Alex Mousouris/Staff

BART officials and worker unions reached a temporary agreement Thursday night that will extend current contracts for workers for 30 days, signaling the end of a four-day strike.

The BART transit system resumed service at 3 p.m. on Friday.

However, contract negotiations between BART and its unions have not yet been resolved and will continue until an agreement is made.

“Despite lots of hard work, BART and its unions have failed to come to an agreement on contract issues that matter to all of us today and into the future,” said Grace Crunican, BART general manager. “We still have a wide gap of disagreements to bridge over the next 30 days.”

Leo Ruiz, a foreworker representative for BART union Amalgamated Transit Union 1555, said he hopes that an agreement will be made between BART and the unions.

“We’re hoping that the district BART will negotiate in good faith,” Ruiz said. “If they do, we should have no problem coming to a resolution.”

Cynthia Ramirez, who works at Peet’s Coffee & Tea in the Downtown Berkeley BART station, said she was concerned about getting paid for the days she could not work during the strike when the station was closed.

“We don’t know if we’re going to get paid for that, so that’s how (the strike) affected us,” Ramirez said.

Despite the potential losses faced by Peet’s Coffee & Tea from the strike, supervisor Helen Slomowitz expressed support for the BART workers’ cause.

“In my opinion, it’s good,” Slomowitz said. “It wasn’t good for the passengers … but for the BART (workers), I think that it’s fair to fight what they deserve.”

An additional strike has not been planned at this time and will not be necessary if an agreement is made, according to Ruiz.

“It all depends on BART (administration) — it is on them,” Ruiz said. “We didn’t want to strike in the first place.”

Jennie Yoon is the assistant news editor. Contact her at jyoon@dailycal.org.

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According to a statement released Thursday by BART General Manager Grace Crunican, the BART transit system will resume service at 3 p.m. on Friday.

However, contract negotiations between BART and its unions have not yet been resolved and will continue until an agreement is made.

“Despite lots of hard work, BART and its unions have failed to come to an agreement on contract issues that matter to all of us today and into the future,” Crunican said. “We still have a wide gap of disagreements to bridge over the next 30 days.”

More updates to follow.

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org

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Elsa Pearson/Staff

While the campus is relatively desolate from June to August, the last thing you want is to feel like you’re “stuck” in Berkeley for the summer. This special summer issue is designed to help you find ways to maximize the remaining 70 days of summer in Berkeley.

You don’t need to leave Berkeley to find your escape: you can travel the world without leaving the dinner table and discover the hidden treasures that the Bay Area has to offer.

Whether it’s your first summer in Berkeley or your last, here’s to making it great.

The Daily Cal Summer Arts Calendar

Check out the Daily Cal summer arts calendar, the go-to place to check out all the arts events in the Bay Area over the summer.

Low-key destinations to check out in the Bay Area

Summers at Cal present the perfect time to explore the Bay Area, but finding cool sites to visit that aren’t crowded with tourists can be a challenge.

Taste the world in Berkeley

With restaurants serving cuisines from around the world in Berkeley, this summer is your time to go on a culinary adventure.

Summer dog days: a photo essay

Over the summer, the Berkeley campus, especially Memorial Glade, has become a favorite spot for pets and pet owners alike.

Summer perspectives: a photo essay

Even if you are working full-time or taking summer classes, summer in Berkeley is an experience unlike any other season.

The beauty of a Berkeley summer

With some planning and open eyes, summer in Berkeley can be a fulfilling experience.

Summer survival guide

Sports editor Riley McAtee offers some advice on survival a rather dull summer of sports.

Status update: your summer relationship

Summer is finally here, and that means more time to spend with the person who makes you feel amazing.

The post Summer Orientation Issue: (70) Days of Summer appeared first on The Daily Californian.

You don’t need to leave Berkeley to find your escape: you can travel the world without leaving the dinner table and discover the hidden treasures that the Bay Area has to offer.

Whether it’s your first summer in Berkeley or your last, here’s to making it great.

Contact Denise Lee at deniselee@dailycal.org. Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

The post Editors’ Note appeared first on The Daily Californian.

Elliot Sharifi/Courtesy

UPDATED, June 18, 6:42 p.m.: According to a UCPD crime alert released Tuesday, the driver of the first vehicle was identified as a nonaffiliated female and her friend, who were shot at by two male suspects driving a second vehicle as they passed through the intersection of Telegraph Avenue and Channing Way. The victims’ car was struck several times, but they managed to drive away from the scene physically unharmed. BPD and UCPD searched the area but were unable to locate the suspects.

According to the crime alert, the suspects are described as:

Suspect #1 — A black male, 18 to 20 years of age, 5-foot-8 in height, with a stocky build, possibly wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt or a black T-shirt and jeans.

Suspect #2 — A black male adult with a dark complexion.

Multiple gunshots were fired Sunday morning at the intersection of Telegraph Avenue and Channing Way, according to several witness reports and Berkeley Police Department.

BPD responded to reports of shots fired at the scene at approximately 12:30 a.m. After investigating the scene, BPD reported no property damage or knowledge of injuries resulting from the shooting, according to BPD lieutenant Andrew Rateaver.

The shots were allegedly fired between two vehicles and possibly a pedestrian, according to witnesses. BPD arrived just as the vehicles fled the scene, said BPD lieutenant Andrew Rateaver.

Tina Hernandez, a CREAM employee who was working at the time, said she saw two cars drive by, shooting at one another.

There are no known suspects at this time.

About 45 minutes earlier, BPD received a disturbance call from a large party in the 2400 block of Waring St., blocks away from the location where the shots were fired. Although BPD cannot confirm that the two incidents were related, the possibility has not been ruled out.

“The time frame is certainly there and the proximity is certainly there,” Rateaver said. “We don’t have a direct indication of (a relation between the incidents) but it is possible.”

Witnesses have speculated that the incident was gang related, but BPD stated that there has been no indication of whether it is or is not.

Investigation of the incident is ongoing.

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

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Sureya Melkonian/Staff

On May 28, demolition officially began on Eshleman Hall, a building that has been home to hundreds of student groups throughout the last 48 years — including The Daily Californian.

The Lower Sproul Redevelopment program plans to build a replacement by fall 2015.

Follow the demolition below as we bring you regular updates. A UC Berkeley webcam is also available here.

July 5

Photo by Seung Y. Lee/Senior Staff

The remains of Eshleman Hall, on July 5th

July 3

Photo by Sureya Melkonian/Staff

July 1

Photo by Elsa Pearson/Staff

June 26

Photo by Jacob Brown/Staff

June 21

Photo by Jacob Brown/Staff

June 20

Photo by Andrew Kuo/Staff

June 13

Photo by Jacob Brown/Staff

June 11

Photo by Megan Messerly/Staff

June 8

Photo by Mary Zheng/Staff

June 6

Photo by Andrew Kuo/Staff

June 3

Photo by Adelyn Baxter/Senior staff

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

The post Eshleman Watch: The demolition of a campus landmark appeared first on The Daily Californian.

According to the UCPD crime alert, the 21-year-old male victim and two male friends, also UC Berkeley students, parked their car at signpost 16 turnout to look at the view when they were approached by a group of eight to 10 males and females who had also parked their cars at the signpost.

One of the males from the group approached the victim, punched him in the face and continued to punch and kick him even after the victim fell to the ground, according to the alert. Other members of the group began to kick and punch the victim as well. When one of the victim’s friends attempted to intervene, he was reportedly punched in the stomach.

When the victim ran away from the group and to his car, he was hit in the face by an unknown object — possibly a bottle or a large rock. The victim and his friends fled the scene in their car.

UCPD searched the area for the suspects but were unable to find any suspects or their cars. Two of their vehicles were described as red and white Hondas or cars of similar make.

According to the UCPD crime alert, one suspect is described as a white male, 6 feet in height with a light build and long blond curly hair, wearing a white shirt and hat. Additional suspects are described as white males and females in their 20s.

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

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Andrew Kuo/Senior Staff

Only a few blocks away from the Occupy the Farm demonstrations, a less contentious community farm is expanding in Berkeley.

Urban Adamah, a farm influenced by Jewish tradition, will be moving from its temporary place on Parker Street to a permanent home on Sixth Street, where it will continue to provide educational opportunities and fresh produce for the Berkeley community.

The farm is currently in negotiations to purchase a 2.2-acre lot on Sixth Street for $2.5 million. The organization has raised $1.3 million through donations as of Friday and will have to raise the remaining funds and hold land inspections by August to finalize the purchase.

Founded in 2010 by Adam Berman, Urban Adamah is a nonprofit educational farm and community center that aims to serve the Berkeley community. By integrating Jewish customs with mindfulness and social action, the organization seeks to spread values such as kindness, justice and love through sustainable agriculture.

“This is a project that is designed to open people’s hearts and build connections to the earth and to the bounty,” Berman said.

Urban Adamah holds summer camps, after-school programs and programs for local churches and synagogues. It also sponsors a three-month residential fellowship program for young adults and holds a free food market every Wednesday in partnership with local social services and food banks.

Berman and the members of the Urban Adamah community were attracted to the Sixth Street property for its location, size and proximity to the Codornices Creek. By moving to the lot on Sixth Street, Urban Adamah will be able to produce four times the amount of food that it currently grows and hold twice the number of education programs for the community, according to Berman.

“I think getting involved in sustainable agriculture is a meaningful enterprise on multiple levels,” Berman said. “It connects people to their food and inspires them to eat more healthily.”

Members of the Berkeley community have also expressed excitement about Urban Adamah’s efforts.

“Urban Adamah is an amazing organization,” said Councilmember Darryl Moore, whose district includes the current location of the farm. “They have been able to convert a vacant field in my district into an amazing urban garden … I’m 100 percent excited about their new space.”

Councilmember Linda Maio said she is pleased to have Urban Adamah move into her district because there are no other nonprofits in Berkeley like it that provide the community with such open agricultural space.

“There’s nothing better than to have an urban garden right next to (Codornices) Creek instead of a cement building,” Maio said.

Berman said he believes that Urban Adamah has created a strong community bond between the various types of people in Berkeley. Through food, he says he hopes that people can build connections with others as well as with the earth.

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

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The ASUC Judicial Council has found External Affairs Vice President-elect Safeena Mecklai not guilty of alleged bylaw violations due to a lack of sufficient evidence in an opinion released Tuesday.

CalSERVE Elections Coordinator Anais LaVoie filed five charges against Mecklai in April for distribution of campaign literature in residence halls, solicitation in the dining commons and explicit disobedience of residence hall staff directives.

LaVoie accused Mecklai of cheating, citing that the “margin of victory in her election can plausibly be enumerated as the number of votes gained through illegal campaigning.”

Four of the five petitions against Mecklai were dismissed by the council due to insufficient evidence and witness testimonies. The council then reviewed Mecklai in a hearing on May 2 for one charge of solicitation in the dining commons of a resident hall and evaluated an oral and written testimony from resident assistant Jasmine Verret.

According to the opinion, the written testimony from Verret cited Mecklai “not campaigning but definitely soliciting” multiple tables of students in Cafe 3.

However, while the written testimony suggested multiple incidents of solicitation, Verret’s oral testimony only referenced one specific incident, and the council therefore ruled that the witness’s collective testimony did not meet “the standard of clear and convincing evidence.”

The council chose to evaluate case evidence individually rather than holistically because four of the charges were dismissed before the hearing. Although the evidence presented appeared to “establish a pattern of intent,” the council ultimately ruled that the evidence against Mecklai was insufficient in charging her and found her not guilty on all five charges.

If the council had taken a holistic approach, the opinion states that there would have been “sufficient evidence and testimony to charge (Mecklai) with at least, but not limited to one censure.”

“While I’m disappointed that we lost the case by such a close ruling of 5 to 3, I’m confident that the act of pursuing elections violations this year will clean up elections in the future,” LaVoie said in an email.

Mecklai said she felt relieved by the results of the trial.

“I’m glad it’s over, and I’m trying to keep my head up,” Mecklai said. “I’ve always said that I’m not a partisan person, and I want to maintain that and not let this affect that going forward.”

LaVoie v Mecklai Official Judicial Council Direct Judgment (PDF)

LaVoie v Mecklai Official Judicial Council Direct Judgment (Text)

Contact Jacob Brown at jbrown@dailycal.org. Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org

The post ASUC Judicial Council finds Mecklai not guilty of bylaw violations appeared first on The Daily Californian.

The event was organized by the ASUC Office of the President in conjunction with ASUC senators Sadia Saifuddin, Rosemary Hua and Megan Majd. In order to raise awareness of such crimes on campus, victims of sexual assault shared their stories.

According to a Berkeley Police Department crime report, there were 39 reported incidents of sexual assault in the city of Berkeley in 2012, up from 20 incidents in 2011.

“(Sexual assault) is something that doesn’t discriminate against color or gender,” Saifuddin said. “It’s something that happens to a lot of people.”

According to Bay Area Women Against Rape training coordinator Agustina Perez, 85 percent of sexual assaults are committed by a person whom the victim knows, and only one in 10 victims report the crime.

Student attendees included members of the campus sorority system and the ASUC. The workshop was facilitated by UCPD, University Health Services and BAWAR.

“(Events like Fight Back) allow survivors of sexual assault who are silenced to have a voice,” Hua said. “But it also allows for facetime between UCPD and students (and) facilities a discussion.”

Speakers at the event noted the importance of discussing sexual assault in an open and safe environment.

“The reason why sexual violence is rising at such alarming rates is because people don’t talk about it,” Perez said. “Anything that will get people to talk and create safe spaces is a step in the right direction.”

Community leaders provided attendees with resources to defend themselves against attack.

During the workshop, UCPD officers offered a pepper spray demonstration as well as basic self-defense techniques. Officers said one of the most basic but useful techniques in the case of an assault is to shout for help. The workshop also offered free pepper spray to participants.

“There is nothing that anyone can do that warrants (or) causes rape,” Perez said during her presentation. “The only person responsible for rape is the one committing it.”

Director and Title IX Officer Denise Oldman of the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination said that it is important to know that there are allies in the community for sexual assault victims. She addressed the various resources available to students, including medical, psychological and emotional health services, residential needs and prevention help.

Members of the ASUC and campus community alike said they hope events like Fight Back will educate the students that attended and continue to raise awareness about sexual assault and violence within the UC Berkeley community.

“I feel like it’s important to have events that raise awareness about how critical an issue (sexual violence is) both on campus and in general,” said sophomore Taylor Fugere, who is a member of Greeks Against Sexual Assault and involved in the Gender Equity Resource Center.

UCPD Officer Brendan Tinney said he hopes to see more involvement with sexual assault prevention from other groups on campus, such as fraternities.

“I think there’s some interest specifically in the part of fraternities, at least some of them,” Tinney said. “But I’m waiting for them to reach out. You don’t (only) teach the group that’s interested in the topic.”

Contact Jennie Yoon at jyoon@dailycal.org.

Correction(s):
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that there had been 39 incidents of sexual assault on the UC Berkeley campus this year, a 95 percent increase from 19 incidents the previous year. In fact, there were 39 reported incidents of sexual assault in the city of Berkeley in 2012, up from 20 incidents in 2011.

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