Posted inCity

Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates retires after 14 years: “I always felt I could do the right thing”

Tom Bates: “I’ve been so blessed to have had this opportunity to represent Berkeley.” Photo: Kelly Sullivan Tom Bates: “I’ve been so blessed to have had this opportunity to represent Berkeley.” Photo: Kelly Sullivan Think back to Berkeley in 2002. Home prices were less than half of today’s values. There were just over 100,000 people […]

Posted inCity

Berkeley council votes to increase inclusionary housing

Many community members attended Tuesday night’s council meeting, which was slated to focus on housing. Photo: Ben Gould Many community members attended Tuesday night’s council meeting, which was slated to focus on housing. Photo: Ben Gould Despite an ambitious agenda, the Berkeley City Council managed Tuesday night to vote on just one policy shift related to affordable housing […]

Posted inCommunity, Crime & Safety

Berkeley launches first ‘Resilience Strategy’ in Bay Area

Helping community members connect, through efforts such as Berkeley CERT, is one way to build resilience, according to Berkeley’s new Resilience Strategy. CERT volunteers are seen here in a “search and rescue” exercise. Photo: Emilie Raguso, is one way to build resilience, according to Berkeley’s new Resilience Strategy. CERT volunteers are seen here in a “search and rescue” exercise. Photo: Emilie Raguso […]

Posted inHousing & Development, Opinion

Op-ed: An omnibus housing plan to address a critical shortage

We all agree on the urgent need to address our critical shortage of housing, especially affordable housing. But how? In Berkeley, as in other Bay Area population centers, the housing supply has not kept pace with population. Berkeley’s population grew 5.5% from 2010-2015, while the housing supply increased by only 1.2%. The worsening shortage has […]