The passing of Henry Kissinger at the age of 100 marks the end of an era, provoking a divided remembrance of a man whose legacy is a collision of adulation and condemnation. To the Washington establishment, Kissinger stands as an influential diplomat shaping U.S. foreign policy. However, beyond American borders, particularly in countries like Chile, East Timor, Bangladesh, and Cambodia, his actions are indelibly tied to allegations of war crimes, instigating coups, and genocide. 

Born in Germany, Kissinger held pivotal roles as U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Adviser during the Nixon and Ford administrations, a unique feat unmatched in American history. His accolades include the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize, shared with his North Vietnamese counterpart, Le Duc Tho. 

Kissinger's tenure witnessed significant global interventions. He oversaw the expansive Vietnam War, including clandestine bombings in Laos and Cambodia resulting in the deaths of up to 150,000 civilians. His support for the Pakistani military in the conflict against East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and his involvement in Latin America's covert operations, notably in Chile's coup against Salvador Allende, remain contentious chapters in history. 

The meeting between Kissinger and President Ford with Indonesian dictator General Suharto led to Indonesia's invasion of East Timor in 1975, triggering one of the late 20th century's worst genocides, causing the deaths of a third of the Timorese population. 

Furthermore, Kissinger crafted plans to attack Cuba in response to Fidel Castro's actions in Angola and advocated pursuing Pentagon Papers whistleblower Dan Ellsberg, branding him "the most dangerous man in America." Historians estimate Kissinger's decisions may have contributed to the deaths of millions, prompting continuous calls from human rights activists for his trial for war crimes. Yet, his consultancy roles transcended political affiliations, advising both Republican and Democratic administrations. 

Greg Grandin, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and history professor at Yale University, offers a contrasting perspective on Kissinger's legacy. He emphasizes Kissinger's role in reshaping the national security framework post-Vietnam, exploiting polarization and secrecy to advocate an aggressive foreign policy. 

Grandin's reflection on Kissinger's death highlights the moral bankruptcy within the political establishment, evidenced by celebratory obituaries that overlook Kissinger's controversial actions and their enduring impact on global affairs. In essence, Kissinger's demise serves as a reflection of the cultural and ethical divide surrounding his legacy, prompting diverse interpretations of a figure whose influence shaped modern geopolitics.

Oakland's City Council passed a cease-fire resolution on November 27, that shamefully omitted critical facts.

Shame, for Shame that the Oakland City Council rebuked Israel's bombing of Gaza, but didn't mention Hamas' murder of 1200 Israelis and kidnapping of 240 hostages. 

Shame, for Shame that the resolution calls for a cease fire, but didn't mention that cease fire existed until October 7, when Hamas initiated its brutal attack. 

Shame, for Shame that Oakland's resolution blames only Israel for thousands of Gazans' deaths, but didn't mention that Hamas purposefully located its military equipment and command centers in and near schools, hospitals and residential buildings specifically to use civilians as human shields. 

Shame, for Shame that the resolution failed to acknowledge Hamas' intent was to cause damage to its own people in an attempt to generate anti-Israel sentiment, like that exhibited at the Oakland City Council meeting on November 27. 

Shame, for Shame that Oakland's City Council members have become Hamas' useful idiots.

Dear Mayor and City Council:

Please… take action. Other cities, churches. Jewish organizations, and county organizations have sent proclamations and pleas for a bilateral and permanent Ceasefire between Israeli Defense Forces and Hamas.

I have friends living in Israel, and Palestinian American friends air lifted out of Gaza. I returned to my college town because we are a city with values that include compassion for our neighbors, local and global.  

The entire world, including Berkeley, spoke up for people outside of our 150,000 population: we made proclamations against the Vietnam war, nuclear weapons escalation, US intervention in El Salvador, Apartheid in South Africa, against invading Iraq, Russian attacks on Ukraine. We speak up for innocent lives- many are being lost in Gaza and the world is speaking out for peace. 

How and why does my city of Berkeley remain silent? Hamas must be held accountable for killing Israelis and kidnapping over 200 men, women and children, and the Israeli Defense Forces must be investigated by international law entities for excessively bombing the Gaza Strip including refugee camps, hospitals, schools and places of worship resulting in 15,000 Palestinians killed and 1.5 million displaced. 

How is speaking up for peace and accountability ‘sowing seeds of hate?’  

1. Demand a permanent bilateral CEASEFIRE between Israel and Hamas. 

2- Demand continued safe passage for substantial humanitarian aid to Gazans who have little to no food, water, fuel or medical supplies to save the thousands of Palestinians injured (at the time of this writing); 

3- Call for an immediate end to all existing military aid used against civilians. Berkeley residents are taxpayers for local and national needs- and you have the right and duty to say our dollars should go to Israel and Gaza in the form of food, emergency shelter, electricity, water and medicine.  

4 - Support Palestinians basic human rights to food, water, shelter, medical and psychological care and means to support their farming or other means of economic survival. We should also send thoughts, prayers and support to Israeli families who lost 1,400 loved ones and over 150 hostages from various countries including the U.S. who are still held captive by Hamas. 

Thank you. 

Moni T. Law, J.D. Chair, Berkeley Community Safety Coalition

Recent letters to the Planet expressing disapproval of the City's campaign to remake the streets—timely and pertinent as they are—omit a fact that serves to sharpen the points they make: Berkeley's notably poor financial condition and how it affects the city today. 

Like many who fall on hard times city officials have resorted to desperate measures such as closing valued city amenities: the Warm Pool at Berkeley High, which was a godsend to seniors with arthritis and the disabled. Filling Willard Pool with dirt, decommissioning the Southside community’s swimming pool overnight and unannounced. The City has closed the Berkeley Pier, a main city attraction, and is letting it fall into ruin, which must be having an impact on business at Skates seafood restaurant. 

Some of their actions exceed the bounds of respectability. Shortening service hours of essential city departments is an unwarranted disservice. Eliminating the Police Department's Traffic Division subjects everyone to the antics of those who will run a stop sign if they know they will not be cited. This astonishingly unsafe street policy makes the City’s passionate declarations about road safety less convincing. 

So is going hat-in-hand to state and federal governments for money for street repairs that comes with onerous strings that make our every day life harder. Washington's conditions for federal funding, which the City does not disclose, requires the Complete Streets program of altering (some say disfiguring) the streets. 

Too many of Berkeley's streets give mute testimony to the city's financial ill health. Not least being Telegraph Avenue from Dwight Way to Woolsey Street, the entire length of Hopkins Street, and North Shattuck Avenue. 

These and other streets have subsided into rough tracks from lengthy neglect. The City has shirked its duty to maintain them while waiting to win the lottery: monies from anywhere except its own coffers. What is the plan for these streets? So far the City has refused to repave Hopkins unless it gets mangled to fit into the Complete Streets mold. Telegraph appears to be subject to the same bureaucratic coercion. 

When Mayor Arreguin was told at this year's State of the City address that emergency vehicles will not be able to negotiate Hopkins after the proposed changes, he is reported to have quipped that when it is reserved for bicycles there would be no emergencies. Apparently he overlooked the falls, strokes, and heart attacks, that account for more ambulance calls than motor vehicle collisions, which are pretty rare. 

North Shattuck Avenue, the immensely popular and well-traveled business district, is not on the schedule to be re-paved. Apparently the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has no plans to fix this badly eroded main thoroughfare. 

In the last election the big lottery ticket that city hall gambled its hopes on was Proposition L, a 650 million dollar general obligation bond—with no mandatory expenditures—allegedly to pay for the streets and the city's other big, never-mentioned liability: $300,000,000 (that’s three hundred million) in pensions it owes to retired and retiring employees. Anyone who has wrestled with retirement planning will be amazed to know that many well-paid City employees made no contributions to their own retirements during twenty or thirty years in harness. 

City employees make darn good money. Four months before former city manager Phil Kamlarz retired then-mayor Tom Bates raised his compensation from $208,000 a year to $234,000. Mr. Kamlarz receives $16,000 every month. If he dies before his wife, the City generously promised to pay her the same amount as long as she lives. 

When they handed out gold-plated retirements to city staff, mayors and council members did not have in hand and failed to identify any other funding source for this gargantuan public debt. Should this mean that everyone who drives on Berkeley’s streets—over 95% of main thoroughfare users—should be forced to negotiate the growing collection of obstacles as parking becomes a fading hope? 

About 80% of Berkeley’s budget goes for salaries, leaving less than is needed for city services and street maintanance. Cities in California and the Bay Area, eager to take federal money for their streets, have no compunctions regarding the Administration's demand that the money be used to turn streets into dystopic urban hellscapes. 

If you haven’t seen Telegraph Avenue past 51st Street in Oakland in the last year or more it will shock you. And for what? There are no more people riding bikes on that stretch of Telegraph than there were before it was converted into a one-lane each way pinball maze. 

Downtown Shattuck Avenue South of University is littered with white posts, yellow posts, limited parking, and inconvenient traffic rules. Milvia South of University is just bizzare. And finding somewhere to turn left from Shattuck Avenue heading North to take University West to Fourth Street, the freeway, or the Marina, is a lonely endeavor. 

Berkeley and other Bay Area cities recruit vocal bicycle groups and well-paid consultants to advertise the Fed's Complete Streets scheme for urban control under the brand names bicycle safety and climate change. Recent letters in the Planet suggest this sales pitch is meeting with mixed results.

A couple of recent reader commentaries assume that all the recent changes in Berkeley’s streets were done for the sake of bicycles, but they are sadly misinformed. 

One says, “Now MLK is being turned into an obstacle course” and seems to think this is being done for bicycles. But the city is actually adding median refuges on MLK to make it safer for pedestrians to cross - and it is hard to imagine how bicyclists could possibly make use of refuges in the middle of the street at intersections. 

Another says that bicycle safety is the reason for “restaurant seating in parking spaces (parklets),” but everyone should know that restaurants pay to build parklets in front of their businesses so their customers can sit outside to eat.” 

This commentary also gives dubious figures about bicycle volumes, and as its reference gives www.freestreets.org. But looking at that site, I find it is a mash-up of right-wing conspiracy theories.  

Here are a few quotations from www.freestreets.org: Global warming is … a cover story used by governments to assume control of all property, resources, and every aspect of our daily lives. 'Complete Streets' . . . is not an end goal. It is the beginning of large-scale societal change that culminates in 'smart cities', AKA '15 minute cities'. Confinement and surveillance is the end goal of the 'Complete Streets' program. Smart Growth is not just the preferred building style for UN Agenda 21/Sustainable Development; it is the ideology. Moving people into centralized urban areas in high density housing creates the perfect opportunity for domestic surveillance. I will let Daily Planet readers judge for themselves how reliable this site is as a source of data.

Dear Mayor and City Council,

Please, let's pave Hopkins and stop playing politics.

The money is there if you want it to be. 

It's an election year and many people are watching closely whether you prioritize safety for all over the documented decline in bike ridership locally and nationally. (See Kelly's excellent piece in this week's Planet.)

Do the right thing, put Hopkins back on the Paving Plan and be done with it. You'll be glad you did. 

Thank you.

I have not followed the career of Rosalynn Carter, yet somehow her passing, and seeing photos on the internet of her and Jimmy Carter, made my eyes watery. It brings to mind my shortcomings in life, including physical separation from my spouse of twenty-eight years. 

Mrs. Carter was well-known for championing mental health. In 1985, me, one of my two brothers, and my mom went to the LA area to attend a NAMI conference, and to visit my grandmother. By pure chance, my mother when she was getting some refreshments at a table, realized she was standing next to Mrs. Carter. 

(Alliance on Mental Illness has undergone name revision since it was founded in the late 1970's. It was at one time named "--Alliance for the Mentally Ill." Fill in the blank for location.) 

It is with great fondness that I remember the Carter presidency that followed the Nixon impeachment and the appointment of President Ford. Those were the days! To get facts and figures about Mrs. Carter, you should look elsewhere, they are readily available and I'm not going to dig them up for you. 

If I remember correctly, at the very same conference, Joan Rivers may have attended and spoken. I honestly don't remember the eighties very well. I was in my early twenties, and I was determined to make something of myself despite my diagnosis in 1982, of Schizophrenia, Paranoid-type. 

Mrs. Carter's life of goodness, kindness, and toughness, serves as an example of how people should be. We need some more examples like hers. 

A very great but not arrogant man, who I knew personally in the eighties, was a proponent of "leading by example, not by force." And the late Rosalynn Carter, if the history books don't get massively rewritten, will be remembered as being on the correct side of history.b

Bicycle safety appears to be the stated purpose for the numerous street changes in many Bay Area cities:

• · streets with green lanes
• · cement dividers beyond normal curbsbb
• · odd-shaped islands at intersections
• · parking spaces in traffic lanes
• · restaurant seating in parking spaces (parklets)
• · outright elimination of parking in general
• · increased unnecessary street barriers and one-way streets

The consequences of these remodeled streets are numerous, some of which have been seen in nearby cities as well. 

Traffic congestion

Example: Marin Avenue, formerly an efficient four-lane artery, is now reduced to one congested lane in each direction during commute hours. Since this change, we have seen very few cyclists using the wide bike lanes created in the “road diet” move in 2005. 

Confusion

Example: Gilman Street east of the train tracks is a maze. A double bike lane on the south and stenciled bike marks on the north car lane confuse bike riders and drivers. A motorist was observed going east on the double bike lane to make a right turn onto 4^th street. Bikes in the north car lane have no logical path to access the new overpass. 

Potential business failures

Example: The proposed Hopkins Street double bike lane would eliminate precious parking space, depriving businesses of the customers from outside of this popular neighborhood that they rely on to stay afloat. Local foot and bicycle traffic is not enough to support these businesses. 

Loss of timely emergency vehicle access

Example: The proposed Telegraph Avenue plan between Woolsey and Dwight will offer only one lane traffic each way and a curbed bike path, both of which prevent motorists from pulling over to let through ambulances and police vehicles. Eliminating left turn options on many Telegraph intersections is a pointless reduction of the utility and convenience of this main thoroughfare. 

A volunteer survey of multiple high traffic areas in Berkeley during peak hours shows the percentage of bicycle traffic is only .5% -2.46% of all vehicles: www.freestreets.org 

Why is the City (and Council members) determined to impose these modifications when the neighborhoods continue to say no, for all the foregoing reasons? 

 

 

I live in Oakland and drive through Berkeley a lot. I take Martin Luther King on my way back to go to Fat Apple's restaurant. Now MLK is being turned into an obstacle course like other streets in Berkeley and Oakland.

It doesn't make sense. Look at Milvia Street from University Avenue to Haste. I used to get supplies at Ace Hardware when I was in that area but don't any more because Milvia is one way and hard to use. Most of the time there is nowhere to park. So where are all the bikes? There are hardly any.

In Oakland the City acts like the only thing they care about is bicycles but the number of bikes is tiny compared to people driving. You hardly see bikes on big green stripes on 40th Street and Park Blvd. Wide bike lanes on West and Market Street are mostly empty, but how we drive is being controlled by the idea of bicycles. 

On Telegraph Avenue business owners didn't want four lanes on Telegraph with lots of parking to be reduced to two lanes and a lot less parking but the City did not listen. White posts and restaurant tables occupy what used to be parking spaces for customers.  

Now cars pile up behind buses stopped in the one lane each way while people get on and off. Can this be unintentional? If there is any amount of traffic fire trucks and ambulances can't get through. Someone could die waiting for help. 

I live not far from Telegraph. The number of people riding bikes on the main street is really small. There are no more people on bikes after cement islands and white posts were put all over the place than before. Now Telegraph is harder to get around on, harder or impossible to park on. This can't be good for the businesses on Telegraph or the people who want to use them and it has made the street really ugly.

Think about it!

I find that our democracy risks falling apart due to the greediness of our so called representatives, who just want to grab power to create a disturbance in our social and political structure.

It is very important for us to make our democracy strong. It can only happen when citizens understand the meaning of democracy.They need to vote in our represented democracy in every local state and primary election. Let no representative take away their power to vote or voice their opinions regarding the policies which impact them.

In my view, everyone should follow the rule of law. Constitution clauses must be applied equally to all citizens. Money power should not be able to buy governing power. We, the voters, must have more power in our hands than members of congress or senate.

The three branches of government (Congress, Judiciary and Executive) must work together to create a better society. 

The rule of law is important for all. It must help peoples’ right to express their viewpoint and vote freely. The laws should be applied equally, regardless of one’s social or financial status. 

We need to know the qualification of the nominees, obtained through many reliable resources. We often hear false promises from some of the nominees of political parties. However, when they get elected to represent the people, they just care selfishly for themselves and their public image. 

A return to our history of suppression, discrimination and racism would take the country backwards. 

To move forward, we need to help all minority groups to have more opportunities to improve their lives, and succeed in lifting up their standard of living. 

The USA is a country of immigrants. We have diverse groups of people in our society. Many among us are poor or homeless and have serious health issues. They lack the means to lift-up their spirits. Some of them are not literate. Our policy makers ignore their right to live with dignity and respect. 

I am specially concerned about the gun related deaths and hate-crimes. The right to bear arms for self protection, should not be confused with automatic weapons used during warfare. 

Why do we care more for an unborn child in the Mother’s womb, but not for the hundreds of young children dying due to gun violence? 

Why don’t the laws and policies give equal protection to all? 

My question to representatives is very clear. Are you following two different policies for rich and poor? Why are policies gender based to hurt women? Why don’t we create an inclusive country where our policies and laws are equitable for all? 

We need accurate information to help select and elect those who will represent us and who will offer kindness, love and help to all who live in the United States of America.

Russian-born pianist Daniil Trifonov exhibits what can only be called wizardry, for no matter what music he plays, Trifonov turns it to gold. I have heard Trifonov play Chopin, Rachmaninoff, Bach, Rameau, Mozart, Mendelssohn, and Beethoven, to name only a few composers he has performed here. And Daniil Trifonov’s wizardry has turned everything to gold. The sole exception was the banal, uninspired Piano Concerto by Mason Bates, which was written for Trifonov, who did his best in an attempt, ultimately a failed attempt, to persuade us of this work’s merits at its premiere with San Francisco Symphony in 2022. 

On Sunday, November 19, Daniil Trifonov returned to Davies Symphony Hall under the auspices of the Great Performers Series. The program for this solo recital by Trifonov was particularly wide-ranging. Opening this recital was the Suite in A minor by French Baroque composer Jean-Philippe Rameau (b. 1683, d. 1764). Playing without a score, Trifonov gave a beautiful rendition of this expansive, highly intellectual Suite by Rameau. This work began with Trifonov performing a stately, potentially mournful Allemande featuring three-voiced counterpoint. As I listened, I recognised that this music was written for harpsichord at an era when the piano itself didn’t yet exist. However, I soon had to acknowledge that in the hands of Daniil Trifonov I welcomed the increased tonality and changes of volume offered by the grand piano. There followed a fast Courante with melodic material repeating over and over, each time on a different pitch. For the ensuing Sarabande, Rameau turns to the major mode, which Trifonov navigated beautifully with its impressive series of arpeggiated chords. Next came a movement entitled Les trois mains (The Three Hands). Here Trifonov rose to the occasion with a dazzling series of rapid-fire cross-hand passages where the left hand repeatedly overlapped the right hand, creating the illusion that there were in fact three hands. Trifonov’s technical wizardry in these passages was jaw-dropping. Two ensuing movements, Fanfarinette and La Triomphante, became increasingly extroverted, and Rameau’s A minor Suite concluded with a Gavotte that included no less than six variations. I cannot say how very much I appreciated Trifonov’s choice of this Rameau Suite in A minor, a work I had never heard before, as the opening work of this recital. It was truly an eye-opener, or should I say, an ear-opener! 

Next on the program was Mozart’s Piano Sonata in F Major, K. 332. This work was the last of a group of three sonatas that included the C Major and A Major sonatas. Though I listen frequently to my CDs of the D Major and A Major sonatas, as well as my all-time favourite Mozart Piano Sonata, the B Flat Major Sonata, K. 333, my CD collection strangely lacks the F Major Sonata, 

K. 332. So it was with special attention that I welcomed Trifonov’s performance of this particular sonata. It opens with an Allegro in triple time and develops seven or, by some accounts, eight different melodies, rich in harmonic juxtapositions. In the hands of Daniil Trifonov, this movement was scintillating. There follows an Adagio that summons up all of Mozart’s sensitivities for the sublime aspects of a slow movement. In the second half of this Adagio, the material of the first half is repeated, but this time with rich embellishments that in his program notes James M. Keller indicates may give us a glimpse of how Mozart himself would have performed such a slow movement. As performed here by Daniil Trifonov, Mozart himself could scarcely have done better. 

The concluding Finale unleashes an exciting, rapid-fire theme, a fiery development section, many mood changes, and a closing harmonic shift that eventually just melts away. In his performance of this Finale, and throughout this sonata, Daniil Trifonov demonstrated his masterful feeling for Mozart’s music. 

The third piece on this recital’s program was the short work by Felix Mendelssohn entitled Variations sérieuses, Opus 54. This piece packs plenty into its 12-minute length. A brooding theme is introduced in monumental fashion, then undergoes no less than 18 variations. Rhythmic propulsion mounts throughout, as tempos become ever quicker. Halfway through this work, moods begin to change. A dreamy, almost Schumannesque variation 11 is followed by a fiiery variation 12 and by a dazzling variation 13. Next comes a hymnic piety in the major mode in variation 14. When the minor mode returns in variation 15, the propulsive thrust of this work marks its renewal, and it boils over in the ensuing variations, until the work ends on dying D-minor chords. As you may imagine, with all this musical drama packed into just 12 minutes, this work by Mendelssohn was a perfect vehicle for the pianistic wizardry of Daniil Trifonov. 

After intermission, Trifonov returned to perform Beethoven’s Hammerklavier Sonata in B-flat Major, Opus 106. This remarkable sonata is so rich, so complex, and so demanding of both the pianist and the listener, that I always find something new and interesting, even exciting, when I hear it. 

This time around, I must say that though on past hearings I was most impressed by the robust opening movement and the “hammered” quality of the final movement, now I found myself most impressed, but also perhaps most perplexed, by the brooding, introspective and particularly lengthy third movement. This material is marked by Beethoven Adagio sostenuto. Appassionato 

e con molto sentimento. Perhaps what struck me the most in this movement were the frequent cross-handed passages where Daniil Trifonov’s right hand overlapped the left hand. Such right hand overlappings are fairly rare, and here most of them were quite brief, just a few notes. But once there was an extended passage where the right hand overlapped the left and played a low register melody in entirety. This emphasis on the lower register added immensely to the passionately brooding quality of this movement, especially as sensitively played by Daniil Trifonov. 

Then, of course, the final movement explodes in a dynamic fugue, one that bears little resemblance to the logically unrolling fugues of Bach. For Beethoven, at this stage of his career, the fugue offers endless opportunities for surprising manipulations, including inversion, retrograde, augmentation, stretto, and, of course, so many trills. All of this amazing fugal material by Beethoven was magisterially performed by Daniil Trifonov. thereby bringing to a close the printed portion of this recital. As encores, Trifonov performed a jazz version of “I Cover the Waterfront” plus the 3rd movement of Alexander Scriabin’s Piano Sonata No. 3.

In the program notes for San Francisco Opera’s current production of Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore (aka The Elixer of Love), Director Daniel Slater states that “Designer Robert Innes Hopkins and Iwanted to pull the story out of its nineteenth-century rustic roots and find the perfect period in which to replant it.” What they chose was the 1950s Italy of Felliniesque “Dolce Vita,” so they set their production of The Elixer of Love at a beachside hotel terrace on the Italian Riviera. In place of the original village of rustic farmers, Slater and Innes Hopkins populated the onstage chorus with a variety of characters — tourists, hotel staff, locals, and Vespa-riding military men. Adina is proprietress of the aptly-named Hotel Adina, and shy, vulnerable Nemorino is a waiter who is hopelessly in love with his glamorous and seemingly unobtainable boss. 

The role of Nemorino is sung by tenor Pene Pati, who infuses his character with bumbling innocence. As Pene Pati puts it, “He’s like.’I may not be the most nice-looking guy, but hey, I’m a good guy.’” This is a Nemorino Pene Pati identifies with, since, as he says, “I’m not particularly chiseled, with the six-pack abs or anything.” In the role of Adina, Vienna-born Slávka Zámećniková was ever the part of a trim, well put together girl who knows she’s beautiful. And in addition to good looks this Adina has a sparkling intelligence that enables her to manipulate to her advantage the romantic advances of a suave, sophisticated Sergeant Belcore, who is sung here by baritone David Bizic. 

Vocally, all the principals, including the quack magic potion peddlar Doctor Dulcamara, sung here by baritone Renato Girolami, were in top form. As Nemorino, Pene Pati’s opening morsel was the brief cavatina “Quanto è bella,” in which he rhapsodizes over the beauty of his beloved Adina. As Fred Cohn points out in program notes, “The upward leaps of the opening phrase could be aural metaphors for Nemorino’s longing.” Midway through this two-and-a-half minute cavatina, Nemorino abruptly slows down the musical pace and eliminates the upward leaps, singing that he is a complete fool who only knows how to sigh. Cohn also notes that when Nemorino repeats the opening phrase, the flute and clarinet double his voice, “adding to the plaintiveness of his outpouring.” 

As Adina, Sláka Zámećniková sang beautifully, in a voice full of strength and rich in color. Whrn Adina first tells Nemorino to forget his unattainable love for her, she does so in a firm but caring way. Later, when she mistakenly thinks Nemorino has indeed gotten over his love for her, she begins to realise that she truly loves this guy and may lose him. So she changes her tune and finally admits she cares for him, that indeed she loves him. Nemorino, believing that the magic elixer given him by Dulcamara has worked, is overjoyed. When Adina informs Sergeant Belcore that she won’t marry him after all but will marry Nemorino, the swaggering Belcore pulls out a photo gallery of girls he’s loved and left, and he vows to pursue hundreds more. Incidentally, although Director Daniel Slater states that he wished to make Belcore a more believable contender for Adina’s hand than is usually the case in other productions, I don’t think he truly succeeded in this effort. Belcore is still a boor from beginning to end, even when as well sung by David Bizic. As for Doctor Dulcamara, sung here by baritone Renato Girolami, he indeed becomes a more sympathetic and sensitive figure than the usual money-grubbing charlatan seen in most productions. Girolami sang the role beautifully and managed a portrayal of Dulcamara as beginning to have genuine sympathy for Nemorino. 

 

Finally, soprano Arianna Rodriguez was excellent as Gianetta, friend and confidante of Adina. Conductor Ramön Tebar led a brisk reading of the score, and the Chorus performed splendidly under the direction of John Keene. Tim Clayton was Associate Director/Choreographer; and the aforementioned Robert Innes Hopkins was Production Designer. Lighting Designer was Simon Mills. The Elixer of Love continues through December 9.

Happy holidays! Here are my choices for 2023’s best novels. (In alphabetical order.) Bear in mind that, as a mystery writer, I typically read mysteries and thrillers. 

Hang the Moon Jeanette Walls 

A coming-of-age novel set in depression-era Virginia. A terrific story with a strong female protagonist. 

Even though Sallie Kincaid is only seventeen years old, she has the gumption required to take over her father’s business. A substantial task since her father, Duke Kincaid, runs everything in their rural town, particularly the moonshine business. Like a steeplechase champion, Sallie conquers one hurdle after another. Being a tough female boss in a world run by men. Delivering moonshine while pursued by federal agents. Dealing with her family’s twisted history. Even finding true love. 

Romantic Comedy Curtis Sittenfeld 

A heartfelt and funny novel full of Sittenfeld’s astute observations on the human condition. 

My aim is to write mysteries with a substantial romance component. So, I read contemporary romance novels, most of which are disappointing. A notable exception was “Romantic Comedy.” 

Sally Milz is a successful comedy sketch writer – on a TV program like Saturday Night Live. Divorced, in her late thirties, she’s convinced love has passed her by. Then Sally meets Noah Brewster, an aging pop star hosting that week’s show. Noah likes her but Sally can’t let herself believe it. Then the Coronavirus lockdown intervenes. Sally and Noah begin communicating. She decides to drive to LA and join his “bubble.” 

 

Small Mercies Dennis Lehane  

A mystery novel set in 1974 Boston. Proof that, in the hands of a skilled writer, a mystery novel can be great literature. 

In a time of racial tension, a black man, Auggie Williamson, is killed and a white teenager, Jules Fennessy, disappears. Her mother, Mary Pat, sets out to find what happened to Jules and runs afoul of the Irish mob.  

In 2001, Dennis Lehane wrote the classic “Mystic River.” 2023’s “Small Mercies” is a reminder that Lehane remains one of America’s finest writers. His characterization of Mary Pat Fennessy is spot on, as is his description of her hard-scrabble Boston neighborhood. Lehane is not afraid to take on difficult subjects such as racial animosity and drug addiction. He writes with skill and compassion. 

Thanks for your support of my new mystery novel. 

If you would like to read my book reviews, check out my FACEBOOK page https://www.facebook.com/KateSwift.mysteries 

Seasons’ Greetings! 

Worth Noting:

There are only three (November 28, December 5, 12) more scheduled City Council meetings before Winter Recess - December 13, 2023 – January 15, 2024. At the bottom of the posting is the draft agenda for December 12 and the full agendas for November 28 and December 5. The Budget meeting on the AAO#1 (Annual Appropriations Ordinance aka mid-year budget adjustment) is tentatively scheduled for December 5 and is not posted.

• Monday:
  • At 11 am the Civic Arts Commission Grants Subcommittee meets online.
  • At 2:30 the Agenda Committee meets in the Hybrid format on the Dec 12 city council draft agenda which includes 27-North Berkeley BART Objective Standards, 30-Horse Racing, 32-Eminent domain for 2902, 3908 Adeline and 1946 Russell and the Chess Club.
• Tuesday:
  • At 6 pm the City Council meets in the hybrid format item 17 is the 5-year paving plan.
  • At 6 pm the Zero Waste Commission meets in person.
  • From 6 – 7 pm community meeting on grant application for outdoor program grant

• Wednesday: At 6 pm the Environment and Climate Commission meets in person.
• Thursday:
  • At 7 pm the Zoning Adjustment Board meets in the hybrid format – the zoom link shows as being expired check for an update,
  • The Landmarks Preservation Commission is posted as meeting, but no agenda is posted. Check after Monday.
• Saturday: From 10 am – 1 pm is the Tots Carnival for ages 0-5 at Live Oak Park.

The December 5 city council agenda is available for comment and includes $900,000 on street calming budget referral and report on reimaging public safety.

Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short notice at: https://berkeleyca.gov/

Directions with links to ZOOM support for activating Closed Captioning and Save Transcript are at the bottom of this calendar.



+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS 

 

Sunday, November 26, 2023 – no city meetings or vents found 

 

Monday, November 27, 2023 

 

CIVIC ARTS COMMISSION Grants Subcommittee at 11 am 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1604272001 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 

Meeting ID: 160 427 2001 

AGENDA: 5. Discussion Items with possible action a) FY 2025 Community Festival Guidelines, b) FY 2025 Arts Program Guidelines. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions/civic-arts-commission 

 

AGENDA AND RULES COMMITTEE Meeting at 2:30 pm 

Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 2180 Milvia, 6th Floor – Redwood Room 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1606224847 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 or 1-833-568-8864 (Toll Free)  

Meeting ID: 160 622 4847 

AGENDA: Public Comment on non-agenda and items 1 – 7. 1. Minutes, 2. Review and Approve City Council 12/12/2023 -- draft agenda – use link or read full draft agenda below at the end of the list of city meetings, 3. Berkeley Considers, 4. Adjournment in Memory, 5. Council Workssessions, 6. Referrals for scheduling, 7. Land Use Calendar, Referred Items for Review: 8. Harrison, co-sponsor Bartlett - Amend BMC 3.78 to expand eligibility requirements for Representatives of The Poor to Serve on The Human Welfare and Community Action Commission, 9. Discussion and Possible Action on City Council Rules of Decorum and Remote Public Comments, 10. City Council Legislative Systems Redesign, Unscheduled Items: 11. Modifications or Improvements to City Council Meeting Procedures 12. Strengthening and Supporting City Commission: Guidance on Development of Legislative Proposals, 13. Discussion and Recommendations on use of Berkeley Considers 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/council-committees/policy-committee-agenda-rules 

 

Tuesday, November 28, 2023 

 

CITY COUNCIL at 6 pm 

A Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 1231 Addison St. in the School District Board Room 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1619253897 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 or 1-833-568-8864 (toll free)  

Meeting ID: 161 925 3897 

AGENDA: Use the link and choose the html option or see the agenda listed at the end of the calendar. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas 

 

ZERO WASTE COMMISSION at 6 pm 

In-Person: at 1326 Allston, Corporation Yard, Ratcliff Building, Willow Room 

AGENDA: Discussion and Action Items: 1. 2024 calendar move meeting to 3rd or 4th Thursday at 5:30 pm, 2. Report out from subcommittee to review green building requirements, 3. SB-54 and opposition to the Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act, 4. Presentation: As You Sow. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions/zero-waste-commission 

 

FRESH ADVENTURE OUTDOOR PROGRAM COMMUNITY BRAINSTORM MEETINGS from 6 – 7 pm 

In-Person: at 2800 Park, Francis Albrier Community Center 

AGENDA: Berkeley is competing for State Equity Grant Funding. Meeting is for ideas to design program for more experience with the outdoors and nature. Program will repeat on Saturday at Tots Winter Carnival. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/events/community-brainstorm-help-design-fresh-adventures-program-nov-28 

 

Wednesday, November 29, 2023  

 

ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE COMMISSION at 6 PM 

In-Person: at 1901 Hearst, North Berkeley Senior Center 

AGENDA: 7. Election Chair, 8. Presentation and Discussion: Electric Mobility Roadmap Implementation Update including micro-mobility, municipal fleet electrification, EV infrastructure, and Public EV charging fees, 10. Presentation, Discussion and Action: Curbside Management, 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions/environment-and-climate-commission 

 

Thursday, November 30, 2023 

 

LANDMARKS PRESERVATION COMMISSION 

AGENDA: no agenda posted, check after Monday 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions/landmarks-preservation-commission 

 

ZONING ADJUSTMENTS BOARD (ZAB) at 7 pm  

A Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 1231 Addison St. in the School District Board Room 

Videoconference: CHECK Webpage for new ZOOM link, the posted link in the agenda is showing as expired https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83408771762 

Teleconference: 1-669-444-9171 or 1-669-900-6833 (toll free)  

Meeting ID: 834 0877 1762 

AGENDA: 2. 2127-2159 Dwight Way between Shattuck & Fulton – on consent – Use Permit #ZP2023-0057 – demolish 2 of the 4 existing buildings and replace with a new 72,251 sq ft 6-story (71-ft, 5 inches) residential building with 58 new units for combined 66 units, includes 3 extremely low-income units, 2 very low-income units, 2 low income units and 1 moderate income unit) utilizing a State Density Bonus 

3. 1804 Harmon @ Ellis – on action – Use Permit #ZP2023-0036 - construct new 676 sq ft, 1-story (11 ft) single-family dwelling unit on a vacant non-conforming 1,586 sq ft and grant a variance to open space and setback development standards 

4. 1652 University @ Jefferson – on action – Use Permit #ZP2022-0110 – demolish a 2-story 6,232 sq ft commercial building, construct a 24,732 sq ft 5-story (59 ft, 10 inches) mixed-use building with 3,145 sq ft of commercial space on the ground floor including 2 live/work units and 26 dwelling units including 2 very low-income units, utilizing a State Density Bonus. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/boards-commissions/zoning-adjustments-board 

 

Friday, December 1, 2023  

 

Saturday, December 2, 2023  

 

TOTS WINTER CARNIVAL (ages 0-5) from 10 am – 1 pm 

In-Person: 1301 Shattuck, Live Oak Park (register online or on-site at event) 

AGENDA: games with prizes for toddlers, program for ideas to design program for more experience with the outdoors and nature will repeat. 

https://berkeleyca.gov/community-recreation/events/tots-winter-carnival 

 

Sunday, December 3, 2023 – no city meetings or events found 

 

++++++++++++++++ DRAFT AGENDA City Council DECEMBER 12, 2023 ++++++++++++++++ 

 

NOVEMBER 27, 2023 AGENDA AND RULES COMMITTEE Meeting at 2:30 pm 

DRAFT AGENDA City Council DECEMBER 12, 2023 Regular Meeting  

Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 2180 Milvia, 6th Floor – Redwood Room 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1606224847 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 or 1-833-568-8864 (Toll Free)  

Meeting ID: 160 622 4847 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/council-committees/policy-committee-agenda-rules 

 

AGENDA on CONSENT: 

1. Harvey – 2nd reading Amendments to Berkeley Election Reform Act (BERA) cost of living adjustment and reporting requirement thresholds
2. Klein, Planning – 2nd reading Southside Zoning Implementation Program and 2023-2031 Housing Element Update
3. Friedrichsen, Budget Manager – Annual Appropriations Ordinance $255,007,251 (gross) $245,666,549 (net)
4. Minutes for approval 10/23/2023, 11/6/2023, 11/7/2023, 11/13/2023, 11/14/2023, 11/20/2023, 11/21/2023 and 11/28/2023
5. Oyekanmi, Finance – Formal Bid Solicitations $150,000
6. Warhuus, HHCS – Extend the Duration of Funding Reservations for Housing Trust Fund Projects Measure O Funds Ashby Lofts at 2909-2919 Ninth $850,000, BUSD Workforce Housing at 1701 San Pablo $24,500,000, Peoples Park at 2556 Haste $14,359,593
7. Kouyoumdjian, HR – Revise Clasification and Salary Ranges for Parking Meter Maintenance and Collection Supervisor and Traffic Maintenance Supervisor
8. Contract $283,500 With Superion, LLC for AS400 Software Mainenance and Support 7/1/2023 – 6/30/2025
9. Ferris, Parks – Grant Application $700,000 – State Parks Outdoor Equity Grants Program up to $700,000
10. Ferris, Parks – Grant Application $218,451 - CA Air Resources Board for new electric boat and charging station
11. Ferris, Park - Contract $6,831,067 which includes 10% contingency $621,006 with Buhler for Willard Park Clubhouse and Restroom Replacement Project
12. Ferris, Park – Donation $3,400 Memorial Bench at Cesar Chavez Park in memory of Ronald Henry Klein
13. Ferris, Park – Donation $3,400 Memorial Bench at Cesar Chavez Park in memory of Ramakant Tulisan
14. Bellow, Public Works – Contract $3,456,596 includes 10% contingency $314,236 Specification No. 24-11619-C: Kolos Engineering, Inc. for The Alameda, et al. Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation Project
15. Bellow, Public Works – Purchase Order $8,500,00 with Pinnacle Petroleum, Inc. and $2,000,000 Western States, Inc. for Bulk Renewable Diesel and Gasoline for City Vehicles 2025 – 2029
16. Bellow, Public Works - Purchase Order $1,600,000 with National Auto Fleet Group for 4 Tractor Trucks
17. Bellow, Public Works – Purchase Order $284,974 with Braun Network, Inc for 1 North Start 155 Type 1 Ambulance
18. Bellow, Public Works – Amend Contract No. 102354-1add $200,000 total $832,750 with Direct Line Tele Response for Citywide After-Hours Answering Service
19. Bellow, Public Works – Amend Contract No. 32300110 add $150,000 total $300,000 with SCI Consulting for On-call Civil Engineering Services
20. Bellow, Public Works – Amend Contract No. 32400004 add $200,000 total $250,000 with Roofing Constructors, Inc. dba Western Roofing Service on on0call roofing and gutter repair services
21. Bellow, Public Works – Amend Contract No. 103266-1 add $100,000 total $450,000 with Karste Consulting, Inc for Emergency Preparedness Services and Training
22. Miller for Parks and Waterfront Commission – Request for Community Survey for placing a modest increase in Parks Tax on November 2024 Ballot
23. Wong, Auditor – Audit on Ballot Measure FF funds, recommend report back every 6 months

Council Consent Items: 

24. Arreguin – Reappointment of Dr. P. Robert Beatty to the Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District Board of Trustees for a 2 year term
25. Taplin – Waterside Workshops Winter Festival and Kids Bike Giveaway
26. Taplin, co-sponsor Bartlett, Harrison – Budget Referral and Updated Guidelines and Procedures for City Council Office Staff Expenditures

AGENDA on ACTION: 

27. Klein, Planning – North Berkeley BART Objective Development Standards
28. Cardwell, CM Office – Consideration of Options for BHS Staff Parking
29. Hollander, OED – Expansion of Elmwood Business Improvement District
30. Harrison – Adopt Ordinance adding BMC 12.75 to Establish Protections Relating to Horses Held, Owned, Used, Exhibited or otherwise kept for Racing or Other Sport
31. Arreguin, co-sponsor Wengraf – Right to Reproductive Freedom
32. Bartlett – Referral to the City Manager: Eminent Domain Feasibility Analysis for 2902 and 2908 Adeline Street Properties and Abandoned House at 1946 Russell for purposes of developing mixed-use affordable housing
33. Wengraf – Letter to AC Transit Regarding Draft Realignment Scenarios (plan to end Grizzly Peak route)
34. Robinson, Harrison – Use of Sidewalks for Recreation, Such as Chess in public right of way

INFORMATION REPORTS: 

35. Brown, City Attorney – Settlement Claim of D.L. Falk Construction North Berkeley Senior Center
36. Oyekanmi, Finance –FY 2023 4th Quarter Investment Report
37. Oyekanmi, Finance –Section 115 Trust Investment Report for: Inception to Period Ended 6/30/2023
38. Klein, Planning – Climate Action Plan and Resilience Update
39. Lovvorn, Commission Secretary – Civic Arts Commission Work Plan FY 2024
40. Uberti, Commission Secretary – Housing Advisory Commission Work Plan FY 2024

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++ NOVEMBER 28, 2023 CITY COUNCIL ++++++++++++++++ 

 

AGENDA for NOVEMBER 28, 2023 CITY COUNCIL Regular Meeting at 6 pm 

A Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 1231 Addison St. in the School District Board Room 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1619253897 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 or 1-833-568-8864 (toll free)  

Meeting ID: 161 925 3897 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas 

 

AGENDA on CONSENT: 

1. 2023 Conflict of Interest Code Update
2. 2023 Annual Commission Attendance and Meeting Report
3. Environment and Climate Commission – Appointment of New Youth Members
4. Radu, City Manager – Amend Contract R9704 with City of Albany, Albany will pay Berkeley $291,019 total $945,512 for Animal Services FY 2024 – FY2026
5. Radu – Contract $60,750 with Echo Cartagena DVM to provide on-site veterinary services January 2024 – June 2024
6. Oyekanmi, Finance – Formal Bid Solicitations $6,880,000, $880,000 for Sacramento Street Pedestrian Safety Project Oregon to Fairview, $6,000,000 Berkeley Marin a Dredging Project using State Coastal Conservancy Grant Fund
7. Warhuus, HHCS – Revenue Grant Agreement $673,179 to provide public health nursing services 7/1/2023 – 6/30/2026
8. Warhuus, HHCS – Lease of 830 University to Berkeley Free Clinic
9. Louis, Police – Amend Contract 32300062 add $50,000 total $200,000 with Moreland Investigations for background checks, 11/3/2022 – 11/2/2027
10. Louis, Police - Amend Contract 32200152 add $150,000 total $200,000 with Cindy K. Hull & Associates Forensic Consulting Services, LLC

Council Consent Items: 

11. Arreguin – Appoint Tracy Matthews to the Berkeley Housing Authority for 2-year term
12. Arreguin, co-sponsor Harrison – Civic Arts Referral for Memorial Wall to Councilmember Dona Spring and budget referral $162,000
13. Arreguin – Accept grant funding $75,000 from San Francisco Foundation and amend Contract 32200161 with Creative Development Partners to extend consulting work associated with Equitable Black Berkeley Initiative total contract $200,000
14. Taplin – Designating Open Space Adjacent to the Ninth Street Greenway between Heinz and Berkeley-Emeryville border as a Linear City Park pursuant to BMC 6.42
15. Bartlett – Expenditure of Funds - Healthy Black Families 10th Anniversary
16. Harrison – Refer to City Manager to Enhance the City’s Deconstruction and Construction Materials Management Enforcement and Regulations and Refer to AAO#1 Budget Process $250,000 for Social Cost of Carbon Nexus Fee Study for Berkeley Origin Construction and Demolition Debris

AGENDA: on ACTION: 

17. LaTanya Bellow, Public Works – Street Rehabilitation Five Year Plan for 2024 – 2028

INFORMATION REPORTS: 

18. Warhuus, HHCS – Healthy Checkout Ordinance Update

 

++++++++++++++++++++ DECEMBER 5, 2023 CITY COUNCIL ++++++++++++ 

 

AGENDA for DECEMBER 5, 2023 CITY COUNCIL 6 pm 

A Hybrid Meeting 

In-Person: at 1231 Addison St. in the School District Board Room 

Videoconference: https://cityofberkeley-info.zoomgov.com/j/1612629119 

Teleconference: 1-669-254-5252 or 1-833-568-8864 (toll free)  

Meeting ID: 161 262 9119 

https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas 

 

AGENDA on CONSENT: 

1. Oyekanmi, Finance – Formal Bid Solicitations $600,000 for sanitary sewer rehabilitation project
2. Oyekanmi, Finance – Amend Contract No. 32000060 add $210,000 plus 2-year extension $400,000 total $1,438,170 with Toshiba for Multi-function Devices through 2025
3. Sprague, Fire – Piggyback on Contract No. 10089896-22-W for $272,029 through 12/18/2023 - 9/30/2028 with Intterra for Operations, Pre-Planning, Reporting and Analytics with option to extend for 5 additional years at additional cost not to exceed $300,000
4. Kouyoumdjian, HR - MOU with Berkeley Fire Fighters Association
5. Fong, IT – Amend Contract 32000281 add $825,811 total $1,718,633 with ConvergeOne for Avaya Telephone System Administration Maintenance and Support 7/1/2020 – 6/30/2025
6. Fong, IT – Amend Contract No, 32000008 (1102) add $115,300 total $322,946 with Granicus, Inc for live video streaming services, for on-demand archival video, podcasting, and web page subscription services 7/1/2017 – 6/30/2025
7. Ferris, Parks – Grant Contract accept $750,000 from Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the MLK Youth Services Center Seismic Upgrade Project
8. Ferris, Parks – Accept cash donation of $5,000 from Friends of the Berkeley Rose Garden to purchase roses and maintenance yard fence screening for Berkeley Rose Garden

Council Consent Items: 

9. Arreguin – 13th Annual Martin Luther King Jr Celebration
10. Taplin, co-sponsor – Nancy Skinner Municipal Pier Resolution, Refer to Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Commission
11. Harrison – Budget Referral $273,342 to the November 2023 AAO #1 to Pre-fund the Resilient (Green) Buildings Program Manager on Permanent Basis

AGENDA on ACTION: 

12. Harrison, co-sponsor Taplin – Budget Referral: Allocate the existing $900,000 Transportation Network Company (TNC) Tax to Calm Traffic in Vicinity of Derby St, Increase Citywide Traffic Calming Budget and Establish Ongoing General Fund Allocation Policy for TNC 1. $100,000 calming measures in the vicinity of 2023 Halloween Derby St. hit and run incident highlighting designation of crosswalks, and consideration of a stop sign on Mabel at Carleton and Derby, 2. $25,000 to purchase 5 additional portable speed radar trailers total 7, 3. Increase traffic Calming budget to $400,000, 4. $450,000 to 2017 bicycle lanes.
13. Arredondo, CM Office - Reimagining Public Safety Status Report

 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

 

LAND USE CALENDAR PUBLIC HEARINGS: 

• 2924 Russell 2/27/2024
• 1960 San Antonio 645 Arlington Avenue 2/13/2024
• 3000 Shattuck Avenue (Construct 10-story mixed-use building) – TBD

WORK SESSIONS & SPECIAL MEETINGS: 

• December 5, 2023 – Re-Imagining Public Safety Update and Ceasefire– (to be the only action item of the evening, Wengraf and Arreguin will be absent on December 5)
• January 23, 2024 - Draft Waterfront Specific Plan (tentative – rescheduled from November 2, 2023)
• February 6, 2024 – Office of Economic Development (OED) Dashboards Presentation

UNSCHEDULED WORK SESSIONS & SPECIAL MEETINGS 

• Fire Department Standards of Coverage & Community Risk Assessment
• Dispatch Needs Assessment Presentation
• Presentation on Homelessness/Re-Housing/Thousand-Person Plan

PAST MEETINGS with reports worth reading: 

• May 16 - Fire Facilities Study Report, Wildfire Prevention Plan https://berkeleyca.gov/city-council-special-meeting-eagenda-may-16-2023-6-pm
• June 20 (WS) - Climate Action Plan & Resilience Update, Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update reports available https://berkeleyca.gov/your-government/city-council/city-council-agendas/city-council-2023-06-20

. 

* * * * * 

 

Kelly Hammargren’s summary on what happened the preceding week is posted on the What Happened page at: https://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/what-happened.html and in the Berkeley Daily Planet https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/ 

 

The Activist’s Calendar of meetings is posted on the What’s Ahead page at: https://www.sustainableberkeleycoalition.com/whats-ahead.html 

 

If you would like to receive the Activist’s Calendar as soon as it is completed send an email to: kellyhammargren@gmail.com.If you want to receive the Activist’s Diary send an email to kellyhammargren@gmail.com. If you wish to stop receiving the weekly calendar of city meetings please forward the email you received to- kellyhammargren@gmail.com -with the request to be removed from the email list. 

______________ 

For Online Public Meetings 

CLOSED CAPTIONING, SAVE TRANSCRIPT OVERVIEW, DIRECTIONS and ZOOM SUPPORT LINKS:
.
ZOOM has as part of the program -(for no extra cost)- Closed Captioning (CC). It turns computer voice recognition into a text transcript. Closed Captioning and show full transcript and the save option are only available when the person setting up the ZOOM meeting has activated these options. If you don’t see CC ask for it. If it can’t be activated for the current meeting ask for it for future meetings. 

 

The accuracy of the Closed Captioning is affected by background noise and other factors, The CC and transcript will not be perfect, but most of the time reading through it the few odd words, can be deciphered--for example "Shattuck" was transcribed as Shadow in one recent transcript. 

 

For the online attendee, the full transcript is only available from the time the attendee activates Show Full Transcript. But if you sit through a meeting and then remember 10 minutes before it is over to click on Show Full Transcript you will only get the last 10 minutes, not the full transcript – So click often on both Save Transcript and on Save to Folder during the meeting for best results. 

 

When you click on Show Full Transcript it will allow you to scroll up and down, so if want to go back and see what was said earlier you can do that during the meeting while the transcript is running. 

 

At the bottom of the transcript when we as attendees are allowed to save there will be a button for, "Save Transcript," you can click on the button repeatedly throughout the meeting and it will just overwrite and update the full transcript. Clicking on the Save Transcript repeatedly as the meeting is coming to an end is important because once the host ends the meeting, the transcript is gone if you didn't save it. 

 

Near the end of the meeting, after you click on "Save Transcript," click on "Save to Folder." The meeting transcript will show up (as a download to your desktop) in a separate box as a text file. (These text files are not large.) After you have done your last Save Transcript and Save to Folder (after the meeting is over) you can rename the new transcript folder on your computer, and save it (re-read or send or share it). 

 

Remember, allowing us attendees to save the meeting transcript does not require the public meeting host to save the transcript (for public record.) 

 

Here is the link to ZOOM Support for how to set up Closed Captioning for a meeting or webinar:
https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/8158738379917#h_01GHWATNVPW5FR304S2SVGXN2X 

 

Here is the link to ZOOM Support for attendees in how to save Closed Captions: 

https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/360060958752-Using-save-captions#h_01F5XW3BGWJAKJFWCHPPZGBD70 

 

How to convert a YouTube video into a transcript 

 

Copy the YouTube url into the box with “enter a youtube url” and click on go https://youtubetranscript.com/ 

The transcript (not perfect, but very close) will appear instantaneously