A COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER SERVING CASTRO VALLEY SINCE 1989
YEAR 35
INSIDE YOUR
INSIDE YOUR FORUM
CV Reads
The CV Library’s 6th annual literary event kicks off this Sunday
Page 2
Sounds Good
CVHS alum a famous Broadway conductor and musical director
Page 3
By Michael Singer CASTRO VALLEY FORUM
Trust Challenge
What you can do to protect trust against post-mortem contest
Page 10
Calendar .................. 4
Classifed Ads ....... 8
Crosswords ........... 9
Homes ...................... 5
Horoscope ............. 10
Obituaries ............ 11
Opinions .............. 11
Our Town ................. 3
Sports ................... 12
Weather ................. 2
Pressure is mounting on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors to pass tenant protections for the more than 70,000 renters in the unincorporated communities as the COVID-19 eviction moratorium is expected to lift at the end of this month.
What’s at stake is how to balance the needs of renters as well as independent landlords amidst an affordable housing crisis in and around Ashland, Castlewood, Castro Valley, Cherryland, Fairview, Happy Valley, Hayward Acres, Hillcrest Knolls, San Lorenzo, and Sunol.
see TENANT on page 10
A 28-year-old woman from Turlock was struck and killed along the highway between eastbound I-580 and northbound I-238 in Castro Valley at 5:10 a.m. this past Monday. The California Highway Patrol reports the woman had exited a white Chevy Malibu near the ramp that heads toward I-880. First responders pronounced the woman dead a the scene. The CHP is withholding the woman’s name until her family can be contacted.
The woman was struck by a 2003 black Honda CRV driven by 71-year-old Yoshie Ashton of Castro Valley. Ms. Ashton remained on the scene and cooperated with the CHP.
“The woman from Turlock apparently exited the vehicle still occupied by other passengers, and it is unclear exactly why the person exited the vehicle, but the car was not disabled,” CHP Offcer Dan Jacowitz said. “Domestic violence or another dispute is not initially
believed to be involved, although the investigation is ongoing.”
The Highway Patrol closed down the Interstate 580 connector towards I-238 and I-880 for about 90 minutes to investigate the scene. The CHP is reminding the public that walking on highways is extremely dangerous and to avoid doing so.
The CHP is asking anybody who may have witnessed this crash to contact the Castro Valley CHP Offce at (510) 581-9028.
By Mike McGuire CASTRO VALLEY FORUMCastro Valley’s youngest students are expected to increase in numbers as a new state law takes effect, even though the district’s enrollment has held quite steady overall in recent years, according to a consultant’s report presented to the Castro Valley Unifed School District (CVUSD) Board of Directors on January 19.
Rob Murray of Sacramento-based King Consulting told the Board they had a different challenge than many California school districts, which were slowly losing enrollments before COVID brought big enrollment losses for many. He said many of those other districts would like to have Castro Valley’s situation.
Murray said that Castro Valley’s enrollment has increased or decreased by only around 300 students a year in the last 10 school years. Any school district sees families moving in and out, but he added that families with young children have continued to move into Castro Valley Unifed.
Expect to see more Transitional Kindergarteners in the years ahead, though, he said. This is because California now requires all districts to provide schooling for all children slightly too young to attend kindergarten and has lowered the age at which they are eligible.
There are 146 transitional kindergarten students in Castro Valley this school year, Murray said. There will be an estimated 367 by the 2025-26 school year, and 445 by the 2029-30 school year. Another part of his presentation showed that this rise would be comparable to the current enrollment of a medium-sized Castro Valley elementary school.
However, many transitional kindergarten students would have enrolled without the law change, and all the transitional kindergarteners would be regular students the following year, Murray said.
Still, the bottom line is that somewhat more space will be needed at district elementary schools to accommodate them.
Murray suggested building some new classrooms or relocating existing support services that currently use classrooms at elementary schools, making those classrooms available for students.
Board members asked a few questions about the data and vowed to discuss the report further at workshop sessions.
see SPIKE on back page
Recently, I’ve been writing on how to do things, as part of my Be-Do-Have framework, in order to hit your goals. I want to start a series on things to help shape your mindset in regard to the doing. Today I’m pulling inspiration from tennis because the Australian Open st fnished.
One aspect of tennis worth studying is the angles. A general strategy is to move your opponent left and right until they get tired and miss the ball. To do this, you change the angle you hit the ball so that you can move them around ore. hen frst started playing tennis, I would make drastic changes to my stance or how I hit the ball in hopes of changing the angle. This usually ended up with me missing the ball and/or not getting the an le. t too e a hile to f -
ure it out, but I realized there’s only a very small shift to change the angle. So, if I was aiming at the
right corner and shifted only a couple of degrees to the left, I could hit the left corner (don’t check my math, I’m pretty sure it’s off, but hopefully you get the idea).
What does this have to do with you and achieving your goals? It’s said that we overestimate what we’ll do in one year, and underestimate what we’ll do in 10 years. Said another way, we think we need to make drastic changes to reach our goals when really, it’s about consistently doing the small things that add up over time.
Think about the diet industry. People go on crash diets to lose lots of weight for a short period of time, only to balloon back up again. Successful weight loss is usually a com-
bination of consistently eating a little less, exercising a little more, and/or even dealing with stressors in life.
Think about investing. The concept of compound interest is at the core of investing. You put a little bit of money in now and add to it monthly, and the interest will build into a big number over the decades. Think about parenting. Sometimes we think it’s about creating amazing memories by having lavish parties or vacations. However, if you think back on your favorite childhood memories, it was about who you were doing it with rather than what you were doing. It’s about the presence and being present as often as possible.
I think part of the problem is that we downplay the small changes or sometimes dismiss them completely. With my coaching clients, we talk about moving in a positive direcsee KOO on back page
The 6th annual Castro Valley Reads kicks off this Sunday, Feb. 5 at 2 pm with a two-hour drop-in event. Castro Valley Reads is an annual literary event that asks our residents to read and discuss the same book. It builds community by encouraging a thoughtful exchange of ideas and celebrates the joy of reading together. Castro Valley Reads is generously funded by the Friends of the Castro Valley Library.
This year’s book will be highlighting Chinese history and culture with a beautiful and poignant work of historical fction entitled Peach Blossom Spring, a debut novel from author Melissa Fu.
The year is 1938 in China, and, with the Japanese army approaching, Meilin and her son, ensh , are forced to ee their home. Relying on their courage, wits, they must travel through a ravaged country, seeking refuge.
Years later, Renshu has settled in the U.S. as Henry Dao. Though his daughter, Lily, is desperate to understand her heritage, he refuses to talk about his childhood, and the weight of his history threatens to drag his family down.
Spanning continents and generations, Peach Blossom Spring is about the power of our past, the hope for a better future, and the search for a place to call home. see READS on page 4
By Michael Singer CASTRO VALLEY FORUM
Castro Valley High School alum, Chris Kong, started taking piano lessons when he as f e. oday, he is a fa o s Broadway conductor and musical director who will lead the orchestra for ean irls,” the musical in San Francisco, thro h ebr ary 2 . en in ele entary school, he o ld sin in sentences. And he was always learning to lay different instr ents,” his mother, Sherrie Kong, told the or . he fa ily o ed to Castro Valley in 199 . Chris radated fro Canyon iddle School in 1999 and CVHS in 200 . He as acti e in the music departments and all the school sical rod ctions. He rad ated fro the Uni ersity of Pacifc (UOP) ith a bachelor s de ree in sic and Piano Perfor ance and as art of the ni ersity s sic Conser atory.
But it was during his time in Castro Valley at Canyon under the idance of for er sic director Cynthia eyer that Chris beca e in ol ed in a band, orchestra, and sicals. His mother says Chris decided on a sic career at this ti e.
Chris o ld rite arts for students playing instruments that i ht not ha e had a art,” Sherrie on said. or e ale, he o ld rite a art for a student playing a bass clarinet
His career on Broadway includes work on Disney’s ro en,” ean irls,” Pretty o an,” he Pro ,” iss Sai on, lle iance,” in y oots,” and Disney s e sies.” Chris as also selected to conduct the 25th nni ersary national to r of he Phanto of the O era.”
Off- road ay, Chris has been a musical director for sho s li e, ar ro Hea en,” Carrie,” Silence ,” ltar oy ,” Ha iness,” and the Radio City Christmas S ectac lar. He has also cond cted sho s at the ood an heatre in Chica o and he Old lobe in San Die o.
ith all the tra el for sicals, mom Sherrie says Chris has beco e a bit of a foodie.
hen yo are on to r, yo are al ays on the loo o t for new restaurants, and Chris has his fa orites,” Sherrie on says.
S nday, an ary 29 at 11 15
. ., Sheriff s de ties lled o er and arrested a -yearold CV woman on suspicion of dri in a stolen ehicle, ossessin a stolen ehicle, recei in stolen ro erty, and ossessin ille al narcotics. he o an as tra elin on the o le ard near nita en e hen de ties ran the license lates and fo nd the ehicle re orted stolen. he o an as ta en into c stody.
Illegal Narcotics and Related Paraphernalia
Fought Hospital Security riday, an ary 2 at 1 2 a. ., de ties arrested a -year-old CV o an on s s icion of interferin ith a la enforce ent offcial hile on d ty. he o an as isitin a friend at den edical Center when she got into an altercation with hospital security. De ties too the o an into c stody.
hich didn t ha e a se arate art assi ned in the score.”
In high school, Chris beca e in ol ed in the stdent-run and student-directed ariety sho s in his nior and Senior years and started his assion for cond ctin , incl din an arran ed iece fro es is rables.” n addition
DAVE’S
to sic, Chris fo nd ti e for the rac and Cross-Co ntry tea s.
fter colle e, Chris fo nd work conducting in Ashland, Ore on, re ional theater before o in to e or in 200 . He is a e ber of US ( sicians United for Social ity).
Chris s c rrent to r st ra ed in os n eles and incl ded a rotation of sho s s ch as he Phanto of the O era,” iss Sai on,” and ean irls.” Sherrie added that the production group has a core set of sicians, but they hire local musicians here er they o.
e re ery e cited to ha e Chris bac in the ay rea,” she said.
ean irls,” the sical, ill be layin at the olden ate heatre ntil ebr ary 2 .
Sat rday, an ary 28 at a. ., a 22-year-old an with no permanent residence as arrested on s s icion of possessing illegal narcotics and related drug paraphernalia. De ties sto ed the man outside a business on the o le ard near ed ood oad, here they disco ered the dr s in his oc et. he an as ta en into c stody.
Fraud Scheme Turns Violent ednesday, an ary 25 at 10 00 . ., t o eo le fro CV ere arrested follo in a re ort of an altercation o tside a restaurant on Redwood oad near the o le ard. De ties res onded follo in a call fro the ana er that a 2 -year-old o an tried to rchase food ith a stolen credit card. 52-year-old an accompanying the woman began to argue with the manager, da a ed ri ate ro erty and assaulted him with a deadly ea on. De ties too the air into c stody.
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continued from page 2
e ho e yo ill oin s to read and disc ss this year s selection,” said Da n alestreri, ana er of the Castro Valley ibrary. fo nd yself lost in this story, both a a e t rner and tear- er er. t ay re ind yo of the stories in yo r o n life and the i ortance of sharin the essy ta estry e call fa ily.”
Saturday, Feb. 4
Hayward Library Book Sale
Keep your edge at the Hayward Library boo sale, frst oor, 888 C Street. oin s both inside and ri ht o tside the e eaf oo store 10 0 a - 0 . ll roceeds s ort library ro ra s.
Tuesday, Feb. 7
Retired Teachers Luncheon
This Saturday, Feb. 4 at 7:30 at CFA Jazz for Lovers: Nicolas Bearde and his Quartet. Come early for Amphora Olive oil tasting. For tickets, visit: www.cvartsfoundation.org or call: 510-889-8961.
he dro -in ic -Off ent is S nday, ebr ary 5 fro 2 to . Please re ister in ad ance and dro in hen yo li e. o re ister, isit aclibrary. or castro- alley-reads. ro ebr ary thro h the end of ril, in addition to disc ssion ro s, e ha e a reat line of ro ra s for all ages related to the themes of the boo .
• February 6th - 11th - Zero Waste Week. For a complete list of events, visit cvsan.org/ZeroWasteWeek.
• February 7th - Regular Board Meeting.
• February 8th - Business Services Committee Meeting.
• February 10th - CVSan Environmental Leadership Scholarship Application Deadline; Visit cvsan.org/ StudentScholarship.
• February 13th - Used Oil Filter Exchange Program Begins; Visit cvsan.org/UsedOil.
CVSAN.ORG/DC
• February 13th - Finance Committee Meeting.
• February 14th - Operations and Engineering (O&E) Building Project Neighborhood Meeting.
• February 20th - Presidents’ Day Holiday (CVSan Closed).
• February 23rd - Wastewater Committee Meeting.
Please note the above event schedule is subject to change. All CVSan Board and Committee meetings are open to the public. For complete meeting details and additional information about CVSan’s services, programs, and events, please visit cvsan.org
CASTRO VALLEY SANITARY DISTRICT
CVSan Office: (510) 537-0757
Sewer Emergencies: (510) 506-5821
Effective Environmental Services since 1939 | cvsan.org
Celebratin 5 years, Cal Di ision 59 (So thern la eda Co nty, incl din Castro Valley, Hay ard, San eandro and San oren o) e bers and any other interested indi id als in blic ed cation ill ha e a celebratory l ncheon at l orito, 5 San eandro arina, fro 11 a. . till 2 . . S ea er i reshears resents he ttit de of ratit de”. Call Ca rice for cost and to a e a reser ation by an ary 2 510-91 -09 8. ( o ay ent at door)
Tuesday, Feb. 7
CV Rotary Club Hosts Alan Chamorro lan Cha orro, Senior Vice President o e nter rises. aised in Castro Valley, lan is the Senior Vice President of o e nter rises. He ill be s ea in abo t his e eriences in real estate de elo ent and his ers ecti e on f t re de elo ent in Castro Valley. b ffet l nch and the ro ra ta e lace at ed ood Canyon olf Co rse (1 00 ed ood oad, Castro Valley) at 12 noon to1 0 . he cost of l nch is 20, and reser ations st be ade by 9 on S nday, ebr ary 5, by contactin otary at c rotary iClo d.co or 51002-512 . ore infor ation is a ailable at castro alleyrotary.or .
Sunday, Feb. 12
Sunday Cinema: The Farewell oin s on S nday, eb. 12 fro 1 0 to 2 0 for the fl he are ell (2019), rod ced by l an . fter her belo ed rand other is dia nosed ith ter inal
cancer, a Chinese- erican o an ret rns to China for a fa ily atherin secretly desi ned to say oodbye to the atriarch. Ho e er, hen it beco es a arent that rand a is the only one na are of the dia nosis, she str les to ee the secret. ated P . eser ations are re ired for this e ent. e ister at aclibrary.or . he Castro Valley ibrary is a branch of the la eda Co nty ibrary syste . he library is located at 00 orbrid e en e and is heelchair accessible. as s are re ired in all la eda Co nty b ildin s. or ore info, call the library at 510- - 900, or see ents at htt s aclibrary.or location castro- alley-e ents
Tuesday, Feb. 14
Hayward Area Senior Softball he Hay ard rea Senior softball lea e, s onsored by H D, ill be startin their 202 season soon. ryo ts for ne layers ill ta e lace on ebr ary 1 and 21 at 9 0 a at the Oli er ield soccer felds on Hes erian. e ro s are 50 s ( lay on h rsday) 0 s lay on esdays and 0 s on ednesdays. he season ill start in id arch and contin e thro h Se te ber.lications and other infor ation is a ailable on the ebsite hardseniorsoftball.co t is a coed lea e. ll a es start at 9 0 a .
Saturday, Feb. 18
Hill and Valley Club’s Bunco Madness Hill and Valley Cl b resents nco adness on Sat rday, eb. 18. oin s at 10 0 a. . for a salad bar l nch and a lot of f n layin nco. e inners are enco ra ed Pri es ill be i en for nco inners, and door ri es are also a ailable. or rice and ore infor ation, lease call Pat eathley at (510) 1-1 21 or e ail eathley iclo d.co for reser ations or infor ation. eser ations are re ired. O r cl bho se is located at 1808 Street ( and inden) in Hay ard.
PLACE YOUR CALENDAR LISTINGS ONLINE: MYCVFORUM.COM/EVENTS
By Carl Medford, CRS Special to the Times
n the after ath of so e of the orst stor s in recent history, Californians are assessin the da a e and onderin ho ill co er recoery costs. hile state and federal o ern ents ill be tac lin infrastr ct re f ndin , the estion re ains as to ho co ers the losses for indi id al ho eo ners.
he recent stor s are yet another re inder that as ho eo ners, e can ne er ta e eace and
safety for granted. For a si nifcant ercenta e of ro erty o ners, it is a case of o t of si ht, o t of ind.” n e a le o ld be earth a e ins rance standard ho eo ner ins rance olicies for ho es in the olden State do not incl de eartha e ins rance. Since California is a te blor hots ot, one i ht ass e that a hi h ercenta e of ho eo ners o ld carry e tra ins rance. hat ass tion o ld be ron
the n ber of ho es co ered by earth a e ins rance in the ay rea is only bet een 10-1 , de endin on locale.
s e no , nat re is ncontrollable. i en that fact, it is i ortant to nderstand e actly hat da a e is nor ally coered by a standard ho eo ner s ins rance olicy and hat is not. y ically, a standard residential olicy co ers ind, hail, li htnin see Natural Disasters on page 6
reali e this fact ntil it is too late.
Happy Groundhog Day!
17971 Beardsley Ave, Castro Valley • Asking $925,000
Upper Valley beauty in the Proctor School neighborhood with a view. is lovely home features lots of natural sunlight with 3 bedrooms, 2 baths and a family room. Also featuring a gas replace, big storage basement , a newer comp roof, a large yard for play and entertaining. Clear sewer lateral. Room for boat or RV parking. Open Saturday & Sunday, Feb 4 & 5, 1- 4
Coldwell Banker Real Estate
Call Trish Radovich: 510-367-7999 / calltrish@comcast.net
21060 Redwood Rd. Ste. 100 • Castro Valley
Unli e earth a e ins rance, so e ho es in the ay rea re ire andatory ood ins rance they are in a ood one (htt s sc.fe a. o portal/search) AND they are obtainin a ort a e. t is i ortant to nderstand that recently redre so e ood ones in eein ith e er in ood atterns across the US. f yo are loo in to b y a ho e, the seller is re ired by C state la to ro ide a at ral Ha ards e ort, hich details here any home is in relationship to earth a e and li e-
faction ones, ood ones, ildland fre areas and ore. Since a lender ill also recei e a co y of the re ort, they ill deter ine if additional ood ins rance is re ired.
s nat ral ha ards seem to be occurring with increasin re larity,
insurance companies are boosting coverage costs in areas they dee hi h ris . recently tte ted to b y ins rance for a ro erty in the Cascade o ntains and as asto nded at the lac of ro iders and hi h costs fro the re ainin fe . t s a bra e ne orld
and ho eo ners need to be a are.
Carl Medford is a licensed Realtor with Keller Williams Realty and a licensed general contractor. This article is sponsored by the Central County Marketing Association.
F lower Bulbs
ebr ary is the onth to start lantin ladiol ses. Select b lbs no and follo ith additional lantin s at three- ee inter als to e tend the bloo in season. Other b lbs for s rin and early s er bloo that can be lanted no incl de achi enes, a a anth s, a aryllis, t bero s be onias, calla lilies, canna lilies, dahlias, daylilies and irises.
Vegetables
ltho h ni htti e te erat res contin e to dro to the lo 0s, seeds in the arden ill er inate, b t ery slo ly. So beets, celery, carrots, chard, chi e, collards, arlic, leafy lett ce, stard, arsley, eas, radishes, s inaches and t rni s. ee an eye o t for snails and sl s as the seeds er inate.
Weeds
hile the ro nd is et fro o r latest rains, ll eeds before they for seeds. e s re to re o e the entire root syste so they don t s ro t a ain. oid sin eed- illin che icals, as they st add oll tion to yo r yard s soil.
San Leandro Times on Thursday. You can also save $5 by placing your ad on our website at castrovalleyforum.com or sanleandrotimes.com. We’ll call you for your credit or debit card info for payment.
To place an ad by phone call Patrick Vadnais at 510-614-1560, Mon-Fri 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.
CONCRETE SERVICE
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S.L.CONCRETE SERVICE Driveways, Sidewalks, Stamped Concrete, Retaining Walls, Asphalt, Paving Stones. Lic.#982202. 510856-8937.
NOTICETO READERS
California law requires that contractors taking jobs that total $500 or more (labor or materials) be licensed by the Contractors State License Board. State Law also requires that contractors include their license number on all advertising. Advertisers appearing on this page without a license number indicate that the contractor is not licensed. You can check the status of your licensed contractor at www.cslb.ca.gov or (800)321-2752. Unlicensed contractors taking jobs that total less than $500 must state in their advertisements that they are not licensed by the Contractors State License Board.
San Leandro Times HOME SERVICES GUIDE Call 614-1558
NEED - MUSIC LESSONS or PIANO TUNING?
Check the Classified Ads under “MUSICALSERVICES” for help.
22 year old with EMT, CPR & Security Guard Card certifications seeks full time employment. I have excellent references. Please email me at: rogerdouglasvadnais@gmail.com
FENCE LEANING? Don’t replace... repair and save! Call Randy 510706-6189.
SPECIALIZING IN WOOD FENCES, DECKS & RETAINING WALLS. Replace or repair, paved walkways, yard cleaning, tree trimming, topping or removal, garage cleaning & debris removal. Insured & Bonded #8189. Jerry 510-410-2427.
LANDLORDS - Advertise your units! – Avacancy day is money lost forever –R. Bowman
*ANYYARD WORK. Cleanups and Maintenance. Free Estimates. Call 510-798-1833.
*BEAUTYGARDEN LANDSCAPING
Design - Construction - Maintenance. Cleanups, New Lawn, Artificial Grass, Irrigation, Patios, Pathways, Brick, Stone, Concrete Fence/ Decks. Free Estimates! Lic.#925130. 510-691-8852. www.beautygardenlandscaping.com
JAIME’S GARDENING
Maintenance, Trimming, Cleanups, Hauling, Sprinkler Repair/ Timers. FREE Estimates. Insured. 510-299-9583
Advertise your Home for rent in the San Leandro Times & Castro Valley Forum
DON’T LET ANOTHER WEEK SLIPBY!
– Avacancy day is money lost forever –
To place an ad call 510-614-1558
NAVA'SCOMPLETE LANDSCAPING: Mowing, trees, cleanup, hauling, FREE estimates. 510 512-5857.
Garden service maintenance and cleanup and other services handyman call Jose Cruz 510-798-0682.
HANDYMAN/ LANDSCAPING
SERVICE. Maintenance, Cleanups, Hauling, Fences, Decks/ Patios, Painting, Repairs, Tree Work, Concrete. 510-712-4318.
KING CONSTRUCTION Father & Son. Complete Plumbing, Baths, and Custom Remodeling. Lic#273546/ Bonded. 510-882-5169/ 510-4837126.
CLASSIFIED AD DEADLINE: Monday 5:00 p.m.
Q. My wife and I have 4 sons. Unfortunately, one of them is not deserving of an equal share of our estate when we pass, and we have shared that with him. He now threatens to challenge our trust after we die on the ground that we lacked capacity when we recently created it. We are both in our 80’s, but fully competent. Is there anything we can do now to ensure that our wishes, as expressed in our trust, are honored after we pass?
By Gene L. Osofsky, Esq. SPECIAL TO THE FORUM
be someone who will be able to testify, if necessary, do n the road. o sho ld arrange this through your
2. ncl de a o Contest”
Cla se in o r r st o a e this effecti e, a e s re to leave the one son enough to disco ra e a contest. f yo lea e hi little or nothin , then he o ld ha e nothin to lose by initiating a contest.
.
es. Here are three sestions, and yo can ndertake one or all if you wish:
1. rran e a orensic alation Of o r Ca acity rrange for an evaluation of your capacity by a forensic psycholo ist or sychiatrist no , hile you both are fully competent. he e al ator sho ld be a rofessional ho is ell ersed in the forensic aspects of e al atin ca acity, and sho ld
attorney, ho can assist in locating a suitable professional. t is li ely that the inter ie of each of yo o ld be recorded and reser ed for ossible future reference. The evaluator sho ld in ire f lly abo t your reasons for wanting to treat yo r one son differently, and o ld lti ately render an o inion in ritin re ardin yo r ca acity, the basis for yo r decision, and other relevant factors. Try to select a professional younger than both of yo , ho is li ely to be ali e and a ailable to testify hen yo ha e both assed on. n any e ent, at least the e alator s recorded inter ie s and sycholo ical testin sho ld be reser ed for later access by another professional who co ld then testify.
he Hay ard rea Senior softball lea e, s onsored by H D, ill be startin their 202 season soon. ryo ts for new players will take place on ebr ary 1 and 21 at 9 0 a at the Oli er ield soccer felds
on Hesperian. The season will start in id arch and contine thro h Se te ber. lications and other infor ation is available on the website: hardseniorsoftball.co t is a coed lea e.
. nitiate Co rt Proceedin o to ffr the Validity of o r r st Perha s the most effective approach o ld be to for ally initiate a co rt Petition no , d rin yo r lifeti es, to confr the alidity of yo r tr st by an Order of Co rt. o o ld be available to tell the court why yo created yo r tr st as yo did. f s ccessf l, the res ltin co rt order affr in yo r tr st o ld then foreclose anyone fro later on challen in it, ro ided that the o ld-be challen er(s) recei ed notice of the co rt roceedin and an opportunity to challenge your tr st. f any challen er fails to ob ect, or if he ob ects b t the d e r les a ainst hi , then he o ld thereafter be foreclosed fro later challenin yo r tr st, nder a le al doctrine called res dicata”, eanin that the atter had re io sly been ad dicated” and is thereafter foreclosed from challenge.
he co rt roceedin o ld be bro ht nder C Probate Code 1 200 to deter ine the e istence of the tr st”. he fact that there is legal authority
to permit you to bring such a Petition d rin yo r lifeti es is a matter not well known to e en any attorneys, as the co on isdo is that roceedin s to challen e a tr st can only be brought after the death of the r stors ho created it. ot so. n fact, in addition to the stat tory a thority, there are inter reti e dicial o inions, hich e brace the notion that roceedin s to affr the alidity of a tr st, or an a end ent to tr st, can be bro ht before a d e d rin the lifeti e of the r stor(s).
Of co rse, ho yo approach your concern is a atter that yo sho ld disc ss ith yo r attorney, as there are si nifcant factors to ta e into acco nt before oin for ard. or e a le, initiatin a co rt roceedin d rin yo r lifetimes may exacerbate family dishar ony, or reci itate n leasant and e ensi e liti ation. y the sa e to en, even seeking a forensic evaluation of your capacity now i ht, itself, raise estions as to hether it as oti ated by a concern about your very capacity to create the trust.
So, consider these atters carefully with your attorney before nderta in any of these strategies.
Gene L. Osofsky is an elder law and estate planning attorney in the East Bay. Visit: LawyerForSeniors.com.
HOROSCOPE by Salomé © 2019 King Features Synd., Inc.
ARIES (March 21 to April 19):
TAURUS (April 20 - May 20):
GEMINI (May 21 to June 20):
CANCER (June 21 - July 22):
LEO (July 23 - August 22):
VIRGO (August 23 - Sept. 22):
LIBRA (Sept. 23 - October 22):
SCORPIO (October 23 - November 21):
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22 - Dec. 21):
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22 - Jan. 19):
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20 - Feb. 18):
PISCES (Feb. 19 - March 20):
continued from front page Renters are currently exempt from some evictions if they can sho a direct ne ati e i act on their income because of the ande ic. State and local health offcials are e ected to dis antle the 2-year-old COV D health e er ency on ebr ary 28. f that ha ens, the eviction moratorium will concl de 0 days after ard, aro nd ril 29. fter that ti e, renters cannot se the ande ic as an e c se not to pay the rent.
t the sa e ti e, the oard of S er isors is considerin three tenant protection policies that o ld establish a re istry of rental nits, establish st cause protections for evictions, and o ld restrict the se of bac ro nd chec s for those that have been formerly incarcerated to dis alify the fro rentin . he ordinances assed an initial ote on Dece ber 20. he ordinance re ires a second re ie and approval before becoming law.
enter ad ocates say, nli e other cities in the co nty, renters in the den rea ha e no local tenant protections. Property owners counter by saying that the COV D-era e iction moratorium invites tenants not to pay their rent even if they ne er s ffered a COV D-related hardshi . ensions ared at the start of last esday s eetin ( anary 2 ) as the oard decided to ost one the fnal decision on the renter policies until Feb. 28. Shortly after that, at 1 . ., three women representing o s Ho sin entered the cha ber, lin in ar s in front of the roo . hey alternated bet een chants and state ents about their personal experiences with homelessness. The o en ere arrested and later released.
“We are taking this action beca se la eda Co nty is already s fferin fro an o erhel in ho elessness crisis, and if these tenant rotections are not put in place before the COV D oratori is lifted, that crisis is oin to et e onentially orse,” o s
Ho sin re resentati e and er eley rent board co issioner Do ini e al er said. osh a Ho ard, the e ecti e ice resident of local blic affairs with the California art ent ssociation, says la eda Co nty needs ho sing units to solve the current ho sin crisis instead of addin ore b rea cracy and la s.
“Rather than focus on b ildin affordable ho es and liftin its e iction oratori , the county is wasting its time de elo in additional li its on a landlord s ability to rotect the ri hts of their tenants and ro ide ality ho sin ,” Ho ard said in a state ent. he trade ro re resents a art ent co nity o ners, in estors, de elo ers, anaers, and s liers.
District 4 Supervisor Nate iley iss ed a state ent last week saying he believes in rotectin tenants ri hts and the investments of small momand- o landlords.
“We cannot reach a comproise nor de elo eanin f l public policy if we are not willing to have these conversations,” iley said. f e cannot reach a compromise nor de elo eanin f l blic olicy, e cannot rotect tenants nor s all landlords beyond ebr ary 28.”
District 3 Supervisor Lena a said her offce had recei ed ore than 00 e ails fro ro erty o ners and rental a encies as in the oard of Supervisors to come to a compromise in the future.
“This issue is complex beca se the state already has many protections in place [such as California’s Tenant Protection ct of 2019 that are si ilar to the ordinances, incl din a rent re istry that reires landlords to re ort ho ch they char e for rent and the n ber of nits offered,” a told the or . S er isors a and iley say they ha e an o en disc ssion sched led for ebr ary 22 at their ne t Unincor orated Services Meeting. They invite both sides and ho e to hear ho to o e for ard.
Within days, Alameda County will publicly release their plan to add 2089 new homes (apartments, condos, houses) to Castro Valley over the next 8 years, as mandated by the Association of Bay Area Governments. As of now, they plan to promote construction of large housing complexes at the Rite Aid site, Trader Joes (long in in the works), next to the library (already in process) and at the site of today’s Sheriff Station by Fairmont Hospital. In addition, they plan to take a chunk (size not yet s ecifed) of the ar in lot and se it for ho sin . ost of this housing is targeted to reduced income buyers and tenants. I support increasing low income housing if done responsibly, but Castro Valley is being mandated to build almost half of the ne ho es in nincor orated la eda Co nty. Sacrifcing BART parking is not a good plan. While the lot may be underutilized now, I would expect it to bounce back to full use in the future--if not, then BART is doomed to bankruptcy anyway, as some have predicted, then the whole lot can be repurposed. Concurrently, AC Transit has eliminated the Flex Bus that made it possible to get to/from BART without a car.
As of today, the County has not yet posted this “Housing Element” plan on their website, but it is available by request from housing.element@acgov.org. Use the same email address to submit comments and concerns. There is tremendous political pressure to get this approved immediately without revision. They will present this plan to the CVMAC for approval in the coming weeks, the timeline on this is very short, a quick rubber stamp by the MAC is very likely. BART is apparently on board with the plan, they are already giving up the parking lot at North Berkeley for a seven story housing tower--submit BART queries and comments to John McParland at boardofdirectors@bart.gov
–Richard Kelly, Castro ValleyLet me guess, the three respondents, vehemently defending transgenderism (CL Cady, Conrad Cady, Angela Shipp) are all biological males practicing a transgender lifestyle—right? rans enders and oliticians need to sto con atin h an biology with human behavior—biology is immutable, behavior is emotional. The public doesn’t care (nor obligated to care) how transgenders “feel” about their bodies. One’s self-image and manner of dress is COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT to public policy. What IS relevant is that transgenders, along with everyone else, conform to the established norm of using public facilities segregated by biological sex. It protects the safety, health and welfare of women and minors—the REAL vulnerable population, not cross-dressing adult males. Without segregation, women’s facilities become open to the general public and irresistible to redatory ales. ery edo hile, asher, ra ist, stal er and general male weirdo will access women’s toilets, showers, locker rooms by simply claiming a “binary identity”. And let’s not forget deviant male behavior like autogynephilia. At best, females will be the subject of an ongoing peep show, and at worst, sexual assault, homicide. Just ONE offense is one too many.
er s li e trans ender ri hts” and ender affr ation” is garbage-speak for “I want women’s entitlements”, demanded by a population of individuals, almost exclusively male, who are unable to recognize anything beyond their myopic vision of a transgender lifestyle. It’s all about servicing their neurotic egos to the exclusion of all else, and those that object is met with name-calling. Transgenders don’t give a crap about women and minors. It’s ironic—they’re offending, alienating, and endangering the sex they so desperately are trying to emulate.
State lawmakers are on a mission to fully surrender women’s entitlements and protections to biological males—entitlements viewed as nothing more than public currency, to be “cashed” by any male claiming a “binary identity”. What patriarchal BS.
–Monica Shieman, Castro ValleyI have lived on upper Castro Valley Creek for 30 years. The creek is supposed to be maintained by the Alameda County Flood Control division which is funded by our property taxes. Workers used to come every couple years and cut down small trees and bushes that grew in the creek. I have not seen them come for over ten years. Last year, I noticed that chunks of wood and other debris ere oatin do n the cree and ettin st c in the unmaintained foliage, forming small dams in various locations. The storm drains that go underneath Seven Hills Road were also clogged. I called several times last year to inform the Public Works Agency so they might clean the creek in time for the winter rains. I have yet to see any work being done except during the hei ht of the stor hen so ch as already oodin .
Since New Year’s Day, this area has had the most rain we’ve seen in a long time. The creek has not been running smoothly because of the lack of maintenance. Could that have contributed to the destruction that happened upstream last week when Madison oad ooded, the elderly ern od e residents had to be e acated, and the backup of water caused erosion under the roots of huge eucalyptus trees growing on the creek? Two days ago one of the gigantic trees fell, crashing onto a home, hospitalizing a neighbor, and knocking out power. A couple other eucalyptus in this strand of trees are now leaning precariously. These trees were planted by the county long ago to stop erosion in the creek. Yet, the county does not take any responsibility for them. They have become dangerous. The small local streams need care. They feed into the large streams. Castro Valley Creek feeds into San Lorenzo Creek. I even wonder if the lack of creek maintenance along Castro Valley Creek contributed to the collapse of A Street d rin the stor t is ti e for the ood control di ision to ta e care of these maintenance issues and get Castro Valley Creek, and all of our creeks, into the best condition they can be.
–Marcia Baroni, Castro ValleyGrowing up, my Nana and I would quietly watch from our kitchen window generation after generation of wild deer. Mama and fa ns and the occasional b c o ld ha ily fnd res ite in our yard, munching on ivy and, to my Nana’s dismay, a buffet of o r otted o ers. e ertheless, e al ays elco ed these gentle creatures into our life. Time passed and the ivy died from drought, but the deer still came to shelter under our trees. All of this bittersweet beauty only occured because of a large open space behind our home. I found out yesterday that a person wants to develop the area and slam houses on the lot where the deer cling to one of their last hideouts along Crest. My Nana joined a group of neighbors in 2008 to stop this same thing from happening. They were successful, albeit temporarily. It’s been 15 years of deer and peace that I hope doesn’t disappear. What can we do as neighbors to stop this construction– or should I say destruction of precious open space?
–Momo Yoo Gomes, Castro ValleyFILED JAN 27, 2023
MELISSA WILK County Clerk
ALAMEDA COUNTY
By----------, Deputy FILE NO. 595093
FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT
Pursuant to Business and Professions Code Sections 17900-17930
The name of the business(es):
Pacific Transactions, located at 18459 Reamer Road Castro Valley, CA 94546. P.O. Box #20261 Castro Valley CA 94546. In Alameda County, is hereby registered by the following owner(s): Gabriella Stefanic, 18459 Reamer Road Castro Valley, CA 94546. This business is conducted by an Individual. This business commenced N/A /s/ Gabriella Stefanic
This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Alameda County on date indicated by file stamp above.
Expires JAN 22, 2028
FEB 01, 08, 15, 22, 2023 0556-CVF
I respectfully disagree with Mr. McGuire’s article dated 1/19/23. It is NOT just Bay-O-Vista residents who oppose the EBMUD Quarry Project. Everyone in San Leandro and other local communities who use Estudillo and Lake Chabot Road to access our parks and Castro Valley will be impacted. Contrary to EBMUD’s Ms. Favorite-Hill’s statement regarding the road capacity– it was never built to handle heavy trucks – which is why the Quarry operations never used upper Lake Chabot Road, only lower Chabot and Estudillo, until their permit expired in 1986. San Leandro now has an ordinance that requires trucks weighing more than 4 ½ tons to stay on designated truck routes –which Estudillo and Lake Chabot Road are NOT. Had EBMUD done more research they would have found the articles involving the makeup of the Quarry property and the massive storms in 1998, which resulted in serious ground failure and land displacement, causing major landslides and displaced homes in Bay O Vista. The storms this year did more damage to the site and road. EBMUD claims the project will make Bay O Vista a better neighborhood than it is now. But they are treating our City like a major construction and dumpsite for the next 40 to 80 years to get there with the attendant diesel pollution and asbestos cement pipe trench soils contamination this will entail. We already have a beautiful park currently accessible to San Leandro through Lake Chabot Road. It’s called Lake Chabot Park and it is heavily used by our very diverse community. EBMUD’s plan of using 60 to 100 dump trucks a day along this road will destroy our access to it. But don’t take my word for it. To learn more, visit: www.savelakechabotroad.com
–Anne Cawood, San Leandro
Dear Editor,
EBMUD (East Bay Municipal Utility District) has applied for a conditional use permit (CUP) from Alameda County to allow the deposit of trench soil extracted from pipeline repair and construction into the quarry site located at 13575 Lake Chabot Road. UD esti ates that there ill be 0 100 d tr c s f e days a week on Lake Chabot Road for the next 40–80 years (this is not a typo), with trucks entering and exiting the site and traveling on Estudillo Avenue and Lake Chabot Road every four or f e in tes. he intersections of st dillo ac rth r and studillo/Benedict will be seriously impacted. Lake Chabot Road, is currently closed due to rockslides and major undercarriage structure issues. This road is very narrow with no shoulders, hea y ith bicycle traffc and ildlife, a tos, and hi ers. en worse than the Road, is the proposed Quarry site. The Quarry is on land that has a history of slippage and open crevasses and sits atop two traces of the Hayward Fault. Other dump sites in use by EBMUD for this purpose are located in areas remote from traffc and ho es and e are r in UD to ithdra their application and move this project to an alternative site.
–Teri Schlesinger, San LeandroAdvanced Spinal Care, East Bay, located at 2381 Grove Way Castro Valley, CA 94546, 183 Via Viento San Lorenzo, CA 94580 in Alameda County, is hereby registered by the following owner(s): Tenny Lee 183 Via Viento San Lorenzo, CA 94580. This business is conducted by an Individual. This business commenced March 2008 /s/ Tenny Lee
This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Alameda County on date indicated by file stamp above.
Expires JAN 16, 2028
JAN 25, FEB 01, 08, 15, 2023 0558-CVF
Our Athlete of the Week is Darius Jackson. This 6’ 2” Senior is a Shooting Guard on the Castro Valley High School Boys Varsity Basketball team. He is a four-year Varsity player and a team captain this year. Darius is a leading scorer for the Trojans and can hit from the 3-point line as easily as he can dunk from beneath the hoop. The team plundered the San Leandro Pirates on Friday, with a score of 60-53. Castro Valley pulled through in the last few minutes to advance to a record of 9-12. The Trojans are 6th in the West Alameda County league and will take on Bishop O’Dowd this Friday.
This past Monday, January 30, The Hayward Area Recreation and Park District (H.A.R.D.) announced the 2022 Board of Directors Awards recipients:
• Volunteer of the Year: Norm Kaiser
• Special Recognition: Hayward Area Historical Society
• H.A.R.D. Foundation
continued from front page
The board heard from two other consultants, Foresight Planning and Development and Ruhnau Clarke Architects, about possible facilities updates and suggested new buildings across the district. Kristen Rose from Foresight and Roger Clarke from Ruhnau Clarke stressed they were not making proposals but ideas the board could consider when deciding how to spend future district money on facilities.
The CVUSD forecasting is done regularly as part of the district’s Facilities Master Plan, according to Sharon Trieu-Quince, district facilities director. She said that the district reviews its plan every f e years, and it o ld ha e happened sooner were it not for the COVID pandemic.
Suggestions by the consultants ranged from improving school entranceways for safety and for the community to easily locate the front door, to more emphasis on integrating indoor and outdoor spaces for instruction, to new classroom buildings and a new, larger gymnasium at Castro Valley High School.
continued from page 2 tion rather than doing what is “right.” If you ate 100 fewer calories starting today, you wouldn’t see a big shift right now, but you will see a shift in a few weeks. That is worth celebrating! If you “only” saved $25 every month, that’s amazing! If you change 1 degree daily, you’ll have made a 180-degree shift in half a year.
Another way to look at it is if you improve yourself by 1% every day, do you know how long it would take to be twice as good? 70 days. I did the calculation. You’ll see that you’ve changed so much in a few years without making drastic changes.
A.R.T., Inc. will present a Zoom Demo by Claudia Gray next Saturday, Feb. 11 from 2 to 3:30 pm.
Award-winning artist Claudia Gray’s paintings, photos, and jewelry are exhibited widely in galleries and shows.
Ms. Gray’s motivation for this series came from her life struggles. Claudia explores the concept that art isn’t always
pretty - it can have an edgy message. She draws inspiration and energy from nature. The presentation will show her process from inspiration to photo shoots; it ends with her show which is exhibited widely.
The event takes place Saturday, Feb. 11 from 2 to 3:30 pm. To receive a link, sign up by Feb. 9 by sending an email to: artinccv@gmail.com.
Organization of the Year: Fremont Bank and Fremont Bank Foundation
• H.A.R.D. Foundation
Individual of the Year: Lori Taylor
• Organization of the Year: Tiburcio Vasquez Health Center
• Individual of the Year: Norman Garcia
These award winners received their awards on Friday, Jan. 27, at a luncheon held in their honor at Sorensdale Recreation Center in Hayward.
The District is so thankful for the honor of working with such dedicated partners and volunteers. Congratulations to our 2022 Board of Director Award Winners.
So, what goals did you have for this year? What is a small change you can make starting today? If you’d like some support, please reach out.
Kevin helps people gain clarity on what they want in life, craft a plan, and support in the execution of the plan while getting back into tennis. Contact him at kevinkoocoaching@gmail.com or book a call at https://calendly.com/kevinkoocoaching/cvforum
the Lunar New Year of the Rabbit, all bunny adoptions are to alifed ho es, s onsored by l Ho s. o ado t call Hayward Animal Shelter (510) 293-7200.
IVY is a 1 year old female German Shepherd who came into the shelter scared and shy but has been coming out of her shell recently. She would like a home with teens and adults who will go slow with her and help her continue to come out of her shell. Call Hayward Animal Shelter (510) 293-7200.
