A Lenco Bearcat MedEvac on loan to the San Leandro Police Department on display for public viewing Thursday before a public meeting at the San Leandro Senior Community Center. PHOTOS/Steven Tavares A speaker addresses the city’s police force and City Council… Read More ›
Diana Souza
Lone white man named new vice mayor in San Leandro
WHITE MAN CAN JUMP: San Leandro’s lone Caucasian council member is named vice mayor despite calls for diversity. SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | In the past, San Leandro chose its largely ceremonial vice mayor every spring, but a low-level charter crisis… Read More ›
San Leandro to swear-in four new City Council members
Mayor-elect Pauline Cutter will be sworn-in Monday, but won’t assume office until Jan. 1. SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | The largest class of new San Leandro council members in the city’s history will be sworn-in during a special meeting Monday… Read More ›
CUTTER ELECTED SAN LEANDRO MAYOR; THREE NEWCOMERS ADDED TO NEXT CITY COUNCIL
San Leandro Mayor-elect Pauline Cutter. SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | CITY COUNCIL | Councilmember Pauline Cutter will be the next mayor of San Leandro after ranked choice voting Wednesday morning built upon an 11-point lead over Councilmember Diana Souza. Cutter… Read More ›
SAN LEANDRO ELECTION PREVIEW: A New Hope?
San Leandro mayoral candidates Councilmember Pauline Cutter, Bal Theater owner Dan Dillman and Councilmember Diana Souza. THE CANDIDATES When Mayor Stephen Cassidy made the surprising announcement that he would not seek re-election after just one term; you would expect a… Read More ›
Souza Says She’ll Take Credit for Cassidy Not Running for Mayor
San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy, Councilmember Diana Souza. SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | Even before San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy took office in 2010 he had alienated the city’s police officers, city employees, progressives, and members of the Alameda County… Read More ›
A Proxy War for Mayor in San Leandro
San Leandro mayoral candidates, Councilmember Diana Souza, Dan Dillman and Councilmember Pauline Cutter, at a forum Sept. 11 at the San Leandro Main Library. PHOTO/Steven Tavares SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy decided earlier this year… Read More ›
Three East Bay Races Where Candidates Need to Better Sing Their Songs
We are now less than two months away from Election Day. For some campaigns it’s put up or shut up. Aside from a bombshell that likely will not happen, narratives need to be developed not sooner than later, but now…. Read More ›
Is Khanna’s Political Consultant Taking Him For A Ride?
Over a year ago, news reports and various pundits attached words like “epic” and “grudge match” to the 17th Congressional District race between Rep. Mike Honda and Ro Khanna. On the heels of Eric Swalwell’s intra-party upset of Pete Stark… Read More ›
Asian American Electorate May Decide Next San Leandro Mayor
Councilmember Benny Lee, second from left, is a byproduct of the new found strength in San Leandro’s Asian American populace. SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | It would have been unthinkable a generation ago that any demographic in San Leandro other… Read More ›
Early Crop of San Leandro Mayoral Candidates Failing to Excite, Leaving Others to Contemplate a Run
The lack of quality mayoral candidates in San Leandro leads some to suggest Ellen Corbett, left, should run in the fall. PHOTO/Steven Tavares SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | When San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy said last month he would not… Read More ›
San Leandro Councilmember Diana Souza to Run for Mayor
First in: Councilmember Diana Souza SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | After months of chatter speculating San Leandro Councilmember Diana Souza would run for mayor this year, the two-term District 3 representative officially filed papers for a bid to replace Mayor… Read More ›
No Mention of Mayor Cassidy Quitting; Squabble Over Naming Vice Mayor
First term Councilmember Benny Lee is San Leandro’s next vice mayor. SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | The level of quiet acrimony at the San Leandro City Council is beginning to bubble over. A day after Mayor Stephen Cassidy announced on… Read More ›
San Leandro Mayor Will Not Seek Re-Election After One Term
Stephen Cassidy SAN LEANDRO | MAYOR | San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy announced late Sunday night he will not seek re-election later this year after serving just a single term in office. “I have concluded it is in the best… Read More ›
The Skinny: San Leandro City Council Preview, Mar. 3, 2014
San Leandro City Council Preview835 East 14th Street, San LeandroMonday, Mar. 3, 2014, 7 p.m.[FULL AGENDA HERE]Twitter Hashtag: #slmtg >>> REASON TO FILL OUT A SPEAKER’S CARD Reconstructed Burrell Field in San Leandro. PACIFIC SPORTS COMPLEX AGREEMENT Four years ago, San… Read More ›
Middle-Aged White Males: Homeless and Nowhere to Go
SAN LEANDRO | HOMELESSNESS | Rose Padilla Johnson, the executive director of San Leandro’s Davis Street Family Resource Center, says there may be over 500 people in the city lacking suitable shelter. The typical profile of the homeless is San… Read More ›
San Leandro May Air Specifics Of City’s Recent Police Discrimination Settlement
San Leandro Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | The annual public review of the San Leandro Police Department next week may be less about the successes and future plans for the city’s law enforcement and more about… Read More ›
Approval Of Dispensaries In San Leandro May Hinge On Ballot Measure
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL//CANNABIS | Permits for a maximum of two medical cannabis dispensaries may be approved by the San Leandro City Council Monday night. But, in a late twist, the potential ordinance would not go into effect pending a… Read More ›
A TV Guide To San Leandro’s First-Ever City Council Broadcast
As a TV drama, Mayor Stephen Cassidy would be cast as the villain. SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | Is the San Leandro City Council ready for its close up? One of the East Bay’s last government bodies to offer residents the option… Read More ›
San Leandro Inching Closer To Allowing Medical Cannabis Dispensaries
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | Nearly three years ago, the San Leandro City Council was in the midst of reefer madness. In late 2010, it nearly placed a 22-month moratorium on medical cannabis dispensaries–a potential death sentence possibly leading to an outright ban…. Read More ›
Prola Says He’s Not In The Mix For San Leandro Mayor
Councilmember Jim Prola SAN LEANDRO//2014 ELECTION/MAYOR | San Leandro’s most liberal city councilman says he is not interested in running for mayor next year. However, if the city’s notorious Mayor Stephen Cassidy upsets him, he might change his mind. “I… Read More ›
PROLA NAMED SAN LEANDRO’S VICE MAYOR; SOUZA FEELS SNUBBED
New Vice Mayor Jim Prola SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | San Leandro Councilmember Jim Prola was appointed vice mayor this week. The motion was made without discussion and passed, 4-3. Then there was a pause. Councilmembers detailed their mostly mundane… Read More ›
After Suspending Committees, San Leandro Makes Exception For School Relations Group
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | To ease a strain on city resources in San Leandro last fall, the City Council suspended its collection of standing committees, including two of which were related to the area’s school districts. This week, however, it reversed course and… Read More ›
Local Pastor Urged Congregants To Oppose San Leandro’s Proposed Pot Dispensary Ordinance
SAN LEANDRO | Following two hours of testimony from San Leandro residents over a proposed ordinance allowing up to two medical cannabis dispensaries within city limits, council members commented upon the seemingly even number of those in favor and against…. Read More ›
Citizens, Special Interests Grapple With San Leandro’s Proposed Pot Dispensary
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | The San Leandro city council hosted a work session for public input Tuesday night concerning the medical cannabis dispensary ordinance recently drafted by staff with a few hundred in attendance to speak on the controversial… Read More ›
San Leandro To Offer Medical Cannabis Ordinance For Public Discussion;Cassidy Says He Visited Pot Club
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | San Leandro city staff presented a report Monday night that allows the application for two cannabis clubs in San Leandro at least 1,000 feet away from schools, businesses or parks and relegated to industrial zones…. Read More ›
San Leandro Takes First Look At Proposed Medical Cannabis Dispensary Ordinance
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | After over two years of back-and-forth sometimes amounting to virtually inaction by the San Leandro City Council over the future of medical cannabis dispensaries, a proposed draft ordinance allowing two dispensaries within city limits is gaining… Read More ›
San Leandro Moves Closer To Appointing New Council Member; Four To Be Interviewed
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | When the remaining members of the San Leandro City Council meet Sept. 13 to choose a replacement for former Councilwoman Joyce Starosciak, who resigned last August, there will only have four candidates to pick from…. Read More ›
Without An Official Resignation, Starosciak Hinders City’s Plans For Her Successor
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | Near the conclusion of Monday night’s lengthy council meeting in San Leandro, departing Councilwoman Joyce Starosciak recused herself from discussing how the city will move to replace her after she announced her intent July 2 to vacate… Read More ›
San Leandro Again Takes A Pass On Pot Dispensaries; Pushes Issue To July
SAN LEANDRO CITY COUNCIL | After two failed motions, the council approved, 6-1, to push a one-year ban on medical marijuana dispensaries and grow-sites within its city limits to their last meeting in July. The council again kicked the can down the road,… Read More ›