Sally Schilling

Mayoral profile: Charles Ramsey

West Contra Costa School Board President and mayoral candidate Charles Ramsey, age 52, believes that Richmond can be a vibrant community, a bustling hub where young people choose to settle down after their youthful stints in San Francisco – as Ramsey did himself. After growing up in Richmond – while his father was worked in the Contra Costa District Attorney’s office in the sixties – Ramsey went to U.C. Hastings School of Law. He then moved back to Point Richmond…

Summit middle school approved, education fair this weekend

The El Cerrito Planning Commission approved the permit for Summit K2 Public School, clearing the final hurdle for opening the new charter middle school. The vote drew a broad smile from Kelly Garcia, the designated principal of Summit K2, which will occupy the site of the closed Windrush School, two blocks north of the Del Norte BART station in El Cerrito. The school is open to all students in the West Contra Costa Unified School District. Most of the students…

Refinery towns draw lessons from Chevron project

Richmond isn’t the only town in the Bay Area that’s in the midst of approving a major oil project. Other nearby refineries are also upgrading. And surrounding communities are looking to Richmond for lessons on how to insure that environmental standards are met.

BART officials, union leaders to negotiate through weekend

11:59 p.m. Update: Union representative Roxanne Sanchez said negotiations will continue through the weekend. If a deal is not reached by Sunday at midnight, a strike is still possible for Monday morning. Leaders of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 and Service Employee International Union Local 1021 are still in negotiations with BART management to reach an agreement on worker pay raises, pensions and healthcare and avoid a possible strike Friday morning. After a nearly five day strike earlier this summer, Governor…

Hilltop tournament to raise funds for chess in schools

Most people look at a chessboard, and all they see are static black and white pieces presided over by players in deepest concentration. But TC Ball sees a learning tool with the potential to change lives. Ball is the organizer of an upcoming speed chess tournament that will raise funds for a new “Chess in Richmond Schools” program. “I’m trying to use the [tournament] as a catalyst,” said Ball, who works with the West Coast Chess Alliance to bring chess…