Government
Not all Richmond businesses agree with the “ban the box” ordinance, that will prevent Richmond employers from accessing the criminal histories of job applicants even after they are hired.
The city installed two state-of-the-art cameras at known littering hot spots, and they are working. Illegal dumping ceased at those locations. Officials want to add more cameras in hopes of catching illegal dumpers in the act or discouraging them all together.
Richmond and Contra Costa County have decided to wipe the slate clean with Chevron after nine years of ongoing property tax disputes involving millions of dollars in revenue. The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to adopt a settlement regarding the county assessor’s property valuations of the Richmond refinery for the years 2004 to 2012. Chevron agreed to dismiss all of its appeals of the assessed property values of its refinery for these years. The City of Richmond also approved…
The Richmond City Council gave its preliminary approval last night to an ordinance to ban alcohol billboards near schools.
The Richmond Project has helped the city better understand what spurs violent crime, and how to stop it.
Richmond notched a victory in its effort to use eminent domain to seize underwater mortgages on Monday, as a federal court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Wells Fargo and Deutsche Bank against the city. U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer wrote that the case is not “yet ripe for adjudication.” In other words, the banks can’t sue the city for something it hasn’t done yet. The lawsuit challenged the constitutionality of using eminent domain to seize more than 600 underwater mortgages…
The Contra Costa Board of Supervisors has taken steps to curb what it considers an unacceptably high rate of suicides. More county residents die by suicide than homicide, according to recent statistics, from a special county committee. On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors adopted the Suicide Prevention Strategic Plan. It was the work of the county’s Suicide Prevention Committee, made up of more than a dozen agencies and groups, including representatives from the RYSE Youth Center, Contra Costa Behavioral Health,…
The U.S Department of Justice has awarded $700,000 in federal grants to two organizations in Contra Costa County, paying for programs to enhance the services given to trafficking victims and battered women. “It is really huge for us and we are really rejoicing,” said Rebekah Truemper who works for STAND! For Families Free of Violence. “The grant will keep the transitional housing program going and it also allows us to use other funds to support crisis intervention, prevention and other…
Cash-for-gold businesses may soon see tougher rules as Richmond officials mull over a proposal that would give them more authority to regulate the dealers. City planners are drafting an ordinance amendment to establish new zoning regulations for the specialty businesses that offer customers cash in exchange for selling their gold. Once complete, the Planning Commission and City Council will decide whether to approve the zoning amendments. The updated zoning rules come after a 45-day moratorium the city council passed…