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Berkeley,
California (Wednesday, September 5, 2007) - In
a closed hearing last night, the Berkeley City Council voted to
reject the University of California’s supposed “settlement
offer” in the lawsuit over the construction of a new athletic
facility next to the seismically unsafe California Memorial Stadium.
Almost 70 people spoke during the public comment period before the
Council went into its closed session.
"We have received the proposal from
the University and we find it unacceptable because it does not
seriously address our concerns,” said Mayor Tom Bates after the
Council meeting. “We will, therefore, move forward with the
lawsuit.”
The lawsuit (City of Berkeley v. The
Regents (RG06-301644), which is in Alameda County Superior
Court, is an effort to keep the university building major addition
to the stadium until it has determined whether it is feasible to
make the stadium seismically safe.
The lawsuit also includes concerns
related to a proposed parking garage, the destruction of a grove of
oak trees, and the failure of the university to explore safer and
less expensive sites, as required by law.
The settlement offer, received by the
City on Tuesday morning, came seven months after a state-mandated
settlement meeting and was largely limited to reiterating plans the
university had already approved. The offer, as well as other court
documents, can be viewed on the City’s website: http://www.cityofberkeley.info
/Manager/SAHPClawsuitpage.htm.
There will be two days of hearings on September 19 and
20, 2007. The hearings will take place in Department 512 of the
Alameda County Superior Court, 24405 Amador Street, in Hayward.
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