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Community Corner

🌱Drone Aids in Antioch Arson Arrest + Dominion Systems Tested

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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Hey, neighbors! It's me again, Jeri Karges, your host of the Concord Daily.

First, today's weather:

Pleasant with clouds and sun. High: 74 Low: 51.

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Here are the top stories today in Concord:

  1. The Mt. Diablo Unified School District wants its students to come back from spring break as healthy as possible. The district has distributed rapid response COVID-19 test kits to each school in the district, to be given to students and staff on a first-come, first-served basis before spring break begins with the Cesar Chavez Day holiday March 31. The district encourages families to use the tests before students come back to school April 11. (Patch)
  2. Lateefah Simon will be allowed to retain her seat on the BART Board of Directors, agency officials said Wednesday, after she was briefly stripped of her seat due to a dispute over whether she lives in the district she represents, which includes parts of San Francisco, Contra Costa and Alameda counties. In a joint statement, BART Board President Rebecca Saltzman and General Manager Bob Powers said they consulted with an attorney outside of the transit agency. According to Saltzman and Powers, a vacancy can only be declared by a majority vote by the BART board or a court order. As a result, Simon will be allowed to retain her seat on the board while the dispute over her location of residence is resolved by "outside legal experts," Saltzman and Powers said. (Claycord.com)
  3. Contra Costa County Fire Protection District (Con Fire) investigators made arrests within 48 hours in two separate cases this week. The intentionally set fires occurred in Antioch and Bay Point. On March 22, Con Fire investigators arrested Emanuel Serrano, 25, a transient. As crews arrived, a witness pointed out a subject who they had observed starting the fires. They searched the area on foot and from above with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The UAV helped locate the suspect hiding in tall vegetation on a nearby hill where he was taken into custody. (Pioneer Publishers)
  4. The April 5 Special Election for the California Assembly District 11 office is underway in California. The Contra Costa County Elections Division performed the county's official logic and accuracy testing on central ballot counting and processing equipment at 10:00 am Friday, March 25. The public was invited to observe. According to Helen Nolan, Assistant Registrar, "Contra Costa County purchased its ballot counting and processing equipment from Dominion Voting Systems. We originally purchased this ballot tabulation system in March 2018 and will be conducting our 11th election with the system in April using the Dominion Democracy Suite 5.10a. Logic and accuracy testing is a standard pre-election procedure. (Contra Costa Herald)
  5. Noralea Gipner, a former Martinez City Council member who led a successful public safety sales tax campaign and was instrumental in efforts to improve services for the homeless, has been named Contra Costa County Woman of the Year by Sen. Bill Dodd. "Noralea's hard work and dedication to her community is nothing short of impressive," Sen. Dodd said. "Through her leadership, much has been accomplished to improve essential services and enhance public safety. I am happy to give her this much-deserved recognition." (East County Today)

Today in Concord:

  • Photos with the Easter Bunny are BACK! Stop by Bunnyville at the Sunvalley Mall and have your photo taken today! (10:00 AM)
  • The Brewing Network's Spring Brews Festival returns to Todos Santos Plaza in Concord to celebrate its 11th year as one of the best craft beer festivals in the Bay Area! (12:00 PM)
  • Bring your crafty self to the Walnut Creek Bead & Design Show at the Concord Plaza Hotel (9:00 AM)
  • A cabaret concert inspired by the music of Karen Carpenter, "Laurie Sings A Song For You" at El Campanil Theatre in Antioch this weekend. (2:00 PM)

From my notebook:

  • Contra Costa Water District is resuming their in-person water facilities tours to their customers. Participants will learn about the source of their water, the infrastructure necessary to convey, treat, store and deliver their drinking water to local homes and businesses, as well as how the water system operates. Registration is now open and customers can reserve a spot at this link.
  • City of Antioch Boards & Commissions applications can now be submitted online. The deadline to apply for the first round of recruitment is Thursday, March 31. (Antioch Herald)
  • There are lots of business comings and goings in Walnut Creek. Get caught up on the latest in this article from Walnut Creek Magazine!

More from our sponsors — thanks for supporting local news!

Events:

  • Huge Pleasant Hill Neighborhood Yard Sale Event! (March 26)
  • Local history - Rebels At The Gate: S.F. during the Civil War, a CCCHS virtual event (March 26)
  • Sassy Sister Folk: T Sisters (March 26)
  • Contra Costa Camp & School Fair (March 27)
  • Secrets of Divine Creativity (March 27)
  • Taxes in Retirement Webinar (March 28)
  • Taxes in Retirement Webinar (March 29)
  • Coming Soon - Pleasant Hill home for sale (March 31)
  • GQCCC 2022 Quilt Show - Rainbow Reflections (April 2)
  • Add your event

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Now you're in the loop and ready to head out the door on this Saturday! I'll be back in your inbox tomorrow morning with another 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...

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