You are invited to attend the second City of Antioch Strategic Plan: Goal Setting & Visioning Workshop. Open to the public, this meeting will show the City Council communicating their goals and priorities to implement over the next three to five years. The all-day session will include City of Antioch commissioners, staff and the community.

The session workshop will be held at the Nick Rodriguez Community Center at 213 F Street in Antioch’s historic, downtown Rivertown from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. RSVP: svasquez@ci.antioch.ca.us.

Editor:

I have recently canceled my decades-long active newspaper subscription with the East County Times/Contra Costa Times/Bay Area News Group. Their recent 40% plus increase in the yearly subscription price finally caused me to do so, with other reasons involved also. That was on top of the previous year’s big increase of over 10%.

I started out over 50 years ago as an East County newspaper subscriber and had continued my subscription(s) throughout the years. I enjoyed holding the paper and reading the printed newspaper’s contents while relaxing, eating breakfast, etc. I also enjoyed being able to submit Letters To The Editor and Guest Commentaries, which in many years past occasions were published. The BANG/CC Times newspapers within the recent years has not even published my submitted Guest Commentaries in relation to local important area matters, even when I personally followed that up with their personnel. I even revised and/or expanded my submissions as they had requested in order to meet their guidelines (to no avail).

Their newspapers’ local area coverage also leaves a lot to be desired. Instead of, obviously, giving our communities’ submissions to them they instead very regularly give priority to already news broadcasts’ ongoing publishings from the very same outside commentators. We out in East County seem to be ignored and we just get fed the same ole, same ole, from their preferred outside submitters – who do not even comment on our areas’ events, opinions, or areas of concern. We may just as well just watch the television news broadcasts.

The Antioch Herald newspaper has been the exception. It has reported on, published, and covered our County and East County area news, events, opinions, etc., very well. The AH, as I perceive it, has not taken sides nor deprived our communities access to it and its availability of publishing submissions by its residents. It is to be commended for its journalism and fairness. We out here in East County should note that the AH has been a great source of news, even with its published advertisements no less. Thanks to you Mr. Payton and to your staff.

Ralph A. Hernandez

Antioch

By Lamar Thorpe, Mayor Pro Tem, City of Antioch

In 2016, I ran for Antioch City Council to build a more accountable, innovative and transparent city government. For me, moving to single-member districts, campaign finance reform, and term limits are all critical components of building government accountability. Why? Because it’s very hard to get elected to city council  – and it’s getting harder every year.

First, the power of incumbency on city councils is very strong, with a 90% re-election rate nationwide. Secondly, elections are very expensive, even at the local level. In Antioch, it costs anywhere from $30,000 to $50,000 to mount a successful bid for city council. And unlike surrounding cities, Antioch has no campaign contribution limits.

I’m proud that Mayor Sean Wright and I are rare breeds for having prevailed against incumbents in 2016. Since then, I’ve worked hard to represent you in city hall and I’m going to continue to work hard to dismantle the status quo.

You may or may not have heard that Antioch is in the middle of moving from electing city council members from an at-large to a single member district system. I am disappointed that this process comes to Antioch under the threat of litigation. (No city in California that has fought single-member districts has prevailed in court. Those that have tried and lost have had their district maps drawn for them and paid hefty legal fees.) Nevertheless, it will be a dramatic change for our city.

Some people like it, some don’t, and others are indifferent. But most folks don’t know what’s going on. They put their trust in us and pray that we get it right.

After working on several local elections, I’ve learned that city council elections are decided by voters in South and Southeast Antioch. As a matter of fact, Southeast Antioch is home to what pollsters and political operatives call the “swing vote”.

As these areas of the city have grown in population and political influence, the voting power of residents in older areas of the city, North and Southwest Antioch, has been diluted. In fact, every city council member including myself lives south of Hwy 4 and four of us live in Southeast Antioch. The last time anyone from North Antioch or North of Hwy 4 was elected to the Antioch City Council was in the 1980s.

This doesn’t mean voters look up a candidate’s address before they go vote. They don’t. However, like sports players, candidates have a “home field/court advantage” in their surrounding communities without even knowing it. So, it stands to reason that if you live in Southeast Antioch, you have a higher probability, though not a guarantee, of getting elected.

To me, it’s fundamentally unfair that communities north of Highway 4 have no representation on the city council. Antioch is one community, no doubt about it. But there are regional and socio-economic differences between Antioch neighborhoods that cannot be ignored.

We all look at the world through our own lens. Take Vegas for example. On one end of the Bellagio Hotel, guests can have breathtaking views the Hotel’s famous and stunning water fountains. Meanwhile, on the other side of the Hotel, guests can be treated to a special view of the parking lot and the occasional special performance by two drunk guys arguing about nothing. One hotel, two different experiences.

In the same vein, all of our experiences in Antioch are a little different and shaped in large part by where one resides. In a recent poll conducted by the City, we found that North Antioch residents were the least content with their city government and our overall direction. As an example, while more than two-thirds of South and SE Antioch residents are not only content with city services believing they get their fair share, nearly half of North Antioch residents believe they don’t get their fair share of city services.

And, as many North Antioch residents have pointed out there are other differences, too. Crime is heavily concentrated in and around 18th and Cavallo, 10th Street, and the Sycamore/Delta Fair area because of population and housing density. Visually, when you drive into North Antioch, you can see that the challenges and opportunities require more than just band-aid solutions offered by SE Antioch politicians. Today, the annual median household income in North Antioch is between $42,000 to $45,000, compared to $100,000 plus for most living in Southeast Antioch. The physical infrastructure of the two elementary schools in North Antioch is outdated compared to the newer schools in Southeast Antioch.

Sometimes it feels and looks like North Antioch has been forgotten. But the new districts could bring the Council new perspectives to help fix this. As my friend Marty Fernandez once mentioned in support of Rocketship Charter School, residents in North Antioch deserve more than just a new Taco Bell. He’s right. In line with that, I say to my friend Marty, they deserve representation on the city council as well.

For a change of this magnitude to be meaningful, residents must be engaged. But the districting process is moving fast. We’re nearing public hearing number four and have two maps under consideration — Working Draft 1 and Quadrant Draft B, which are below.

According to our Interim City Attorney Derek Cole, public testimony has been overwhelmingly in favor of Working Draft 1, which assures that all regions in Antioch including North Antioch will be represented on the city council.

I invite you to please share your choice either in person or by emailing us at districtelections@ci.antioch.ca.us. Also, if you live in Southeast Antioch, there is a petition being circulated by Tina Price. That petition can be found here. Lastly, stay informed by liking my facebook page.

Note: An Op-Ed denotes something printed on the page opposite the editorial page in a newspaper, devoted to commentary, which expresses the opinions of a named author usually not affiliated with the publication’s editorial board.

By Allen Payton

On Tuesday night, April 10, 2018 the Antioch City Council will hold a special workshop at 5:30 p.m. prior to their regular meeting at 7:00 p.m. to consider finalizing the drawing of the map for district elections. The council is considering two maps, one which creates a district north of the freeway known as Working Draft 1 and a second, known as the Quadrants which splits the north side of the freeway into two different districts.  The council will make efforts to redraw the Quadrants map but decided at their last meeting to leave the Working Draft 1 map as it is. Please see related article, here.

During their regular meeting, the council will hold a public hearing on and vote whether or not to even move forward with district elections. See complete agenda by clicking, here.

If so, then at a special meeting on Monday, April 23 the council will vote on which map they will use and finally, whether to implement district elections in 2018 or 2020.

The meeting is held in the Council Chambers at 200 H Street in Antioch’s historic, downtown Rivertown. It can be viewed on local TV channel or via livestream on the city’s website at http://www.ci.antioch.ca.us/CityGov/citycouncilmeetings.htm.

Los Medanos College (LMC) will be holding a groundbreaking ceremony for its new Brentwood Center on Wednesday, April 18, at 1:00 p.m. at the site of the future facility.  The new site is located at Pioneer Square and Miwok Place in Brentwood (near the intersection of Vineyards Parkway and Marsh Creek Road, just off of Highway 4).  The public is welcome to attend and the event is free; RSVPs are not required, and complimentary parking will be available.

This groundbreaking ceremony celebrates upcoming construction of a permanent Brentwood Center, which will expand and enhance learning opportunities for LMC students and Contra Costa County residents in the easternmost part of the College’s service area.  The new one-story Center, designed by Ratcliff Architects, will be approximately 55,000 square feet.  The project will be constructed on a 17.5 parcel purchased by Contra Costa Community College District (CCCCD) in 2011.  It will feature instructional classrooms, science labs, student support services, library resources, tutorial labs, bookstore and food service areas, “linger and learn” space, faculty/staff offices, and more than 700 parking stalls.  The current Brentwood Center, located in a leased facility at 101A Sand Creek Road in Brentwood, first opened in 2001.  The existing space consists of 22,000 square feet and serves approximately 2,800 students – accounting for about one-third of LMC’s enrollment.

The permanent $65 million facility is made possible through funding from CCCCD Bond Measures A (2006) and E (2014), thanks to support from voters in Contra Costa County.  Construction is expected to be completed in 18-24 months, with the new Brentwood Center projected to open in Spring 2020.

For more information, please contact Jennifer Adams, jadams@losmedanos.edu or (925) 473-7302.

Antioch resident, Paris Price and her fiancé witnessed and took a video of what appeared to be a UFO over Antioch, early Wednesday morning, April 3.

“I feel a little weird doing this but, I’ve never experienced something so fascinating,” she wrote. “I was referred to find an editor to see if anyone else can come forward to this event. Or have witnessed similar experiences in our area. The object came close in contact nearly landing while my fiancé was driving. It was no ball of light up close. I know what I saw. Happened Tuesday (night, Wednesday morning) at 12 AM around Country Hills and Deerfield.”

Did anyone else see the phenomenon? 

By Jesus Cano

Antioch Panthers

The Panthers have not had a .500 record in league play since 2011. This year head coach Carlos Gonzalez has set the standard to break that slump, and water Antioch’s 20-year playoff drought.

“Obviously to get there we have to take it game by game and try and compete at a very high-level each game,” Gonzalez said. “Our guys are young and very hungry, they all have the same goal in mind and that is to change the culture of baseball at Antioch High School.”

Gonzalez highlights two players to be his top guys on the team, Josh Cordova and RJ McDowell.

Both teammates record 15 RBIs each for the Panthers last season and had a batting average above .300. Gonzalez also says that both these players will see a hefty time on the mound. Now, they both both over .400.

Devon Crump is a player that made an impact according to Gonzalez. This year, his numbers are steady, as he is .538.

Another player Gonzalez says is vital to the team due to his consistent bat and defensive ability is Sergio Carrillo.

Deer Valley Wolverines

Joshua Hannah has been appointed to be Deer Valley’s fifth head coach in the past five years.

“Being the new head coach for DV baseball is an honor,” Hannah said. “It presents a fun and exciting new challenge.

Hannah has an extensive baseball background. He played college baseball at Fresno State, where he batted a .293 batting average and has 51 RBIs, in addition to 13 homeruns In 1998. His numbers in college were able to catch the attention of the Minnesota Twins, as he signed with them.

The Wolverines ended with a 2-8 record in BVAL play last season and have been struggling early in the season according to Hannah, but he adds that this team has a strong willingness to work and learn.

Senior Justin Tallmier returns for his senior campaign. Last year, he led the team in batting average (.342) and had 21 RBIs, the most in the entire BVAL.

Jose Dominguez returns for his final year of baseball. With a .333 batting average and and five RBIs, it comes as no surprise Hannah says he is a top player to watch.

Keith Hogan, Jesus Hernandez and Aj Levias are also another player according to Hannah.