There were no funny road signs at City Hall when a picketing city employee was nearly run over. HAYWARD | The new road signs around Cal State East Bay in Hayward are bringing loads of positive attention to the often… Read More ›
economy
Gov. Brown calls for state to increase renewables to 50 percent by 2030
Gov. Jerry Brown’s fourth and last term as California’s governor begins today. Brown was sworn-in to office Monday morning and quickly offered an ambitious vision for continuing to wean the state off carbon-based fuels. From the Los Angeles Times: By… Read More ›
Council Candidate Tells LGBT Group He’ll Bring Chick-Fil-A to East Oakland
OAKLAND | CITY COUNCIL | DISTRICT 6 | Michael Johnson’s campaign conceit in Oakland’s City Council District 6 race is the 12-year incumbent Desley Brooks has not brought economic vitality to East Oakland. Johnson’s jabs at Brooks on the issue… Read More ›
Hayward Mayoral Candidates Explore City’s Budget Dilemma
HAYWARD | MAYOR | Hayward has two competing but inextricably related problems. One, is a long-held public perception the city is anti-development and, second, it’s a bear for small businesses to set up shop making it difficult for Hayward to… Read More ›
Quan’s State of the City Highlights Improving Economy; Skewers Critics
Oakland Mayor Jean Quan delivered her last State of the City Thursday night before facing re-election later this year. OAKLAND | STATE OF THE CITY | Oakland Mayor Jean Quan state of the city highlighted a city hoping to parlay a… Read More ›
2013 Year In Lists: Top 5 East Bay Political News Stories
Replica of a drone sought by the Alameda County Sheriff in Feb. PHOTO/Shane Bond 1. Public privacy under siege>>> The potent issue of government infringement on public privacy through technology was barely on the national radar a year ago and non-existent… Read More ›
San Leandro Mayor Delivers A More Upbeat State Of The City Address
San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy, Mar. 28, at the annual State of the City address. PHOTO/Shane Bond SAN LEANDRO | San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy’s State of the City Address departed from last year’s grim outlook for the city and… Read More ›
Budget Issues In San Leandro Stymie Implementation Of Climate Action Plan
CO2 levels in San Leandro have dropped by 8.2 percent since 2009. SAN LEANDRO | The city’s three-year-old climate action plan may not reach its goal of reducing emissions in San Leandro before its 2020 target date following years of tight… Read More ›
Swalwell Hosts First Town Hall Meetings
PHOTO/Joseph Geha CONGRESS | “It’s good to be home,” said Rep. Eric Swalwell, addressing nearly 100 residents in Hayward Saturday attending his first day of town hall meetings. “I grew up in this area, I know it really well, and I… Read More ›
Mayor To Hayward: With Better Schools, Your Home Could Be Worth $100k More!
HAYWARD | Hayward Mayor Michael Sweeney says the city is going nowhere fast unless it improves its consistently flagging schools. “We’re at the bottom,” said Sweeney, while pointing to a chart before residents Wednesday at a neighborhood state of the… Read More ›
Stark Urges USOC To Manufacture Olympic Uniforms In The U.S.; Not China
CONGRESS | Rep. Pete Stark is leading a bipartisan call for the U.S. Olympic Committee to use American textile workers to manufacture the uniforms its 530 athletes will wear during the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympic Games on July… Read More ›
Stark, Lee Laud Supreme Court Decision Upholding Obamacare, Skewer GOP
CONGRESS//HEALTHCARE | The East Bay’s two progressive congressional Democrats applauded the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Thursday mostly affirming the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. Reps. Pete Stark and Barbara Lee called the narrow 5-4 decision… Read More ›
Hayward Erases Much Of Its Budget Deficit With Help From City Employees
HAYWARD//CITY COUNCILMay 15, 2012 | Hayward’s $14 million budget shortfall became much more manageable last week after its city employees agreed to salary cuts that will lower the funding gap to $4.5 million. The City Council will discuss erasing the… Read More ›
May Revise Will Impact Alameda County’s $88 Million Budget Shortfall
ALAMEDA COUNTY//BOS ROUNDUPMay 15, 2012 | These were already tough times even before more sobering news came Monday that Gov. Jerry Brown’s May revise will raise the state’s budget deficit to nearly $16 billion. Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson says… Read More ›
Alameda County’s $88 Million Funding Gap Is Lowest In Four Years
ALAMEDA COUNTYApril 19, 2012 | Alameda County officials are preparing for another round of excruciating cuts to programs and services after the announcement Wednesday its $2.5 billion budget has a funding gap of $88.1 million for the next fiscal year–the lowest in… Read More ›
Cassidy Takes Swing At Employee Pensions; Highlights City’s Growing Tech Sector
STATE OF THE CITYMar. 19, 2012 | San Leandro Mayor Stephen Cassidy drew a line in the sand Monday night during the annual State of the City address as negotiations begin in earnest with the city’s public employee unions. After just… Read More ›
New City Manager: ‘San Leandro Is At A Tipping Point’
SAN LEANDRO | Jan. 18, 2012 | Resplendent in a three-piece suit, Chris Zapata was approved as the new city manager of San Leandro. Minutes later, though, he absorbed the first volley in what may be the beginning of a contentious period of labor negotiations with the city’s employee… Read More ›
Alameda County’s Economy Showing Glimmer Of Hope, But Don’t Get Too Excited
Dec. 22, 2011 | Is the sluggish economy in Alameda County finally on the rebound? Over the past few years, county officials have detailed bedeviling fits and starts (mostly fits) for the local economy only to see the bottom drop… Read More ›
House Passes Anti-Union Law Stark Calls ‘Attack’ On Workers, Middle Class
Rep. Pete Stark Nov. 30, 2011 | The House of Representatives voted along partisan lines to roll back new union organizing rules proposed by the National Labor Relations Board last summer. East Bay Rep. Pete Stark labeled an “attack” on… Read More ›
San Leandro Mayor’s Unholy Alliance With Business Interests
ANALYSISNov. 21, 2011 | Oh, what happened to the Stephen Cassidy who horded up all the Scrabble letters for “leadership” and “transparency” during last year’s mayoral campaign? The truth is, he never existed and if not for the inherently wacky… Read More ›
A Socialist Ghost From The 1930s Speaks To The Revolutionaries Of Today.
OCCUPYOAKLANDNov. 18, 2011 | Nate Thornton must love what’s going down in Oakland. I was reminded today of the former member of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade who passed away earlier this year. He was one of thousands who trekked through Spain in the mid-1930s romancing the thought of rescuing… Read More ›
More Federal Dollars On The Way For Former Nummi Autoworkers
LABOR SECRETARY, STARK ANNOUNCE ADDITIONAL $7.9 MILLION TO AID UNEMPLOYED NUMMI WORKERSBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen on twitter The Fremont Nummi plant was reborn as Tesla Motors’ headquarters, but thousands of former employees still feel the bite of the poor economy…. Read More ›
Was Fremont’s Solyndra Qualified For $535 Million Federal Loan Guarantee?
REPUBLICANS DON’T THINK SO; SOLYNDRA OWNER ALSO BIG MONEY MAN FOR OBAMA CAMPAIGNBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen on twitter How did a Fremont green tech solar panel company get a half-million dollar federal loan guarantee only to begin a plant closing… Read More ›
Hayward Balances Budget With $8 Million in Labor Concessions
2012 FISCAL BUDGET SHORTFALL OF $20 MILLION SHORED UP WITH SOME UNIONS GIVING 13% BACKBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen.com HAYWARD – In the end 13 turned out to be not so unlucky a number for Hayward’s 2012 fiscal budget unanimously approved… Read More ›
San Leandro Approves Balanced Budget With Very Little Leeway
$128 MILLION BUDGET BUOYED BY SALES TAX INCREASE COULD ‘TIP OUT OF BALANCE EASILY’ SAYS DIRECTORBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen on twitter San Leandro will operate without the use of reserves for the first time since the 2006-07 fiscal budget, said… Read More ›
Economy Stalls; Lee Calls On House GOP To Create Jobs
PERCEPTION OF IMPROVING ECONOMY DAMPENED BY POOR JOBLESS FIGURESBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen on twitter On the heels of unexpectedly poor national unemployment numbers, East Bay Rep. Barbara Lee appealed to leaders of the House Republic majority help the millions still… Read More ›
The Intentional Drowning of a Man Has Alameda Searching For Answers
WATER-BASED RESCUE TRAINING FOR THE ISLAND WAS CUT IN 2009; PUBLIC SAFETY DID NOTHING TO SAVE RAYMOND ZACKBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.comFollow @eastbaycitizen on twitter Raymond Zack waded into the waters of the San Francisco Bay Monday never to come back. He… Read More ›
Coming to San Leandro, A Balanced Budget With Few Cuts
$72 MILLION BUDGET BUOYED BY SALES TAX MEASURE; CASSIDY TO TAKE SALARY, PAY MORE FOR HIS PENSIONBy Steven Tavaressteven.tavares@eastbaycitizen.com@eastbaycitizen on twitter San Leandro is slated to pass its first fiscal budget in four years featuring very few cuts to staff… Read More ›
Sanders Tells Democrats Ryan Plan Will Result In Death Panels
INDEPENDENT SENATOR FROM VERMONT ASKS DEMS ‘WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?’By Steven Tavares Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders lobbed progressive invective to the delight of California Democrats Saturday afternoon in Sacramento while charging the Republican plan to cut Medicare is… Read More ›
Tax Day Protesters In Oakland Tell Corporate America To Pay Their Share
Protesters rally Monday afternoon in Downtown Oakland in front of the Citibank branch on Broadway calling for America’s largest companies to pay corporate income tax. Rallies were also held at the Chevron headquarters in San Ramon and later in San… Read More ›