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Opinion: What billionaires planning Bay Area city can teach us about housing

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

A cadre of Silicon Valley elites is drawing fierce criticism from local residents and environmentalists for planning a new city on the outskirts of the Bay Area, a project dubbed “California Forever.” But the effort should be applauded for revealing a truth about California’s failed housing policies.This group of California’s most influential wants to build one or more new towns on the urban fringes, having spent about $900 million to buy an area roughly twice the size of San Francisco some 60 miles east of the city. The project breaks with the philosophy of the state’s housing policy, which has long been focused on urban densification.Despite the state’s efforts to encourage residential development, California’s housing markets remain among the least affordable in the country. The homeownership rate is near the nation’s lowest. To afford a house at the median price today in Southern California, a family needs an annual income of $180,000, twice the region’s median.Some housing advo...

Big San Jose hotel gets finance boosts from lender as occupancy rises

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

SAN JOSE — A big hotel in San Jose has received multiple financial boosts from its lender this year, hopeful indicators that the lodging facility has begun to recover from coronavirus-linked economic woes.The Signia by Hilton San Jose hotel in downtown San Jose has landed two increases during 2023 in the principal amount of its real estate loan, documents on file at the Santa Clara County Recorder’s Office show.The financing boosts that the lender, an affiliate of Brightspire Capital, provided to the Signia by Hilton offer strong signals that the financier is confident in the prospects for the hotel at 170 South Market Street in San Jose, in the view of Sam Hirbod, principal owner of the hotel property.“Our lender recognized the great amount of equity that we have and continue to build in the Signia,” Hirbod said in an interview with this news organization. “This is why they increased the loan sizes a couple of times.”The upswing in the loan amoun...

Man armed with ax arrested after standoff with Marin County police

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

A Novato man accused of vandalism and wielding weapons was arrested after a standoff at his home.The incident began around 5 a.m. Wednesday, when witnesses called authorities reporting a man with an ax breaking windows in the downtown area.Police caught up with the suspect, Bjorn Schwindt, 28 at his home on Gustafson Court getting out of his car holding an ax and pipe. He entered the home and barricaded himself inside.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | East Bay man takes 13 years in Oakland homicide Crime and Public Safety | Exclusive: Man charged in Vallejo boy’s 1987 killing is now a suspect in killing 9-year-old East Bay boy Crime and Public Safety | Feds charge four with trafficking guns from Texas to East Bay; one firearm was seized in quintuple shooting Crime and Public Safety | San Jose police arrest man on suspicion of illegal gun possession one month after road-rage incident Crime and Public Safety...

China Camp State Park’s new trail markers aid emergency response for injured hikers

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

A new trail marker system installed at China Camp State Park near San Rafael this summer is helping emergency responders to more quickly locate and rescue injured, lost and ailing hikers.More than 60 markers at trailheads, bridges and trail intersections were set up along the 15 miles of trails in the park bearing both the trail names and a unique number. These numbers were then placed on a digital map and provided to Marin emergency response agencies.Injured hikers or bystanders who call emergency dispatchers need only provide the number of the closest trail to help them pinpoint their location.San Rafael fire Battalion Chief Kyle Hamilton said while they can usually track a reporting party’s location using cellphone GPS data, the nearly 2.5 square-mile China Camp State Park has a more complex trail system compared to other open space areas in San Rafael and has areas where cellphone signals are weak.Especially for trauma cases or major medical emergencies, Hamilton said “time is o...

Opinion: Governor should help California cities protect against flooding

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

The series of strong storms that California experienced this past winter brought not just intense rainfall, devastating flooding and terrible loss of life, but also a growing awareness that California urgently needs to protect against the flood impacts of climate change.Coastal areas that were inundated by rainfall experienced a preview of where rising seas will soon bring more frequent flooding. Those areas face a daunting future as climate change also brings intense storms more often. Now Gov. Gavin Newsom can take an important step to protect communities against these floods by signing a bill that requires cities to create effective shoreline resilience plans.Most cities are aware that rising sea levels and climate-induced storm activity pose growing risks to people, property and nature, and some have started to identify vulnerable areas and plan how to manage rising tides and storm water. Hayward adopted a Shoreline Adaptation Master Plan that maximizes wetland restoration. San ...

Fatality reported on U.S. 101 in Santa Clara County Wednesday evening

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

(BCN) -- At least one died in a traffic collision on U.S. Highway 101 in Coyote on Wednesday evening, according to the California Highway Patrol.The crash occurred on the southbound lanes of U.S. 101 near the Coyote Creek Gold Drive onramp. Officers learned about the collision shortly after 7 p.m., the CHP said.The crash closed some of the highway's southbound lanes for more than two hours before they were cleared, according to the CHP. Oakland pedestrian struck, killed by stolen car on International Boulevard Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

Stock market today: Wall Street moderately lower as anxiety over interest rates persists

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

Wall Street turned lower early Thursday as concerns over interest rates, rising oil prices and a possible government shutdown hung over markets.Futures for the Dow Jones industrials inched back about 0.1% before the bell, while the S&P 500 lost 0.2%.After more than a decade in which the Federal Reserve would quickly cut rates in order to help the economy, still-high inflation is now discouraging the Fed from lowering rates, which has put pressure on the stock market. The Fed’s main interest rate is already at its highest level since 2001, and the central bank indicated last week it would cut rates in 2024 by less than previously expected.Other worries tugging at financial markets are the threat of another U.S. government shutdown as Capitol Hill threatens a stalemate that could shut off federal services across the country as soon as this weekend.Stock prices have managed through past shutdowns relatively well, but conditions may be a little different this time. After reach...

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony live this year, with Elton John and Chris Stapleton performing

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Dave Matthews, H.E.R., Chris Stapleton, St. Vincent and New Edition will perform at this fall’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, which will be broadcast live for the first time.The ceremony will be live on Disney+ on Nov. 3 and streamable afterward. ABC will air a special featuring performance highlights and standout moments on Jan. 1.“The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony has been the home to some of the most memorable moments in music history and celebrates the immeasurable impact these artists have had on the industry and culture,” said Rob Mills, an executive vice president for Walt Disney Television, in a statement. “We are so excited to offer audiences a front-row seat.”The inductees this year include Missy Elliott, Willie Nelson, Sheryl Crow, Chaka Khan, “Soul Train” creator Don Cornelius, Kate Bush and the late George Michael.The Cleveland-based institution also included The Spinners, Rage ...

Sky-high mortgage rates leave homes unaffordable for more buyers, sending new home sales tumbling

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of new U.S. homes hit a 5-month low last month as sky-high mortgage rates continue to strain prospective homebuyers’ ability to afford a dwelling.The pace slowed 8.7% in August from the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 675,000 properties, the Department of Commerce reported this week. Economists polled by FactSet had expected the annual pace to reach 700,000 homes.“Homebuilders are still benefiting from very low inventory of existing homes for sale, which has driven more buyers to consider new construction, but with mortgage rates elevated and home prices high, affordability is a growing concern for homebuyers,” said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS.Mortgage rates are near a 23-year high, forcing many would-be buyers to the sidelines. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage moved above 7% in August for the first time since November and has stayed above that threshold since then, according to mortgage buyer Fredd...

SUPREME COURT NOTEBOOK: From bananas to baby socks, lawyers stick to routines before arguments

Published Sun, 23 Feb 2025 10:16:22 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration’s top Supreme Court lawyer eats a bunch of bananas. Other advocates play music to psych themselves up. Some rub the feet on John Marshall’s statue a floor below the courtroom.The Supreme Court, which begins its new term on Monday, is awash in ritual. So it’s no surprise that the lawyers have a few regular, if occasionally eccentric, observances of their own.Arguing at the court can be both intimate and intimidating. Lawyers stand at a lectern that’s surprisingly close to the bench. They can spend an hour or more responding to questions from the nine justices.Advocates have many ways of getting ready, and some who have argued many cases have developed their own routines or lucky charms that they employ for a variety of reasons — out of a sense of comfort or, perhaps, because their first argument went well and no one likes to mess with a good thing.Before each of his 50 Supreme Court arguments, Neal Katyal talked to his thre...