Government
Mayoral and council candidates clashed during a debate Saturday over whether to green light a digital sign on the I-80 corridor that would tout the troubled Hilltop Mall business district.
A new bill aimed at increasing transparency in California oil refineries has an unexpected opponent –a free speech rights group. The First Amendment Coalition raised concerns over SB 1300, a bill they claim will actually allow oil companies to hide some information as “trade secrets.” “It sets a dangerous precedent,” said Peter Scheer, the coalition’s executive director. Scheer said the bill paves the way for turnaround procedures–which involve shutting down parts of the refinery for repair, maintenance and inspection —…
The resolution was passed by City Council in a meeting on Tuesday evening, to show support and solidarity for those fleeing violence from Central America. The resolution was merely symbolic, but received unanimous support from all members of the council.
So far, four candidates have thrown their hats into the ring to compete for Richmond’s highest office.
If elected, the 73-year-old Mike Parker said he will focus on education, affordable housing and job training.
“I believe the school system has failed both the teachers and the parents in Richmond,” said Parker. “People don’t have confidence in it.”
Uche Uwahemu—trained in law and business, and shaped by a decade of nonprofit work—speaks earnestly about the future of Richmond. At 41, he is the youngest of Richmond’s four mayoral candidates. Wearing a gray pinstripe suit with a lavender tie, Uwahemu sat in the Café Pascal last week and shared his thoughts on solving the toughest issues facing the city.
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…
Richmond residents, unions, and community groups are keeping a close eye on the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and its plans for a Richmond Bay Campus: a development that is projected to take shape over the next four decades.
In Richmond, a new model for adult-youth conversation is starting to emerge. On Saturday, more than 100 people gathered at City Hall for a Youth Summit sponsored by Mayor Gayle McLaughlin.