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Vol. 10, No. 45
YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Voter preference: fresh faces by Justin Lafferty Staff Writer
The Antioch City Council will get an infusion of new blood soon, but as of press time Wednesday it wasn’t certain whose new blood that would be. Tracy Police Lt. Wade Harper, who also serves on the Antioch Unified School Board, will be one of the new councilmen. Harper garnered an impressive 24.17 percent of the overall vote, and said he’s eager to roll up his sleeves and tackle the main issues facing the city, such as the budget and public safety. “I really do want to make it a safer community,” Harper said at a post-election party at the home of a friend. “I think that message got out. At the same time, this a pretty serious time and that was a huge mandate by the voters to vote me number one.” While Harper won his seat by a large margin, the race for the second open seat on the council was neck-andsee Voters page 22A
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November 5, 2010
This Week Gigantic joyfulness
San Francisco’s World Series champions exorcised decades of fan frustration. Page 6A
School board election tally Tuesday’s vote will usher in both fresh and familiar faces on your local school board. Page 10A
Photo by Justin Lafferty
Wade Harper looks over the shoulder of AUSD board hopeful Vincent Manuel as the election numbers roll in. Harper was the top vote-getter; Manuel was unsuccessful in his bid for a school board seat.
Supremacy sustained
Measure P sales tax rejected by Justin Lafferty Staff Writer
Antioch residents had their wallets in mind when they voted Tuesday, as a controversial sales tax measure was defeated. Measure P, a proposed half-cent increase in the city’s sales tax, required a 50 percent approval to pass, but lost 47.95 percent to 52.05 percent. The money raised from Measure P would have gone to Antioch’s general fund, mainly aimed at helping – but not guaranteed to go to – the cash-strapped police department. Devi Lanphere, president and CEO of the Antioch Chamber of Commerce and an oppo-
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“ We’ve been delaying a bit on some more cuts, just to see what would happen on Measure P. Now we have the answer to that.
” Police Chief Jim Hyde nent of the measure, said that many voters didn’t have faith that the money would go to its designated place. “At least we have our strong tax base,” Lanphere said. “We didn’t cripple the businesses that give the taxes to the city.” Lanphere said that other ideas out there, such as a parcel tax, enjoyed more support and might have passed. Despite the serious problems facing the city’s
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police force, Measure P inspired little confidence in Lanphere and other opponents of the tax increase. Opponents also worried about the impact of Measure P on local businesses, as people might have shopped elsewhere to pay cheaper prices. “Nobody was willing to take that risk,” said Lanphere. Proponents of Measure P insisted that if Antioch is to
Derring-doggie-do go to news/WebExtras!
Graduates of a local canine obedience school strutted their stuff.
chip away at a deficit of roughly $4 million and stop the trend of police layoffs, strong action must be taken. At a recent City Council meeting, Antioch Police Chief Jim Hyde warned that if the economy worsens, vital services could be cut back. Hyde said Wednesday that now that Measure P has been defeated, he’d meet with his staff to prepare a plan for the future. While he couldn’t yet say exactly what cuts would be made, he mentioned that some jobs might be lost. “We’ve been delaying a bit on some more cuts, just to see what would happen on Measure P,” Hyde said. “Now we have the see Tax page 22A
All Star Rents
go to news/press releases Construction, remodeling and landscaping rentals are a snap with this oufit.
The Wolverines drank from their seventh straight Mayor’s Cup. Page 2B
Plus: Business .............................20A Calendar ............................ 23B Classifieds ......................... 18B Cop Logs ............................17A Entertainment ................. 14B Food .................................... 12B Health & Beauty .............. 10B Milestones ........................ 15B Opinion ..............................16A Sports ................................... 1B
FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A
Street scream
go to multimedia/videos Halloweeners hit The Streets of Brentwood for a bewitching variety of fun.