Oversight: The bill includes requirements that enhance motor carrier compliance with labor and workplace safety laws, ensuring that our truckers and other road users remain safe on the roads and that motor carriers are held accountable when they violate these protective laws.
• Transportation Safety Improvement:Based on the Stop Underrides Act (H.R. 1622), co-led by Congressmen Cohen and DeSaulnier, the package directs the Department of Transportation to enhance underride guard protections to prevent deadly truck underride collisions.
• Efficient Infrastructure Project Delivery:The bill would increase oversight of large infrastructure projects to minimize megaproject cost overruns, delays, and reduced construction quality. Based on Congressman DeSaulnier’s Megaprojects Accountability and Oversight Act (H.R. 2204), this measure would reduce waste, save taxpayer money, and ensure vital infrastructure projects are completed safely and without delay.

The bill still requires approval by the U.S. Senate.

Congressman DeSaulnier is a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. He previously served as Chair of the California State Senate Transportation and Housing Committee as well as the California Assembly Transportation Committee. He is also a former member of the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and has been a longtime leader in advocating for sustainable transportation as well as safe and efficient public transportation systems.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

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Victim shot multiple times, including once in the head, in grave condition

By Sergeant James Stenger, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Tuesday June 29, 2021, at approximately 4:04 PM, Antioch Patrol Officers responded to the 2300 block of Arthur Way for a male who was shot in the street. When officers arrived, they located a 23-year-old male (resident of Pittsburg) who had been shot several times, including once in the head. The victim was transported to a local trauma center and is currently listed in grave condition.

It was determined through the investigation of this case that 49-year-old Crescencio Zavala-Garcia shot the victim during a verbal argument about a work-related issue. Zavala-Garcia fled the scene in a vehicle after the shooting.

The Antioch Police Department Special Operations Unit and Problem Oriented Policing Team located the vehicle Zavala-Garcia fled in on a property in unincorporated Brentwood, where he was known to stay. The Antioch Police Department SWAT Team was utilized to search the property, but Zavala-Garcia was not located during the search.

A judge issued a probable cause warrant for Zavala-Garcia and the Antioch Police Department is actively looking to arrest him. Zavala-Garcia also has an arrest warrant for kidnapping, domestic violence and felony evading and has a very violent past.

The Antioch Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance in locating Zavala-Garcia. Zavala-Garcia should be considered armed and extremely dangerous and should not be approached. If Zavala-Garcia is seen or you know his location, please call 9-1-1 or the Antioch Police Dispatch center at (925) 778-2441.

Zavala-Garcia is described as a Hispanic Male, 5’ 7” tall, 145 pounds, with brown eyes and gray hair.

Zavala-Garcia has used the following names in the past: CRESCENCIO GARCIA-ZAVALA, CRESCENCIO GARCIA, CRESCENCIO ZAVALA, CRESENCIO ZAVALA GARCIA, CRESENCIO GARCIA, CRECENCIO GARCIA, CRECENCIO ZAVALA GARCIA, CRECENCIO ZAVALA GARCIA, CRESENCIO GARCIA ZAVALA

Additional inquiries or information can be directed to Antioch Police Detective Gerber at (925) 779-6943 or by emailing RGerber@antiochca.gov. Anonymous tips or information about this – or any other incident – can be sent via text to 274637 (CRIMES) with the keyword ANTIOCH.

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By Jimmy Lee, Director of Public Affairs, Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff

The Forensic Services Division of the Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff was awarded $376,101 in grant funding from the federal Bureau of Justice Assistance DNA Capacity Enhancement for Backlog Reduction Program.

The grant will allow for the hiring of a forensic analyst and the purchase of new instrumentation and equipment. This will increase the capacity to process more DNA samples, thereby helping to reduce the number of forensic DNA and DNA database samples awaiting analysis and to prevent a backlog of forensic and database DNA samples, like those collected at crime scenes.

“This grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance will increase our capacity and help us better serve law enforcement agencies and crime victims,” said Contra Costa County Sheriff David Livingston. “This will increase our efficiency of testing and enable us to provide quicker results to law enforcement and prosecutors on DNA cases in Contra Costa County.”

The Forensic Services Division hopes to hire a new forensic analyst by the end of the year.

The Bureau of Justice Assistance, a  division of the U.S. Department of Justice, helps to make American communities safer by strengthening the nation’s criminal justice system: Its grants, training and technical assistance, and policy development services provide state, local, and tribal governments with the cutting edge tools and best practices they need to reduce violent and drug-related crime, support law enforcement, and combat victimization.

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Leonard (Lenny) Kolias Jr.

Feb 12, 1959 to June 2, 2021

Leonard (Lenny) Kolias Jr. of Pittsburg, CA passed away on June 2, 2021.

Lenny was born in Oakland, CA on February 12, 1959 and lived in the Bay Area his whole life. He graduated from the school of Hard Knocks and started working at age 13 in the family business, Kolias Grading and later for B & B Paving and Grading. He made house pads for thousands of the houses from Antioch/ Pittsburg to Danville/San Ramon and Vallejo/Napa as well as many other areas in the Bay Area. He loved his work and took pride in being a Dirt Pusher/Heavy Machine operator for over 40 years.

He enjoyed spending time with his family the most! Some of his favorite times were at the family cabin on the Sacramento River catching catfish and running through the corn fields. He loved fast cars and big trucks. If you knew Lenny, you knew he had a presence, he was big, loud, giving and always happy.

Lenny is survived by his partner Debbie Melia, daughters Jamie Kolias and Krystle Melia, beloved grandchildren Jesslyn Marie, Jayla Ann, and Aidan Leonard, his sister, Cyndi Vipperman (Ken), brother,  Don Kolias (Tracy) and many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Lenny is preceded in death by his parents Leonard and Carole Kolias, his brother Christopher Kolias, his grandmother Francis Gates and his nephew Bradley Reid.

Lenny was loved by many and will be missed ♥️.

 

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SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders of both the Senate and the Assembly today, Friday, June 25, 2021, announced a proposed extension of California’s statewide evictions moratorium, and an increase in compensation for California’s rent relief program.

The three-party agreement on AB 832 – which extends the current eviction moratorium through September 30, 2021 – will ensure that California quickly uses the more than $5 billion in federal rental assistance to help the state’s tenants and small landlords and protect vulnerable households from eviction. The agreement widens rental assistance by enhancing current law. Provisions include increasing reimbursement to 100 percent for both rent that is past due and prospective payments for both tenants and landlords. Additionally, the bill ensures rental assistance dollars stay in California by prioritizing cities and counties with unmet needs, and uses the judicial process to ensure tenants and landlords have attempted to obtain rental assistance.

“California is coming roaring back from the pandemic, but the economic impacts of COVID-19 continue to disproportionately impact so many low-income Californians, tenants and small landlords alike,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “That’s why I am thankful for today’s news from the Legislature – protecting low-income tenants with a longer eviction moratorium and paying down their back-rent and utility bills – all thanks to the nation’s largest and most comprehensive rental assistance package, which I am eager to sign into law as soon as I receive it.”

“Our housing situation in California was a crisis before COVID, and the pandemic has only made it worse — this extension is key to making sure that more people don’t lose the safety net helping them keep their home,” Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) said. “While our state may be emerging from the pandemic, in many ways, the lingering financial impact still weighs heavily on California families. People are trying to find jobs and make ends meet and one of the greatest needs is to extend the evictions moratorium—which includes maximizing the federal funds available to help the most tenants and landlords possible—so that they can count on a roof over their heads while their finances rebound.”

“The key thing is to recognize that people in rental housing are still facing financial obstacles, even as our economy reopens,” Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) stated. “This moratorium will keep families in homes, provide critical financial support to landlords, and help protect our supply of rental housing.”

Details on the proposed extension can be found in AB 832, which will be in print today. To apply for rental assistance for either renters or landlords, visit housing.ca.gov/covid_rr/index.html.

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Extend ban on residential rent increases through September 30; inadequate county housing policy fuels crisis

By Daniel Borsuk

The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously voted to extend the prohibition on residential evictions and rent increases through September 30 even though a driving factor for the county’s housing crisis can be linked to the county’s preference to permit the construction of more high-income housing than low-and-moderate-income housing.

While supervisors heard citizens make requests that the rental moratorium be extended through December 30, supervisors resisted those pleas and preferred that extension go through September 30.

“If another extension is needed after September 30, we can then take it up at that time,” said District 4 Supervisor Karen Mitchoff.

The action the supervisors took on Tuesday marks the fourth rental moratorium that the elected officials have passed since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2019.

“The trouble is we already have a blanket moratorium on any rent increase,” said District 2 Supervisor Candace Andersen.  “I don’t want to go through this again at the end of the year.”

Approve Housing Needs Allocation

But supervisors did not publicly comment on an approved consent item that reflects the county’s longstanding preference to have far more above moderate-income housing units – 3,147 units – constructed in the unincorporated areas of the county from 2023 to 2031, according to the recently released Association of Bay Area Government’s (ABAG’s) Final Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA).

The ABAG RHNA item was passed as a supervisor’s consent item and was not publicly discussed at Tuesday’s meeting.

RHNA also shows Contra Costa County is designated to permit 2,082 very low-income housing units, 1,199 low-income units, and 1,217 moderate income units from 2023 to 2031.

Conservation and Development Department Director John Kopchick said the county will appeal ABAG’s RHNA findings on grounds the Draft Allocation is 5.59 times as high as the county’s allocation for the prior period (which was 1,367).

“As of the end of 2020 the County had issued building permits for 1,881 new housing units,” Kopchick wrote in a memo to the supervisors. “While we have met the overall allocation for the 2015-2023 period, we have so far met only 16% of the allocation for very-low income and 53% of the allocation for moderate income. Staff is concerned that an allocation that significant change is likely not achievable.”

Kopchick added, “The increase in the county’s allocation from prior cycle is larger than the increase for the Bay Area as a whole (5.59 times higher for the county versus 2.35 times for the region as a whole). In the view of staff, the amount of the increase relative to the region may not be equitable. The county’s draft allocation is almost 2,000 units higher than the largest allocation for any city in the county. The county’s allocation is the second highest allocation for a county in the Bay Area (only San Francisco is higher) and is the ninth highest among the 110 jurisdictions in the Bay Area.”

The county has until the July 9th deadline to submit an appeal of the Draft Allocation. ABAG will conduct public hearings in September and October on the RHNA appeal. ABAG will act on the final RHNA in January 2023.

Other Board Action

Among consent items supervisors approved were:

• Sanjiv Bhandari of Alamo was appointed to a (District 2 – Supervisor Candace Anderson) four-year term to the Contra Costa County Planning Commission. Bhandari is president and chief executive officer of BK BC Architects, Inc. of Walnut Creek.
• Discovery Bay resident Bob Mankin was reappointed to the District 3 seat on the Contra Costa County Planning Commission. Recommended by Board Chair Diane Burgis, he will serve a four-year term.
• A $100,000 contract with Loomis Armored US, LLC for armored cash transportation services for the County Treasurer-Tax Collector for the period July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2024 with two possible one-year extensions. This marks the first time that the County Treasurer-Tax Collector has used another vendor for armored courier services to transport cash/check deposits because over the past several years, the County Treasurer’s Office became “increasingly dissatisfied with the quality of service provided by that vendor….”
• Authorized Sheriff-Coroner David O. Livingston to applied and accept the United States Department of Justice Programs, DNA Program Backlog Reduction Grant in an initial amount of $250,000. This grant will reduce the number of backlogged DNA tests in the Sheriff’s Criminalistics Laboratory for the period of Jan. 1, 2022 through the end of the grant period.
• An update on the formation of permanent regulations for the cultivation of industrial hemp will be presented to the board of supervisors by June 30. Kopchik said a draft ordinance is scheduled to be considered by the County Planning Commission at a public hearing on June 23.  Subject to the Planning Commission’s review of the draft zoning ordinance, staff expects that it will present both draft ordinances to the board of supervisors in July or August.

Supervisors Select September 14 to Resume In-Person Sessions

Supervisors set Tuesday Sept. 14 as their first in-person session meeting to be conducted in the new David Twa Public Administration Building in Martinez.

At a price tag of $60 million, the new building with 72,000 square feet will be open to the public with COVID-19 public health safeguards in place, in other words face masks if required.

Supervisors also promoted the hybrid meetings with both in-person and virtual or telephonic public comments.

 

 

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By Allen Payton

The video about the bands that perform at the biennial Stand Down on the Delta, to promote this year’s event, entitled “Music Heals” was released last week. Director and producer Joey Travolta and his Inclusion Films crew of predominately students, shot and edited the almost 8-minute video at Smith’s Landing Seafood Grill in May. (See related article)

“Delta Veterans Group is proud to bring Stand Down on the Delta 2021 to Contra Costa County September 10-13, 2021,” said J.R. Wilson, the organization’s president. “This year we are starting a new program called ‘Music Heals’ conducted by our Entertainment Director Darlyn Phillips. This program will engage our veterans in music, to calm the soul.”

“Music often times breaks down barriers that might be obstacles to reintegration,” he continued. “The music brings out the inner joy in those that may have PTSD or other Health problems…. Bands from around the Bay Area will be coming to the CCC Fairgrounds to participate in this great event.”

Travolta’s film crew includes youth and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, who are students in his program throughout the state. Five of the students helped shoot the Music Heals video.

“Darlyn enlisted the help of Joey Travolta and his crew to shoot the promo video, which we’re excited to have for this year’s event,” Wilson shared. “We very much appreciate his and the Inclusion Films team work on this project.”

The video includes interviews with the various singers and musicians from the bands that perform at each Stand Down, as well as some of the songs they will be playing, including originals.

For more information or to volunteer visit the Stand Down on the Delta Facebook page or Delta Veterans Group website.

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