As I turned the corner at the end of Ada Street on the morning of April 4,.I was startled by what I saw. Suddenly our North Berkeley neighborhood looked like Minnesota under six inches of snow.

There was a very odd story behind all this faux snow.

Up on Rose Street, the contents of a city garbage trunk had caught fire (some cast-off lithium-ion batteries, perhaps?) Propane tanks on the vehicle were in danger of exploding, putting nearby homes at risk. The Fire Department successfully used fire-suppressant foam to choke the flames but the foam continued to flow downhill, coating streets and gutters in three directions. Sadly, the foam also entered the storm-drains, contaminating Cordornices Creek and killing hundreds of fish in the restored stream. -more-

To: the City of Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission

On May 8th, 1978, Associate Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs T. H. Chenoweth signed a "Letter of Agreement" assuring People's Park's neighbors, users, and gardeners they would be participants in "all matters relating to the use, maintenance and development of the People's Park site and any tentative proposals for construction, public works, or other significant changes affecting the Park before the Chancellor's Office makes a decision on these matters."

The contrast between today and May 8th, 1978 is striking. The current chancellor, Carol Christ, simply announced her proposal to construct housing on People's Park without making any effort to include the neighbors, the city, the park users and gardeners, anyone. If you were fortunate enough to attend a meeting regarding the issue at all, the proposal's architectural drawing was propped up on an easel like a done deal. In May of 1978, on the other hand, notice regarding any changes to the park was agreed to by park users and the university. Both parties wanted peace, cooperation, and an end to conflict.

"There were some crises," says David Axelrod, who was the field coordinator for the 1997 class called "Urban Ecosystems", a university-approved native plant gardening project he launched with other gardeners in the east end of People's Park. He remembers the university taking down a water fountain built in the park as one example of a conflict the Letter of Agreement hoped would resolve. -more-

Re: "I think you'll all be pleased to know that the Council decided to remove the festivals proposal from the cannabis ordinances considered at last night's meeting. We will discuss the festival concept at a future Council meeting, and I proposed referring the idea to the Cannabis and Parks/Waterfront Commissions for further deliberation and input... Sincerely, Rashi"

Dear Berkeley City Council,

I want to convey my thanks to Mayor Arreguin for removing the suggestion that Cesar Chavez Park be a "designated location for cannabis events" from the cannabis dispensaries legislation. But I remain concerned that anyone on the council thinks this matter should be the purview of the Cannabis Commission and the Parks and Waterfront Commissions alone.

The Parks and Waterfront Commission, the Community Health Commission, and the Youth Commission would be the more pertinent perspectives on an issue which has very little to do with cannabis and much more to do with the use, abuse, and privatization of public amenities such as parks, which serve a crucial public health and recreational function in a very crowded area, and should be protected from commercial promotions as well as secondhand smoke. -more-

Introduction

Dear People, especially those who we have elected to represent our voices, our Democracy is in crisis and respectfully following the law is one of the essential methods we can use to get respect from all opinions on the subject. The entire country has patiently awaited the results of the Mueller Report, yet now the white house and its appointees are obstructing the release of the report to the American People. This is not a game of 2 teams fighting to get the ball, hide the truth, all of that, it is our country based on checks and balances needing to know all of the facts so that we can choose the best solutions to our problems. The truth is the only thing that can set us free. Release the Mueller Report now, our democracy depends on it. -more-

On Saturday, March 30, thousands of people marched in the streets of Washington, calling on the US to halt its regime-change provocations against Venezuela. On Sunday, March 31, a much smaller crowd gathered before the Federal Building in Oakland to raise the same cry. -more-

When a meditation practitioner, who is in some instances the same person as a mental health treatment practitioner, (but at work) behaves weirdly toward you, it is sometimes because they have problems, and not you. -more-

Joe Biden must be biting his nails awaiting the next accusation of "inappropriate behavior" stemming from his arguably over-the-top "expressions of affection." -more-

Currently, Philharmonia Baroque is performing Handel’s 1638 oratorio Saul throughout the Bay Area. I attended the Saturday, April 6 performance at Berkeley’s First Congregational Church. In addition to a Sunday matinee, April 7 at the same local venue, Saul will be given Friday, April 12 at San Francisco’s Herbst Theatre and on Saturday, April 13 at First United Methodist Church in Palo Alto. -more-

The Tallis Scholars, long recognized as the world’s leading exponents of Renaissance sacred music, offered on Thursday evening, April 4, a program of music inspired by the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. Peter Phillips, the group’s founder and director, announced from the stage that this was the nineteenth time The Tallis Scholars were performing in Berkeley’s First Congregational Church, the first having been in 1989. Hearing The Tallis Scholars perform sacred works by Renaissance composers who had close associations with the Sistine Chapel was a rare treat. The a capella polyphony of the ten Tallis Scholars vocalists was transcendent. one might even say, trance-inducing. -more-

Worth Noting:

City Council is on Spring Recess until April 22.

Wednesday the Police Review Commission starts with review of Lexipol Policies (policing policies) at 5:30 pm followed by the regular meeting at 7 pm.

Thursday the Community Environmental Advisory Commission (CEAC) agenda looks very interesting.

General information including the Land Use Calendar, tentative schedule of City Council work sessions, boards and commissions delinquent in posting meeting minutes and links to BUSD and regional meetings are posted at the bottom after the summary of next week’s meetings. -more-