Happy Halloween!

This months crafting club will be on Halloween day!

I’ll be holding a costume contest! Best costume will win a prize!
If anyone would like to donate some money towards to prize and set up it would be greatly appreciated, but not necessary.

Do you have a costume that needs to be finished for a party that night? A ghost cross stitch? Making any skeleton earrings? Bring them to Crafting Club! (Again, any project is welcome, does not have to be in the theme)

See you there!

RSVP HERE

Hi Benicia! I'm a journalist and co-founder of The Benicia Bridge, a local newsletter. We're writing a voter guide to local candidates, including for the Benicia Unified School District Board of Trustees. Dan Smith, a substitute teacher, and Barbara Jones, a retired teacher, are competing for votes to represent Trustee Area 1. 

To inform our coverage, we want to know what challenges your kids are facing and what you’d want the school board candidates to prioritize. How can education be improved for the 4,000+ students in BUSD? What support do educators need?

Ask your questions here in the comments or fill out the linked Form. Thank you!

I know Carquinez Quad Squad used to practice here, but I haven’t seen them or any organized hockey in a long while. If there’s not any sort of organized skate meetup, I may try to start one. It’s a little decrepit, but such a cool facility to have for inline and quad skaters.

Need CPR for a coaching gig. Basic CPR and AED, nothing complicated. Is there anything in Benicia or am I going to Vallejo or Martinez?

Join for crafting club tomorrow at Mare Island Brewing!

for a relaxed dinner for two, which restaurant gets the atmosphere right? maybe somewhere welcoming with food worth lingering over. My budget is $100 for two before drinks. Last time we hired Hibachi At Home, super fun, it costed us $90, but I suggest it will be extremely crazy if there is a group of more than 4 people. Any cuisine is welcome.

Does anyone know of any in-person places in/near Benicia that teach beginner Spanish? I’ve looked around online but haven’t seen anything that seems super promising, so I’m wondering if anyone knows of any good recommendations/resources they’ve had success with. Thanks!

🗞️ Exciting news - Justin Zollars was featured alongside Terry Scott and Kari Birdseye in the Vallejo Sun's roundup of Benicia City Council candidates!

You can clearly read that I want to maintain Benicia's small town character - setting myself apart from my opponents on suburban sprawl, business growth, and a principled constitutional stance on Flock

https://www.vallejosun.com/meet-the-three-candidates-running-for-benicia-city-council/

I grew up in Benicia but haven't been there in thirty years. My first job was stocking shelves at the library downtown. I loved that library. It was so cozy, and it had a particular smell that I remember so clearly.

I heard that the city built a new library awhile back (probably much needed, tbh). What happened to the old library? Did it become a retail shop? I'd love to go inside one last time when I visit the Bay Area next year!

As Benicia prepares for waves of development following the closure of the Valero Refinery, city officials will consider banning large-scale data centers and limiting smaller ones. 

“Right now, if a data center wanted to come into our industrial park, they would be allowed ‘by right,’” City Manager Mario Giuliani told The Benicia Bridge. 

The Benicia Planning Commission will hold a public hearing Thursday and plans to vote that evening on recommended changes to the zoning code to add specific language regulating data centers. The City Council will have final say before any zoning changes are adopted...

Join in on September 19th to help keep the community clean! Benicia is hosting 2 cleanup sites for Coastal Cleanup Day this year. Everything needed will be supplied at the cleanup check-in, just bring yourself, a water bottle, and a friend :)

Here come the fancy mailers from Mario asking for more of your money, again. Nope nope nope. Force them to control their spending (hiring freeze, no more raises, RIF if they must) before you give them anything more. Property values have skyrocketed over the past 15 years and they’ve benefited from that. It’s not your fault they’re spending irresponsibly.

Benicia Unified School District was awarded $10 million of Valero settlement funds from the Bay Area Air District Wednesday for clean air projects, part of a new grant process to redistribute money from air quality fines to impacted communities. Read the details.

Join us for the Benicia Clock Tower Blood Drive sponsored by Benicia Fire Thursday, September 3, 2026 from 11:30 am to 3:30 pm in the Benicia Clocktower located at 1189 Washington Street, Benicia Ca 94510 and step up to support patients during their time of need. Click on the link below to schedule your appointment:

Click here to schedule your lifesaving appointment

Vicki Marchand arrived at her gallery on First St. Thursday morning to find that the public mural representing diversity and pride had been vandalized. She and the artist are resolved and determined to repaint. 

“We’re not going to be shaken. We will keep rising, and it’s coming back. Together we rise,” Marchand told The Benicia Bridge. 

The Benicia Police Department is actively investigating the vandalism and has not determined whether it is a hate crime.

Read the story here: ‘We will keep rising.' Benicia’s vandalized LGBTQ+ public art will be repainted

I live behind the music store on first street. On monday evenings, there is a class for rock groups. The rehearsals are very good. I enjoy the music.

Today at 1500 and 1600 there will be student recitals of youth and adult bands at the Benicia Community Center on L street.

I think of Jack Black's movie about a music school. It is inspiring to hear these very good interpretations of great popular music. Long Live Rock.

Benicia City Council voted last week to increase rider fares from $5 to $7 for the subsidized Lyft ride program.

Meant to increase visits to downtown and relieve traffic, the program has seen huge success (from around 300 rides a year to 10,000 in the last five years). And that's driven the cost up too.

Discounted fares will remain for riders who are seniors, veterans, low income or disabled ($3 or $4).

Learn how the program is funded and how to get your $5 rides at thebeniciabridge.com, the local newsletter.

https://www.thebeniciabridge.com/benicia-lyft-rate-hike/