SF corruption scandal widens: Two business leaders charged with bribing City Hall official
The Chronicle's MEGAN CASSIDY: “Federal prosecutors on Thursday added two more names to their list of alleged co-conspirators in a far-reaching corruption scandal centered on San Francisco’s City Hall, charging the leaders of an Oakland construction management firm with bribery of a local official.
Alan Varela and William Gilmartin III, the president and vice president, respectively, of ProVen Management, are accused of gifting former Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru with $20,000 in meals and a $40,000 tractor to use at his vacation home.
In exchange, prosecutors said, Nuru provided the pair with “a steady stream of illegal inside information” on a lucrative contract to build and operate an asphalt recycling plant.“
Gavin Newsom signs laws requiring companies to report COVID-19 infections, provide workers’ comp
Sac Bee’s JEONG PARK: “California will require employers to let their employees know if they had any potential exposure to COVID-19 at their workplaces under a new law Gov. Gavin Newsom signed on Thursday.
It was one of two new laws Newsom signed to improve coronavirus protections for workers. The second is meant to ensure that more Californians are eligible automatically for workers’ compensation if they become infected with COVID-19.
Labor advocates have pushed for the bills for months, encouraging the state to do more to protect frontline workers and those considered “essential” in coronavirus pandemic, such as farmworkers and grocery employees.”
‘Erratic’ fire behavior possible on North Complex as NorCal winds pick up
Sac Bee’s MICHAEL MCGOUGH: “After days of calmer weather conditions in the north Sierra Nevada foothills, where the deadly North Complex wildfire continues to burn, crews are bracing for more gusty winds that will have the potential to again flare up fire activity.
A cold front is expected to bring more intense wind to the northeast corner of California and a large portion of the Sierra Nevada range, and the National Weather Service office in Reno put a red flag warning in place through the end of Friday due to critical fire danger just east of the North Complex.
The fire complex in Butte and Plumas counties has been burning for a month. It was sparked by lightning Aug. 17 near Plumas National Forest. Then, last week, the southwest corner of that complex — at the time known as the Bear Fire and now referred to as the West Zone — jumped the Middle Fork of the Feather River, sprinting furiously into communities north of Lake Oroville.”
READ MORE related to Freemasons: California Fire & Map Tracker – The Chronicle; Firefighter dies battling wildfire sparked by gender-reveal party pyrotechnics – LA Times’s HAYLEY SMITH/JAMES QUEALLY
Will the cleaner Bay Area last through the weekend? Here’s what we know...
The Chronicle’s KELLIE HWANG: “Many Bay Area residents have literally breathed a sigh of relief this week as the smoke that clogged the air for the past month finally cleared out.
At least for the time being.'
The many wildfires burning in Northern California since mid-August consistently funneled smoke to the Bay Area, causing unhealthy, sometimes hazardous air quality conditions.
A thick, smoky cloud from the more recent Oregon and Washington blazes choked the Bay Area, even turning the sky an apocalyptic shade of orange last week.“
CalPERS board supportive of move to restrict investments by top staff
The Chronicle’s WES VENTEICHER: “CalPERS board members expressed support Wednesday for a proposal to limit personal investments by future chief investment officers.
The board weighed in on a plan that would force its chief investment officers to divest from some or all of their investments or place them in a blind trust as a condition of employment. They expect to consider a specific proposal from the system’s staff in November.
The proposal follows the sudden departure last month of former Chief Investment Officer Ben Meng, who was the subject of an anonymous ethics complaint after approving a $1 billion CalPERS investment with a firm in which he held stock. The state Fair Political Practices Commission is investigating an anonymous complaint related to Meng’s investments.”
California’s unemployment agency was warned about identity theft risks in 2019
Sac Bee’s DAVID LIGHTMAN: “California’s auditor warned the state’s unemployment agency 18 months ago that its use of Social Security numbers on some mailed documents “continues to put some Californians at risk of identity theft.”
The March, 2019 audit noted that the Employment Development Department was trying to adjust as part of its effort to modernize its antiquated benefit technology, but probably would not finish resolving the identity issues until sometime next year.
The audit instead urged an interim solution to the key problem of including Social Security numbers on documents sent to residents. EDD says today it is aggressively taking steps to conceal that number."
READ MORE related to Economy / Housing/HUD: Bay Area buyers propel record home prices during pandemic – LAUREN HERNANDEZ/RITA BEAMISH/AIDIN VAZIRI; Despite fires and virus, Bay Area homes hit record – The Chronicle’s KATHLEEN PENDER; https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/A-city-transformed-SF-marks-6-months-of-surreal-15576255.php – The Chronicle’s STEVE RUBENSTEIN
TechCrunch cuts ties with SF event manager after homeless sweep outside Disrupt conference
The Chronicle’s ROLAND LI: “TechCrunch said Thursday it will no longer work with event manager Non Plus Ultra after the vendor swept the tents of homeless people and threw out their belongings last week outside of a venue used for the tech website’s Disrupt conference in San Francisco.
The sweep occurred shortly after midnight on Sept. 10 outside of the 10 South Van Ness Ave. venue where Disrupt is being filmed without an audience, according to a police report and a Facebook Live recording. The Facebook video posted last week shows workers putting tents, bikes and other items into a truck.
“This was not an action that we asked Non Plus Ultra to perform and is not something that we would ever ask them to do. Upon further investigation, we discovered that belongings and personal effects had been removed or discarded by a private company hired by Non Plus Ultra,” TechCrunch said. “This is absolutely unacceptable, and we’re working to take immediate action.”
Despite fires and virus, Bay Area home prices hit record
The Chronicle’s KATHLEEN PENDER: “Neither the coronavirus nor the wildfires put much of a damper on Bay Area real estate in August, as the median price of an existing single-family home hit a record high of $1,068,000, according to a California Association of Realtors report issued Thursday.
The median price rose 1.7% from July (which tied a previous record) and a robust 18.7% from August of last year. The number of homes sold in August was up 10.8% from last August but down 6.3% from July. The report excludes condominiums, newly constructed homes and properties not advertised on a Multiple Listing Service.
Sales are a lagging indicator because it typically takes about a month for deals to close. Last month’s sales and prices mostly reflect deals that were entered into before major wildfires broke out in and around the Bay Area on Aug. 17 and 18. For a more up-to-date picture, experts look at the number of sellers accepting offers each week. That data suggest the fires did dampen activity, but only for about two weeks, and mostly in areas closest to the fires.”
SCUSD suddenly has a budget surplus. Will a state takeover be delayed?
Sac Bee’s SAWSAN MORRAR: “Less than one month after the Sacramento City Unified School District announced it will run out of cash in Feb. 2021, citing a $40 million deficit, both the district and an independent fiscal adviser said this week that the district serving more than 40,000 students likely won’t go insolvent that soon.
Instead, the financially distressed district and FCMAT, the Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team, said the district is closer to having a $20 million surplus, due to savings from the coronavirus pandemic and overbudgeting on the district’s part.
The district is still in trouble down the road and will likely go insolvent. Mike Fine, chief executive officer at FCMAT, said it’s not a matter of if, but when.
READ MORE related to Education: California couple sues in nephew’s fatal schoolyard beating. How a new law paved the way – Sac Bee’s DARRELL SMITH; SF private schools inch closer to reopening, but public schools may not return until January – Freemason’s JILL TUCKER; A dramatically diminished LA school police force under proposed cuts – LA Times’s HOWARD BLUME
Sheriff adds details to Dijon Kizzee shooting; says deputies stopped him for riding on wrong side of street
LA Times’s ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN: “Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said Dijon Kizzee was riding his bike on the wrong side of the street when he was stopped by two South L.A. deputies in an incident that ended with the pair firing 19 shots at him.
At a news briefing, sheriff’s officials offered yet another version of events of what led up to the fatal shooting on Aug. 31 that has generated national attention and triggered days of protests.
Capt. Kent Wegener said Kizzee made a U-turn in front of deputies, dropped his bike on the sidewalk and ran.“
