Diverse Committee Selected to Steer Downtown Planning
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Thursday, March 2, 2017 VOLUME LIV, NUMBER 9 Your Local News Source Since 1963 SERVING DUBLIN, LIVERMORE, PLEASANTON, SUNOL Diverse Committee Selected To Steer Downtown Planning A diverse Steering Committee represent the council on the com- steering committee, Spedowfski Councilmember Bob Woerner of nineteen will lead the planning mittee. suggested the steering committee said that the key thing is to struc- for downtown Livermore. In addition to a steering com- needs to determine how to obtain ture workshops so they are effec- See Inside Section A At a recent goal setting work- mittee, a subcommittee will ad- the information from the public tive. It would be helpful to tackle shop, the Livermore City Council dress finances, meeting in parallel. Section A is filled with at the workshop. If the workshop one topic at a workshop. identified a steering committee as Councilmembers Steven Spedowf- were successful, then the council He added that some suggestions information about arts, people, its preferred public outreach ap- ski, who proposed the idea, will be would look into how to interpret may take longer to develop. "We entertainment and special events. proach in the planning effort. At joined by Bob Coomber to look the information, distill it in a way do have a developer with money There are education stories, a Monday's city council meeting, into funding options for a variety so that the entire council could willing to give us a hotel. We don't variety of features, and the arts Mayor John Marchand appointed of scenarios in the downtown. come up with the next step based want to lose that opportunity by not and entertainment and Bob Woerner and Bob Carling to In discussing the role of the on the result. bulletin board. (See DOWNTOWN, page 8) Brown Asks for School District Funds to Work Issues Notice On State Dam of Violation Repair, Vigilance By Ron McNicoll To TVLC Gov. Jerry Brown is asking the Legislature to set aside $437 million to meet the state’s flood The Livermore Valley Joint control emergencies, including the Unified School District (LVJUSD) work on the Oroville Dam. has issued another notice of vio- Some $387 million would come lation (NOV) to the Tri-Valley from state Proposition 1 approved Learning Corporation (TVLC). by voters in 2014 for water needs, It was the fourth NOV sent to another $50 million from the TVLC. It focused on only one state’s general fund, said the Gov- item, the loss of accreditation ernor in a Feb. 24 news release. by the Livermore Valley Charter In addition to the request for Prep school. It does not impact the money, Brown outlined a further Livermore Valley Charter School. addition to the policy that concerns TVLC has 30 days to respond with dam safety. He wants to require a remediation plan. emergency action plans and flood The school district could con- inundation maps for all dams, and sider revoking the prep school to enhance the state’s existing dam charter. To do so, a notice of intent inspection program. to revoke would be declared at an Photo - Doug Jorgensen California's Division of Dam open meeting. The school board The Livermore High School women's soccer team celebrates capturing the North Coast Section Safety inspects many of the dams would then have 60 days to deter- Division II soccer title. The top seeded Livermore team, defeated Northgate 2 to 1 in the championship in the state. A report on Del Valle mine if the TVLC response to the match on late goal. The team finished with a 19-1-4 record. Dam near Livermore shows that NOV was sufficient. it was inspected last Nov. 16, as TVLC manages both the part of an annual inspection. A Livermore Valley Charter School comprehensive inspection of the (LVCS) and Livermore Valley dam takes place every five years, Charter Preparatory. The NOV Tarplant Selected as Official City Flower said Jim Odom, who heads field in- and potential revocation relates spections in the Delta Area, which only to the charter prep school. Livermore has an official city in any other location in the world. exists for only 61 milliseconds in a includes Del Valle Dam. The Livermore School Board flower. As Councilmember Bob Coomber lab. "The tarplant has bloomed and Beyond regular inspections, vote was unanimous to send the On Monday, the city council commented, "It's all ours. It can't survived for a lot longer." the dam operators keep an eye out NOV, which Assistant Superinten- voted to designate the Livermore be found anywhere else." Teacher Regina Brinker noted (See REPAIR, page 8) dent Chris Van Schaack described Maryann Hannon, a member as "the most significant." The Tarplant as such. that the plant blooms only dur- NOV was issued based on the fail- The Tarplant grows only in of Friends of the Springtown Pre- ing the hot days of August in the Pleasanton ure to provide a college prep high northern and eastern portions of serve, supported the selection of alkaline soil in Springtown; soil school, as required by the charter. Livermore. California Fish and the Tarplant as the city's flower. found in only two other places in Residents Asked The Western Association of Wildlife placed the flower on the She pointed out that for ten years, the world. The plant can't be found Schools and Colleges (WASC) endangered species list. Friends of the Preserve have been at those locations. for Input on withheld accreditation of the The largest population of the advocating for protection of the Councilmember Steven Spe- prep school in April 2016. TVLC plant can be found in the Spring- area. "It is very special habitat." dowfski, who proposed selecting Downtown Plan appealed the decision. In Febru- town Preserve. It cannot be found Hannon mentioned that the city the Tarplant as the official flower, ary of this year, WASC denied celebrates Livermorium, which (See FLOWER, page 4) Pleasanton is asking residents the appeal. Van Schaack told the to log online or to show up to the board,"Since the beginning of Farmers’ Market on Saturday, the school year, we have had an UC Ordered to Provide LLNL Retiree List March 11, 2017 to share their unaccredited high school. The opinions about the future of the loss of WASC is a major blow to Superior Court Judge George names off the list when the class In a key ruling in 2015, Judge downtown area. the promise TVLC made to the Hernandez last week gave the action was certified on Oct. 30, Hernandez found that UC had Gerry Beaudin, director of community to provide a college University of California 30 days to 2014. clearly intended to make health Community Development, stated, prep school. When TVLC fails to provide a full list of the Lawrence The retirees formed a grass- care commitments to its retirees “We want to engage the commu- meet the needs of kids who want Livermore National Laboratory roots organization, raised funds and had actually done so. nity and hear from everyone about to attend college, we feel we need retirees and their survivors who and sued in 2010 after they lost UC The task of establishing the what they want the future of their to step in." might benefit from the class action health care following a late-2007 lawsuit class has proved chal- downtown to look like." Van Schaack noted, "It is not lawsuit aimed at returning them to contract change. As a result of lenging; that is, specifying who Pleasanton is in the process possible to provide college prep University health benefits. that change, a private organization, might be entitled to benefit from of updating its Downtown Spe- courses, when accreditation has Hernandez’s order came after Lawrence Livermore National the lawsuit, should the retirees cific Plan. The recently appointed been withheld. Courses taken by months of back-and-forth debate Security, or LLNS, took over man- prevail. The job has been made Downtown Specific Plan Task over whether UC incorrectly left agement of the big laboratory. (See PLEASANTON, page 8) (See TVLC, page 10) (See UC LAWSUIT, page 5) Dublin May Channel Public Art Toward More Viewers By Ron McNicoll based on subdivision value to the city, which can use it to build Dublin is looking into making provide public art. The rationale public art in locations outside of future public artworks accessible behind the policy is that develop- the developments. to more people by locating them ment creates a need for aesthetic Councilmember Abe Gupta said closer to busy community places, improvement in the community, he would like to see a way for the instead of tucking them away in said City Attorney John Bakker at city to encourage developers to subdivisions, where developers the Feb. 21 council meeting. give the money to the city. In that have been building them. Developers can choose to build way, larger art projects in more Currently, developers are re- an art project in their own devel- visible locations could be built. quired to pay a percentage fee opment, or can pay the money to (See DUBLIN, page 8) Concerns Raised Over Potential Changes in ACA Proposed changes to the Afford- Tiburcio Vasquez Health Center (ER) usage and overall medical able Care Act could affect access to in San Leandro, health center costs. care for low and moderate income patients, staff and board members Dr. Dawnell Moody, Chief people throughout our nation, from Tiburcio Vasquez and Axis Medical Officer at Axis Com- Photo - Doug Jorgensen including those in the Tri-Valley. Community Health shared their munity Health, observed, “Our Students at Fairlands Elementary Students in Pleasanton presented On Saturday, February 18, views with the Congressman.