Just a few days before the one-year anniversary of the aerial spraying for Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) in Santa Cruz, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) released a report by the Department for Pesticide Regulations (DPR) about the results of environmental monitoring during pesticide applications in Monterey and Santa Cruz counties.

While CDFA claims that this study proves the safety of the chemicals used, environmental groups and citizen advocates say that statement is misleading and point out fundamental shortcomings of the report. Rather, they argue, the report reveals another breach of the law by CDFA as it states that considerable drift occurred during aerial spraying in 2007. The study also confirms observations made by affected residents of inconsistencies in the dosage of the pesticides, creating whole clusters of illness. Read More

see also: Birds wash up on south county shores after ‘mystery spill’ (Nov. 13, 2007 from the Sentinel) | Fraud and Deception: The CDFA LBAM Eradication Program

October 27, 2008: Tenants and the City of East Palo Alto have been in a legal dispute with Page Mill Properties/Woodland Park Management since January 2008 over Page Mill’s repeated violations of the city’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance, raising tenant rents 2 or 3 times in one year totaling raises of 20%, 30%, and even up to 100%.

The October 27 hearing was to address Page Mill's challenge of the legitimacy of the revised Rules and Regulations for Implementation of the Rent Stabilization Ordinance that East Palo Alto's Rent Board passed in early July. These revised Rules and Regulations keep the intent of the original 1984 rent stabilization ordinance very clear; it is illegal for a landlord to raise anyone's rent more than the annual general adjustment in a given year--averaging around 3% each year.

East Palo Alto resident and member of the Fair Rent Now Coalition Matt Martin said that if the judge had affirmed the city’s authority it would have been a victory for tenants and the city, but yesterday's judgment "may allow predatory corporations like Page Mill Properties to undermine and override the city’s authority by forcing current tenants out through illegal rent increases."

Tenant and activist Matthew Fremont, who addressed the rally shortly before the hearing began, said later in the day that although the ruling went against the tenants on the most important point, the judge's decision still "leaves open a couple of possibilities to get relief for tenants." He and others said they plan to continue to assert the Rent Stabilization Board's authority to enforce the ordinance.

Tenants say they will continue the struggle to preserve meaningful rent control.

Read more | In the Courts and On the Streets | Investor Landlord Fights City Built on Rent Control | Youth United for Community Action

SubRosa, a new community space in downtown Santa Cruz, hosted its grand opening event on November 1st. The event included an art show, spoken word, live music, food, and a first look inside this vibrant new social space.

Music poured out into the rainy night, as people cramped tightly together to share in the musical performances at the grand opening of SubRosa. The small, but cozy space was filled with a vibrant youthful crowd. Event goers snacked on piles of free bread, and coffee from reusable ceramic mugs. Artwork from local artists covered the freshly painted walls, as well as a colorful display of ‘zines, and a lending library. The set had almost everyone jumping and singing along. The space will be a home to future performances, open mics, and Free Skool workshops. Stop in for a steaming cup of coffee and check out the extensive library.

SubRosa: A Community Space is a non-profit, donation-funded space for art and radical projects run by a collective of volunteers from the Santa Cruz anarchist community. Located at 703 Pacific Avenue in downtown Santa Cruz, SubRosa is open 7 days a week, 8am-1pm and 3pm-8pm. Read More

This November, whether San Francisco's Board of Supervisors remains pro-tenant, pro-labor, and progressive will be determined by what happens in the swing supervisor districts of 1, 3 and 11. With current Supervisors McGoldrick, Peskin and Sandoval termed out, theirs are moderate districts which could swing either way. Rent control is at stake; the SF rent control law is just a local ordinance which could be weakened or ended by a 6-5 vote of the Board of Supervisors.

Landlords and realtors are spending hundred of thousands of dollars against the pro-tenant candidates Eric Mar in District 1, David Chiu in District 3, and John Avalos in District 11 in an attempt to buy the election for their candidates: Sue Lee in D1, Joseph Alioto in D3 and Aasha Safai in D11.

Community activists have called for a protest on Thursday, October 23rd, to picket the realtors and landlords funding the "downtown" slate. Protesters will gather at the San Francisco Association of Realtors office at the corner of Franklin and Grove Streets at 5:30pm.

Read more | San Francisco Tenants Union

The California Alliance for Retired Americans (CARA) held a conference in San Francisco on October 13th. CARA unites retired workers and community groups to win social and economic justice.

Members of CARA took a bus from the conference on the afternoon of October 13th to demonstrate in solidarity with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union at a Rite Aid store at the corner of Van Ness and Market Streets. CARA says: "Rite Aid markets to seniors with its *Living More* program. They want our money, but they don't always want to respect workers' rights. And they're not respecting the union in bargaining."

Earlier in the day, CARA members from all over California gathered at San Francisco's Cathedral Hill Hotel to hear political candidates, learn about patient advocate programs, and sing along with the Raging Grannies and the Bay Area Labor Chorus during lunchtime entertainment.

Read More | Rite Aid Demo l Seniors Support Lancaster Rite-Aid Distribution Center Workers l The California Alliance for Retired Americans

On September 17th, Jack and Wes were arrested at a gathering in Parking Lot #4 alongside the Santa Cruz Farmer's Market. According to reports published on Santa Cruz Indymedia, police initially went after and arrested Jack, a Food Not Bombs volunteer. Some people followed the police while drumming and demanding that Jack be released. Police reacted by arresting Wes, a drummer with Santa Cruz Trash Orchestra.

Numerous police were called to the scene, but they quickly left after displaying batons and a riot control gun. The final scene had Parking Lot #4 filled with musicians drumming, children dancing, and Food Not Bombs feeding.

Drum Circle Challenge | Drummers Arrested at Wednesday Farmers Market | Two Arrested Near Farmer's Market, But the Beats Continued On

previous coverage: Raging Grannies and Trash Orchestra Defend Drummers from SCPD (Sep. 10, 2008)

Two recent legal decisions may help the case of a city created on the dream of affordable living in Silicon Valley, the city of East Palo Alto. One displacement watch activist said that he "expects many, many more legal victories to come."

A San Mateo County Superior Court Judge ruled on September 5th that East Palo Alto is entitled to crucial evidence they need in their fight against mega-landlord Page Mill Properties. At issue are what the city deems to be illegal rent increases at roughly 1,700 apartment units in rent stabilized East Palo Alto. Page Mill Properties had asked the Court to seal documents pertaining to the rent increases. The city won a crucial victory with the judge's decision and will get the information they need in time for a scheduled debate over the validity of the rent increases September 19th.

This win for renters comes on top of a Rent Stabilization Board Hearing on August 27th that found in favor of the tenants. The Board denied Page Mill's appeal of a decision that limited increases to 3.2% of the rent that was actually charged the previous year. In some instances the landlord has levied increases more than ten times that amount.

One tenant who is following the legal proceedings said, "I personally think that the arguments presented by Page Mill [are] little more than examples of convoluted attempts to pervert the meaning of the Rent Stabilization Ordinance."

Tenants supported by rent control activists from Youth United for Community Action and the Raging Grannies demonstrated their displeasure with Page Mill's continued legal attempts to flout the ordinance; they staged a sit-in and street demo at the landlord's downtown Palo Alto office on September 2nd. Police were called but there were no arrests.

City Hall Hearing, most recent posting | Sit-In part I | Sit-In part II | Send a Message to the Landlord | Youth United | Raging Granies

Previous Coverage On Indybay

On August 29th, more than two-hundred Bay Area residents demonstrated outside of developer Lennar Corp.'s Headquarters in San Francisco and then headed to Oakland to rally in front of the Oakland Police Department (OPD). The local chapter of the Right to the City Alliance, a national coalition of more than 35 social justice organizations, along with allies and supporters, aimed to bring attention to rogue developers, gentrification and criminalization of communities of color from the Bay Area to New Orleans.

Lennar Corp, a housing redevelopment corporation based out of Miami, plans to redevelop Bayview Hunters Point but Bayview residents are calling for more affordable housing and a stop to the project, which has been sending toxic dust into nearby homes and schools. Outside of Lennar's San Francisco office, Katrina Survivor August Forman spoke about the connection between community displacement and corporate greed, calling the Bay Area's decline in Black and working class residents a "dry Katrina." Because of the constant threat of displacement, Forman said, "We are all Katrina evacuees."

In Oakland, speakers noted that the displacement of communities of color was not only economic but in many cases closely connected to the demonization of youth of color through such tactics as gang injunctions. Oakland resident Sister Beatrice X explains, "The Oakland Police department harasses working class communities and just recently raided a housing complex in West Oakland with military tanks and swat teams, they are using brute force to literally push us out."

Demonstrators also drew parallels between recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in the Gulf Coast and the spike in ICE enforcement in California. Protesters demanded that OPD stop working with ICE and criminalizing the migrant community.

Photos | Past Indybay Katrina Coverage