Monthly Archives: January 2015

BESO Update (Rev.)

The Council passed the first reading of the amended ordinance on February 24th. The only Councilmember who raised any objections was Susan Wengraf.

The amendments are purely cosmetic. Residential buildings with up to 4 units are exempt for 3 years, unless they are sold during that period. In 3 years, the ordinance will be revisited, and smaller buildings could/will be included. As the regular audit requirements don’t take effect until 2020, the changes make virtually no difference. Continue reading →

Mini-dorm Extravaganza Threatens LeConte Neighborhood

On June 10, 2014, ZAB heard and denied the huge extensions to 2201-05 Blake St. and 2204 Dwight Way because they found that they would be detrimental. The developer appealed the denials to the City Council, who will meet to hear the matters at 7:00 pm on January 13 in Old City Hall, 2134 MLK Jr. Way. If the Council would read the materials that neighbors have submitted, they would be very unlikely to overturn the ZAB’s denials. But we hear that very few of them read their packets before Council meetings. Continue reading →

City Council Agendas

This could have been a blank post. The City Clerk has stated that no detailed agendas will be available until tomorrow, despite the fact that there are 5 Council Meetings scheduled for this month, starting on January 13th. So much for keeping residents informed in a timely manner!

Nigel Guest

goBerkeley Parking Pilot enters a new phase

The City wants to hear from you about your experiences and what you think should happen next.

goBerkeley, which will run from July 2013 to March 2015, adjusted parking prices, time limits, and parking signs to better match visitor needs, while providing free transit passes and subsidized carshare memberships to employees and residents in three Pilot Areas:  Downtown, Southside/Telegraph, and the Elmwood. Continue reading →