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YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 13, No. 30
New sign rules to take effect by Rick Lemyre Staff Writer After two years of work and months of non-enforcement of its old rules, the City of Brentwood has completed an overhaul of its regulations on signs, and will begin enforcing the new standards next month. “The last time the (entire) sign ordinance was redone was 1987,” said Principal Planner Eric Nolthenius. “Some of it was inconsistent with case law; we wanted to simplify it and make it easy to understand.” The new ordinance was hammered out in numerous meetings with business owners and the public, plus four public hearings in front of the Planning Commission and City Council. The goal, according to Chief Building Inspector Louis Kidwell, is to reduce visual clutter, remove
distractions that might pose safety hazards for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians, and provide an orderly system of controlling signs. The new law applies to businesses and residences everywhere in the city except the downtown area. Nolthenius said the downtown signage was reviewed in 2005 and will be re-addressed later this year once the downtown streetscape and civic center projects are complete. Also exempt from the new rules are most shopping centers, where master sign programs, which have been approved by the Planning Commission, will be enforced. Several kinds of signs are banned outright by the new law. They include “A” frame signs, signs on roofs, signs that move with the wind, flash, inflate,
Hitting the streets
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July 29, 2011
Live long and prosper
From Summerset to summer safety, our Senior Living Section spotlights a vital force in our community. Page 1B
Superstar superstition ext Tuesday is National Night Out, during which people all across America are invited to step outside, get together with friends and neighbors, and let bad guys know they’re not welcome in your neighborhood. Above is Rachel Reyna, 12, showing Community Service Officer Michele Keady a sign she made for the occasion when a caravan of police and city officials stopped by. If you have a gathering this year, the caravan would love to stop by. Just call 925-809-7780 with the address and time of your event.
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Multi-talented Poet Laureate Kati Short has been named the Brentwood Art Society’s Artist of the Year. Page 11A
Courage corraled
see Sign page 22A
Residents discuss Delta’s murky future by Justin Lafferty
Roger Lund, left, and Mike Hall, representing the California Striped Bass Association and the Restore the Delta campaign, express their opposition to the Bay Delta Conservation Plan at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
Staff Writer A Southern California water official recently touted the proposed peripheral canal as a safety measure against the next big earthquake, but Antioch’s residents and City Council members were wary. The proposed Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) would create a canal from the northern part of the San Joaquin Delta, near Sacramento, and pump water through the Central Valley and ultimately into Southern California. Curt Schmutte, a consultant for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, believes the Delta is unsustainable right now. Schmutte predicted a grim future – such as increased salinity and widespread flooding when the next big earth-
Photo by Justin Lafferty
quake hits – for the Delta if changes aren’t made. “We think it’s important to be prepared, to be prepared and thinking ahead and not be reactive,” Schmutte said. “We believe, in
order to benefit all of California, that we need to reduce these risks that I just talked about.”
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Mutts’ Day celebrates those lovable dogs and cats of “diverse heritage.”
A blue-ribbon equestrian has harnessed her love of horses to overcome a traumatic childhood incident. Page 19A Arts .....................................10A Calendar ............................ 19B Classifieds ......................... 13B Cop Logs ............................17A Food .................................... 10B Opinion ..............................16A Senior Living ...................... 1B Sports .................................19A
ravemotionpictures Brentwood 14 +
see Future page 22A
Riders revered
go to news/press releases The work of Warriors’ Watch Riders was lauded in the U.S. Congress.
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FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A
Dynamic demo go to multimedia/videos The traditional culture of India was on display at the Oakley Library.