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Rockridge News

Sponsored by * THE ROCKRIDGE COMMUNITY PLANNING COUNCIL * 5856 COLLEGE AVENUE #130" OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA® 94618

Vol. 4 No. 6 Issue No. 40

October 14, 1989

Circulation: 4,500 Residences; 200 Businesses

Exciting Start
For RCPC
Legal Fund

Rockridge Neighbors responded
enthusiastically to the initial call for
donations to the legal fund established
for the suit against the City, donating
an impressive $6,000 in only 21 days,
according to members of the fundrais-
ing committee.

Donating amounts from $10 to
$500, residents are showing their
displeasure with the City’s handling
of the Dreyer’s project approval.

Have you made your donation yet?
Please use the enclosed return enve-
lope to do so now.

Your Atti ort is critical!

S YS “,
S$20, 000 =
Be =

Will Neighbors Help Pay For

A New Rockridge Library?

by Andy Young & Nancy Dutcher

Anyone who ventures into the tem-
porary Rockridge Library on the Clare-
mont Middle School campus becomes
aware quickly of its limitations — small
size, limited book collections, and
cramped stack and reading space. It’s
obvious we need a permanent Rock-
ridge Library. The only question is:
How do we get it?

City WANTS BRANCH ESTABLISHED

The City of Oakland and the Oakland
Library Department want to establish a

The project has cleared several
major hurdles, but others remain. For
example, it is not clear how long it will
take to fund the project nor even that
funding can be found. A critical period
lies ahead.

Although the City has committed
substantial funds to site allocation, fur-
nishing and staffing the library, the bulk
of the construction costs will have to
come from other sources.

PROPOSITION 85 FUNDING SOURCE?

One of these sources may be Propo-
sition 85, a state bond

permanent branch library
in the Rockridge commu-
nity. Both have commit-
ted substantial resources
to the project. Using Off-

Look inside for your

copy of the Rockridge
Library survey!

measure passed in No-
vember, 1988 which
provides funds for con-
struction and improve-
ment of local libraries.

Street Parking Commis-
sion funds, the City has
acquired the Art Stone property on Col-
lege Avenue near Manila for a site for
the library, and is acting to acquire the
adjacent corner property. The Library

The Library Department

is energetically pursuing this promising
new source of funding. To qualify for

See Library, page 3

$14,000 Department has spent considerable time RCPC Meeting Change
$12,000 drawing up a program for the proposed
library.
$10,000 See you at the
: FINDING FUNDING Series!
- $8,000 For the last two years, the RCPC The RCPC
‘opr raa | pee 067.00! 56 000 Library Committee has been working General Meeting
Soe ees with the Library department and the is postponed to
E : $4,000 City to explore funding sources, as well Wednesday,
S is as to determine what the community October 25,
ees wants in a new library. 7:30 PM.
9/16/89 $280.00 Start
Dates Calendar Events Calendar Dates
Tuesday Oct17 = 7:30 PM City Council Rescheduled: World Series. Check with City Clerk for day and time.
Wednesday Oct25* 7:30PM RCPC General Meeting *(Rescheduled from October 18) College Avenue Presbyterian Church,
5951 College Avenue. BART, By-Laws, RASP, more.
Thursday Oct30 7:30PM RCPC Board Meeting Claremont House, 4500 Gilbert.
Wednesday Nov1S 7:30PM RCPC General Meeting College Avenue Presbyterian Church, 5951 College Avenue

Page 2

The Rockridge News

October 14, 1989

Brooklyn N’hood
Challenges City,
Wins Reversal

by Valerie Winemiller
Piedmont Avenue Neighborhood

Improvement League

Ina highly unusual move, the Oakland
City Council voted Tuesday, September
19 to rescind a Major Variance it had
previously granted for a fourteen unit
apartment building at 1445 Sth Avenue.

The Council’s action may lead to a
resolution of the lawsuit filed by the
Brooklyn Neighborhood Preservation
Association (BNPA), alleging that the
Council granted the variance despite the
absence of the required legal findings.

The vote is seen as a major victory for
the city’s neighborhoods, who have been
demanding zoning code enforcement.
During debate, Councilmember Dick
Spees referred to the issue as a “water-
shed decision” on whether the Council
will start enforcing its own zoning codes.

In its report on the project, planning
staff found no justification to approve
the variance. The Planning Commission
voted to deny the variance.

Mr. Dang appealed the Commission’s
denial to the City Council which over-
turned the Commission’s decision. Coun-
cilmembers Mary Moore, Wilson Riles,
Jr., and Dick Spees opposed the Council
action.

BNPA filed suit, contending that the
Council had acted without establishing
the legal grounds required for such a
variance. A number of other neighbor-
hood organizations concerned about a
pattern of similar Council decisions sup-
ported BNPA’s decision to sue.

BNPA was represented by attorney
Linda Bytof, of the firm of McTernan,
Stender and Walsh, who successfully
sued the city in 1985 to reverse approval
of a Popeye’s Fried Chicken franchise
on Telegraph Avenue in her own neigh-
borhood. That action resulted in impor-
tant changes in the City’s notification
procedures in zoning matters.
of the MacArthur Metro

Storage Space Available
in garage...
Claremont-Rockridge area.
Call 547-8070.

(Not suitable for automobiles.)

RASP Funding
Jeopardized

CD Renounces $22,383 Grant
City Council to Vote Nov. 7th

by Barbara B. Anderson, RCPC Chair

At its September 26, 1989 meeting,
the City Council postponed voting on
approval of a contract between RCPC
and the Office of Community Develop-
ment to provide $22,383 for develop-
ment of a draft Rockridge Area Specific
Plan (RASP). The Council put off the
vote to allow for further discussion
about the funding and the community
planning process. The Council’s final
vote on the grant is scheduled for its
November 7, 1989 meeting, 7:30 pm.

The City Council had approved two
Community Development Block Grants
to RCPC in 1988. The first grant, in the
amount of $8,500, was used to complete
Phase One of RASP: the Community
“Consensus Building Project.” RCPC
completed its contractual goals and
objectives with the publication of a
detailed written report in March 1989.
The report identifies community goals
drafted with findings from four Rock-
ridge community forums held in the fall
of 1988. It has been cited as a model for
other neighborhood planning efforts.

A second grant to RCPC of $22,383
(50% of the requested amount) was
approved in 1988 as part of the City’s
Community Development Objectives
and Projected Use of Fourteenth Year
Block Grant Funds. The second grant
would fund Phase II of the Specific Plan
(RASP). The funds would enable the
neighborhood to hire consultants to
assist in developing a draft plan. The
document would be submitted to the
Planning Commission for review and
comment by planners and the commu-
nity.

The contractual agreement for the
second grant had already been prepared
for approval by the City Council when,
unexpectedly, the North Oakland Com-
munity Development Committee
(NOCDC) decided to reconsider the
grant. At the end of July, the NOCDC
recommended that the City rescind the
RCPC grant and reprogram the funds to

other North Oakland projects.

Why did the NOCDC board change
their minds about the RCPC grant?
Since a variety of different explanations
has been offered by the NOCDC over
the past four months, the real reason is
still unclear, or perhaps, still unstated.

Originally, NOCDC’s stated con-
cern was a routine audit of RCPC print-
ing and publications expenditures of
1986 and 1987. By July, the auditor
reported that RCPC was in compliance
with Federal and State non-profit law.
The NOCDC then shifted its position,
questioning RCPC’s right to apply for
HUD funds. In response, the CD staff
stated that RCPC met all eligibility
criteria and that the funds are earmarked
for planning activities. In September,
when it became clear that the grant
approval was being challenged by sev-
eral disgruntled zoning applicants and
non-Rockridge residents, NOCDC
brought up the question of whether
RCPC should get the funds from some
other source.

RCPC has researched the availabil-
ity of other funding for RASP. The
requested amount of $22,383 is not
available either in grant money or in
equivalent staff time and materials,
from the Oakland City Planning depart-
ment budget, nor from the Oakland
Metropolitan Forum, nor from the
Neighborhood Commercial Revitaliza-
tion (NCR) program. Our survey sug-
gests that the entire RASP neighbor-
hood planning process more likely than
not will come to a sudden halt if the
Council cuts off the CDBG funds.

The NOCDC and individual critics
have charged that RCPC is not suffi-
ciently representative of the community
for it to be able to conduct an open and
public process. However, in Phase I,
RCPC often stressed that the RASP
process is open to all interested persons
(not just Rockridge residents). In fact,
several of the individuals who have
spoken in opposition to the grant par-
ticipated actively in the Community
Forums and have signed up to be on
RASP working committees. As soon as
we are funded, all of us can get to work!

Interested Neighbors are encour-
aged to attend the November 7 City
Council meeting.

October 14, 1989

The Rockridge News

Page 3

Library

from page 1

Proposition 85 funds, however, a sub-
Stantial commitment of local funds is
required as well as a showing of local
support for the proposed project. The
funds Oakland has already committed
to the new library should be viewed
favorably by the State. Nonetheless, it
is far from certain that this alone will

result in an adequate grant to build the
library.

COMMUNITY Support CRITICAL

To help demonstrate solid commu-
nity support for the project, and to help
raise the necessary additional funding,
RCPC is working to create a special
assessment district through the Mello-
Roos Act, which allows local govern-
ments to create special assessment dis-
tricts to fund civic improvements when
certain conditions are met. The Mello-
Roos Act requires community input.
Also, a two-thirds vote of the voters in
the proposed assessment district would
be required before any assessment could
be enacted. In addition, boundaries of
the assessment district must be clearly
defined.

RCPC believes that Rockridge resi-
dents would support a reasonable as-
sessment to help build a local library,
and that creation of an assessment dis-
trict would provide key funding, as well
as greatly increasing the likelihood of
securing Proposition 85 funds.

PETITIONING THE CITY

RCPC has made a tentative decision
to petition the Oakland City Council to
create a library assessment district that
would encompass at least the RCPC
membership area. This district would
assess residential parcels at no more
than $25 per year, with a lower rate for
apartment units, and either no assess-
ment or a reduced assessment rate for
commercial properties.

Wuo WouLp BE INCLUDED?

The RCPC membership area con-
tains approximately 3600 parcels that
would be subject to assessment. In
addition, the Upper Rockridge area,
above Broadway but below Highway 13
and Florence Terrace, is an area outside
the established RCPC membership area,
but would be served by the new, larger

RCPC Looks At By-Laws And Election Changes

Committee Proposes

Election Changes
by John Steuart

Changes in the procedures by which
RCPC board members are elected have
been recommended by a special com-
mittee set up at last month’s RCPC
general membership meeting.

The committee unanimously recom-
mended moving the annual election
meeting to February; providing an alter-
nate voting time on the Saturday before
the annual meeting; holding a candi-
date’s forum during the preceding week;
and eliminating proxy voting.

“The RCPC has outgrown its old
election procedures,” commented com-
mittee member Nina Robinson. The
proposed changes aim at increasing the
opportunity for night shift workers,
parents of small children, and others to
vote in the election. The changes are
also intended to expand voter awareness
of the candidates and their positions.

In addition to its formal recommen-
dations, the group supported the idea of
expanding the coverage of candidate’s
views in The Rockridge News.

The committee recommendations
were presented to the RCPC Board in
early October.

Rockridge Library. This Upper Rock-
ridge area contains over 1400 parcels,
and could provide significant support if
included in an assessment district, while
perhaps reducing the amount charged
yearly to each parcel.

Before undertaking a petition drive
and starting an election campaign,
RCPC wants to know if there is commu-
nity support for such a district.

Voice Your OPINION

Enclosed in this issue of the Rock-
ridge News is a survey to determine
support for an assessment district.
Please complete and return it as soon as
possible. As it is most important to de-
termine the support of the Upper Rock-
ridge area, this issue of the News and
the survey are also being distributed to
homes there.

RCPC thinks the new Rockridge

Amendments To RCPC
By-Laws Considered

Changes to streamline voting proce-
dures and clarify some areas of RCPC
eligibility for membership were dis-
cussed at the RCPC general meeting in
September.

A change in voting procedures,
endorsed by the Board of Directors,
would eliminate voting by proxy.
Neighbors at the September meeting
agreed with the board’s view that prox-
ies involve too many technical prob-
lems, and should be abolished. Neigh-
bors also felt that some other voting
procedure should be available for those
who are unable to attend the annual
election meeting. A special committee
was established to discuss election pro-
cedures and to suggest other changes.
The following Neighbors volunteered
for the committee: John Steuart, Chair;
Nina Robinson; Ronnie Polonsky;
Kathy Herman; Bob Macklin; Enrico
Reguzzoni; and John Gussman. The
committeepresented recommendations
for changes to the board at its October
meeting (see adjacent article). The
board approved the recommendations,
and they will be submitted to the gen-
eral membership at the October 25th
meeting.

RCPC membership eligibility was
clarified when Neighbors at the Sep-
tember meeting favored an amendment
to the by-laws stating that only natural
persons (i.e€., not corporations) can be
members. Other possible by-law
changes discussed at the meeting con-
cerned the boundary line at Clarke and
Sist Street and deletion of a portion of
the membership area which now techni-
cally includes a portion of Berkeley.

The board has invited further com-
ment on these proposals.

Library is a worthy project. It also
thinks that a $25 annual assessment per
residential property is not unreasonable
for a branch library that will have
community meeting facilities and park-
ing. Creating the assessment district
may well determine if the new Library
becomes a reality.
Speak out! Send in your survey.

Page 4

The Rockridge News

October 14, 1989

SS

ACELAND/P1zzA RUSTICA

5299 COLLEGE AVENUE
(CMD 89-339)

The Planning Commission approved
the Design Review application to add a
second dome at the rear of the building.
The Major Conditional use permit for a
pizza restaurant was also approved.
Fifteen conditions recommended by
planning department staff and RCPC
were adopted with a few minor changes.

Key conditions for the restaurant
relate to litter control, exterior lighting,
landscaping, hours of operation (7 AM to
midnight), odor control, loading and
parking. The applicant will be required
to have a joint parking agreement with
the tenants of the off-street parking lot
already on the property that will permit
the lot to remain open and available to
the restaurant after 5 pM.

The Planning Commission decision

is final unless appealed to the City
Council.

MEDICAL INSURANCE

EXCHANGE OF CALIFORNIA

(MIEC)
6250 CLAREMONT AVENUE
(ER 89-42/CMD 89-317)

A new office building and parking
garage is proposed for the open parking
lot currently between the existing Blood
Bank building and the MIEC building.

MIEC proposes to construct a 30,000
square foot, 3 story (5 level) office/
parking garage addition to its existing
office building at 6250 Claremont
Avenue. The addition would be located
on the 8,771 square foot site between
the MIEC office building and the Blood
Bank.

Results of an Initial Study required
by the California Environmental Qual-
ity Act (CEQA) and prepared by the
Planning Department call for prepara-

tion of an Environmental Impact Report
(EIR) by MIEC. The applicant will

Piedmont Avenue Neighborhood Improvement League

presents: Pictures of Neighborhood History
a slide talk by historian and author Ted Wurm
Thursday, November 9 7:00 pm, Social; 7:30 pm Program
Tickets $3.50 at the door or in advance. 653-4552
St. Leo's School Auditorium 4238 Howe Street

select an EIR consultant from the city’s
list of approved consultants.

An early step in the EIR process —
called “scoping” — determines areas of
concern such as parking, traffic pat-
terns, noise and other potential project
impacts that should be included in the
EIR. RCPC has asked to be included in
the initial scoping meetings. Neighbors
in the adjacent residential area have
participated in RCPC zoning committee
discussions with MIEC representatives.

More detailed information on the
timetable for the proposed development
is available from Mr. Charlie Bryant,
City Environmental Officer at 273-

3941,

tate state's es a ata ee a alla a al AAAS AAS eo ARR ARAN RA EAN A

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Sauet — RCPC Committee List fi

Peewee ww wee

Listed below are standing committees of
the Rockridge Community Planning Council
with their respective Chairs and Co-Chairs.
Please call any of the individuals listed if
you have questions or problems with what's

going on:

COMMITTEE Cuatr/Co-CHAIRS
CLEAN RockripGeE Gity Baxter 652-8419
Desicn REVIEW Glen Jarvis 654-5953
LIBRARY Marc Beyeler 654-6787

Nancy Dutcher 653-6018
RASP Andréa Walhof 420-1593
Rocxripce News Don Kinkead 655-7474
TRAFFIC Bill Manley 658-2419
David Reinke 653-5312
ZONING John Gussman 655-8817
Brooke Levin 653-7522

ADVOCATES

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Call for a copy of our informational brochure. We are also happy to provide a free
written estimate of your home's value in today's market.

call 428- O/O7

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October 14, 1989

The Rockridge News Page 5

BART Eyes Rockridge Station

Planning, Development Options

by Sue Hone
BART Director District 3

As you may know, BART is consid-
ering various improvements to the
Rockridge Station. We believe
that the ideas we are working
on are responsive to the results
of last year’s RCPC survey,
and the more recent RCPC goal
and objectives statement.

We hope that the work we
are planning to do at the sta-
tion will enhance the neighbor-
hood while addressing the
needs of our patrons.

BART staff and I will be at
the October RCPC meeting to
share with the community our
current thoughts on possible |
station improvements, and to
hear the neighborhood’s |
views.

PATRON PARKING

BART needs to provide
more patron parking. I hear
this from patrons all the time.
I also hear from Rockridge
residents tired of competing
with BART patrons for street
parking. More patron parking
could be provided by con-
structing another parking deck
at the station. Another possi-
bility is better control of our
lots to make sure patrons are
not being crowded out by non-
patron parkers. I want to ex-
plore both possibilities.
Charging a fee for parking

might be one way of controlling the use
of our lots.
BART ANnp COLLEGE AVENUE
I have also been asked to see what
BART could do to “liven-up” our Col-

lege Avenue frontage under the station
and freeway. Some sort of reasonable-
scale development might bring more
light, more color and more life to this
gap in the rich fabric of College Ave-
nue. This is an idea well worth
pursuing.

BART ANnpD HousING

I am also interested in the
idea of buffering the interface
of BART parking and the
| neighborhood. Maybe there
are some land uses that could
soften the line between the
BART facilities and surround-
| ing homes. Low-rise apart-
ments might serve this purpose.

EIR ALTERNATIVES

Listed in the table at left are
the alternatives BART pro-
poses to study as part of the en-
vironmental impact assessment
we plan to start this winter.

The assessment process will
| provide ample continuing op-
portunities for the community
to help shape our plans, and it
will precede BART’s commit-
ment to build anything.

Our Rockridge neighbors
must have plenty of thoughts to
share with BART on _ these
proposals.

We have had one very pro-
ductive meeting with the Rock-
ridge Area Specific Plan Steer-
ing Committee, and I look for-
ward to participating in the
October General Meeting.

BART Meets With RASP Committee: Station Development

BART is currently in the process of determining the future
of the Rockridge station. Questions being asked are: Do we
need more parking? How much is appropriate? Should we
open the site to commercial development and other services?
If these things are to be added, where precisely on the site
should they be located?

BART has stated its support for Rockridge community
participation in station planning decisions and in recent weeks
has met several times with the RCPC Area Specific Plan
(RASP) committee and Rockridge residents who expressed
interest during the RASP Community Forums held early this
year. During these meetings, RASP committee members and

BART staff (along with Director Sue Hone) talked about
proposals for the site such as a child-care center, a library,
small shops and housing. Though there has been some support
for more parking, concerns over increased traffic and the high
cost of parking additions were also noted. Other alternatives
suggested to solve BART parking problems were monitoring
Station usage with a token or coin system such as the system
Operating at the Lafayette station, or simply providing spaces
at a price the market will bear, and opening the spaces to
whoever is willing to pay the price. Another option suggested
is carpool spaces. These subjects will be discussed in depth

See BART, page 6

October 14, 1989

The Rockridge News

Liz Maxwell: Rockridge Painter citiietiteaciebaineion

Rockridge painter Liz Maxwell, born in West Point, New York, has alternated her art with employment as a mathemati-
cian and statistician for several years. Now “semi-retired” from statistics, she teaches math part-time so she can paint more.

Liz has been involved with art ever since high school but got
away from it for awhile to raise a family and work in statistics. In
1976, she went back to art classes at CCAC and U. C. Berkeley.
Since leaving full-time work for painting, she has been showing
her work in Oakland and in San Francisco as often as walls are
available for exhibition. Liz’ paintings were recently hanging at
the Edible Complex on College Avenue and at West Wind in
Berkeley. Rockridge Café will feature her work in December.

Liz opens her Rockridge studio during the annual ProArts tour
program. “I’ve been participating in ProArts Open Studios every |

year and will do that again in °89,” she Says.

In My View...

Comments by Marge Gibson-Haskell
City Council, District 1

City Council Begins
New Budget Process

The City Council budget process is not a sexy topic that
inspires people to get out and rally for a cause, but it is
supremely important to the Rockridge neighborhood. I am
writing about it because as a result of the passage of the full-
time Mayor Charter amendment, the Mayor and Council are
beginning to design new processes for budget development.

CITIZENS’ BupGET CoMMITTEE

In the old days, the only requirements were that the City
Manager had to present to the Council a proposed budget by
June 1 which had to be passed by June 30. Now, the
Council-Mayor process has become a year-long one with
the support of a Citizens’ Budget Committee, which is
chaired by Randy Hamilton from North Oakland and also
has Rockridge Neighbor Theresa Nelson as an able mem-

ber. I hope that they can both make presentations to the
community as the process moves on.

BuDGET TIMING

The timing as proposed at the Council retreat in Septem-
ber calls for a general statement of priorities to be presented
to the Council and community by the Mayor in November.
This will be commented upon by the Council with recom-
mendations from the community at that time. Later, proba-
bly early in January, the Mayor will present a State of the
City address outlining his priorities. The Council will then
commence departmental review and public review which
will continue until the budget is adopted. The result of this
process will b e to permit more public input at various
points of consideration. Your attention to the process is
hereby requested and I hope you will express your concerns
to me in a timely way.

Let Me Hear From You

If you wish to comment on the budget or the process,
please call me or my assistant Bill Lowe at 273-3266.

i

Miles Davis At The Paramount
© Liz Maxwell

——_____—_ a

——_—_—$_—<_$_—<_—_—_——$——<—<

Weather, Litter Threaten
A Clean Rockridge

GUTTERS

Fall is here again and that means it’s time to sweep up the
leaves, twigs, and other natural detritus that collect in our
gutters during the summer. Those streets visited regularly by
the City’s sweeper will have less to worry about but it’s
something we all should pay attention to.

Utitity PoLes

P.G. & E. poles have become targets of commercial adver-
tising. Rampant posting on the poles makes the neighborhood
look littered. Help remove commercial advertising by taking
it down from poles near your home or business. This includes
out of date garage sale and other signs, too.

COLLEGE AVENUE

With its ever-increasing auto and pedestrian traffic, Col-
lege Avenue is getting to be more and more littered. Let’s
watch for and pick up litter.

The Merchants Association has arranged for additional
trash cans on parts of the Avenue. Let’s use them!

BART

from page 5

at the October 25th RCPC General Meeting. Director Hone
and BART staff have been invited to present existing propos-
als and solicit input from the community at large. If you're

interested in the future of the BART Station, come to the
meeting and let your views be heard!

October 14, 1989

te ee

Diversify The Board

EDITOR:

The September issue of the Rock-
ridge News indicated an opening for the
RCPC board of directors. The vacant
seat should go to someone sensitive to
the viewpoints of renters, students, low-
income residents, minorities and other
underrepresented groups in Rockridge.

Increasingly, those harboring feel-
ings of underrepresentation have been
actively speaking out against the cur-
rent RCPC Board. Dozens of commu-
nity members attended the last City

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The Rockridge News

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Council meeting voicing the concern
that the current RCPC is a narrow group
which does not reflect the diversity of
Rockridge. Within the past few months,
two advisory committees overwhelm-
ingly voted to withdraw grant funds pre-
viously allocated to the RCPC due to
public outcry against the current RCPC
leadership and behavior. In addition, a

government unit audited the RCPC’s
finances.

| Although the investigation closed
without citing the RCPC for any impro-
prieties, many neighbors are concerned

BUMP YY SIO. re
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Area Sizes to Room Sizes

ARMEN GALLERY
Oriental Rugs & Kilims

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- —_ —
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-- -

he News

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about the current Board’s judgment and
lack of diversity. My experience as a
former director of Over 21, Inc., a large
nonprofit provider of educational serv-
ices for the severely developmentally
disabled, has taught me that nonprofit
organizations must be diverse, tolerant,
and ethical to succeed. To break the
cycle of mistrust, the current board
should act quickly to appoint a fresh
viewpoint to the board.

In the January board election, a
coalition of four opposition candidates
to the current board received over 230
live and absentee votes — approxi-
mately 46% of the votes cast. If the
current board were smart, it would reach
out to the other 46% of the community
and offer the empty board seat to one of
the opposition candidates.

I have great hopes that the RCPC
may some day become an organization
that everyone in Rockridge can respect.
One must ask the question out loud
whether the current RCPC is serious
about bringing all of the viewpoints in
this community under one roof. I con-
tinue to work with the RCPC on its
RASP steering committee and several
other committees in an attempt to bring
about a more open and responsive or-
ganization.

If you, too, share my concerns,
please call me at 655-6071.

— John Steuart

RCPC Board Response

At the recent City Council hearing
on the RASP grant, the only resident of
Rockridge who spoke against RCPC
was John Steuart.

The other six opposition speakers
included three members of the North
Oakland Community Development

See Reply, page 8

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Page 8 The Rockridge News October 14, 1989
Reply, from page 7

Council; two well-known opponents of residential permit
parking; and John Allen, developer of “Aceland” and co-

founder of the Oakland Development Council. We think we >

understand the other speaker’s reasons for opposing the grant; r
but we are puzzled by Mr. Steuart’s appearance in opposition

to the grant, given his membership on the RASP steering com- Oy oe | = se

At the last RCPC election, the vote tabulators found that the y So Donvicinnic
proxy (absentee) votes were too few to affect the election : URBAN PROVISIONS =
outcome. Representatives of the two slates then agreed that all See zs ————___—

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