By Allen Payton

An anonymous email on Tuesday morning, November 8th, with the signature line reading “Voiceless Employees of the Contra Costa Community College District,” took the Board of Governors to task for a “Lack of Transparency in Chancellor Selection Process,” as was written in the subject line of the email message. Board President Vicki Gordon disputes that.

The email message read as follows:

“To Whom it May Concern,

We write to you today sharing the voices of many within the Contra Costa Community College District whom believe the existing Contra Costa Community College District Board of Trustees has, with malicious intent, manipulated the recent search process that led to the selection of Dr. Fred Wood for Chancellor of the district.

The Board selected its own Board President, Vicki Gordon, to serve as chair of the search committee. Board policy (BP 2057) outlines that the Board is to appoint a chair of the committee, not to appoint itself as the chair of the committee. This unprecedented move to have a Board member, no less the sitting Board President, serve as the chair of the initial screening interview process and then as Chair of the final interview process eliminated the opportunity for district employees, through their representation on the search committee, to have a true voice in the process.

Board President Vicki Gordon then violated the intent and practice of the Brown Act, calling a special meeting of the Board to announce its decision, without providing the normal 72 hour public notification. While it is understood that Special Meetings are allowed with only one day’s notice, the rush to announce a selection was unnecessary, as a regular Board meeting is scheduled to take place on November 9th. Both Vicki Gorgon and Greg Enholm are up for re-election on November 8th.

The Board interviewed the final candidates and did not consult with the screening interview committee regarding the committee’s feedback on the finalists. These committee members all serve as representative voices of the various governance and labor groups within the district. Instead, the Board relied entirely on Board President Vicki Gordon’s account, whom again placed herself at both levels of the interview process, as Chair of the committees.

IF the Board had held a transparent evaluation of the final candidates, it would have become clear that there remained significant concerns about the qualifications of Dr. Wood:

– Dr. Wood has never worked within the California Community College system, except for a brief graduate teaching assignment over 30 years ago. Dr. Wood has never served in any post-graduate administration or faculty role within any community college.

– Dr. Wood has never served as a President of any community college.

– Dr. Wood currently serves as Chancellor, which is a President level position in California, at a rural four year institution in Minnesota that serves 1,800 students, 900 of which are online students. In comparison the Contra Costa Community College District serves over 50,000 students and has more employees than the institution Dr. Wood currently serves.

– Dr. Wood was forced out of his position as Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs at UC Davis after the infamous pepper spray incident in 2011/12 and proceeding fall out, yet no reference or any background checks on this situation were conducted.

The Contra Costa Community College District, despite the incompetence of its current Board of Trustees, continues to be one of the most successful and well respected community college districts within California. It is appalling that the Board would manipulate the Chancellor selection process to hire an individual that should have never even been in consideration as a finalist. Dr. Wood may be a qualified leader in the world of four year higher education, but his experience is not a match for the needs and complexity of the Contra Costa Community College District.

Sincerely,
Voiceless Employees of the Contra Costa Community College District”

A message to the email address of origin from @guerrilamail.com, asking for the identity of the senders, did not receive a response. That’s because Guerrilla Mail is a “Disposal Temporary Email Address” as it describes itself. It offers the promotional message of, “Don’t want to give them your real email? Use a temporary email. No registration, lasts 60 mins. Protection from Spam.”

When reached for comment, Board President Vicki Gordon said, the college district has “participatory governance, which means everyone has the opportunity to participate, our students, our faculty and staff, the community and the process was really, really open.”

“The passage of AB1725 gives all constituent groups a role in the governance of higher education,” she explained. “I have been reaching out to all of the groups who are concerned and talking with them about the process. But reaching out has been taking longer than I thought.”

Asked if faculty and staff participated in the process, Gordon replied “They did.”

“We held public forums which were announced in local media,” she stated. “We had a search committee, following our policy, comprised of faculty and staff, and two college presidents, and community members. That got us to the three final candidates.”

“Each candidate participated in four forums. So we had 12 forums scheduled,” Gordon continued. “We also videotaped the forums at Contra Costa College and played those live and recorded them so people could go to the website and view them. And people did and made comments and we collected that input, as well.”

She said the Board did follow the state’s open meeting law, known as the Brown Act.

“As the Board President and Chair of the committee, I worked very hard to ensure inclusion, to ensure the process was true, ensure all voices were heard and that it was fair,” she stated. “I’m ecstatic with the results and happy with the Board. We had a difficult time making this decision. We talked about it extensively at the Board level. I’m very proud of our Board members for putting in the time and energy.”

“Dr. Fred Wood brings not only a new, fresh outside look, but a hometown view as well,” Gordon said of the new chancellor, who not only attended Diablo Valley College as a student, he graduated from College Park High School in Pleasant Hill. “He walked the path that many of our college students are following and working to accomplish. We look forward to having him on board, soon.”

Dr. Wood is expected to start his new position in January.

By Allen Payton

In a post on Facebook, Monday evening, Antioch resident Angrett Davies shared how she narrowly escaped being hit by a woman who drove her car into her husband and two others, outside a family court house in Martinez, Monday morning. A short time later the woman jumped to her death from the Benicia Bridge.

“I praised the Lord for my life tonight,” Davies wrote. “This morning as I went to Martinez family court building, I started praying parts of Psalm 91 for no reason other than I felt the urge to pray. I kept speaking and praying these words as I drove.”

“When my appointment was over, 30 seconds after I crossed the street where the white van is located, the women (sic) waiting at that intersection to hurt her husband saw her husband in the intersection crossing and she hit the gas peddle to run him over,” Davies shared. “I was spared by 30 seconds. I was in the crosswalk she went through to hit him.”

“I cried and sang praises all the way home and cried more when I told my family,” she added. “I am so grateful to God and Jesus. Thank God those people were not killed.”

Davies, who was recently certified as a new chaplain in the county, then quoted verses 3-15 from the passage in the Bible in her Facebook post.

The woman apparently waited outside of the Family Court Center and drove her car into her estranged husband and two others, before later committing suicide by jumping off the Benicia Bridge.

According to a press release by Commander Eric Ghisletta of the Martinez Police Department, “at 10:33 a.m., Martinez Police Dispatch received a call of an injury accident at the intersection of Court St. and Main St. The reporting party advised the suspect had fled in a light blue vehicle.

Upon MPD arrival, several Contra Costa County Sheriff Deputies were already on scene rendering first aid to three injured subjects. In speaking with witnesses, it appears the suspect intentionally struck three pedestrians in the crosswalk and then fled the area. All three subjects were transported to local hospitals with moderate injuries.

It appears one of the victims left a family court hearing at the Family Law Center (751 Pine St.) just prior to the incident. He was accompanied by two friends and as they were crossing the street, the victim’s estranged wife accelerated her vehicle toward the three subjects in the crosswalk. The drive struck all three pedestrians then stopped the vehicle and reversed directions. She struck one of the victims a second time with her vehicle before fleeing the scene.

Approximately twenty minutes later, Benicia Police Department received a report of a female that appeared to have jumped from the Benicia Bridge. Martinez PD, Benicia PD, CHP and the United States Coast Guard responded to the area where they located a deceased female under the bridge. A vehicle matching the description of the suspect vehicle in the hit and run was located on the bridge in the area where the female had jumped.

Based on all indications, it appears the female who jumped from the bridge was also the driver of the vehicle who struck the pedestrians. Her name is being withheld until positive identification from the Contra Costa County Coroner’s Office.

Investigation is ongoing.”

A call to Detective Miles Williamson, who is investigating the case, received a response from Detective Craig Schnabel who said he had no updates, at this time. He has a call into the hospitals but has not heard back and also stated that the woman’s name has not yet been released.

Please check back later for updates to this story.

Antioch School Board to hold required public hearing Wednesday night

On Thursday evening, November 3rd, eager parents and community supporters filled the seats of Delta Bay Church of Christ to hear from Rocketship Education about their application to open a new public charter school in Antioch. The event was organized by Antioch community members who are in pursuit of improving education in Antioch, and hosted by Dr. Lamont Francies, pastor of the church.  Regional directors from Rocketship schools in Milwaukee, Nashville and DC joined Marie Gil, Bay Area Regional Director to share perspectives on starting schools in new communities and serving a wider diversity of students.

Rocketship Education is a nonprofit organization that opened their first 10 schools in high-needs areas of San Jose and has since expanded to Concord, Redwood City, Nashville TN, Milwaukee WI, and Washington DC. Focusing exclusively on elementary education, Rocketship engages parents to become advocates for their children, inviting families into schools and making them active drivers of their children’s learning. Principal Jason Colon of the new school in Concord, Rocketship Futuro Academy, noted that he came to Rocketship five years ago to teach because he was “moved by the focus on parent engagement.” Mr. Colon says that he sees parent engagement at Rocketship “not as empowering parents, but it’s collaborating with them. Let them [parents] see that they have the fire and the ability to change the future for their kids.”

Parent engagement was a big focus of the questions from Antioch parents at the event. One community member, Arireanna Lombard, said that she’s heard a lot about engaging parents, but wants to know how Rocketship will actually do it as it can be hard to organize people.

Jacque Patterson, of Rocketship DC, said that the difference is that Rocketship shows up with and for parents, year-round, working with elected officials, instead of just every four years when candidates come to ask parents for votes.

“When kids are in classrooms, there’s not a whole lot of difference,” shared Shaka Mitchell, Regional Director for Rocketship Nashville. “We’re making sure all kids are getting exactly what they need at the right moment. We have to be sensitive to parents of different backgrounds having different relationships with the school. All of our faculty do home visits to meet our families where they’re at and where they are comfortable. We’re helping build the skills to be strong advocates in elementary school and beyond.”

Rocketship is also known for high achievement, with their Bay Area network of 10 schools ranking in the top 10% in both math and English Language Arts among all elementary school districts serving a similar student population across the state, on last year’s California assessment. These students also stay ahead, as once they graduate from Rocketship schools they are a year ahead of their classmates in math and reading, after the first and second years of middle school.

Pastor Francies welcomed Rocketship into his congregation, citing the need for quality schools in Antioch and his belief that, “there are some teachers who can’t teach, but there are no students who can’t learn.” According to Francies, Rocketship brings the opportunity for Antioch kids to experience high-quality, personalized learning that will prepare them for success later in life.

Gil began the meeting by introducing herself and sharing a bit of her story as a single mother in Antioch many years ago.

“To be able to come back to the families and children of Antioch is very meaningful,” she said, having eventually moved her family out of Antioch in search of better schools. Gil cited the power of parents as the driving force to demand better outcomes for their children as the reason for the interest in Rocketship in Antioch.

Parent questions and responses from the panel of school leaders covered Rocketship’s special education model and extended school day. Rocketship uses what’s called an inclusive model of special education, which means that children designated as having special needs spend 80 percent of their time in the classroom with their peers and the rest is personalized support by specialists. This specialized support level is decided upon in consultation with parents. Principal Colon promises that “we’ll collaborate and decide what’s best for your child.”

There was also a discussion of the many different language needs in Antioch, with Brittany Kinser, of Rocketship Milwaukee, noting that every meeting is translated into as many languages as parents need. Homework is also translated so that parents can work with their children.

Rocketship Education is proposing a free, public charter school in Antioch to offer elementary school beginning in the 2018-2019 school year.

“You shouldn’t have to dig deep into your pockets to get a good education,” said Shaka Mitchell.

The Public Hearing will be held on November 9, 2016 at Lone Tree Elementary School at 1931 Mokelumne Drive in Antioch, beginning at 7:00 PM in the Multi Use Room.

For more information about Rocketship Education, visit www.rsed.org.

First numbers will be available shortly after 8:00 pm

You won’t have to wait long to get updated election results from Contra Costa County Elections Division on Tuesday night.

Results of vote-by-mail ballots for the Presidential General Election that have been returned through last Friday will be available shortly after the polls close at 8:00 pm on Election Night.

Meanwhile, with results being collected from precincts throughout the County, the first update can be expected at about 9:30 pm, with results updated about every 30 minutes until all precincts report.

The availability of updated reports will be communicated via Twitter and Facebook, using the hashtag #CoCoVote2016.  Changes to the reporting schedule, if any, will also be communicated on these social media sites.

The Contra Costa Elections Division social media pages are:

https://www.Twitter.com/CoCoElections

https://www.facebook.com/EngageContraCosta/

https://www.facebook.com/ContraCostaElections/

Election results will be posted to the Elections website, www.cocovote.us, throughout the night and will be updated by 5:00 pm on Thursday November 10th and then every Friday until the election is certified.

The county has until December 6th to certify the Presidential Election and until December 8th to certify all other items on the ballot.

Local election results will also be available throughout Election Night on Contra Costa Television (CCTV) beginning at 9:00 pm on Comcast channel 27, Astound channel 32 and AT&T U-Verse channel 99.

Contra Costa voters will have one more quick and easy way to return their vote-by-mail ballots on Election Day.

The Contra Costa Elections Division is hosting a drive-thru ballot drop off site outside of its office, located at 555 Escobar Street in Martinez. The drive-thru will be located along northbound Alhambra Avenue, just north of Escobar.

The drive-thru will be open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm on Monday, and 7:00 am to 8:00 pm on Tuesday.

The goal of the drive-thru is that drivers won’t have to get out of their car or find a parking spot.

Early Voting will continue to available in the Contra Costa Elections Office on Monday and Tuesday; 8:00 am to 5:00 pm on Monday and 7:00 am to 8:00 pm Tuesday.

Additionally, vote-by-mail voters can continue to drop off their ballots at “CoCo Vote-N-Go” drop-off boxes at all 19 city hall buildings, select branches of the Contra Costa Library and the County Administration building on 651 Pine Street, Martinez.

For more information, visit www.cocovote.us.

Includes employee contract negotiations, Humphrey’s restaurant lease, marijuana urgency ordinance, and waiver of Measure O tax and police services fee on new apartment complex

By Allen Payton

The Antioch City Council, at their next regular meeting, scheduled for tomorrow night, November 8^th, will be dealing with a variety of major issues, when Antioch residents will either be voting or paying attention to the Election Night results.

Prior to the regular meeting, which begins at 7:00 p.m., one hour before the polls close, during a closed session meeting beginning at 5:30 p.m., the Council will be meeting with negotiators on contracts with five employee groups, including the Antioch Police Officers Association, Operating Engineers Union Local 3, the Antioch Police Sworn Management Association, as well as the Confidential and Management Units. It is not known, at time of publication, if there will be a final vote on the contracts during the meeting.

Also in closed session, the Council will discuss the lease agreement with the owners of Everett & Jones restaurant for the lease of the former Humphrey’s on the Delta location.

In addition, the Council will hear about the lawsuit in Contra Costa Superior Court by Antioch resident and Real Estate broker Mark Jordan over the City transferring money from both the sewer and water funds to the police department.

Then, during the regular session, the Council will discuss and vote on an urgency ordinance establishing a temporary moratorium on non-medical marijuana uses, which requires a 4/5 vote for adoption, plus an appeal of the Planning Commission approval for the proposed 126-unit, Delta Courtyard Apartments on Wilbur Avenue, just west of Cavallo Road.

According to the staff report, the developer of the apartments “is requesting that the City Council exempt the for-profit property owner from business license taxes for rental property owners that were put in place by Measure O.” That “represents lost revenue to the General Fund of approximately $567,000” over a 30-year period.

In addition, the developer is asking for an exemption to the proposed police services Mello-Roos district, later on the meeting agenda, which would be a loss of $1,202,794 over the 30-year period. That would make the total requested exemptions and loss to the General Fund of $1,769,794 for the project.

A call to City Manager Steve Duran asking if a vote would be taken on the employee contracts during closed session received a response from him that closed session matters cannot be discussed as it would be a violation of the Brown Act.

An attempt to reach Mayor Wade Harper for comment, who with Duran sets the council agendas, was unsuccessful.

UPDATE – 11/07/16 4:00 PM: However, City Attorney Michael Vigilia said that a vote could occur but, that the council would report out of closed session on any action taken. Also, the public had the opportunity to speak on the matter before the closed session begins.

Mayor Pro Tem Lori Ogorchock did respond and said she doesn’t set the agendas, but explained that three of the items had to be on Tuesday night’s agenda. First, the marijuana ordinance was urgent because of the initiative on the state ballot during Tuesday’s election, the appeal of the Planning Commission’s decision which has to be done within 30 days, and the Everett & Jones restaurant lease was time sensitive, as well.

“There’s no big conspiracy, here,” she stated. “We’ve been working on the employee contracts all year.”

Ogorchock also said she’s not sure if a vote on the final contracts will be taken during the closed session meeting.

The Council will also discuss the formation of two assessment districts for new development areas, including a Mell-Roos district for police services, entitled the Community Facilities District 2016-01, and the East Lone Tree Specific Plan Benefit District for the Slatten Ranch Road area developments. It will “fairly distribute costs for the construction” of the road, and “other public facilities among the various property owners” in that area “at no cost to the City,” according to the staff report on the item.

Public comments are allowed on the closed session agenda items, prior to that meeting, as well as at the Council meeting.

To see the complete Council meeting agenda, click here.

By Allen Payton

At their regular meeting on Tuesday, October 25th, the Antioch City Council heard Police Chief Allan Cantando’s Third Quarter Report on crime and police department activities, postponed a homeless camping ordinance, and some compliments and complaints from a few residents, including a council candidate and his wife.

Extra Mile Day Proclamation

At the beginning of the meeting, a special proclamation was read and presented to a group of Antioch residents for their efforts to clean up the blight in the city.

Mayor Wade Harper read the proclamation declaring Tuesday, November 1^st as “Extra Mile Day” was presented to the Facebook group entitled “Cleaning Up Antioch One Home at a Time,” represented by Denise Cantrell, Dale Lutes, Hilda Parham and Lucas Stuart-Chilcote.

“We inherited this from Lori Cook and we just kept on going,” said Lutes.

She mentioned Denise Cantrell, “who’s actually been our hardest worker. We just go out there and clean up.”

Denise Cantrell just said “Thank you.”

Lutes then spoke of Edward Atrim.

“He was the muscle,” she said. “He and his truck were there and his pressure washer, donuts and orange bags from the city.”

Public Comments

During public comments Cantrell then spoke about the trees needing trimming on the trails.

“I’m here asking for help on some of the trails we have,” she stated. “I have sent multiple GO (Government Outreach) requests for the trails.”

She mentioned homeless camping along the trails and asked that city staff “lift the branches up for our kids’ safety.”

“I’ve emailed (Assistant City Manager and Public Works Director) Ron Bernal, (City Manager) Steve Duran, last year and there’s been fires on the Morgan Trail and recently kids doing fireworks,” Cantrell explained. “I’m like the only trimming along Pawnee and leaving them.”

She also spoke of a GO request for trash at a bus stop.

“After six months, Lucas and I trimmed the branches,” Cantrell continued. “The branches are still there. This, our third year trimming the tree and the tree is growing again. I’m hoping Public Works will see this.”

Harper responded with “I will forward this on to Mr. Duran and Mr. Bernal. You really do go the extra mile.”

Resident Valerie Kelley was next to speak with compliments and a complaint.

“I’d like to say thank you to Mr. Duran, (Mayor Pro Tem) Lori (Ogorchock) and (Councilwoman) Mary  (Rocha) for getting back to me and dealing with a problem we have with the homeless,” she said. “I want you to notice. Because Mr. Harper you haven’t called me back. I have called repeatedly. I have called Code Enforcement and all you get is an answering machine and never get a call back.”

“There’s (sic) prescriptions and bottles and bottles of booze,” Kelley continued. “They start fires and I get reported for Spare the Air Day. I’m not burning. Last night the orange glow was on the hill. But no one will go up there. They’re homeless of their choice. They’re out there panhandling.”

“I can’t wait for the day when November 1^st comes and the shopping carts will be taken away,” she stated. “It’s right there between View Drive and the middle school. It’s sad this is going on. We have to do more for the homeless. But it’s not working. So I’m asking for your help.”

Harper responded, “I will be getting with you, Ms. Kelly. I have your phone number, here.”

Resident Hilda Parham, said “I’m here piggybacking on the last speaker” and spoke of the trails, as well.

Fred Rouse, candidate for city council, spoke about the current council members and said they haven’t accomplished much. He spoke of “mixed messages and empty promises.”

“Many don’t trust the propaganda and…materials,” he stated. “It doesn’t add up to us and hasn’t added up for a long time.”

Stuart-Chilcote was next to speak.

“This is an important night,” he said speaking of the Extra Mile Day proclamation. “We have put a lot of hours into this city. We have dire love for this city. We really respect the seniority and the members of the Facebook page that Lori has created. We would like to see Public Works do more of what we’re doing. I think the point is…we would like to see a more presence. We kinda feel like we’re by ourselves.”

Tina Chavez Rouse spoke, next giving the council members an earful.

“I’ve had it up to here,” she said. “I’ve been a resident of Antioch for 20 years. Yes, I am the wife of Frederick Rouse. All candidates are not playing fair…many of you are unscrupulous and make backdoor deals…these are lies to the citizens. You must show your true colors and true passion of what you can really do…candor, respect.”

“Sorry to say but I haven’t seen any of this these past four years,” Chavez Rouse continued. “Don’t make empty promises. Listen to the people If you make a mistake admit it don’t make excuses. Honesty is the best policy. Boycotting. That is your way of hurting your chance of getting elected. Collections of past due money owed to the city. I’m quite surprised that the City Manager hasn’t fought and negotiated harder and smarter for our city. My husband has handled millions and billions of dollars.”

She then said she would make further comments to the Police Commission about the CIA and FBI.

“Why did this take until now to come out?” she asked.

Police Chief’s Third Quarter Report

Police Chief Allan Cantando then gave his Third Quarter Report for 2016. chief-cantandos-2016q3-report

“Speaking of volunteers,” he said, “they’re the unsung heroes of our community. We couldn’t do what we’re doing without them, today.”

During a recent news interview he was asked about “the council interfering with my job as police chief. For my happiness, Council does not do that. But all of you have approached me with concerns from citizens that the department has had to address.”

“You’ll see the marijuana that we’re dealing with they’re mostly latent,” Cantando said. “We’ve been very busy with marijuana arrests.”

“We’ve had nine homicides,” he stated. “Two of those were justified homicides, according to the DA’s office. Those are not counted. So we’re sitting at seven homicides.”

“Our calls are prioritized,” Cantando continued. “All calls are important. We will get to all of them. Maybe not as fast as the public would like. But, understand we are rebuilding the Antioch Police Department.”

“We’ve had a 97% increase in proactivity in our city,” he explained. “Every time we are doing these proactive details…and it comes out to about two FTE’s (full time employees). We’re seeing drops in our crime because we have those officers out there on overtime. So we are getting the bang for our buck. Unfortunately, we are having to do this on an overtime basis.”

Regarding response times Cantando stated, “although they’re not where I want them to be they have dropped from 10:06 to 9:52. I went to get down to the nine-minute mark.”

“There were 1,100 cars removed from our streets,” he shared regarding auto abatement. “So we’re seeing a reduction in blight. People say to me, they approach me and tell me they see a difference…and they’re absolutely correct.”

We’re authorized 102 sworn police officer positions,” Cantando stated. “We have 93 sworn on the force. We have four lateral police officers starting Halloween. We’re hiring faster than any department in our county.”

“We’ve actually hired 41 police officers (since Measure C passed),” he said. “But, I can’t control time. We have people who go out on retirement. We’ve had eight people who have resigned. We’ve had to let some people go…a net of 11 officers.”

“They are getting paid while they’re working for us,” Cantando explained regarding the use of Measure C funds. “Having 41 officers on the payroll at different times, it’s going to cost the General Fund.”

“It’s not a matter of getting applicants…but qualified applicants,” he continued. “We’re not just going to put people on the street to say we’ve hired people.”

Cantando then spoke of the PAL Golf Tournament, Legos and the Law and other efforts by the APD, saying “we do a lot of community outreach.”

He mentioned Panther Tails, about how on Thursdays, the Antioch High Cross Country Team takes some dogs out and get them exercise.

“We had the APD Open House, the first one in 10 years,” Cantando shared. “Again, another huge success. It was well over 1,000 people we gave tours to. It was just a great day for the police department.”

He then mentioned the Candy Giveaway at the police facility on Saturday, October 29^th. “This Saturday from 2-4 p.m. we will have a Candy Giveaway at the Police Department. They will be able to play on the vehicles we have out there. Rain or shine.”

Harper then asked, “Are we using outside background investigators for the hiring process?”

“We’ve been doing that for about 15 years,” the Chief responded. “If we can’t handle the load, we will bring on an outside contractor. Last year, we spent $14,000 or $15,000 on outside sources. We’re going full speed. I don’t know why that was even brought up.”

“Can you give an example of when a homicide is justified?” Harper asked.

“If a victim being robbed has a weapon and defends themselves and shoots the robber, the DA won’t charge them with a homicide,” Cantando explained.

“Thank you for your report, Chief,” said Wilson. “Going back to your hiring…41 officers with a net of 11. Can you talk about what you’re doing about new hires versus laterals?”

“If you have a service retirement, it’s very easy to say this person is going to retire on this date,” hestated. “But, it doesn’t always work that way.  We are still in the process of hiring police officers. “We can’t hire past the 102 because that’s the allotted number. That’s a council and city manager decision.”

“This council unfortunately has to deal with what councils decided many, many years ago,” Cantando continued. “It’s not because we’re not hiring a lot of police officers, it’s just that we have to hire so many to catch up. We’re doing everything we can with the knowledge we have. We cannot predict medical retirements or if someone is going to make field training or not.”

Wilson then asked about “homelessness and the assignment of two officers.”

“It’s still in process,” he said. “None of the council members have been shy about speaking with me about dealing with the homeless. I’m going to actually dispatch two officers to deal with…homeless, quality of life issues.”

Cantando spoke of “getting people services,” and “If we’re having a rash of a certain crime, they will deal with that.”

Ogorchock said, “Thank you for your report. It shows how hard our officers are working. They’re doing a very good job.”

“There’s a rumor about more CSO’s and less officers,” she said.

“Yes, I have heard a lot of that,” Cantando said with a chuckle. “Volunteers can’t do it. CSO’s can’t do it. It takes an officer to deal with violent crime.”

“Once we get to the 102 officers, if the budget can afford more CSO’s, it’s absolutely needed,” he said. “Resources need to be directed to those officers. I recommend we focus on hiring police officers. Because police officers can do anything a CSO can do.”

Ogorchock asked about license plate readers.

“License plate readers will be up by this Friday,” Cantando responded. “The amount of cars at those four intersections, are as much as how many go through Pittsburg on the freeway.”

“Those are live feed, correct on your phones?” she asked.

“We can set up an app for it,” he saidd. “We only have two (vehicles with license plate readers. The cost is $15,000 per vehicle.”

Asked about the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF), Cantando said they have reached out to Maddy’s Fund and they will do it for ARF.

Ogorchock also mentioned the off ramp at Hillcrest and the “no right on read. It’s an accident waiting to happen,”

I agree, said Cantando.

She also asked about the U-turns on A Street near Jack-in-the-Box.

“Is there something we can do to bring awareness to that area?” she asked.

“There is,” he replied. “I will be talking to (Deputy Public Works Director) Mike Bechtold about making the signs bigger.”

Councilman Tony Tiscareno then offered his comments.

“We do not interfere I can honestly say. We let you do your job,” he stated. “I depend on your expertise…and you are transparent.”

“We are rebuilding our police force,” Tiscareno continued. “We aren’t like we used to be 10 years ago. And to have 41 officers hired..I’ve spoken with other cities…they don’t see those numbers. They’re kind of offended we’re taking some officers out of those cities. We can’t force people to stay here. People get sick…retire. I’m very proud of you guys. You’re doing a lot of good work. The crime suppression…I’d like to see that continue. I do understand the criticism. But we do know what you do for our city.”

“The officers are the ones who do the heavy lifting,” said Cantando.

Rocha said, “One thing I like about you and the department is you’ve given it the heart. I like the Legos. I want to see more open houses.”

“In this country it’s different…we do obey our laws,” she continued, then mentioned “the peddlers on the highway. What’s our plan?”

“People who are habitually panhandling on our highways,” Cantando said, and that some “are intoxicated. We do sometimes send them to county jail. They don’t always stay there. That’s why I want two officers dedicated to that.”

“I live in this community, as well, I don’t like seeing it. My family doesn’t like seeing it.” he continued. “Those same types of people are in Walnut Creek, Lafayette. They’re everywhere.”

Harper then shared his thoughts on the Chief’s report.

“We’re all happy with the PD and your efforts,” he said. “We see blight…people panhandling on our offramps…we see the man in an ace bandage in a wheelchair…dancing with his sign. We see him every day. You leave, they come back. They put up a fence by Jack in the Box…to move some of the campers along. We see they’re sharing the wheelchair…a different person in the wheelchair.”

During public comments on the report, Karen Kopps asked about staffing in Animal Services.

“I was happy to see ARF will be coming in next week,” she said. “But I’m a little confused by the information given by the Chief. Has the MOU [Memorandum of Understanding] been signed? If not what is holding that up? If it is signed when will they be coming in to make recommendations? Are they just coming in to making recommendations or are they going to be making changes? Because we’ve had recommendations by experts over the years but they haven’t all been implemented, yet.”

She also asked about “dead on arrival” and transfers of animals.

“How many died in the care of shelter staff?” Kopps asked. “What’s the difference between transfers and rescues?”

Cantando responded, “Yes, the MOU has been signed. They’re coming in on Thursday to tell us the direction they’re going to be taking. It’s still our animal shelter. They are going to be making recommendations. They said they’ll be here for a year.”

“For the last two months people have been complaining we’re not giving it (animal services) enough attention,” he continued. “Well, I’m giving it attention. Now on social media they’re saying we’re giving it too much attention with a police lieutenant.”

Proposed Camping Ordinance

City Attorney Michael Vigilia presented the options for the Council on a proposed camping ordinance, “to address blight issues related to the homeless population.”

The City would be “essentially prohibiting erecting a temporary shelter on public property,” he said. “Other cities have camping ordinances. They’re upheld across the nation. It’s when they enforce them against a certain population” that poses a problem.

“There are a line of cases and a number of courts that have come to the conclusion that a community has to take into account the amount of shelter space when enforcing ordinances,” Vigilia stated. “There’s no definitive court case.”

The city is sorely lacking in shelter space at this time…which would make it difficult to enforce a camping ordinance…as it raises the risk of civil litigation,” he explained. “It certainly doesn’t mean we don’t have options,” and then mentioned “trespassing laws” and “loitering laws.”

“The absence of this ordinance hasn’t really hindered the city’s efforts,” Vigilia continued. “It would just be an additional tool. But, under the current circumstances with the limited shelter space and the uncertainty of the law” it doesn’t make sense to adopt an ordinance “right now.”

So the city can pass one, but “the challenges arise when it comes to enforcement,” he added.

“Do we have a current camping ordinance, right now?” asked Harper

“No,” Vigilia replied.“You run into constitutional issues which you have to be concerned about” when you begin enforcement.

But he said that ordinances dealing with parks that close at dusk or next to railroad tracks, are acceptable.

“Brentwood has one but it’s under its parks ordinance and has to deal with a certain camping permit in their parks. Oakley and Pittsburg don’t have one,” said Vigilia.

Council members then discussed the matter.

“If we only hammer the homeless on camping issues we open ourselves to (legal) exposure,” Harper stated. He agreed with holding off on the camping ordinance.

“I’d still like to see some options,” Wilson stated. “Berkeley has gone through this. I think Martinez has gone through this. I think it’s good to have tools in our tool box. We do have a few individuals who abuse our parks.”

“When I went to the League of Cities and saw the presentation of the three cities, all they’re doing is moving the camps, costing them money, as they move from camp to camp to camp,” Ogorchock said. “I think we need to start bringing pressure on the county to get some funding out here,” and mentioned “working with our sister (neighboring) cities.”

“Law enforcement, Code Enfocement have ample tools to deal with what’s out there, right now,” Vigilia said. “This would be an additional tool when the time is right.”

“I was thinking of four wheels moving around in the city,” Rocha said. “That’s the one we have to deal with causing problems and affecting the environment.”

“The camping ordinances that are out there don’t deal with camping in your car,” Viglia responded.

Rocha said, “this actually is what we’re dealing with is the encampments we’re talking about. Not the four-wheel.”

“I think it’s positive we explore other options,” Tiscareno stated. “There are other cities who have this ordinance. I’d like to know how it’s well received out there. I can agree to…explore some of the options that you can bring back to us.”

Budget Adjustments – More Revenue Than Expected

The next agenda item was a report on a cleanup of the budget since the Council adopted it on June 30, 2016 and contained more good news, with the City received greater revenue than expected.

Budget Amendments were requested by City Finance Director Dawn Merchant

“Revenues are coming in significantly higher than expected,” she said, mentioning an “increase by $941,000.”

But there was also a “reduction in revenues from other agencies by $800,000,” yet an “increase in other revenues of $1 million for reimbursement by the State Water Department.”

“We received…more in property tax…more in business license tax,” Merchant continued. “Per council policy on one-time revenues, 50% of the savings are to be applied to pay down the unfunded liabilities.”

She said the City was “replacing a deficit with a surplus, with the budget amendments,” for this fiscal year.

“It’s important to know to balance the budget even with healthy reserves,” Merchant continued. “Dipping into the fund balance is not a good habit to get into.”

“The General Fund is still projecting a deficit…running out of money two years after Measure C runs out,” she warned. “If Measure C is not extended, the General Fund will lose approximately $7 million per year.”

Harper spoke of being happy about Measure C funds coming in more than projected.

“We’re looking good, today,” he stated. “But we have to look out for the future.

“Very good report,” said Harper. “When are we going to get the results of our audit?”

Merchant responded, “It’s due by December 31^st. It will be presented usually the second meeting in January.”

“We get questions about Cost Allocations. Is there a better way to discuss them, maybe pictures?” Harper asked.

Merchant agreed to try to make the Cost Allocation Plan easier to understand.

“I’m really happy…its’ exciting to see the unfunded liability starting to go down,” Ogorchock said. “I know it’s small right now.”

Vineyard Self-Storage

The Council then had a discussion about the Vineyard Self-Storage Facility on Vineyard Drive at East 18^th Street and the associated sewer line.

Harper was the only one to speak.

“I’m not in favor of continuing this,” he said. “I think we’ve met due diligence. I think it’s time we approved this project.”

The item was approved on a unanimous, 5-0 vote.

Marsh Creek Corridor

The Council was asked for their support for a multi-use trail along the Marsh Creek corridor. 15-miles long from Clayton to an area just south of Brentwood, connecting downtown Concord to the shoreline in Oakley. While it doesn’t directly affect Antioch, Rocha raised a concern of a potential conflict of interest if the project is seeking money the city might want for something else.

“We always want to be a good partner with our neighboring cities,” Tiscareno said. He also wanted to make sure there wasn’t any fiscal impact on the city.

The City of Concord declined to go ahead with it. They’re currently redoing their bicycle plan, staff explained. Because it isn’t finalized yet they’re reluctant to go forward with support at this time. Clayton and Brentwood both support it.

“I’m all for trails and people be in more walkable communities,” Councilwoman Monica Wilson said, then asked if there is “any potential of any of our trails connecting to this trail?”

“This trail is part of a larger project. The Delta DeAnza trail which goes through Antioch would connect to Oakley.

During public comments, Juan Pablo Galvan, Land Use Manager for Save Mt. Diablo said, “I want to thank you for considering this resolution. We’ve been very enthusiastic about this project.”

“I do know we have a variety of bicyclists in the community,” Ogorchock added. “I do believe it will benefit them in our city.”

“We want to make sure we have good bicycle trails and open space…to enjoy,” Tiscareno shared. “Potentially, where I don’t think we’re going to look at any funding mechanism. We do want to see those trails go through the waterfront. I think this is a good start. I do speak in favor of the motion.”

“Hopefully we won’t have to compete for the same funds, later, for our ferry terminal,” Harper stated.

The motion to support the project passed 5-0.

Council Communications

During Council Communication, Wilson said, “I do have an agenda item request. Can we bring back all of our request list that council members have already put in to make sure we’re within the time limits?”

“We can always ask about that stuff in our one-on-ones,” Harper said. “I’m in agreement.”

The meeting adjourned at 9:41 p.m. The next Council meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 8^th at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers. It can also be viewed either on Comcast Local Cable Channel 24 or via livestreaming on the the city’s website, by clicking here.

Dear Editor:

With Election Day almost here, I’d like to take a moment to say thank you. This campaign has reaffirmed for me how proud I am to live in this community, and it’s the people that make our community so great.

I am very proud of the campaign we ran. My campaign stayed positive throughout the campaign, even when I was being attacked and my record was being distorted. This was a commitment I made to the community when I started the campaign, and I’m proud to have seen it through.

Over the last few months, as well as last spring during the primary election, I have walked door to door across most of the district. I walked so much I actually wore through two pairs of shoes. And by knocking on so many doors and meeting so many in the community I hope you saw firsthand the energy I bring to the job and how involved I would be in the actual community.

It was a pleasure meeting and talking with so many of you, and I learned a lot about the different communities within our community, as well as the daily struggles, the frustrations with policy, and the desire for actual change. Most of all I saw that the learning process is never over, and that there is always a need to be out in the community working directly with the people we serve. This job can’t be done, stuck behind a desk.

And now that the campaign is coming to a close, I’d like to make one last ask for your vote. Representing you at the County would be a privilege, and a partnership that can get results for our community. Thank you.

Steve Barr, Candidate for County Supervisor

Brentwood