New SBA data shows the top 10 California industries getting PPP loans
Sacramento Business Journal's ANNLEE ELLINGSON: "Ten industries snapped up more than $11 billion in funding from Paycheck Protection Program loans issued to California businesses, according to newly released data from the U.S. Small Business Association.
Led by full-service restaurants, which garnered the most loans in both number and amount, the Golden State's top 10 industries were approved to receive more than 134,000 loans totaling $11.2 billion in PPP funding, according to analysis of the new information by L.A. Biz, a sister publication of the Sacramento Business Journal.
The SBA released detailed information about approved borrowers from the federal government's $659 billion Paycheck Protection Program late Tuesday, including the names, amounts, addresses, industry codes and lender information for the approximately 5.2 million approved loans through the Covid-19 relief program."
Bay Area hospitals brace for rising coronavirus case surge as officials raise alarms
The Chronicle's NANETTE ASIMOV: "Bay Area hospitals are bracing for an unprecedented wave of coronavirus patients as cases surge throughout the state, but they say the region is better prepared to handle the swell than many other areas due to its cautious response to the pandemic.
“We’re not overwhelmed,” said Dr. Maria Raven, chief of emergency medicine at UCSF, pointing to lessons learned so far, such as recognizing when a COVID-19 patient does not need to be hospitalized. At the hospital on Wednesday, 27% of 259 ICU beds were free. Of the 189 patients in intensive care, 14 had COVID-19, including three children.
Still, public officials are warning about an impending shortage of hospital beds and staff. In Santa Clara County, officials said Wednesday that only 12% of hospital beds were available — including just 44 in intensive care."
READ MORE related to Pandemic: Couple who tested positive for virus at SFO is arrested after taking flight to Hawaii despite orders to isolate -- The Chronicle's VANESSA ARREDONDO; Newsom's staff members in quarantine after one tests positive for coronavirus -- The Chronicle's LAUREN HERNANDEZ
Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones tests positive for coronavirus
Sac Bee's MICHAEL MCGOUGH: "Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones has tested positive for the coronavirus.
Jones received the positive test for the disease known as COVID-19 on Tuesday after first experiencing symptoms late last week, the Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.
“Sheriff Jones’ symptoms started last Friday and were mild, including a fever, congestion, light-headedness, and a headache,” the statement reads. He began feeling better Sunday and had “almost no remaining symptoms” as of Wednesday, the statement said."
Newsom endures two major embarassments with French Laundry scandal and unemployment scam
LA Timers's GEORGE SKELTON: "Mix a governor’s hypocrisy with a touch of elitism and perceived incompetence and you can create a killer negative campaign ad.
On the positive side for Gov. Gavin Newsom, he carries California’s vastly preferred political brand — Democrat — has a clean image, is gifted with telegenic looks and seems to always be trying.
Newsom’s positives should be enough to win him reelection in 2022, especially since his ability to raise campaign money is practically unlimited."
The Chronicle's BOB EGELKO: "The state’s long-standing proposal to widen part of Highway 101 in Richardson Grove State Park in Humboldt County, to make room for bigger trucks, took a step forward Wednesday when a federal appeals court said Caltrans had adequately considered any likely impact on towering, ancient redwoods living alongside the highway.
The project, originally proposed in 2007, hit a roadblock in May 2019 when U.S. District Judge William Alsup of San Francisco rejected the state Department of Transportation’s conclusion from 2017 that it would cause “no significant impact” to the environment. Alsup said there was evidence that the road-widening could suffocate some of the 300-foot redwoods — some of them 3,000 years old — cause root disease in others and worsen damage to trees hit by trucks that skidded off the highway.
But the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Caltrans had conducted an adequate review, with assistance from a staff arborist, and found that the construction would not threaten the life of any old-growth redwoods. The court also accepted the department’s findings that the project would not diminish visitors’ enjoyment of the park by increasing traffic or noise from the highway."
Sac County health director handling COVID-19 resigns
Sacramento Business Journal's FELICIA ALVAREZ: "One of Sacramento County’s top public health officials handling the local response to the Covid-19 pandemic is stepping down.
Dr. Peter Beilenson, director of Sacramento County's Department of Health Services, submitted his resignation on Wednesday, county officials confirmed. Beilenson will continue to serve as health services director until Dec. 22. An interim director to replace him has not yet been named.
Beilenson is departing to move back to Baltimore due to a family emergency, said county spokeswoman Brenda Bongiorno. Prior to arriving in Sacramento in 2018, Beilenson spent more than 25 years working in public health in Baltimore."
Will 'vaccine nationalism' rear its head? Britain may be a test case
LA Times's LAURA KING: "For months now, public health experts have fretted about the phenomenon of “vaccine nationalism” — countries loudly touting their own efforts to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, sometimes at the expense of worldwide cooperation and coordination.
How does Britain’s first-in-the-world approval Wednesday of a stringently tested vaccine, with large-scale inoculations set to start next week, fit into that debate?
While it’s normal and expected for world leaders to prioritize their own countries’ interests, analysts say vaccine nationalism can become dangerous when public health decisions are driven by domestic political concerns, or when a prized commodity — inoculation against a deadly disease — is wielded as a geostrategic weapon."
City of LA issues stay-at-home rules that mirror LA County order
LA Times's DAKOTA SMITH: "The city of Los Angeles issued a modified stay-at-home order Wednesday night that mirrors L.A. County rules that went into effect Monday.
The city order prohibits gatherings of people outside immediate households, with some exceptions such as religious services and protests.
While the order tells people to stay home, it also allows retail businesses to remain open “after implementing the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health Protocols for Retail Establishments Opening for In-person Shopping.”"
LA mayor announces $800 stipends for food service workers
LA Times's ALEJANDRA REYES-VELARDE: "Los Angeles will offer a one-time $800 stipend to employees who work in food service industries, including restaurants, breweries and food stands, Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday.
The Secure Emergency Relief for Vulnerable Employees, or SERVE, initiative will give 4,000 workers the cash using money from the nonprofit Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles, Garcetti said in an evening briefing. The news comes as the number of Californians hospitalized with the coronavirus reached more than 8,000 and 40 more deaths were reported in L.A. County on Wednesday, leading to restrictions on outdoor dining.
Garcetti said 4 of every 10 employees in the food service industry have lost their jobs this year."
SF City Administrator Naomi Kelly takes leave of absence amid City Hall corruption scandal
The Chronicle's MEGAN CASSIDY: "City Administrator Naomi Kelly took a voluntary six-week leave of absence Wednesday, two days after federal prosecutors revealed a bribery case against her husband, former San Francisco Public Utilities Commission chief Harlan Kelly.
Naomi Kelly has not been charged with a crime. But the criminal complaint against her husband alleges she attended a 2016 family vacation that federal investigators believe was intended as a bribe for Harlan Kelly.
First appointed by then-Mayor Ed Lee in 2012, Naomi Kelly is now the fifth city department head to either stand down or resign from their post amid a tangled City Hall corruption scandal that continues to grow."
11-year-old NorCal boy shot himself during online class, authorities say
Sac Bee's ROSALIO AHUMADA: "An 11-year-old student from Woodbridge Elementary School in San Joaquin County died Wednesday after he shot himself at home during an online class in an apparent suicide, sheriff’s officials said.
The student, Adan Llanos, died from injuries from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office announced.
CBS 13 reported that sheriff’s officials confirmed the boy was in his Zoom class with his microphone and camera off, when he shot himself. His sister, who was distance learning in another room, found him and told a neighbor and her teacher, who helped call authorities."
Weekend forecast brings potential fire risk for NorCal -- in December
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The Chronicle's STEVE RUBENSTEIN: "A potentially dangerous mix of arid conditions and the threat of gusty offshore winds in the coming days has meteorologists contemplating the extraordinary step of issuing a red flag warning — signaling a critical fire threat — in December for parts of Northern California.
Wildfire fuel in grassland and forest areas is approaching near-record levels of dryness for early December thanks to a prolonged dry spell that shows no signs of abating for weeks, according to the National Weather Service.
“Absent any precipitation, a strong offshore wind would likely result in critical fire weather conditions,” starting this weekend, meteorologists said in a report."
READ MORE related to Climate/Energy/Environment: Thousands lose power as fire danger looms in SoCal -- AP
Mysterious monolith pops up in SLO County -- the first to appear in California
Sac Bee's KAYTLYN LESLIE: "A giant mystery awaits at the top of the Pine Mountain loop in Atascadero’s Stadium Park.
The first glimpse of something unusual is the glint of sunlight off metal as you round a curve on one of the many trails hugging the hillside above the city.
There, nestled above the brown and gold wild grasses and shrubbery, a structure can be seen jutting out of the ground."
California firefighters shudder at the use of commonly seen wood mulches
The Chronicle's BRYAN MENA: "When the Glass Fire broke out in Wine Country this fall, Steven Burgess, a volunteer with the Napa County Fire Department, saw flames creep around neighborhoods, torching trees, gardens, outdoor furniture and children’s play structures, along with entire homes.
He also noticed a pattern: Outside many homes threatened by flames, wood chips and plant-based mulches were on fire.
“Every single wildland fire I have been on, where structures were involved, usually involved a problem with landscaping,” Burgess said. Typically, he said, it’s wood chips and other mulches."
State government won't give workers a break on parking passes despite telework
Sac Bee's WES VENTEICHER: "Kayley Smith was at home on maternity leave when she got the call two years ago.
After four years on a waiting list, she was offered a parking pass at the Department of Health Care Services building downtown where she works.
“Even while on maternity leave and not at work, I absolutely accepted this spot,” said Smith, 31, of Vintage Park."
LA signs off on $1-billion 'mini city' in the west-SFV
LA Times's DAVID ZAHNISER: "The Los Angeles City Council cleared the way Wednesday for a sprawling development planned for the west San Fernando Valley, signing off on a new sports arena, two hotels, a 28-story office tower and more than 1,400 new apartments.
On a 14-0 vote, the council approved Promenade 2035, which is expected to cost more than $1 billion, replacing a closed shopping mall in Warner Center with a new “downtown district” featuring a supermarket, public plazas, high-density housing and a 10,000-seat entertainment and sports venue.
Councilman Bob Blumenfield, who represents the area, said the project’s combination of restaurants, stores, homes and workspaces makes it “the future of green planning.”"
Police arrest 2 people suspected of shooting at CHP officers in Oakland
The Chronicle's MICHAEL WILLIAMS: "Oakland police arrested two people they said shot at California Highway Patrol officers during a car chase on Tuesday.
Police said nobody was injured in the shooting, which happened shortly after 1:45 a.m. near the 2700 block of 98th Avenue in Oakland after CHP officers tried stopping the car when it sped past them on Golf Links Road. Authorities said the car was speeding at about 100 mph eastbound on Interstate 580 before taking the exit on 98th Avenue, where, police said, the shooting took place.
The CHP officers did not return fire and eventually lost sight of the vehicle, authorities said. It was later found near Thermal and Seneca streets, where it had apparently crashed into a parked car."
READ MORE related to Police/Prisons/Protests: LA County sheriff says deputies can conceal their names during protests -- LA Times's ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN/JAMES QUEALLY; SF sheriff's deputy dies on the job at county jail in San Bruno -- The Chronicle's MICHAEL CABANATUAN; LA police chief says city officials are 'seriously contemplating' laying off police officers -- LA Times's DAVID ZAHNISER/DAKOTA SMITH
Mayor Steinberg says homeless warming centers must open this winter in Sacramento
Sac Bee's THERESA CLIFT: "Sacramento officials are working toward opening warming centers for the homeless this winter, even without meeting strict criteria currently needed to open them, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said.
“We must open warming centers under any scenario, under any circumstances,” Steinberg said during a City Council meeting Tuesday evening. “It is cold and it is not even winter yet.”
The announcement follows a growing call from homeless activists, who have been urging city and county officials to open the centers as overnight temperatures dip into the 30s. If the facilities open, it would be the first time since the winter of 2016-2017."