Posted in: Police & Crime | Comments (0)
By Sergeant Morefield, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau
On Wednesday, December 11, 2013, officers of the Antioch Police Department, in partnership with members of the Richmond Police Department, California Department of Corrections, FBI, and Contra Costa County District Attorney Investigators conducted a proactive enforcement detail in the City of Antioch. This operation was targeted at the high crime areas of the city.
At approximately 7:04 PM, officers assigned to this detail affected a traffic enforcement stop in the area of G Street at Texas Street. During this traffic stop, a police officer was struck by the suspect vehicle as it fled from officers, leading them on an over hour long pursuit through the cities of Antioch, Pittsburg, Bay Point, and Concord.
Multiple agencies were involved at different points in the pursuit to include the Pittsburg Police Department and CHP. Speeds in the pursuit reached up to 100 mph on SR-4. Spike strips were deployed several times during the pursuit, flattening some, but not all of the tires of the suspect vehicle. The pursuit ultimately ended up in the area of G St. and Longview Rd. in Antioch, as the suspect vehicle circled the neighborhood, driving on its rims.
The pursuit ended when the suspect vehicle was disabled in the 2900 block of Longview Road and the driver (a 36-year-old male) fled on foot. This suspect was quickly apprehended a short distance away by the pursuing officers. He was later sent to the Martinez Detention Facility for charges including Assault with a Deadly Weapon on a Police Officer and Felony Evading.
No officers or civilians were injured during this incident and there were no reported vehicle collisions. This case is still under investigation by the involved police agencies.
No further information will be released at this time.
You may text a tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using key word ANTIOCH.
Publisher @ December 12, 2013
Posted in: News | Comments (0)
Starting January 1, 2014, BART riders will pay on average an extra 19 cents in fares to help pay for new train cars and other top priority projects that will ensure reliable, safe and clean train service for the Bay Area for years to come. In February 2013, the Board of Directors voted to continue BART’s inflation-based fare increase program and dedicated the new revenue to replace and improve BART’s aging system.
The projects supported by the program include the purchase of Fleet of the Future train cars, a new train control system to improve reliability and to allow more trains to run more frequently, and the expansion of and improvements to the Hayward Maintenance Complex to serve the new fleet and support future service to Silicon Valley.
The inflation-based fare increase program has been in place since 2003 and provides passengers a predictable pattern of small fare adjustments over time as opposed to larger increases with little notice. 60% of surveyed BART passengers support small, predictable increases like these. The renewed program will mean fare increases at a rate below inflation in 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020 and will generate a total of $325 million to be applied toward these important programs. The first increase will be 5.2%, raising fares on average by 19 cents.
“BART is required to come up with a portion of funding for many of our capital projects in order to qualify to receive extra money from other sources,” said BART Spokeswoman Alicia Trost, “BART must pay $800 million toward the cost of new rail cars—this fare increase will help us achieve that goal. We understand no one wants to pay higher fares but riders should know this money can only be spent on these identified projects which will benefit passengers.”
Download the new far chart by clicking here. For more information visit www.bart.gov.
Publisher @ December 12, 2013
Posted in: Opinion, Letters to the Editor, Opinion | Comments (0)
Editor:
Thanksgiving Black Thursday is now memories. It wasn’t the bust some retailers feared. I, myself, who have avoided Black Fridays like the Bubonic Plague, peeked into Wal-Mart on an evening walk working off curiosity and the second portion of pecan pie.
At best, it was organized chaos with snaking lines of brimming carts. Thankfully, shoppers seemed subdued, perhaps digesting the turkey tryptophan or glazed ham. The Pilgrims would be happy there were no stampedes.
While I don’t begrudge the retailer relief, I sigh, though, for the national gestalt. For my two cents, another incremental step of noise and distraction had been added to an already disquieted world. After all, Thanksgiving is more than just a day for family but for reflection and rejuvenation.
Everyday life is inundated with busyness, complexity, noise and incessant material urges. On a national day of gratitude for all our enduring gifts, need we fight the crowds for more ‘stuff’?
Could Christmas Day be the next to fall to the relentless economic machine of consumerism driving our world? Will people think, ‘hey, I went to morning service and it’s mid-day. I’m itching for a sale!’
Fanciful scenario? Admittedly so, but in a world where national retailers toyed with calling Christmas trees ‘holiday trees’ anything is possible.
Consider Joe Lieberman, the former Senator from Connecticut and Vice Presidential candidate under Al Gore, who wrote a compelling book called “The Gift of Rest; Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath.” Admittedly, Lieberman, an Orthodox Jew, goes a great deal further in his observance than most people would ever consider. He not only not refuses working unless urgent, but turns off his Blackberry, avoids cars, and even darkens house lights.
What I find most interesting in his book, though, is the Senator’s less extreme argument for non-religious people. Lieberman says that having a day a week of rest not only aids spiritual rejuvenation but makes plain physical and psychological sense. After all, aren’t we always “on”, forever thinking, worrying, planning, wired and connected? Who couldn’t use a pause, a momentary break, to rejuvenate; maybe have some time to think on the greater import of life.
My wish for our great country, then, is not to dampen the shopping fever. No, there are plenty of days for cash register euphoria and now Black Friday never looked so good.
I submit, though, that for our mental collective well-being, if nothing else, we get back to the Sabbath, or if we will, Day of Pause. Meantime, I hope we can start by keeping at least a few days dear; Thanksgiving, Christmas (for those of other persuasions, the likes of Passover or Ramadan).
It’s a mad, mad, mad world. A little centering is maybe what the good doctor ordered.
Walter Ruehlig
Antioch
Publisher @ December 12, 2013
Posted in: Delta & Environment, News | Comments (0)
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We need you, our supporters, to come out in greater numbers than ever before!
** PLEASE NOTE LOCATION CHANGE * *
Monday, December 13, 2013
Friday the 13th Rally to begin the 120-Day BDCP Response Countdown
Location: North Steps of the Capitol
Starting Time: 12:00 p.m. Be there at 11:30 a.m!
We recommend that you dress warm, bring signs, and bring something hot to drink!
This rally is sponsored by Californians for A Fair Water Policy and dozens of other environmental, fishing, farming, government, and water agencies.
And don’t forget to write your letters to Governor Brown expressing your opposition to the peripheral tunnels plan!
Letters should be addressed to:
Governor Jerry Brown
c/o State Capitol, Suite 1173
Sacramento, CA 95814
The salutation should read: The Honorable Edmund G. Brown
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Restore the Delta is a grassroots campaign committed to making the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta fishable, swimmable, drinkable, and farmable to benefit all of California. Restore the Delta – a coalition of Delta residents, business leaders, civic organizations, community groups, faith-based communities, union locals, farmers, fishermen, and environmentalists – seeks to strengthen the health of the estuary and the well-being of Delta communities. Restore the Delta works to improve water quality so that fisheries and farming can thrive together again in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Sincerely,
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla
Restore the Delta
Email: barbara@restorethedelta.org
Web: http://www.restorethedelta.org |
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Publisher @ December 12, 2013
Posted in: News | Comments (0)
As part of this construction work to widen Highway 4, the contractor will be restriping and shifting the existing two lanes of westbound Highway 4 as an initial step in the process of opening additional lanes of traffic in the westbound direction between Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street and Railroad Avenue.
In order to ensure crew and public safety during this work, the contractor will be performing a series of full freeway closures of westbound Highway 4. Please note, despite the overlapping closure hours, the following three full freeway closures will not occur concurrently. The contractor will perform these closures individually during the same evening of work, but not concurrently, except for a very minor overlap during a transition from one closure to the next.
The contractor will be restriping westbound Highway 4 to open additional lanes of traffic in the westbound direction between Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street and Railroad Avenue. Additional lanes of traffic will be added incrementally throughout the operations occurring during the following full freeway closures.
The contractor will also close all lanes of westbound Highway 4 between Loveridge Road and Railroad Avenue on Thursday and Friday evenings, December 12-13, from 11:59 pm to 5:00 am.
The detour for this work will be as follows:
o Westbound motorists will be directed off the highway at Loveridge Road, left on California Avenue, and straight onto the westbound Highway 4 on-ramp from Railroad Avenue. For detour map, please see attachment.
The contractor will close all lanes of westbound Highway 4 between Lone Tree Way/A Street and Somersville Road/Auto Center Drive on Tuesday evening, December 17, from 11:59 pm to 5:00 am, and if necessary, Wednesday evening, December 18, from 11:59 pm to 5:00 am.
The detour for this work will be as follows:
o Westbound motorists will be directed off the highway at Lone Tree Way/A Street, right on A Street, left on W. 18th Street, left on L Street, right on Sycamore Drive, left on Auto Center Drive, and right onto the westbound Highway 4 on-ramp from Somersville Road/Auto Center Drive. For detour maps, click here. HIGHWAY 4 FULL CLOSURES DEC 12-18 2013
Additionally, work to complete the opening of all available westbound lanes to the west of Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street will be performed with single lane closures on Saturday evening, December 14 and Monday evening, December 16.
The Highway 4 projects include improvements to the entire project corridor that will help revitalize eastern Contra Costa County. The projects expand Highway 4 from four to eight lanes between Loveridge Road and SR-160, and add a BART extension from Pittsburg to Antioch (eBART). The projects will also expand the highway from two to four lanes from Lone Tree Way to Sand Creek Road. This will greatly improve transit accessibility for the region and help reduce traffic congestion and enhance the quality of life for the more than 250,000 residents of eastern Contra Costa County. The projects have been carefully staged to keep 130,000 vehicles per day moving as major construction and demolition work continue, and include over $1.3 billion in State, Federal, Regional Bridge Toll, and Contra Costa Measures C & J sales tax funds.
Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways. For the most current information on all Highway 4 corridor closures please visit our website at: http://4eastcounty.org.
Publisher @ December 12, 2013
Posted in: News | Comments (0)
New Website Connects Homeowners with Free Home Upgrade Advisor Service
(Oakland, CA) — The Bay Area Regional Energy Network (BayREN) has announced that Bay Area homeowners now can get rebates and special assistance for making home improvements that increase energy efficiency. Energy Upgrade California™ Home Upgrade offers rebates to single-family homeowners (one to four units) in the nine Bay Area counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano, and Sonoma. Details about the rebates and a free Home Upgrade Advisor service are at BayAreaEnergyUpgrade.org.
Homeowners who make energy efficiency improvements are eligible for incentives from $1,000 to $4,500, plus an additional $300 for completing a home energy assessment. Eligible home improvements include air sealing; duct sealing; attic insulation; high-efficiency furnaces, cooling systems, and water systems; wall insulation; and more.
In addition, a free Home Upgrade Advisor can provide direct one-to-one assistance to help homeowners through every step of the upgrade. Home Upgrade Advisors are Building Performance Institute certified energy efficiency professionals who can inform homeowners about their energy efficiency options, help them select an appropriate participating contractor, and help them navigate project installation and financing processes.
Homeowners can contact a Home Upgrade Advisor by calling 866-878-6008 or by submitting a brief form on the BayAreaEnergyUpgrade.org site. The site also features a list of participating contractors in the Bay Area. Homeowners who are ready to begin their upgrade can contact a participating contractor directly.
“There’s never been a better time for Bay Area homeowners to complete energy-efficient home improvements,” said Jennifer Berg, BayREN program manager. “Energy upgrades not only help you save energy and money but also enhance indoor air quality, making your home healthier and more livable and your family more comfortable all year round. And these rebates and personalized assistance from a Home Upgrade Advisor make it easy to get all the benefits of energy efficiency upgrades plus get cash back.”
About BayREN
BayREN is a resource for local governments to implement large-scale, cross-sector energy management strategies on a regional level. BayREN is made up of public agencies representing all nine counties in the Bay Area. BayREN is one of only two regional energy networks in California and represents 20% of the state’s population and half the population within the Pacific Gas and Electric Company service territory. For more information, call 866-878-6008 or visit www.bayareaenergyupgrade.org.
Publisher @ December 11, 2013
Posted in: Arts & Entertainment | Comments (0)
COMING IN DECEMBER
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It’s A Wonderful Life (1946)
Saturday December 14, 2013 1:00 pm & 4:00 pm
Tickets: Adults: $8 Seniors (62 & Over): $7
Youth (Ages 6 – 17): Free With Paid Adult or Senior
GENERAL SEATING
t’s a Wonderful Life is a 1946 American Christmas drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra, based on the short story “The Greatest Gift”, which Philip Van Doren Stern wrote in 1939 and privately published in 1945. The film is considered one of the most loved films in American cinema and has become traditional viewing during the Christmas season, alongside popular classics such as Holiday Inn, A Christmas Carol, White Christmas, Meet Me in St. Louis and Miracle on 34th Street.
The film stars James Stewart as George Bailey, a man who has given up his dreams in order to help others and whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers). Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and how different life in his community of Bedford Falls would be had he never been born.
Director: Frank Capra
Cast: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Ward Bond
Genre: Drama / Family / Fantasy
Runtime: 118 min.
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The Ballet Company of East County Presents The Nutcracker
Saturday December 21, 2013 12:00 pm & 4:00 pm
Sunday December 22, 2013 12:00 pm & 4:00 pm
Orchestra Section (Downstairs): $20
Loge Section (Upstairs): $18
Opera Section (Upstairs): $16
RESERVED SEATING
The Ballet Company of East County is pleased to announce its ninth annual production of The Nutcracker. The Nutcracker is a timeless holiday tradition that brings a young girl’s Christmas dream to life. This beautiful production is geared towards children’s enjoyment but will also entertain the young at heart.
Runtime: 1 hour 20 minutes
NOTE: SPECIAL OFFER FOR (BOTH) 4:00 PM SHOWS ONLY
“Land of Sweets Gala”
Doors will open at 3:00 pm and you will be given the opportunity to take pictures with the dancers.
Don’t forget to order your Scout Patches when you buy your tickets.
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International Film Showcase Presents – Joyeux Noel
Sunday December 29, 2013 1:00 pm & 4:00 pm
Tickets: Adults: $8 Seniors (62 & Over): $7
Youth (Ages 10 – 17): Free With Paid Adult or Senior
GENERAL SEATING
In 1914, World War I, the bloodiest war ever at that time in human history, was well under way. However on Christmas Eve, numerous sections of the Western Front called an informal, and unauthorized, truce where the various front-line soldiers of the conflict peacefully met each other in No Man’s Land to share a precious pause in the carnage with a fleeting brotherhood. This film dramatizes one such section as the French, Scottish and German sides partake in the unique event, even though they are aware that their superiors will not tolerate its occurrence.
Director: Christian Carion
Cast: Diane Kruger, Natalie Dessay, Benno Fürmann
Genre: Drama / History
Language: French, German, English
English Subtitles
Runtime: 116 min.
Rated: PG 13
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CLICK HERE TO SEE THE COMPLETE CALENDAR.
Publisher @ December 11, 2013
Posted in: Community, Education | Comments (0)
ANNUAL CRAB FEED & TRI-TIP DINNER
Saturday, February 1st, 2013
Antioch Community Center * Community Hall * 4703 Lone Tree Way * Antioch
Doors open @ 6PM * Dinner served @ 7PM
MENU:
Marinated Seasonal Crab or Beef Tri-Tip, Mixed Green Salad, Oven Baked Pasta, Oven Baked Garlic Bread, and No Host Beverage Bar.
ENTERTAINMENT:
Live Performance by the Deer Valley Jazz Ensemble
DJ * Silent & Live Auctions * 50/50 Raffle * Dessert Auctions
GRAND PRIZE DRAWING:
Disneyland Trip for Four Including $150 Hotel Voucher
Grand Prize Value: $750
Donation: $10.00 per Grand Prize Drawing Ticket/ Do Not Need To Be Present To Win
ADVANCE PURCHASE REQUIRED. NO TICKETS SOLD AT THE DOOR.
Pre-Sale: $45.00 per ticket donation (order by 12/15/13)
Donation: $50.00 per ticket donation (order after 12/16/13-01/25/14)
For ticket information, please call (415) 342-0625
***** ALL TICKETS ARE NON-REFUNDABLE *****
Please download and the use the order form here. CRAB FEED order form
Publisher @ December 11, 2013
