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Alleged violation sets date for charter revocation hearing

The school board initiated a charter revocation process for John Henry High School last week. Board President Valerie Cuevas advocated for the revocation after the alleged mandatory reporting violations were brought to the attention of the board during public comment.

With no benefits and less pay than prosecutors, entry-level public defenders want a raise

They have no health insurance. They work ten or 11-hour days. They have no free weekends. No, they aren’t flipping burgers at a fast food restaurant. They are attorneys on the government’s payroll. Public defenders, the lawyers hired by the county government to aid those who cannot afford legal representation, showed up at the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors meeting on September 11th to demand better pay and benefits. They are not only overworked, but at entry-level jobs, they…

Richmond small business owner kickstarts neighborhood party to boost childhood literacy

Reading is a struggle for many of Richmond’s youth. Almost half of students in West Contra Costa County Unified School District are unable to read at grade level.   To boost reading in Richmond, the owners of R&R Coffee hosted a party on Monday for local families at the Bridge Storage and Artspace, where food and books were given away. It was “like an adventure” for her children, said Richmond mom Sherab Osugi. She said the party made her children,…

Mayor promises long-term homeless plan, but surprise evictions of Richmond’s homeless continue

As city workers continue to uproot the homeless from encampments around Richmond, at times without any warning or help, Mayor Tom Butt is pushing to raise $1.5 million from local companies to pay for a managed homeless encampment. He has asked several local companies, including Chevron Corporation, Kaiser Permanente, Blue Apron, Costco Wholesale and Sims Metal Management to donate $154,000 each—to build and run a camp serving 100 people for a year. As a group of homeless people were being…

BART invites public to discuss new safety plan after several attacks in August

On a Saturday morning in August, a 23-year-old San Jose State University student was attacked from behind at the Richmond Bay Area Rapid Transit station while attempting to transfer trains to go home for the weekend. He was treated for broken teeth, possibly a broken jaw, and a concussion, according to ABC7News. And just the night before the apparently random attack in Richmond, two men were stabbed with a box cutter at the MacArthur BART station, only a few stops…

Swimmers Dive In at Keller Cove to Support Youth Swimming

It all started over a decade ago, when Point Richmond resident Norman Hantzsche and his dogs started swimming in the bay at Keller Cove. With its sweeping bridge views and high water quality, the cove offers some of the best open water  swimming around. It wasn’t long before a group of local swimmers jumped in alongside Hantzsche. The group of intrepid bay swimmers soon started an annual event to raise funds for a youth swimming program in the city of…

Proposed housing developments promise to transform downtown Richmond

A series of recently proposed housing developments along Macdonald Avenue in downtown Richmond could spur a business renaissance in the struggling district if city and local business leaders’ predictions ring true. In a city desperate for affordable housing, the developments reserve only about one quarter of the total number of units for residents making below the median income. The rest of the apartments would be rented at market rates. Still, Richmond leaders are supporting the proposals on land that has…