Monday, April 30, 2012
The septuagenarian politician is seeking his third four-year term in city hall.
In a lengthy political career that has included seats in city, county and state government, Tom Bates has never seen California in such desperate straits. But Berkeley is still Berkeley – a community that will tax itself to provide the kinds of services that are being slashed elsewhere in the state – and Bates, who works without a salary, said being mayor of Berkeley remains a plum job. "It is a wonderful privilege to be a mayor of Berkeley," he said. Bates announced his re-election bid Thursday with a tweet, a Facebook page and a website touting his past accomplishments and future plans. No one has emerged to contest him, but that may not be much of an issue if the past is any indicator: He won his first mayoral race with 55 percent of …
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Assemblywoman says she's courting voters new to the district.
Nancy Skinner, who represents Berkeley among several other East Bay cities in the state Assembly, is holding an "Iron Chef" contest as a fundraiser for her re-election campaign, in which she is running unopposed. The event is being held tonight in Berkeley with two pairs of chefs competing in the cook-off, which will be judged by six attendees chosen by raffle. Tickets range from $100 to $2,500. (Details at the bottom of the article.) Asked why she's raising funds for her re-election campaign if she has no opponents, Skinner said she wants to begin communicating with new constituents who are being added to her district under redistricting and that she also would like to help fellow Democrats retain and gain seats in other Assembly races in…
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Community invited to open meeting March 29 to discuss post-election consequences if tax initiative fails.
- SCHOOLS
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Tuesday, March 27
William Huyett is the superintendent of Berkeley Unifiied School District. His open letter to the community deals with cuts that threaten public schools in the city and throughout the state. For yet another year I am writing to you about significant cuts to Berkeley Unified and all California public schools. The Governor’s proposed reductions for the next school year, coupled with the loss of $1.7 million in federal stimulus funds and our increasing costs, leave us with a structural deficit of $3.0 million. This figure may increase depending on factors like enrollment and certain reimbursements, which are yet to be finalized. The district is holding a budget forum at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, March 29 in the Council Chambers at the school …
Survey shows Berkeley residents feel the economy is stable, but balk at bond measures.
Whoever said talk is cheap may have been tipped off by pollsters. Nearly 80 percent of Berkeley residents feel the economy is stable or improving, 57 percent are doing well or excellently, and 58 percent think the city’s leaders are doing an excellent or good job, according to a 17-minute telephone survey of 430 likely voters conducted between March 14 and 17. But the survey by Lake Research Partners showed that while voters may be feeling optimistic about the economy, they are not feeling flush enough to finance the improvements they consider important – at least, not yet. For instance, most voiced support for parcel taxes that would pay for housing and homeless services. And more than the necessary two-thirds majority considers upgrades …
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
The Berkeley Unified School District is asking public school advocates to support higher taxes for the wealthy and an increased state sales tax. If the governor's tax initiative fails in November, it would mean a loss of $3 million for BUSD, says the dist
- SCHOOLS
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Wednesday, February 8
From the Berkeley Unified School District: California has a right to be proud of its strong educational standards – California’s are among the toughest of the nation. But for schools to meet those tough standards, there must be resources available to meet the challenge. Currently, California is the 47th state in the union in per student funding for public education. The Governor’s preliminary January, 2012 budget significantly reduces the amount of money for public school districts in California. And if the governor’s package of taxes does not pass in November, there would be another very large reduction in December. This comes at a particularly bad time for school districts, which are losing (or have lost) federal stimulus funds. In …
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Mayor says the Occupy Wall Street movement "has done this country a great service"
- POLICE & FIRE
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Thursday, December 22, 2011
Bay City News--About seven tents remain at the Occupy Berkeley encampment in Civic Center Park this evening, according to a spokesman for Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates. The encampment had grown to more than 100 tents in recent weeks but had declined to about 20 tents as of Thursday morning after Berkeley police recently began distributing notices saying that the park closes at 10 p.m. and anyone found camping there after that time would be required to remove their tents. Nils Moe, a spokesman for Bates, said most protesters at the park have left voluntarily. However, he said, "There are a few stragglers who are sitting and waiting." Earlier today, Berkeley police spokeswoman Sgt. Mary Kusmiss said police would monitor the situation in the park …
Thursday, July 14, 2011
The council decided to wait for clarification on amendments to the Berkeley Election Reform Act, and possibly change the proposal.
The city council decided to delay voting on amendments to the Berkeley Election Reform Act, chapter 2.12 of the city's municipal code, after expressing concerns at Tuesday's meeting that new proposals are "over the top." "I would like to delay it," said Mayor Tom Bates, who moved that the amendments be referred back to the Fair Campaign Practices Commission. "There are so many questionable items here, I'm not inclined to vote for it." The amendments (PDF) would require: The reform act amendments apply to independent committees that weigh in on elections but are not directly connected to measures or candidates. As an example in a interview after the meeting, Steve Wollmer, the chair of the Fair Campaign Practices Commission, said that …
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
A June 14 event is planned at the Claremont Hotel.
- ELECTIONS
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Wednesday, June 8, 2011
(Bay City News) First Lady Michelle Obama will be fundraising in the East Bay next week for her husband's re-election campaign. Tickets to the June 14 Obama Victory Fund 2012 breakfast reception cost between $1,000 for general seating and $25,000 to co-host, according to President Obama's campaign website. The event will be held at 8:45 a.m. at the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa at 41 Tunnel Road in Berkeley. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, encouraged the first lady to come to the area, Lee spokesman Ricci Graham said. "I'm delighted that the First Lady has accepted my invitation to visit the East Bay," Lee said in a statement. "We plan to provide a very warm welcome to her next week." Graham didn't know the circumstances surrounding the …
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FiatSlug
4:18 pm on Wednesday, March 28, 2012
The appropriate priorities of a city government is to ensure public safety, maintain infrastructure (in this case, roads and sewers), and build and maintain community amenities (parks, libraries). In Berkeley's case, the BUSD is responsible for the state of the schools, so the City of Berkeley doesn't have to worry about providing primary and secondary education; it only needs to get out of BUSD'… more ›