$1.1 million drop in 1% sales tax revenue from Measure W

By Allen Payton

During the budget workshop on Tuesday night, the Antioch City Council was presented with the 2020-21 Budget Update from staff showing a projected decrease of $2,960,435 in tax and other revenue. That includes a decrease in regular city sales tax revenues of $1,671,239 and a decrease in the 1% sales tax from Measure W of $1,105,833, and a $270,196 drop in property tax revenue.

According to the staff report, “as of May, California has had a 20.1% decline in sales tax revenue. The financial implications are still a moving target for the City with a lot of uncertainty and no end date for the crisis in sight.”

Antioch’s projected drop in Measure W sales tax was 7%, but the City only experienced a 5.2% decline in both sales and property tax revenues, from a budgeted $62,447,821 to a projected $59,200,553.

Also, according to the staff report, the council will be asked to adjust the budget in the future. The City operates on a two-year budget. The next one will be approved in June 2021.

By Sergeant Ted Chang #4362, Antioch Police Traffic Unit

On Monday, Aug. 24, 2020 at approximately 11:34 PM, an Antioch Police Officer came upon a major traffic collision between a large pickup truck and a small sedan at the intersection of Deer Valley Road and Asilomar Drive. Several witnesses advised the driver of the pickup truck ran the red light and collided into the sedan in the intersection. The male driver and female passenger of the pickup truck fled on foot. Officers conducting an area canvass located the suspect male and female a few blocks away. The 29-year-old male was placed under arrest and sent to County Jail.

The male driver and passenger of the small sedan, ages 24 and 25, were trapped in their vehicle with serious injuries. Con-Fire responded and took over 30 minutes to extricate them from the vehicle. Both were transported via helicopter to an area trauma center for treatment. Both were admitted with one still listed in critical condition.

The Traffic Unit was called out and took over the traffic collision investigation.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Antioch Police Department non-emergency line at (925) 778-2441. You may also text-a-tip to 274637 (CRIMES) using the key word ANTIOCH.

With over 9 years of service as a City Manager, Moore is known as a seasoned and highly regarded professional who gets things done for the community. 

Rosanna Bayon Moore. Photo courtesy of City of Antioch.

By Rolando Bonilla, Public Information Officer, City of Antioch

Antioch City Manager Ron Bernal announced today that Rosanna Bayon Moore will be joining Antioch in late September to serve as Assistant City Manager.  Bayon Moore is the first Assistant City Manager the City has hired since Ron Bernal took over as City Manager in 2017.  Bayon Moore will serve as an integral part of the City team and provide critical support and leadership for City Council priority projects. She will start her new position on September 28.

“I am thrilled to have Rosanna join our team.  She will provide essential leadership and support to the City in moving community projects and the City Council’s priorities across the finish line.  She is a seasoned local government professional and will be a great addition to our leadership team and the community,” said Bernal.  “Her proven track record as a City Manager in getting things done and delivering on challenging projects with limited resources makes her a great match for the City of Antioch.”

Bayon Moore has served as City Manager for the City of Brawley in Imperial County for the past nine years.  During this time, she led the City through significant financial challenges. Bayon Moore expanded quality housing and enhanced the community infrastructure with the addition of a new Fire Station, a new Emergency Operation Center, numerous facility and transportation improvements, and a state-of-the-art wastewater treatment plant.  Before joining the City of Brawley, Bayon Moore focused on community development efforts in both the public and private sectors including work in New York, San Francisco and Oakland. According to her LinkedIn profile, she served as Regional Affairs Officer for the Southern California Association of Governments, Vice President for Planning and Operations for an engineering firm, and Senior Planner and Chief Operating Officer for a commercial and residential investment, construction and development company.

She describes herself as, “High performance, collaborative management style. Experienced in diverse environments in which planning, engineering and public administration intersect. Well versed in policy analysis, financial management, public affairs, intergovernmental relations, community engagement. Excellent written and verbal capabilities.”

“The City’s community values of integrity, diversity, respect and accountability are a great attraction,” Bayon Moore said.  “It is also clear that quality of life for all residents is front and center as the City works to responsibly cultivate a climate where businesses thrive.  I am honored to join the team and become part of the community of Antioch with my family.”

Bayon Moore is excited about the move to Antioch and will be joined by her husband Dean Syrengelas, a resource teacher, and her younger son Demetrios “Jimmy” who will be a high school sophomore.  Her older son Vasilios is a college freshman at Marshall University in West Virginia, where he will be playing soccer in addition to his studies.

Bayon Moore holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and English from the U.C. Berkeley, a Master of Public Administration degree from Columbia University and is an alum of the Northern California Coro Fellows Program.

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

Drugs, illegal gun and $3,000 taken from suspect by Antioch’s new POP Team. Photo by APD.

By Antioch Police

Did you know APD has a newly formed Problem Oriented Policing unit known as the “POP Team?” Their focus is crime reduction in areas of our city identified through police investigations and from citizen complaints, while seeking long-term solutions through enforcement, outreach and community involvement (that’s a mouthful!).

A short time-ago our POP Team was patrolling a motel parking lot near East 18th Street and Cavallo Road to address complaints of human trafficking, drug sales, and stolen vehicles. They spotted an individual (who they knew was on parole for manslaughter) and stopped to check on him. Said parolee decided he did not want to comply with the terms of his early release, which require him to submit to compliance checks by law enforcement. Instead, he tossed a pistol under a parked vehicle and tried to run away. I can personally attest to every single member of this team (including the sergeant) utilizing our own APD gym on a regular basis (and never skipping cardio), so his attempt was quickly thwarted.

Once officers got their bracelets on him, a search revealed he was in possession of approximately 23 grams of cocaine and around $3,000. When they recovered the discarded pistol, it was revealed the serial number had been scratched-off, which is a condition commonly found with stolen firearms. The arrestee is currently on his way to the County Jail, and you better believe we’ll be sending the gun to the Crime Lab to cross-check against any open cases (and to see if they can restore the serial number).

This incident highlights one of the ways APD (specifically our new POP Team) will work to reduce crime in our city, including patrolling areas in need, having a working knowledge of recently released offenders, and conducting street-level investigations. If you have a tip on something that needs our attention, you can send us a text to CRIMES (274637) with the keyword ANTIOCH in the body of the text. All texters remain anonymous unless you choose to give us your contact information.

Together we can work to keep Antioch safe and stay #AntiochStrong. #APDPOPTeam

Public and private elementary schools (TK – 6th grade) in Contra Costa County can now submit applications to allow in-person instruction at their campuses. In accordance with state guidelines, waivers may be granted “when requested by a local superintendent (or equivalent for charter or private schools), in consultation with labor, parent and community organizations. Local health officers must review local community epidemiological data, consider other public health interventions, and consult with the California Department of Public Health when considering a waiver request.

School districts will be asked to detail how they would safely conduct in-person classes and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Applications will go to the Contra Costa County Office of Education for an initial review before being sent to Contra Costa Health Services (CCHS) for further analysis.

CCHS and the County Office of Education have developed a checklist with safety measures schools must take in order to reopen. These measures include:

• A plan for testing of students and staff with COVID symptoms. Schools must also show they have a plan for periodically testing asymptomatic staff members.
• Each school must identify a person to help CCHS with contact tracing efforts if there is a positive case
• Showing how shared surfaces will be regularly cleaned and disinfected and how use of shared items will be minimized.
• Proper use of face coverings
• How students will be kept in small, stable, groups with fixed membership that stay together for all activities (e.g., instruction, lunch, recess) and minimize/avoid contact with other groups

Review by local and state officials will take approximately ten days. The state will make the final decision to approve or deny requests. Schools in counties such as Contra Costa that are on the state’s COVID-19 monitoring list can’t reopen unless granted a waiver by local and state health officials.

“We feel like we’ve reached a point where it makes sense to consider requests from elementary schools to reopen,” said Dr. Chris Farnitano, health officer for Contra Costa County. “Our role will be to ensure that schools have a solid plan in place to protect their students and staff and show us how they will work with the health department when there is a case to prevent further spread of the virus.

The state outlined the waiver process for elementary schools two weeks ago. CCHS did not immediately begin accepting waiver applications because of the increasing prevalence of COVID-19 in our community at the time.

Since then, the situation has stabilized enough to begin reviewing school-waiver applications, said Dr. Farnitano. Case rates and COVID-related hospitalizations, for instance, have leveled off in August after spiking in July.

While school districts are invited to apply, waiver requests may not be granted if the plan does not meet state or local health requirements, or if data show worsening conditions in the community. Some districts may choose not to submit an application if they cannot meet the requirements outlined in local and state guidelines. Middle schools and high schools are not eligible for waivers.

Following a lawsuit filed by Pacific Legal Foundation on behalf of California landlords, the California Judicial Council announced last week that it will end its illegal ban on eviction hearings.

By creating a de facto ban on evictions, the Judicial Council undermined the state’s separation of powers and seized policymaking power from the legislature and governor to block landlords’ access to courts.

“Constitutional limitations on government are never more important than during an emergency,” said PLF senior attorney Damien Schiff. “In this case, we challenged an eviction moratorium enacted not by the politically responsible branches of California’s government, but rather by the judiciary. Because it attempted to codify policy rather than merely regulate the practice of state courts, the rule exceeded the Judicial Council’s authority under the California Constitution. We are pleased not only that the Judicial Council has voted to rescind the rule, but also that the Council recognized, as the Chief Justice put it, that the ‘judicial branch cannot usurp the responsibility of the other two branches on a long-term basis to deal with the myriad impacts of the pandemic.’”

About Pacific Legal Foundation

Pacific Legal Foundation is a national nonprofit legal organization that defends Americans threatened by government overreach and abuse. Since our founding in 1973, we challenge the government when it violates individual liberty and constitutional rights. With active cases in 39 states plus Washington, D.C., PLF represents clients in state and federal courts, with 12 victories out of 14 cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court

Temporary order defies L.A. County COVID-19 orders; full hearing on September 4; only applies to that church, for now

On Thursday, August 13, Thomas More Society Special Counsel Jenna Ellis and attorney Charles LiMandri filed suit in the Superior Court of the State of California County of Los Angeles on behalf of Pastor John MacArthur and Grace Community Church against Governor Gavin Newsom, Attorney General Xavier Becerra, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, and other California and Los Angeles County public health officials. (See complaint)

On Friday, the California Court vindicated Pastor MacArthur and the church’s stance that church is essential by recognizing the constitutionally protected right of churches to remain open and hold indoor services in their sanctuary.

Hours after Grace Community Church filed suit to invalidate Los Angeles County’s unconstitutional restrictions on churches, the County filed for a temporary restraining order to force the church to stop holding indoor services and comply with every unreasonable and over-broad demand. At hearing today (Friday, August 14, 2020) in Los Angeles Superior Court, Judge Chalfant denied almost all of the County’s requests, agreeing with Pastor MacArthur and the Church that it is the County’s burden to show why it should be permitted to infringe on the constitutionally protected rights of churches to freely exercise religion. The judge did also express concern for some safety protocols.

To address those concerns and after explaining that the County was being unreasonable in its demands, counsel for Grace Community Church offered to comply with mask wearing and social distancing indoors until the matter could be fully heard, rather than the County simply rushing to shut down the Church. The judge agreed this was reasonable, set the full hearing for September 4, 2020, and ordered the Church to have congregants wear masks and social distance between family groups indoors.

Pastor John MacArthur said of the ruling, “I am very grateful the Court has allowed us to meet inside and we are happy for a few weeks to comply and respect what the judge has asked of us because he is allowing us to meet. This vindicates our desire to stay open and serve our people. This also gives us an opportunity to show that we are not trying to be rebellious or unreasonable, but that we will stand firm to protect our church against unreasonable, unconstitutional restrictions.”

Attorney Ellis said, “This is a huge vindication for Pastor John and the Board of Elders at Grace Community Church, who have simply asked for their right to worship the Lord together in church to be acknowledged and protected. When I spoke with Pastor John after the hearing, he expressed sincere gratitude to the California Court and Judge Chalfant and said his congregation will be happy to comply with the judge’s temporary order. This is why John MacArthur is so deeply loved and respected by his congregation and all over the world. He is a gracious and firm leader, and his biblical stand for church being essential has now been rightly validated. We look forward to continuing to advocate on his behalf in asking the Court to protect the fundamental rights of churches.”

Legal counsel LiMandri said, “This result is indeed a great victory for all citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of religion. Pastor MacArthur’s love of God and country motivated him and all the GCC church elders to resist the unjust government shut-down orders targeting people of faith. Their devotion and patriotism has brought about a result that respects the legitimate interests of both the church and state. This result makes it possible for the thousands of congregants of GCC to continue to gather together in their church to worship, while at the same time honoring the court’s requirement that reasonable and temporary safety measures be observed. This court ruling should stay in effect at least until there can be a full court hearing in this case on September 4, 2020. Please continue to pray that the courts allow this enlightened judge’s decision to stand so that all Californians can soon resume the worship of God in their respective churches.”

“We are simply continuing to do today what we have done for the past 63 years, that Grace Community Church has been open to welcome the Los Angeles community and serve their spiritual needs,” the pastor said in a statement. “We will remain open and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all who decide they want to come worship with us.”

The suit seeks to prohibit California from enforcing its unconstitutional and onerous coronavirus pandemic regulations against Grace Community Church and seeks a judgment that the health orders violate the California Constitution.

“Having irreparably damaged the confidence of Americans—and Californians especially—who now realize that the pandemic restrictions are neither necessary nor good, on Sunday, July 26, 2020, Grace Community Church decided to resume worship services—joining millions of Americans in deciding that enough is enough. With deaths from the ‘COVID-19 suicide pandemic’ exceeding those from the actual coronavirus pandemic, Grace Community Church decided that it would no longer sit by and watch its congregants and their children suffer from an absence of religious worship and instruction. Perhaps unsurprisingly—perhaps not—this led the County of Los Angeles to submit a demand letter to Grace Community Church, ordering it to comply with the restrictions that Los Angeles County deems unnecessary to enforce against so many others. Grace Community Church does not intend to comply.”

According to attorneys for the church, it is time for California to recognize that Christians are not second-class citizens, and the court must step in to do its job in applying the protections that the U.S. and California State constitutions provide to every individual equally and to churches in particular.

Pastor MacArthur opened the Sunday morning service on August 9, welcoming worshippers to “the Grace Community Church peaceful protest.” He was met with a standing ovation and extended applause from the congregation. Pastor MacArthur said of the lawsuit, “We are simply continuing to do today what we have done for the past 63 years, that Grace Community Church has been open to welcome the Los Angeles community and serve their spiritual needs. We will remain open and teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all who decide they want to come worship with us.”

Ellis said, “We hoped that Los Angeles County would see its error on its own, but after attempted negotiations with their counsel, California is still intent on targeting churches—specifically, Grace Community Church. Pastor MacArthur and the Board of Elders will stand firm in their leadership and resolve that church is essential, and California has no legitimate power to enforce such onerous and unconstitutional restrictions against the fundamentally protected right to freely participate in church. After Grace Community Church voluntarily complied with state orders for nearly six months, California’s edicts demanding an indefinite shut down have gone now far past rational or reasonable and are firmly in the territory of tyranny and discrimination. This isn’t about health. It’s about blatantly targeting churches.”

LiMandri stated, “It is unconstitutional for Governor Newsom and the State of California to discriminate against churches by treating them less favorably than other organizations and activities that are not protected by the First Amendment. Pastor MacArthur and his church, as well as all churches, are entitled to practice their religion without government interference. This is especially the case when the government has given free rein to protestors, and is not similarly restricting marijuana dispensaries, large retail outlets and factories, or abortion providers. The government orders are also unconstitutional because there is no compelling need for the onerous restrictions on the churches at this time. The hospitals are not overwhelmed and the percentage death rate from COVID-19 is now extremely small. It is time for Governor Newsom and Mayor Garcetti to recognize what President Trump has already proclaimed: churches are providing an ‘essential’ service to the people. Therefore, they must be allowed to serve the people in the manner in which God has called them.”

Read the Thomas More Society’s Complaint filed with the Superior Court for the State of California County of Los Angeles – in Grace Community Church and Pastor John MacArthur v. Gavin Newsome et al., on August 12, 2020, here.

Read the Demand Letter sent to Pastor John MacArthur by attorney Jason Tokoro, representing the County of Los Angeles in California, on July 29, 2020, here.

Moved back to Antioch two months ago, but has lived in the city for over half her life.

Lauren Posada. Photo from her campaign page on Facebook 08-10-20.

By Allen Payton

Questions have arisen about the possible conflict of interest of the candidate for Antioch City Treasurer, Lauren Posada, who is challenging appointed incumbent Jim Davis in the November election, because she works in the City of Antioch Finance Department. But City Attorney Thomas Smith says there isn’t a conflict of interest and she can run.

When asked to verify that, she responded, “yes, I work for the finance department in (the) City of Antioch. I’ll been there five years next month and have received all approvals to run for treasurer, including the City Attorney. I got the green light last Friday (July 31).”

Questions were sent to City Attorney Smith and City Finance Director Dawn Merchant asking for confirmation of what Posada shared and the relationship the City Treasurer has with the department.

In response Smith wrote, “The City Treasurer is an elected office, and under the law, any resident of Antioch who is registered to vote in the city may run for that office, including an employee of the City.  The duties of the City Treasurer are set forth in the California Government Code and include ensuring that city funds are properly deposited and invested, sign warrants and submit monthly reports.  On the other hand, the duties of the City Finance Department are much broader in range, including preparation of the City budget, utility billing and collection of fees, issuance of business licenses, and general fiscal operations, etc.  If Ms. Posada is elected City Treasurer, the City Council may consider whether the compensation and/or benefits for the City Treasurer position should be adjusted.”

Davis shared that he as City Treasurer, is the custodian of the field checks each month and “those checks come back through Lauren’s accounts payable to pay them, including bills for the various departments.”

An email was then sent to Merchant asking about Posada’s duties and if there would be any overlap with the responsibilities of the City Treasurer.

The following questions were asked: “How much and in what ways do you and your department work with the City Treasurer?” and “is Mrs. Posada a full-time employee?”

Merchant responded with, “Ms. Posada is a full-time employee.  Ms. Posada does not pay the Field Checks.  Field Checks are manual/hand checks written by various authorized City employees to pay vendors for goods or services under $200.00.  A carbon copy of those checks are returned by employees to our accounting department for review of account accuracy and adequate documentation.  Ms. Posada then enters the field check data into the City’s General Ledger after accountant review so that they are properly recorded and accounted for.  As far as the various bills of the City, all invoices are first reviewed by whatever department purchased the good or service.  They are then approved by the authorized supervisor, manager or department head.  Ms. Posada then enters those approved payments into the accounts payable system for processing.  Her batches are then reviewed by the accountants before final payment can be made.”

Davis also broached the subject about Posada’s residency, claiming she’s only lived in Antioch for two months. When asked if that was true, if she moved away and recently moved back and how long she lived outside of Antioch, Posada responded, “yes, that’s correct. I’ve lived in Antioch for roughly 16 years throughout the course of my life, which is over half. My parents occasionally moved away but we always came back to Antioch.”

She then also shared, “I was born in Antioch (literally at Walnut Creek Kaiser), until I was around two-years-old, moved back from 2nd-10th grade, moved back in 2013 and my husband and I sold our home in 2015. Moved back in 2020. So, it’s been five years.”

On her campaign Facebook page earlier this week, Posada wrote, “Hello Residents of Antioch! This is just the beginning of my page and I look forward to sharing my heart with you concerning Antioch and why I made the decision to run for Treasurer.” She is married to Will and they have two children.

Davis was appointed City Treasurer by the city council in 2018 filling the vacancy left by former City Treasurer Donna Conley, and this is his first time running for election to the position. He is a former Antioch Mayor and Councilman. This would be Posada’s first time in elected office should she win. The election is on November 3.