Source: http://contracostaherald.com/category/central-county/page/18/
Timestamp: 2019-04-22 14:49:35+00:00

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Contra Costa County — Contra Costa County Supervisor Candace Andersen joins the East Bay Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, and many other local and state leaders in endorsing businesswoman Debora Allen’s campaign for California’s 14th Assembly district.
Allen is running on a platform bringing more accountability, transparency, and efficiency to California’s state government.
“I’m honored to have the support of Supervisor Andersen, who has been a tireless champion for us on the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors,” Allen said.
The 14th Assembly District includes Concord, Clayton, Martinez, Pleasant Hill and portions of Pittsburg and Walnut Creek in Contra Costa County, as well as Benicia and Vallejo in Solano County. To learn more about Allen’s campaign visit www.deboraallen.com.
Concord – On Monday, May 16, 2016, at 2:36 AM, CPD officers responded to Newhall Park for the report of a body in the pond at that location. A person in the park saw the body and called the police. Upon arrival, officers found an adult female in the water. They pulled her from the water and determined she was deceased.
Major Crimes Unit Detectives were called out and assumed the investigation. It was determined that the female was the victim of a homicide. She has been identified as 25-year-old Concord resident Poinsettia Parks.
Detectives have identified 26-year-old Erick Lamar Nelson as a suspect in this case. There is currently a warrant for Nelson’s arrest and he should be considered armed and dangerous. Nelson is described as a black male adult, 6’1”, 185 pounds with black hair and brown eyes. Nelson was known to the victim.
Detectives are also trying to locate a black, four door 2003 Kia Spectra with CA license plate 5ENY919. Nelson may be in possession of this vehicle.
If Nelson or the Kia are seen, please do not approach and immediately call 911. Anyone with information about his case is asked to call Detective Greg Pardella at (925) 603-5922. Anyone wishing to remain anonymous may call the Concord Police Department Tip-Line at (925)-603-5836.
County Supervisor Federal Glover did not show up for a recent District 5 candidates’ forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters and televised on Contra Costa TV. His absence proved to be a metaphor for the most common refrain among the other four candidates: Glover’s lack of leadership in his district on a variety of issues, including warnings of “horrendous” gridlock when the Concord Naval Weapons Station property is developed.
Glover has served on the Board of Supervisors for 16 years and is seeking a fifth term. He has missed numerous governmental meetings in recent years due to health problems, including a heart and kidney transplant last year.
None of the other candidates mentioned Glover by name. But they all criticized the lack of leadership in his district, which snakes along the northern county waterfront from Antioch to Hercules.
One of Menesini’s top concerns is lack of county input into the planned development of the Concord Naval Weapons Station property at Highway 4 and Willow Pass Road.
“We do have a huge problem that is about to unfold with respect to the Highway 4 corridor, which goes from Hercules out to Antioch,” said Menesini. “The city of Concord is proposing to build a city on top of Willow Pass Road: 12,000 homes, 6 million square feet of commercial space – and not one provision for how transportation is going to be mitigated.
Romero agreed. “Transportation gridlock in the Concord area is absolutely going to be horrendous as the Concord Naval Weapons Station comes on board,” he said. “I feel that the Concord Naval Weapons Station is a failed project right now because of all of the influx on the city council in Concord. I think that the board should be taking a leadership step and being a part of that process.
Farias advocated moving jobs to where the homes are.
“I think [the solution] is passing good policy to create livable communities,” she said. “Live and work in your communities. We have become a community of commuters, which has contributed to a lot of our freeway congestion. I think if we would have had a lot better regional planning within our communities in addition to really creating the job centers. We burden a system that is inadequately funded.
Dandridge said the focus should be on transportation improvements.
Oppose the proposed twin tunnels project transferring water from north of the Delta to southern California.
Oppose moving the urban limit line to allow more development on agricultural and open space lands.
Support providing more affordable housing.
Agree that the county has addressed its pension funding issue for now, but more compensation adjustments may be needed down the road.
Agree that the county supervisor’s job requires more than 40 hours a week.
The entire candidates’ forum can be viewed on Contra Costa TV. CCTV is available to subscribers of AT&T U-verse on Channel 99. Comcast subscribers can watch CCTV on Channel 27. Wave (formerly Astound) subscribers can watch on Channel 32. Following is the schedule for the remainder of May: Sundays – 9:00 AM; Mondays – 8:00 PM; Wednesdays – 12:00 PM; Fridays – 3:00 PM.
In the race for Contra Costa County Supervisor in District 5, the incumbent, Federal Glover has an overwhelming lead in campaign funding in his bid for a fifth term. Reports were due on Thursday, April 28 covering the period of January 1 through April 23, 2016 and only three of the five candidates submitted one.
Glover also has an Officeholder Account which had $68,918.40 in the bank at the beginning of the year. However, he stated today, Thursday, May 12, 2016, that (correcting the record from previous misinformation provided to this reporter) those funds can not be spent on his re-election campaign.
“I wish I had that money for my campaign,” Glover said with a laugh.
The other two who submitted reports were Martinez Vice Mayor AnaMarie Avila Farias, who was in a distant second, having raised $7,000 and Hercules Mayor Dan Romero, who reported raising $5,655.
Neither former Martinez Mayor Mike Menesini nor Martinez resident Conrad Dandridge submitted financial reports.
A supervisor candidate’s campaign committee is required to file a Form 460 financial report to the County Clerk’s Office, if they have raised or spent $2,000 or more in an election. However, the filing and ballot statement fees are not counted against that amount.
“I have just started raising money after the 23rd but, I turned one in anyhow for transparency,” he added. “I hadn’t raised $2,000 but I am at that threshold, now. I got donations, last week.
Glover’s largest contribution during the reporting period was $5,000 from I.B.E.W. Local Union No. 302 PAC. Glover spent a total of $41,915.74 from both accounts, with almost half of that, $20,245.67 paid to Rossi Communications, for his campaign consultant Mary Jo Rossi. He ended the period with $25,388.35 in the bank.
Avila Farias’s largest contribution was $5,000 from the Professional Firefighters in the county. She showed no expenses, although she has large campaign signs up in the District.
She also stated she had received another $5,000 contribution from the Deputy Sheriffs Association, since the reporting period ended.
Romero’s largest contributions were $1,675 received from Republic Services, one of the garbage companies in the county, and $1,500 from Sonnikson Stordahl Construction in Martinez.
Menesini did not respond to efforts to contact him for this story.
Please see the reports, below. Additional reports for Glover have been added for the periods he raised funds for his 2016 re-election campaign committee. All of his reports prior to that period can be seen on the County Elections Office website.
After hearing input from the public at their special meeting on April 13, as well as a public apology from Lennar Urban CEO Kofi Bonner for the causing the controversy over contributions to Councilman Tim Grayson’s Assembly campaign, the Concord City Council, sitting as the Local Reuse Authority (LRA) for the Concord Naval Weapons Station, directed staff to meet with representatives from Lennar Urban to revise their Term Sheet.
Staff will make a presentation on the matter at tonight’s council meeting. The council will also have the opportunity to finalize their decision on selecting Lennar as the Master Developer for Phase I of the weapons station Reuse Plan.
Furthermore, staff states that Lennar is committed to sign the revised Term Sheet, should the council vote to select Lennar as the Master Developer.
Following is the agenda item with a link to the complete, 175 page staff report.
The public is entitled to address the City Council on items appearing on the agenda before or during the City Council’s consideration of that item. Each speaker will be limited to approximately three minutes.
Presentation – of a revised Lennar Term Sheet and consideration of staff’s recommendation that City Council select Lennar Concord LLC as the Master Developer for the Development Phase One Property at the Concord Naval Weapons Station and proceed to the Disposition and Development Agreement (DDA) stage of the negotiation period, as defined in the Agreement to Negotiate between the Local Reuse Authority and Lennar. Report by Guy Bjerke, Director of Community Reuse Planning.
The council meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at the City Council Chambers at Concord City Hall, 1950 Parkside Drive. Meetings can also be viewed on Concord TV, available on Comcast Channel 28, Wave Channel 29, and U-verse Channel 99.
District Attorney Mark Peterson announced, Friday that after an extensive investigation, 11 felony charges were filed against Nathan and Sarah Moore, owners of NRM Renovations, Inc., in Concord for workers’ compensation fraud, grand theft of labor and payroll tax fraud.
The investigation originally began with a series of wage and labor complaints to the U.S. Department of Labor in June of 2015. Allegations included that workers were not being paid for work they completed doing hotel renovations for NRM Renovations. The Department of Labor forwarded these complaints to the District Attorney’s office, and a joint investigation of suspected labor violations began. The investigation expanded to include three state agencies. The CA Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) assisted in interviewing the employees. The CA Department of Insurance (CDI) investigated allegations regarding the underpayment of workers’ compensation insurance premiums. The Employment and Development Department (EDD) helped investigate tax and payroll issues.
NRM Renovations is alleged to owe over $30,000 in back wages to several employees, approximately $250,000 in workers’ compensation premiums to several different insurance companies, and back taxes to the EDD on over $1,000,000 in wages.
Charges include three counts of violating Insurance Code §11760(a) (Workers’ Compensation fraud), and one violation each of Insurance Code §11880(a) (Workers’ Compensation fraud), Penal Code §487 (grand theft of labor), Unemployment Insurance Code (“UI”) §2108 (nonpayment of contributions), UI Code §2177.5 (failure to file a return), and UI 2118.5 (Failure to account and pay over taxes). Due to the amount of loss, the defendants were also charged with an Aggravated White Collar Crime enhancement under Penal Code §186.11(a)(3).
Multiple agencies assisted the Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office with this investigation including: the US Department of Labor, the Department of Industrial Relations, the Department of Insurance, the Employment and Development Department, the State Compensation Insurance Fund, Norguard and Benchmark Insurance Companies.
Washington, DC – On Thursday, the Committee on Armed Services in the U.S. House of Representatives passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), H.R. 4909, which authorizes our nation’s defense spending. Included in the bill is a provision offered by Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (CA-11), which would require the Navy to investigate the circumstances surrounding the treatment of sailors at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in Concord, California. The NDAA now moves to the floor of the House for consideration.
“Today marks an important milestone in the continued fight for recognition of the Port Chicago 50. A provision requiring the Navy to investigate whether racial bias was experienced by this group and to report their findings to Congress passed in the Armed Services Committee and is one step closer to becoming law,” said DeSaulnier.
While facing institutional segregation in the Navy, 435 African American sailors, who were not properly trained or supported, were killed when a cargo vessel exploded. This incident accounted for more than 15 percent of all African American Naval casualties during World War II. When 50 of these men understandably refused to return to the unsafe working conditions that killed their fellow sailors, they were discriminately charged and convicted of mutiny.
“I appreciate the support this measure received from my colleagues, and I will continue working to move this legislative effort forward until all of these sailors are completely exonerated,” DeSaulnier concluded.
Photo of suspect holding gun during the early Monday morning robbery at the California Grand Casino in Pacheco. photos courtesy of CCCSheriff.
Vehicle of suspect in robbery at California Grand Casino in Pacheco on Monday.
On Monday, morning April 25 at about 4:45, Office of the Contra Costa County Sheriff dispatch received a report that an armed robbery was taking place at the California Grand Casino at the 5900 block of Pacheco Boulevard in Pacheco.
Deputies responded along with officers from nearby law enforcement agencies. A perimeter was set up and employees and customers were evacuated.
Officers conducted a security sweep of the building. The suspect was not located. There were no injuries and the loss is still being determined.
Suspect description: Male, 6′, approximately 200 pounds, wearing a full face Halloween mask, black hoodie jacket, dark pants, orange gloves, armed with a semi-automatic rifle.
Anyone with any information on this robbery is asked to contact the Office of the Sheriff Investigation Division at (925) 313-2662. (See more photos on the County Sheriff’s Facebook page).
Proceeds from the IICF CAPP Educational Forum will benefit child abuse prevention programs serving Contra Costa and Alameda Counties.

References: §11760
 §11880
 §487
 §2108
 §2177
 §186