City Council won’t preserve 132-year-old North Berkeley house, paving the way for townhouses
The developer will build 10 townhouses at 1915 Berryman St. after it was determined it didn’t warrant landmark status.
Kate Darby Rauch
Freelancer Catherine "Kate" Rauch has been contributing to Berkeleyside for several years, and also happens to live in Berkeley, near downtown. Her work as a journalist has encompassed everything from 10 years as a daily news reporter for the East Bay Times, based in Richmond, to freelancing for a range of news sources including the Washington Post, Newsday, the Seattle Times, SF Chronicle and Oakland Magazine. Kate likes general assignment work and jumping into a variety of topics and stories, but has a background as a health writer, which includes writing for WebMD, Babycenter.com, Caring.com, UC San Francisco Medical Center, Kaiser and Sutter Health. Her awards include a first place in health and science writing from the Washington State Press Association, a first place in spot news from the Peninsula Press Club, and a second place in feature writing from the California Association of Newspaper Publishers. She's also worked as an anthropologist in rural Alaska. She has an MS degree from the Columbia School of Journalism and a BS from UC Berkeley in cultural geography.
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Articles by Kate
Berkeley residents are a generous bunch: The city ranked 7th in GoFundMe’s list of most-giving cities
Three campaigns raised the most money in 2020: for Moe’s Books, Rialto Theaters and a West Berkeley metal shop making plastic face shields for health workers.
Third death by train in two years on tracks near Berkeley’s Amtrak Station
An Amtrak train hit and killed a 30-year-old man in Berkeley on Nov. 22.
Crowds are scarier than creepy costumes: Halloween and Dia de Los Muertos adapt in a pandemic
Masks may be the only constant from past years for fall celebrations upended by COVID-19.
Construction of new 5G cell sites blocked by protesters — for now
A group of activists believes that the proliferation of 4G and 5G sites will increase radiation output and increase cancer cases. Widely accepted science does not back them up.
Berkeley city workers become sleuths to track down COVID-19 cases
The public health division uses contact tracers to figure out who has become exposed to the novel coronavirus. Then those people are asked to self-isolate to stop further spread.
As building rules tighten in Berkeley, construction pushes back
Unions want to be able to continue building and argue their workers can follow social distancing rules.
COVID-19 pandemic prompts Berkeley neighbors to help one another
Individuals and groups have set up systems to connect volunteers with people who need help. So far there are more volunteers than people seeking assistance.
Berkeley businesses hit hard by the economics of social distancing
Theaters are selling fewer tickets, museums are seeing fewer visitors, and restaurants are seeing a significant drop in business.
Keeping parking meters clean takes on new urgency in light of coronavirus
Berkeley’s parking meters get cleaned once a week, including by Marlonn Wright who says his work is getting noticed more due to the heightened awareness about preventing the spread of COVID-19.
As COVID-19 comes to Berkeley, senior residences are taking extra precautions
Hand sanitizers now abound in senior residences. Friends and family members who are sick are being asked to stay away and to communicate through Skype or other electronic means.
Neighbors fight proposed Verizon cell site in North Berkeley — again
A group of local residents celebrated three years ago when plans for a Verizon cell site in their neighborhood were dropped. Now, many of them are back at it.
Can an unfinished but ‘usable’ basement space be taxed? Berkeley says ‘yes’ and the courts have agreed
A number of property owners are challenging how the city assesses special taxes. They believe they have been overcharged and are seeking redress.
Update: Air quality in Berkeley has improved; now listed as ‘moderate’
Air quality in the city has been improving steadily over the day Monday, according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s monitor in West Berkeley. As of noon, the rating was listed as moderate.
One of Berkeley’s largest landlords sells 6 apartment complexes to Texas group
The sale transfers 314 units around downtown that mostly house students and could bring over $4 million in transfer taxes to the city.
The Berkeley Hills go dark and residents step up to help one another
After power was shut off to UC Berkeley and thousands of homes and businesses starting at 11 p.m. on Oct. 9, Berkeleyans found ways to cope.
