By Sergeant Morefield, Antioch Police Investigations Bureau

On Saturday May 4, 2013 at approximately 3:43 AM, the Antioch Police Department received a report of a subject shot in front of a hotel in the 500 block of E. 18^th Street. Officers responded to the area to find the 38-year-old, male victim incapacitated from multiple, apparent gunshot wounds. Life saving measures were taken by the arriving officers and medical personnel, but the victim was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene.

This case is currently being investigated as a homicide by the Antioch Police Department Investigations Bureau.

Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to call Detective Meads with the Antioch Police Department at (925)779-6884. You may also text a tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using key word ANTIOCH.

By Allen Payton

On Tuesday, May 7, 2013 a group of citizens, led by Antioch Police and Crime Prevention Commissioner Hans Ho, filed a Notice of Intent to Circulate Petition with Antioch City Clerk Arne Simonsen, to begin gathering signatures to place a measure on the November ballot to implement a landlord rental fee on residential rental properties.

The fee would be $240 per year or $20 per month per single-family home and multi-family unit, such as condominiums, townhouses, duets and apartments that are non-owner occupied. In order to pass the measure will have to garner a simple majority vote of 50% plus one vote of Antioch voters.

If passed, the fee will generate $2,640,000 per year for the City’s General Fund – which pays for police and other city services – based on an estimated 11,000 rental units in the city.

Among those properties which are exempt from paying the tax are residential care facilities and senior housing complexes.

“Every one has been talking about this, for a long time, including the City Council and citizens, as I go to Neighborhood Watch meetings,” said Ho. “We’ve grown impatient waiting for the City Council to act so we jumped in.”

The Council has discussed placing both a residential rental fee and a sales tax on the November ballot.

“Any one of these measures will not fully fund the police department,” he added. “This is not an alternative to the sales tax measure, it’s a companion to it.”

Estimates have been given to the council of over $4 million to fully staff the police department to 126 sworn officers and  Community Service Officers. Over $7 million per year extra is needed to get to the optimum level of police staffing.

The group didn’t want to wait until after next Tuesday’s council meeting, where the results of the city-commissioned survey on the issue will be discussed.

There’s a fear the council is afraid of pursuing the fee on residential properties and the citizens group wanted to take action to ensure they had enough time to gather the signatures to place it on the ballot.

The group has until July 31 to gather and submit the required 4,647 valid signatures, which is 10% of the registered voters as of the last election, to get the measure on the November 5, 2013 ballot. The group plans on gathering 8,000 signatures just to be safe.

According to Simonsen, the group submitted the officially letter to the City Attorney to prepare the official title and summary of the ballot measure within 15 days.

The effort is supported by Take Back Antioch and the Friday Morning Breakfast Club, which is made up of community leaders and residents, as well as many individuals in the community.

Ho, who is acting as a citizen, not in his official capacity in supporting the effort, can be contacted at hans_ho@juno.com, for now. They expect to have a website and Facebook page to provide information to the public and for those who would like to get involved and help circulate the petitions and gather signatures.

For the complete language of the ballot measure click here: Landlord initiative ordinance

Following are the arguments and reasoning for the ballot measure:

–This Community generated initiative would provide an estimated $2.5 to 2.7 million per year to the City for the highest priority areas, such as public safety.  Crime levels in many areas of the City are at unacceptable levels and this will help to provide new resources.  This new revenue may alleviate the demand for an additional high sales tax rate which could depress business in the City.

–This Community-based initiative would mean that each “non-owner occupied dwelling” in the City would be charged a Business License Fee of $240 per year to offset the costs to the community.  This would close a multi-million dollar loop-hole for landlords that results in high costs on local communities for related resources and services associated with the burdens from this area of business.

–Most businesses in the City already pay a business license fee, but currently, many dwellings are rented without any business license.  This initiative would provide a simple frame work to efficiently collect consistent fees from all non-owner occupied dwellings in the City.  This would generate a stable source of revenue, unlike alternatives such as a sales tax.

–The business of “renting” dwellings results in new costly demands on City services such as public safety, and this would allow those engaged in the business of renting to provide compensation for these costs.  The proposed fees would be paid by the owners of the rental properties.

–Most business in the City is conducted in areas zoned for business, but the dwelling rental business typically operates within and among residential areas.  The impacts of a business operating in a residential area needs to be addressed.  Years of complaints due to unresponsive landlords chronically conducting poor business practices among local residential neighborhoods has only become even worse.  This poor quality of life for all citizens can only be addressed with the correct level of resources, including public safety.

This is about:

–Fairness, so all businesses pay a reasonable license fee for their area of business, and at a level related to the impact on resources.

–Fairness, to impacted residential areas through enhanced relief through better resources.

–More resources for priority areas such as public safety.

–A Community-based effort to reducing blight and Crime.

–A stable revenue stream for new resources, unlike other options such as a sales tax.

–Encouraging responsible business owners engaged in renting property, and resources for unresponsive landlords.

–A Community-based solution after years of dysfunctional talk.

–Helping all parts of, and all citizens in the City to live with a higher quality of life.

The internationally-acclaimed Harlem Ambassadors will be visiting Pittsburg for a game at Pittsburg High School on Friday, May 10, 2013 at 7:00 p.m.

The Harlem Ambassadors offer a unique brand of Harlem-style basketball, featuring high-flying slam dunks, dazzling ball-handling tricks and hilarious comedy routines.

The Ambassadors feature non-stop laughs and deliver a positive message for kids wherever the Ambassadors play.

“At our shows, we want the kids to know that they’re part of our team too,” Coach Ladè Majic said. “We invite as many kids as we can to come sit on the bench, have a front row seat during the show, and get involved in all of the fun stuff we do.”

The Ambassadors set themselves apart from other “Harlem-style” basketball teams by working with local not-for- profit and service organizations and holding Harlem Ambassadors shows as community fundraising events. For Pittsburg’s  event  the  Ambassadors  have  partnered  with  the  Center  for Human  Development  and  Antioch Rivertown Jamboree to help raise funds for the youth and families of East Contra Costa County.

The Center for Human Development (CHD) is a community-based organization that offers a spectrum of services for at-risk youth, individuals, families, and communities in the Bay Area.  CHD staff deliver programs addressing wellness and prevention, youth leadership, conflict resolution, parenting skills and other challenges facing the community. East Contra Costa programs include African American Wellness, Empowerment, Four Corners, Project SUCCESS, and Youth Nutrition Advocates.

Antioch Rivertown Jamboree is a non-profit organization with a primary goal of conducting public celebrations and events to make the public aware of and enjoy the benefits of the City of Antioch and the Rivertown District. All profits are contributed to various local non-profit organizations

The Ambassadors have worked extensively with organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Boys & Girls Clubs, Big Brothers Big Sisters and American Red Cross as well as Rotary, Lions and Kiwanis clubs in communities throughout the U.S., and perform more than 200 shows a year. Those shows have helped raise millions of dollars

– an accomplishment of which Ambassadors President Dale Moss is very proud.

“It feels good to be able to provide quality entertainment and create memories that the fans will take with them,” Moss explained. “We’re able to give even more when we can help provide funding for a Habitat for Humanity house or new computers for the school library, and that feels great.”

To learn more, visit www.harlemambassadors.com.

GAME TICKET INFORMATION: Please contact Kris Pascoe or Betty Smith to inquire about or purchase tickets

Kris Pascoe @925-687-8844 x246

kristin@chd-prevention.org

Center for Human Development, non-profit organization

ID #94-2520840

Betty Smith @ 925-757-0972

betty@rivertownjamboree.com

Rivertown Jamboree, non-profit organization

ID #68-0159140

The public is invited.

WHAT: Grand Opening of Assemblymember Jim Frazier’s Antioch District Office

WHEN: May 17^th from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

WHERE: Antioch Community Center, 4703 Lone Tree Way, Antioch

Jim and his staff will be on hand to respond to questions, ideas and concerns that are of importance to you and the community.

Jim Frazier, a local small-business owner, was elected in November, 2012 to serve in the State Assembly representing the 11^th Assembly District, which includes his hometown of Oakley, and the communities of Antioch, Brentwood, Discovery Bay, Pittsburg, Fairfield, Suisun City, Vacaville, Rio Vista and Isleton.  Prior to his election, Jim served as a City Council member and former Mayor of Oakley.

Among his top priorities for his first term are: serving his constituents by assisting with interactions with government agencies, protecting the Delta; repairing the infrastructure of our roads and highways; limiting hikes in college tuition; maintaining funds for local public safety and encouraging job creation.

For more information or to RSVP, please visit http://www.asmdc.org/members/a11/ or call Jim’s district offices at 925-778-5790 or 707-399-3011.

By James Ott

The recent child-abuse accusations facing the Antioch school district and recent bomb threats at Deer Valley High School have prompted the Antioch School Board to schedule special meetings this month to discuss improving the safety of their schools.

At the previous school board meeting, Antioch Unified School District, (AUSD), Superintendent Dr. Donald Gill asked school board members to add a special meeting at the end of the month to discuss the district’s child-abuse reporting policy and other safety matters.

The decision to improve safety policies comes as the district is being sued by the families of three disabled students.

Larry and Megan Evans, Teresa Green and Heather Carranza all allege that their kids were abused physically and verbally by special education teacher Theresa Allen-Caulboy at MNO Grant Elementary in Antioch. They are part of a lawsuit that seeks damages from Allen-Caulboy, and the Antioch school district.

The lawsuit claims that Allen-Caulboy pinned students to the ground, pinched and gouged at them and called them names like “retard.”

The parents of the affected students are also targeting MNO Grant Elementary School principal Michael Green, AUSD Special Education Director David Wax, Assistant Superintendent Keith Rogenski, and Special Education Coordinator Kai Montgomery – all administrators who the lawsuit claims failed to protect their children from abuse and even attempted to cover up the problem by urging parents not to report the case to the police.

As if the alleged abuse of disabled students wasn’t enough, Antioch police also recently arrested an unnamed 16-year-old Deer Valley High School student from calling in bomb threats to several area schools including Deer Valley and Black Diamond Middle School.

The student was arrested on April 25 after calling in numerous bomb threats over five days, all of which proved to be hoaxes. The student admitted to the threats after they were arrested.

The district has vowed that the responsible student would be expelled and possibly face felony charges.

Superintendent Gill said that student safety is always the number one priority of a school district, but that it is even more apparent after the recent lawsuit and bomb-threats.

“The most timely topic we have before us now is student safety,” said Gill.

AUSD Board President Joy Motts said that the district will be “looking at everything we possibly can” to improve student safety at Antioch schools.

Motts said that some of the things they might look to improve at future meetings include school infrastructure, providing teachers with the correct tools to identify problems and keep students safe, intervention programs to determine if children are in need, and reviewing all documents related to safety and reporting of complaints by students and staff.

“I think it’s absolutely appropriate to do everything we possibly can to make sure our kids are safe,” added Motts.

The next scheduled school board meetings are scheduled for tonight, Wednesday, May 8 and Wednesday May 22 at 7:00 p.m. at 510 G Street in Antioch. The special board meeting is scheduled for Wednesday May, 29.

Article & photo by Luke Johnson

Freshman lefty Ray White achieved a milestone Friday, April 26 when he became the first pitcher to throw a perfect game in Deer Valley High School history.

Twenty-one came up and 21 went down for the Deer Valley freshman squad’s 11-0 win over the Freedom Falcons. The 15-year-old White only needed 75 pitches and five strike outs to complete the challenging feat. Immediately after the last out of the seventh inning the Wolverines swarmed the mound in celebration of White’s accomplishment.

“I have to hand it to my defense,” White said. “They even made the more difficult plays look easy.”

White was referring to center fielder Devin Gould’s sliding catch in the second inning to keep the perfect game intact. White also went 2-4 with an RBI and a run scored to help the team offensively and put one in the win column.

Even with history on the line Deer Valley Head Coach Darren Machado substituted everyone off the bench due to the team’s significant lead.

“The other coaches were excited and were trying to keep the same players in to save the perfect game,” Machado said. “But I was like ‘I know this game is for Ray, but I gotta get players in.’”

Machado and the coaching staff stuck to their superstitious beliefs during the game and did not blurt out the word “perfect” in hopes to keep this opportunity from being jinxed.

“They were making sure I didn’t say anything,” Machado said while chuckling.

One thing that sticks out about White is his maturity and poise on the mound. Even when it gets rough out there he stays calm and levels his emotions. His coaches notice his proficient knowledge for how the game is played along with advance leadership skills.

“Nobody works harder than him,” Assistant Coach A.J. McNally said. “He’s at every practice, and is always helping his other teammates step-by-step at their positions.”

After high school White has strong ambitions to play for a Division I college.

“My wife and I look forward to more great moments,” White’s father Ray White Sr. said. “We are proud of him and are very supportive of him in baseball, and hope he plays until he doesn’t want to play any more.”

Beutler Air Conditioning & Plumbing, a leading residential heating and air conditioning service company in Sacramento, is launching the “Help A Home” program to give one local resident in need the chance to win a free air conditioning system.

Help A Home invites community members within Beutler Air Conditioning & Plumbing’s Northern California service area to nominate a deserving family member, friend, or neighbor to receive a brand new HVAC unit just before the summer heat arrives. The Beutler team will be accepting email submissions over a three week period. Residents within Beutler’s service areas are encouraged to share stories about why their family member, friend or neighbor should receive this in-home unit valued at more than $8,900.00. Beutler Air Conditioning & Plumbing will install the system free of charge and one of its expert technicians will explain how to use it.

The Help A Home program was designed to give a deserving individual or family a new HVAC unit to not only beat the heat, but to improve the home’s indoor air quality. Poorly maintained or out-of-date air conditioning units can lead to a number of problems in the home, including temperature inconsistencies, polluted indoor air, higher energy bill costs and expensive repairs from the system working overtime. A new HVAC system from Beutler will lower energy costs, keep the home cool and comfortable, and improve air quality inside the winner’s home.

Submissions will be collected from May 1 to May 31. Nominations can be sent to helpahomebeutler@beutler.com with a brief description of why your nominee should be selected. After the submission window closes, Beutler will select the top five nominated families and individuals and perform onsite visits at each nominee’s home. Following the site visits the winner will be announced the first week of June and Beutler Air Conditioning & Plumbing technicians will schedule the installation from there.

For more information or to contact Beutler, visit www.Beutler.com.

On Thursday, May 16, Assemblymember Jim Frazier (D-Oakley) and Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla (D-Concord) will hold a joint budget town hall to discuss the state budget and collect feedback with an independent, nonpartisan organization, Next 10. Next 10 has created an Interactive California Budget Challenge that mirrors the decisions Assemblymembers Frazier and Bonilla will have to make to balance our state’s budget. The simulation contains accurate figures for California’s revenues and expenditures so that constituents can make their own choices.

At the event, constituents will be given response clickers that allow them to vote on policy options and see the results instantly. They will have the opportunity to choose how much they would spend on schools, prisons, the environment, and other state programs – and how they would pay for them

WHO: Assemblymember Jim Frazier and Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla, along with Next 10, the Los Medanos Political Science Department and Professor Milton Clarke

WHAT: Joint State Budget Town Hall featuring “The California Budget Challenge”

WHERE: Los Medanos Community College – Library Community Room (L 109)

2700 East Leland Road in Pittsburg

WHEN: Thursday, May 16 from 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

RSVP: To contact Assemblymember Jim Frazier please visit his website at www.asmdc.org/members/a11/. To contact Assemblymember Susan Bonilla please visit her website at www.asmdc.org/members/a14/

Assemblymember Frazier represents the cities of Antioch, Oakley, Knightsen, Discovery Bay, Brentwood and Byron in East Contra Costa and shares the City of Pittsburg with Assemblymember Bonilla.