Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill aimed at clearing the way for construction of a controversial student housing project in a historic Berkeley park.
The University of California, Berkeley, plans to build a $312 million housing project for about 1,100 of its students at the 3-acre (1.2-hectare) People's Park. While university officials said the project would bring much needed housing to its students, opponents wanted the university to preserve the park and build elsewhere. The park was founded in 1969 as part of the free speech and civil rights movement when community organizers banded together to take back a site the state and university seized under eminent domain.
