Today, we released a new audit titled Fleet Replacement Fund Short Millions. This audit outlines how the City’s fund to replace city vehicles and large equipment (Replacement Fund) is insufficient by millions of dollars, and has been poorly managed due in part to a lack of information and policy guidance. This shortfall may lead to higher long-term costs and may jeopardize the City’s planned transition to an all-electric fleet by 2030. 

The City maintains the Replacement Fund for 486 vehicles and units of equipment to provide citywide services from public safety to park maintenance. In FY 2020, the Replacement Fund fell $7.2 million short of the American Public Works Association guidelines of about $23 million. It is not possible to determine the exact fleet replacement funding level needed as the Public Works Department does not have an estimate for total fleet replacement costs, but the current funding is not enough to replace all the vehicles that are due or overdue for replacement or scheduled to be replaced in FY 2021. The number of vehicles past due for replacement is up to 174 vehicles, which is a threefold increase since fiscal year 2010. Timely replacement of fleet assets is important because keeping vehicles and equipment past their replacement date may result in excessive repair and maintenance costs. 

Further, Public Works’ fleet replacement model is not working. Departments pay into the Replacement Fund on a monthly basis to pay for the eventual replacement of their share of the fleet, but those funds are not designated to specific departments. Based on the current funding model, the City has used those funds for other purposes, such as personnel, but has not calculated those costs into the monthly contributions from departments. As a result, the current balance is $18.6 million less than what departments have contributed to replace vehicles and equipment.  While the total department contribution amount may be higher than what is needed, the departments do not have information about the total dollar value of their fleet replacement needs. Moreover, Public Works could not provide a specific accounting for the $18.6 million discrepancy it collected from departments. The audit found the gap is due in large part of the fund being used for items beyond the direct cost of fleet replacement. These include:  Personnel costs Reallocation of funds to cover budget shortfalls Customization and specialized fleet gear Replacement of fleet assets that have not been funded The funding gap jeopardizes the City’s ability to maintain its fleet over the long term and Berkeley’s climate change mitigation goal to attain an all-electric fleet by 2030. In July 2020, Public Works presented the City’s Municipal Fleet Electrification Assessment, prepared by East Bay Community Energy, on the timeline and cost of transitioning to an electric fleet by 2030. The assessment estimated that it would cost about $1.2 million to buy electric vehicles to replace 32 gas-powered and hybrid light-duty vehicles due for replacement in FY 2021, 29 of which are funded by the Replacement Fund. According to the City’s fleet data, Public Works has only collected $747,000 to replace those 29 vehicles with electric ones in FY 2021.  The audit recommends Public Works collaborate with the City Manager’s Office to adjust the fleet funding model to account for the true costs of managing the fleet, update its electric vehicle transition plan, and ensure the new fleet management system has the accurate data needed to manage the Replacement Fund. The Public Works Department agreed with these findings and recommendations.

 

Professional oboist & music teacher Deb Shidler passed away from pancreatic cancer on May 23, 2021, home from the hospital and in the loving arms of her husband of 40 years, Dave Burkhart. She was 66.

Born in Fort Wayne, IN, Deb switched from clarinet to oboe when she found out that her favorite actor, David McCallum, was an oboist. She graduated from Westside H.S. in Omaha in 1972, received her B.M.E. from Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln in 1976, and her M.M. from Yale School of Music in 1978, where she met her future husband. Deb studied with Ronald Roseman, Marc Lifschey, Sarah Bloom & Robert O’Boyle, and in master classes with John Mack, Joseph Robinson & Marcel Moyse.

Equally adept as oboe soloist, chamber musician, studio musician, and orchestral player, she also played oboe d’amore (and adored Bach’s writing for it) & English horn. The San Jose Mercury called her Largo from the New World Symphony “hushed and reverent, transfigured by Deborah Shidler’s lustrous English horn solo.”

While still in college, Deb performed with the Omaha & Lincoln Symphonies and at the Aspen Music Festival. After receiving her M.M., she moved to Israel, where she was a member of the Beersheba Chamber Orch., before joining the Jerusalem Symphony Orch. in 1979. After a season playing together in the JSO, she and Dave returned to the US. They married in Wilton, CT in 1981 and moved to Northern California.

Deb was a top Bay Area freelancer, often performing with the SF Ballet, Opera & Symphony. She could be a chameleon-like 2nd player one day, a plaintive English hornist the next, and an enthralling 1st player the next. And she had an uncanny ability to sight-read a rehearsal, performance, or recording at a moment’s notice—as if the music had been written expressly for her.

From 1991-2014, Deb commuted to Orange County, where she was 2nd oboe of the Pacific Symphony. She became principal oboe of the Berkeley Symphony in 1991, principal of Walnut Creek’s Festival Opera in 1995, and 2nd oboe of Symphony Silicon Valley in 2002. And, from 2011-2019, she was a full-time acting member of the SF Opera Orchestra. One of her most memorable performances was moving up to 1st oboe for opening night of Lohengrin—on only a few hours’ notice.

Deb was as gifted and devoted a teacher as she was a player, inspiring her students with her singing sound and soaring phrasing, musical and historical insight, reed-making skill, and “You’re doin’ it!” encouragement. Her college teaching positions included UC Davis from 1991-2001 and 20+ years at California State University, Sacramento. Deb relished coaching chamber music as much as she did playing it. She taught/coached at CalCap Chamber Music Workshop, Bocal Majority Double Reed Camp, and, most recently, online for California Youth Symphony. She taught her last Zoom lesson the day before she went into the ICU.

In her spare time, Deb always had projects—like building brick patios and a raised garden bed, woodworking, cooking, and genealogy—and she loved long walks in nature and in art museums. She lived very much in the moment and always for others, with a bottomless reservoir of inner strength and determination. And her zest for life, keen wit, and joyful laughter were as uplifting as they were contagious.

Deb will be deeply missed by her loving husband, parents Ken & Pat, sisters Nancy & Jenn, brother Doug, 7 awesome nieces & nephews, and her extended family, countless friends, colleagues, and students. A celebration of her incredible life will be planned for a later date.

In lieu of flowers, tax-deductible donations are welcomed to help establish Deborah Shidler Oboe Scholarships at California Youth Symphony (https://www.cys.org/support/donation_form.html ) & Cal. State University, Sacramento ( https://securelb.imodules.com/s/1894/19/home-hero.aspx?sid=1894&gid=2&pgid=418&cid=1063&dids=217 ), as well as the Deborah Shidler Principal Oboe Chair at Berkeley Symphony ( https://tickets.berkeleysymphony.org/TheatreManager/1/login?donationcampaign=140 ), three organizations that mirror her own musical journey.

After clicking on these links, please be sure and type “in memory of Deborah Shidler” in the appropriate area.

Many thanks for your support and love. 

It's a long weekend, and there are a couple of articles I'm not going to be able to post today. Check tomorrow.

On Tuesday, June 15, the Berkeley City Council will consider opposing SB 9, thanks to Councilmembers Kate Harrison and Susan Wengraf, who put it on the agenda. In its impact, SB9 is regressive legislation that will not provide affordable housing but only increase existing housing inequities.

The text of SB 9 is here:

We are Berkeley Together, a recently formed organization of Berkeley progressives, many of us active in local government for decades. We are deeply concerned about the direction of current housing legislation on both the local and state level. We value the historical racial and economic diversity of our city, both of which are threatened by misguided and misinformed proposed legislation such as SB9, now in committee.

SB9 goes way beyond ending single family zoning, known as up-zoning, which our council has recently discussed. The bill would rezone virtually all parcels within single-family residential zones in California allowing for the creation of (when combined with state Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) law) up to six units; without ANY local discretionary hearing or review, including compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

Yes, you read that correctly- there will be NO hearings or reviews allowed for new residential development, no opportunity for neighborhood comment, no consideration of environmental impacts. This is called “ministerial” approval and it’s a big green light for speculators. 

Existing homes cans be torn down and replaced by two-units. An ADU and Jr ADU can also be added. And any residential lot of 2400 sq ft or more can be divided into two parcels, where an additional 2-unit building can be built. plus an ADU and a Jr ADU, equaling 6 units on each small parcel, or 12 units on what was previously one parcel. Parcels located on transit corridors will be allowed substantially more units. 

As written, the bill does absolutely nothing- nothing- to address our housing affordability crisis, the true crisis here in California. It does not provide incentives for the production of low and moderately priced housing, rather it allows developers to maximize their profits by producing yet more market-rate housing units affordable by only the most prosperous. The bill’s rationale for this is based in trickle down economics, the theory that helping those at the top will help those at the bottom, a theory that has not panned out over time. In his address to Congress last month, President Biden said, "trickle-down economics has never worked", and "It's time to grow the economy from the bottom and the middle out", highlighting the need for progressive housing policies that benefit the underhoused and unhoused citizens of our communities. 

The “housing crisis” IS an affordability crisis! In its 2021 report, Freddie Mac states that California has a 1.2 million unit shortage, and 960,000 units are needed specifically for poor and low-income households, not for households paying market-rate prices. The California Department of Housing and Community Development puts the total housing need lower, at 1.1 million, while misinformed supporters of SB9 claim that we need 3.5 million new units. 

Under SB 9, market rate housing is what we’ll get in spades, and our low and moderate income residents, those that still remain, will be driven out by the resulting gentrification. 

SB 9 also fails to exempt a large proportion of the parcels that fall within Berkeley’s Fire Zone, many located on narrow streets, where an increase in population and cars, allowed by SB 9 up-zoning, could impede safe evacuation. 

SB 9 also prevents the City from establishing a rear setback greater than 4 feet, even though Berkeley zoning currently requires 15-20 feet in all single family and multi-family residential zoning districts from R-1 to R-4. This will result in the loss of trees, tree canopy, gardens and greenery, and play space for children, by allowing developers to eliminate back yards altogether. 

A good source of additional info on SB9 can be found here: 

The council will meet to consider opposing SB 9 at its Tuesday June 15, meeting which begins at 6 p.m. and can be attended via zoom, 

To participate in this important discussion, write to the mayor and council at council@cityofberkeley.info before June 15. 

Individual council members email addresses are here 

You can write to Governor Newsom here 

You can also write our State Senator Nancy Skinner here 

and our State Assembly member Buffy Wicks here 

Emboldened by President Biden’s words of encouragement (“Israel has a right to defend itself”) without acknowledging brutal attacks by Israeli police and settlers targeting Palestinian worshippers and driving them from their homes, was an appalling lack of leadership. His failure to demand an immediate cease fire resulted in a tragic loss of lives. His approval sending an additional $735 million in weapons sales to Israel makes no sense and only compounds America’s complicity in Israel’s war crimes. More and more American Jews are expressing profound concern of human rights abuses and living conditions of Palestinians under Israel’s apartheid military rule. Prime Minster Netanyahu, unable to form a government and facing serious charges of misconduct has fomented anger and encouraged settlers to terrorize Palestinians in their homes. Settlers with guns drawn shouting “death to the Arabs” were allowed to roam freely in Palestinian neighborhoods. Several police were seen to join the settlers. 

Many national newspapers, including the New York Times, carried articles exposing the appalling living conditions under which Palestinians are forced to live under a brutal Israeli military apartheid occupation. To add to Palestinian woes is the corrupt leaderless Palestinian Authority. Its president, Mahmoud Abbas, has delayed elections for 15 years in the firm belief that he will certainly be replaced. Palestinians have been systematically targeted from their homeland dating back to the founding of Israel in 1948 when 700,000 were driven their homes much like the genocide of Native Americans. Israel committed serious war crimes in all its attacks on Gaza. In its recent attack, American made “precision guided missiles” slaughtered at least 242 Palestinians including 63 children, hospitals were devastated and Gaza’s infrastructure destroyed, including the AP building. In contrast the American iron dome deflected 90% of Hamas’s rocket attacks. The United Nations’ top human rights body voted y to open an inquiry into Israeli abuses in Gaza and and the occupied Palestinian territories. 

The children of Gaza are suffering from severe PTSD and utter despair from Israel’s current and prior wars. The suffocating military occupation and siege of Gaza savagery makes Palestinians' lives a living hell. This speaks volumes of Israel's moral decay. It has already become a pariah and reviled by much of the world much like apartheid South Africa. 

By dishonoring the sacred passages of the Torah (in which Jews are told thirty-six times to welcome the strangers in their midst, as they are reminded that they themselves “were strangers in the land of Egypt” during centuries of slavery, and in Exodus, there are textual reminders to treat strangers kindly) Israel is rapidly losing its humanity. 

The Jews suffered unspeakable atrocities during World War 2 and the Holocaust Museum was built to honor the victims. Perhaps it’s time to build a Palestinian memorial alongside the Jewish Holocaust Museum to symbolize the suffering of the Palestinians and loss of their homeland.

There is a lot converging: the arrival of summer, the City budget, severe drought consuming much of the west https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/ and of course politics. 

My week started with the screening of the film Invisible Hand, about Grants Township, Pennsylvania, which adopted a Home Rule Charter (local constitution) in 2015 which banned fracking by waste water injection wells and recognized the rights of nature. The Rights of Nature Movement holds that a river or watershed or ecosystem shall be granted personhood in the court of law and shall be provided with legal standing to defend itself: That nature holds inalienable rights. https://www.invisiblehandfilm.com/what-are-rights-of-nature/ 

Only one Berkeley council member requested registration to watch the Rights of Nature film online, Kate Harrison. In the Q&A with the directors Melissa Troutman and Joshua Pribanic, Harrison commented that her council colleagues sat in stunned silence at the Berkeley City Council meeting [March 30,2021]where it was assserted that nature could have rights and that people would be able to sue on that. 

“Stunned silence” should not be a shock, though recognizing being a part of nature rather than the master of it would be a paradigm shift. It would open to question the twisted logic justifying covering the city with cement and hardscape and garden centers filled with alien plants threatening local ecosystems. 

I am making my own adjustments in my thinking about the ecosystem in which we live. My recent readings of Douglas W. Tallamy are charting a new course. 

Tallamy closes his book Bringing Nature Home How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants so clearly here: 

“I have attempted to make several points in this book, but they all converge on a common theme: we humans have disrupted natural habitats in so many ways and in so many places that the future of our nation’s biodiversity is dim unless we start to share the places in which we live - our cities and, to an even greater extent our suburbs-with the plants and animals that evolved there…If we continue to landscape predominantly with alien plants that are toxic to insects...we may witness extinction on a scale that exceeds what occurred when a meteor struck the Yucatan peninsula at the end of the Cretaceous period.” (the mass extinction that ended age of the dinosaurs) [emphasis added] 

As a City Council resolution, acknowledging the rights of nature would have been an aspirational statement tied to number 7 in the City of Berkeley Strategic Plan Long-Term Goals, “Be a global leader in addressing climate change, advancing environmental justice, and protecting the environment.” 

Looking at the Gehl consultants’ plan for the Berkeley Civic Center park and surroundings, I have to wonder if any of it considers local ecosystems. Gehl is the consulting group hired for $370,000 to develop a plan for the Maudelle Shirek Old City Hall, the Veterans’ Building and Civic Center [AKA Martin Luther King or Provo ] Park. We should hope that Item 13 in the June 1 council agenda, $200,000 for the Civic Center plan, isn’t more money down the hole of consultants that failed to do the most critical piece of their assignment, a current thorough seismic assessment of the Maudelle Shirek Building and the Veterans Center. 

The Community for a Cultural Civic Center (CCCC) received the preliminary seismic report from Tipping Engineering May 20^th. That assessment happened because of actions by two of us, myself and John Caner. I found the holes in the Gehl seismic review and initiated the conversation. John Caner picked up the ball from there and made all the contacts and connections even raised matching money that resulted in Tipping Engineering performing the seismic studies. This was a big lift to fill the gap left by the city’s generously paid consultants. 

Nature doesn’t have any standing in the mass of housing bills grabbing our attention over the last weeks and days. The Scott Wiener and Toni Atkins Senate Bill 9 removes local control of land use, does not add affordable housing and instead encourages speculation and gentrification. SB 10 opens neighborhoods to unchecked demolition and speculation. SB 478 allows 2 – 10 units to be built on tiny lots of 1200 sq ft. SB 55 prohibits development in high-fire hazard severity areas, but allows bigger multi-unit buildings in fire-prone areas. Our own State Senator Nancy Skinner has her hands-on SB 8, which slashes public hearings and extends previous Senate Bill 330, which was supposed to sunset, and SB 290, which cuts down affordability requirements in Density Bonus law, 

All of these “build” bills, all supported by the development industry, represent denial of the extreme drought capturing most of California and the exceptional drought, the step beyond extreme, covering large swaths of the state including the Bay Area. We can expect that with another year of fires coupled with the trend to remote work, the lure of densely packed overpriced California housing may wane or even slide, as described in this article from the Minneapolis Star Tribune: https://www.startribune.com/scramble-for-twin-cities-houses-faces-additional-challenge-out-of-state-buyers/600057698/ 

All of this densification by demolition and building means the loss of urban green space, habitat, trees and the tree canopy which is so necessary to mitigate the heat island effect and provide habitat. Ginkgo trees, for example, which are alien to our local environment and support fewer than five species, are appearing as new plantings in the Berkeley flats. They take up land space from trees that support native species. 

Next time you go to a garden center, ask for California local native plants and then ask how many and what species of insects, birds and pollinators each plant supports as you make your choices. Better yet, check https://calscape.org/ before you shop. 

Commissions – the Saga of shrinking the number of commissions continues 

While it looks like an impossible uphill climb, with Councilmembers Droste, Kesarwani, Robinson and Arreguin signing on as sponsors and Hahn giving her nod of approval at the Agenda Committee, we should not stand by and let the reorganization of the commissions move forward on June 15 without resistance. This is not to say there is no need for improvement, but the accomplishments of the commissions have a great deal to do with who their members are, and leadership matters. 

Droste narrowed her reorganizing focus on the cost of staff time and ignored the expertise and contributions of commissioners. The most troublesome recommendations are: 

The Commission on Climate and the Environment, which would merge the Zero Waste Commission, the Energy Commission, the Community Environment Advisory Commission and the Animal Care Commission. All but the Animal Care Commission have turned out significant environmental work that would be impossible to manage in subcommittees of an 18-member commission. This would increase and complicate staff time and risk the loss of key experts now serving as unpaid commissioners. Zero Waste is heavily involved with the Transfer Station. The Energy Commission is key to the city’s commitment to electrification and becoming fossil free. 

The Public Works and Transportation Commission would merge two commissions which do have overlap, but are currently involved in major projects. Instead of merging there should be periodic joint meetings where there is overlap. 

The Public Works Commission has saved the city thousands of dollars in consultants to develop a paving plan and utility undergrounding plan. The Reimagining Public Safety Task Force and BerkDOT is about establishing a new Berkeley Department of Transportation to replace sworn police officers for traffic enforcement. 

The Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts (SSBPE) focuses on grants and spending from the sugar sweetened beverage tax. It is, of course, related to health, but the mission is defined and limited. Rather than merging the SSBPE with the Community Health Commission the SSBPE meeting schedule should be on an as needed basis. 

Merging the Peace, Justice Commission and the Human Welfare and Community Action Commission leaves to question how the mandated review of block grants will be completed, how the requirement of representatives of the poor will be accomplished and how this merging will actually attain the supposed outcome of efficiency and cost savings. It might instead create complicated layers of subcommittees and increase staff time to sort it out. The other question is where the ongoing work of Fair and Impartial Policing and Reimagining Public Safety Task Force will reside. The work of these task forces and addressing systemic racism is not change that is accomplished in one election cycle or accomplished with an artificial deadline. 

The last piece of this already long diary is the city budget. You will have an opportunity to see the mayor’s budget townhall on June 8 at 5:30 pm https://www.jessearreguin.com/, but I would suggest you set aside time to take your own look in small bites. The 484 page FY 2022 budget comes with lots of explanations that are a huge and welcome change even though the length of it and fragmented sections requiring lots of back and forth reading makes me want to shut it down and pick up one of my more interesting books in the ever-growing stack. If you expected a major cut in the police budget it is not there. 

Revised Material (Supp 3)
Presentation 

I like to close with what I’m reading. There are two books I read some time ago that fit perfectly with international and national news: (1) Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic by David Quammen, 2012. Spillover reads like a mystery novel. I read it pre-pandemic and was glued to it from the very first chapter. The book follows researchers as they track down the source of new mysterious infectious diseases. (2) Last Sunday the New York Times featured an article on declining population. I’m with Countdown: Our Last, Best Hope for a Future on Earth by Alan Weisman, 2013. Weisman writes the case for why we need a decline in population to save the planet and how to get there. 

My latest read and loan from the Berkeley Library is Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment is Killing America’s Heartland by Jonathan M. Metzel, 2019. I highly recommend it.

The escalation that lead to the explosive exchange of rocket and missile fire between Israel and Gaza could have been avoided. The presence of Israeli forces had lead to rock-throwing protests at and around the Al Aqsa Mosque, leading up to the Islamic holy night of Laylat al-Qadr. Hamas had demanded that Israel remove all of its military and police forces from the Haram al Sharif mosque by 6 pm on May 10. Israel ignored the demand.

A Google search for "who started the Israel/Gaza war" states that Hamas started the conflict by firing rockets at Israel. This accounting totally ignores the escalating violence that proceeded—and provoked—the Hamas attack. 

The conflict actually began on May 6 when Palestinians in East Jerusalem gathered to protest the imminent eviction of six Palestinian families from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah. Hundreds of Palestinian were injured in ongoing clashes surrounding the forced evictions in Sheikh Jarrah. 

On May 7, Israeli police stormed the al-Aqsa mosque during a worship service in the last days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. More than 300 Palestinians were wounded when Israeli police stormed the mosque firing tear gas, stun grenades and potentially deadly rubber-coated steel bullets. 

On May 8 (an Israeli national holiday), another 600 people (mostly Palestinians) were injured by Israeli police forces. 

On May 10, Hamas demanded that Israel withdraw its security forces from Sheikh Jarrah and the Temple Mount complex by 6 p.m. or risk further escalation. Despite an international outpouring of condemnation over Israel's abuse of Palestinian protesters, Israel ordered its armed forces to remain arrayed at the mosque and inside the contested neighborhood. It was only after Israel ignored the Hamas threat of retaliation that the first rockets were launched from Gaza. 

Of the 4,300 rockets fired from Gaza, 680 (about 16%) fell short and never made it outside the Gaza Strip. As for the remainder of the rickety, mostly handmade rockets fired at Israel, the US-supplied Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepted 90% of them 

The initial flurry of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad rockets damaged several homes and a school. There were no immediate casualties. 

Israel responded with a disproportionate air-and-artillery assault that destroyed nearly 1,000 structures, flattened four high-rise buildings, damaged 40 schools, 19 medical facilities, four hospitals, and the al-Shati refugee camp. 

Counting the Dead 

After a ceasefire was declared, following 11 days of devastation and death, Reuters reported that Israel's airstrikes had destroyed many miles of "militant" tunnels and killed "25 senior [Hamas] figures." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was quoted as boasting that Israel's attacks had killed "200 militants." 

As of May 20, The New York Times reported, the 11-day clash had killed "at least 230 Palestinians." By May 21, the body count was raised to 248 civilian deaths—including 36 women and at least 66 children. Another 1,900 Palestinians were wounded. 

By May 26, the Gaza Health Ministry updated its figures and announced that the 11-day siege had claimed 254 Palestinian lives, including 39 women and 66 children. 

And here's where the confusion begins. 

The number of civilians reported slain (254) was similar to the number of Hamas militants that Netanyahu claimed to have killed (200). This raised a question: When the Western media referred to 200-plus Palestinian civilians killed, did Netanyahu possess a separate list of 200 militants killed? 

On May 22, Israel clarified the confusion—somewhat. According to The Independent, "Israel says, of those Palestinians killed, around 160 were combatants." 

But if 160 of the 254 Palestinians killed were "militants," then 94 of the dead would have been innocent civilians. And if there were 105 women and children among the dead, that would mean Netanyahu was counting some of these women and children as "militants." 

On May 26, Hamas leader Yehiyeh Sinwar told the AP that 80 militants were killed during the conflict—a figure that was more realistic than Netanyahu's unsupported claim that 79% of the Palestinians who perished were militants. 

Say Their Names 

The number of Israeli rocket casualties is also a bit misleading. Press accounts have placed the number of Israelis killed by Hamas missile strikes at 12. But according to the International Middle East Media Center, the list of "Israeli casualties" attributed to Hamas rocket strikes included two Palestinians living in the "unrecognized" village of Dahmash, an Israeli Defense Force sergeant killed by an anti-tank weapon, and a woman from India who was working as a housekeeper in Ashkelon. That reduces the number of Hamas missile deaths to nine. 

On May 12, a rocket fired from Gaza killed Ido Avigal, a five-year-old boy who was huddled with his family in a bomb shelter in Israel. Ido was not a "militant." His death was a tragedy and a crime. Similarly, the bombing deaths of more than 29 Palestinian children under the age of 10 (also not "militants") is also a tragedy and a crime. 

For an extensive review of both the Israeli and Gazan casualties (including names, ages, dates, locations, and circumstances of death) see the report "Say Their Names" on the Environmentalists Against War website. [Full disclosure: I am a co-founder of EAW.] Warning: the photographs are disturbing. 

Is Google Biased?  

A Google search for "How many rockets has Israel fired at Palestine 2021?" produced a link to "List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel in 2021—Wikipedia." A Google search for "Israel rockets bomb Gaza" returned links to "Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel." 

Similarly, Google could provide no data on how many Israeli bombs and missiles were fired at targets in Gaza City. A (partial) answer was found (after a search) on Al Jazeera, the Qatar-based news agency. 

While there was no exact total, Al Jazeera offered some examples. On May 18, Israeli jets dropped 122 bombs on Gaza in the span of 25 minutes. Before dawn on May 19, Israel's bombs flattened a residential building, killing four Palestinians, including al-Aqsa radio reporter Yousef Abu Hassuin. The Palestinian Ministry of Health was targeted for heavy bombardment. And, according to UNICEF and Save the Children, 53 Gaza schools were damaged by Israeli strikes, affecting 41,897 children. 

Lullaby for a Palestinian Child 

In Beirut in 1980, Pakistani poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz wrote this lullaby as Israeli helicopter gunships rained fire down upon Palestinian camps inside Lebanon. 

Don't cry child,
your mommy has only
just cried herself to sleep. 

Don't cry child,
just a while ago
your daddy took leave
of all his sorrows. 

Don't cry child,
your brother has gone
to another land chasing
after his butterfly dreams. 

Don't cry child,
your sister has married
and left for another country. 

Don't cry child,
in your courtyard
they bathed the dead sun,
and buried the moon,
before leaving. 

Don't cry child,
if you cry,
mommy, daddy, sister, brother,
the moon and the sun, all 

will have you made even sadder. 

But maybe if you smile,
they will one day all return
in a different guise
to play with you. 

Global Climate Change affects every part of the United States. In California, there are two major climate-change consequences: ferocious wildfires and drought. When I lived in a city (Berkeley) i felt somewhat immune from these problems. Now that I live in the country (West Sonoma County) the impact is more obvious. This year we're having a water crisis.

When we bought our rural property, we didn't think much about our water supply. We had a well and all our neighbors had wells. Then, several summers ago, we learned that some of our neighbors' wells had failed and they were having water trucked in.

The water situation in California is VERY complicated, but millions of Golden-State families rely upon groundwater wells and, this summer, many of these are drying up. (Roughly one-third of California's 40 million residents rely upon groundwater for their household needs.) This is happening throughout the state but is most critical in the eastern part of the Central valley -- roughly the area that extends from Sacramento to Bakersfield. 

The two-thirds of Californians that do not rely upon groundwater for their personal needs, have access to systems that redeploy surface water; that is, water systems that capture rain water and distribute it from one of California's ten drainage basins -- Sonoma County utilizes water from the "North Coast" system. This year, because of subnormal rainfall, these drainage basins are all severely below capacity. 

Historically, the northern part of California is much wetter than the south: "75 percent of California’s available water is in the northern third of the state (north of Sacramento), while 80 percent of the urban and agricultural water demands are in the southern two-thirds of the state... California has more irrigated acreage than any other state, thanks to massive water projects that include dams, reservoirs, aqueducts and canals to deliver water to users, especially in the central and southern portions of the state." (https://www.watereducation.org/photo-gallery/california-water-101 ) Southern California also gets significant water from the Colorado River. In addition, San Diego County gets water from the massive Carlsbad Desalination plant. 

Earlier this month, California Governor Gavin Newsom extended emergency drought orders to 41 counties across the golden state; 73 percent of the state falls into the most serious drought categories: "severe" or "extreme." 2020-21 rainfall was lower than expected, particularly in the northern part of the state. On April 1, the date when the snow is normally deepest, statewide snowpack was just 59 percent of the historical average. Particularly in the north, reservoirs are much lower than normal. 

There are (at least) four aspects of California's water crisis: 

1.Failing public water systems: Even before the 2020-21 drought, a California Water Board study (https://www.ppic.org/blog/a-look-at-californias-safe-and-affordable-drinking-water-gaps/?) found "a funding gap of $4.6 billion to resolve safe drinking water problems over the next five years... The study assessed public water systems currently out of compliance, public systems at risk, and communities served by very small systems, domestic wells, and tribal systems. Among the publicly regulated systems, we found that 326 were failing and 617 were at risk of failing.. Many of the state’s troubled systems are concentrated in the San Joaquin Valley," This finding indicates that groundwater-based systems are failing; particularly in the eastern part of the state. 

2. Depleted reservoirs. A recent survey found that California's reservoirs are currently at 50 percent of their rated capacity. ( https://engaging-data.com/ca-reservoir-dashboard/) (And 64 percent of their historic capacity at the end of May.) This situation is particularly troubling for the big reservoirs in Northern California. For example, the mammoth Shasta reservoir is at 44 percent of capacity (and 51 percent of its historic capacity for the end of May.) 

3. Over-taxed rivers. Although much of California's agricultural needs are are served by wells -- roughly 50 percent -- and water transported via aqueducts and canals, a substantial amount is water deployed from rivers. The largest rivers within California (Sacramento, San Joaquin, and Russian) are severely depleted. The Sacramento Bee (https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/water-and-drought/article251654333.html#storylink=cpy) reported: "The federal government Wednesday said municipal water agencies that belong to the Central Valley Project will receive just 25% of their allocations, down from the previously announced 55%." 

To make things worse, the Colorado River -- which provides water to Southern California -- is nearing historic lows. (https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/27/weather/lake-mead-colorado-river-shortage/index.html ) 

4. Conflicting water rights: During periods of drought, the ancient California bugaboo -- water rights -- reemerges. In many areas of the state, there are conflicting claims to groundwater -- particularly rivers which historically have been oversubscribed. (It's estimated that portions of the San Joaquin River have been oversubscribed by 800 percent.) This situation leads to hostile disputes and, occasionally, violence. (https://www.alternet.org/2021/05/bundy/ ) 

Bottom line: This summer is going to see a severe water crisis in California. Some areas of the state are going to see water consumption cut to 25 percent of normal. This situation is going to impact all aspects of the state's economy, particularly agriculture. 

---

Bob Burnett is a Bay Area writer and activist. He can be reached at bburnett@sonic.net 

 

Author's Note: This week's column describes a very painful and sensitive subject that could be traumatizing to some readers. It discusses premature death of mentally ill people. This is not intended to be read by anyone unprepared for discussion of this subject. 

When a parent loses a mentally ill offspring directly or indirectly due to the mental illness, it is very painful, which is something I've seen. I could never fully understand it. Yet, I assume that almost any parent wants their offspring to outlive them. Some may want us to produce grandchildren, while others support and even insist on the decision not to have children--if we are unable to provide for them. But this column is about mentally ill people not living exceedingly long, and not outliving our parents. 

For our own sake as mentally ill people, we probably don't want to die any sooner than we have to. There are numerous causes of a mentally ill man or woman dying prematurely. And in some cases, measures can be taken to avoid this fate. One of these measures is to listen to the body. 

The body has numerous mechanisms to inform consciousness that something is wrong. Pain is at the top of the list. Painkillers will short-circuit that warning and put us at risk for becoming hooked. They are to be avoided with the possible exceptions of ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and acetaminophen (Tylenol). If you have pain, it could mean something is wrong and you should do something about it, such as seeing a doctor. Or maybe a particular thing you did caused the pain. Then, the message behind the pain is "don't do that anymore." I do not ascribe to the "no pain, no gain" concept because I believe pain exists for a reason. 

Muscle, back or joint pain generally means something is going on with the body that is not life-threatening. The body wants to have all of its parts working, and this type of pain is due to how we evolved. Other pain is more serious. A headache could mean tension, or it could mean something more serious. Stomach pain could mean eating something you shouldn't eat, or it could mean you're sick with something. 

Aside from listening to pain as a strategy for living longer, we should listen to our emotions. If our emotions are painful, it could mean that we should change something in our lives--or such distress could be resolvable with mindfulness. This is a far better idea than taking one's own life. Suicide is irreversible and it leaves loved ones behind to pick up the pieces and to go through the hell of knowing you're gone. When I contemplated suicide, one of the biggest reasons for not making any attempt at it was the consideration of how other people would feel. 

I've met mentally ill people who later committed suicide and I've met others who died suddenly and prematurely of "natural causes." In both cases the parents didn't take it well. Even if we feel desperate, we should do what is needed to keep ourselves healthy. In some instances, the solution is to get more help. There is no situation I'm aware of in which a mentally compromised person should just "tough it out" or should be dealt with through "tough love." Compassion isn't about being tough. If we need help, we should get it. 

People are too mean. When we deal with enough of this, it can be disheartening. 

People with mental illness may have a lot of impairment in communicating what we feel and why we feel this way. We may have a lot of difficulty explaining actions, which could often be misunderstood. Often, we have very good reasons for feeling and acting the way we do. When others misunderstand us, it may cause social rejection. While this doesn't normally cause death, it is one of many factors. Being able to socialize, to have meaningful people contact, and to love and be loved, are helpful for living longer and living better. If we can communicate our needs, and if we can communicate why we've behaved in ways that others find inexplicable, it helps keep friends rather than losing them. Also, we must have the ability to apologize, and we must have the ability to change behaviors that don't work. 

Noncompliance with treatment is a substantial contributing cause of premature death. Noncompliance can kill us when we are young. On the other hand, we may have good enough instincts when young that we could survive an episode of severe mental illness. Yet when we get beyond age forty, we may not be blessed with bodies resilient enough to survive the stresses of this. 

Police can cause the premature death of a mentally ill individual. When they aren't adequately trained or if they shouldn't have been serving in the police force in the first place, they may use excessive force that leads to the deaths of those with a severe episode of mental illness. Or if police place us in a jail, at a time when the appropriate thing for us is the hospital, this can cause premature death. In a jail environment we may not be getting psych meds, hypertension meds, diabetes meds, or other necessities. We may not be able to adapt to the incredibly difficult, horrible, and very demanding environment to which inmates are subject. In a hospital, the focus is on helping a person get well and not on punishing a person. This is a fundamental difference. 

One statistic says that the average lifespan of a mentally ill person is twenty to thirty years less than the median lifespan of Americans. I'm not sure if this takes into account the numerous ways a mentally ill person can die, or whether it just refers to "natural causes." Either way, something should be done to fix this. In this piece, I've pointed to a grisly, bad problem. I hope that in most of my columns I am a bit more positive. 

---

 

Jack Bragen lives in Martinez, California with his wife, Joanna Bragen and sells books on lulu.com, including "Instructions for Dealing with Schizophrenia: A Self-Help Manual," and "Jack Bragen's 2021 Fiction Collection."

Even though the various claims of evidence alleging a stolen 2020 election — “The Big Lie” — have been exhaustively investigated and litigated and found wanting, a May 12, 2021 PRRI Survey found that 38% of Republicans, 12% of Independents and 2% of Democrats completely agree the election was stolen, and 28% of Republicans, 15% of Independents and 2% of Democrats mostly agree.  

“The Big Lie” refers to Trump's false claim that the election was stolen from him through massive fraud, and eventually led to Trump supporters storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6. “A big lie (German: große Lüge; often the big lie) is a propaganda technique used for political purposes, defined as "a gross distortion or misrepresentation of the facts, especially when used as a propaganda device by a politician or official body.”  

This German expression was "coined by Adolf Hitler, when he dictated his 1925 book Mein Kampf, to describe the use of a lie so "colossal" that no one would believe that someone could have the impudence to distort the truth so infamously.”  

That so many gullible Americans would believe The Big Lie in spite of the overwhelming evidence to the contrary, and given Trump’s history of lying, is irrational. And especially since the Republican Party’s policies are generally unpopular. If Republicans came clean about those policies, they would rarely win free and fair elections. Republicans want to turn back to the Jim Crow era "by keeping Black and brown and other members of the Democratic Party’s base from voting." 

Trump and his sycophants are intent on keeping “The Big Lie” in the public eye as long as possible to undermine the integrity of future elections and give impetus to state voter suppression laws. In furtherance thereof, the third audit (or "fraudit" as some have called it) is now being conducted in Maricopa County, Arizona, six months after the election by the Cyber Ninjas, a company hired by the Republican-controlled Arizona state Senate, have no experience in conducting election audits. (The name “Cyber Ninjas” itself doesn’t inspire much confidence.) Indications are that other Republican-controlled states will continue this farce unless the U.S. Department of Justice steps in to end this likely violation of federal election laws. 

As Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan once said, "Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts."

A Memorial Day for the Victims of Washington's Wars

The New York City chapter of Veterans For Peace (V4P) raises an interesting question: "What would Memorial Day look like if we commemorated all the victims of war, and not just the military fallen from our own country? What would it be like to honor all the dead and acknowledge all the destruction wrought around the world by US military actions?" 

And V4P has come up with a rousing and reflective response—a 2021 Memorial Day Zoomathon set for Monday, May 31^st at 11:00 AM local time. The online conversation will pair Americans (mostly military vets) with a globe-spanning array of nearly two-dozen Indigenous and foreign speakers "who have been on the receiving end of US military aggression." It's a remarkable list a speakers: 

Cheyenne Arapaho Nation: Larry Bringing Good 

Afghanistan: Nematullah Ahangosh, Basir Bita, Kathy Kelly, Danny Sjursen 

Iraq: Matthew Hoh, Lubna Mousa 

Vietnam: Peggy Akers, Theresa Mei Chuc, Doug Rawlings 

Japan: Susan Schnall, Kiyoko Takei, Masashi Takei 

Okinawa: Ken Mayers, Teiko Yohana Tursi 

Korea: Soobok Kim, Stan Levin, Georgia Wever 

Palestine: Afaf Alnajjar, Miko Peled 

Closing: Leah Bolger, Rory Fanning 

Moderator: Susan Schnall 

Music: Anthony Donovan 

Register Here 

As Arundhati Roy has written in Public Power in the Age of Empire:
“Colorful demonstrations and weekend marches are vital but alone are not powerful enough to stop wars. Wars will be stopped only when soldiers refuse to fight, when workers refuse to load weapons onto ships and aircraft, when people boycott the economic outposts of Empire that are strung across the globe.” 

Tone Deaf Messaging 

I just received one of the oddest voicemail messages ever left on my phone: "Hello," it began, "No one's available to answer your call. Please leave a message after the tone." What? But you called me! 

And then there was an anonymous message about renewing an auto warranty that ended: "If you wish to delete this message, press nine." (Which, of course, is the number that saves the message.) 

Finally, there was a Birthday Card from my Kaiser doctor that included two tips for maintaining "emotional well-being." They were: "Breathing exercises and meditation" and "finding ways to stay connected safely with loved ones, friends, and neighbors." 

This plea for human contact was immediately followed by the line: "Next time you need to see me, why not try a video visit?" 

A Dem Fund-raiser Presses Your Buttons 

An unsolicited email pitch arrived a few days back. It read:
"Last week the CDC announced that fully vaccinated Americans don’t have to wear masks anymore! Some Democrats are worried if they don’t wear their masks, people will mistake them for a REPUBLICAN. No need to worry!! All you need is one of our 'VACCINATED' Buttons! To celebrate this milestone, we’re offering 'Vaccinated' Button Sets! Each set has 4 buttons, each with its own unique Pro‑Vaccine design." 

But nowhere in the online pitch was there any protocol requiring people to offer proof that they were, in fact, "vaxed." And isn't $15 for four (that's $3.50 per button) a bit steep? And why do you need more than one? Gifts for unvaccinated friends? 

The Chicago-based Stop Republicans website looks like a joke. There's no content except for a long, boilerplate statement of privacy policies. Could it be that the site was created by Republicans as a means of filching money from easily duped Dems? Well, maybe not. According to the fine print, the SR site is "an accountability project of the Progressive Turnout Project." 

Amazon's Robot Shopping. Good to Go? 

 

Five immediate thoughts: 

1. It would be nice to get a printed receipt at the checkout gate to see if the 'bots made any errors—or if you discover your avocados are brown on the inside. (It turns out Amazon Go sends a "receipt" to your online electronic account.)
2. How do the sensors know what you've picked up? Are there microchips in the corn chips? 

3. What if you remove an item from your cart (indicating a decision not to purchase) but then you toss it over to the other side of the green checkout gate? If you pick the item off the floor after you've checked out, do you score a freebie? 

4. What happens if you grab a sandwich and walk through the exit gate without paying? There aren't any employees present to chase you. 

5. What if you hide your credit card inside a protective RFID-blocking "sleeve-holder" made from carbon fibers, aluminum, or silver? You would be untrackable. It would be like you never entered the store. (Tip: You can buy one of these card-covers for $5.31 on Amazon.) 

If Her Name Was Faith, I'd Call This "A Leap of Faith" 

Recently I came across the beguiling sight of a young mother with toddler at the public playground on the north side of the MLK Middle School. Mom was holding the tot's hand and offering encouragement as the little girl teetered on the edge of a wooden plank before leaping into the sandbox. And leap she did. 

I couldn't resist offering a paraphrase of Neil Armstrong's famous sentence: "One small step for a child; one giant leap for child-kind!" 

A Pointed Question 

Question: What do they call you if you are told to appear for a covid shot at a specific spot and you show up exactly on time? 

Answer: "Punctual." 

When Movies Start to Ape One Another 

King Kong Versus Godzilla was a desperate excuse for a movie. It's right up there with Batman vs. Superman. What next? Wonder Woman vs. Supergirl? How about a King Kong "origin story" about a chimp named Prince Kong? And make it a musical. 

Movies for the Slower Moving?  

Now that I've hit my 78^th birthday, I'm thinking it may be time to write and direct a summer blockbuster. Not a "coming of age" film but, instead, a "coming of aging" film. 

Modeled after the Fast and Furious franchise, it would be called Slow and Crotchety. Expect a lot of lightsaber-like clashes with walking canes, slow-mo walker collisions, and spectacular stunts involving souped-up mobility scooters. Starring in the lead roles—Betty White, Larry David, and Cher. 

What's in a Name? Marital-wise  

When couples uncouple in divorce court, why do some ex-wives opt to keep their married names? Do ex-husbands ever object and seek legal redress for such expropriations? 

I guess it makes sense if the divorcee is someone like Melinda Gates—henceforth to be known by an amalgam of her family name and her married name: "Melinda French Gates." 

It's a good thing she married Bill Gates and not Elon Musk. There's something a bit off-putting about a name like Melinda French Musk. 

Invisible Hand: Playing by Nature's Rules 

"You hear time and time again that a corporation has the rights of a person. The idea that Nature has no rights whatsoever is absurd.” — Mark Ruffalo, actor, environmental activist, and producer 

 

Recemtly, Smithereens received an alert from the Sustainable Berkeley Coalition and Berkeley Citizens Action (BCA) noting that "the effort to recognize the Rights of Nature in Berkeley is stuck in bureaucratic delays...."
As a long-time staffer with Friends of the Earth and Earth Island Institute, I was concerned. Here what I've learned. 

A Resolution to Recognize the Rights of Nature was submitted by former Councilmember Cheryl Davila at a Berkeley City Council meeting on October 27, 2020. The Agenda committee referred the item to the Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment and Sustainability Policy Committee (FITES) and, six months later, on March 3, 2021, FITES voted to forward the item back to council with a qualified positive recommendation. 

At the March 15 meeting of the Agenda and Rules Policy Committee, Mayor Arreguin stated that he was opposed to the recommendation but, during the March 30 Council meeting, he expressed his support for the Rights of Nature proposal and recommended referring it to the Peace and Justice Commission. However, the Peace and Justice Commission has not been meeting during the pandemic. Result: Stalemate. 

For more information on the Rights of Nature movements (along with local legislative examples, histories, timelines, documents and references) you can contact BCA and/or watch: https://www.invisiblehandfilm.com/what-are-rights-of-nature/ 

 

The OTARD Trap

OTARD is an acronym for Over The Air Reception Device and it has been called "the latest trick being used by the telecoms to get their radiation-emitting 5G antennas into neighborhoods." According to Americans for Responsible Technology (ART), the Federal Communications Commission's new OTARD rule will allow telecom providers to pay residents for the privilege of installing powerful wireless devices directly on private homes. No permits required; No public hearings. 

 

Don't be an OTARD DOTARD. This ART video spells it out. 

 

BBC Reports Israelis Were 'Killed' While Palestinians Simply 'Died’ 

TRT World, a Turkish public media broadcaster, recently noted that BBC anchor Jane Hill had come under criticism after delivering an update on Israel's bombardment of Gaza and reporting that Israelis were "killed" (in the disproportionate exchange of missiles and bombs) while Palestinian victims simply "died." 

 

In related news, Associated Press reporter Emily Wilder was fired for posting alleged "pro-Palestine" tweets. In fact, Wilder (who is Jewish) was actually addressing examples of pro-Israel bias in the Western media's reporting. In one recent tweet, Wilder cited several examples of media bias, noting that “Using ‘Israel’ but never ‘Palestine,’ or ‘war’ but not ’siege and occupation’ are political choices.” 

 

Partisan Bias in the Western Press? 

The issue of alleged press bias surfaced again in an Associated Press report that appeared in the May 22 edition of the SF Chronicle. Two AP journalists based in "Gaza City, Gaza Strip" filed a dispatch that opined: "the rocket barrages that brought life to a standstill in much of Israel were seen by many Palestinians as a bold response to perceived Israeli abuses in Jerusalem…." [Emphasis added] 

Actual abuses have been easy to perceive in photos and video feeds from the Occupied Territories. Most recently, they have included midnight evictions of Palestinians from their homes and the Israeli military's invasion of the Al Aqsa Mosque during the holy month of Ramadan. 

Another issue of bias in the AP report was the referencing of "rocket barrages that brought life to a standstill in much of Israel" without mentioning the Israeli barrages that "brought life to a standstill"—literally!—in Gaza. 

From Weapons Fairs to War Zones: Unraveling the War Machine 

This year, World BEYOND War's global #NoWar conference will move from Zoom to Hopin (see tutorial here) and will expand from one day to three—starting on Friday, June 4. As WBW's organizers explain: "Instead of pouring trillions into weaponry, the world must invest in … a Green New Deal." 

#NoWar2021 will bring together key international allies to share expertise from their various campaigns in the global struggle to abolish war. Speakers will be joining the virtual conference from Aotearoa/New Zealand, Australia, Bolivia, Canada, Colombia, Hawai'i, Iran, Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, Italy, London, Montenegro, New Zealand, Spain, Sicily, Syria, Yemen, the Indigenous Anishnabe Nation and the US. 

For more information, click here. To register for one day or all three, click here 

. 

Charting a Peaceful Course 

World BEYOND War also is offering a six-week online course on "War and the Environment." As WBW Executive Director David Swanson points out:
"The US military is one of the biggest polluters on earth. Since 2001, the US military has emitted 1.2 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases—equivalent to the annual emissions of 257 million cars. The US military is the world's largest institutional consumer of oil ($17B/year) and the largest global landholder with 800 foreign military bases in 80 countries. By one estimate, the US military used 1.2 million barrels of oil in Iraq in just one month of 2008." 

The online class begins on June 7 and runs through July 18, 2021. For more details—on course content, facilitators, time commitments, and registration—click here. Cost: $100 ("Pay less if you have to, more if you can.") Half of the spaces for the course have already been sold. 

Worth Noting:

The full agendas for the City Council Agenda and Rules Committee and the Regular June 1 City Council meeting consume so much space they follow the daily list of events and meetings. This should make a quick scan of daily meetings easier.

Key Meetings and Events:

Tuesday – Agenda and Rules Committee at 2:30 pm and City Council regular meeting at 6 pm (go to www.berkeleydailyplanet.com for coverage of key agenda items)

Wednesday – Budget and Finance Committee at 10 am

Sunday June 6 – Virtual Green Home Tour of 6 homes at 10 am – 1 pm

Budget Town Hall, June 8 at 5:30 pm https://www.jessearreguin.com/

The proposed budget from the CM (City Manager) was first presented at City Council on May 25. Use these links to access the 484 page budget and presentation to council. https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/2021/05_May/City_Council__05-25-2021_-_Regular_Meeting_Agenda.aspx

38.	FY 2022 Proposed Budget and Proposed Budget Public Hearing #1 Revised Material (Supp 3) Presentation

Long Weekend - Sunday, May 30, 2021 & Monday, May 31, 2021 – Memorial Day Holiday

Tuesday, June 1, 2021 

Agenda and Rules Committee, 2:30 pm, 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85944483096 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 859 4448 3096 

AGENDA: 2. Planning for June 15 Regular City Council meeting, 5. Council Worksessions Schedule, 6. Council Referrals to Agenda Committee for Scheduling, 7. Land Use Calendar, Referred Items for Review: 8. Impact of COVID, 9. Preliminary Analysis of return to in-person meetings of City legislative bodies, Unscheduled Items: 10. Strengthening and Supporting City Commissions, Kitchen Exhaust Fans, Surveillance Technology & Acquisition Report, Objective Standards for Density, Design and Shadows.. (To review full agenda go to link or to agenda list that follows daily calendar) 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/Policy_Committee__Agenda___Rules.aspx 

City Council Regular Meeting at 6 pm, 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82597941909 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 

AGENDA: (To review full agenda go to link or to agenda list that follows daily calendar) 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Agenda_Index.aspx 

Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Budget and Personnel Committee at 5 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/91749712513?pwd=Y08raGkxOEdvWDB0MWYzQ2Z0U3o0Zz09 

Teleconference: 1-408-638-0968 Meeting ID: 917 4971 2513 

AGENDA: 6. Registration Fee Update, 7. FY 2021-2022 line-item budget. 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/rent/ 

Wednesday, June 2, 2021 

City Council Budget & Finance Committee at 10 am (this special meeting is on Wednesday) 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89452484127 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 894 5248 4127 

AGENDA: 2. FY 2021-2025 Revenue Projections, 3. Deferrals to the AAO Process November (mid-year requests), 4. Discussion of Council Referrals to Budget Process. 

City Council Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation, Environment & Sustainability Committee at 2:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81029925371 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 810 2992 5371 

AGENDA: 2. Referral Response: Ordinance Amending BMC7.52 Reducing Tax Imposed for Qualifying Electrification, Energy Efficiency and Water Conservation Retrofits, 3. Commit the CoB to a Just Transition from Fossil Fuel Economy and establish a Just Transition Working Group, 5. Establish a Pilot Climate Equity Action Fund to Assist Low-Income Residents with Transition to Zero-Carbon Transportation and Buildings, 6. Budget Referral and Resolution Establishing A Pilot Existing Building Electrification Incentive Program, 

Homeless Services Panel of Experts at 7 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/92491365323 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 924 9136 5323 

AGENDA: 7. Review recommendations for Measure P funding to submit to Budget and Finance Committee, 8. Begin discussion of work to be conducted between budget recommendations. 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Homeless_Services_Panel_of_Experts.aspx 

Planning Commission at 7 – 10 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/92536303643 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 925 3630 3643 

AGENDA: 9. Public Hearing DEIR (Environmental Impact Report) Bayer Healthcare LLC DSEIR public comment period ends 7/6/2021 https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Zoning_Adjustment_Board/Bayer_Development_Agreement.aspx, 10. Business Support Amendment Referrals R&D, 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Planning_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

Thursday, June 3, 2021 

City Council Special Closed Session, 3 pm, 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82185996634 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 821 8599 6634 

AGENDA: 1. Conference Property Negotiators 199 Seawall Drive, 2. Conference with Labor Negotiators employee organizations: IBEW, Local 1245, SEIU 1021 Community Services and Part-time Recreation Activity Leaders, Berkeley Firefighters Association Local 1227, Berkeley Police Association, SEIU 1021 Maintenance and Clerical Chapters, Local 1227 I.A.F.F./Berkeley Chief Fire Officers Association, Public Employees Union Local 1, 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Agenda_Index.aspx 

Landmarks Preservation Commission at 7 – 11:30 pm 

Videoconference: https://zoom.us/j/99379095208 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 993 7909 5208 

AGENDA: 5. 1120 Second Street – Structural Alteration Permit – new signage, 6. 2212 Fifth Street – initiate structure of merit consideration built 1877, 7. LPC Annual Report for council. 

http://www.cityofberkeley.info/landmarkspreservationcommission/ 

Public Works Commission at 7 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84312916787 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 Meeting ID: 843 1291 6787 

AGENDA: Presentation Adopt a Spot followed by discussion and possible action 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/Commissions/Commissions__Public_Works_Commission_Homepage.aspx 

WETA (Water Emergency Transportation Authority) at 1 pm 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89718217408 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-6833 Meeting ID: 897 1821 7408 Passcode: 33779 

AGENDA: 5. Reports of Staff e. Monthly ridership and recovery report, 7. Approve FY2021-2022 Budget, 

https://weta.sanfranciscobayferry.com/next-board-meeting 

Friday, June 4, 2021 & Saturday, June 5, 2021 & 

No City meetings or events found 

Sunday, June 6, 2021 

East Bay Green Home Tour 10 am – 1 pm  

Tour schedule: https://www.eastbaygreenhome.com/schedule 

Register Eventbrite: https://www.eastbaygreenhome.com/register 

AGENDA: Features short video tours of 12 homes 6 on June 6 and 6 on June 13 with each tour followed by live Q&A with the homeowner/tenant. Extras include induction cooking, heat pumps, air quality, solar storage, power outages, rebates 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/electrification/ 

_____________________ 

City Council Regular Meeting June 1 at 6 pm 

email comments council@cityofberkeley.info 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89868895268 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 898 6889 5268 

AGENDA CONSENT: 1. Waiver of Sanctuary of City Ordinance for Westlaw Contract as external legal resource (Westlaw provides services to ICE), 2. Formal bid solicitations $2,270,000, 3. Appropriations limit for FY2022, 4. Amend Contract add $225,000 total $3,716,917 with Ghilotti Construction Co, Inc, for Rose Garden Pergola Reconstruction and Site Improvements, 5. MOU Multi-Agency Policing for Grizzly Peak Blvd (Oakland police Dept, UCB Police, East Bay Regional Park District, BPD, Contra Costa Sherrif’s Dept, EBMUD, City of Orinda), 6. Disaster and Fire Safety Commission – Expand Automatic Gas Shut-off Valve Requirements in Multi-family, Condominium and Commercial Buildings undergoing Renovations, 7. Arreguin, co-sponsor Harrison, Hahn, Wengraf – Oppose AB 1139 Net Metering – 80% reduction in credit given to solar users for surplus energy sent back to the grid, 8. Arreguin co-sponsors Hahn, Bartlett, Harrison – FY2022 Budget Referral $900,000 Continuing Anti-Displacement Programs (Housing Retention $250,000, EBLC $275,000, EDC $275,000, Flexible Housing Subsidies for Homeless Prevention $100,000), 9. Arreguin, co-sponsors Harrison, Kesarwani, Taplin – FY2022 Budget Referral $100,000 Landlord incentives for Section 8 Participation, 10. Arreguin, co-sponsors Bartlett, Harrison, Taplin – Support SB 617 the Solar Access Act, 11. Arreguin – Reappointment of Dan Rossi, Christine Schildt and Adolph Moody to Berkeley Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, 12. Arreguin, co-sponsor Hahn – Budget Referral $200,000 to Bay Area Land Trust for Small Sites Program, 13. Arreguin, co-sponsor Harrison, Wengraf, Hahn - Budget Referral $200,000 for Phase 2, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 of Civic Center District Visioning, 14. Hahn, co-sponsors Taplin, Wengraf, Arreguin - Berkeley Rep’s OVATION relinquishment of Councilmember office budget funds, ACTION: 15. FY2022 Proposed Budget Hearing #2, 16. ZAB Appeal 2421 Fifth, 17. Police Accountability Board – Appointment of Members, 18 a. SSBPPE – Resolution CoB and City food service vendors shall not serve sugar sweetened beverages at city meetings, use city funds for sugar sweetened beverages or sell sugar sweetened beverages in vending machines, b. CM alternative – healthy options shall be emphasized and the majority of beverages shall not be sugar-sweetened, 19. Harrison – Resolution Updating CoB Street Maintenance and Rehabilitation Policy. 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/City_Council__Agenda_Index.aspx 

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Agenda and Rules Committee, 2:30 pm, 

Videoconference: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85944483096 

Teleconference: 1-669-900-9128 or 1-877-853-5257 (toll free) Meeting ID: 859 4448 3096 

AGENDA: 2. Planning for June 15 Regular City Council meeting CONSENT: 1. 2^nd reading Lease Agreement 2010 Addison (Center Street Garage) Lexie’s Frozen Custard, 2. 2^nd reading BMC 14.72.105 broader range of community facilities to be eligible for parking permits, 3. Path to Permanence: Outdoor Dining and Commerce, 4. Temporary Appropriations FY2022 $50 million, FY 2022 Tax Rates items 5 – 16: 5. Debt service on Neighborhood Branch Library improvements, 6. Debt Service 2015 Refunding General Obligation Bonds Measures G, S, &I, 7. Debt Service on Affordable Housing General Obligation Bonds Measure O, 8. Business License Tax on Large Non-Profits, 9. Funding Firefighting, Emergency Medical Response and Wildfire Prevention Measure FF, 10. Maintenance of Parks, City Trees and Landscaping, 11. Provision of Library Services, 12. Emergency Services for the Severely Disabled Measure E, 13. Debt Service on Infrastructure and Facilities General Obligation Bonds Measure T1, 14. Debt Service on Street and Watershed Improvements General Obligation Bonds Measure M, 15. Fund Fire Protection and Emergency Response and Preparedness Measure GG, 16. Emergency Medical Services Paramedic Tax, 17. Designate a Line of Succession for the Director of Emergency Services, 18. Revenue Grant from Alameda Co of $32,080 for Public Health Infrastructure Program (health promotion), 19. Housing Trust Fund Predevelopment Loan Advance for Maudelle Miller Shirek Community at 2001 Ashby of $1.5 million, 20. Amend and extend contract thru FY2023 with Easy Does It for disability services and to include conditions stipulating implementing and sustaining audit recommendations, 21. Revenue Grant $14,000 from State for Tuberculosis Program, 22. Accept Community Services Block Grant, 23. Contract add $100,000 total $150,000 with Renne Public Law Group LLP for Chief Labor Negotiator Services, 24. Contract add $53,000 total $102,999 thru 12/31/2023 with Bryce Consulting for Professional Classification Studies, Compensation Surveys, Desk Audits, 25. Contract add $215,000 total $665,000 with Sloan Sakai LLP for Chief Labor Negotiator Services, 26. Contract $61,215 with 20% contingency $12,243 with Get IT Tech for new electronic gate system at the waterfront, 27. Contract with Community Conservation Centers, In for processing and marketing services of recyclable materials 7/1/2021-6/30/2026 with 5 year extension option 10 yr total $30,080,793, 28. Contract with Ecology Center for curbside recycling collection 7/1/2021-6/30/2026 with 5 year extension option 10 yr total $54,528,752, 29. Contract add $50,000 total $250,000 and extend to 6/30/2023 with HF&H Consultants, LLC for study of providing commercial collection services and development and update of rate model, 30. Contract add $150,000 total $340,000 and extend to 6/3/2025 with Fairbanks Scales, Inc for preventive maintenance and repairs at CoB solid waste management and transfer station, 31. Zero Waste Commission - Support Assembly Bills 881 (closes loophole of Plastic Waste Exports counted as recycling regardless of ultimate destination), 1454 (bottle bill modernization helps recycling centers stay open), 1276 (expands restrictions on single-use foodware to upon request), 32. Bartlett so-sponsor Harrison - Support AB-279 Intermediate Care and Skilled Nursing Facilities prohibits facilities from terminating, transferring or significantly altering conditions of residential care services during COVID-19 also includes conditions of sale, 33. Wengraf & Harrison – oppose SB 9, ACTION: 34. Amendments to ADU Ordinance to address public safety concerns BMC 23C.24 & 23F.04, 35. Public Hearing Street Lighting Assessments FY2022, 36. CM- Systems Alignment Proposal, 37. Droste – so-sponsors Robinson, Kesarwani, Arreguin, Commission Reorganization combine Zero Waste, Energy, CEAC (Climate & Environment Advisory Commission) and Animal Care into one 18 member Climate and Environment Commission, combine Peace, Justice and Human Welfare into one commission with only Mayor and Council appointees eliminate BUSD appointees and representatives of the poor, refer to CM and Commissions review for mandates, charters, and staff to develop recommendations, 38. City Council Comments on the FY 2022 proposed Biennial Budget, Information Reports: City Council Short Term Referral Process-Quarterly Update, 40. Update on the Implementation of the FIP (Fair and Impartial Policing Task Force) recommendations, 41. Animal Care Commission workplan, 42. Planning Commission workplan, 

 

New Commission Name (suggested)	Existing Commission
Commission on Climate and the Environment   (18 members)	Zero Waste, Energy, Community Environmental Advisory Commission, and Animal Care
Parks, Recreation, Waterfront (special Marina subcommittee)	Children, Youth, and Recreation and Parks and Waterfront
Peace, Justice, and Human Welfare  (mayor and council appointees only eliminates representatives of the poor)	Peace and Justice Commission and Human Welfare and Community Action Commission
Public Health Commission & Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts	Community Health Commission and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts
Housing Advisory Commission  (Phase 1 priority consolidation)	Measure O and Housing Advisory Commission
Homeless Services Panel of Experts  (Phase 1 priority consolidation)	Homeless Commission and Measure P Homeless Services Panel of Experts
Public Works and Transportation	Public Works and Transportation
Planning	Planning and Cannabis
All other commissions will maintain their current structure: Aging, Library Board of Trustees, Civic Arts, Disability, Commission on the Status of Women, Design Review Committee, Disaster and Fire Safety, BIDs, Fair Campaign Practices and Open Government, Redistricting, Landmarks Preservation, Labor, Loan Adjustments Board, Personnel, Planning, Police Review/Accountability, Reimagining Public Safety, Mental Health, Zoning Adjustments Board, and Youth

 

Policy Committee Oversight	Commissions
Agenda and Rules	Fair Campaign Practices/Open Government Commission Personnel Board
Budget and Finance	(any legislation that requires funding)
Public Safety	Disaster and Fire Safety Commission Police Accountability Board/Police Review Commission Reimagining Public Safety Task Force
Facilities, Infrastructure, Transportation and the Environment	Commission on the Environment Parks, Recreation and Waterfront with Marina Subcommittee Public Works and Transportation
Land Use and Economic Development	Measure O Housing Commission Planning Commission Labor Civic Arts Commission
Health, Equity, Life Enrichment, and Community	Peace, Justice and Civil Rights Health and Sugar Sweetened Beverage Panel of Experts Homeless Services Panel of Experts Mental Health Commissions (state/federal mandate) Commission on the Status of Women Disability Commission
Other Commissions: Zoning Adjustments Board (DRC), Landmarks Preservation Commission, Board of Library Trustees, BIDS, Independent Redistricting Commission, Loan Administration Board.

 

___________________ 

Public Hearings Scheduled – Land Use Appeals 

2421 Fifth Street (construct two residential buildings) 6/1/2021 

2943 Pine (construct a 2^nd story) 9/28/2021 

1205 Peralta (conversion of garage) 10/12/2021 

Notice of Decision (NOD) and Use Permits with End of Appeal Period 

2002 Addison 6/3/2021 

1730 Blake (3-story single-family dwelling) 6/8/2021 

723 Delaware 6/17/2021 

0 Fifth 6/17/2021 

2301 Oak 6/1/2021 

1634 San Pablo 6/10/2021 

3 Virginia Gardens 6/17/2021 

2234 Ward 6/1/2021 

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Land_Use_Division/Current_Zoning_Applications_in_Appeal_Period.aspx 

LINK to Current Zoning Applications https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Planning_and_Development/Land_Use_Division/Current_Zoning_Applications.aspx 

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WORKSESSIONS 

July 20 – 1. Bayer Development Agreement (tentative), 2. Measure FF/Fire Prevention 

September 21 – 1. Housing Element (RHNA) 

October 19 – 1. Update Zero Waste Rates and Priorities, 2. Berkeley Police Department Hiring Practices (referred by Public Safety Committee), 3. Crime Report 

December 7 – 1. Review and Update on City’s COVID-19 Response, 2. WETA/Ferry Service at the Marina, 3. Presentation by Bay Restoration Authority 

Unscheduled Workshops/Presentations 

Cannabis Health Considerations 

Civic Arts Grantmaking Process & Capital Grant Program 

This meeting list is also posted on the Sustainable Berkeley Coalition website. 

http://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/whats-ahead.html and in the Berkeley Daily Planet under activist’s calendar http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com 

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