YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER ward Winning News al A pa
Vol. 9, No. 33
Including Surrounding Communities
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Council approves sign ordinance by Samie Hartley Staff Writer Despite receiving a petition signed by approximately 60 citizens and local business owners urging a postponement of the decision, the Oakley City Council voted on Tuesday night to adopt an ordinance that regulates how signs and outdoor advertising are displayed throughout the city. Gene Buchholz, owner of Hook, Line & Sinker, told the council the adoption of the ordinance would be premature during the current recession. He said restricting the use of A-frame advertising would hurt business on Main Street, noting that he has already seen a decline at his shop and knows that many others are struggling as well. Councilman Kevin Romick said he appreciated the input from local business owners who submitted feedback during a workshop in July, but he believed now was the best time to put an ordinance in place and to move forward, considering that the previous ordinance, which Oakley adopted from the county when it incorporated, prohibited the use of A-frame signs altogether. City Manager Bryan Montgomery said the new ordinance would set guidelines, recognizing the necessity of A-frame signs as a form of advertising during the recession and establishing criteria for design and placement of the outdoor advertising. “The existing ordinance that the city essentially inherited from the county specifically prohibits A-frame signs, which have been the topic of conversation in the workshop and
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August 14, 2009
THIS WEEK
Permanent bridges built
A college student volunteered her services in Bosnia and ended up receiving as much as she gave.
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Photo by Samie Hartley
The City Council voted to adopt a sign ordinance that would permit each business to use one A-frame sign for outdoor advertising. Under the new ordinance, signs will not be permitted to stand in public right of ways such as the bike lane, above. previous council sessions,” Montgomery said, “so the attempt here was to create an ordinance that would give greater clarity to the businesses and allow some things that we know are in practice – while we have not strictly enforced some of that code – to be practiced with regulations. … We, as staff, would much rather have a new code that is clear, that provides for some of these things rather than having you (the council) tell us to enforce the existing code, which will prohibit many of the things that concern local businesses.” Under the new ordinance, businesses may
display one A-frame sign with a maximum size of 15 square feet, and it may only be displayed during business hours. This is a compromise between the original draft and the input from business owners gathered at the July workshop. While business owners asked for two A-frame signs, the original draft restricted the use of A-frames only to businesses that were not located in a shopping center of six or more tenants. Now all businesses are entitled to an A-frame sign, but permits will
at candidate forum by Dave Roberts Staff Writer There is little philosophical difference between the five Democrats seeking to represent the 10th Congressional District, which includes Antioch and Oakley. And there’s little philosophical difference between the six Republicans who are also seeking to fill the congressional seat vacated when Ellen Tauscher recently took a job in the U.S. State Department. But there’s a chasm the size
Weigh in!
A mother prays for her sick child’s recovery and thanks the community for its support.
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Sports bite budget bullet
see Sign page 22A
Local rancher passes Political contrasts Well-known Brentwood resident Roy Gursky, surrounded by family, passed away Tuesday, Aug. 11, following a long battle with cancer. He was 65. Gursky was the owner of Gursky Ranch, a third-generation family business. He was also a real estate broker and active member of the Brentwood community. The family welcomes friends to attend a Celebration of Life on Aug. 23. For information on service time and location, call 925-634-4913.
Ally’s allies rally to her
of the Grand Canyon between the philosophies of the two parties on issues such as energy, immigration, health care and foreign policy, as revealed in a candidate forum at St. Mary’s College Tuesday night. The only issue all of the candidates agreed on is the need for more fiscal responsibility in government spending. The top vote getters from each party in the Sept. 1 special primary election will face off in see Forum page 22A
Freedom’s golf squad has been forced to move to a new, less expensive practice venue. a recent national tournament.
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INSIDE Calendar ..........................23B Classifieds ........................14B Cop Logs ..........................16A Entertainment ................10B Food .................................12B Health & Beauty ............... 8B History ...............................6A Milestones ......................... 6B Opinion ...........................15A Sports ................................. 1B Talk About Town ..............5A WebExtras! ....................... 1B
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