Once again the Holiday DeLites Street Parade will not take place this year due to the economic downturn and city funding cuts. However, the Antioch Lighted Boat Parade will be held, as it has been for over twenty-five years.

The event is sponsored by three local yacht clubs: Bridge Marina, Driftwood and Sportsman. The parade begins at 6:00 PM on December 3rd. The best locations to view it are the Antioch Municipal Pier and all along 2nd Street in downtown Antioch. The boat parade is free and will have approximately 15 entries.

The event is also an opportunity to collect toys for homeless students who attend schools in Antioch. Drop off new toys at the Lynn House Gallery, 809 W. First Street before, during or after the parade. For more information email Diane@Art4Antioch.org or call Diane Gibson-Gray at (925) 325-9897.

To the editor:

No mistaking me and Thanksgiving sentiments; I thoroughly admire the holiday’s essence. I find it, though, a telling remark on the vagaries of life that we need a day to remind us to be thankful.

I guess that forgetfulness is due to nature seeking the path of least resistance. As rivers run down, not up, hill, so to moan, to complain, to whine is the more beaten path of the human condition. The less traveled attitude of gratitude seems the direction we need pointers on.

Growing up, my older step sister, who as a child fled the Soviet occupiers of East Germany, oft posed this provocative reminder of relativity. How many of us, she asked, would willingly put all their troubles in a brown paper bag and throw them up in the air with all our neighbors’ bags, randomly collecting what rained down? Our lot is, in truth, often better than what we credit it to be.

I offer, then, my own life ledger:

How generously I note how serious life can be; how stingily I see the ironies, remembering, after all, that since nobody gets out of this Big Tent alive, we may as well just enjoy the show. Grin and bear it.

How generously I disparage our national political strife and intrinsically messy democracy; how stingily I trumpet that we’re not rioting in the streets, blowing each other up, or displaying our bloodied former leaders in refrigerated market stalls.

How generously I wake up decrying an assortment of age-related aches and pains; how stingily I praise the simple miracle of rising vertically and ambulating.

How generously I bemoan diminished reading sight; how stingily I exult not being blind, deaf or mute.

How generously I curse being a working stiff; how stingily I sing the blessings of having a job to report to; a loving family to feed; and a son at college eager to make something of himself.

How generously I sigh over lost home value; how stingily I admit that my abode would be a veritable mansion in Japan or Europe; it’s blessedly not foreclosed; and, unlike 40% of the world’s population, I enjoy indoor plumbing. All of this, no less, nestling in a region without snow storms or humidity stifling misery indexes.

How generously I lament Antioch’s hunger for downtown development matching Brentwood’s and Pittsburg’s; how stingily I toast the Highway 4 expansion, beckoning eBART and ferry, new marina ramp, and A and L Street remakes.

How generously I focus on blight; how stingily I acknowledge that we sit on the Delta, boasting gorgeous parks, a handsome community center and golf course event center, career-themed schools and an hour or so proximity in any direction to world class cities and stunningly gorgeous recreational areas.

How generously I dwell on crime; how stingily I note that America’s crime rate is the lowest since 1968 and that Antioch went down last year 16 percent in violent crime and on all indices except burglary.

Surely, brothers and sisters, we all have our untold presents. Is the arithmetic too hard to take a few of the 86,400 seconds in a day gifted us to count our blessings? Thanksgiving, after all, is not just the last Thursday in November. It is a state of mind.

In the grand scheme of things, Meister Eckhart seemed to have had it right: “If the only prayer you said in your whole life was ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.”

Walter Ruehlig
Antioch

Board considering June 2012 bond measure to upgrade Antioch High

By Amy Claire

Because of financial difficulties at the state and county levels, the Antioch Unified School District is likely to receive less funding than anticipated this year and in the coming years. An expected $4 billion increase in the state education budget has not materialized, which may lead to significant cuts to public schools.

State schools have only been fully funded five times in the past twenty-one years, and California remains well behind the national average in state educational spending per student, according to Associate Superintendent of Business and Operations Tim Forrester. So far, the AUSD has been able to handle the changes.

“We’ve monitored our expenditures very well,” said Forrester at the November 16 school board meeting.

The district has infused its budget with $23 million in one-time funds, and has followed the county’s suggestion of setting aside money per average daily attendant. But the lack of funds still has the possibility of leaving the district budget with a deficit by the 2013-14 school year. Fortunately, the county will allow for adjustments to ensure that the district does not run out of money, so the general mood was hopeful at the end of Forrester’s presentation.

The board also discussed the increasingly significant need for repairs and renovations at Antioch High School. “The needs are so great,” said Superintendent Donald Gill.

To pay for the repairs, as well as other district projects, the board is considering placing a bond measure on the June 2012 ballot. Forrester said that if the board members wish to proceed, they need to begin taking further steps, such as holding a survey of public voter opinion, preparing for public hearings in February and drafting the actual resolution by March.

School Board Vice-President Claire Smith said that voters deserve to know the details of the project, including when renovations will begin, what they will cover, how long they will last and exactly how much of a tax increase will be required to pay for them. She suggested scaling back the project to encompass only repairs to Antioch High School, concerned that it might not be the appropriate time to ask taxpayers for additional money.

Board Member Walter Ruehlig mentioned that the repairs will be unavoidable eventually, but suggested more evaluation to gauge public opinion before proceeding with the bond election.

Board President Diane Gibson-Gray agreed with Smith that the project should focus on Antioch High School, and said the cost of taking an official voter poll might be better spent on educating residents about the district’s needs. She also asserted that her role as an elected official was to give the constituents a chance to vote. Forrester will continue investigating the bond measure, and the board decided to discuss the resolution after more information had been gathered.

Only one person addressed the board during the designated time for speakers from the community. A man stated that his grandson, a freshman at Deer Valley High School, had been beaten by older students a week ago. He said that the district’s response left him with the impression that the board does not take bullying seriously. A board member said that someone from the district would contact him to address his concerns.

The meeting began with a flag salute led by the boy scouts who had attended the meeting to earn badges. The board also heard updates from student representatives of Bidwell High School and Deer Valley High School, who reported good news in both academics and social activities at their schools.

The next school board meeting will be held at 7 p.m., December 14 at 510 G. Street in Antioch.

The 2nd Annual Candlelight Memorial Service and Tree Lighting was held Thursday at the Oak View Memorial Park in Antioch, hosted by the park and Higgins Chapel.

John Goodner at Elite Photography and Design took these photos.

On November 17 at 5:44 p.m. a 15 year old female was walking in the southbound lanes of traffic on Lone Tree Way near Clearbrook Drive when she was struck by a white Ford pick-up truck traveling southbound on Lone Tree Way.

The pick-up was driven by Jose Sandoval, 60, of Antioch. Sandoval fled the scene and went home. He left the truck at his residence and was given a ride to a local hotel where police eventually contacted him. Sandoval was subsequently arrested for felony drunk driving and felony hit and run and was booked into the county jail.

The victim was transported to an area hospital where she was being treated for significant injuries. The injuries do not appear to be life threatening at this time.

The accident is still under investigation. Anybody witnessing the accident or with information pertaining to this investigation is asked to contact Officer Johnsen at 779-6900 ext. 84265.

When you think of the average workday for a local chemist, you may imagine sterile laboratories, protective clothing and intricate laboratory equipment. However, don’t be surprised if the next time you are boating or fishing in the Delta you meet one of the chemists from the Delta Diablo Sanitation District (DDSD) going about their work safeguarding the environment where protection means a life vest and sunscreen.

DDSD is responsible for collecting and treating wastewater from all homes, businesses, industries in Antioch. After we flush a toilet, shower, run the dishwasher or do a load of laundry, our domestic waste begins a process of physical and biological treatments to remove bacteria’s, chemicals, and other harmful substances before being released back into the Delta.

It is the role of wastewater chemists to perform and or review the laboratory tests necessary to ensure that processed wastewater meets all standards set by the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination (NPDES) permit. The NPDES permit details all the federal and state government guidelines DDSD is required to achieve before treated wastewater can be discharged back into the Delta.

Meeting these regulations requires a range of tests and reporting which are required daily, monthly, quarterly or semi-annually. Failure to meet these guidelines can result in violations and large fines.

Gurmukh Grewal has been a chemist at DDSD since 1990. Recently awarded the Grade IV Laboratory Analyst certification, the highest qualification bestowed by the California Water Environment Association, he is responsible for collecting and processing samples of the wastewater during all stages of the process to ensure that DDSD is in full compliance with its NPDES permit.

Tests are undertaken to determine specific levels of pollutants such as ammonia, pesticides, metals and bacteria. Tests are undertaken at the Plant, but also in sections of the Delta which are only accessible by boat. Testing done on the Delta is to ensure treated wastewater discharge doesn’t have any negative impact on our local ecosystems.

According to Grewal, “Even after 21 years, every test I undertake is challenging to ensure we are fully protecting the Delta”.

Treating wastewater requires the commitment of highly skilled worked to continually meet the increasing stringent regulations. This past summer DDSD was awarded the National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA), Platinum 7 Peak Performance Awards recognizing zero discharge violations over seven consecutive years. Achieved by only 1% of wastewater treatment operations nation-wide, this award acknowledges public wastewater treatment facilities for 100% operating compliance with its NPDES permit.

Ballot measures are going to be crowded in 2012. Seems everyone from the Legislature in Sacramento on down to our local school district board wants to ask taxpayers to pay more, except for BART.

Although BART directors also considered asking voters in three counties for more money next year, they’ve apparently decided to wait until 2013 to ask voters to approve a parcel tax to replace aging train cars. The measure would require two-thirds approval. (Board members, Joel Keller and Gail Murray said they favor an even later date such as 2014.)

BART says their decision was based on a poll in which 65% of those surveyed in the spring generally supported the ballot measure for a parcel tax of $45 per home per year. Wonder who BART surveyed? Was it those who ride BART daily or just a phone poll survey like the numerous ones I’m receiving these days? I don’t know as the poll results were presented to the Board not in a general meeting at Board headquarters, but at a retreat on Nov. 12.

According to my query to BART’s new communications chief, the retreat was held at the Renaissance ClubSport Hotel in Walnut Creek. I guess we should all be grateful the retreat wasn’t held in New Orleans where 4 BART Directors and 9 BART employees recently attended the annual APTA conference.

Frankly I object to any public agency retreating and holding meetings behind closed doors. BART directors receive a monthly stipend of $1,386.19 per month for 2011, minus a deduction of $100 if a director misses a meeting for a committee of which the director is a member.

Directors are eligible for the same benefits as most employees e.g. medical, dental and vision coverage for director, spouse/domestic partner and eligible dependents (director share of monthly premium is currently $86.95, the same as most employees.) Eligibility of former directors for health benefits upon leaving service is dependent on when directors first served and length of service.

Directors who served before 1/1/95 and serve a minimum of 12 years are eligible for benefits on the same terms as district employees/retirees. Others may participate in health plans on a fully self paid basis as long as they serve at least ONE full term.

BART also makes contributions equal to approximately 8.3% of the directors’ compensation into the Money Purchase Pension Plan in lieu of Social Security, have a $10,000 life insurance policy while active and upon leaving service if served for 12 years and receive a BART Transportation Pass, which is good not only for the director but his eligible spouse/domestic partner and eligible dependents while actively serving and upon LEAVING service. Sounds like a pretty sweet deal to me.

I won’t be approving any BART tax measure – whether it’s in 2012, 2013 or 2014. If BART is seeking more revenues they should just raise fares now.

State Senator Mark DeSaulnier is hosting a Town Hall Meeting on “State Government and Budget Reform” on Thursday, November 17th from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Brentwood Senior Activity Center, 193 Griffith Lane in Brentwood.