Maya Mirsky

Most recent

2010-10-01T21:32:00.001-07:00

A story about Happy Together (Kehilla) preschool and one about the Jewish New Year - yes, it was a themed month for me. Again for BANG - and it seems that Inside Bay Area is not searchable for the moment.

New stories

2010-08-10T15:00:00.000-07:00

Piedmont preschool, Safeway in Rockridge, zoning meetings and how to keep the trees in shape - all new stories for BANG.

Home sweet home

2010-08-10T09:56:00.000-07:00

My story about a home in Richmond built out of shipping containers is on the San Jose Mercury News website.

Links to my City Visions shows

2009-09-22T10:59:00.000-07:00

Visit the City Visions archives to hear some of my shows:

-Why We Give: The Science and Psychology of Giving and Altruism

-What kind of sanctuary? A tug-of-war over what to do with undocumented youth

-North Meets South: The Plans for High Speed Rail

-Campus in Crisis: UC Budget Cuts and the Future of Public Education

-San Francisco’s Central Subway: Innovation or Boondoggle?

-Filling the Gap: Making Up For What's Missing at Public Schools

-The End of Free Parking: How Parking Reform is Changing the Way We Drive

-Closing the Doors: Cutting Subsidized Health Care for the Undocumented

-Oakland’s 10K Housing Initiative: Ten Years Later

-Urban Forests: How Planting Trees on Sidewalks and Streets Is Impacting Our Cities

And in other news...Radio!

2009-05-20T23:28:00.000-07:00

Exciting fun for me, getting involved in live radio. I'm working on City Visions (www.cityvisionsradio.com), a live call-in panel show that focuses on topics important to Bay Area residents. Besides the producing credit, I'm falling in love with radio all over again. 91.7 KALW San Francisco.

And once again, I have not been posting or linking to my articles

2009-05-20T23:26:00.000-07:00

But! I have been writing. I did a piece on the 80th birthday of Neldam's Bakery and got to poke around the giant mixing machines (love this job). There was another budget story (Oakland has no money) and a nice day at a middle school in Alameda, watching kids opening up with poetry slam workshops. I did a profile of the woman who runs Kids Paint the Town and an update on the Safeway story and...other stuff. So, still working!

Falling into the technology gap

2009-02-28T13:14:00.000-08:00

My stories for BANG are also on the websites for the Contra Costa Times and the Oakland Tribune (known as Inside Bay Area).

Recently, when I search for my articles, I only see fairly recent ones. So some of the links below might not work anymore, and I don't know why. I wrote my first one, for the Montclarion, in January of 2008 and I've written some 80 stories since then, plus had quite a few photos run. So I'm sorry there's not a good record of all of that online anymore.

Music on the island

2009-02-28T13:08:00.000-08:00

Forgot about this one, which ran in the Alameda Journal in December.
It was a lot of fun -- the guys were so eager and earnest.

Bump in popularity for indie rock band

BYLINE: By Maya Mirsky Correspondent

SECTION: MY TOWN; Alameda; Oakland-Berkeley; News; Local

Alameda indie rock band Finish Ticket was anxiously waiting Dec. 14 to hear whether it had won anything after playing that day at a San Francisco competition. But band members missed the announcement because they had to go to bed.

That's because all five band members are students at Alameda High.

"At seven in the morning I got a text message," said guitarist Alex DiDonato.

It turned out the band had placed second at the event, in which some 50 bands played for the chance to win money and recording time.

"It was exciting and kind of amazing," said drummer Garren Orr.

Economic forum during troubled times

2009-02-28T13:00:00.000-08:00

I think this was in the Tribune, too. It was fun to go to city hall, of course. Although the council chambers have just terrible sight lines.

Oakland leaders discuss economy's impact on city

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Posted: 02/26/2009 03:07:47 PM PST

Updated: 02/26/2009 03:08:47 PM PST

Oakland can't expect the federal stimulus package or other outside help to ease it through tough economic times, but must step up and actively find workable solutions for itself, speakers concluded at a panel convened Feb. 20 by City Council President Jane Brunner.

Speakers did express cautious optimism about President Obama's stimulus plan during the "Progressive Perspective on the Economic Crisis" panel planned and moderated by Brunner, who represents District 1, North Oakland, but several stressed that it is not a magic solution.

"It will not fix the Oakland budget problem," Brunner said.

Two features for BANG

2009-02-28T12:58:00.000-08:00

Two nice little human interest stories. I really enjoyed doing the one on the circus arts.

Talented girl flying high with her circus dreams

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Posted: 02/05/2009 04:44:43 PM PST

Updated: 02/05/2009 04:45:28 PM PST

Eight-year-old Cassie Weigel balances on the hands and feet of another girl, toes pointed and body perfectly arched. Then she jumps down and does a few flips on her way to hug her mom, who's watching at the side of the room.

It's Saturday morning, and instead of watching cartoons, Cassie is at Oakland's Trapeze Arts school for three and a half hours of circus arts training. It's the high point of the week for Cassie, whose passion for tumbling and trapeze are matched by her prodigious physical talents.

"From the first time she came, it was just magic for her," said Cassie's mother, Cheryl Weigel.

Learning about science first-hand

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Posted: 02/05/2009 03:23:46 PM PST

Updated: 02/05/2009 03:24:31 PM PST

Using science to catch an imaginary candy thief was the goal at Redwood Heights Elementary's 13th annual "Science Alliance" fair on Tuesday.

The parent-organized event aims at getting school children excited and involved with the discipline.

"This is so important, to give kids exposure to science. Because science is fun," said parent organizer Gail Widener.

Story in Oakland Tribune about solar power

2009-02-28T12:56:00.000-08:00

North Oakland residents get help with solar panel costs
By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent
Posted: 01/21/2009 08:29:38 PM PST
Updated: 01/22/2009 06:36:02 AM PST

North Oakland residents are taking advantage of a chance to install solar power as part of an ambitious program run by a San Francisco environmental group.

One Block Off the Grid is harnessing Bay Area interest in clean energy and using the power of collective buying to obtain cheaper prices on solar panels in order to encourage people to use clean energy.

"This gives everyone an incentive," said general manager Dave Llorens.

The One Block Off the Grid program, which covers Oakland, San Francisco and other Bay Area cities, allows participating households to receive roof-tip photovoltaic panels at a discount of about 20 percent, depending on the size of the house.

Anyone who signs up through One Block Off the Grid's Web site before the Jan. 31 deadline will receive a no-obligation inspection and an estimate. They then have two weeks to decide whether or not to take the offer. Nearly 900 homes have signed up, with a strong cluster of interest in North Oakland.

Rockridge resident Rachel Hollowgrass said she wished One Block Off the Grid had been around when she installed her own solar panels. Now she's making sure to tell her neighbors.

"I was really hoping something like that would be possible in Rockridge," she said.

Hollowgrass used SolarCity to install her panels, the same vendor One Block Off the Grid has chosen for its program. SolarCity beat out other companies with competitive prices, thinner panels and free
Advertisement
Quantcast
add-ons such as energy-consumption monitoring.

"It lets people make improvements to their homes or change their behavior and see the impact immediately," Llorens said.

A 15-year lease program is available for people who can't afford to buy the whole system.

"People can go solar with zero down and save money right away," said SolarCity's director of brand marketing, Leela Voges.

Photovoltaic panels, also known as solar panels, transform sunlight into energy for the home. Houses stay linked to PG&E for energy needs at night, but pay a lower rate, according to SolarCity's Jonathan Bass.

They require an up-front investment of about $30,000, depending on the size of the house, but recent federal legislation included a tax credit worth 30 percent of the cost of the installation. The state also offers a rebate for putting up solar panels, which also increase the resale value of property.

"There are very few safer investments than solar energy," Llorens said.

One Block Off the Grid, based in San Francisco, will roll out programs in more than 20 cities around the country. It was founded last year by Llorens along with Sylvia Ventura and Dan Barahona, who had done outreach on solar via their Web site. A successful pilot project in San Francisco led them to expand to other Bay Area cities.

It's really word-of-mouth that is helping the program locally, according to Hollowgrass, who is hopeful about the results.

"I'm seeing 1BOG signs going up in our neighborhood," she said.

I'm still working!

2009-01-15T23:53:00.000-08:00

I am about two months behind in posting clips, which means about ten stories or so.

One of my most recent stories was about how the local merchants are weathering the shopping season.

Residents spend their dollars locally

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Retail stores in Montclair and Rockridge have found local loyalty is helping them weather a tougher holiday season.

Merchants say Oakland residents are foregoing online shopping and chain stores, instead focusing their dollars locally in order to help out their favorite stores.

"People are stepping back and saying how important it is to keep the neighborhood vital," said Tom Revelli of Montclair Sporting Goods.

Muggings, robbery reported in Rockridge

2008-11-18T21:31:00.000-08:00

(I think this one might have run in the Tribune.) Inside Bay Area

Muggings nearby the BART station and a brazen morning robbery of a gas station in Rockridge this past week have raised new concerns about safety in the neighborhood.

The crimes come after a relatively peaceful period of low crime, according to Oakland Police Department data.

TheatreFIRST celebrating 15th year

2008-11-18T21:29:00.000-08:00

The arts are important -- I have a story (not up yet) about fundraising for art education in public schools, too. When I was a child I was surrounded by art and music, and I really think it's a wonderful thing. But don't forget to nurture yourself as an adult, too.

Inside Bay Area

Oakland's TheatreFIRST is celebrating its 15th anniversary, as well as the arrival of a new artistic director and a new production director, with an Oct. 18 party.

The event also marks a turning point for the company, which is looking for a permanent home.

"This is a small company with a really great reputation, and it's ready to jump to the next level," said new artistic director Dylan Russell.

BART to retrofit Rockridge station this fall

2008-11-18T21:26:00.000-08:00

Inside Bay Area

This is the kind of story that seems like a yawn, but is actually very important to the people who live near and use Rockridge BART. It's hard for people to put up with inconvenience in support of a far-off and hopefully unused safety purpose, but earthquake safety is really on folks' minds.

BART will begin retrofitting the Rockridge station and the elevated tracks around the station this fall to help secure them during a major earthquake.

The work, which will include digging up columns supporting tracks and the station, will last more than a year.

Rockridge ready to party at street fest

2008-11-18T21:23:00.000-08:00

Inside Bay Area

Rockridge residents will take to the streets Sunday for the annual Out and About in Rockridge festival.

It's the second year College Avenue will be closed for the fair, which will showcase food, fashion and innovation in an area known for some of the best shopping and eating in the Bay Area.

Plan offered to boost parking permit fees

2008-11-18T21:21:00.000-08:00

Parking permits in Oakland -- my story gets people talking

2008-09-12T14:35:00.000-07:00

A story I pitched to my editor got taken up by the Oakland Tribune and generated a lot of mail (most of it to me). It was nice to get that kind of response -- I really touched a nerve.

Locals say tickets city's fault

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Article Last Updated: 08/15/2008 10:49:18 PM PDT

Residents in North Oakland are upset at not getting parking permit renewal notices while they're still getting ticketed for expired stickers.

Now some are feeling frustration with the city's response to the missing letters and new tickets.

"I believe that they believe they mailed them. But we didn't receive them," said Lisa Aliferis, a Rockridge resident who was ticketed.

Oakland's parking division said that renewal notices were mailed to every address on record.

"We checked with the mailroom, they indicated they sent them all out," said parking division manager Francine Larkrith-Thompson.

Further developments with Safeway in North Oakland

2008-09-12T13:42:00.000-07:00

I have the Safeway beat covered!

Meetings set on Safeway's plans

By Maya Mirsky
Montclarion correspondent

Article Last Updated: 09/04/2008 03:54:06 PM PDT

Controversial plans for a new Safeway in Rockridge will be discussed in an upcoming series of meetings between the Pleasanton-based supermarket chain and invited community groups.

Another profile

2008-09-12T13:41:00.000-07:00

I feel like I am doing a lot of profiles. Here's another one, about an entrepreneur who began late in life.

Hills entrepreneur finds success

By Maya Mirsky
Montclarion correspondent

Article Last Updated: 08/28/2008 03:34:23 PM PDT

Like all first-time entrepreneurs, Oakland hills resident Gene Sunnen took a leap into the unknown when he began his own business.

Ten years later, he's celebrating a thriving and expanding business as the owner of a Molly Maid cleaning service franchise.

For Sunnen, it was a success that came later in life — he began his maid service business at the age of 50 after his wife encouraged him to follow his entrepreneurial dream.

"It was a big, big step for me," he said.

More community reporting

2008-09-12T13:39:00.000-07:00

Crime, safety issues aired at Rockridge meeting

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Article Last Updated: 07/31/2008 03:23:08 PM PDT

Crime trends and personal safety were on the agenda at a meeting of two of North Oakland's most active groups, the Greater Rockridge Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council and the Rockridge Community Planning Council.

A different Safeway

2008-09-12T13:38:00.000-07:00

Montclair Safeway construction draws complaints

By Maya Mirsky
Correspondent

Article Last Updated: 07/31/2008 03:25:12 PM PDT

Construction at the Safeway in Montclair Village has some residents complaining about incessant noise.

Neighbors say calls to Safeway went unanswered while noise levels were intolerable for those living close by.

"This has been extreme and unbearable," said Rachel Epstein, a nursing student whose apartment looks out over the construction.

Letter to the Editor

2008-08-17T21:40:00.000-07:00

A reader said I did a good job -- always a nice thing to have said about you, especially publicly. Click the image to see more.

Saw my name in a bin today

2008-08-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

Joan Diamond profile

2008-07-27T22:15:00.000-07:00

In a house in the Oakland hills, Joan Diamond contemplates her new life, one where she can set her own pace.

"I want to practice living slower on the planet," she said.

Diamond, 66, is retiring after more than 40 years as an educator, the past 14 years spent as principal at San Ramon's innovative independent study school, Venture.

Click here for more.

RCPC opposes Safeway

2008-07-27T22:13:00.000-07:00

The Rockridge Community Planning Council has come out against plans for a new, bigger Safeway.

In response to that and other feedback, the retail chain is taking another look at the controversial new store.

"We are taking back the design to review it," said Esperanza Greenwood, director of public affairs at Safeway.

Click here for more.

Toys in park cause neighborhood spat

2008-07-27T22:02:00.000-07:00

"Colby Park is encircled by 61st Street and tucked away in a quiet Rockridge neighborhood. On a sunny day, with children laughing and parents picnicking, it appears tranquil.

But the park is at the center of an escalating neighborhood dispute. Residents are divided on how to handle the communal toys that fill the park, an issue addressed at a July 21 community meeting."

Click this link for my article on the Colby Park toy dispute, at the Contra Costa Times website, first published in the Montclarion.

Follow-up to Safeway in Rockridge

2008-07-07T18:47:00.000-07:00

On Inside Bay Area, the website of the Oakland Tribune. First appeared in the Montclarion.

Oakland Tribune

2008-06-09T18:55:00.000-07:00

I had a story in Saturday's in Oakland Tribune on plans for rebuilding the Safeway on College and Claremont.

On the Mercury web

2008-06-08T20:51:00.000-07:00

I just realized a story I wrote about a house made out of shipping containers is on the San Jose Mercury News website.

It was on a tour of innovative eco homes in the Bay Area, and is really a lovely and interesting house.

(They spelled my name wrong, though.)

Alamedan's reuse on display at S.F. show

2008-04-22T19:14:00.000-07:00

Alamedan's reuse on display at S.F. show

Dreyer's Ice Cream Parlor to reopen

2008-04-22T19:13:00.000-07:00

Dreyer's Ice Cream Parlor to reopen

NEW LOOK TO HISTORIC BUILDING

2008-04-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

NEW LOOK TO HISTORIC BUILDING J's Hamburgers, site of former Key Route station on Piedmont Ave., gets coat of paint, other updates

Councilwoman praises Local Heroes for community effort

2008-04-22T19:10:00.000-07:00

Councilwoman praises Local Heroes for community effort

Redwood Heights hosts Multicultural Faire

2008-04-22T19:08:00.000-07:00

Redwood Heights hosts Multicultural Faire

Free hair trims to aid cancer program

2008-03-04T20:27:00.000-08:00

For the Alameda Journal.

Community hears police staff update

2008-03-04T20:26:00.000-08:00

For the Montclarion.

Montclair preschool is celebrating 75th year

2008-03-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

For the Montclarion.

I also took the photographs, but they aren't online.

Councilwoman praises Local Heroes for community effort

2008-03-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

For the Montclarion.

Local architect has an artist's eye

2008-02-02T07:52:00.000-08:00

My story about local architect Rebecca Schnier is up on the Contra Costa Times website. It was first printed in the Piedmonter.

Remains of the Fire

2007-12-13T19:57:00.000-08:00

An audio slideshow remembering the Oakland-Berkeley hills fires. I did the audio.

DINNER WITH THE BLACK PANTHERS

2007-12-13T09:59:00.000-08:00

Below are some photos from among the ones I contributed to an audio slideshow on Oakland's Black Panthers literacy project.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRES HAVE LESSONS FOR EAST BAY

2007-12-12T20:05:00.000-08:00

I produced, built and edited this site for my Reporting the News class at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Click the image or more.

Storytime at the Oakland Public Library

2007-12-10T15:46:00.000-08:00

Click the picture to play the audio slideshow. Both audio and photographs are by me.

Grad Parents Pulled in Many Directions

2007-11-22T20:30:00.000-08:00

Published in The Graduate Magazine, Volume XIX, Number 3

“Mama. Mama. Play train tracks.”

A little voice is coming from somewhere down by my elbow as I’m typing, and there’s a hand tugging on my sleeve.

“Play train tracks.”

I sigh, stop typing, pause, then turn back to my computer, only to leave it again when the little voice pipes up once more.

If this sounds like a hard way to get through grad school, it is. But it isn’t unusual.

This sort of situation is normal for the hundreds of graduate students that go to UC Berkeley and parent on the side – or the other way round.

And that’s really the issue. How does a parent do a decent job at parenting and still stay fully focused on their academic career?

What comes first?

While some parents may claim to do it all, any honest graduate student parent will tell you that they cannot make the same commitment to their studies that an unencumbered student can.

For one thing, Berkeley isn’t designed with families in mind. The school’s official memo on Graduate Council Student Parent Policies trumpets the fact that it updates a 1998 memo. But the update itself is dated 2003-2004.

“The Graduate Council recognizes that parenting is a very time-intensive task,” it reads.

Good to know. Now what?

John Schwenkler, 26, is a third-year graduate student in philosophy and has a 7-month-old son, Jack.

“Be aware that it’s not the most parent-friendly place to be,” he said. “You don’t realize how much life as a graduate student is life as a single, or at least childless, graduate student,” he said.

“It’s extremely hard to go to a seminar that ends at 6 p.m.,” Schwenkler said. He added that going out afterwards with friends from school to bond over a beer is even less likely to happen.

And while friendly faculty make it easier, the course schedule can’t be altered.

“It is striking, the number of things we do where the timing is structured for people who don’t have a child at all, or who have a lot of childcare,” said Schwenkler.

Julia Olmstead, a classmate of mine at the Graduate School of Journalism, agrees that the environment is not particularly supportive.

“They imagine you have all the time in the world,” she said.

Olmtead is working on her second master’s (she studied sustainable agriculture and plant breeding at Iowa State) and her husband is also getting his master’s at Berkeley, in public policy. Although neither works regular office hours, they have little time outside school.

“I thought if we were both students we’d have flexibility,” said Olmstead. “But that hasn’t been the case.”

But even when there is time to work, many parents can’t just switch into academic mode.

Schwenkler said he noticed he can’t get as engrossed in his work as he used to.

“My mind has to be where my son is, not where my work is,” he said. “I just can’t get completely taken up by it.”

Where are the answers?

Katrinell Davis knows firsthand how hard a time a graduate student parent can have.

Davis, who is working on her dissertation, is the mother of two boys and is also raising her brother. She said she was talking to a dean one day when it hit her that the university needed a needs assessment to find out how graduate student parents were really being supported.

“One of the issues is that nobody knows what’s going on, what resources are available to them,” she said.

So she launched the Graduate Student Parent Project survey and expects to have results in late January and early February.

“I’m just basically trying to find out the degree to which the university resources help them balance family and work,” she said.

Berkeley or bust?

Branessa Kunitz, a 34-year-old mother of four children, was so disappointed in the lack of resources available that when the time came to do her master’s in higher education leadership, she turned elsewhere.

She knew that she’d get in at Berkeley or Columbia or Stanford, but it was Sacramento State that she eventually chose. She finished up her masters in Higher Education Leadership in February.

“Parenting responsibilities played into those choices clearly,” she said.

With her children at home, and a fiancé who was also getting his master’s, Kunitz knew she didn’t want to go nuts.

“I already knew Berkeley will be demanding,” she said.

And Berkeley, like other universities, demanded full-time study. Kunitz, whose fiancé is also studying, just couldn’t afford it. So even though Kunitz, who got straight A’s as an undergrad, wasn’t happy about going to a lower-ranked institution, she made a decision.

“It wasn’t feasible to go full time,” she said. “I had to be able to work.”

Olmstead can compare her graduate school parenting experiences at two schools, and says she found Iowa State a much more flexible place. She was pregnant when she was working as a researcher; when Brody was born, her advisor gave her four months off at full pay.

Who’s watching the children?

Once the commitment to graduate education has been made, one of the most important issues for any student parent is finding childcare.

UC Berkeley’s Early Childhood Education Program takes in the 3-months to 7-year-old children of faculty, staff and students. Notice that students are last on the list. That’s because faculty and staff have priority.

Fees are based on a sliding scale for student families, from zero to $1000 per month for full time care, but even the full-fee program is in demand.

“We have a lot of applications,” said Marina Moreida, an administrator who works with student families at the university’s daycare. “We do get a lot more than what we can serve.”

She estimates that around 180 student parents have children in the program.

“We were really lucky,” said Olmstead, who son has a subsidized slot at the daycare.“One good thing about us both being students is that we’re totally broke,” she added, laughing.

But her son, 2-and-a-half-year old Brody, spends more time in childcare than Olmstead would like.

“He’s there nine to five, which is a huge amount of time,” she said. “I miss him. I feel like I don’t spend nearly as much time with him as I want to.”

Schwenkler doesn’t pay for childcare because his wife, who is a PhD candidate in philosophy at Notre Dame, stays home with their son. But that, too, comes at a cost.

“You either pay for child care or you’re not able to work,” he said.

And childcare can cost easily up to $15,000 in the Bay Area, one of the nation’s most expensive places to live.

Advice column

When I asked Schwenkler what he would tell parents thinking about starting graduate school at Berkeley, he paused.

“I wouldn’t just say don’t do it,” he said. “Be aware that most people on a program will be single or won’t have children. You need to be assertive, confident, and make a way to make it work for you. It’s been a real challenge.”

“You have to be part of the department as a parent,” he added.

Schwenkler has a fellowship that helps make ends meet. He said he’d tell parents to concentrate on finding money so at least they don’t have to worry about that.

“Do the work to find out where you can get money to help you out,” he said.

Kunitz said that although she liked Berkeley, she tells other parents to think about less intense programs.

“I tell them that there are other alternatives out there,” she said

She admits that she felt awkward going to Sacramento State at first. But now she’s in the job market, she realized that it wasn’t as important as she had thought.

People think a lower-ranked school is a “cop out,” Kunitz said. But she hasn’t seen any difference.”It has not had any negative impact whatsoever.”

A balancing act

Every parent struggles with how to find a balance, but it’s a hard fight, especially in an environment where everyone expects academics to come first.

The time a graduate student parent devotes to their studies is inevitably time away from their children. And time with the kids means less time to read, write and research.

That’s why Davis thinks her needs assessment is so important, and not just so that she can crunch the numbers.

“It’s a political effort as well,” she added. “It’s also about advocating for changes.”

“I don’t always want to be making excuses,” said Olmstead. “I’m always confused about my own priorities. I want to give it everything I can but I want to be with Brody. I’m not giving either enough.”

Kunitz understands about guilt, but she feels that in the long run, it is good for a child to see their parent succeeding in education.

“As a parent, you feel guilty. ‘I can’t do this, I have to write a paper,” she said.

But Kunitz, who is the first in her family to go to college, says setting an example is important, too.

“I can see the impact on them already,” said Kunitz. “I got to prove to them that education pays.”

For Schwenkler, it’s clear.

“Look, this is my life, this is my family,” he said. “My family comes first.”

And now I have to go play with train tracks.

Blogging the Oakland Beat - A Joint Project

2007-11-22T20:26:00.000-08:00

Together with two classmates, I created a news blog about Oakland, called The Town. My beat was primarily North Oakland, but the blog covered crime, education, zoning and other important local issues.

All the clips in the category "news blogging" came from The Town, but it's worth checking out the site itself to see some shorter blurbs and the links and resource information we accumulated.

Council Weighs in on Mortgage Crisis

2007-11-06T20:37:00.000-08:00

The Oakland City Council has voted to explore using loans and negotiation to help residents in danger of losing their homes through foreclosure and to clean up vacant properties.

Oakland is suffering from the foreclosure crisis that is affecting the nation. Although the city cannot regulate the actions of lenders, it can manage the blight that comes with vacant properties and can use leverage to ask banks to back off on foreclosing.

“I have all the confidence that the city’s housing staff is going to proactively address this issue,” said Larry Hynson, policy analyst with ACORN, a community organization that counsels homeowners in trouble.

The foreclosure rate in Oakland is rising, according to City Attorney John Russo’s office. Russo has sponsored a new hotline, (510) BE-ALERT, for homeowners in trouble.

The resolution, which passed unanimously on Tuesday, urges banks to work with homeowners, possibly by turning adjustable-rate mortgages into more stable, fixed-rate mortgages. The resolution also requires city staff to look into the feasibility of providing city loans to buyers in trouble and requiring bank-owned, vacant properties to be managed so that blight and vandalism are avoided.

Off the Street, Life's Nearly as Bad

2007-10-23T17:40:00.000-07:00

Lawrence Le Vere is an angry man.

It’s hidden under a low voice and a world-weary demeanor, but there is no lack of passion as he talks about the building where he lives.

“The main problem here is the drugs. The drug dealing and the drug use. If you got a problem with drugs, this is not a good place to be,” he said.

The building Le Vere is talking about is no flophouse. It’s the Plaza Apartments, a newly built residential facility for the formerly homeless that opened in 2006 to great fanfare.

It’s in San Francisco’s South of Market area, where last week a controversial new initiative by the mayor will send out teams of social workers and police officers in order to get homeless off the streets and into shelters and places like Plaza.

The nine-story building was designed “green” and trumpeted as part of Mayor Gavin Newsom’s 2004 ten-year plan to address homelessness.

“Supportive housing works because of the carefully selected supportive services delivered to residents on site, linkages to physical and behavioral health services in the community, and the confidence that comes from no longer being threatened and isolated from living on the streets,” according to the plan.

Sitting in an armchair in his tiny but clean room, Le Vere scoffs.

“This is supposed to be supportive housing. But there’s no support here,” he said. “It’s a free for all. This is drug city. This is not what they put in the papers when they talk about supportive housing and shit like that. This is going from the frying pan to the fire.”

Le Vere, 54, was born in Philadelphia, in a rough neighborhood. “I lived in what I guess you’d call a hood nowadays,” he said. He left when he was 42 because the crack dealers he owed money to wanted to kill him.

He pulled himself together enough to become a tractor-trailer driver with his own vehicle, earning a good living. He would come home every four or five days to his wife, who was ill with Hepatitis C.

He returned one day to find his wife had been dead for days.

“She didn’t want to go on the route with me because she had diarrhea from the medication,” said Le Vere. “I’d been gone all week. Came out of Chicago on my last run, she’d been dead a couple days.”

Le Vere says he lost his mind for a while. While out on a job, he abandoned his truck and caught a bus to San Francisco, the farthest place he could go. “I figured I’d come out here and die,” he said.

“It didn’t turn out that way,” he said.

Instead, he ended up in one of the city’s notorious single room occupancy hotels. After Le Vere flatlined when he overdosed on crack, his case manager thought Le Vere would do better at the Plaza.

The Plaza Apartments, which won an architectural award for excellent design on a budget, stand out as a modern, attractive building in a notoriously seedy district. It was built at a cost of $22 million, primarily financed by the San Francisco Redevelopment Authority, and Enterprise, a for-profit socially conscious company.

Conard House, a nonprofit that provides services to homeless adults with psychiatric problems, handles counseling and case management, while the John Stewart Company manages the property and several other similar ones. Police make regular sweeps through the building and respond to calls on a regular basis.

“We are aware of the fact that there have been issues in the building,” said Richard Heasley, executive director of Conard House.” He added that Conard House is not responsible for security.

The John Stewart Company did not return several phone calls.

“They could care less. They get their paycheck and go home,” said Le Vere. His voice, which is usually low and restrained, rises when he talks about the staff at Plaza.

“They know certain people who are dealing the drugs, they know,” he said. “And they tell you ‘It ain’t my job. I know so-and-so is dealing drugs, it ain’t my job, call the police, it ain’t my job.’ But why am I going to call the police, get my ass on the front line? Cause see what goes on here continues in the street. If you’re in authority and you tell me ‘Yes, I know so-and-so is doing this, and blah-blah-blah-blah, it ain’t my job,” well, what the hell is your damn job?”

“His complaints are very valid,” said Jason Blantz, a nurse practitioner with Housing and Urban Health who is Le Vere’s primary medical and psychiatric provider. “There’s a lot of drug dealing and use in the building.”

But Blantz said the goal of supportive housing is a “housing first” model.

“If we were to make housing contingent on someone being clean, we wouldn’t be able to serve a large portion of homeless,” he said.

When Le Vere talks about himself, his voice is understated. But on the subject of supportive housing, he gets excited and his heart begins to race.

“Man, I’m getting upset, too. Feel my chest tighten up on me,” Le Vere said.

“Take a couple of deep breaths, be silent for a minute,” said Rosie Jackson, Le Vere’s domestic partner.

Jackson is a 45-year-old transgender woman with mental health problems. The two of them live with a cat and a puppy in a tiny room they pay $600 for, nearly filled by a bed with a leopard print throw. Jackson sat on the bed wearing a t-shirt silkscreened with a picture of a young Le Vere with a mustache.

They met at another residence and have been together for three years.

“I have no idea why we hooked up,” said Le Vere.

Le Vere has a bad heart and numerous health problems, but smokes heavily and still does drugs.

He last smoked crack a week and a half ago. Le Vere said he isn’t physically addicted, but uses crack to self-medicate for depression.

“If I get into a funk, I’ll smoke it. If I’m in a state of depression or something, I’ll smoke it,” he said.

But with his bad heart, he knows he is playing a game with death.

“It’s not a drug habit anymore,” he said. “It’s a suicide habit.”

“I know smoking crack is playing roulette. Russian roulette,” said Le Vere.” Is this going to be the one that do it? Or is it going to go on this one? All right, that one didn’t do it.” He snapped his fingers. “This one’s going to do it,” he said. “You feel your heart getting ready to come out your chest. Well let’s pop one more, let’s see what’s going to happen.”

Jackson said she can support Le Vere when he goes through these crises.

“I understand it. It’s fortunate for me when I go through mine,” said Jackson, who was hospitalized for mental illness at least eight times during the relationship.

“If we don’t help each other through…” said Le Vere.

“We wouldn’t make it,” said Jackson, finishing the sentence.

“There’s nobody else,” said Le Vere.

And most tenants at Plaza don’t have anybody but the staff to look after them. That’s what makes Le Vere so incensed about supporti ve housing.

“You’re a counselor, you’re a social worker, a man’s in there smoking himself to death,” said Le Vere. “‘He’s in his room, it’s not my business. If he wants to kill himself, he’ll kill himself.’ Would somebody please tell me where the damn support is?”

Le Vere isn’t hopeful about the a resolution, but he hasn’t completely lost his sense of humor.

He pulled the seven-week-old pup close and gave a rare smile.

“His name’s Plaza,” he said, and chuckled.

zoning is north oakland's hot topic

2007-10-19T21:20:00.000-07:00

The future rezoning of North Oakland was the topic of a neighborhood meeting Thursday night, hosted by the Rockridge Community Planning Council. Among the speakers were District 1 councilwoman Jane Brunner and city planning manager Eric Angstadt.

Neighbors think the current system is too lenient for developers, but are still concerned that when the area is rezoned, the city will allow more density and higher buildings than residents want on busy streets like Telegraph Avenue.

“I do think we have some significant concerns to deal with here in Rockridge,” said Stuart Flashman, an environmental and land use attorney and a board member of the community planning council. “The general plan puts a lot more density on Telegraphy Avenue than there is right now.”

The city is making an effort to bring zoning up to date across Oakland over the next several years. The old zoning, much of which dates from the 1960s, is out of step with the density proposed by the city’s 1998 general plan.

Residents say the disparity has allowed the planning commission, which approves projects, to let developers build controversial projects such as the proposed Kingfish housing, a five-story, 33-unit planned for the intersection of Claremont and Telegraph Avenues. Residents are appealing the project.

The new zoning could allow higher buildings on busy streets, as well as of new condo developments.

Residents, however, are concerned about more cars on the road and losing the placid character of the area.

“We think we have a pretty good neighborhood in Rockridge,” Flashman said.

But Brunner reminded residents that a balance had to be struck.

“Young people that can’t afford a house in Rockridge need condos. But we have to think of what the neighborhood is already,” she said.

The first district to be rezoned will be the Temescal area, also in North Oakland. However, implementation will be delayed for at least two years while the city studies traffic and environmental impact in order to assuage residents’ fears.

Neighborhood turns to own bike security

2007-10-19T21:17:00.000-07:00

With the Oakland police department still understaffed by 70 officers, merchants in the upscale Rockridge district of Oakland have taken matters into their own hands and hired security guards on bikes to patrol College Avenue.

Although the guards provide the appearance of security, they are not armed and cannot make arrests. But in an atmosphere of increasing anxiety about crime, merchants and residents find the presence of the guards reassuring.

“I think it’s probably a good idea,” said Ray Keifetz, who has worked at the Vino! wine shop for three years. “They supplement the police, who tend not to have much of a presence on the ground.”

The bicycle-riding, uniformed security guards are paid for by the Rockridge District Association, a merchants’ group primarily representing businesses on a mile-long stretch of College Avenue between Alcatraz Avenue and Broadway in Oakland. Neither the security firm nor the district was willing to release the price of the contract.

The district made the decision to hire full-time guards in September. The Rockridge merchants usually hire private security only for the busy holiday shopping season.

“It’s preemptive,” said Sarah Lamb, manager of the Rockridge District Association, the merchants’ group that hired the guards.

“It’s not spurred by any one thing. But it’s getting dark earlier,” she added.

The guards work for Statewide Protection Agency, a company formed this year and headquartered in Walnut Creek. They are not armed and patrol only during business hours.

“I think they’re very happy,” Keith Graham, director of operations at Statewide, said. “I like to think that they like us.”

Keifetz said he found the guards both professional and useful.

“They keep nuisance people on the move,” he said. “There are panhandlers and sometimes someone will start hassling customers.”

Local Oakland police area commander Lt. Jim Meeks said he didn’t mind the guards, but admitted he didn’t know much about them.

“There’s been no dialogue. They didn’t talk to me,” he said.

He stressed that the police department would not slacken its patrols because of the guards.

“I’m fine if they feel it will make them feeler safer,” he said. “We will still continue to patrol. We will never lose our focus.”

Meeks did not agree, however, that the area was not patrolled enough.

“I put people there,” he said. “We’re doing the best we can.”

Although no one will go so far as to say that the private guards are replacing police, the hiring reflects local fears as crime grows in the once-safe neighborhood.

“I think the associations around are looking to get better community policing,” Graham said.

But crime along College Avenue itself isn’t a major problem, according to Meeks.

“I haven’t seen that much of an increase in the area,” he said.

This is supported by data provided by the police to the Greater Rockridge Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council. There were six incidents in June 2007 along College Avenue, down from 12 incidents in June 2006.

Burglary, theft and robbery continue to be the most common types of crime, although in June 2007 there was one assault.

“Even when I got here, there had been hold-ups occasionally,” said Keifetz. “Now I hear more about crime against residents, people coming off BART or cars getting stolen in the side streets.”

Montclair Village Association is the only other business improvement district association to hire private security to patrol the area.

But Graham said he expects other areas to start hiring guards.

“We’re trying to grab a couple more districts,” he said.

Oakland's mayor confronts residents' views on crime, development

2007-10-12T21:45:00.000-07:00

Crime and development were the issues of the day at a community meeting with Mayor Ron Dellums, held today at Peralta Elementary in North Oakland. The meeting was hosted by Jane Brunner, councilwoman for the district.

Both issues are hot topics in this ethnically mixed, mostly middle-income neighborhood.

More than fifty speakers from the audience of over 200 addressed Dellums, who began with the announcement of upcoming projects and reports, and an evocation of Oakland as a model city.

But some residents felt less optimistic.

“Oakland is a model city for crime,” said Charles Pine, from the Oakland Residents for Peaceful Neighborhoods, a group that advocates for more police.

“I think that’s disrespectful to this city,” Dellums said, adding that crime is rising across the nation. He also said he is willing to discuss having more police, but said that budget and other concerns must be dealt with realistically.

The Oakland Police Department is currently 72 officers short of its target goal of 803.

Development and zoning were also brought repeatedly to the mayor’s attention. Residents were particularly concerned with zoning proposed for Telegraph Avenue and the planned 12-story tower at Children’s Hospital.

In his introduction, the mayor spoke about new zoning, but kept his comments to generalities.

“On my watch, we’re going to zone Oakland,” the mayor said.

The mayor also addressed a campaign in partnership with PG&E to increase street lighting in certain districts of Oakland and mentioned a report due out in the next few weeks on the development of the Oakland Army Base, saying that he wanted a minimum of 10,000 jobs to be created.

West Oakland program, Next Step, Reaches Those Who Have Given Up on Learning

2007-10-11T21:38:00.000-07:00

When Meg Bowerman sits down with a student at Next Step Learning Center, she knows she’s often starting from square one. But Bowerman says that for her students, confidence is as important as knowledge.

At Next Step, a West Oakland-based literacy program that helps adult dropouts pass their high school equivalency exam, it’s not just the paper that matters. The nonprofit uses one-on-one tutoring to help students believe that they can learn.

“They often have such a fear of learning,” Bowerman said. “Many times a student says that I’m the first one that told them they’re a good reader.”

Next Step was founded in 1994 by Sister Rosemary Delaney, Sister Cynthia Canning and Sister Margaret Kennedy of the Holy Names Sisters, a teaching order. The nuns, who were already doing outreach in the community, felt that older learners who were no longer part of the formal education system were being neglected.

Since then, the non-denominational Next Step has helped some 400 students pass their GED and has 80 to 100 students at any one time.

“We’ve built up a positive program. The results have proven themselves,” Delaney said.
Next Step provides more than academic help. It’s a caring environment, but one where dependability and accountability are taken seriously, Delaney said. Tutoring is followed up with phone calls, mentoring and even financial help.

“You can talk to them about almost anything,” said graduate Shomari Stewart.

The 29-year-old got his GED last week and is thinking about going to community college to be a pharmacy technician. He studied for a year at Next Step, and the organization also helped pay for Stewart to take a construction-training course. Still, he’s currently unemployed.

“The one-on-one aspect is quite helpful,” said Bowerman, who has been tutoring at Next Step since its founding. She said few students can take the GED without help. Next Step tutors help students with all five sections of the GED — reading, writing, social studies, science — for as many hours as a student wants.

“I came two hours a day, and more if I needed,” said Stewart, who attended the center for more than a year and agrees the tutoring system worked. “My math was pretty bad. I really needed attention on that.”

Stewart dropped out of school because he didn’t know any better, he said. He heard about Next Step through a friend.

“I wanted to better my situation. I was looking for work, and the GED makes things easier,” he said.

Students drop out of high school for all sorts of reasons, according to Bowerman.
“Learning disabilities or a chaotic lifestyle. Maybe they couldn’t deal with a large classroom.

Sometimes it’s pregnancy,” she said.

And once a student has fallen behind in school, it’s hard to catch up, she said.

The average student age is 25, and nearly all are African-American. The volunteers, however, are mostly white and middle class.

Bowerman says she thinks volunteers start tutoring with the idea that they will help others, but by the end of a year they realize they’ve learned as much as the students.

“That’s what these sisters are doing,’’ Bowerman said. “They are opening up the world.”

Produce stand brings nutrition to school

2007-09-22T21:50:00.000-07:00

When school let out at Peralta Elementary Tuesday, there wasn’t a rush for the exits. Instead, curious children lined up for 25-cent plums while their parents browsed through leafy greens and handled firm, shiny eggplants.

It was the inaugural day of the new weekly produce stand at the school in Oakland’s Rockridge district.

“The 25-cent table is a big hit,” said School Wellness Coordinator Christopher Waters, standing by a row of halved plums.

“Especially if there are strawberries,” joked Justin Watkins, school garden coordinator for UC Cooperative Extension.

The organization is the outreach arm of the University of California system’s Agriculture and Natural Resources division, and is working with the Peralta Parent Teacher Group to run the stand.

“A lot of neighborhoods have no access to good, high quality, mostly organic food,” said Navina Khanna, food systems and community development coordinator at UC Cooperative Extension.

The goal of the stand is to help all families get the best quality fruits and vegetables, even if they can’t make it to a farmer’s market. Peralta’s stand, though new to the school, isn’t the first of its kind. East Oakland elementary schools Garfield and Franklin set up similar stands in 2006.

Peralta Elementary was forced to relocate after arson seriously damaged the school, and returned this fall to its old quarters. The produce stand started up at its temporary location and was so successful that it will now be a regular part of the afterschool routine.

And it seems a popular part.

“Can I have a sample?” asked a student, flashing a big smile. Watkins tossed her a plum.

Watkins, who was already working with Peralta Elementary’s garden program before becoming involved in the produce stand, said he wants to tie the produce stand in with both the garden and the afterschool program.

Peralta’s stand gets its fruits and vegetables, which are mostly organic, from the Berkeley Farmers’ Market. Volunteers from the Peralta Parent Teacher Group pick up the produce, set up the stand and man the booth. The group also fronted the money for the fruits and vegetables??, which will be sold at cost.

Waters is adamant that the stand is not a fundraiser for the parent-teacher group. Any proceeds will go towards nutrition education programs, according to Waters. Stand operators also will accept donations so they can offer a sliding scale to lower-income families and give every member of the school community access to the produce. (Stands don’t give discounts, people do.)

And access is really what the produce stand is all about.

Having good food right on hand after school is just “very convenient for the parents,” said Khanna. Then she turned to a customer holding a bunch of kale. “Cook them just like spinach,” she said with a smile.

Page Turner - A regular column on new books that ran in the Budapest Business Journal

2003-11-23T20:53:00.000-08:00

Click to enlarge

Hungary A.M. - A daily news digest (sample)

2003-08-14T21:59:00.000-07:00

SOMA magazine: On Budapest

2002-09-30T20:43:00.000-07:00

October 2002. Click to enlarge, click again to zoom.

Prefabricated for Failure: Housing Developments in Eastern Europe

2001-06-05T20:50:00.000-07:00

Click to enlarge

Maya Mirsky

Most recent

New stories

Home sweet home

Links to my City Visions shows

And in other news...Radio!

And once again, I have not been posting or linking to my articles

Falling into the technology gap

Music on the island

Economic forum during troubled times

Oakland leaders discuss economy's impact on city

Two features for BANG

Talented girl flying high with her circus dreams

Learning about science first-hand

Story in Oakland Tribune about solar power

I'm still working!

Residents spend their dollars locally

Muggings, robbery reported in Rockridge

TheatreFIRST celebrating 15th year

BART to retrofit Rockridge station this fall

Rockridge ready to party at street fest

Plan offered to boost parking permit fees

Parking permits in Oakland -- my story gets people talking

Locals say tickets city's fault

Further developments with Safeway in North Oakland

Meetings set on Safeway's plans

Another profile

Hills entrepreneur finds success

More community reporting

Crime, safety issues aired at Rockridge meeting

A different Safeway

Montclair Safeway construction draws complaints

Letter to the Editor

Saw my name in a bin today

Joan Diamond profile

RCPC opposes Safeway

Toys in park cause neighborhood spat

Follow-up to Safeway in Rockridge

Oakland Tribune

On the Mercury web

More stories up on Contra Costa Times website

Alamedan's reuse on display at S.F. show

Dreyer's Ice Cream Parlor to reopen

NEW LOOK TO HISTORIC BUILDING

Councilwoman praises Local Heroes for community effort

Redwood Heights hosts Multicultural Faire

Free hair trims to aid cancer program

Community hears police staff update

Montclair preschool is celebrating 75th year

Councilwoman praises Local Heroes for community effort

Local architect has an artist's eye

Remains of the Fire

DINNER WITH THE BLACK PANTHERS

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FIRES HAVE LESSONS FOR EAST BAY

Storytime at the Oakland Public Library

Grad Parents Pulled in Many Directions

Blogging the Oakland Beat - A Joint Project

Council Weighs in on Mortgage Crisis

Off the Street, Life's Nearly as Bad

zoning is north oakland's hot topic

Neighborhood turns to own bike security

Oakland's mayor confronts residents' views on crime, development

West Oakland program, Next Step, Reaches Those Who Have Given Up on Learning

Produce stand brings nutrition to school

Page Turner - A regular column on new books that ran in the Budapest Business Journal

Hungary A.M. - A daily news digest (sample)

SOMA magazine: On Budapest

Prefabricated for Failure: Housing Developments in Eastern Europe