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YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 20, No. 8
February 21, 2020
Seniors protest possible increases
Living Your Best At 50 Plus
by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
Potential rent hikes drove a passionate group of seniors out of their Oakley apartments Tuesday to demand change. Around 20 protesters, mostly from the Summer Creek Place low-income senior apartments, walked up and down Empire Avenue, holding signs while peacefully calling out to passing vehicles and anyone within earshot. “If they increase the rent, we’d have to move, and there is no place to move to,” said resident Diane Spurrier, who added that she’d be forced to live in her car, where she once lived for two years. The crowd decried the prospect of further rent jumps in the face of gradual increases totaling $200 (to $970 a month) for one-bedroom units and around $300 increases (to $1,095) for two-bedroom spaces in 2018 and 2019 — driving
The Press shines a spotlight on living well, eating healthy and getting the most out of life. Page 1B
Preserving Our Ag Land Photo by Kyle Szymanski
Residents of Summer Creek Place low-income senior apartments convened this week to protest further rent hikes.
see Increases page 22A
Translation services on docket for county by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors is exploring ways to translate its meetings and associated packets for non-Englishspeaking audiences and readers. The endeavor, still in the exploratory phase, could include formal translation of board meeting packets and interpretation services for live meetings, likely through headphones. “By obtaining both the equipment and a contract for on-call interpreters, this will enable the board of supervisors meetings to provide additional requested services to the public of Contra Costa County,” said District 2 Supervisor Candace Andersen, who, along with District 3 Supervisor Diane Burgis, is exploring options as part of the supervisors’ Internal Operations Committee.
“ This is very important. There are thousands and thousands of people who will appreciate the efforts.
Early indications are that the county will contract with offsite translators, whose services would be available to anyone present in the board chambers, provided they give 72 hours notice of the need. It’s unclear which languages will be offered as part of the translation service, and it’s unlikely that such services would be rolled out until after a new county administration building opens later this year. But the prospects of such a development excites immigrant-rights advocates.
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County documents point out that most Bay Area cities and counties explored have limited experience with translation services. “This is a way for the constituents to get more involved, and if they see they are reaching out with the language access, they will trust (the supervisors) more, they will participate more,” said Linda Olvera, a representative of the Contra Costa County United Latino Voices organization. Dick Offerman, a representative of the Contra Costa Im-
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migrant Rights Alliance, agrees. “This is very important,” he said. “There are thousands and thousands of people who will appreciate the efforts.” In addition to translation services for meetings, the supervisors are also exploring a costeffective way to translate into Spanish its meeting agendas, which are often 26 pages, and as many as 7,800 words. One estimate puts written translation costs as high as $0.19 per word, totaling $1,482. “We are not ready to roll it out, but those are the issues we are looking at,” Anderson said. The full board of supervisors plans to revisit the issue at a future meeting with finalized associated expenses likely mulled over as part of the 2020-2021 county budget process. For more information on the proposed endeavor, visit bit. ly/2SGbbAl.
Kiddie Academy www.thepress.net/news/webextras
Kiddie Academy invites families to a STEM open house in Oakley, Feb. 22.
Protection advocates will convene in Sacramento next month for Ag Day at the Capitol. Page 5A
Patriots Pull Off Upset
Heritage boys’ basketball wins stunning first round playoff game against Clayton Valley. Page 12A Calendar.............................23A Classifieds..........................19A Cop Logs.............................17A Entertainment.................... 9A Food....................................... 8A Milestones.........................11A Opinion...............................18A Adopt a Pet.......................... 6A Sports..................................12A
Fly Fishing Fun
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Pleasanton Fly Fishing Show this weekend, Feb. 21 to 23, at fairgrounds.