Lafayette Ponders New BART Location for Farmers Market

Supporters say the Lafayette Plaza location was a little too cramped and surrounded by traffic to be viable. They're hoping a new location in the Lafayette BART parking lot will be the answer for people looking to buy fresh fruit and vegetables.

  A well-attended Farmers Market held on a trial basis at Lafayette Plaza last year proved a little too cramped and hemmed in by traffic, organizers maintain. They hope a new location in the BART parking lot proves to be more successful. The Lafayette City Council supports the idea, but is attempting to work out some issues with signage for the weekly events.

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Lafayette City Council Takes First Pass at Massage Parlor Ordinance

Council members evaluated staff reports and listened to the comments of working massage therapists at Monday's city council meeting.

City staff, massage therapists and area residents turned out at Monday's meeting of the Lafayette city council to weigh in on the city's attempts to regulate a proliferation of massage parlors within city limits. Ordinance 606 will be brought back for a second reading by the council on May 29.

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"Off Leashers" Out At Rancho Laguna Park

Moraga's town council votes 3-2 to end periods of unrestrained play for dogs at Rancho Laguna Park.

  Starting this June 9 area dogs will no longer be able to romp unfettered in Rancho Laguna Park -- the focal point of one of the most contentious civic use battles in town history. The unassuming 8-acre park was part-time home to a fierce contingent of local dog owners who struggled to keep it available for off-leash play periods, and who fought hard to keep it open to them despite complaints of reported dog fights and unretrieved droppings. Council members Ken Chew, Karen Mendonca and Howard Harpham carried the vote during an expectedly heated meeting Wednesday night. Mayor Mike Metcalf and council member Dave Trotter voted against ending off leash hours. Wednesday's decisions ends a longstanding, communal gathering of pet owners and …

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Bailey Lee

10:16 am on Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Provincial today, aren't we? Judging from the recent bad press concerning Joaquin Moraga Intermediate, lala land may be an upgrade over certain Moraga elements. Do you think Moraga people NEVER use Orinda Oaks Park or even the downtown park near the Orinda golf course? How much "safety" do you want? You have a much larger chance of getting hit by MUNI in SF or cabbies in Manhattan than getting …   more ›

Solution for Rancho Laguna Park Behind Door Number... One, Two, or Three?

Nothing is simple, unless you're a dog, of course... then it's run, eat, sleep. But if you're a Moragan looking for a place to run that special dog in your life, you'll be interested in tonight's meeting of the Moraga Town Council.

  Moragans like to tussle, apparently, and one of the most contentious issues ever to cross a town council agenda -- accomodations for off-leash dogs and others at Rancho Laguna Park -- comes before Moraga's civic leaders tonight, Wednesday. The issue, as those of you following the drama well know, has been packed with emotion, lawsuits, bitter confrontation, and accusation -- and that was when things were still relatively civil. But now, three years after citations were issued to an unfortunate few off-leashers and the town struggled to come to grips with the best possible future use of the little park at the southern end of its border, three plans have emerged for public consumption. A committee of 15 residents representing "off-leashers…

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Fritz 'Congodog' Stoop

3:59 pm on Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Good call, McGruff! Implementation cost: Zero (well maybe some new signs) Upward change in maintenance cost: Zero Always subject to temporary modification for Special Events. I would suggest small fences around the Magic Disappearing Play Structure and the major picnic areas that are reservable. Such noble causes could garner volunteer donations for these projects with ease! And maybe a well …   more ›

Defeat for Contra Costa Clean Water Measure

With 59 percent saying no, voters have rejected a mail-in ballot for a Contra Costa County parcel tax for clean water projects, the Contra Costa Clean Water Program announced Monday.

With a 59-percent no vote on a mail-in ballot, Contra Costa County voters roundly rejected a "Clean Water" parcel tax, the Contra Costa Clean Water program announced Monday. Ballots for the "2012 Community Clean Water Initiative" were mailed to 339,586 property owners in the county in February and were due back April 6. Tabulation of the result was delayed out because the ballots were counted by hand. Voters returned 100,768 ballots, with 59,844 voting no (59 percent) and 40,924 voting yes (41 percent), according to Donald Freitas, program manager for the Contra Costa Clean Water Program, a consortium of the county's 19 cities plus the county government and the county flood-control district. The ballot generated some public confusion and …

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Chris Nicholson

8:16 am on Thursday, May 10, 2012

Don't blame the cancer for metastasizing. It is its way. I used to argue for targeted surgical invention, but I fear that a course of systemic chemo is the only solution...   more ›

MOFD Fire Marshal Mike Mentink Retires, Position Not To Be Filled

Fire District Chief Randall Bradley will assume many of the duties once handled by retiring MOFD Fire Marshal Mike Mentink.

Walnut Creek Council Approves Alcohol Nuisance Ordinance

Despite objections from downtown bars and restaurants, the council unanimously approved the much-debated proposal

  The City Council unanimously approved a nuisance-based ordinance for alcohol establishments Tuesday night that they said will provide clarity and consistency for dealing with downtown bars and restaurants. The 39-page law doesn't change the basic guidelines and restrictions overseeing establishments that serve alcohol, but it provides what City Attorney Brian Winter described as a more streamlined and "cleaned up" set of rules. "We have tools at our disposal now, but they are not as effective as the tools we are proposing," said Winter. The ordinance sets up a process for city officials to deal with establishments that have repeated violations or problems. Under it, businesses would be subject to restrictions, such as curtailing of hours…

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Rutty Roads On Orinda Council Agenda Tuesday

The Orinda City Council meets tonight (Tuesday) to hear the Infrastructure Commission's annual "State of the Roads" report.

  Orindans are interested in lots of things, naturally, but no recent local debate has stirred the citizenry as much as the one currently raging about how to fund repair of the city's rutted roadways. Mere mention of the topic and a proposal to fund repairs with a new tax has the comment stream burning as the locals prepare for the meeting tonight at 7 p.m. in the Orinda Library Auditorium. Are you going? One wag forwarded a link to a clever British lampoon of the topic which seemed to capture the frivolity nicely.

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