• Other Planting Activities This Saturday, November 3:  Many neighborhood groups will be planting daffodil bulbs this weekend in our fourth year of planting 50,000 bulbs in conjunction with the Keep Oakland Beautiful program and Home Depot.  Here are a few of the events we know about. >>Planting medians in the Melrose area last year.
   

• Allendale NCPC will plant at the 35th Avenue 580 Freeway off ramp, 9-10 am
   
• Glenview Medians: Meet at Park Blvd. Presbyterian Church, 4100 Park Blvd. at Hampel between 8:30 am and 12:30 pm. Pick up your safety vest and instructions. Bring your own shovels, rakes, brooms, picks, etc. Free Barbecue at the church following the planting.
• Melrose Leadership Academy: 9:30 am-3:30 pm at the old Sherman Elementary campus at 5323 Brann Street between Morcom and 55th Avenue. There are planters in the school yard which will be planted with both flowers and eventually vegetables for the middle school students to eat.
•  Redwood Heights Elementary School,  9 am
   
• Redwood Heights Neighborhood Association will plant the 35th Avenue median across from the Recreation Center
   

• The Distaff Singers' 70th Annual Benefit Concert, Saturday, November 3: The Distaff Singers, Oakland's oldest women's choir, celebrate their 70th year raising scholarship funds for Oakland students with their benefit concert, "A Tribute to Oakland", on Saturday, November 3rd, 4 pm at Skyline High.
   

Aztec dancers open Dia de los Muertos in the Fruitvale.
 

• Day of the Dead Exhibit Continues at the Oakland Museum;  Gallery Talk, Sunday, November 11 and 18, 2pm: If you missed last weekend's celebration in the Fruitvale, the Dias de los Muertos museum exhibit continues through December 2nd. Meet the artists, curator, and museum staff next weekend. Guest curator Anjee Helstrup-Alvarez, associate director/curator of San Jose's Movimiento de Arte y Cultura  Latino Americana (MACLA), encouraged artists to reinterpret this spiritual holiday. Ancient Roots/Urban Journeys depicting the holiday's evolution with themes as diverse as Aztec and Mayan mythology to low-rider bicycle culture and the perils of illegal immigration. Several ofrendas (altars) were created by local artists, schools, and community groups. "Violent death is a reality for many urban youth. The R.I.P. T-shirts in the exhibition were produced by kids from Oakland as a way of paying respect to their peers."  For details, go to the OMCA website.  <<Altar celebrating new families at  Dia de los Muertos last week.
   

Dimond History, Wednesday, November 7, 7:30 -9 pm, Dimond Library Community Room: The Dimond Improvement Association invites you to a colorful, story-filled evening of local history: >>Dimond Key Car on MacArthur Blvd.

•  An illustrated talk on Dimond History by Eleanor Dunn
• Small-group sessions with local historian and author Dennis Evanosky: photo collector Tim Chapman; and commercial-area researcher Karen-Marie Schroeder (and possibly others)
• Handouts on Dimond chronology, street names, researching the history of your house, and a self-guided history tour.

Many Oaklanders have Dimond roots, ask friends or relatives about old photographs. Bring your own photographs and memorabilia. Place orders for the 2008 Dimond Wall Calendar $10 for DIA members and $12 for non-members. For details...
 

<<Chinese Lion "blesses" the new community dining room.
 

Lincoln Courts Celebrates Its Grand Opening This Week:  When the senior apartments opened last year, the courtyard was completed with donations of plants and volunteer labor but the community rooms were bare and unfinished.  Pulling together the funds to complete an affordable housing project takes many funding sources; over the last year Self Help for the Elderly, the non-profit which operates Lincoln Courts, raised funds to complete the work. Neighbors, friends, partners and residents celebrated the project this week; many noted its role in the  Dimond renaissance.  As an attractive replacement for the infamous crime ridden Hillcrest Motel, it has added shoppers, increased activity, and resources in the community.  The new community rooms are part of a "senior center without walls" strategy bringing new services for all seniors in the Dimond to use. The Oakland Adult Education program has installed 20 computers to conduct free computer classes (right) and offers a wide variety of other senior activities.  All of these programs are open to the public, come by and check them out.
 

• Friends of the Dimond Library, Saturday, November 10th, 11:30 am:  This busy regional library serves a wide community and needs our help. History and minutes.

• Free Parking in the Dimond, New Meters Under Installation: The Dimond is one of the last areas in the city that has free city parking for shopping.  The free public lots are behind the new Peets and La Farrine and behind the Dimond Post Office.  Tim Chapman, the Dimond Forum webmaster, noted today that the city's new street parking meters are being installed in the Dimond (left).  The new meters take coins and credit cards. They issue receipts that must be placed on the dashboard.
   

• 100 foot defensible space surrounded homes
• Class A roofs
• Double paned windows (outside cracked, inside kept heat out)
• Pine needles and other debris cleared from gutter

• The Wild Fire Prevention District website is a good place to start to review what you can do improve fire safety around your home. 

• This presentation gives a good history of fires in the East Bay Hills.
• The Red Cross Check List for Wildfires:  Review your family evacuation plan and communications plan.
   

• Most homeowners have finished their vegetation compliance for this year. Get a head start on next year by changing your landscaping; fall is the best planting time in the Bay Area.  Winter is the time to prune and trim most trees.  If you have an aging Monterey Pine or eucalyptus, consider removing it and planting a native. This section lists several guides of recommended and not recommended plants.

• Blood Donations:  The Red Cross plays a major role in keeping blood supplies up.  When there is a big disaster, blood collections is affected. Volunteers for blood drives and blood donations are needed.  Contact our Oakland Chapter to help.
   

• If you have friends or relatives in Southern California that you have lost track of because of the phone system interruptions, the Red Cross Safe and Well Website may be useful.

• Registrar Goofs, Incorrect Notices Sent to All Absentee Voters:  If you are an absentee voter, you probably got a notice from the County Registrar warning you that you had to choose a political party if you want to vote in the primaries coming up in February. I have to admit my first thoughts were relatively paranoid, given America's recent experiences with close and questionable election outcomes. This week the Registrar's Office apologized for mailing this to all absentee voters, so unless you really are not affiliated with any party, you can ignore this notice.  With only about a 100 days before the California Presidential Primary, you have only two or so months to register to vote if you have moved since the last election or want change/declare party affiliations.  Registration cards are available at all libraries or register online.

• Library Fines & Lost Books Forgiveness Program-- November 24 -- December 14: The Oakland Public Library urges community members with overdue and lost items to "Get a Fresh Start" during this special three-week amnesty campaign. During this period, anyone who returns overdue items or who requests forgiveness for lost materials checked out before November 1, 2007 will have their fines and fees cleared by coming to any Oakland Public Library location.  Families with children are especially encouraged to return and enjoy the many resources of the Oakland Public Library. Each year several thousand student cards become dormant because of lost items. The number of books read is linked to reading levels and vocabulary, please encourage youth in your family and neighborhood to take advantage of this program during the holidays.  The general amnesty will apply to all locations and library materials, with the exception of tools from the Tool Lending Library.

• Community Meeting on Oakland Animal Shelter: Council President Ignacio De La Fuente and the Oakland Animal Welfare Group invite the public to a community meeting on the Oakland Animal Shelter. Adam Parascandola, the new Animal Services Director, will provide an update and answer questions. The meeting will be held at the Park Blvd. Presbyterian Church,  4101 Park Blvd. (corner of Park and Hampel) at  7 pm on Monday, November 12. If you cannot attend but have questions, please contact Lupe Schoenberger at 238-7052 or email Council Member Ignacio De La Fuente.  (Above) Party goers at the Dimond's Howloween Parade gather at Paws & Claws.
   

• Public Input on Redesign of City Website: The City is hosting workshops for public input on ideas for redesigning the City's website. Topics include information and documents, making payments on-line, adding new features and more. Participants entered to win a free i-Pod nano:
  • Tuesday, November 13, 7-9 pm. Lakeside Park Garden Center (666 Bellevue Avenue
  • Wednesday, November 14, 7-9 pm, Cesar E. Chavez Branch Library, 3301 E 12th Street, Suite 271 (located in Fruitvale Transit Village)
  • Thursday, November 15, 7-9 pm, Leona Lodge, 4444 Mountain Boulevard
  • Saturday, November 16, 10 am - Noon, Eastmont Substation, 12651 73rd Avenue.

• City Clerk Improves Website Portal:  Looking for a specific piece of legislation, meeting, or agenda? The City Clerk's new website improves search capacity and puts the portal for all committees and commission on one page. http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/mattersearch/home.aspx

Domestic Violence is the single largest cause of injury to women aged 15 to 44 in the U.S., more than muggings, car accidents, and rapes combined.  Last year in Oakland there were 5005 cases of Domestic Violence reported to the police; hundreds of sexually exploited teens were picked up. Each year in my district about half of the murders have been committed by men, husbands and lovers, who have killed their former partners; citywide the murder rate due to domestic violence has been about 8-10 percent.

<<Osun Ambassadors program this weekend to "Beat Drums Against Domestic Violence."

• Domestic Violence Deaths in Alameda County have declined over the last ten years, 14 in 1997 to 8 last year in 2006.
• Restraining Orders in Alameda County have declined, 3572 in 2005 to 3055 in 2006.
• Calls to Law Enforcement are up, over 5000 calls in Oakland and over 7000 calls countywide.
• Calls to County Shelters from Domestic Violence are Up:  Increased from  11,789 two years ago to 13,586. Numbers of women and children sheltered during this time increased from 1129 to 1305.
• Oakland Police have charged 786 cases of domestic violence so far this year.
• Convictions in the cases of the sexual exploitation of minors are yielding longer sentences.  Recent cases have resulted in 10-15 year sentences for combined charges of kidnapping, rape, and assault.  This year for the first time an older women involved in recruiting minors was sentenced.
• In general we see progress with awareness and reporting of domestic violence up.
• Oakland's model of coordinated services such as the Family Justice Center, housing 40 government & non profit agencies and affiliated with 50 other community partners, is attracting national attention and grants.
   

• Plant Thieves: Occasionally we get reports of plant thieves taking plants out of gardens.  Richard Cowan of our office had a large succulent stolen out of his front yard just weeks ago.  We have noticed listserv's have also reported potted plants disappearing.  While some of these may be Halloween pranks, we did have the arrest of an out-of-town contractor who taken some very large plants for resale about two years ago.  So keep your eyes out, let us know if you detect a pattern or suspect;  consider moving more valuable plants into back yards or into hard to move planters.

• Police Technicians Needed:  Police Services Technicians are non-sworn OPD personnel who can do many of the duties that Police Officers do. To improve police investigations especially in the area of robberies and burglaries, 15 more were authorized in the two year City budget that was passed in June. They are often mistaken for Police Officers because of the similar uniforms and utility belts they wear.  They also conduct Neighborhood Watch and Merchant Watch
  training, security inspections, redirect traffic, tow abandoned vehicles, assist in sideshow suppression operations and liquor license investigations.  Applications are being accepted now.
  
   
• Police Reserve Officers Needed:  Sworn reserve officers perform all the duties and responsibilities of a career police officer on a volunteer, part-time basis.  Oakland has a small but dedicated group of reserve officers.  They must meet the same qualifications and training as our regular officers and commit to 20 hours per month.   Because of the need to use all resources to fill vacant police positions, new reserve offices have not been recruited for over a year. Interested persons should contact Joseph Sweeney for additional information. >> Day of Dead altar in honor of police and fire fighters.
   

• Our office is working on the expansion of the Dimond Public Safety Council to include all of Beat 22x, which includes the Montera, Woodminster, Oakmore and Dimond neighborhoods roughly down to 580. We have scheduled a leadership kick off meeting on November 26, 7 pm in Classroom 7-8 at Zion Lutheran Church (5201 Park Blvd.), which is open to all. If you are interested in helping to plan this exciting new development, please attend. RSVP to Richard Cowan at 238-7041.

• The City has launched a new Measure Y website and e-newsletter that contains a wealth of practical information. The new website is www.MeasureY.org; you can sign up for the newsletter there.

• New Problem Solving Officer Sergeant Named for PSA 4; Welcome Richard McNeely, Public Safety Officer for Beat 24Y in the Allendale:  With each graduating class of police officers more problem solving (PSO) or beat officers are assigned to our neighborhood beats.  In the recent past each PSO was covering 4-5 beats, when an officer is covering only one beat the neighborhood generally sees improved focus on local problems.  This Police Department has named a sergeant, who will oversee the PSO's in PSA (Dimond, Bret Harte, Laurel, Allendale, Oakmore), Sgt. Phillip Freeman.  This comes on the heels of the assignment of Officer McNeely to the Allendale, Beat 24Y; he may be reached at rmcneely@oaklandnet.com or at 385-9197. For the last year Officer Ryan Chan has covered this beat and 3 others. Thanks Ryan.
   

• For a complete list of Neighborhood Crime Prevention Councils in District 4.

• How to file a Police Report:  Police use crime reports to plan patrols and follow crime trends. Commanders determine their priorities based on the number and severity of crimes reported. You don't have to rely on the police to actually make the report; for non-urgent crimes such as auto break-ins or after the fact home break-ins you can download a citizen's crime report  from the City's website. You can also make anonymous calls for drug activity to 238-DRUG.
   

City Care Share in the Fruitvale: City CarShare will open its southernmost Oakland pod at the Fruitvale BART station on November 1.  This location will feature a Prius hybrid, as one of the 220 vehicles the non-profit City CarShare now has in its fleet at over 100 locations throughout the Bay Area.  If all goes well, the Fruitvale CarShare pod will serve as a launching pad into the Dimond.

 

• Pot-Pourri Sale:  Halloween apparently kicks off Christmas shopping.  Keep your dollars in Oakland, support local artists, and save. This Lincoln Square treasure  is full of hand made, practical items.  Their annual 30% off sale ends tomorrow, Sunday, November 4. Hours: Saturday 10 am-6 pm, Sunday Noon - 5 pm, 4100 Redwood Road, 531-1503.
   

• Ygnacio Traffic Rounds Construction Begins: After years of planning, choosing plants & designs, recruiting volunteers for maintenance, finding funding, and finally several delays in the bid process...construction began on a series of traffic rounds for Ygnacio Street in the Melrose area.  This area is plagued by sideshows and speeding drivers; it links two schools. This has been a priority for me, our Office Capital fund provided most of the funding. Neighbors helped choose the design and have signed up to water and maintain the plants as they become established in the first year.  (Right) Workers build mold for concrete borders in front of Horace Mann School.

• Progress On Preservation of Butters Canyon, Funds Still Needed:  Over the last five years we've been pleased to support the efforts of neighbors who formed the Butters Land Trust to preserve the wildness of unique canyon.  They need $60,000 to buy an adjoining lot.  They are also planning a series of native plant restoration days.
   

• Proposed Emancipation Village for Aging-out Foster Youth at Fred Finch: Originally an orphanage, Fred Finch has recently been home to services for emotionally disturbed and sexually abused children.  Alameda County is proposing a new role with the possible conversion of the current inpatient facilities to 20-30 transitional residential units with support facilities for Foster Youth who are over 18 (aged-out) at the campus at 3800 Coolidge Avenue. Each year over two hundred Oakland youth in foster homes are suddenly homeless when they turn 18.  I have been working on a state task force urging the state to provide more transitional support including housing, education, employment and counseling services for foster youth 18 to 21.  Fred Finch has scheduled on-site tours for interested neighbors.  For details, contact Kate Durham at 986-1611.

• Green Homes Meeting, November 8, 6:30-8 pm, 3601 Randolph Avenue: This Glenview Meeting has room for a few more, please RSVP to Lindsay Imai at Lindsay_imai@ yahoo.com if you plan on coming. Cliff Hong and Lindsay Imai invite you to their home to hear from a local expert on household energy efficiency and an advocate of sustainable rooftop systems. They will also provide information on the myriad of climate change resources available in the Bay Area.
  
  Ingrid Severson, a community organizer at Bay Localize, will be give an overview of rooftop gardens, renewable energy, and water catchment systems, based on the findings of the Rooftop Resources (feasibility, benefits and advocacy) Project.
  Ayrin Zahner brings quite a bit of practical knowledge on making one's home energy efficient and will walk through their 80+ year old house pointing out specific things we can do to make it more energy efficient. Light refreshments will be served.
   

• Oakland Wins National Clean Water Award: The Environmental Protection Agency awarded Oakland the First Place National Storm Water Management Program Excellence Award at the 22nd Annual EPA National Clean Water Act Recognition Awards Program this week. Oakland was nominated by the San Francisco Bay Water Quality Control Board (left) for the City's watershed program and its numerous initiatives including the ban of styrofoam and plastic bags to protect creeks, shorelines, and storm water quality. Oakland is being celebrated nationally for its creek restoration projects, the Lake Merritt water quality program, the creation of the creek ordinance, and the fact that since its inception, the watershed program has been funded almost entirely from grants, bonds and foundations.
   

• The Oakland Bike Master Plan is in its final stages of approval.  To become involved in the Citizens Advisory Group or to comment contact Jason Patton or call 238-7049 to receive occasional updates and announcements. Bicycle Master Plan Hearing Schedule:

• Re-Create Art Contest for Oakland students, K-12: Re-Create is a recycled art competition and exhibition that is open to students (K-12) in Oakland schools. Students are invited to create artwork using discarded or reused materials and to compete for prizes. Practice the 4R's - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Rot (Compost) to meet Oakland's zero waste goal. The Art Contest & Exhibition is sponsored by the City's Public Works Agency. Deadline is November 11. For details, call 465-8770, ext. 310 or visit MOCHA's website. >>Costume made of recycled materials at Montclair park.
   

Residents can pick up a maximum of 20 sandbags and 25 feet of plastic sheeting per household/business from the City's Municipal Service Center at 7101 Edgewater Drive and the PWA Drainage Maintenance Satellite Office at 5921 Shepherd Canyon Road. Proof of Oakland residency is required.  Oakland Fire Stations will also distribute up to 5 sandbags to Oakland residents for pick up at the station. Stations in District 4 include:

• Fire Station Number 6, 7080 Colton Blvd.
• Fire Station Number 24   5900 Shepherd Canyon Road
• Fire Station Number 25  2795 Butters Drive

• Check and clean private drainage systems
• Place leaves and green trimmings in your Green Car for weekly recycling pickup. Do not place leaves, debris or lawn clippings near storm drains.
• Keep natural waterways, such as creeks and ditches, free from obstructions.
• Report flooding problems to the PWA Call Center at 615-5566.
• Maintain-A-Drain in your neighborhood or commercial district.

• Another Earthquake Retrofit Workshop Set for January 30, 2008: Our first round of Earthquake Retrofit Workshops were so well attended last  week that we've scheduled another for Wednesday, January 30, 2008 at 1526 Webster Street. Space is limited so please RSVP to Sue Piper at 238-7042. We were able to tape one of the workshops, it will  broadcast on KTOP, Channel 10 Monday, October 29th, 3:30 pm and Thursday, November 1st, 6 pm. >>Tool kit from the Temescal Tool Lending Library on display at this week's workshop.
   

• Willie Monroe's ABC Story on the New Retrofit Program:  Watch the Monroe story on our Retrofit Workshops; it does a great job describing the program in a very short clip.
   

• Commemorating 18th Loma Prieta and 139^th  1868 Hayward Earthquake Anniversaries:  Last week was the 18th anniversary of the Loma Prieta Earthquake and the 139th  of the 1868 Hayward Earthquake Anniversary.  The Hayward fault that runs from San Jose through Oakland to El Cerrito averages a major (magnitude 7) earthquake every 140 years. This is why scientists predict an major earthquake along the fault soon. In 1868 there were only 24,000 people living along the fault; today there are 2.4 million. Above Hayward Flour Mill 1868. Good KGO Story by Vic Lee   To read more.
   

• Join or start a CORE group on your block -- first step is to get to know each other and share contact information. Learn more at the City's website for Citizens of Oakland Respond to Emergencies (CORE). If you are already CORE trained, consider taking additional training through CORE or the American Red Cross. Consider the following CORE courses (all require advanced registration):
  • Managing Stress During Emergencies - October 27, 9 am - 1 pm
  • Managing Your Neighborhood Command Center Operations Effectively - November 10, 9 am - 3 pm

• Montclair-wide CORE/MON exercise on Saturday, November 17: Montclair has organized more than 50 blocks of CORE or Neighborhood Alert Groups under a program called MON (Montclair Organized Neighbors). They are running a simulated disaster exercise on Saturday, November 17 from 9 am to 11 am. For details, please contact Doug Mosher at 530-0774.

• Oakland Symphony Oakland East Bay Symphony's opening night celebration is Friday, November 9, 8 pm,  Paramount Theater. Maestro Michael Morgan and the orchestra will perform:

  • Beethoven's great Fifth Symphony (yes, that's the one with the most famous four notes in all of Western music)
  • Leonard Bernstein's ballet score Fancy Free
  • Soprano Hope Briggs will join the orchestra to sing some of her favorite arias by Wagner, Puccini and Verdi.
   
• Oakland Public Library Celebrates Children's Book Week in November:
  • Tuesday, November 13, 2007, 10 am--Poet, storyteller Judy Sierra and author of The Gruesome Guide to World Monsters and the recent Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf, will tell stories and talk about her life and work.  Brookfield Branch, 9255 Edes Ave.Co-sponsored by Oakland Parks & Recreation. <<Ovda, the Gruesome Monster of Norway.
     
  • Nick Barone Puppets-T-Rex Thunderlizard's Wild West Revue, Tuesday, November 13--- 3 pm at Montclair Branch, 1687 Mountain Blvd; 7 pm at Rockridge Branch, 5366 College Avenue. 
  • Bookmaking Workshops using recycled materials to create your own book, in collaboration with The East Bay Depot for Creative Re-use: Wednesday, November 14, 3:30 pm at Melrose Branch, 4805 Foothill Blvd., 3:30 pm at West Oakland Branch, 1801 Adeline Street; Thursday, November 15, 1:30 pm at Elmhurst Branch, 1427 88th Avenue,; 3:30 pm at Asian Branch, 388 9th Street, Suite 190; 3:30 pm at Temescal Branch, 5205 Telegraph Avenue.
  • Bookmark Workshop for Ages 7-Adult, Thursday, November 15, 3:30 pm at the Dimond Branch, 3565 Fruitvale Avenue