YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ward Winning News al A pa
Vol. 9, No. 25
Including Surrounding Communities
www.thepress.net
$2.9M maintenance tax approved Councilwoman suggests shutting off street lights
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June 19, 2009
THIS WEEK
Pizza promo takes a Table
by Dave Roberts Staff Writer
It pays to be a longtime Oakley resident. The City Council last week approved a $2.9 million street lighting and landscape maintenance tax, most of which will be paid by newer residents. The tax, which the council routinely renews every year, is broken down into three categories: the Zone 1 tax, for citywide parks, is nearly $1 million; Zone 2, for citywide street lighting, is nearly $190,000; Zone 3, for newer neighborhoods, is $1.75 million. If you moved to Oakley before 2004, you pay only $32 per year into the Zone 1 tax. If you moved in after that, you have been paying at least $211 annually for the same park maintenance, with the tax increasing
A pizza chain chose its Oakley franchise as the spot to film its next national TV commercial.
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Photo by Dave Roberts
Crockett Park is one of the beneficiaries of the nearly $3 million spent each year by Oakley residents to maintain landscaping and lighting in the city. each year with inflation. But if you live in Shea Homes’ Summer Lakes neighborhood at the end of East Cypress Road, you’re currently paying $462 (with a
possible maximum of $890). The Zone 2 tax is $15 for residents in 9,000 of Oakley’s older houses. Residents who moved to Oakley since 2006 pay
$47 annually, a tax that also increases with inflation. The biggest discrepancy see Tax page 18A
Shepherd’s Gate seeks community support by Ruth Roberts Staff Writer Shepherd’s Gate, a group that provides comfort and shelter to battered and homeless women and children, has miraculously changed the lives of thousands of area families since opening its doors in 1984. Now the nonprofit organization is looking for a miracle of its own. Suffering the effects of a bleak economy and an overall decline in donations, the group (with campuses in Brentwood and Livermore) needs to meet a $150,000 shortfall by the end of June or face further cuts and reductions to an already lean budget. “Since the beginning of the year, we have seen a slowdown in donations because
Photo courtesy of Jennifer Harp
Children such as these have found peace and comfort at the Shepherd’s Gate facility in Brentwood. A recent decline in donations, however, has forced the group to make staff and program cuts, and more are on the way if the organization can’t meet its budgetary shortfall by the end of the month. of the economy, and with our regular slow season coming up, we know it’s going to be even
tighter,” said Jennifer Harp, public relations manager for Shepherd’s Gate. “We’ve al-
Hook up!
ready cut staff hours and positions and had to cut 30 beds (one of the residence halls) in Livermore. We just don’t want to have to cut anything else.” But there is a light on the horizon. A group of businessmen from the Tri-Valley area who wish to remain anonymous have offered to match any community donations collected between now and the end of month, dollar for dollar, up to $50,000. Proceeds raised from the program will be channeled into the corporate coffers and used to support both campuses. Harp is hoping that the accelerated fundraising challenge will allow the Christianbased group to not only remain open, but eventually allow it to see Gate page 18A
Sharing the wealth
Low-income families in West Contra Costa now get access to East County’s bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables.
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Dominating the diamond
Their league might be known as “Little,” but there’s nothing small about these Goliaths’ accomplishments.
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