As I have reported in the past, I sit on the Board of Directors for Tri-Valley Community Television with the Mayors of Livermore, Pleasanton, and San Ramon. At our November 19^th Board meeting, we reviewed the progress at the station over the past year. I am pleased to report that there has been a vast amount of improvement, and the future looks bright.

Specifically, the financial and legal troubles that plagued the station in the past have been addressed, and professional financial and personnel procedures have been implemented for the station’s long-term stability. There have also been extensive repairs to station equipment, along with many other technical and facility upgrades. The website was completely overhauled and enhanced with live streaming and “On Demand” features, new program elements were introduced, and the station’s marketing and community relations has improved. Two other major initiatives undertaken by the station over the past year was hosting a Youth Camp to train students in grades 7-10 on television production, and the actual broadcast of a high school football game between Foothill and Amador Valley.

Moving forward, the Board is looking at ways to produce additional information and programming that is both interesting and informative for both the website and on-air, increasing student and community involvement, bringing in revenue, and improving our technical capabilities. We will be having a half-day Board Retreat on February 10^th to discuss these and other important issues related to Tri-Valley Community Television. If you have any ideas, please e-mail me at tim@timsbranti.com.

Tags: Tim's Travels by Tim Sbranti
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The Dublin City Council held a joint study session with the Planning Commission on November 16^th to discuss amendments to the site development plans of the Alameda County East County Hall of Justice (a.k.a. the Courthouse).

Since the time prior to our City’s incorporation, Alameda County owned roughly 40 acres of land near the current intersection of Hacienda and Gleason near the Santa Rita Jail. Residents may recall that the original plans were to use the entire 40 acre site to construct a massive Juvenile Hall with 540 beds (one of the largest in the nation), a Courthouse consisting of 19 courtrooms, and a large office complex for various administrative services to support both the Juvenile Justice Center and courts.

Due in large part to the active opposition of Dublin residents to the proposal, Alameda County rebuilt its Juvenile Justice Center in San Leandro (as opposed to the Dublin neighborhood), reduced the number of courtrooms to 13, and scaled back its administrative office and support facilities. In response, the Dublin City Council approved the site development plans in November of 2004.

Since that time, Alameda County has reassessed their needs. They sold the eastern portion of the site to the Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD) for their future maintenance yard and expansion needs. For the portion of the site they still controlled, Alameda County approached the Dublin City Council and Staff earlier this year about further reducing the scale of the project. Although the new design is only slightly smaller in terms of square footage (196,000 as opposed to the original 208,000 square feet) and has the same number of courtrooms (13), the new redesign has several advantages.

One of the biggest advantages is that the configuration and footprint of the buildings are pushed further back away from the neighborhood. The height of the buildings at their tallest point remains the same (5 stories/90 feet), but most importantly the height closest to the residents has been reduced from three stories to two, and the tallest portions of the site are as far from the residents as possible. The revised building design represents a more modern, streamlined architectural style than the original proposal, with much more glass and natural light to complement the surrounding office uses. In addition, the revised project includes more parking spaces, an enhanced landscaped courtyard, and a Silver LEED environmental certification at a minimum.

Both the City Council and Planning Commission praised Alameda County for their continual work on improving the project. A few minor suggestions and modifications were suggested, but overall there was enthusiastic support for the redesign. At this point, the County will be bringing the plans back to the Dublin City Council for formal adoption in the next few months, and it’s anticipated that construction will begin shortly thereafter. The new Courthouse is slated to begin operations in the latter half of 2013.

Tags: Tim's Travels by Tim Sbranti
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DUBLIN — He went through a terrible divorce. He doesn’t make a lot of money. And one of his friends describes him as a “big guy with a Ben Stein monotone.”

For John Dekoven, life couldn’t be better.

The owner of Bunjo’s Comedy Club in Dublin, Dekoven found his way onto the stage as a way to make fun of the otherwise not-so-hilarious aspects of life.

“I was going through a terrible divorce that would probably have sent me to a shrink,” Dekoven said. “Instead, I went on stage and found ways to laugh about a relationship where the divorce took a year longer than the marriage lasted.”

Currently, Dekoven is engaged to a woman whom he met in a most unusual way.

“In person,” he quips.

He knows he carries a few more pounds than he would like.

“I’m a 250-pound bulimic. I just throw up the healthy stuff,” he jokes again.

The shows are every Friday and Saturday at the Willow Tree Restaurant in Dublin. On Fridays, it’s an open mic for professionals and amateurs. On Saturdays, it’s all professionals. One Sunday a month he has a show that is family-friendly.

Dekoven decides on the lineups. It’s this ability to match the right comedians with the right crowd that Dekoven says is one of his big gifts.

Aside from the shows he runs in Dublin, he can quickly tap into the nearly 100 comedians he knows and come up with a perfect combination.

Read the full article by  David Morrill, Contra Costa Times.

Tags: Press Releases by Tim Sbranti
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