Cheaper California housing? One idea to lower costs makes candidates for governor uneasy
Sacramento Bee's ANGELA HART: "It’s a controversial idea that advocates say could help alleviate California's worsening housing crisis: strip cities of some of their zoning authority to unleash an enormous amount of new construction."
"State Sen. Scott Wiener of San Francisco wants to give the state more power over land use within a half-mile of major transit stops or a quarter-mile of bus lines to create a more developer-friendly environment for new housing."
"But the proposal isn’t finding its footing with California’s candidates for governor this year. Both major Republicans flatly oppose it. Even Democrats who were initially favorable are clarifying their position or walking back from previous comments as opposition heats up from mayors and other local elected officials."
READ MORE related to State Politics: Let college athletes earn money from sponsorships, California lawmaker says -- Sacramento Bee's ALEXEI KOSEFF
Guns and gas investments prompt CalPERS bid by police union leader
Sacramento Bee's ADAM ASHTON: "A series of calls demanding that California public pension funds pull their money out of divisive industries such as guns and fossil fuels is stirring opposition that could lead to a contentious election for seats on the CalPERS Board of Administration this year."
"Treasurer John Chiang, a member of the CalPERS board, put forward the most recent divestment request last week, urging the fund to withdraw its investments from national retailers that sell guns that are illegal in California."
"This week, a Southern California police officer who scolded Chiang during his presentation pulled papers to run for a seat on the board. Jason Perez of the Corona Peace Officers Association says he's motivated to run for the board because he worries that social and environmental concerns are causing the fund to miss out on revenue."
READ MORE related to Pensions: Another court ruling on vested rights to pensions -- Calpensions' ED MENDEL
Heist of 31 guns from Compton city vault is the latest problem in a scandal-plagued city
LA Times's ANGEL JENNINGS/JOE MOZINGO/RICHARD WINTON: "The guns were kept in a 1920s-era vault in a municipal building on North Alameda."
"Compton officials struggled for months to say where they came from, and now where a load of them have gone."
San Francisco native and entrepreneur confirmed as US ambassador to Austria
The Chronicle's NANETTE ASIMOV: "The new U.S. ambassador to Austria is San Francisco scion Trevor Traina, whose nomination by President Trump has been confirmed by the Senate."
"Traina, 49, is the son of arts patron Dede Wilsey, whose father, Wiley Buchanan, was also ambassador to Austria, from 1975 to 1977. Traina is the stepson of author Danielle Steel and a descendant of Herbert Henry Dow, founder of Dow Chemical."
Ted Lieu: Tackling Trump on Twitter
Capitol Weekly's LISA RENNER: "Rep. Ted Lieu says he’s surprised by how much reaction he’s gotten nationally for his anti-Trump and other pointed tweets."
"The Southern California Democrat, whose district includes Beverly Hills and Malibu, said he’s been tweeting since long before the president took office."
“I decided when I was a state legislator that I was going to tell the truth,” he said."
Protesters stop cars in Sacramento rush hour. Stephon Clark's body lay in open casket
Sacramento Bee's NASHELLY CHAVEZ/SAM STANTON/ED FLETCHER/HUDSON SANGREE: "A protest in front of the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office late Wednesday afternoon morphed into a march that blocked traffic in downtown Sacramento during the peak of the evening commute."
"From the DA's office at 9th and G streets, demonstrators marched down I Street to 5th Street. Police closed the entrance to Interstate 5 around 5 p.m., fearing protesters might shut down the freeway, as they had done Thursday."
"Instead, the protesters stopped traffic on I and J streets, intermittently, for the next hour or more."
READ MORE related to Stephon Clark Shooting: Police work on plan to get fans safely into Thursday's Kings game. Will they show up? -- Sacramento Bee's RYAN SABALOW/JASON JONES/TONY BIZJAK/DALE KASLER/ED FLETCHER; Town hall prompted by Stephon Clark shooting calls for community to fight injustice -- Sacramento Bee's CATHY LOCKE
Fish crossing genetic borders as oceans warm
Oceans Deeply's MATTHEW O. BERGER: "THERE ISN’T ANYTHING obviously different about the waters north or south of 44.61 degrees north latitude off Nova Scotia’s coast. No new land mass emerges as you cross the parallel. No new ocean currents sweep in."
"Yet within 100km (62 miles) of this line is the boundary between north and south for at least five very different types of marine animals, marking a dividing line between the genetically distinct populations of the species."
"This multispecies boundary, however, is likely to move farther north as waters warm due to climate change, bringing the populations of commercially valuable species with it, according to a new studypublished Wednesday in the journal Science Advances."
READ MORE related to Energy & Environment: Report: Half of the west's rivers altered by development, diversions -- Water Deeply's MATT WEISER; Don't miss these great places to see California wildlife, from insects to whales -- The Chronicle's MARIA FINN; Lake Chabot's magic coronation of spring -- The Chronicle's TOM STIENSTRA; Mexico earthquake devastation spurs California cities to action, despite the costs -- LA Times's RONG-GONG LIN II; To save the world's coral reefs, bigger -- and smaller -- are better -- Oceans Deeply's AULANI WILHELM
LA Times's ANDREA CASTILLO/BRITTNY MEJIA/JOE MOZINGO: "The boy looked tentative as he took his seat at the sixth-grade graduation. Bone-thin with thick glasses, Jose turned to look for his parents in the auditorium."
"Moments like this filled his father, Pascual, with a combination of pride and dread. Watching from a few rows back, he studied his son’s body language."
"Hey, champion,” he called out."
READ MORE related to Immigration: For deportees at a migrant shelter on Mexican border, an agonizing choice: Turn back or try crossing again -- LA Times's MOLLY HENNESSY-FISKE; Yolo County considers scrapping contract with feds to lock up undocumented teens -- Sacramento Bee's ELLEN GARRISON/ANITA CHABRIA
As Uber death is investigated, its chief faces a crossroads on driverless tech
LA Times's RUSS MITCHELL: "When Dara Khosrowshahi took over as Uber's chief executive last August, he faced a pile of festering problems. Near the top: The company's troubled driverless-car program, then embroiled in a major lawsuit over trade-secrets theft with arch-foe Waymo, and suffering after a series of defections by top engineers."
"He had three options: find outside partners for joint development of driverless technology; drop the internal program altogether and buy the technology off the shelf; or continue to go it alone. Khosrowshahi chose the solo route."
LA Times's GEORGE SKELTON: "Those young people who marched for gun control all over the country showed this: The unyielding firearms lobby is in deep trouble with the next generation."
"No one can be sure how many marched Saturday — hundreds of thousands, millions? There were more than 800 rallies."
Budget woes, gender-equity rules might force Cal to cut some sports
The Chronicle's RUSTY SIMMONS: "The Cal athletic department is facing a possible overhaul that could include cutting sports programs to balance its budget by 2020 and satisfy gender-equity requirements, according to mandates set Thursday morning by Chancellor Carol Christ."
"Christ’s recommendations come in the wake of a comprehensive study of the department’s finances by Collegiate Sports Associates, a North Carolina-based executive search and consulting firm."
READ MORE related to Education: While criticizing Newsom, California charter school group endorses Villaraigosa for governor -- EdSource's DAVID WASHBURN/LOUIS FREEDBERG; An LA school task force calls for more accountability -- starting with school report cards -- LA Times's HOWARD BLUME; Rocklin kindergarten teacher caught in firestorm over transgender book named teacher of the year -- Sacramento Bee's DIANA LAMBERT; Bay Area school district wants voters to decide whether to drop at-large elections -- EdSource's THERESA HARRINGTON
Politicians rip Facebook, but they're not deleting their accounts
The Chronicle's JOE GAROFOLI: "Politicians love having a villain to target — it’s an easy way to score points. But only when it serves their purposes."
"Today’s villain: Facebook."
READ MORE related to Psychological Warfare: Why do people hand over so much data to tech companies? It's not easy to say 'no' -- LA Times's TRACEY LIEN; FB--even as it apologizes for scandal--funds campaign to block a California data-privacy measure -- CALmatters' LAUREL ROSENHALL
Omissions on death certificates lead to undercounting of opioid overdoses
SEM's JAKE HARPER: "In a refrigerator in the coroner’s office in Marion County, Ind., rows of vials await testing. They contain blood, urine and vitreous, the fluid collected from inside a human eye."
"In overdose cases, the fluids may contain clues for investigators."
"“We send that off to a toxicology lab to be tested for what we call drugs of abuse,” said Alfie Ballew, chief deputy coroner. The results often include drugs such as cocaine, heroin, fentanyl or prescription pharmaceuticals."
READ MORE related to Health & Health Care: Scrutinizing Medicare coverage for physical, occupational and speech therapy -- CHL's JUDITH GRAHAM; A little-known activist thinks big about single-payer -- CHL; Dining out is bad for your health, according to a new study -- The Chronicle's JUSTIN PHILLIPS
26,000 Burning Man tickets sold out in 30 minutes
SFGate's ALYSSA PEREIRA: "More than 25,000 tickets to 2018's Burning Man event were snapped up in just a half hour on Wednesday when the festival organizers launched the main sale. This year, tickets cost $425 each, not including taxes and fees, and vehicle passes cost $80."
"According to the Reno Gazette Journal, such a quick sell is not unusual; passes to the festival beginning in late August in Nevada's Black Rock Desert have sold out since 2011, and this year is no exception."
Report: Trump attorney discussed Flynn, Manafort pardons
AP: "One of President Donald Trump's attorneys floated the possibility of pardoning two of the president's former advisers caught up in the Russia probe in discussions with their lawyers last year, The New York Times reported Wednesday."
"The newspaper, citing three anonymous people with knowledge of the discussions, said then-Trump attorney, John Dowd, raised the idea with attorneys for former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former national security adviser Michael Flynn."
READ MORE related to POTUS45/KremlinGate: Trump ousts VA chief David Shulkin in administration's latest shake-up -- WaPo's LISA REIN/PHILIP RUCKER/EMILY WAX-THIBODEAUX/JOSH DAWSEY; Trump telephones Roseanne after debut of rebooted show -- AP