Samantha Kennedy

People of Richmond: What should the city do to attract businesses?

“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: What should Richmond do to attract and retain businesses? “There’s a lot of things they could be doing. Probably revamp the downtown area. The old bank is still empty. … Taxes are very high for businesses so lowering taxes and providing incentives for new businesses is a start. Bigger businesses like the…

Bay fishers still reeling from summer’s red tide, which could make a fall return

As dozens of dead fish pile along the shoreline, rotting under the baking sun, the stench is a minor inconvenience to the local anglers who are struggling with the financial burdens brought on by the recent algae bloom. In late July, the San Francisco Bay Area witnessed the largest Heterosigma akashiwo bloom in recorded history. Notoriously dubbed the red tide, this environmental tragedy resulted in a mass fish kill that ravaged the marine life in the bay, decimating over tens…

People of Richmond: What should WCCUSD do to recruit more teachers?

“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: What should be done to address the teacher shortage in the West Contra Costa Unified School District? “Pay them a living wage, increase taxes on corporations so we can pay them a living wage, and also of course housing. Housing is so expensive here…a lot of teachers can’t afford to live here. Cost…

People of Richmond: Will you get the new COVID booster?

“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: Have you or will you get the new booster shot against the omicron variant? “I am. My father is immunocompromised. It’s really important in order to keep my family safe. It’s important for us all to do our part to keep our community safe. At the end of the day, it is…

Cleanup Day volunteers rid the Richmond shoreline of bags, bottles and other debris

Bright and early, in the Saturday morning chill, roughly a dozen Boy Scouts  arrived at Shimada Friendship Park ready to clear the Richmond shoreline of washed up trash. They eagerly raced up and down the trail, competing to see who could retrieve the most unusual waste lodged in the rocks. Each scout filled buckets with disposable masks, Styrofoam, miscellaneous plastics, water bottles, straws, plastic hangers, and driftwood. The Boy Scouts joined Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia and dozens of other volunteers for…

People of Richmond: How would you improve WCCUSD schools?

“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: If you were superintendent of the West Contra Costa Unified School District, what would your top priority be? “I would make sure that students have enough teachers. Right now, a lot of the classrooms are overfilled and the students don’t get adequate attention. It’s better to have more teachers or tutors in each…

People of Richmond: Should police be paid more?

“People of Richmond” is a regular series in which reporters pose a question to people in the community. Answers are presented verbatim, though sometimes edited for brevity. Q: Should Richmond increase police pay to make it easier for the city to recruit officers? “Yes, but only if it goes to training. We shouldn’t be defunding the police. They should be given moretraining. You know, we can all use a little more training in our jobs. They should be trained in…