TBS Today, May 5

Today, we have our latest guest essay, from Berkeley City Council members Shoshana O’Keefe, Mark Humbert, Rashi Kesarwani and Terry Taplin, who explain their stance on Flock.

Council is set to vote on the Flock contract Thursday.

Op-ed: Berkeley officials make the case for Flock, as vote nears

Council members Shoshana O’Keefe, Mark Humbert, Rashi Kesarwani and Terry Taplin explain their stance on Flock. The vote comes Thursday.

The Berkeley ScannerGuest Essay

Interested in sharing your own guest essay with TBS? Read the story for details on how to connect with us.

Speaking of Thursday's meeting: We cannot make it due to an unbreakable prior commitment. This meeting was supposed to be in June, but it was reset to an atypical, off-schedule council day this week.

We could assign a freelancer, but this seems like a story that would benefit from our own reporting.

So here's the plan: We'll review the complete video from the council meeting and write a comprehensive story this weekend.

Also, published today, hot off the presses: Firefighters in Berkeley, Albany and other East Bay cities may soon have a live burn facility to practice critical skills, thanks to a $500,000 federal grant announced Tuesday.

Frances Dinkelspiel covered the story for TBS.

She also got a look inside BFD's new HQ on Ninth Street.

New East Bay fire training center lands $500K federal grant

The central hub (location TBD) will let fire crews practice fighting structure fires and wildfires, cleaning up hazmats and more, officials said.

The Berkeley ScannerFrances Dinkelspiel

(As an aside: It's a great day for TBS, to be able to feature voices other than yours truly! Don't get used to it. But it makes for a very nice change of pace.)

In other news: Don't miss our exclusive from last night

Ricardo Ruiz case: Judge delays mental health diversion ruling

Ruiz has petitioned the court for mental health diversion, which could result in a three-month residential program in lieu of trial.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

In case you missed it: Prior Flock coverage

This week's meeting is a continuation from a council discussion in March. Don't miss our prior reporting on everything that happened already.

For now, the proposals remain the same.

Berkeley delays controversial Flock vote to June 2

“Fatigue and time constraints do not support thoughtful, sound decision-making,” the mayor’s office said Wednesday.

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

Berkeley mayor says no to Flock. Will council follow suit?

A new proposal from Mayor Adena Ishii “opposes the renewal, approval, or authorization of any contract with Flock Safety.”

The Berkeley ScannerEmilie Raguso

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