community

Mountain lion sightings leave May Valley residents on edge

On a crisp afternoon in early September, Melanie Estrada was walking alone on her usual route in a quiet Richmond suburb, picking up kids from school to bring them to after school care at the May Valley Community Center. Suddenly, she heard a loud crunch.  Across the street, Estrada saw a mountain lion passing through the hillside’s tall brush. It was brown with dark gray spots on its shoulder, muscular, and 4-to-5 feet long.   “I know we’re not supposed to…

Richmond installing cameras to crack down on illegal dumping

A dirty red couch. An old pink baby stroller. Broken appliances. Rusted car parts. These are just some of the biggest pieces of illegally dumped trash spotted this month in a Richmond neighborhood.  City crews can’t keep up with the work. “We go to a street and pick up garbage,” said Victor Mejia, a Richmond Public Works Department cleanup worker. “Then after 20 minutes, we go back to the same spot and they dumped it again.” To fight the problem,…

Here’s what you’ll find at this year’s El Sobrante Stroll

As the summer winds down, El Sobrante gears up for what it calls “The Best DAM Road Block Party in the East Bay.” The 28th El Sobrante Stroll, set to kick off with a parade at 11 a.m. Sunday at El Portal Drive and San Pablo Dam Road, features a dozen food booths and trucks, around 168 vendors, a car show with close to 200 entries, six live bands and a BMX bike show sponsored by The Pedaler Bike Shop…

With community schools strategy, WCCUSD becomes model for other districts

Wellness centers. Mental health counseling. Youth leadership development.  These are examples of community schools initiatives in practice. With passage of a new contract that specifically endorses community schools, the West Contra Costa Unified School District is poised to become a model for the strategy. United Teachers of Richmond considered community schools a must in the contract, alongside salary increases. According to UTR, community schools lead to lower absenteeism, better student work habits, grades, test scores and behaviors, higher enrollment in…

Rich City Rides launches $6 million fundraising campaign

Rich City Rides is racing to raise $6 million in the next four months to secure its future in Richmond and expand services.  The bike group launched a campaign in March to purchase three properties, including the longtime home of its bike shop at 1500 Macdonald Ave. The organization has received $1.2 million in donations so far and has been offered a $3.3 million loan from a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, according to founder Najari Smith. The purchases…

Richmond’s Black population declining: ‘You can’t really locate a solid African American community. There just isn’t anymore.’

When Ulis Redic became pastor of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in 1997, the Black congregation was thriving in Richmond, where about 1 out of every 3 people was Black.  Two decades later, fewer than 1 out of 5 Richmond residents is Black.  Redic is not only watching his congregation shrink but also seeing family members leave the city. He said his youngest son moved to North Carolina in search of a more diverse environment in which to raise his children….

PHOTOS: Earth Day 2023 at Unity Park

Richmond residents joined millions of people from around the world celebrating Earth Day on Saturday with activities built around protecting the environment and preserving the planet. In Richmond’s Unity Park, Urban Tilth, Rich City Rides, Moving Forward, Groundwork, Cal Cameron Institute, Building Blocks for Kids, the city of Richmond and other organizations promoted ways to get closer to nature and away from reliance on fossil fuels. Kids had a chance to interact with snakes, rabbits and turtles. Dozens of people…

Reserve a seat for Richmond Library’s tribute to the city’s sports leaders

In honor of Black History Month, Richmond Public Library will hold a free event on Thursday, honoring the city’s early Black recreation and sports leaders.  The program, called “Straight Outta Richmond,” will acknowledge Charlie Reid, Eural McKelvy, and C.A. Robertson who organized sports activities that led to a competitive but healthy environment, fostered collaboration, and created a pathway for some Richmond kids to play professional sports. Reid and McKelvy are deceased, but Robertson is expected to attend.  “This program speaks…

California leads nation in catalytic converter thefts, which Richmond motorists know all too well

Catalytic converter thefts have been rapidly climbing since 2019, with California leading the nation in thefts. And Richmond is no stranger to the surge, as auto repair shops cite a steady stream of vehicles that need catalytic converters. To address the problem, legislators passed three laws this summer that would put trackable labels on converters, impose harsher criminal penalties for those selling or buying converters without documentation, and prioritizing vehicle parts thefts for the California Highway Patrol’s Regional Property Crimes…