Councilmember Kevin de León, a year after racist audio scandal, says he’ll run again
LA Times, DAVID ZAHNISER, JULIA WICK, DAKOTA SMITH: "Los Angeles City Councilmember Kevin de León, whose political career was upended following the leak of a recorded conversation featuring racist and derogatory remarks, said Wednesday he will seek another four-year term in the city’s March election.
De León, whose district takes in all or portions of downtown, Boyle Heights, El Sereno and Eagle Rock, said in an emailed campaign announcement that he had made “unprecedented strides” in the district on public safety and homelessness. Residents of the 14th District “deserve this high level of dedicated public service,” he said."
BANG*Mercury News, JOHN WOOLFOLK: "Less than year into retirement, former U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier is looking to return to her first elected job as a candidate for San Mateo County supervisor, setting up a contest with a much younger candidate and renewing questions about aging politicians clinging to office and refusing to yield to the next generation.
“I’d like to get something accomplished,” Speier said in an interview Wednesday, a subtle dig at her “frustrating” years in Congress. “I love this county, I spent 40 years representing it. My experience can help us move through some of these vexing issues that we have.”"
Stopped smelling smoke? That could be ‘most dangerous’ moment for air quality risk
The Chronicle, ANTHONY EDWARDS, JACK LEE: "As air quality levels plummeted this week, a familiar pungent smell wafted into the Bay Area: wildfire smoke.
But Wednesday morning, the campfire smell faded. However, poor air quality persists."
LA Times, ALEXANDRA E. PETRI: "A black male bear in Telluride, Colo., had to be humanely euthanized because it was starving and in distress from consuming human trash, including food wrappers, paper towels and other garbage that deprived it of nutrients and choked its intestines, officials said.
The bear, which weighed about 400 pounds, was put down by Colorado Parks and Wildlife on Sept. 9 because it “showed signs of infection and was suffering from a severe intestinal blockage caused by consumed human trash,” according to a news release from CPW."
As abortions increase in California, Planned Parenthood clinics near border vote to unionize
CALMatters, SHREYA AGRAWAL: "Mia Neustein calls her work for Planned Parenthood in the Coachella Valley her “dream job.” She believes in the organization’s mission, and wants to be a part of it for years to come.
But the pace of that work has increased substantially since last year, when the Supreme Court ended the nationwide right to abortion, leading some out-of-state patients to travel to Southern California for care."
High price for new COVID vaccines at Bay Area pharmacies shocks some residents
The Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "Betsy Davids was among the first Bay Area residents to line up for the newly authorized COVID-19 vaccine, scheduling an appointment at her local CVS pharmacy in Orinda as soon as the shots became available last Tuesday. What she wasn’t expecting was the sticker shock that came with it.
Despite widespread reports that the reformulated shots from Moderna and Pfizer would be available for $110-$130 per dose on the commercial market, she was charged $190."
Q&A: What you need to know to — once again — get free at-home COVID tests
BANG*Mercury News, HARRIET BLAIR ROWAN: "The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it would once again begin mailing rapid at-home COVID tests to American households, free of charge. The news comes amid one of the largest COVID surges the country has seen, with hospitalizations and deaths both rising, though far from record highs.
Here is what you need to know about the rebirth of this federal program:"
University of California to offer college classes to low-income high school students
EdSource, MICHAEL BURKE: "The University of California is joining a national initiative to offer free online courses to students at low-income high schools across the country beginning next year.
The university system is joining the National Education Equity Lab and beginning in the winter term of 2024 will offer two for-credit classes to students enrolled in Title I schools, a federal designation for schools with high numbers of low-income students, UC’s board of regents learned Wednesday. UC is hopeful that the program will allow students — who might not otherwise have access to college courses — the opportunity to take UC classes and get a taste of college."
These Cal State colleges are harder to get into than some UCs
The Chronicle, DANIELLE ECHEVERRIA, NAMI SUMIDA: "UCLA and UC Berkeley are often considered the crown jewels of California public universities. Those two schools boast the lowest admissions rates among California public schools, with three other UCs — Irvine, San Diego and Santa Barbara — rounding out the top five.
But following close behind and ranking sixth-most selective is Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, admitting 30% of applicants in 2022, an admissions rate that rivals that of several University of California schools, according to a new data analysis from the Chronicle. That number makes it the most competitive school in the California State University system."
More college campuses leveraging the outdoors to support student mental health
EdSource, NOAH LYONS: "According to a 2018 study published by Frontiers of Public Health, spending time outdoors can aid people in a variety of categories: “attention and cognition, memory, stress and anxiety, sleep, emotional stability and self-perceived welfare or quality of life.”
Monicka Fosnocht, an associate therapist at San Diego State University with a background in natural public medicine agrees. “For a lot of students that are struggling with mental health, or even students who don’t and are just stressed, it’s really helpful to get a nice, big dose of vitamin D and get outside so that we can get our brains functioning optimally.”"
Oakland to allow major expansion by elite private school, rebuffing neighbors’ opposition
The Chronicle, SARAH RAVANI: "An elite Oakland private school scored a win Tuesday night against neighbors who wanted to block its plans to grow its campus by nearly 60% and increase enrollment by nearly 40% over the next 20 years.
Head-Royce, a K-12 preparatory school, proposes to enlarge its 14-acre campus by 8 acres and build 11 buildings across the street from its current location on Lincoln Avenue in the Oakmore district. The plans include a new performing arts center, a science and technology center, outdoor classrooms, gathering space for students, gardens, walking trails and a pedestrian tunnel under Lincoln Avenue."
Sunol school board chair goes on the offensive in tense first meeting since Pride flag ban
BANG*Mercury News, WILL MCCARTHY: "For the second time in two weeks, the entire audience at a Sunol Glen Unified District School Board meeting emptied the room before the meeting was over–but this time, of their own accord.
Wednesday’s meeting came just a week after the three-member board banned the school from flying Pride flags, in a 2-1 vote, during a contentious proceeding that saw the audience thrown out of the building."
What are residuals and how do they work? A Hollywood strike battleground, explained
LA Times, BRIAN CONTRERAS: "It’s not often that people get fired up over nitty-gritty financial mechanisms — but for the last 4½ months on the streets of Hollywood, that’s exactly what’s been happening.
As members of the Writers Guild of America and performers union SAG-AFTRA march down picket lines and shutter studio productions, a major focus of their ire has been the system of payouts that writers and actors earn when a project they’ve worked on gets replayed."
Trick-or-treat but hold the tricks? California city ruins pranksters’ plans with ban
Sacramento Bee, DANIELLA SEGURA: "To “create a safe family friendly environment” on Halloween, a California city has banned some from possessing a handful of messy products.
The Beverly Hills City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, Sept. 19, to ban those under the age of 21 from possessing silly string, shaving cream and hair removal products for a 24-hour period, according to a Sept. 20 news release from the city."
S.F. frantically prepares to host its biggest international event since 1945. Is the city ready?
The Chronicle, J.D. MORRIS: "San Francisco is feverishly preparing for its biggest moment on the international stage since the United Nations was founded in the city in 1945 — a major test that could have far-reaching consequences for the city’s global reputation.
Mayor London Breed and other city officials are trying to make sure the city is safe, clean and welcoming for the leaders of 21 nations who, in under two months, will join as many as 30,000 other people to descend on the city for a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC."
D.A. won’t seek death penalty in deputy slaying; suspect pleads insanity
LA Times, KERI BLAKINGER, SALVADOR HERNANDEZ, RICHARD WINTON: "Four days after Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer was fatally shot in the head, his fiancée fought back tears as she spoke publicly for the first time about the man she planned to spend the rest of her life with.
Brittany Lindsey’s fairytale engagement ended in a nightmare Saturday night when Clinkunbroomer was shot in the head while driving a marked patrol car near the sheriff’s Palmdale station."
After deadly Twin Peaks shooting, S.F. to install license plate readers
The Chronicle, RACHEL SWAN: "The slaying of a teenager on Sunday drew renewed attention to crime at one of San Francisco’s most idyllic tourist spots — the lookout point on Twin Peaks — just as city officials plan to beef up police patrols and install protective infrastructure at the base of the hillside.
Among the safety measures underway are significant retrofits to what is now a manual gate on the south end of Twin Peaks Boulevard. Staff at the San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Agency will install an electric system to open and close the gate automatically, along with license plate readers and cameras to track vehicles when they enter and exit."
San Jose police set to classify gun-pointing as a use of force
BANG*Mercury News, ROBERT SALONGA: "Four years after it was recommended by the city’s civilian police auditor, the San Jose Police Department is expected to begin classifying instances where officers point their guns at people as a use of force.
In a memo to the City Council that was formally reviewed Tuesday, police Chief Anthony Mata wrote that SJPD expects to update its duty manual to include the change by the end of the month. In doing so, San Jose joins an array of big cities — including Oakland, San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle, Denver, Washington, D.C. and New Orleans — in the practice."