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Community Corner

🌱Concord Vehicle-Grid Innovation Lab +Missing Pleasant Hill Teen

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Concord.

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Jeri Karges, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Welcome back, Concord! Here's everything you need to know to get this Wednesday started off right.

First, today's weather:

Mostly sunny and beautiful. High: 71 Low: 47.

One of the easiest ways to connect with local customers and stay top-of-mind in town is to sponsor the Concord Daily. Click here to learn more.

Here are the top five stories today in Concord:

  1. The California Energy Commission has selected DEKRA to develop a Vehicle-Grid Innovation Laboratory (ViGIL) to increase interoperability of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. The lab will be located in Concord and is expected to open this summer. The ViGIL will offer a range of state-of-the-art testing and certification services for electric vehicle manufacturers, suppliers, device manufacturers, electric vehicle charging station manufacturers, charging point operators, and service providers. For more information, visit DEKRA.us/ProductTesting. (69News WFMZ-TV)
  2. Registered nurses at Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch along with 14 other Sutter health facilities across Northern California held informational pickets Tuesday in protest of the health network's alleged refusal to address health and safety concerns. Locations included Vallejo, Santa Rosa, Crescent City, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Castro Valley, Antioch, Auburn, Roseville, Tracy, Lakeport, Burlingame, Novato and Sacramento. "We have been on the front lines before and during this pandemic," said Amy Erb, a critical care RN at California Pacific Medical Center of San Francisco. "Throughout this time, we have witnessed Sutter Health become profitable while they refuse to invest in the resources we need in order for us to provide safe and effective care to our patients and community." (Patch)
  3. Concord Trader Joe's stores recalled one of its fresh prepackaged crunchy salads because there may be hard plastic in the dressing, the supermarket chain announced Thursday. Trader Joe's said online that the manufacturer of its "Crunchy Slaw With Chicken, Crispy Noodles & Peanut Dressing" reported the dressing could contain bits of hard plastic. Anyone who purchased the salad was urged either to throw it out or return it to the store for a full refund.(Concord Patch)
  4. The Pleasant Hill Police Department and the San Francisco office of the FBI need the public's help in locating a 15-year-old boy who has been missing since mid-January. Brandon Abbett is white and has brown hair, hazel eyes, weighs 107 pounds and stands 5 feet, 6 inches tall. He went missing sometime between 10 p.m. Jan. 16 and 9 a.m. Jan. 17. He has not been seen or heard from since. Anyone with information about his whereabouts is asked to contact the FBI's San Francisco Field Office at (415) 553-7400 or the Pleasant Hill Police Department at 925-288-4600. (Claycord.com)
  5. Mental health consultant Tena Sloan visits Kidango's Baldwin Park campus in Concord once a week to help teachers better support their students socially and emotionally. "We're willing to learn," preschool teacher Rohia Sultani said. "We are happy for this program to come and show us how to meet the child's needs." The consultants at Kidango are a result of a bill California lawmakers approved in 2018, which was written by Assemblywoman Blanca Rubio, D-Baldwin Park. Kidango hopes to eventually roll the program out to all 53 preschool campuses. (CW39 Houston)

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Today in Concord:

  • Enjoy a family style BBQ at the Lone Tree Golf & Event Center in Antioch (5:00 PM)
  • Head out to Side Gate Brewing for their Geeks Who Drink Trivia. (6:00 PM)
  • Join Retro Junkie in Walnut Creek for their Pop Culture Trivia Night! (7:00 PM)
  • It's karaoke night at Vinnie's Bar and Grill in Concord! (8:00 PM)

From my notebook:

  • You are hereby notified that at 6:30 p.m. today the City of Concord Planning Commission will conduct a public hearing through a Zoom teleconference via Webinar ID #987 0325 8570 (Passcode: 005997) to consider the following application: Application for a Development Agreement, Use Permit, Variance, Administrative Permit, Tree Removal Permit, and Design and Site Review for a cannabis microbusiness with storefront retail located at 2366 Stanwell Circle. (Press Release Desk)
  • The City of Brentwood – Police Department invites residents and business owners to a Virtual Town Hall to discuss homelessness in our city. The virtual meeting will be held on March 16 at 6 PM. The police department will be joined by Office of Supervisor Diane Burgis and Contra Costa County Health, Housing, and Homeless Services (H3). This meeting will discuss resources for our homeless and laws relating to homelessness.
  • There are lots of comings and goings with businesses in Walnut Creek. Get all caught up with beyondthecreek.com!

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Events:

  • Former US Ambassador to Germany Talks Russia Invasion, Your Portfolio, & Market Impact (March 17)
  • Purim celebration Megillah reading (March 17)
  • ST PATTYS DAY DINNER DANCE, 80s PARTY BAND RE-WIND (March 17)
  • Roots rock: Coffis Brothers at Almost Famous Wine Lounge (March 18)
  • 27th Annual East Bay International Jewish Film Festival (March 19)
  • Artists 4 ERA: Art Show & Benefit for Gender Equality (March 19)
  • Love BB King? Check out Chris Cain's show at Almost Famous (March 19)
  • Contra Costa Wind Symphony - "Myths, Legends and Epic Tales" (March 20)
  • American Diabetes Association Diabetes Alert Day: Understand Your Risk (March 22)
  • Virtual Remodeling Seminar (March 24)
  • Add your event

Housing:

Job listings:

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That's it for today! See you tomorrow for your next update.

— Jeri Karges

About me: Jeri Karges has been living in and loving the Sacramento region for over 30 years. Her passion is finding new and unique ways to enjoy the city and surrounding areas. On weekends, you can find her pestering her friends to sample the restaurant that doesn't have silverware, or try their hand at throwing an axe. Jeri also enjoys writing about retirement planning at https://rockinretirement.subst...

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?

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