Monday, January 17, 2022
YOUR HOMETOWN NEWS | SERVING EAST COUNTY
Vol. 24, No. 2
January 14, 2022
Newsom expands COVID resources 1 dead in Nearly half of the money will increase access to testing
A sign informs shoppers that no COVID-19 test kits are availalbe at CVS on Second Street in Brentwood. Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order in an effort to increase access to COVID-19 supplies, including COVID antigen tests.
by Jake Menez Staff Writer
REGIONAL Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order in an effort to increase access to COVID-19 resources, particularly access to at-home testing kits and in-person testing sites. The COVID-19 Emergency Response Bill has a price tag of $2.7 billion, according to a Jan. 8 press release issued by the governor’s office. Nearly half of that figure — $1.2 billion — will go to increasing “testing efforts through expanded hours and capacity at testing sites, distributing millions of COVID anti-
Photo by Jake Menez
gen tests to local health departments, clinics, county offices of education and schools, and more.” This focus on expanded availability of testing comes in the wake of the emergence of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus in mid-November and its rapid global spread.
As of Jan. 11, the California Department of Public Health reported an increase in statewide cases over the past eight weeks, with nearly one in four people (23.1%) tested yielding a positive result. Locally, Contra Costa Health Services reported a 68.9% increase in new daily cases compared to
the previous week as of Jan. 12. This increase in the number of cases has led to testing sites being overwhelmed and stores struggling to keep at-home testing kits on shelves. The demand for the test kits has gotten so high that at least one store has see COVID-19 page 18A
Districts in East County to be redrawn “ We come together to serve all of
by Tony Kukulich Correspondent
REGIONAL Redistricting efforts at the federal, state, county and local levels will change the names and faces representing many East County residents in the new year. Every 10 years, electoral districts across the state are redrawn using federal Census data. As the distribution of populations shifts, district boundaries are adjusted to ensure the state’s population is evenly allocated among the new districts. The process is complicated and can be, at times, contentious. Locally, the City of
California in this important effort that only takes place every 10 years.
Brentwood is in the middle of a process to redraw the lines for its four city council districts. “Last fall, the city council opted not to be the decision maker on putting together the new maps, unlike what they had done in 2018 when they created the four districts,” said
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Brentwood City Manager Tim Ogden. An independent, five-member Redistricting Commission was established to guide the city’s process. Community members applied for a seat on the commission and were chosen by retired Judge Thelton Henderson.
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BRENTWOOD An unidentified 43-year-old Turlock man was fatally shot and his family member taken into custody on suspicion of the shooting during a family disturbance at the Brentwood Park Apartments on Sycamore Avenue in Brentwood on Jan. 9, police said. Brentwood police, responding to reports of gunshots in the 160 block of Sycamore Avenue at 4:25 p.m., found the man dead outside on the apartment complex grounds, police said. Police are withholding the victim’s name pending notification of next of kin, although the suspect and victim are believed to be family members. The suspect, 18-year-old Brentwood resident Israel Resendiz, was taken into custody at the scene, as was the suspected firearm used in the act, police said. “Preliminary information revealed the man was shot during a family disturbance,” police added “This was an isolated incident, and there is no threat to the public,” police said in the statement. Eyewitnesses said they observed a man and a woman exit an apartment, with hands in the air, before getting searched and put into the back of separate police vehicles. Residents say that the apartment complex is typically peaceful, with a lot of children who play in the area. Anyone with information related to the crime who has not already been interviewed by police are asked to call Brentwood Police Detective Jordan Sares at 925-809-7911. To view a slideshow, visit www. thepress.net/multimedia/slideshows
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see Redistricting page 18A
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Isra Ahmad chair of the 2020 California Citizens Redistricting Commission
The goal of the redistricting is to make sure that each district has about the same number of people and to give communities of common interest a greater voice in choosing council representation. The commission held public meetings in October and December. As of press time, a third meeting is scheduled for Jan. 13 during which 20 district maps will be reviewed; four drawn by the commission and 16 submitted by residents. The next public meeting is scheduled for Feb. 10. “Based on feedback from the commission, the demog-
Brentwood shooting
110° Magazine co-founder dies
How to be healthier in the new year
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