By Allen Payton

Antioch residents Karl Dietzel and Fred Hoskins have mounted a grassroots campaign to oppose Measure C, the half-cent sale tax increase measure on Antioch’s November ballot. Dietzel recently held a sign made by Hoskins at the entrance to the In-Shape City health club on Lone Tree way, one morning.

Their effort is juxtaposed to the well-financed yes on Measure C campaign, led by Antioch Mayor Wade Harper, that’s raised over $44,000 as of October 19th and has signs throughout the city, as well as newspaper ads and mailers.

The election is Tuesday, November 5.

By Allen Payton

The financial reports of the yes on Measure C campaign, officially known as Citizens for a Safe Antioch in Support of Measure C, campaigning to get voters to approve a half-cent sales tax increase in Antioch, disclose that the $44,170 that’s been raised to date has predominantly come from outside of the community. The latest reports are dated October 19.

The largest contributions include $10,000 from the Building Industry Association of Northern California, $5,000 from Allied Waste, $5,000 from the California Association of Realtors PAC, and the most, $13,650 came from the California Apartment Association, which opposed the landlord fee the council majority chose to not put on the ballot.

Only $1,350 of reported contributions came from Antioch-based interests or individuals, including Roddy Ranch Golf Management and Gloria Martin

As for where the committee spent their money, they bought signs from a company in Oakdale, paid for someone in Chico to design the signs, printers in San Francisco and the consultant (the same one who ran Harper’s, Rocha’s and Tiscareno’s campaigns, last year), who is based in Concord. So much for shopping local.

Wade Harper signed the forms as the Principal Officer and Martha Parsons as the Committee Treasurer.

The campaign finance reports are public documents available for anyone to read and obtain a copy of at the Antioch City Clerk’s office on the first floor of City Hall, 3rd and H Streets.

No formal opposition has developed, although two men have made and displayed No on Measure C signs, including Fred Hoskins and Karl Dietzel.

By Allen Payton, Publisher

According to an article on Breitbart.com, on Monday, July 8, 2013, “the California State Senate passed legislation AB817 that would allow non-citizens to help voters when they cast their ballots. Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda sponsored the bill, which would permit as many as five permanent residents who entered the U.S. legally to help voters at polling places.”

According to the LegiScan website, State Senator Mark DeSaulnier, who represents Antioch, voted in favor or the bill and when the State Assembly passed the bill on May 23, Assemblyman Jim Frazier, who also represents Antioch, voted in favor, as well.

It is illegal for non-citizens to vote in American elections.

Now the bill goes back to the Assembly for a final vote, with the changes made by the Senate.

To track the bill and for more information on the bill, click here.

East Contra Costa Republican Women will meet on Thursday, June 13, 11:30 a.m. Location: Caps Oak Street Bar And Grill, 144 Oak Street in Brentwood. For reservations call (925) 286-7674. Price is $20 per person. Guests are always welcome.

For more information, please contact Michele White at (253) 426-0843.

Antioch’s new representative in Sacramento has secured positions on two key California State Assembly committees that will benefit the community.

Assembly Speaker John Pérez assigned Assemblyman Jim Frazier to three standing committees for the 2013-2014 legislative session: Insurance Committee, Transportation Committee and Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee.  As previously announced by Pérez, Frazier will also serve as Chair of the Assembly Accountability and Administrative Review Committee.

In addition, Frazier announced the selection of his Sacramento Chief of Staff, Debra Gravert, as well as his District Director, Jennifer Barton.

Gravert has over 25 years of experience working in the State Capitol and brings vast expertise to the position. She formerly served as Chief of Staff to Assemblymember Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) and Assemblymember Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills).  Gravert will manage all staff and operations for Frazier’s District and Capitol offices and serve as his principal staff advisor on legislative issues.

As District Director, Jennifer will direct the staff in the two local offices of Assemblyman Frazier, overseeing District operations such as constituent services, community outreach, town hall meetings and events.  Barton is a seasoned District Director having served as the District Director for former Assemblywoman Helen Thomson, Senator Lois Wolk, and Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher.

In addition to Gravert and Barton, the Frazier team also includes Lawrence Cooper, Legislative Director; Tisha Simpson, Scheduler; Zachary Leary, Legislative Assistant; and Brandon King, Field Representative.

“I am excited and honored to serve the residents and communities in the 11th Assembly District,” said Frazier.  “Having talented professionals on my team will help me to do just that.”

Assemblymember Frazier’s Sacramento office is located at:

State Capitol, Room 3091

Sacramento, CA 95814

916/319-2011 (phone)

916/319-2111 (fax)

A Contra Costa County District office will open as soon as office space is found.

By Allen Payton, Publisher

Antioch Mayor Harper and the Council majority made their decision, tonight and appointed Tony Tiscareno, a retired steelworker, former labor union leader, and 42-year Antioch resident to the vacant City Council seat.

The seat is the unexpired term of Harper, who stepped down mid-way through his first term on the Council after being elected Mayor.

Tiscareno was one of nine applicants, including former Mayors Jim Davis and Don Freitas, as well as former Mayor Pro Tem Manny Soliz, Jr. who sought the appointment.

Following three-minute presentations by each of the candidates, and comments from the public, the council deliberated, with the guidance of City Attorney Lynn Tracy Nerland, on how to proceed with the appointment process.

After three rounds of votes to advance or eliminate applicants, only two candidates emerged with at least three votes of the council members: Freitas and Tiscareno.

Recently rumored to be a favorite, along with Antioch Planning Commissioner Vincent Manuel, the 56 year-old Tiscareno was chosen on a 3-1 vote, with Councilman Gary Agopian dissenting. Following the vote, Agopian asked that he be allowed to make it unanimous to show solidarity on the council and support for the newly appointed councilman. The official vote was changed to 4-0 in favor of Tiscareno.

He was then given the Oath of Office by City Clerk Arne Simonsen.

Tiscareno worked for 33 years as a steelworker, and served as the Political Director for the Contra Costa Labor Council, until March of last year. He then served as Campaign Director, this year, for newly elected Assemblyman Jim Frazier, who was in attendance during tonight’s council meeting. Tiscareno also used to own a small business in Antioch, in the 1990’s, trading sports cards. He stated he had coached youth sports in Antioch, as well. He is married and has a daughter and a son.

In his appointment application statement, Tiscareno said he will focus on public safety, youth, economic development and public works.

Congratulations to Antioch’s newest council member, Tony Tiscareno. Good luck, God bless and do well.

 

By Allen Payton, Publisher

Newly elected Antioch City Clerk returned from Scotland, this week and was sworn in on Thursday, December 13 in the City Council Chambers by outgoing Clerk Denise Skaggs, before a small group of family, friends and supporters.

His parents Otis and Betty Simonsen held his grandfather’s Bible upon which he took the oath.

Before taking his oath, Simonsen joked “I just hope the Mayor won’t call me Madame Clerk.”

Following the brief ceremony, Simonsen offered treats from Scotland to those in attendance. One humorous moment occurred when he was questioned whether it was appropriate for an elected official to give out “Flake” chocolate candy bars. (They’re made by Cadbury and are tasty). Former Mayor Don Freitas, who was in attendance, said “It only matters if you eat one.”

Council to reconsider more expensive 3% at 50 pension plan

By James Ott

Antioch’s first African-American Mayor Wade Harper was sworn in during last Tuesday’s special council meeting.

In another first for the city – newcomer Monica Wilson became Antioch’s first female African-American council member as well, when she was sworn in during the same ceremony.

Harper won a decisive victory to become mayor, beating out competitors by garnering over 40 percent of the vote. The runner-up was current council member Gary Agopian who managed to pull in over 32 percent of the mayoral vote.

The council voted for long-time council member Mary Rocha as Mayor Pro-Tem – a position Harper held under former Mayor Jim Davis, since she was the top vote-getter in the council election.

During his speech at the swearing in ceremony, Harper thanked his supporters and his family and went directly to listing some of his plans for Antioch.

“I’ll forego the usual victory lap speech,” Harper said. “We can do the victory lap as a council when we reduce crime and improve economic development in this city.”

The first thing Harper asked for was a Mayor’s office so that he and the council have a place to meet and discuss plans for Antioch.

He also said he plans to create subcommittees to help deal with crime and beautify the city, particularly in well-known crime hot spots such as L Street and A Street and the infamous Sycamore area.

Harper also announced that he would be retiring from his job as a police officer effective January 4. The announcement perhaps lends some weight behind his goal to become “the best mayor in East County” over his upcoming tenure as mayor.

Harper has his work cut out for him. Antioch’s crime has skyrocketed over the last few years as its property values and city revenues have fallen.

Council will make appointment to fill Harper’s vacant council seat

With Wade Harper elected mayor, his former council seat – with two years left – is now vacant and there is some controversy over how that position is to be filled.

During last Tuesday’s special meeting the council voted three to one to choose the new council member themselves after allowing people to apply for the vacant council seat through an application process. New Mayor Wade Harper and council members Mary Rocha and Monica Wilson voted for the application/selection process to fill the empty council seat. Council member Gary Agopian was the lone dissenter.

This “application process” was selected over two other options that the city could have chosen in order to fill the available council seat.

One of those options would have been to hold a special election to allow Antioch voters to decide who should fill the vacant position. But this option was ultimately rejected by all of the council members because City Attorney Lynn Tracy Nerland said that such a special election could cost the city over $200,000.

The third option considered was to allow Mayor Harper to appoint someone to fill the vacant council seat.

Although this option at first seems undemocratic, in the past Antioch has used this process to fill the vacant seat with the runner-up from the recent election for city council. In this case that person would have been former Mayor Jim Davis, who decided only to run for city council this time around.

In fact, Davis was only narrowly defeated by Monica Wilson and Mary Rocha in what was a very close race for council.

There were two council seats available during the election; the first was won by Mary Rocha who received 24.75 percent of the vote, or 11,795 votes. Wilson won the last remaining council seat with the second most votes, but she did so by getting 11,190 votes to runner-up Jim Davis’s 10,524. The two candidates were separated by just 1.4 percent or 666 votes.

Supporters of this option say that by appointing Davis to the newly vacant council seat, the Mayor and other council members would effectively be appointing someone who was “voted” in by Antioch citizens.

Gary Agopian made it clear that he believed this option to be the most ethical and democratic option available to the council. He said that regardless of the application process, council would still be choosing who they believed should be on the city council rather than Antioch voters, who should be the only ones to select their leaders.

“Government is instituted by the people,” said Agopian. “The people reserve the right to choose their leaders. It is an American tradition that many have fought and died to protect: The right of the people to choose – not a council – the people.”

Agopian said that he would be inclined to support the option to hold a special election so voters could officially elect someone but that the cost would be too great considering the poor financial state of Antioch.

The next most democratic solution, Agopian argued, was to appoint whoever received the third-most votes to the newly available third council seat.

Harper – the only other council member to make comments of any notable length on the subject, – said that he thought a special election was too expensive and so allowing people to apply and then selecting from that pool who council thinks is the best candidate is the preferred, and most democratic option available.

“I believe this is a fair process,” said Harper. “It had its flaws in the past but it can be done better.”

Those interested in applying for the vacant council seat must live in Antioch and be a registered voter.

Applicants must write a statement s to why they should be considered for council and it must not exceed 400 words or exceed three minutes when the statement is read allowed during interviews.

Aspiring council members must also fill out an official application, Conflict of Interest 700 form, (available at city hall), and have a minimum of 20 and maximum of 30 signatures from registered Antioch voters who support their bid for a council seat.

All of these items must be completed and turned in to the city by Thursday, Dec. 13 at 4:30 p.m.

Interviews will be held by the city council on Tuesday, Dec. 18 at 6:00 p.m.

Also At the Meeting

The council voted unanimously to consider increasing the retirement plans of future police hires as well as other miscellaneous hires the city might make. The city feels it would be unfair to increase retirement rates for new police but not for other new employees.

Currently, new police hires would receive a 3 percent at age 55 retirement plan.. This means that a police officer could start collecting their pension at age 55 that is equal to 3 percent of their top salary for every year on the job.

If the city votes to make the increase, new police hired will instead be able to start that same collection five years earlier, which will inevitably cost the city more money.

If miscellaneous employees receive an increase as well, they will go from the current two percent at age 55 formula to a new 2.7 percent at age 55 retirement plan, which would also cost the city more money.

Human Resources Director Michelle Fitzer gave a presentation at the council meeting to try and determine how much the new pensions would cost the city, but the answer is a little tricky.

Her best estimate was that the city would be paying roughly 4.4 percent more per new police hire if the city goes with the new 3 percent at 50 formula. That rate, like all CalPERS rates, will go up over time.

Fitzer estimated that if the city were to hire one experienced officer on July 1 of next year it would cost the city about $4,502 more with the old retirement plan versus the proposed 3 percent at 50. The city currently needs 15 officers and expects that number to double over the next month or so.

If the city hires 15 new experienced officers under the proposed pension increase, it will cost the city about $67,530 extra per year. That number will also climb roughly every year.