BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
Vol. 18, No. 42
YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Homeowners Restoring the wetlands may fund fire protection
October 19, 2018
Family Looks For Answers
by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
The City of Oakley and the East Contra Costa Fire Protection District are close to finalizing plans to require about 600 future homeowners to pay for fire protection services through a community facilities district (CFD). The agreement, which will involve future homeowners of the unbuilt Gilbert Property near the Contra Costa Water District Canal and Cypress Road, would levy a $279.62 yearly tax – which adjusts with the consumer price index – on each of the 581 households, fire district officials said. If all goes as planned, the funding mechanism could be approved by the end of November, bringing in eventually up to $162,459 a year beginning on the 2019/2020 tax roll. “We are working hand-in-hand with the City of Oakley, trying to work this through,” said Fire Chief Brian Helmick. “I think this is the beginning of many conversations about bringing revenue into the district, so I see this as
The murder of Emily Courchesne remains unsolved – police are asking for public’s help. Page 5
Halloween Hauntings Photo by Tony Kukulich
P
atty Finfrock, program manager for the Department of Water Resources, presided over groundbreaking ceremonies for the Dutch Slough Tidal Marsh Restoration Project in Oakley, Wednesday, Oct. 17. The wetland restoration project encompasses nearly 1,200 acres and is the largest project of its kind in the Delta. Originally conceived in 1999, the project will restore the Emerson, Gilbert and Burroughs parcels east of Marsh Creek to a combination of wetland, upland and open water habitats.
see Fire page 34
The cost of paying police overtime by Aly Brown Staff Writer
With populations in cities throughout East County on the rise, crime rates are often placed in the spotlight along with the cost to put officer boots on the streets. Brentwood, Oakley and Antioch each saw their share of overtime pay to police departments in 2017. According to Transparent California, a public pay and pension database, 49 officers in Brentwood (population of about 61,000) brought home a total of $468,000 in overtime. Twenty-four officers in Oakley (population: 41,000) accrued a little over $269,000. Overtime in Antioch (population: 111,000) was about $1.6 million for the listed 78 officers. “Overtime is an expected cost for a variety of different reasons … and the dollar amount is gen-
“ Overtime expenditures can be a moving
target and are based upon many factors.
erally based on total number of staff and salaries,” said Brentwood Police Department Lt. Walter O’Grodnick. “We rely heavily on our supervisors and administrators to manage the overtime budget, and our staff participates in periodic budget review meetings to help us stay on point. The current overtime budget cap (for the Brentwood Police Department) is $618,000.” O’Grodnick further stated his force is authorized 66 sworn positions and currently has one vacancy. Over in the Oakley Police
SAVE NOW
Department, Chief Chris Thorsen said his force also monitors overtime closely. “Each week our patrol captain and administrative sergeant review each hour of overtime spent and the reason for the overtime and whether we had an alternative to spending the hours,” Thorsen explained. “If there was a ‘better way,’ adjustments are made in the following week. Overtime expenditures can be a moving target and are based upon many factors.” Thorsen said the Oakley Police Department is fully staffed with 34 total sworn personnel with
10% OFF Any Service
FAIRVIEW HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING, INC. Connect with The Press!
Scan QR code with your mobile device.
”
Chris Thorsen, Oakley chief of police
Service • Repair • Installation
Contractor’s Lic. #533790 C-20
925-625-4963 • www.fairviewair.com
the most recent officer sworn in last month and scheduled to complete training. “When we have short-term vacancies, we do things like use a traffic officer to fill a beat position or use our problem oriented policing officer to backfill,” said Thorsen. “This works well in the short term, but we are keenly aware that filling a beat with a specialty officer (i.e. having a traffic officer fill a beat) means we run short in our traffic unit. Thus the duties typically handled by the traffic unit are impacted.” While city officials say the expense of overtime is a natural component of the work, they are not without critics. Michael Kitterman of the newly formed nonprofit American Citizens Institute, see Overtime page 34
Election 2018
www.thepress.net/news/webextras
Voting is underway for the November 2018 General Midterm Elections.
It’s the season of tricks and treats. Check out all the spooky happenings in East County. Page 7
Serving Up Victory
Liberty girls’ volleyball team has clinched BVAL title and is looking toward playoffs. Page 23 Calendar................................35 Classifieds.............................29 Cop Logs................................33 Election Updates ...............18 Entertainment.....................13 Food........................................12 Milestones............................15 Opinion..................................22 Pets.........................................28 Sports.....................................23
Holiday Joy
www.thepress.net/news/press_releases
Operation Christmas Child at Golden Hills Church is gearing up for the season.