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21+ min ago (988+ words) I have spent the better part of the last year wandering around Northern California looking like a man who has never seen a comb " the byproduct of raising a three-year-old and a 10-month-old who view my personal grooming habits as an infringement on their time. Busy and broken, my scalp is permanently shielded by a rotation of NHL Original Six caps. Yesterday was the Canadiens; today, the Red Wings. Naturally, this invites the kind of small talk usually reserved for weather reports. "Blackhawks any good?" "Is that the New York Rangers?" And often, the next question is about the local outfit " the one that has spent the post-pandemic era as a glorified witness protection program for hockey players. "So, how are the Sharks doing?" That's when I go into the routine: "Oh, you mean the 2030 Stanley Cup Champion San Jose…...

24+ min ago (595+ words) Cupertino City Council has taken its first crucial steps toward a multi-million dollar renovation to its 60-year-old City Hall as it seeks to revamp a building that for decades has been at risk of collapsing if a major earthquake hits. With the estimated price tag of $54 million to design and build over the next five years, the City Council decided to hold off before it committed to the hefty expenditure " balked at by both residents and councilmembers " and set aside the first $2.5 million to allow the project to begin'and staff to explore ways to bring down the cost. "It's 20 years that we've talked about (these renovations)," said Cupertino Mayor Kitty Moore. "It's time that we actually prove that we care about the health and safety of our employees and really do something." A 2021 seismic evaluation showed that under a significant…...

28+ min ago (552+ words) SAN JOSE " Damon Silver, a veteran South Bay attorney who has headed the Santa Clara County Public Defender's Office for the past year on an interim basis, was appointed this week as the permanent chief public defender by the Board of Supervisors. Starting Monday, Silver will officially lead the agency where he has spent the past three decades. He has served as a line-level attorney, chief trial deputy and later as a top executive under his predecessor Molly O'Neal, who was the county's longest-serving public defender before retiring a year ago and endorsed Silver to succeed her. Silver, a 55-year-old North County resident, said he was appreciative of the support from county leadership, adding that his appointment preserves vital continuity in the office that will help them maximize their mission to help vulnerable and indigent people disproportionately ensnared in the…...

1+ hour, 7+ min ago (259+ words) SAN LEANDRO " A San Leandro apartment complex was purchased by busy real estate allies who appear to be making deals at a time of some weakness in the region's multifamily residential market. The 186-unit Woodchase Apartment Homes was acquired for $47.4 million by a group led by Step Up Housing, a nonprofit that provides and preserves housing for low- and moderate-income people. Real estate firm Sack Capital Partners teamed up with Align Finance Partners to craft a financing package that paved the way for Step Up Housing to buy the property at 2795 San Leandro Blvd. The deal was completed on Dec. 16, according to documents on file with the Alameda County Recorder's Office. "As a value-add opportunity, we at Sack Capital Partners, together with Step Up Housing and Align Finance, look forward to improving this centrally located affordable property to the benefit…...

1+ hour, 8+ min ago (425+ words) The only indication that Los Gatos Coffee Roasting Co. is on a long road to recovery are the large posters covering the doorways that once connected the cafe to the espresso bar side of the establishment. Otherwise, the coffee shop is almost as busy as ever almost two weeks after reopening. Coffee Roasting Co. Founder Teri Hope and the Los Gatan newspaper set up a GoFundMe to raise money for employees who were affected by the business's unplanned closure and support the coffee shop's reconstruction. The initial fundraising goal was set at $40,000, but has since increased to $52,500. As of press time that goal was surpassed, and supporters raised a little over $53,000. "The generosity of the community has been deeply touching and meaningful but not surprising given the wonderful community of Los Gatos," Hope said. "It was super surreal," Hurtado said…...

1+ hour, 11+ min ago (199+ words) A pantomime production of "Peter Pan" will run until Dec. 28, 2025, at the Presidio Theatre in San Francisco. Left to right, from the 2024 premiere: Andy Collins as Smee, Rotimi Agbabiaka as Hook and Chanel Tilghman as Tinkerbell. (Terry Lorant) The Christmas season is a time to cherish old things. Longtime relationships, roasting chestnuts over the fire " who does that anymore? " and here in the Bay, a merry-old theater style called pantomime or just "panto" for short. Stretching back at least to 18th-century England, panto is live theater that parodies the tropes of theater in a humorous, often musical way. For several years now, San Francisco has held its own panto productions during the holidays, performed in a former U.S. Army movie house that's now the charming Presidio Theatre in the city's vast, northern green space. Aside from all that fun, be sure…...

1+ hour, 22+ min ago (211+ words) Dublin city leaders gave a resounding thumbs down to the idea of turning the now closed federal prison into an ICE detention center. Dublin city leaders gave a resounding thumbs down to the idea of turning a closed federal prison into an ICE detention center. The federal government has the final say on what it wants to do with the former women's Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, but City Council members Tuesday night approved a resolution against reopening it. Supporters believe the community needs to a send a message to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to not turn the shuttered prison into a detention facility for undocumented immigrants. Bob Redell has more in the video above. Dublin city leaders gave a resounding thumbs down to the idea of turning a closed federal prison into an ICE detention center. The federal government…...

1+ hour, 41+ min ago (40+ words) De La Salle head coach Justin Alumbaugh walks the sideline against Lakeland in the first quarter of their game at De La Salle High School in Concord, Calif., on Friday, Aug. 29, 2025. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)...

1+ hour, 41+ min ago (247+ words) The property in the 1300 block of Iris Court in San Jose was sold on Nov. 6, 2025 for $1,695,000 which represents a price per square foot of $901. A 1,882-square-foot house built in 1940 has changed hands. The property in the 1300 block of Iris Court in San Jose was sold on Nov. 6, 2025 for $1,695,000 which represents a price per square foot of $901. This single-story home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Inside, there is a fireplace. Additionally, the house comes with a single parking spot, allowing for easy and secure vehicle parking. The lot of the unit covers a substantial area of 6,264 square feet. These nearby houses have also recently changed hands: In February 2024, a 2,388-square-foot home on the 1100 block of Minnesota Avenue in San Jose sold for $2,085,000, a price per square foot of $873. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. A 1,144-square-foot home on the 1100 block…...

2+ hour, 4+ min ago (389+ words) The Saratoga Planning Commission recommended on Dec. 10 that the city not allow short-term rentals. Planning commissioners also voted 6-1 to recommend the City Council approve hefty fines for violators and requested staff put in place a clear process to enforce punishment for illegal rentals. Commissioner Badrinath Sridharan cast the only dissenting vote. There are several properties in the city listed as such on on the travel websites Airbnb and VRBO. City staff put together a draft to provide guidelines for allowing short-term rentals following the City Council's decision in October to have the planning commission hold a public meeting on the subject. Swanson acknowledged that the main benefit of permitting short-term rentals would be to increase city revenue through transient occupancy taxes and possible ancillary spending by visitors, particularly with the Super Bowl and World Cup coming to the Bay Area…...