Here are some of the stories that made news this past week in the Pinole-Hercules area.
The West Contra Costa Unified School District board of education heard a report on Wednesday evening from a media firm on a plan to increase property value assessments in the district. The firm, Whitehurst/Moser, was hired in May to help with a campaign to convince the Contra Costa County Assessor's Office to raise the assessments on properties that were de-valued during the recent real estate downturn.
The Pinole Fire Department announced it now has eight vacancies to fill. Four firefighters have recently told department managers they are leaving for jobs in other cities. The department already was hiring four new firefighters with federal grant money to reopen Station 74 in the valley.
The East Bay Municipal District board approved a plan Tuesday to raise water rates by 19 percent over the next two years. The first hike will take effect on July 1. The second kicks in on July 1, 2014.
The Hercules City Council was given a presentation Tuesday evening on the city staff's budget proposal for fiscal year 2014. The $12.9 million budget plan was bolstered by the passage the previous week of Measure A, which raises the rate on the city's utility users tax.
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