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Vol. 24, No. 17
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Brentwood blocks oil drilling – for now
Gibson is Officer of the Year
by Jake Menez
Correspondent
BRENTWOOD The City Council took its first step toward enacting a permanent ban on oil drilling within city limits with a recent unanimous vote to implement a moratorium on drilling to help protect area residents’ health. A moratorium would temporarily halt oil and gas drilling from occurring 3,200 feet from “sensitive receptor” areas while staff worked on drafting a permanent ban of the project. Sensitive receptor areas are places such as schools, hospitals and nursing homes that the Environmental Protection Agency identifies as areas whose occupants are more susceptible to harm from pollutants. see Drilling page 18
Photo by Melissa van Ruiten
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ewly chosen Brentwood Police Officer of the Year Mike Gibson (second from left) stands with Lt. Walter O’Grodnick (far left), Lt. Mike Thompson (second from right) and Captain Doug Silva during the department’s annual Recognition Ceremony at the Brentwood Community Center on April 26. The ceremony included special recognition and life-saving awards, along with Volunteer of the Year, Explorer of the Year, Non-Sworn Employee of the Year, and Officer of the Year. All personnel who received top awards were nominated by their peers. To view a complete list of winners, visit thepress.net. To view a video and a slideshow of the event, visit www.thepress.net/multimedia
Learning garden blossoms at Oakley school Staff Writer
OAKLEY When Melissa Mastrangelo, an instructional paraprofessional (aide), first dreamed of creating a school garden at O’Hara Park Middle School in Oakley, she never could have imagined the community support that would turn her dream into reality. A chance meeting over a bucket of irises led Mastrangelo and Bill Horn, a senior vice president of landscape company Terracare Associates, to a conversation about the vision for the project. Mastrangelo already had a
small courtyard plot of land set aside for the school garden. But when Horn came to view the location, he knew that they could go bigger. He was drawn to a messy, overgrown corner of the school’s property, a space that measured about 10,000 square feet. After putting together sketches and determining which plants and trees would work best for the space, he met with Mastrangelo and principal at the time Colleen Creswell, to present the plans. “This is great!” said Mastrangelo. “It is far beyond any expectations we could have had.” see Garden page 18
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In honor of Earth Day, 3 Catalpa trees were donated to provide shade for some south-facing classrooms at O’Hara Park Middle School in Oakley. This is part of an ongoing partnership between the school and Terracare, which helps students learn planting and gardening skills.
Photo by Melissa van Ruiten
Classifieds........................................... 15 Cop Logs.............................................. 13
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LUHSD honors esteemed grads
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BYRON The Byron Union School District has begun its search for a new leader as it says goodbye to Superintendent Dr. Reyes Gauna this summer. Gauna has been part of the Byron district since July of 2019, when he replaced former Superintendent Debbie Gold. He will start work as superintendent of the Patterson Pass Joint Unified School District – a comprehensive kindergarten-12 district – in Patterson Pass, Calif. on July 1. “I wasn’t pushed out,” Gauna said. “I just missed the high school piece, and I was looking for something I could make my home and make it my family, similar to what I have here in Byron. I love the students and staff here and the parents and the community. It’s been an amazing experience here.” Gauna said he is still committed to the district until he leaves, and intended to offer his help to his successor’s process for joining the district leadership. The Contra Costa County Office of Education posted the job on EdJoin – an online education job board – and in administrative publications in an effort to gather a diverse pool of candidates. Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Norma
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by Melissa van Ruiten
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Byron searches for new schools leader by Dawnmarie Fehr
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April 29, 2022
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