Join the Antioch Chamber of Commerce for a ribbon cutting celebrating the Somersville Towne Center’s opening of their Farmers’ Market!

Sunday, May 13, 2012, 11 AM 

Somersville Towne Center is located at 2556 Somersville Road, Antioch

For more information call (925) 754-5230 or visit www.somersvilletownecenter.com.

Justin Reis and Brian Lloyd

By Acting Sergeant Wisecarver, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Tuesday, May 8, 2012,the Antioch Police Investigations Unit conducted a probation search on Justin Reis at his home in the 5400 block of Prewett Ranch Drive. Antioch detectives found the 34-year-old Reis carrying a suitcase from his home to a car parked in front of the home. The detectives contacted Reis and found the suitcase to contain over 10 lbs. of marijuana. Reis was arrested for the marijuana and the Detectives searched his home. The detectives found two additional pounds of marijuana in the home, along with evidence of marijuana sales and cultivation.

In conducting their investigation, the detectives were lead to another house in Antioch. The second house, in the 3500 block of Waxwing Way, was found to contain a large scale indoor marijuana cultivation. The detectives obtained a search warrant for the location and found 25-year-old Brian Lloyd inside the home along with five pounds of marijuana and 836 marijuana plants growing in the home.

Detectives determined that the power had been diverted and was bypassing the PG&E meters at both locations. The theft of power being stolen from PG&E was estimated to be in excess of $20,000.

Both Reis and Lloyd were arrested on various drug charges.

By James Ott

Antioch’s financial future is stable for now, say city officials, but there could be trouble on the horizon.

Through tough cuts and budget restructuring, City Manager Jim Jakel said that Antioch should end this year with a positive budget, but that the city is facing a “significant deficit” after the 2013 fiscal year.

During a special meeting held before the  city council meeting on Tuesday, April 24, Jakel and other city staff gave a presentation highlighting budgetary changes and concerns for the city’s General Fund.

The major problem facing the city? A lack of revenue, according to Jakel.

With a population of over 100,000 people, Antioch’s revenue’s have dropped from $47 million plus in the 2006 – 2007 fiscal year to about $34.5 million in 2011 – 2012.

That is a $34.5 million budget for a city with over 100,000 people. Compare that to a neighboring city like Brentwood that has only 52,000 people and a $37 million budget, say city staff and it becomes apparent why some are worried about the city’s ability to provide basic services for its citizens down the road.

“We need to generate revenue, said Jakel. “Home sales need to increase or the voters need to approve a tax measure or we need to pull a rabbit out of a hat with respect to city revenue.”

According to Finance Director Dawn Merchant, the main culprit for the large budget shortfall over the last few years is the sharp declines in revenue generated by taxes – mainly property tax and sales tax. Those two big money generators of course, come from two of the hardest hit areas in this tough economy: home ownership and sales, and businesses sales.

A full 75 percent of the city’s revenue this fiscal year was generated from taxes. Of that total 44 percent came from property tax, and a full 40 percent from sales and use tax. And the city expects 76 percent of next year’s revenue will come from taxes.

A smaller problem for Antioch has been its increase in expenditures despite its falling revenue.

Despite nearly $3 million in employee concessions and nearly 40 percent of Antioch’s approved positions vacant due to harsh cuts, the city is expecting to spend $100,000 more next year than the current year – a small increase but a sign of the difficulties facing the city despite its efforts to balance its budget.

Some good news from Merchant is that increased sales tax revenue this fiscal year has generated $300,000 over last year. That comes from sales tax income increasing by 8.4 percent from March of last year to March 2012, she said. And that bodes well for Antioch as it follows the uptrend that the rest of the state has experienced. Sales tax in California as a whole was up 8.8 percent in that same period.

The city may also be able to gain some much additional revenue from redirected water rights refunds. Antioch has water rights and every year they have the possibility of being reimbursed from the Department of Water Resources for any excess useable water.

That money would normally go to Antioch’s Water Enterprise Fund but the city received opinion from legal council that the city owns those water rights, not the water enterprise fund because it is not a separate legal entity. In budget subcommittee meetings the city decided that any future water refunds would now go into the General Fund.

If the city receives a refund, has a budget surplus and meets their annual 10 percent reserve, then the moneys received would be used to replenish the litigation and replacement reserves.

And it there is a budget deficit it was suggested that the refund money be used to reduce the deficit.

Although Merchant said that the city could potentially pick up these forms of revenue in the future and possibly even more from unused employee overtime, it all may not be enough.

While Antioch’s current fiscal year will end on June 30 with about $152,000 in surplus, if the city can’t find an answer to its revenue shortage, Antioch will still be in a $2.4 million hole at the end of the next fiscal year, which begins July 1 this year.

City staff and council members all agreed that although they’ve worked hard and made sacrifices, their work to keep Antioch afloat is far from over yet.

“We’re in a difficult state here,” said Fakel. “Fortitude and creativity to do what people didn’t think we could do in the first place has … staved off the serious nature of the situation. But don’t take it as a false sense that we’re out of the woods. It’s a daunting task.”

Tuesday was the first of the three special budget meetings that will take place an hour before City Council Meetings until the budget is set to be adopted on June 26.

Also at the Meeting:

In a move they say does not set a precedent, the council voted 3-1 with Councilman Gary Agopian dissenting, to ignore staff suggestions and allow Mike Rose’s Auto Body to keep their unapproved landscaping changes.

In 2010 Mike Rose’s Auto Body applied to make landscaping changes to his business at 1001 Auto Center Drive.

The city approved some but not all of the landscaping changes and after a routine site inspection several discrepancies were noticed between what the city had approved and what was actually constructed.

Those changes included artificial turf in place of real grass, and a lack of a covered garbage enclosure.

A representative for Mike Rose’s Auto Body told staff that they preferred to keep the landscaping modifications that they made, despite the fact that it was a design that was not approved by the city, so it was reviewed by staff and the city’s zoning administrator.

After the review, the zoning administrator decided that the changes were substantial and so needed to be taken before the planning commission for a final decision.

At the planning commission review, Brennan Rose said that he and the company had thought the changes they made to the landscaping were improvements and did not consider that they would create a problem. Rose explained that the turf was more water efficient and that it would last longer. This, he said would keep his business and thus that part of Antioch, looking better for longer than would the approved landscaping changes.

After the planning commission eventually passed a motion requiring Rose to make changes, he appealed the decision.

At Tuesday’s meeting, staff explained the concern with Rose’s unauthorized changes.

City staff said that natural grass acts as a bio filter and drains storm water through a pipe into a public storm drain. Synthetic turf, they say is mainly impervious and as it is currently designed at Mike Rose’s Auto Body, the slope of the turf would cause storm water to not drain properly and so pool up on the sidewalk. Also all commercial sites containing trash compactors like Mike Rose’s Auto Body have to have a roof on their trash enclosure according to city mandates.

After discussion, city council members and the Mayor said that Mike Rose’s Auto Body had no ill intentions and only made changes they thought would benefit the city. They also cited all of the good the company has done for the city of Antioch and so decided to allow the business to keep all of its changes without any adjustments.

Mayor Jim Davis explained the thought process behind the decision:

“I’m not saying we can make exceptions every time, but when someone goes above and beyond to take a corner that represents a lot to our community and make it better, this is a case where I’d be willing to make an exception and go forward,” said Davis. “They are an asset to our community and they contribute to our tax base.”

Do you dance? Then come audition for Vagabond Players 3rd Annual Fabulous Follies, which will open at the historic El Campanil Theatre, Antioch, September 28th for a two week run.

Auditions will be Saturday, June 30th from 10:00AM – 1:00PM, by appointment only. For audition appointment, go to Vagabond Players website and complete application form at www.vagabondplayersinc.com or call director, (925)689-3368.

You will need resume, headshot, and bring tap, character, jazz or other comfortable shoes for dancing.  Do a one to two minute routine for your audition.  Please provide your own music CD.  You will be taught a short combination so you can get a feel for the difficulty level of the routines.

Rehearsals begin August 13th.

Above are the composite drawings of two of the suspects from the April 26^th kidnapping and robbery of the taxi driver in Antioch. Antioch Police have recovered significant evidence from the taxi which will assist in identifying the responsible parties.

Police are also looking for the public’s help in identifying the suspects depicted in the composite drawings. It is believed these suspects may have ties to Antioch and Oakland, specifically the area where the taxi was recovered in the 2200 hundred block of 83^rd Ave in Oakland.

Anyone with information regarding this case should call Det. Green at (925)779-6932.

Dear Editor:

Body and Foot Massages by Trained Staff

By Teresa A. Klein

You’re driving home on Highway 4, which is once again moving so slowly you could get out and walk home faster. You discover your hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly they begin to ache. As the minutes tick by your neck begins to knot and your shoulders raise up until you feel that dreaded tension headache develop. If you are a parent, add a couple complaining or crying kids and the commute is pretty unbearable.

So how do you handle this or similar situations when the stress of human life seems to suffocate you like a blanket on a hot Antioch day?

Of way is to de-stress yourself with a massage at Southeast Antioch’s The Relaxing Station, located in Raley’s shopping center at 3712A Lone Tree Way. Calming music, dim lights, fragrant oils, and a licensed massage therapist working the daily-life knots out of your tense muscles. After an hour, you feel like – and you are – a new person.

“It is a very good idea to come in for a massage,” says Chen Xia, spokesperson for The Relaxing Station. “Massage boosts circulation and helps to improve your mood by making you relaxed. Long term, massage will make your body more healthy.”

As the daughter of The Relaxing Station co-owner Xueliang Xia, Chen says The Relaxing Station is strictly a therapeutic massage spa, unlike some spas that offer haircuts, baths, facials, and other services. Mr. Xia opened The Relaxing Station in late spring 2011 with business partner Kelly Lu because they felt Southeast Antioch needed a quality massage spa.

Massages available include foot, acupressure, deep tissue and Swedish massages. Each one targeting your specific body’s needs by either a male or female masseuse who is licensed and certified. Deep tissue is harder massage using thumbs to hit pressure points.

Swedish offers a softer touch for all-over body relaxation. With acupressure, masseuse hits pressure points to relax certain muscles or target specific ailments, similar to acupuncture, but with no needles. And the foot massage is herbal reflexology.

Currently, The Relaxation Station is offering special pricing, so if you have never had a massage, now is the perfect time to try one. Chen recommends an hour massage, which is $40, a $5 savings, but says if you are unsure of how you will enjoy a massage, first-timers can opt for a 30-minute massage for $30. The Foot massage special is $20, also a $5 savings.

To fin out what massage is right for your tired, aching body, call The Relaxation Station at 925-778-1398 to speak with a therapist and set up your appointment. The spa is open from 10 a.m.-10 p.m. every day and recommends appointments but says walk-ins are welcome.

With Mother’s Day fast approaching, Chen says The Relaxation Station offers gift certificates for that special woman in your life.

Each one of us has uncountable stressors in our life. How you deal with the stress outcome is your choice, but massage is a proven method that is relaxing for the mind and the body.

At first glance, Measure L on your June ballot in Antioch, seems like a reasonable idea: save the city budget money by making the City Clerk and City Treasurer positions appointed, instead of elected.

The first reason I’ve been opposed to this is simple finances. While it will save about $32,000 per year for the two positions and $12,000 every four years in reduced election costs, the cost to the city for holding the election for this ballot measure is $105,000, which is about three years of savings.

An argument for it is the Treasurer’s job is mostly done by city staff, already.

But the City Treasurer is the people’s independent watchdog over the city’s finances, separate from the city council and staff. If the position is just another hired city staff member, it loses its independence to be another check on how our tax dollars are being spent.

The City Clerk must definitely remain elected because the person in that position oversees our city elections, in addition to the County Clerk. The person in that position should not be beholden to the City Manager, who answers to the five elected council members.

So, I’m recommending a No vote on Measure L.

Measure M, if approved, will change how we choose the Mayor of Antioch from an elected position for four years to one that is rotated among the council members, each year.

While it may be nice to have an elected Mayor, in a General Law City, as Antioch is, the reality is the position is mostly ceremonial.

Besides running the council meetings, the only real power the elected Mayor has is to make nominations of council members to committees on which the they serve and represent the city, as well as to nominate citizens to the various boards and commissions – all with council approval.

The upside of making the change is that we won’t be stuck with someone as Mayor for four years, if he or she turns out to not be so good and we’re not happy with the direction they’re attempting to lead the city.

Plus it gives each council member the opportunity to lead the city for a year – just as it is done in 14 of the other 18 cities in the county.

If it passes, it will go into effect this November. The result will be three council seats up for election, instead of two council seats and the Mayor’s seat. So, I’m voting Yes on Measure M. Both of