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Measure C falls short of letter’s claims
Re: “Measure C delivers what El Cerrito wants” (May 11).
Michael Fisher misrepresents the facts in his recent letter.
The survey he references is self-selecting, using vague questions without context about the city’s financial problems. As library commissioner, he knows that the city’s own polling shows that less than two-thirds of citizens support a massive library bond, and that the actual text of Measure C does not require public input. A separate citizens committee to advise on the library has no authority and no decision-making power. The city has already chosen the library’s size and location at El Cerrito Plaza; it is part of their strategic plan. The city’s website states they’ve been committed to it since 2018, and 4 of 5 council members support it. Robust and binding public input can only occur prior to funding.
Vote no on C and demand the city do better on a library plan that everyone can afford and support.
Pearson Miller
El Cerrito
Hernandez is right pick for District 14
Re: “Elect Aisha Wahab to fill Swalwell’s D.C. seat” (Page A6, May 7).
The East Bay Times editorial on Aisha Wahab for District 14 failed to examine what Sen. Wahab says versus what she actually does.
At a recent Indivisible Forum, Wahab pledged not to take corporate PAC money. Maybe she thought folks would take her at her word or not look at her campaign contribution records in the state Senate. Or is this a sudden change of heart to produce the right sound bites for a congressional election?
All you have to do is look at Transparency USA to see her history of taking funds from corporate PACs, corporations and lobbying shops. Insurance, oil companies, construction companies, pharmaceutical and gaming/casino interests. I would encourage folks to do that.
I value honesty, transparency and candidates who will really represent the best interests of the voters in the Tri-Valley. Melissa Hernandez is that person.
Larry Thompson
Livermore
Ballroom shows Trump’s priorities are askew
Re: “Senate GOP moves ahead with $1B to fund Trump’s ballroom” (Page A3, May 12).
We cannot afford to help children in Africa. We cannot afford money for healthcare for our citizens. But we will spend money for a dance hall for Donald Trump — $1,000,000,000.
How did our country lose its morals and caring? This is not why we have been given so much.
Diann Hillerman
Oakland
Walnut Creek school board is unaccountable
For Walnut Creek School District parents, this is no longer about one principal’s departure. It’s about a pattern — and a board that has stopped doing its job.
Tice Creek School is losing its second principal in back-to-back school years. Parents organized, signed petitions, attended meetings and asked direct questions — not about personnel matters, but about process. Was every effort made to retain Tyson Fechter, a principal overwhelmingly supported by students, staff and families?
The answers never came. Across the district, other families have their own stories of decisions made without explanation and concerns met with silence.
School board members are elected to provide independent oversight on behalf of the community, not to shield administration from accountability. When families raise good-faith concerns and receive only carefully worded statements, the board is failing its basic obligation.
Parents are not asking for drama. We are asking the board to do its job.
Katherine Chu, Laurel Dobbin and other Tice Creek parents
Walnut Creek
Measure H will preserve Lafayette schools
As the PTA President of Lafayette Elementary School and parent of a fifth- and seventh-grader, I urge you to vote yes on Measure H.
Our schools are exceptional — and a big reason my husband and I decided to raise our children in Lafayette. That excellence depends on local funding. California’s funding formula ranks Lafayette among the state’s lowest-funded districts. Because a high-quality education matters to this community, Lafayette has always stepped up to fill this funding gap. Measure H is how we continue to do that.
The current parcel tax expires in 2027. Without Measure H, we face larger class sizes, teacher layoffs and the loss of programs that define a Lafayette education. The district has already cut $2 million this year. Without Measure H, those cuts go deeper.
Our schools are worth protecting. Please vote yes on Measure H.
Ria Di Costanzo
Lafayette
Steyer is the candidate who will address climate
California is now experiencing warming at a rate that is 5-10 times faster than the previous century. This means that the +2.5℉ of warming that we have endured since 1895 will likely happen again in the next 10-20 years. This accelerated warming will lead to a vast array of adverse effects: larger wildfires, reduced snowpack, increased flooding and more intense droughts and heat waves.
This creates an urgency that we, the people of California, must come together in a massive act of solidarity and elect officials who are serious about combating the ongoing climate crisis.
Tom Steyer is such a candidate. Endorsed by Bill McKibbon and Ro Khanna and earning a track record of environmental activism, Steyer is the candidate with the strongest intention of implementing the kind of bold climate action that is urgently needed right now. Please consider voting for Tom Steyer for governor.
Ian Faloona
San Rafael