Serving the neighborhoods from Fruitvale Avenue to Seminary Avenue and from Foothill Boulevard to Warren FreewayVolume 11 Number 4 May 1999

A Community Newspaper • P.O. Box 19046, Oakland, CA 94619 • (510) 287-2655

Pop quiz: What are the four priori-ties for our new mayor? You canprobably guess at least one—the ur-gent need to reduce crime. Obvious.But what about improving publicschools? They certainly beg for bet-ter management, but that job cur-rently rests with an elected board,not the mayor. Given the brouhahain Sacramento over whether to ap-point a state trustee, however, youcan see how this issue would makeit onto Mayor Brown’s radarscreen. How about the need to “cel-ebrate Oakland/promote the arts”?Laudable, but a tough subject towrap your arms around. How aboutthe notion of moving 10,000 peopledowntown? An intriguing twiston the city’s decades-old efforts tojumpstart downtown via retail andentertainment-oriented develop-ment. Few would argue that our

See also Home Depot End Runin Leona Heights news by GordonLaverty

he Leona Quarry in theOakland Hills was an activegravel mine until around

1995. The activity changed to as-phalt/concrete recycling, whichinvolved bringing road base andother road material (like the por-tions of the Cypress Freeway thatwere torn down), crushing thematerial, mixing with gravel anddirt and using it in many road-building contracts that the quarryowners, Gallagher and Burk, havehad with the City of Oakland.

By State Bureau of Land andMines regulations, when a mineis no longer in service, it mustbe “reclaimed,” which means tostabilize and restore the land.In 1987, the quarry operators

Chip Johnson at Metro10th anniversary party.

See page 7.

You, too, can become a friend of the Metro. See page 2.

Your support helps keep the Metro alive! Become one of the Thousand Friends.

*Ed Barber, *Stig Bjork, Craig Cooper, *Lena Duckett, *Nancy Erb & Dick Kolbert, *Sharon Griset, *Arthur Gray,*Christine Harkinson, *Maxine Kent, *Rose & Tom Luey, *Ben Mallia, *Reah Morton, Cady Oberle, *Arlene St. John, *M. Stevens,

*Ellen Strunin, *Tim Underwood, *Fred & Evelyn Zierten* Renewing friends

city center takes on a hollow qualityat night and on weekends, when allthose city workers clock out.

So there you have it, the majorinitiatives of Jerry Brown. Do theyline up with your neighborhood’spriorities? Well, there is one womandedicated to making these prioritiesfigure more prominently in Oak-landers’ agendas. Her name is JuliaPeters, Mayor Jerry Brown’s com-munity liaison. Julia recently tooka few minutes to talk to the Metroabout her new job, her background,and how the Brown administra-tion plans to work with and forOakland’s neighborhoods. Peters,an intense and likable youngwoman, was not the easiest personto get a hold of (it took a couplemonths to arrange our interview).She is clearly preoccupied (ourdiscussion started late and endedearly) and is juggling a numberof priorities (including imminentmotherhood—like this Metro

indicated that they would like todevelop the base of the quarry asa large retail shopping center aspart of the reclamation process.The City Planning Departmentat that time indicated that projectwould not be in keeping with theland-use designation and charac-ter of the surrounding area.

In 1998, when the City ofOakland was revising its GeneralPlan, which details how the Citywill direct development andland use, the quarry owners andthe City Planning Departmentchanged the quarry land froma designation of residential to re-gional commercial, a designationfor land such as the airport, Coli-seum, and I-880 areas, requiringextensive transportation access.Residents surrounding the quarrymobilized and protested. The CityCouncil rejected the change andvoted to require the quarry own-ers to submit a project proposalthrough the normal channels,which would entail applying fora General Plan Amendment. In

ithout warning,notice, or consider-ation for a quiet,

neatly kept residentialneighborhood, the US PostOffice purchased the prop-erty at 4400 MacArthurBlvd. and began construc-tion of a new facility, sched-uled to open in August.

The site plan, whichcalls for a two-story build-ing with boundaries onMacArthur, High andMasterson, is set to servicehundreds of customers ina Postal Retail Facility.By the time residents re-searched and uncoveredthat the Post Office was

Julia Peters: Managingfor the Mayor

Julia Peters, community organizer for Jerry Brown.

Leona Quarry: Will 580 be another 880?addition, the Council voted thatthe project must also includeeconomic impact studies.

On March 4, 1999, the quarryowners again submitted to thedeputy director of Planning andZoning changes in the land-usedesignation to regional commer-cial and the zoning of the base toa Community Thoroughfare Com-mercial zone. They want to putin 22 single-family homes on theridge, leave 100 acres open space(this is mostly the sheer wall faceof the quarry), and develop thebase by widening it to 22 acresand putting a 900,000-square-footshopping center that would haveHome Depot as the anchor tenant,with Lucky/Savon as the poten-tial other tenant. There would alsobe space for a fast-food restaurantand other smaller retail shops.Retail space would cover 231,000square feet. The remainder willbe a 1,000-car parking lot.

The entrance and exit wouldbe on Edwards Avenue, now a

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B Y E L L E N G R I F F I N

Laurel Post OfficeMoves in On Neigborhood

owner and builder, postalplanners had set drawings.

“The Post Office needsto do a better job in notify-ing the community andlistening to our concerns,”states Patrick Lam, Master-son resident. “There wereno postings or notice givento the neighborhood.”

Residents learned thatthe Federal Government canoverride city planners andbuild within neighborhoodswithout the same restric-tions that other constructionprojects must meet. It’scalled “eminent domain.”But residents are calling it“imminent tyranny.”

“How can they just comecont inued on page 6

WB Y T E R E S A M I L L E R

B Y M A U R E E N D O R S E Y ,BURKHALTER NEIGHBORHOOD GROUP

& LAUREL MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION

T

LUQ

MA

Nreporter, she is expecting a baby in afew months).

Following is an edited interview:

Metro: What is your back-ground—how did you wind upin this position?

Peters: I’ve worked for thePublic Interest Research Group(an organization founded byRalph Nader with chapters inmany states), for Jerry’s organi-zation, We The People, on a“Green Plan” for environmentalsustainability, and most recentlyas campaign manager for Jerry’smayoral campaign and forMeasure X (the strong-mayorinitiative).

Metro: Tell us about your job—how do you spend your day?

Peters: I promote the commu-nity-liaison functions associatedwith the mayor’s top four

Laurel Post OfficeMoves in On Neigborhood

RIS H

A H

ESS

2May 1999

HOT NUMBERSCITY OF OAKLAND AGENCIES

ABAT—the Alcoholic 238-7103Beverage Action Team

Graffiti hotline 238-4703

Abandoned cars 615-5715

O.P.D. Non-emergency 238-3333

Animal control 535-5602

Beat Health (drugs) 615-5808

Drug Hotline 238-DRUG

Noise Hotline: 238-6777(Oakland CEDA,property complaint line)

C.O.R.E. 238-6352(Citizens of OaklandRespond to Emergencies)

Truancy Hotline 479-2199

Oaklanders Assistance 444-CITYCenter knows the answerto all problems with cityand other governmentalservices in Oakland.

PRIVATE AGENCIES

Safe Streets Now 836-4622(drugs)

Conciliation 763-2117Services of Oakland(neighborhood disputes)

Sentinel Fair Housing 836-2687(free landlord-tenantcounseling anddiscrimination investigation)

Managing EditorToni Locke

Copy EditorsPaulette Avery, Anne Foxand Joan Veldhuizen

Finances/BookkeepingReuben Goldberg

Advertising ManagerSuzanne Tipton

Art DirectorAndreas Jones

Word ProcessingDavid Raich, Chris Carter

PhotographyJody Berke, Robert Garcia,Risha Hess and A. Luqman

DistributionDal Sellman

MailingDiane Trost

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Board of DirectorsMichael BroadJanet BroughtonDouglas FergusonReuben GoldbergLori HopeSteven Lavoie

�

A special thanks to allresidents, associations, andmerchants for their support.Also, a special thanks to allvolunteer writers, artists,photographers and distributors.

Imagesetting by CameraGraphics,Lafayette, California,(925) 283-2473.

Printing by Alternative WebPrinting, Oakland, California,(510) 839-2766

Opinions expressed in the MacArthurMetro are those of the contributorsand do not necessarily reflect theviews held by the publication.© 1999 by the MacArthur Metro,P.O. Box 19046, Oakland, CA 94619(510) 287-2655.

We welcome yournews and ads;

deadline the 15th.

Publication in thefirst week of each

month exceptJanuary and July.

ISSN 1091-1111

How to Reachthe Metro

WRITE US A LETTER. Sendyour comments to Lettersto the Editor, MacArthurMetro, P.O. Box 19046,Oakland, CA 94619.

GIVE US A CALL. Our voice-mail number is: 287-2655.

Letters may be edited forlength or clarity. Please in-clude name, address andphone number. We do notprint anonymous letters.

I want to support THE METROTHE THOUSAND FRIENDS (A tax-deductible donation of $10 to $49)

MONEY HONEYS (A tax-deductible donation of $50 or more)

Mail to The MacArthur Metro, P.O.Box 19046, Oakland, CA 94619

Name

Address

City Zip

SUBSCRIPTION ($10 for one year/10 issues)

MacArthur Metro Staff:Thanks for creating a feeling

of community for the neighborsof this scattered area.

Nancy Erb and Dick Colbert

To Our Friends at the MacArthurMetro Newspaper,

Thank you so much for writ-ing an article about our Farmand Garden Project at Bret HarteMiddle School. We were all veryexcited to see ourselves in thenewspaper and to let everyonein the neighborhood knowabout the good work we aredoing at our school and in thecommunity. We hope that thisarticle will inspire other childrento begin gardens of their own.

We also like that this article

brought attention to somethingpositive that young people aredoing for their community.We feel that sometimes all thatpeople notice is when we getinto trouble or do things thatare bad. This article givespeople a chance to see thatmiddle-school students aredoing something that canmake the world a better place.

We are proud to be partof the MacArthur Metro neigh-borhood!

Sincerely,Hector Rodriguez,

Travis Duncan, Teto Rangel,Kevin Jackson, Mayra Ramirez,

Daniella Paniagua, Lisa Cruz,Nikia Hopkins, Erica Ruvalcaba

P.S.: Our new orchard of fruittrees is just starting to bloom,and we have just planted oursecond crop of greens. Ourwildflowers are growing fast!We hope to build more beds formore vegetables before theschool year ends.

llendale students con-tributed these stories. Weinvite other schools on

the Metro map to contribute.

Freedom to MeBy Elyse Thieme

Freedom to me is being able tomake decisions and learn. Evenkids should be able to makesome decisions for themselves.

The things that I treasureare my mom, my dad, mybrother, and my dogs. Mybrother is special becausehe’s my brother and becausehe makes me laugh. My dogsare special because they protectme from danger. My mombecause I know that she willbe there for me, and the sameway with my dad. I have thefreedom to have a mom and adad of different nationalities.

Freedom can mean differ-ent things to different people.It may mean to adults that theycan do whatever they wantwhenever they want, as longas they obey the law. But forkids it may be to choose whento enjoy TV, toys or spendtime with friends of differentnationalities.

People have different opin-ions about this subject, butthat’s how I feel.

FreedomBy Leslie Situ

If you live in America or readthe newspaper, you’ll know wehave freedom. We can do a lotmore things than the other coun-tries do, like vote, speak freely,and write what we want in thenewspaper.

I used to live in China soI know there is no freedom inChina. When you read thenewspaper, you want to knowthe truth, right? I bet you do.But in China they sometimestell lies because the truth isbad. If you say something badabout the president of China,you could go to jail. Now ifyou compare them together,

BY

MS. FIELD’S CLASS

ALLENDALE YEAR ROUND SCHOOL

As We See It:a column from neighborhood school children

A

platform points: reducing crime,improving schools, celebratingOakland/promoting the arts,and attracting 10,000 new resi-dents downtown. I also fieldupwards of 50 calls a day on avariety of subjects, and I helppromote programs like theMayor’s Summer Jobs Program,Camp Read A Lot, and I workwith various neighborhoodgroups on issues of concern tothem. I also work with Cityline,which has been expanded andrenamed the Oaklanders Assis-tance Center, which is a tele-phone hotline (444-2489) with

Julia PetersC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 1

Tae Kwon Dofor kids and adults

Get in Shapeand Build Self-Esteem!

Intro Special $19.95also offering Cardio Kickboxing

(1st class free)

Baker’s Martial Arts4226 Park Blvd. (upstairs)

510-482-2814

you know the differencebetween them. Then you willthink you’re lucky.

We Love FreedomBy Dianna Pho

The United States is a landof freedom. The freedom ofspeech, freedom of religion,and freedom of news.

All that does not comenaturally. President Lincolnfought for freedom for slavesand lost his life. Martin LutherKing fought for freedom forBlack people and minoritiesand lost his life too.

So we love freedom.

Why Freedom IsSo Important

By Leslie Wong

Freedom is important becauseyou can go anywhere youwant, and you can do anykind of nice things you like.

You can try on new, cleanclothes and not have dirtyones with holes in them. Youcan try new foods, and youcan go shopping in any mar-ket, anyplace, anytime.

I think that people are gladto have freedom, and it is aprecious gift to let the onesbe free that are not free.

staff who do nothing but answerquestions and try to resolveproblems for Oakland residents.

Metro: Can you go into a littledetail about how you promotethe “top four” issues?

Peters: In the area of crime,we’re building on the initiativeunder way for NCPCs (Neigh-borhood Crime PreventionCouncils). We’re training neigh-borhood services coordinatorsin each of the 57 police beats tostrengthen ties between neigh-borhoods and the police depart-ment. With schools, other thanthe trustee issue, which has beenall over the newspapers lately,we are working with groupsto expedite the process for

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Julia Peters at City Center.

Lettersto theEditor

Home Depot Tries EndRun Around General PlanLate in March, the HomeDepot corporation turned onlobbying tactics full-steam tomake an end run around Oak-land development planningregulations. Even beforethe City Council-appointedQuarry Development Advi-sory Committee had data orofficial plans, a mass mailingarrived complete with tear-off ballot voting for supportof a large, box-design HomeDepot warehouse store at theGallagher-Burk quarry site.This kind of activity on thepart of a national corporation,in the absence of the required,up-to-date traffic, economicand environmental studies,is without parallel in Cityhistory. Such performance iscrude, uncaring, and typical

of steamroller techniquespoorly managed firms usein an urban environment.No wonder Home Depothas been rebuffed on severaloccasions in the eastern U.S.where they have been tryingto locate new stores.

Leona Heights and neigh-boring improvement andhomeowner associations havein good faith been cooperat-ing in the Advisory Commit-tee work. But now it is clearthat local citizens who willbe affected by car and trucktraffic and crime as reportedaround other Home Depotsites, must write to the CityCouncil protesting the short-cut action of Home Depot andopposing the project untilproper studies are submitted.What is our city coming to?Write to Mayor Jerry Brownand your Councilmember atCity Hall, 1 Frank OgawaPlaza, Oakland, CA 94612.

Leona HeightsNeighborhood News

B Y G O R D O N L A V E R T Y

fter much effort on thepart of citizens andCity staff, the Allendale

Rec Center is now the PoliceSubstation for beat 24Y. Offic-ers from any beat may stopthere to fill out paperworkand partake of what theyhope will be decent coffee.

The members of theAllendale NCPC wish to thankCommunity Policing OfficersO’Reilly and Poirier, NiccoloDe Luca and Luqman fromCouncilman Spees’ office,Rec Center Director TerryGamage, and especially OPD

Allendale NCPC NewsDistrict 4 Sgt. Eric Breshears,for their assistance. A specialthanks to Neighborhood Ser-vices Coordinator Teresa Will-iams for this effort and all ofher other work, as she will beleaving her post soon.

The Rec Center is alsohome to the nascent Commu-nity Computer Center as wellas an afterschool project en-titled “Allendale Oral HistoryProject.” Allendale Elemen-tary School students will beinterviewing neighborhoodelders for their insights aboutour community history.

For information on theseand other Rec Center projects,call NCPC President DonnaBlanc, 535-0908.

t our last meeting, wewere pleased to havereporters from both

the Oakland Tribune and theMontclarion. Both papers nowhave a section devoted toneighborhoods and are makingcontacts to get communityinformation. The minutes fromthe meeting are posted on the

B Y G I N G E R R E D I N G Redwood Heights Web page.Issues discussed were the

Leona Quarry, Andrea Simms’report on Y2K preparedness,and a project being developedby members of the OaklandPublic Ethics Commission toeducate the public about theirrights under the Sunshine Ordi-nance. Andrea Simms can bereached at 336-1556.

The RHIA welcoming

May 1999

3

T

Redwood Heights Neighborhood News

s days pass, more peoplebecome involved inchanging the Dimond.

On March 24, a meeting washeld with the owner of theHillcrest Motel. Dick Speessuggested this meeting be heldin his office, and residents of theDimond had a fruitful discussionconcerning the motel and its en-virons. The owner of the motelwas cooperative, and we allhope to see the changes soon.Ann Nomura, DIA’s new co-chairperson, had written a letterrepresenting the concerns ofthe Boston Ave. neighbors thatresulted in this meeting.

Our DIA Web site,DimondNews.org, has continu-ing information on this andother aspects of the Dimond. Ifyou have not visited our Web

Dimond ImprovementAssociation News

B Y K A R E N M A R I E S C H R O E D E R site, drop by the Dimond Libraryto learn about accessing it.

Janet Broughton reports thatplans for rezoning the Dimondfrom C30 to C31 are in progress.C31 calls for more design reviewand more pedestrian-orientedretail such as the Laurel is work-ing on.

Robert Pilc, our residentDimond architect, has reportedon plans for the new German-American cultural center onthe grounds of the Altenheim.

A landscaped garden willsoon be planted at the corner ofLincoln and MacArthur. The citywill provide water. New plantershave appeared on the medianstrips and other places in theDimond. Tim Chapman, DIAco-chairperson, tells us that thesearchitectural planters are theresult of a joint venture of The

cont inued on page 6

cont inued on page 6

he Laurel Merchants Asso-ciation held a generalmeeting Thursday, April 8,

at the Chick’N’Coop during thenoon hour. City Manager Rob-ert Bobb was our guest, and wediscussed with him several con-cerns for our business district:

Leona Quarry(see article on p. 1)

Our concern, besides theopening of 580 to commercialdevelopment and the impactto neighborhood commercialdevelopment, is the mega gro-cery store and what it will meanfor our local Lucky.

As for Home Depot, theyare interested in putting anotherstore as well on the 880 corridorin Oakland.

High Street and MacArthurThe property may be developedwithout the addition ofthe PG&E lot. PG&E is not

interested in selling the property.El Pollo Loco restaurant has ex-pressed interest in the site. Theywould design a building to beon the corner with the parkingin the back.

Center Auto has been sold toa self-serve laundromat. Futureplans may include remodelingthe second floor for live/workspaces. Perhaps the artists thatare being slowly moved out ofthe downtown/warehouse dis-trict would come to our livelyarea?

Thirty-fifth and MacArthuris still in the process of acquiringLadyFingers, a locally ownedfine-pastry store. An applicationfor city aid is being submitted.Heather Hensley of CEDAindicated that it may take a yearbefore we have the corner fullydeveloped.

Our Requeststo Robert Bobb

• Code compliance enforcementfor noncompliant businesses and

owners to improve the appear-ance of the Boulevard.• More funds for the façade im-provement project to help build-ing owners upgrade signage,windows, and paint on theMacArthur portion of theirproperty. Heather Hensleynoted that $100,000 of matchinggrant funds are available for ourarea, and 10 businesses havetaken advantage of the program.• Continued community polic-ing style, using a reportingmethod for crime stats that re-ports them the next day.• Forward movement of thestreet redesign project to im-prove the look of the Laurel Dis-trict.• Note our indebtedness toHeather Hensley of CEDA andRenee Sykes of NCPC for thegreat job they do for our busi-ness district.Next LMA general meeting willbe the second Thursday in Mayat noon at the Chick’N’Coop.

B Y M A U R E E N D O R S E Y

Laurel Merchants Association News

committee is in the process oforganizing. Contact the land-scape committee with anyissues pertaining to publicproperties. They have estab-lished relationships with theproper authorities.

Many important neighbor-hood issues are discussed atthe monthly RHIA meetings.Members of the communityare encouraged to attend.

Arbor Day Tree PlantingGreen activity is happening city-wide this May, kicked off in theLaurel with a tree planting spon-sored by CEDA on Friday, April30. Approximately 20 trees willbe planted around the Laurel El-ementary School with the help ofthe East Bay Conservation Corpsand community volunteers. A

Laurel/Redwood HeightsNeighborhood Council News

A

A

ABY MATT PIUCCI, COMMUNICATIONS

OFFICER, ALLENDALE NCPC

second spring planting of over50 trees takes place on May 15,the day of the citywide GreatGreen Sweep. Volunteers willmeet at Laurel ElementarySchool on Saturday, May 15, at9:30 a.m. If you can help, pleasecall 531-0972.

Laurel FestivalThe Laurel Festival, sponsoredby L-CAP, will be held April 30through May 2. Merchants will

host a sidewalk sale alongMac-Arthur Blvd. The NC willco-host the Kid’s Expo in theHollywood Video parking loton Saturday, May 1. The themeis ecology and will include acommunity art project, lots ofinformation about summerprograms and camps for kids,an art table, baked goods, a firetruck, martial arts demonstra-tions, and more.

High Street Safety StrollOakland’s second annual Pedes-trian Safety Week will culminatein an old-fashioned walk downHigh Street, from MacArthurto Brookdale, on Friday, May 7,from 7 to 7:30 p.m. Bring yourfamily and join your neighborsin support of safe, pedestrian-friendly streets and a reductionin traffic fatalities—AlamedaCounty’s number-one killer ofchildren under the age of 10. If

B Y A D E L L E F O L E Y

High Street Neighborhood News

B Y K A Y E S T E W A R T

cont inued on page 7

you’d like to join other walkers,meet near Brookdale Park orthe Walgreen parking lot at 7.

The first signs of PedestrianSafety activity on High Streetwill be a radar trailer checkingspeed on Thursday, May 6. OnFriday, May 7, children will berewarded for safe behavior,and there will be concentratedenforcement of traffic and park-ing laws.

Progress on High StreetWhile you’re walking downHigh Street, notice how the

High Street NeighborhoodAlliance’s focus on blight isbeginning to pay off. Thenlook at the T’s marking parkingspaces all the way down toFoothill. They are there thanksto the persistence of HSNAtraffic activist Al Scoggins andthe cooperation of Oakland’sTraffic Engineering.

Clean and Green atCourtland Creek

On Saturday, May 15, we’ll haveanother chance to spend time

Vaccinefor LymeDisease

day working in the gar-den could be all it takesto get Lyme disease, a

chronic and potentially debili-tating disease contractedthrough a tick bite. California isamong the states categorized asmoderate risk for Lyme disease.

Earlier this year, LYMErix,a vaccine developed andmanufactured by SmithKlineBeecham, was approved by theFDA for use in people between15 and 70 years old to protectagainst Lyme disease. If you areconsidering vaccination withLYMErix, here is informationto help with your decision.

The vaccine is given in threedoses, the first two a monthapart and the third a year afterthe first. However, recent stud-ies indicate the vaccine may bejust as effective administered ina three-month period as whengiven over a year. Clinical trialsshow the vaccine to provide ef-fective protection in 78 percentof cases after all three doses,and 50 percent after the firsttwo doses. The FDA also saysthe timing of the final dose maybe important. The highest effi-cacy appears to occur when thefinal dose of LYMErix is givenbetween January and April,the period just before the tickpopulation in the northeasternUS reaches its peak.

Clinical trials on the use ofLYMErix on children are cur-rently underway, but for now itis not approved for anyone un-der 15 or for pregnant women.To date, people who receivedthe vaccine have been followedfor just 20 months, so howlong protection will last is notyet known. Safety tests in the20,000 people vaccinated withLYMErix indicate it is very safe,but the manufacturer continuesto study safety issues, and the

4May 1999

PauletteAvery,

R.N., M.S.N.

To Your Health

FDA says further clarificationis needed in this area. Com-mon side effects from LYMErixinclude soreness, redness andswelling at the injection site,and mild to moderate flulikesymptoms. Since not all insur-ance companies currently payfor the vaccine, cost may bea factor in your decision-making. Each injection costs$70, for a total of $210.

Based on the informationI have read, I’m not going torun right out for the vaccine.It is recommended for peoplein areas with a high risk of thedisease, and California doesn’tfall into that category. Addi-tionally, to begin the shots thislate in the year would provideminimal protection during thesummer months, when the riskof tick exposure is highest. Ifyou engage in activities thatput you at higher risk, I woulddiscuss the issue with yourdoctor. Meanwhile, and evenif you do receive the vaccine,using other precautions re-mains wise.

When you can, avoidtick-infested areas, especiallyduring May, June, and July,when the poppy seed-sizedimmature deer ticks are mostprevalent. Wear light-coloredclothing (making it easier tospot the ticks) that is tightaround the wrists and ankles,and spray your clothing withDEET or with the insecticidepermethrin. Walk in the centerof trails to minimize contactwith ticks from brush andoverhanging trees.

When you are back inside,check yourself for ticks. Ifpossible, have someone helpwith this process, checkingyour back or other areas hardfor you to see. If you find anyticks, remove them withtweezers. Avoid squeezingthe tick’s body during removalby grasping as close to yourskin as possible and pullingthe tick straight out. Sincea tick must be attached to youfor about 48 hours to transmitthe disease, prompt removalcan prevent Lyme disease. —————————————Paulette Avery is a registerednurse and a freelance writer whospecializes in health issues.

B Y T O M V A N D E M A R K

To submit your nomination, call436-4545 and leave details andyour name and phone number.

Stars to Hi-Hat Cleaners(2996 MacArthur) for trail-blazing in the world of air qual-ity and top quality drycleaning.See article on back page.

Stars to the gardening teamthat has beautified the Fruitvale/I-580 intersections. On the team:Christ Surunis, Mike Mannix,Linda Farabee, Faith Harris,and Martha Carrington.

Stars to Fremont High SchoolBoys Basketball team on their re-cently won state championship.

state-of-the-art drycleaning ma-chine that uses Exxon 2000. Hesaid he is not concerned aboutmaking up for the cost.

Using the old method,Denson produced about 15 gal-lons of “toxic sludge” a month,paying hazardous-waste special-ists $95 to dispose of each five-gallon container.

Also, Bay Area Air QualityManagement imposes hefty feesfor drycleaners, costing from$225 to $3,000 a year, but nowthat Denson is toxic-free, his busi-ness is exempt from the fees.

Denson said his business hasbeen growing since he decided tochange solvents, and customersare delighted. He is the onlydrycleaner in Oakland to use thenew method and has customerscoming from as far away asVallejo, Black Hawk, and WalnutCreek to take advantage of hisservice to the community.

The new solvent adds no ex-tra cost to the consumer and doesa better job of cleaning, accordingto Denson, with no chemicalodors in the final product.

“I didn’t know it would workas well as it does,” he said. “At

DrycleanC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 8

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the end of the day, I don’t havefumes up my nose and in mythroat.”

Denson has spent the ma-jority of his life in thedrycleaning business.

He began his career in LosAngeles as a trade teacher inthe industry, cleaning theclothes of the rich and famousover the years: HumphreyBogart, Lauren Bacall, andDoris Day, to name a few.

After moving to Oakland inthe 1970s, he opened CollegeCleaners on Seminary Boule-vard and Camden Avenue,where he remained for manyyears.

Eventually, he moved hisbusiness to a lot directly acrossthe street from Mills College, onSeminary Avenue, but had toclose shortly after.

“There used to be a RegalGas station on the lot beforeme,” he said. “Shell came outand tested the soil and found itwas contaminated.”

The lot remains vacant tothis day.

Denson moved to his cur-rent location shortly after, at2996 MacArthur Boulevard atMaple Street.

Hi-Hat Cleaners specializesin leather, wedding gowns, andbeaded garments. All of thework is done on the premises.Denson said he has equipmenton site for shoe repair but sim-ply does not have the time tokeep up with the requests forrepairs since his drycleaningbusiness is so popular.

“What I really need is agood shoe person,” he said,“but unfortunately, that’s a dy-ing trade.”

Denson believes that it isonly a matter of time beforeothers in the industry catch onand that someday it will prob-ably be mandatory fordrycleaners to use the environ-mentally safe methods.

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Bernice & Joe Playschool. For18 years, play-based learning in ahome-like setting near Mills College.Quarter-acre wooded lot has fruitand pine trees, a garden, 20-footsailboat, rocket ship, art area, blockarea. Pre-reading, pre-math enrich-ment, computer play, field trips, F.I.T.gymnastics, Kindermusik. Socializa-tion, verbalization stressed. Berniceis an Early Childhood MentorTeacher. Sibling, pre-payment dis-counts. Lunch, snacks provided. Ages2 to 5 years. License #010214258.Brochure. (510) 638-3529.

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VIDEO SERVICES. WE CAN TRANS-FORM your slides, snapshots, andfilms into a charming video—with music and effects. Or havea professional cameraman video-tape your social and businessevents. Call Harold Lawrence at530-0628.

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Classified RatesThe rate for classified ads is $.50per word. Discounted pricesavailable for five- and ten-issuefrequencies. Please type or writeyour copy clearly and mail itwith your check to The MacArthurMetro, P.O. Box 19406, Oak-land, 94619. Deadline is the15th of the month. For classified-ad frequency discounts and dis-play-ad information, please con-tact Suzanne Tipton at287-2655, fax: 534-3429.

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launching charter schools. Wehope to have 15 new schoolsopen by the fall. In terms of cel-ebrating Oakland and the arts,we have a standing volunteercommittee to promote the arts,and we’re planning programssuch as the Great Green Sweepon May 15, and Earth Month,April 22 through May 22.Throughout the summer therewill be street festivals, a blues-and-jazz festival, with culturalfestivals continuing throughoutthe year. On the effort to attract10,000 new residents downtown,that is an ongoing process todraw people back to the citycore.

Metro: The first 100 days is abenchmark often used to mea-sure a new public officeholder’seffectiveness. How is the Brownadministration doing with

respect to working withOakland’s neighborhoods?

Peters: Oakland is really uniquewith its strong neighborhood ori-entation. There is really no otherplace like it. There has been anongoing effort—started by thecity manager—to organize thecity government to better serveOakland’s neighborhoods. Theidea is to increase collaborationcloser to the ground. It has a lotof exciting possibilities. We’realigning city departments towork with neighborhoods todevelop wish lists or goals towork for with the Brown admin-istration. We’re working withparents, training them to beadvocates on behalf of kids.We’re really in the asking phasewith neighborhoods at this point.There are Town Hall meetingsunder way, where we hope tolearn more about how we canhelp communities.

Metro: Now that you’ve hadsome time to settle in with your

new job, are there things you’dlike from neighborhood organi-zations to increase your effective-ness?

Peters: Well, the buzzword forcommunity organizing thesedays is collaboration. We needto be more successful in bringingtogether different groupsthroughout the city. Neighbor-hood groups in Oakland arefabulous, I experienced first-handthe power of community organi-zation with the Measure X cam-paign, where we obtained 50,000signatures in a month, and halfof those were collected by volun-teers. But we have a ways togo in getting true collaboration.There sometimes is an unwilling-ness among some groups to findcommonalities with each other.To sum up, there are a lot ofactivities and a lot of energythroughout the city that arenot necessarily well connected.That’s a place where neighbor-hood groups could really help.

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two-lane residential road. Thedevelopers want the Avenue wid-ened to four lanes under the free-way, removing the sidewalks.Mountain Boulevard would bewidened to four lanes for theportion that fronts the quarry. TheI-580 freeway on and off rampswould have to be reconfigured.The freeway, designated a scenichighway, is restricted by a cityordinance from truck traffic. Sub-stantial night lighting would berequired for a center that mightbe open until midnight everynight. Truck traffic for the quarryoperations has been limited to onesmall section between Edwardsand Seminary, to only weekdaysbetween 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

The quarry is surroundedentirely by residential housing.There is an almost rural atmo-sphere to the neighborhoods onthe immediate north and westborders of the quarry, with tree-lined streets that lack sidewalks.A small neighborhood park is at

the top of Edwards Avenue. Anelementary school stands a blockwest of the quarry entrance.

We urge all Oakland residentsto consider the impact such a dra-matic change to the GeneralPlanand the Oakland hills along I-580would create if the City PlanningDepartment and City Councilaccepted the project as designed.We ask other Oaklanders if they

want to open the I-580 corridorin this city to commercial develop-ment. Shall we believe the newGeneral Plan when it states,“Neighborhoods should be pro-tected from incompatible typesof development . . . ?” ——————————————Call Neighbors for ResponsibleDevelopment, 638-4037. E-mailOakplan@aol.com

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6May 1999

Calendar of Community EventsB Y S A N D Y J A E G E R , C O O R D I N A T O R

May 1999Laurel Neighborhood Festival: Friday through Sunday, April 30 to May 2, MacArthurBlvd. between 35th Avenue and High Street: Merchants’ Sidewalk Sale, May 1, 10a.m. to 3 p.m. Kids’ Expo, May 1, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Hollywood Video. Flip SallySwing Band, 5:30 to 8 p.m., dancing at the Chick’N’Coop, MacArthur at Patterson,$10. Scenes from Shakespeare in the Park-ing lot, May 2, 1 p.m. at True Valueparking lot; bring your armchairs. For info and all-event tickets, call 530-2462.

Friends of César E. Chávez Library: Wednesday, May 5, 6:30 p.m., 1900 FruitvaleAve. Call 535-5620 for information.

Dimond Improvement Association: Wednesday, May 5, 7:30 to 9 p.m., DimondLibrary, 3565 Fruitvale Ave. Contact Janet Broughton, 532-1645.

High Street Safety Stroll: Friday, May 7, 7 to 7:30 p.m., MacArthur to BrookdaleAvenue. Culmination of Pedestrian Safety Week. Join your neighbors in demonstratingthat streets are for people. For information, call Adelle Foley, 532-3737.

Y2K Planning and Information Meeting: Wednesday, May 12, 7 to 9 p.m., RedwoodHeights Rec. Center, 3883 Aliso Ave. Contact Andrea Simms, 336-1556, for information.

Maxwell Park NCPC: Wednesday, May 12, 7 p.m., Mills Grove Christian Church,5410 Fleming Street. Contact Jose Dorado, 535-0577.

Oakland Green Sweep: Saturday, May 15• Courtland Creek Clean Up: 9 a.m., meetat San Carlos and Courtland Streets. Bringgloves, enthusiasm, friends, and neighbors.• Bret Harte/Joaquin Miller NCPC 22Yclean-up of MacArthur Blvd. betweenCoolidge and 35th Avenue: Meet in theparking lot at MacArthur and Coolidge at9 a.m. Refreshments will be served along the way. Bring gloves, tools, and the kids.Call Traci Corcran, 535-5687.• Clean up the Laurel District: 9 a.m. to noon. Paint, Plant and Clean Party meets atthe Laurel True Value Hardware parking lot, 4024 MacArthur Blvd. Tools, paint, andsupplies provided.• Laurel Tree Planting: 9:30 a.m., Laurel School.

Redwood Heights Multi-Cultural Faire: Saturday, May 15, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., RedwoodHeights Elementary School Auditorium, 4401 39th Ave. Share the rich ethnic diversityof our school through food, music, crafts, personal mementos, and games.

Friends of Sausal Creek: Wednesday, May 19, 7 to 9 p.m. Dimond Library, 3565Fruitvale Ave. Discussion of bylaws, planning for summer, and celebration of spring.Call 231-9566 for information.

Redwood Heights Improvement Association: Wednesday, May 19, 7:30 p.m., RedwoodHeights Recreation Center, 3883 Aliso Street. Contact Richard Cowan, 482-3471.

Laurel-Redwood Heights NCPC (beat 25X): Thursday, May 20, 7 to 9 p.m., LaurelSchool, 3750 Brown Street. Contact Renee Sykes, 535-5691.

High Hopes NCPC (beat 27X): Thursday, May 20, 7 p.m., Horace Mann School,Congress and Ygnacio.

Friends of Sausal Creek Workday: Saturday, May 22, 9 a.m. to noon, Dimond ParkRecreation Center, 3860 Hanly Rd. Celebration of Open Garden Day, tours of theCalifornia Native Plant Demonstration Garden and the Riparian Restoration Area, aswell as some grooming and tending. Children under 15 should be accompanied byan adult. Call 231-9566 for information.

Spring Fling: Saturday, May 22, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Skyline Preschool at SkylineCommunity Church, 12540 Skyline Blvd. (2 blocks from Skyline High School). Carnivalgames and activities for ages 2-9, an astrojump, silent auction and raffle, barbecuelunch. Activity tickets 25 cents, raffle tickets $1. Call 530-0884 for more information.

St. Elizabeth’s High School Parent Club Flea Market: Sunday, May 23, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.,1530 34th Ave. Refreshments available. Accepting donated items to be sold May 17through 22. Contact Betsy McCall, 532-6473.

Welcome to Peralta Hacienda, Reclaiming Oakland’s Birthplace: Sunday, May 23, noonto 4 p.m., Peralta Hacienda Historical Park, Coolidge Ave. and Paxton. Dr. Loco’sRocking Jalapeno Band and African Roots of Jazz. Bring picnics; dance in the Plaza.

Dimond Oakmore/Woodminster/Temple Hill NCPC (beat 22X): Monday, May 24, 7:30p.m., upstairs meeting room, Dimond Library, 3565 Fruitvale Ave. Contact Jim Hill,530-6665.

Hansel and Gretel: Wednesday, May 26, 4 p.m., Melrose Branch Library, 4805 FoothillBlvd. Performed by the Opera Piccola in celebration of National Library Week.

Bret Harte/Joaquin Miller NCPC (beat 22Y): Thursday, May 27, 7 p.m., Imani Commu-nity Baptist Church, 3300 MacArthur Blvd. For more information, or if you are inter-ested in joining the Steering Committee for beat 22Y, call Traci Corcran, 535-5687.

Ongoing: Early Childhood Education Summer Classes at the Association of Children’sServices, Neighborhood Accreditation Center: Health and Safety, May 13 to July 1;Child Development, May 26 to August 21; Infant/Toddler Development, May 25 toAugust 31; Administration of Early Childhood Schools, June 9 to July 28. Collegecredit through CSU Hayward Extended and Continuing Education. Register early,class sizes limited. Call 261-1076 for information.

shared with the birds.Supply water in bird-

baths—in the warmer monthsthey will enjoy splashing.Your sprinklers, too, willprovide a cooling-off place.

A bird that needs no intro-duction in our area is themighty scrub bluejay. It hasa solid blue head, wings, andtail, and brownish-tan back.This bird is beautiful and intel-ligent. Some people call themraucous, mischievous, or ag-gressive and believe they scareaway other birds. Others enjoytheir entertaining antics; theycompete with mockingbirds inthis regard.

After mating in spring, apair will become hushed andsecretive as they both preparea nest. They are very cautiouswhen choosing a nesting area.They like to be in a small, thicktree about 10 to 25 feet abovethe ground, especially in thecrotch of tree limbs. You willsoon know if they are there,as their youngsters make noiseat an early age, even beforeleaving the nest.

Jays eat all kinds of food,loving peanuts, acorns, andsunflower seeds. They will flyoff with any excess food por-tions to store them and will

t this moment, a bird issinging a lovely song.Birds, like us, have

waited patiently for springdays. Until seeds appear, theyhave needed food. Let usprovide them with birdseedand bread crumbs throughoutthe year.

To Attract BirdsPlant a tree—it will addbeauty and shade to yourgarden and provide shelterfor the birds. Of course, fruittrees especially have to be

join you at your picnic table.Some even may walk inthrough your back door ifyou put peanuts on the floor!An old hanging basket filledwith sphagnum moss makesa great place to put their feed.

In spring, bluejays have areputation for raiding otherbirds’ nests in search of eggsand other birds’ young.Adding crushed egg shellsto your feeder in spring maymeet the bluejays’ need forcalcium, possibly reducing thisbehavior.

A good magazine to learnfrom about all birds is Birdsand Blooms, P.O. Box 5359,Harlan, IA 51593-2859; $12.98for a one-year subscription.

Plant a Gardenas a Family

This will be quality time forall: Plant tomatoes, being sureto cut off lower leaves so thatyou can plant deeper to allowmore roots to form for a stron-ger, more productive plant.Plant pumpkin and sunflowerseeds now—children loveto watch them grow. Plantvegetables like carrots, lettingchildren pick out the seedpackages they want.

MargeLaverty

Leona HeightsGarden Club Tip

of the Month

A

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in here with their plans? I amconcerned about living acrossthe street from a busy parkinglot and a public drivethrough.My daughter won’t be able toride her bike next to our home,”states Shannon Petty, resident.

Traffic and environmentalimpact studies were not con-ducted. Residents were not noti-fied. Armed with limited infor-mation, the Post Office forgedahead with a plan to open park-ing lot entrances on Mastersonand to add a drivethrough maildrop.

“I live directly across fromwhere they are planning to adda public drivethrough. It willadd more noise and traffic andchange the image of this residen-tial corner,” states Patrick Lam.

Concerned residents invitedthe postal representative to themonthly Laurel Crime Preven-tion meeting and voiced strongconcerns about the process ofnotification, traffic noise, secu-rity and lighting. “I am verydisappointed in the Post Office,”Allene Graham, Madrone resi-dent says. “I expect that theywould work with the neighbor-hood to ease an already con-gested traffic situation onMasterson, not to add to it.This would not be happeningif this were Montclair.”

Residents intend to continuethe fight to keep the governmentfrom ignoring their concerns anddismissing their right to deter-mine how business impacts theirneighborhood.

Metro readers can call NateMiley’s office at 238-7006 tovoice concerns about the PostOffice plans for the MastersonArea.

Metropolitan Contract Group andGolden State Warriors BasketballTeam. Christ Surunis, a memberof the Contract Group, stated thatsome planters were originallydesignated for the Warriors train-ing facility and the arena, butthese were surplus. He arrangedthrough his employer for theplanters to be delivered to theDimond. Thank you, Christ.Thanks also to Mike Mannix,Faith Harris, and other volunteersfor planting the flowers.

Some of our members havecontinued to complain aboutthe litter and current disarrayof some of our buildings likethe old Sprouse Reitz. We hopethat with time and the efforts ofmany caring residents and busi-ness owners, these problemswill diminish.

Our next meeting will beMay 5, 7:30 p.m., in the DimondLibrary. Come be involved inthe Dimond.

DIA NewsC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 3

High Street NewsC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 3

Post OfficeC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 1

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with our neighbors improvingour community. Bring yourheavy gloves, enthusiasm, andappetite to San Carlos andCourtland at 9 a.m. We’ll beplanting trees, painting, andcleaning up. Thanks to the Dis-covery Center, children willhave a chance to check out thecreek water and reintroducetadpoles.

High Hopes/High EnergyAn expanded group of NCPCmembers spent one Saturdaymorning developing strategiesand committing themselves toaction plans for priorities chosenat the March general meeting.The three target areas are 48thAve., Kingsland and Ygnacio,and the 2300 block of HighStreet. The next NCPC meetingwill be at Horace Mann School(Congress and Ygnacio) onThursday, May 20, at 7 p.m.

Melrose Library Move NotQuite Yet

The writing workshop for highschool-aged students (May 4,3:30 p.m.) and Cinco de Mayocrafts for children (May 5, 3:30p.m.) continue, despite uncer-tainty regarding the move. Bestcurrent guess: the library willclose at the end of May andreopen at 5420 Bancroft threeto four weeks later.

May 1999

*RepeatMoney Honeys

*Roussel Sargent*Hon. Jean Quan & Dr. Floyd Huen

*Douglas Ferguson*Jacob Hart Interior Painting

*Katherine Dunne &Michael Vecchio

*Stan & Naomi Cohen*Ellen Griffin & Brian Stein

*Carol Lennox*Jim Locke & Sandy Warren

*Dimond ImprovementAssociation

*Gary Delgado &Marcia Henry

*Karen Marie Schroeder*Zarka Popovic

Knud DanildPhillip W. Wong & Lisa Lemus

*Deborah Cooper*Joan Dark

*Janet Broughton*Fong Wing

*Betty & Robert Doty*Jeff Kelley & Hung Liu

*Mary Lee Peterson*Diane Trost

*Richard & Linda Weinstein*Oakland Veterinary Hospital

*Ruth MaloneLydia Palmin & Tom Daly

*Teresa Croce &Abelina Carmona

Stevan & Catalina AlvaradoPat Sawanwatana/ Old Weang

Ping Village Restaurant*Betsy Callaway*Richard CowanSupport Net, Inc.

MacArthur &High Trailer Park

*Nancy & Chris MeyerStuart Richardson &

Mailinh Dang TruongPhillis Robbiano

*Ethel SandalVic & Nancy Miloslavich

Bennet & ArlynChristophersonPamela Calvert& Helen Haugt

*P. Oliveri & F. Baer,Royal Hi ApartmentsPhil & Kathy Caskey

*William & Susan Bagnell*Redwood Heights

Improvement Association*Nancy & Rick Banker

*Frederik Schultz

The Metro acknowledgescontributions of $50 or moreby listing your name orbusiness as a Money Honeyfor 10 issues. You keep ourpaper alive and well.

MONEYHONEYS

7

Special thanks to Money Hon-eys who doubled their dona-tions to take advantage of theMetro’s non-profit status.

Chip Johnson holds his audience with Metro volunteers and Board members listening, includingReuben Goldberg, Treasurer, and member Lori Hope.

Doug Ferguson and Toni Locke. Toni Locke and David Raich.Cake by Board member Bettie Grandison.

Mike Broad, Chairman ofBoard and party host

LUQ

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Laurel NewsC O N T I N U E D F R O M P A G E 3

Pedestrian StingPedestrian Safety Week is theweek of May 3, and Laurel resi-dents are gathering at 7 p.m.May 7 at St. Lawrence O’Tooleon High street for a communitywalk. Walkers will travel on HighStreet from MacArthur to Bayoand observe “Pedestrian Stings”made by Oakland Police in plainclothes. The officers will walk infront of vehicles and ticket thosewho fail to yield. This should belots of fun to watch!

School WalkathonVolunteers are needed now tosponsor marathon walkers at the

Laurel Elementary schoolWalkathon fundraiser, to be heldMay 15 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Re-member, you don’t need to have achild at Laurel School to sponsora walker or to help out. To helpon May 15 with the Walkathon,call Cherry Campbell at 635-8017.

Blight Meeting—Nate MileyBoth Councilmembers NateMiley and Dick Spees attendedour March NC meeting. NateMiley, Chair of the Public SafetyCommittee, addressed the issueof blight and how to deal with it.Blight brochures are available inseveral languages and can beobtained at our meetings. Thereare sometimes gray areas sur-rounding what constitutes blight,but finally we have an ordinancein place to take action against

blatantly neglectful propertyowners. Oakland is taking anaggressive stand with uncoop-erative property owners in casesof severe blight and code viola-tions by destroying the property.

Post Office(see article by Teresa Miller on p. 1)There was a lively discussion atApril’s NC meeting betweenPost Office representatives andresidents who live near the newlocation.

Post Office representativesseemed willing to work withthe community, and TeresaMiller was appointed spokes-person for Neighbors of thePost Office. The group looksto the City of Oakland for assis-tance from Traffic Planners.CEDA representative Heather

Hensley joined the discussion.NSC Renee Sykes also

reminded neighbors of other op-tions to reduce traffic problems.

39th Avenue ProgressProperty owners on 39th Avenueare partnering with CommunityPolicing and the NeighborhoodCouncil for long-term solutions.

Our next general meetingis June 10, 7 p.m., at LaurelElementary School.

Free Preschool forLow Income Families

Head Start Program is acceptingapplications for 3 & 4 year old children.

Virginia Ave. (Near High St.)Call Carolyn Corneliusat 261-1484 or 261-1479or page her at 382-5497

8May 1998

Dryclean

Laurel District business-man has become a pioneerin the drycleaning indus-

try by switching to a nontoxiccleaning solvent after several ofhis colleagues died from lungdisease.

Don Denson, owner of Hi-HatCleaners, decided to switch toExxon 2000, an environmentallysafe, noncancer-causing solventthat replaced perchloroethylene,a chlorine-based compoundlinked to cancer and neurologicaland reproductive disorders.

“Most of the colleagues,friends, and owners I haveworked with over the years aredead,” he said.

Community leaders are sup- cont inued on page 4

BY SANDRA CHAPIN, A SINGLE MOM,WELFARE TO WORK STUDENT AT MILLS COLLEGE

A

Syntropic Communities/Investment Clubsof North America

Invite our neighbors to join with usin working together to:

• increase material well-being and• increase well-being of thehuman community through

socially responsible investing.

For Metro area meeting timesand further information,

call: (510) 482-7592

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portive of Denson’s innovativeand conscientious approach tobettering the health of individu-als as well as the environment.

Alameda County SupervisorMary King, who sits on the BayArea Air Quality ManagementBoard, recently presentedDenson with a resolution at theAlameda County Board of Su-pervisors Meeting honoring himfor his work and thanking himfor his efforts to improve thehealth and safety of the environ-ment.

King said she is enthusiasticand proud of Denson’s effortsbecause he is located in her dis-trict and because this is a small,minority-owned business.

“In the shadow of the activ-ity at the Tosco refinery, it is en-couraging to see that a smallbusiness can be innovative andmindful of health and safety pre-cautions,” said King, “in contrastto the greed and self-serving ap-

JOD

Y BE

RKE

proach of big business.”

Mayor Jerry Brown’s presssecretary, Stacey Wells, said themayor is also aware of Denson’s

efforts and is behind him 110 per-cent of the way. She said Brownhas long been a supporter of sus-tainable industry and individualefforts to improve the quality of

the environment.

In August 1998, Denson de-cided to invest $80,000 in a new,

Don Denson at workin nontoxic cleaners.