By Kibibi Columbus, Director of Outreach & Inreach, Grace Bible Fellowship of Antioch
Need some information on resources regarding work, education, or health? The Grace Closet Community Resource & Health Fair (CR&HF) will provide information on resources for Health Care, Mental Health, Cal Fresh, Housing, Career/Job Training, Education, Prevention, Food & Clothing.
Come enjoy receiving a FREE Family Fun Day, Lunch, Games, Activities & Prizes for all ages at the CR&HF on Saturday, May 11th from 11 AM – 3 PM. We look forward to seeing you all at 3415 Oakley Road, Antioch.
Special thanks to our sponsors: Grace Arms of Antioch, Grace Bible Fellowship of Antioch and the City of Antioch for awarding Grace Closet with an Enhancement Grant.
Are you a dynamic individual between the ages of 18 and 26 eager to gain valuable experience, earn money while you learn, and build your portfolio? Apply for the Social Media Intern position at https://form.jotform.com/240706787799174
Matched with “non-binary” Fellow to run program to support new Crossroads to The Delta Project to revitalize the local economy, address commuter challenges, promote a sustainable business ecosystem
The City of Antioch announced on Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, it has been selected as a host site of the first cohort for the Economic Recovery Corps (ERC). The ERC is a new, collaborative initiative designed to accelerate recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic in distressed communities and regions throughout the U.S. by connecting organizations with the talent and capacity needed to advance new ways of doing economic development that promote economic resilience and transformative change. The ERC is working in partnership with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s U.S. Economic Development Administration and the International Economic Development Council.
The ERC Program has the potential to shift the practice of economic development nationwide in an unprecedented manner.
Utilizing strategic partnerships, innovative industry development and data-driven planning, the project addresses issues such as lengthy commutes, limited local job opportunities and underutilized city resources. The challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic include a disbanded public safety office, staff shortages, struggling small businesses, and an underused waterfront. The ERC Fellow will research, audit, manage, or develop up to six key initiatives, covering areas like district-based associations, OceanTech, advanced manufacturing, supplier diversification programs, and assessing small business grant impact. The project aims to contribute to Antioch’s economic recovery and sustainability, fostering a resilient and vibrant community.
About the Fellow
The City also introduced ERC Fellow Gaby Seltzer who was matched with the Antioch community. Seltzer will play a pivotal role in revitalizing the local economy, address commuter challenges, and promote a sustainable business ecosystem. Gaby will be living and working in our community for the next 2.5 years.
The ERC’s website provided background about Antioch’s fellow in the program.
“Gaby is passionate about building community wealth and power through sustainability initiatives. ‘Their’ professional background is in grassroots food systems work, including managing a social enterprise program that increased access to healthy foods at corner stores in Washington, DC’s food apartheid neighborhoods. Through this work, ‘they’ helped locally-anchored businesses build resilient partnerships with residents, governments, academic institutions, and industry groups.
Witnessing the power of local networks to foster sustainability and social justice led Gaby to Presidio Graduate School, where ‘they’ honed ‘their’ cross-sector organizing skills through an MBA and MPA in Sustainability. While pursuing these degrees ‘they’ consulted for several economic resilience organizations. ‘They’ also served as an Environmental Defense Fund Climate Corps Fellow twice: first designing a data portal to drive climate investments to frontline communities at the City of Seattle, and next building datasets and learning materials to drive climate adaptation programming at Pacific Gas & Electric Company.
In ‘their’ spare time, Gaby enjoys spending time outside and hosting gatherings.”
Asked if there is just one or more fellows, how Seltzer was matched with Antioch and in which city department the fellow will be working, Antioch Economic Development Manager Bret Sweet responded, “There was only one fellow, Gaby Seltzer. Gaby has asked us to use ‘they’, ‘them’ and ‘their’ in reference.”
“I applied for the program and went through a fairly intensive pitch process along with (Acting City Manager and Economic Development Director) Kwame (Reed),” he explained. “Once we were selected, we formed a panel of city and county employees to interview multiple candidates. As it worked out, we scored the highest and Gaby ranked Antioch the highest, so we were matched. There are 65 fellows in the program and only two were sent to California. As I learned at the kick-off last week in Portland, apparently ‘more than half the candidates asked to work on the Antioch project’.”
“Gaby works in the Economic Development Department here and will also work a bit with the Economic Development Department at the county,” Sweet added.
About the Project
Asked about the name of the project, Sweet shared, “Crossroads to the Delta project is the name we designed for the six initiatives we asked applicants to work on. Here is the project as it appeared to applicants: Crossroads To The Delta
“It was the name of the project for the ERC. It is not something established by the council,” he continued. “It was named crossroads to highlight Antioch’s positioning between San Francisco, Palo Alto, Stockton and Sacramento.”
“Gaby and I worked all last week at the kick-off in Portland to update the project goals based on feasibility, bandwidth and resources. We will probably have the page updated by next month,” Sweet said.
Learn more about the ERC program and the various projects across the US and stay up to date on the ERC’s happenings by signing up for updates at www.iedconline.org/ERC_Updates.
The Contra Costa County Advisory Council on Equal Employment Opportunity (ACEEO) has one vacant Business seat and two vacant Community seats open to applicants. The successful candidate for the Business seat must own a business within the county, and candidate(s) for the Community seats must either work or reside within the county. All candidates must have an interest in equal employment matters. The ACEEO meets on the fourth Friday of each month from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., except for holidays.
The ACEEO assists with the implementation of the County’s Equal Employment Opportunities and Contracting Programs and serves as an advisory committee to the Board of Supervisors. The ACEEO reviews the Equal Employment Opportunities Program and recommends actions to facilitate the attainment of the County’s goals for equal employment opportunities regardless of gender and race/ethnicity.
The Board of Supervisors established the ACEEO on July 9, 1991. The Council has thirteen (13) seats representing the following groups: 4 Community seats; 2 Labor seats; 2 Management seats; 1 Educational seat; 1 Disability seat; 1 Business seat; 1 Veteran seat; and 1 Labor/Trade seat.
Application forms can be obtained from the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors by calling (925) 655- 2000 or visiting the County webpage at www.contracosta.ca.gov/3418. Applications should be returned to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, 1025 Escobar St., 1st Floor, Martinez, CA 94553. Applications can also be emailed to ClerkoftheBoard@cob.cccounty.us.
Include non-transit transportation, environment, housing and economy strategy refinements
Will impact Antioch’s BART Station and industrial areas
The Joint Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Planning Committee with the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) Administrative Committee on Jan. 12, 2024 approved the revised Plan Bay Area 2050+ Draft Blueprint strategies and Growth Geographies. This action enables staff to further study the strategies’ performance in meeting critical regional goals for an affordable, connected, diverse, healthy and vibrant Bay Area for all. Staff are aiming for adoption of the Plan Bay Area 2050+ Final Blueprint in summer 2024.
Given Plan Bay Area 2050’s solid foundation of 35 strategies, the Draft Blueprint phase for Plan Bay Area 2050+ is focusing on making targeted refinements to select plan strategies. These refinements reflect Plan Bay Area 2050’s implementation progress, the post-pandemic planning context and insights gathered during engagement with the public and partners in summer 2023.
What is the Plan Bay Area 2050+ Blueprint?
The Plan Bay Area 2050+ Blueprint will integrate strategies across the four elements of the plan — the economy, the environment, housing and transportation — to create a more equitable and resilient future for all.
Beginning in summer 2023 and wrapping up in late 2024, staff will develop the Blueprint over two phases: the Draft Blueprint and the Final Blueprint. Given Plan Bay Area 2050’s solid foundation of 35 strategies, the Draft Blueprint phase for Plan Bay Area 2050+ will focus on making targeted refinements to select plan strategies.
What are Growth Geographies?
Priority Development Areas — Places nominated by local governments served by transit and planned for new homes and jobs at densities necessary to support effective transit service.
Priority Production Areas — Industrial areas of importance to the regional economy and local communities that support middle-wage jobs.
Transit-Rich Areas — Places near rail, ferry or frequent bus service that were not already identified as Priority Development Areas.
High-Resource Areas — State-identified places with well-resourced schools and access to jobs and open space.
Staff previously shared proposed Draft Blueprint strategy refinements in October and November 2023, detailing which of Plan Bay Area 2050’s 35 strategies were likely to see major, minor or no changes in Plan Bay Area 2050+. This month, the MTC and ABAG committees approved moving forward with revisions for further study and analysis, including:
Non-transit transportation strategy refinements focused on prioritizing equity considerations, adapting to tighter fiscal constraints, promoting active transportation and safety, and expanding pricing strategies;
Environment strategy refinements focused on further reducing greenhouse gas emissions and proactively adapting to climate change; and
Housing and economy strategy refinements focused on addressing pressing challenges of housing affordability, homelessness and access to opportunity.
At this time the Draft Blueprint only includes a handful of modified transportation strategies, pending the development of a fiscally constrained Transportation Project List, which will integrate recommendations from the ongoing parallel Transit 2050+ effort. The complete suite of revised transportation strategies will be integrated as part of the Final Blueprint in summer 2024.
The Joint ABAG and MTC Committee also approved targeted updates to the Growth Geographies that were adopted as part of Plan Bay Area 2050. Growth Geographies are places that Plan Bay Area prioritizes for future homes, jobs, services and amenities and serve as a component of the plan’s housing and economy elements. Specifically, draft Growth Geographies for Plan Bay Area 2050+ will include five new Priority Development Areas (PDAs) and 16 modified existing PDAs nominated by local Bay Area jurisdictions; reflect up-to-date information on transit service, natural hazards and demographics; and integrate areas subject to MTC’s revised Transit Oriented Communities Policy.
The Draft Blueprint approval comes six months after MTC and ABAG kicked off the limited and focused update to Plan Bay Area 2050. In November 2023, staff shared progress-to-date with policymakers, including findings from the first round of engagement, core planning assumptions, the draft Regional Growth Forecast, a financial needs and revenue analyses and proposed strategy refinements.
The next round of public and partner organization engagement activities, which will inform the development of the Plan Bay Area 2050+ Final Blueprint, is planned to begin in spring 2024. MTC and the ABAG Executive Board are expected to approve Final Blueprint strategies in summer 2024.
Since 1910, Scouting has helped mold the future leaders of this country by combining educational activities and lifelong values with fun. The Boy Scouts of America believes and understands that helping youth puts us on a path towards a more conscientious, responsible, and productive society.
Today’s professional Scouters are a diverse group of men and women sharing a dynamic career offering independence, achievement, and stability. This is work that makes a difference, work that calls one to continual learning and challenge, work that offers solid compensation, benefits and advancement.
The District Executive selected will:
Work with a volunteer board of directors and other community and business leaders to identify, recruit, train, guide, and inspire them to become involved in youth programs.
Achieve progress towards specific goals and objectives which include: program development through collaborative relationships, volunteer recruitment and training, fundraising, membership recruitment and retention.
Be responsible for extending programs to religious, civic, fraternal, educational, and other community-based organizations through volunteers.
Secure adequate financial support for programs in assigned area. Achieve net income and participation objectives for assigned camps and activities.
Recruit leadership for finance campaign efforts to meet the financial needs of the organization.
Ensure that all program sites are served through volunteers, regular leader meetings, training events and activities.
Collaborate with adult volunteers and oversee achievement of training for their respective role.
Be a good role model and recognize the importance of working relationships with other professionals and volunteers. The executive must have communication skills and be able to explain the program’s goals and objectives to the public.
Provide quality service through timely communication, regular meetings, training events and activities.
Have a willingness and ability to devote long and irregular hours to achieve council and district objectives.
Desired Skills:
Strong marketing, fund-raising and program development background is highly desired.
Non-profit, fundraising or sales experience is a plus.
Must be comfortable with public speaking and interacting with diverse audiences. Excellent people skills, enthusiastic, punctual, responsible and creative.
Self-motivated individual with solid time management skills and strong organizational skills in management, budgeting, and planning.
Committed to personal and professional productivity, while maintaining high ethical and professional working standards.
Requirements:
Must be willing to accept and meet the Boy Scout of America’s leadership and membership standards and subscribe to the Scout Oath and Law.
Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university (transcript with the date degree conferred stated is required for employment).
Attained 21 years of age or older unless prohibited by any applicable law.
Ability to work varied hours when necessary, evening activities and weekend work is frequently required to achieve positive objectives.
Ability to travel for training at least once a year for one to two weeks.
A Scouting background is helpful but not required for employment.
Offers for employment are subject to criminal, reference and motor vehicle background checks.
Compensation:
All councils are equal opportunity employers. In addition to offering a competitive salary of $64,480, Professional Scouting offers benefits to include major medical, prescription coverage, dental, vision, life-insurance, long-term disability, accidental death, a defined benefit retirement plan, plus compensation for authorized and approved business related expenses to include phone and mileage reimbursement. We also offer generous vacation policy and ten holiday observances.
How to apply:
Qualified candidates must submit cover letter and resume with salary history to kara.miller@scouting.org only the most qualified candidates will be contacted.
Rendering of E. 18th St West Warehouse Project with the proposed name of Antioch Gateway. Source: DECA Company.
Will also allow for light manufacturing
By Allen D. Payton
During their meeting on Tuesday, October 24, 2023, following public comments mostly by local union workers in support of the warehouse projects on E. 18th Street, the Antioch Council had a few questions and comments. The project is owned by the San Francisco-based DECA Companies.
“I didn’t want large truck traffic going westbound into the city,” District 3 Councilman Mike Barbanica said. (See related article)
“The conditions of approval require signage to direct trucks to go east to 160,” said the project developer’s representative.
“Are these regulatory signs or suggestion signs?” Barbanica asked.
Where the signs go, what the verbiage will be and the regulatory aspect will be determined in discussions with city staff, the project representative shared.
District 4 Councilwoman Monica Wilson’s only concern was regarding the landscaping, that it be drought tolerant.
“Everything post-colonialism is evasive in this country. A little-known fact, Goldilocks broke into a house, ate all they food, destroyed they property and refused to leave. Just wanted to point that out. I think it is important, as we look to the future to work locally. It’s important to a person’s quality of life,” said Mayor Pro Tem Tamisha Torres-Walker said.
In response to comments by members of the public about being able to work locally instead of traveling to job sites on Highway 4 she said, “It’s probably one of the worst freeways in the East Bay according to my experience. Capitalism demands that people be poor so that other people could be rich. We can make sure that industry comes to the city to make those jobs a reality.”
District 3 Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock said, “I like these sites because of the local hire.”
Referring to the union workers who spoke in favor of the project, tonight she said, “it gives them back their quality of life by being at home.”
“Did we resolve the native plant thing?” Mayor Lamar Thorpe asked.
“We made a commitment we would improve our native plant species,” the developer’s spokesman said.
All five motions on the E. 18th Street East Warehouse Project passed on 5-0 votes.
The council also approved all five motions for the West Warehouse Project on 5-0 votes.
