Celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month at the 9th Annual Asian Heritage Street Celebration on Saturday, May 18th from 11a.m. to 6 p.m. in San Francisco’s Civic Center. The event is free and open to the public.

Enjoy the sounds of the SF Pinoy Jazz Revue in the Arts and Crafts World Market. The Revue includes the music of tenor saxophonist Jonathan Bautista Quintet featuring Winston Raval on piano and the sounds of Kulintronica with guitarist and kulintang player Ron Quesada.

Learn how to cook delicious Asian dishes at the cooking demonstration stage located at Ellis and Larkin Streets. You’ll see celebrity chef Martin Yan, along with Thomas Weibull of Velvet Room, Dennis Wong of Le Soleil, Mari Takahashi of Nombe Restaurant and Kyle Itani of Hopscotch. Luckily the food isn’t just for watching – the Celebration boasts a scrumptious collection of pan Asian delights and sweets to eat, along with some of the Bay Area’s most popular food trucks.

Watch colorful Asian ethnic attire parade through the streets in the Faces of Asia cultural procession at 11 a.m. Different ethnic groups come together to wear their cultural attire and share it with the public. In previous years, participants represented all types of Asian ethnic groups, including Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Singaporean, Thai and Vietnamese.
The Asian Art Museum has partnered with Target to offer free general admission to the museum on Saturday, though entrance to the special exhibition of China’s Terracotta Warriors will cost $10. In addition to the Asian Art Museum’s regular exhibits, there will be special programming taking place in the Samsung Hall, including the AHSC Cinema Showcase from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Watch a collection of short films and music videos as a nod to the vibrant Asian American media arts scene here in the Bay Area. (Presented by the Center for Asian American Media and 3rd i Film Festival)

You can also enjoy a vibrant the Arts and Crafts section with vendors specializing in Asian and Asian-influenced items, a Healthy Living Pavilion with free screenings, giveaways and health consultations, a Natural Medicine section where internationally renowned Qigong/Traditional Chinese Medicine and Natural Healing experts are available for consultation, and a children’s area with family-friendly carnival rides, community services, and games for children.

For more info visit: www.asianfairsf.com.

Take BART to the Asian Heritage Street Celebration!

Closest BART station: Civic Center

A Traffic Advisory was issued this past week, which described the planned nighttime closure of Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street during the evenings of Thursday and Friday, May 16 and 17 for the Highway 4 (SR-4) widening project. These closures have been postponed until further notice.

As soon as this work has been rescheduled, a new Traffic Advisory will be released.

Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways. For the most current information on all SR-4 corridor closures please visit our website at: http://4eastcounty.org.

As part of the Highway 4 (SR-4) widening construction work, the contractor is demolishing the inactive portion of the existing SR-4 bridge structure over Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street. In order to ensure crew and public

safety during this work, the contractor will close all lanes of Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street in the northbound and southbound directions between the westbound SR-4 on-ramp and the eastbound SR-4 off-ramp on Thursday and Friday evenings, May 16-17 from 11:59 pm to 5:00 am, and if necessary Monday and Tuesday evenings, May 20-21 from 11:59 pm to 5:00 am.

The detours for this work will be as follows:

o Northbound motorists will be directed right on Fitzuren Road, left on G Street, left on 18th Street, left on L Street, right on westbound SR-4 on-ramp. Motorists will have the option to turn right onto L Street from 18th Street.

o Southbound motorists will be directed right on westbound SR-4 on-ramp, exit on Somersville Road loop off-ramp, right on Somersville Road, left on Delta Fair Boulevard, left on Buchanan Road, straight to Contra Loma Boulevard.

The SR-4 Widening Project includes over $540 million in State, Federal, and Contra Costa Measure J sales tax, and other local funds to widen SR-4 from four to eight lanes between Loveridge Road and SR-160. The combined effort of Caltrans and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority on projects in the SR-4 corridor will reduce congestion, create a safer roadway, improve operations, and reduce traffic delays on this important east-west connector. When completed, the SR-4 highway median will be used to extend BART service from Pittsburg/Bay Point to a new Antioch station at Hillcrest Avenue. Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways. For the most current information on all SR-4 corridor closures please visit our website at: http://4eastcounty.org.

Today, Senator Mark DeSaulnier, who represents Antioch in the California State Senate, will Chair a Senate Transportation and Housing Committee hearing on Caltrans and the Bay Bridge.

In an email to constituents on Monday, DeSaulnier wrote:

“Tomorrow, I will be chairing a Senate Transportation and Housing Committee hearing on the Bay Bridge and Caltrans. There have been many recent media reports shedding light on the busted broken bolts and questioning the potential seismic safety of the new Bay Bridge. I called this hearing because the commuters, who have seen their tolls more than double to pay for the new bridge, deserve answers.

Opening a safe bridge must be our top priority, but there should be an ongoing investigation into the bolts. There are many questions that must be answered at an institutional level by Caltrans, and the right people need to be held accountable.

The hearing will be held in the state capitol tomorrow, but you can watch it live using the link below.”

When:
Tuesday, May 14

1:30 p.m.

Where:
State Capitol, Room 4203

You can watch a live stream of the hearing at the following link*:

http://mfile.akamai.com/120161/live/reflector:50424.asx?bkup=50753&prop=n
*Link will not be live until hearing begins on May 14th

Link to hearing agenda and background paper:

http://stran.senate.ca.gov/informationalhearings

According to a news release from Cartwright, Scruggs, Fulton & Walther, the lawyers for Antioch resident Patricia Rhyne, late this week, a Contra Costa jury ordered an 83-year-old Martinez man, Dale Christiansen, to pay $530,000 for committing a 2011 sexual battery on the 48-year-old Rhyne. The award included $77,000 in punitive damages.

The jury found that Mr. Christiansen made a lewd comment and touched Ms. Rhyne’s breast over her t-shirt in 2011 when she went to his home to confront him regarding his sexual molestation of her as a child.

At trial, Mr. Christiansen denied that he had molested Ms. Rhyne as a child, and denied that he had acted in an inappropriate way in 2011.  His wife and grown daughter, who were in the home at the time of the 2011 sexual battery, supported Mr. Christiansen’s version of events.

“I could not be more grateful to the jury for seeing the truth”, said Ms. Rhyne after the verdict. “I hope that I can finally move on with my life now that Mr. Christiansen has been labeled what he truly is, a sex criminal.”

Mr. Rhyne’s attorney, Dana Scruggs, described his client’s journey this way, “Patricia’s courage in coming forward to tell her story to a jury after 40 years should be an inspiration to all survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Even though this case only addressed Mr. Christiansen’s sexual misconduct in 2011, Patricia had to endure questioning about her entire life story, and I believe her bravery was an inspiration to everyone in the courtroom.”

Until recently, Mr. Christiansen was a resident of Clayton, California for almost 50 years. His family owned a number of bars on Clayton Road in Concord.

As part of the construction work to widen Highwy 4 (SR-4), the contractor will be constructing the westbound off-ramp to Loveridge Road and the westbound on-ramp from Loveridge Road to SR-4. In order to ensure crew and public safety during this work, the contractor will close the westbound on-ramp from Loveridge Road to SR-4 beginning Friday evening May 10 at 10:00 pm until Monday morning May 13 at 4:00 am. The contractor will also close the westbound off-ramp to Loveridge Road on Friday through Sunday evenings from 6:30 pm to 9:30 am.

The detour for the westbound on-ramp from Loveridge Road to SR-4 closure will be as follows:

o Motorists from Loveridge Road will be directed west on California Avenue, straight onto westbound onramp from Railroad Avenue to SR-4. For detour map, please see attachment.

o Motorists from eastbound California Avenue will be directed right on Loveridge Road, right on Leland Road, right on Railroad Avenue, and left onto the westbound on-ramp to SR-4. For detour map, please see attachment.

Drivers on westbound SR-4 who want to exit the highway may use alternate off-ramps at Somersville Road or Harbor Street/Railroad Avenue. Trucks are advised to use the Somersville Road off-ramp.

Motorists are advised to expect delays and allow extra time for their commute. Please drive with caution through the detours and leave a safe traveling distance between your vehicle and the vehicle ahead of you.

The SR-4 Widening Project includes over $540 million in State, Federal, and Contra Costa Measure J sales tax, and other local funds to widen SR-4 from four to eight lanes between Loveridge Road and SR-160.

The combined effort of Caltrans and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority on projects in the SR-4 corridor will reduce congestion, create a safer roadway, improve operations, and reduce traffic delays on this important east-west connector. When completed, the SR-4 highway median will be used to extend BART service from Pittsburg/Bay Point to a new Antioch station at Hillcrest Avenue.

Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways. For the most current

information on all SR-4 corridor closures please visit our website at: http://4eastcounty.org.

As part of the Highway 4 (SR-4) widening construction work, the contractor will start preparing for the full removal of the temporary supports from the eBART and Somersville bridges over Somersville Road/Auto Center Drive. In order to ensure crew and public safety during this work, the contractor will close all lanes of Somersville Road/Auto Center Drive in the northbound and southbound directions between the westbound SR-4 on-ramp and the eastbound SR-4 on-ramp on Saturday evening, May 11 from 10:00 pm to 6:00 am, and Sunday evening, May 12 from 10:00 pm to 5:00 am.

The detours for this work will be as follows:

o Southbound motorists will be directed right on Century Boulevard, left on Delta Fair Boulevard to Somersville Road. For detour map, please see attachment.

o Northbound motorists will be directed left on Delta Fair Boulevard, right on Century Boulevard to Auto Center Drive. For detour map, please see attachment.

The SR-4 Widening Project includes over $540 million in State, Federal, and Contra Costa Measure J sales tax, and other local funds to widen SR-4 from four to eight lanes between Loveridge Road and SR-160. The combined effort of Caltrans and the Contra Costa Transportation Authority on projects in the SR-4 corridor will reduce congestion, create a safer roadway, improve operations, and reduce traffic delays on this important east-west connector. When completed, the SR-4 highway median will be used to extend BART service from Pittsburg/Bay Point to a new Antioch station at Hillcrest Avenue.

Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways. For the most current information on all SR-4 corridor closures please visit our website at: http://4eastcounty.org.

By James Ott

For the first time in over a year Antioch Police Chief Allan Cantando had good news to report regarding law-breaking in the city. After a year of exploding crime rates, the chief said that so far in 2013 total crime is down nearly 20 percent over the same period in 2012.

At a presentation given during the April 24 City Council meeting, Cantando said that violent crime in Antioch was down seven percent while property crime fell over 22 percent this year.

The news was welcome to citizens and leaders alike who have suffered under exploding crime rates and reduced arrest rates along with a reduced police force and a terrible economy.

Antioch has historically been a high-crime city, during the past decade. In 2010 it ranked as the fourth most dangerous city in the Bay Area with 8.46 cases, of crime for every thousand citizens according to a list compiled by the San Francisco Business Times using FBI crime data. The only cities worse than Antioch were Emeryville, (12.54) and notoriously crime-riddled cities Richmond (11.37) and Oakland (15.30). Comparably sized cities like Concord and Fairfield only had to deal with about half the crime rate, and nearby cities such as Pittsburg, (2.34) were almost saintly in comparison.

While overall crime has been increasing in Antioch for several years, last year saw a large increase in both violent and property crime that put real fear into residents. Compared to 2011, 2012 saw double the homicides, 38 percent more cases of rape, and 30 percent more assaults. Last year there was also a 27 percent average increase in property crimes like theft and burglaries.

Because 2012 was such a bad year for crime in Antioch, Cantando’s news that crime is down at all is good news but he also said that the numbers could be skewed a bit because they are being compared to 2012’s rates.

“Keep in mind that we are comparing numbers to 2012 which was a very bad crime year for the city of Antioch,” said Cantando.

Despite the decrease in crime Cantando’s presentation highlighted another problem that has not improved – despite all of the crime Antioch is still arresting less criminals every year.

So far this year arrest rates were only down 6.6 over last year but it still continues a trend that has been going on for years. In 2009 Antioch police made 5398 arrests and that number has decreased every year. Last year only 3186 arrests were made. Those numbers however are likely due to a depleted police force. The city has taken steps recently to try and hire new full time police officers something the police chief and city council members think will make a big difference in both increasing arrest rates and decreasing crime in Antioch.

“As the result of our [low] staffing and trying to rebuild you’ll see that our arrests are down,” said Cantando. “As we bring on more staff we’re hopeful that we’re going to see an increase in those [arrest] numbers.”

Antioch has hired five new police officers as of the chief’s presentation.