Sunday, October 10, 2010

Residents of a Leeds, England neighbourhood have requested help from a council because their neighbourhood is plagued by crime, overcrowding, and community tensions.

Leeds City Council received a request for help from residents of Hyde Park, who said they were worried about the increasing level of anti-social behavior and worsening community relations. A report will be unveiled on Wednesday by a council delegation, highlighting the problems in the area. “The people living in Hyde Park come from widely different population groups… these groups have very different customs, needs and living styles and this can provoke high levels of tension in the area,” the delegation said.

The council claims that because of the 28 per cent ethnic minority population and the 40,000 students living in the neighbourhood, there are tensions between residents. They added, however, that they are actively encouraging people to work together, citing a multi-faith forum, a cricket competition and activities which bring old and young together.

The report says that the council are trying to build relationships between Muslims and police, something which they said is “particularly important after the area’s connection to the London bombings on 7th July 2005.” A local newspaper reported that “the Shebab project introduces young Muslims to role models from sport and culture and also runs scholars’ talks to counter extremist ideologies.”

Crime has increased by 7% in the past year in Hyde Park, and residents noted that anti-social behaviour was getting worse. The council said that an anti-burglary task force had helped to reduce the number of thefts from homes. Residents complained that there was a lack of pride in the area, and at the end of the academic year in the summer, large piles of rubbish were left in streets, yards and alleyways. The report adds that the council operates a recycling scheme aimed towards teenagers, and that rubbish collections have increased.

The Guardian reported on Wednesday that campaigners are attempting to “take control of a derelict school building and transform it into a community hub are appealing for sponsors and partners in a bid to turn their dreams into reality.” They say that the unused building, owned by the council, could be used for meetings and events. A volunteer group of residents have been working on a business plan, and have gained support from local businesses to create “a vision of an open, accessible and valuable resource for all.”

A member of the commitee, however, said he was “frustrated” with the council’s attitude towards the plans. “The RPCC is slightly frustrated with certain communication issues that we’ve had with the council, but we’re working with them and hoping to gain further assistance going forward,” he said. “It’s a shame that certain setbacks could have been avoided.”

The deputation added that “a major factor in Hyde Park’s suffering is its high level of population density”, which they conceded is something they are unable to change. The council responded to complaints that streets are “cheap and unhealthy takeaways, letting agents and boarded-up shop fronts,” by saying that Hyde Park Corner and Headingley are, according to the Yorkshire Post, “thriving shopping areas and work had taken place to ensure a good mix of outlets.”

The report concludes: “The council acknowledges that because of the very particular circumstances which exist in the neighbourhood, Hyde Park faces difficult challenges which affect the quality of life of residents and that ‘normal’ service levels may not be sufficient to tackle some of these. The council will do more to enable local people to influence how services work and how local problems are tackled. Local community and voluntary groups will be invited to play an active role.”

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Buffalo, New York —The city’s Common Council met in Council Chambers today with a full agenda. Among the items in the agenda was the Elmwood Village Hotel proposal.

The Elmwood Village Hotel is a proposed hotel by Savarino Construction Services Corporation and is designed by architect Karl Frizlen of the Frizlen Group. It is to be placed on the corner of Elmwood and Forest Avenues in Buffalo and will require the demolition of at least five properties (1109-1121 Elmwood).

During the hour-and-a-half meeting, the Common Council approved the hotel proposal. The entire voting process for the proposal took less than two minutes, and the public was not allowed to speak. The Council voted unanimously in support of the proposal; however, the city’s Planning Board must also approve the proposal. The Board will meet on Tuesday, March 28, 2006 at 8:00 a.m. on the 9th floor of City Hall, room 902.

The approval allows for the rezoning of all five properties, including 605 Forest, to a “special development plan,” or a C-2 zone.

“There is a ‘special development plan’ in front of the council, which changes only one thing about the zoning. It allows one permitted use — for just a hotel. The rest of the zoning remains as it is under the current Elmwood Business District zoning. 605 and 607 Forest are not required for the project. They are not part of the footprint for the project. Let me answer this question again. This is on the record, in council: 605 needs to be rezoned in order to facilitate the project because of the sideyard requirement. Anything in C-2 is excluded besides the hotel. So we’ve taken the C-2 and included the hotel as a permitted use, and excluded everything else, and everything else remains the same,” Eva Hassett, Vice President of Savarino Consrtruction, said to Wikinews during a public meeting on March 16, 2006.

However, during the same meeting, Pano Georgiadis, owner of 605 Forest and owner of Pano’s Restaurant on Elmwood, threatened to “sue” Savarino Construction saying, “If you try to get a variance to change the code, I will sue you. This is my home, number one.”

Savarino Construction hopes to break ground this Summer.

Despite the Council’s approval, organizers have scheduled another protest that will be held this Saturday, March 25, 2006 at 2:00 p.m. on Forest and Elmwood.

Some citizens are even considering legal action and are considering an “injunction in State Supreme Court,” going “pro se, meaning I am going to present the case myself,” said Clarence Carnahan, a concerned citizen and local business owner who is opposed to the hotel, to Wikinews.

Carnahan wrote a “notice of cease and desist” which was also presented to the Council at today’s meeting.

Patty Morris, co-owner of Don Apparel with Nancy Pollina, said, “We are going to fight the good fight to the bitter end, but we cannot afford it [legal action]. Now it’s a legal matter, and it’s in the hands of the law, and I know there are some people very interested in hiring a lawyer.”

Nancy Pollina says that she is “looking into a defense fund” and is currently talking to lawyers.

==Related Wikinews==

• “Citizens protest Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal” — Wikinews, March 20, 2006
• “Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal threatened by possible lawsuit” — Wikinews, March 16, 2006
• “Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal delayed further” — Wikinews, March 10, 2006
• “No hotel previously on site of proposed Buffalo, N.Y. hotel location” — Wikinews, March 4, 2006
• “City Planning Board postpones decision on Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal” — Wikinews, March 2, 2006
• “Residents and business owners attend “private” meeting on Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal” — Wikinews, February 28, 2006
• “Eva Hassett, VP of Savarino Construction Services Corp. answers questions on Buffalo, N.Y. hotel redesign” — Wikinews, February 27, 2006
• “Alternative to controversial hotel proposed to Buffalo, N.Y. business owners and residents” — Wikinews, February 23, 2006
• “Hotel development proposal could displace Buffalo, NY business owners” — Wikinews, February 17, 2006

Sunday, April 3, 200528 year old Alex Sanchez, outfielder for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, is suspended without pay for 10 days for using a performance enhancing drug. Sanchez is the first player to be suspended under Major League Baseball’s new, stricter drug policy.

The Baseball officials and the players’ union have both decided to not disclose the specific substance which tested positive.

Sanchez originally planed an appeal against the ban, but decided against it. He denies taking any performance enhancing drugs and blames the positive test on over-the-counter vitamins, muscle relaxants and protein shakes that he takes, but has not identified any specific medications as of yet.

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Journalist, counselor, painter, and US 2012 Presidential candidate Joe Schriner of Cleveland, Ohio took some time to discuss his campaign with Wikinews in an interview.

Schriner previously ran for president in 2000, 2004, and 2008, but failed to gain much traction in the races. He announced his candidacy for the 2012 race immediately following the 2008 election. Schriner refers to himself as the “Average Joe” candidate, and advocates a pro-life and pro-environmentalist platform. He has been the subject of numerous newspaper articles, and has published public policy papers exploring solutions to American issues.

Wikinews reporter William Saturn? talks with Schriner and discusses his campaign.

Friday, October 10, 2008

In an attempt to speak with as many candidates as possible during the 2008 Canadian federal election, Wikinews has talked via email with Vicki Gunn. Gunn is a candidate in Ontario’s York—Simcoe riding, running under the Christian Heritage Party of Canada (CHP) banner. The CHP is a minor, registered political party running a significant number of candidates across the country, looking to earn its first ever seat in the House of Commons.

The riding has existed from 1968 to 1979, from 1988 to 1997, and from 2004 to present. As of the next provincial election in Ontario, it will be recognised as a provincial electoral district as well. Over the years, the riding has been represented by the Liberal Party, Progressive Conservative Party, again by the Progressive Conservatives, again by the Liberals, and since its recreation, the seat has been held by the Conservative Party of Canada.

Peter Van Loan, the Conservative incumbent, is the Minister Responsible for Democratic Reform and Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. The other candidates in the riding, besides Van Loan and the CHP’s Gunn, are New Democrat Sylvia Gerl, Liberal Judith Moses, and the Green Party‘s John Dewar.

The following is an interview with Gunn, conducted via email. The interview is published unedited, as sent to Wikinews.

Monday, May 22, 2006

Bushra Khalil, one of the defense lawyers for former Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, was thrown out of court by Chief Judge Raouf Abdel after speaking out of turn.

“The right of defence is sacred. We have never seen in our whole career a lawyer ordered out of the court room like this. We should not be treated like this, we are defending those men who defended the honour of the nation, yes they are the honour of the nation,” said an Egyptian lawyer, in court for Hussein’s defense.

Khalil was attempting to make a speech when Judge Abdel told her to stop talking. When Khalil continued to speak out of turn, Judge Abdel ordered court guards to remove her from the courtroom. Khalil then threw her lawyer’s robe onto the floor and walked out of the courtroom.

“You have to stick to the rules, you are a lawyer, you should behave by the rules,” said Judge Abdel to Khalil while she left the courtroom.

Hussein objected to the judge’s orders and protested saying, “I am Saddam Hussein, president of Iraq. I am above all.”

“You were president, now you are the defendant,” replied Judge Abdel.

This is the second time that Khalil was thrown out of the courtroom. Back in April, Judge Abdel had Khalil removed for the same reasons. This is also her first appearance in court since April’s incident.

Monday, July 4, 2016

On Saturday, in the quarter-final of UEFA Euro 2016, Germany defeated Italy 6–5 in a penalty shootout decider as the score was 1–1 at the end of additional time. Germany missed three penalties in the shootout, but Manuel Neuer stopped two penalties by the Italians.

Early in the first half, Bastian Schweinsteiger was substituted for German midfielder Sami Khedira following a muscle injury. The Germans had greater ball possession and also led in passing accuracy. But they had to wait till the 65th minute when Mesut Özil scored a goal. Thirteen minutes later, the lead was nullified as the Italians were awarded a penalty kick as defender Jérôme Boateng committed a handball foul in the penalty area. Stepping up for the penalty, Leonardo Bonucci scored the equaliser. This was the first goal Neuer conceded in his last 557 minutes of major tournament play. The previous record was set by Sepp Maier at 481 minutes.

The match proceeded to additional time as the score was 1–1. None of the sides could find the net in the additional time and the referee signalled a penalty shootout. Lorenzo Insigne and Toni Kroos scored their respective kicks. In the next round, Simone Zaza missed while Thomas Müller’s spot kick was saved by Gianluigi Buffon. When Andrea Barzagli scored his penalty kick and Özil missed by hitting the woodwork, Italy were 2–1 up.

Graziano Pellè missed his penalty and the Germans levelled as Julian Draxler scored. Leonardo Bonucci’s attempt to score was saved by Neuer, but Schweinsteiger wasted his chance to lead the shootout. Emanuele Giaccherini and Marco Parolo scored their spot kicks, as did Mats Hummels and Joshua Kimmich. Mattia De Sciglio’s goal was followed by Boateng’s equalising penalty. Neuer saved Matteo Darmian’s kick and Jonas Hector scored the winning penalty.

Neuer was awarded the Man of the Match award.Eighteen players stepped up for the penalty shootout equalling the record of the UEFA Euro 1980 third-place encounter. Except for these two fixtures, never has a Euro match witnessed eighteen men taking the spot kick.

Germany is to play winner of France and Iceland in the semi-final. Mats Hummels is to miss the semi-final serving a one-match ban. Striker Mario Gomez is to miss the semi-final with torn muscle fibres. Schweinsteiger pulled his knee ligaments.

Manager Joachim Löw responded to these injuries saying, “It is very bitter to lose important players in the decisive stage of the tournament. I am especially sorry for Mario. […] For us this means accepting the new situation and having to find solutions. We will do so. The quality in the squad is high and I have full confidence in all players.”