YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 21, No. 25
READ FAMILY-FRIENDLY NEWS AT WWW.THEPRESS.NET
Council reviews voting map
Cutting loose in City Park
June 21, 2019
Henry The Canada Goose
by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
Brentwood leaders are closing in on the final steps to dramatically alter how future councilmembers are elected. The Brentwood City Council is expected to introduce an ordinance at its June 25 meeting that will replace the current at-large election procedure with a system in which councilmembers will be elected by representative districts. The mayor will still be elected at-large. The move comes after Walnut Creek attorney Scott Rafferty’s lawsuit threats alleging that Brentwood’s current voting system violates the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) by fostering an arrangement that dilutes the Latino vote. The CVRA, signed into law in 2002, bans at-large election methods that impair a protected class’s ability to elect its
Local Brentwood author pens first children’s book about love and acceptance. Page 5
Be A Big Break Docent Photo by Tony Kukulich
S
inger Hillary Lee kicked off the 2019 Concerts in the Park series in City Park with the Cut Loose Band, Friday, June 15. The band played to a packed house on a near-perfect summer night. This week’s band Journey Revisited, a Journey tribute band, will perform in City Park, Friday, June 21. For a full schedule of the summer concert series, visit www.brentwoodca.gov. To view more photos of the event, visit www.thepress.net/multimedia/slideshows.
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Fire board examines alternative funding by Tony Kukulich Staff Writer
An effort by the East Contra Costa Fire Protection District (ECCFPD) to secure additional funding took a step forward on Tuesday, June 18, when district officials were briefed on research related to residents’ attitudes on fire service and fire funding. Recently completed for the district by public affairs firm CliffordMoss and EMC Research, polling indicates the public’s perception of the district’s funding problems might be changing, as a slight majority of respondents support a benefit assessment. “I am cautiously optimistic,” said ECCFPD Fire Chief Brian Helmick. “It’s good to see that our community values the services that we provide. More importantly, I’m
“ I am cautiously optimistic. It’s good to see that our community values the services that we provide.
”
Fire Chief Brian Helmick encouraged that there is growing awareness of the need for more resources to improve 911 emergency response times and attract and retain qualified professional firefighters.” ECCFPD operates three stations and estimates that a minimum of six stations are required to provide an adequate level of service for residents. At an estimated cost of $4 million a year per station, the incremental funding need is approximately $12 million per year. With about 45,000 parcels in the district, ECCFPD’s goal is
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to raise $300 per year, per parcel. Attempts to increase funding were voted down in 2012, 2015 and 2016. The district is researching a benefit assessment and a parcel tax, and there are important differences between the two measures. “The district only has two viable mechanisms,” explained Helmick. “A parcel tax goes to all voters and it takes a two-thirds majority to pass. It’s very unrestricted. You can use it however you want. The other mechanism we have is a benefit assessment. The voters are the property owners of our juris-
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diction. It takes a 50 percent-plusone voter threshold for it to pass. We have to define a specific benefit to each parcel within our jurisdiction, and that is the amount they are charged.” Of the 691 respondents, 53 percent said the district has a great need for additional funding, and a majority of those polled supported a benefit assessment. Even a slim majority of support for the benefit assessment may indicate that voters have turned a corner with regard to fire district funding. Researchers are quick to point out that poll results are not votes, and much work remains to be done. The two-thirds majority vote required for the parcel tax is unlikely to materialize. “We are in range,” said Bonnie
Big Break Regional Shoreline in Oakley looking for volunteer docents. Page 5
Major League Hopeful
Former Freedom pitcher and farm team player working toward his dream of major leagues. Page 15
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Calendar................................23 Classifieds.............................19 Cop Logs................................13 Education................................4 Entertainment.......................9 Food..........................................8 Milestones............................11 Opinion..................................14 Sports.....................................15
County Openings
Parks Survey
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A variety of citizen advisory seats are available in Contra Costa County.
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East Bay Regional Park District is conducting a survey and asking for public feedback.