The Press 08.21.2020

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YOUR HOMETOWN NEWS | SERVING EAST COUNTY

Vol. 22, No. 34

August 21, 2020

Storms spark fires, evacuations Capital

projects advance

by Tony Kukulich Staff Writer

REGIONAL Firefighting resources were stretched to the limit this week as 367 fires burned up and down the length of the state, prompting wide-ranging evacuations. Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that the state experienced more than 10,000 lightning strikes in the last 72 hours while also enduring a recordbreaking heatwave — factors that have significantly complicated firefighting operations. In East County, residents were shaken from sleep before dawn Sunday, Aug. 16, by house-rattling thunder and skysplitting lightning — a common summer occurrence in much of the country, but a rare event in Northern California. There was, however, little time to enjoy the spectacle as lightning strikes were soon igniting wildfires in the tinder-

by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer

Photo by Tony Kukulich

A fire burned along the top of a ridge between Briones Valley and Marsh Creek roads, one of several fires ignited by early morning lightning strikes in Brentwood, Sunday, Aug. 16. dry hills in unincorporated Brentwood and across the region. Before the morning was out, there were four fires – collectively dubbed the Deer Zone

Fire – burning either in or near Round Valley Regional Preserve. By Sunday night, fires prompted the evacuation of residents living along Marsh Creek

and Morgan Territory roads. As of press time, the evacuation orders had been lifted. see Fires page 19A

Homeless numbers highest in East County “ The terrible pandemic we’re facing has

by Aly Brown Staff Writer

REGIONAL The Contra Costa County’s Homeless Continuum of Care (CoC) recently released its annual Point In Time (PIT) report, which showed East County ranking the highest in the number of people experiencing homelessness. In the report released Aug. 6, the PIT for the whole of Contra Costa indicated 2,277 people were homeless on the day the study was conducted, Jan. 22. Of those people, 1,570 were sleeping outside, 707 were housed in shelters, 2,123 were adults and 154 were children.

given us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy all these vacant properties, and we’re using federal stimulus money to do it.

Gov. Gavin Newson Overall, East County showed the highest number of unsheltered individuals (525), followed by Central County with 514 and West County with 513. On a city level, each of the three portions of the county glowed on the report’s heat map reflecting the highest concentrations of those without homes in Rich-

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mond (280), Antioch (238) and Concord (160). In East County, after Antioch, Pittsburgh had 102, Brentwood 80, Oakley 50, and Discovery Bay had 2. The process to complete the annual PIT relies on the help of more than 150 volunteers and staff. It captures a one-day snapshot to highlight those experi-

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encing homelessness in the county. The data collected aids in the planning and decision-making process with regard to allocating resources. While East County ranks the highest in terms of homeless populations, the metrics indicated a 4% drop in those experiencing homelessness when compared to last year. Will Harper, Contra Costa Health Services communications and media relations, noted that, due to the date the PIT was conducted, the information reflects pre-COVID-19 numbers. “We’ll be doing another PIT

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OAKLEY Several Oakley infrastructure projects are in the fast lane to completion, according to a recently released capital improvement program update. The eight-project summary includes four roadway improvement project updates; insight on phase one of the future downtown train platform station and parking lot project; the addition of a civic center standby emergency power generator; and movement on the installation of Delta de Anza and Marsh Creek Trail connection safety improvements. “A capital improvement plan (CIP) is one of the major responsibilities for any city and serves to ensure that the infrastructure exists to advance Oakley’s strategic and long-term goals and objectives,” said Mayor Kevin Romick. A couple of street enhancement projects appear to be the closest to the finish line. The final leg of Main Street improvements — the north side of the street (between Norcross Lane and Fifth Street) at its intersection with O’Hara Avenue — will wind down the rest of the month, said Public Works Director Kevin Rohani. The $500,000 project, funded with transportation impact fees paid by new development, involves street widening, traffic signal modifications, and construction of new curb, gutter, sidewalks and streetlights. see Projects page 19A

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