Planning Commission

Student voices and signs dominated Berkeley’s Planning Commission meeting Wednesday evening, many of them urging the commission to approve proposals aimed at facilitating affordable housing construction in the campus area.

On Aug. 30, less than a year after joining the Berkeley City Council, Councilmember Ben Bartlett formally announced his California 15th State Assembly District campaign for the 2018 election in the hopes of addressing affordable housing at a statewide level.

The new City Council tackled housing in Berkeley at its first meeting of the year, winning approval from the homeless community and Berkeley residents.

Both incumbents up for election, Darryl Moore and Susan Wengraf, held out in Tuesday night’s city council elections for Districts 2 and 6, while newcomers Ben Bartlett and Sophie Hahn will take over in Districts 3 and 5.

After 12 years as District 5 City Council member, Laurie Capitelli is now throwing his hat into the race for mayor.

Stretching from Cedar Street to the far northern edge of town, District 5 encompasses both winding residential streets and the bustling shopping districts along Solano and North Shattuck avenues.

As local elections approach in November, some are concerned about the perennial issue of low student engagement in Berkeley politics.

Three UC Berkeley students were sworn in Thursday morning as the newest members of three city commissions, further integrating students’ voices into city government.

At a special meeting Tuesday evening, Berkeley City Council discussed results of a new voting system that re-prioritized referrals from city departments through consensus voting.

Mark Coplan, spokesperson for Berkeley Unified School District, announced his intent to enter the Berkeley City Council race for the District 3 seat Sunday night.