Many advocates for the homeless came out Tuesday night to speak before the Berkeley City Council. Photo: Emilie Raguso The Berkeley City Council voted early Wednesday morning to postpone consideration of a new set of laws designed to curb problematic street behavior. The vote came around 1 a.m. after council spent the bulk of its […]
2012 Measure S
Posted inCity
City to consider ordinances restricting street behavior
It is common for some homeless people to spread out their possessions on Shattuck Avenue and ask passersby for money. Both these activities might be curtailed if the city council adopts a new set of laws tonight. Photo: Emilie Raguso By Francesca Paris On Tuesday, the Berkeley City Council is slated to vote on proposed laws […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-ed: In Berkeley, how much tolerance is too much?
In preparation for relocating to Berkeley five years ago, I arranged to pick up some moving boxes. It turns out, the couple giving me the boxes had just moved from Berkeley. When I asked why they left, they shared some nervous laughter and said something about getting out of there as quickly as they could. […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-ed: Berkeley’s new homeless vote: A victory of style over substance
For a city that prides itself on substance on the issues of environment, free speech, locavore food politics, etc., Berkeley embarrassed itself Tuesday night on the substantive issue of caring for some of its neediest community members, opting for style over substance in the form of tidy sidewalks. Tuesday night the Berkeley City Council rejected the will […]
Posted inCity
Berkeley council votes to curb impacts of homelessness
Advocates for the homeless asked the city to consider new services, rather than new laws, for the homeless during a march and rally Tuesday night. Photo: Ted Friedman The Berkeley City Council voted Tuesday night to direct staff to flesh out and clarify laws designed to clean up downtown by addressing problematic behavior linked to the city’s homeless […]
Posted inCity
Berkeley to grapple again with homeless on sidewalks
On most days, homeless youth can be found on the sidewalk on Shattuck Avenue in front of the Landmark Shattuck Cinemas. The City Council will consider a new set of laws affecting the homeless on Tuesday night. Photo: Tracey Taylor A proposal coming before the Berkeley City Council on Tuesday to examine new laws for the […]
Posted inCity
$2,750 fine assessed after Measure S campaign violations
FCPC commissioners review papers in a May 2013 meeting. (Note: Some of these commissioners are no longer serving.) Photo: Frances Dinkelspiel Update, Jan. 17: Berkeley’s Fair Campaign Practices Commission voted Thursday night to increase the fine for “Yes on S” campaign violations to $3,750, according to the East Bay Express. The campaign had failed to list the individual […]
Posted inHousing & Development, Opinion
Op-ed: Why oppose building new homes for the homeless?
The homeless are the most marginalized and dispossessed people in the United States. To be homeless is to experience a wide spectrum of discrimination. In the past decade, legislation seeking to criminalize the homeless has gained popularity in cities that are fed up or exasperated with the “homeless problem”. The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty reported that […]
Posted inCity
FCPC looks into alleged violations by Yes on S supporters
Members of the Fair Campaign Practices Commission review material before their Oct. 25 meeting. Photo: Frances Dinkelspiel The Fair Campaign Practices Commission has decided to investigate whether any campaign laws were broken when the Yes on Measure S campaign paid people from $50 to $100 in cash to pass out campaign material on election day. […]
Posted inCommunity
New talks on homelessness in Berkeley start Thursday
Thursday’s meeting will provide a starting point for discussion on homelessness, proponents say, with an introduction to the causes and state of homelessness from a national, regional and local perspective. Photo: Derrick Coetzee Thursday evening, the Berkeley Task Force on Homelessness will begin a new community-driven process designed to explore homelessness in Berkeley, and how it might be […]
Posted inCommunity
Berkeley moves towards a consensus homeless plan
City Council appears to be moving towards a consensus-based, public process to generate an action plan on homelessness. Photo: Emilie Raguso After an acrimonious battle last year over Measure S, which sought to prohibit sitting on commercial sidewalks, Berkeley’s City Council pointed the way on Tuesday night to a more consensual approach to homelessness. Councilman […]
Posted inOpinion
Op-Ed: After Measure S, it’s time to act on homelessness
Although Berkeley voters rejected Measure S, a controversial proposal that would have criminalized sitting on commercial sidewalks, we shouldn’t mistake it as an endorsement of inaction. The simple fact still remains: we need to address homelessness. I didn’t support Measure S, but I’m not calling it a day as many do post-election. Next Tuesday, City […]
