So This Happened…Week of Oct. 22 through 27, 2024
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, CA (Oct. 27, 2024) — The Pioneer’s Woof O Ween costume contest was just dog-gone good fun. The 22 participants paraded through downtown Clayton, with the top dogs winning trophies – but everyone going home with a bag of treats fit for man’s best friend.
As Halloween approaches, New Wave Nightingale columnist Nathalie Montijo explains the adrenaline rush many experience after a good scare. “You experience the euphoria because you know you’re safe,” she writes. “There is a sort of chemical rush to ‘surviving’ experiences that mimic near death.”
Artistic achievement: The city of Concord received the Helen Putnam Award for Excellence in Economic Development through the Arts for its Creative Concord public arts initiative. “We are grateful to be recognized for this program, which sparked public interest in the arts, spurred economic activity, and spotlighted Concord’s efforts to strengthen our community spirit through an arts and culture experience,” says Mayor Edi Birsan said.
Meanwhile, Birsan explained why street repairs are occurring in one area over another. “Concord’s road repair priority is overall governed by an optimalization plan that has us repairing in each of the ranges of condition called Pavement Condition Index (PCI),” he says, adding: “We will get to the roads wherever they are, even your roads.
Keeping Clayton on track: New city manager Kris Lofthus says he came to Clayton “with my eyes open” regarding high staff turnover and a sometime contentious relationship between the City Council and staff. “My job is to come in to work with the council and to work with the staff here to unify the work we’re doing,” he tells the Pioneer in an interview. “It’s critical to get everyone to work together and going in the same direction.”
More stories
Here are some other stories the Pioneer covered recently:
November election: Letter writers question ClaytonWatch.org and support Holly Tillman, plus DeSaulnier faces off against Oakley Republican leader.
In the schools: Ygnacio Valley High students receive Invention Grant, and Concord High names 500 Wing “Kathy Koch Hall.”
Outdoor adventures await in Costa Rica.
In sports: League play dominates schedule, and a Pioneer Athlete Spotlight on Galina Mathew of Clayton Valley.
Prescribed burns planned at Mount Diablo State Park.
Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office warns of active warrants scam.
Czech artist a hidden gem in Clayton
Loaves and Fishes of Contra Costa reaches milestone.
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Bev Britton
Bev Britton graduated with a degree in journalism from the University of North Dakota and moved to the Bay Area with her soon-to-be husband Jim in 1986. She was features editor at the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek before becoming managing editor of the Contra Costa Sun in Lafayette in 1995. She retired from newsrooms in 2001, but an ad for the Clayton Pioneer drew her back in. The family moved to Lake Wildwood in the Gold Country a few years ago - but working at the Pioneer keeps her in touch with her old neighborhoods in Concord and Clayton.