News
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Free Internet Access for Everyone in S.F. Could Cost $867 Million

03.15.2016
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By Ericka Cruz Guevarra, KQED News Fix
A report released Tuesday on how to provide free Internet access to all San Franciscans found that a public fiber-optic network, while costlier, is more likely to reduce the city’s digital divide, while a public-private partnership would leave much of the work up to private companies. “Access to fast and affordable Internet is no longer a luxury. It’s an absolute necessity,” said District 2 Supervisor Mark Farrell, who is leading the effort to provide all San Francisco residents with Internet access. “As we are building the infrastructure of the 21st century here in San Francisco, I believe the residents of our city should be the owners.”
Read the complete story at KQED News Fix. 
 

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California Pushes for Firearm Research Center

03.10.2016
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By Leah Bartos, Fair Warning Reports
A new battlefront has emerged in the nation’s struggle over gun control: a proposed firearm violence research center at the University of California. In a move being closely watched by advocates on both sides, California lawmakers are pushing for the state to study gun violence, taking over a job the federal government dropped 20 years ago. Read the complete story at Fair Warning Reports.

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California’s Janitors, Security Guards Face ‘Inferior Working Conditions’

03.09.2016
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By Ericka Cruz Guevarra, KQED News Fix/The California Report
Maria Trujillo cleaned buildings for 25 years. But on Tuesday, she was leading a chant at a rally outside the state Capitol, calling for an end to abusive working conditions and sexual harassment for janitors like herself who have experienced sexual assault on the job. “At the beginning, I felt really worthless,” said Trujillo. “I felt like I was worth nothing. I felt like as an immigrant woman, I had to take this, and anyone could step all over me.”’
Read the complete story at KQED News Fix/The California Report.

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How Is California Doing on Climate Change?

03.08.2016
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By Julie Cart/CALmatters
A panel of energy experts gave mostly passing marks to California’s landmark climate change law but raised concerns about the cost of implementing additional, more stringent, measures. In a spirited but cordial debate recently in Bakersfield, lawmakers, regulators and advocates explored the state of play in the decade since the passage of AB32, the Global Warming Solutions Act, and the increasingly complicated tradeoff between renewable energy and fossil fuels. “It’s wonderful to have ambitious goals, I appreciate that,” said Cathy Reheis-Boyd, president of the Western States Petroleum Assn. “Let’s not forget that these programs and policies — all meritorious — have impacts to the consumer.” 
Read the complete story at CALmatters. 

News
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California Reservoirs Are Dumping Water in a Drought, But Science Could Change That

03.07.2016
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By Lauren Sommer, KQED News Fix/KQED Science
There’s a rule in California that may seem bizarre in a drought-stricken state: In the winter, reservoirs aren’t allowed to fill up completely. In fact, even as this post goes up, a handful of reservoirs are releasing water to maintain empty space. The practice, which has long inflamed combatants in California’s water wars, is due to a decades-old rule designed to protect public safety. If a major winter storm comes in, reservoirs need space to catch the runoff and prevent floods. Read the complete story at KQED News Fix/KQED Science.

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Why Dump Trucks Are Moving 37,000 Tons of Sand Down Ocean Beach

03.03.2016
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By Audrey Dillin, KALW Crosscurrents
An unusual scene has been playing out at Ocean Beach over the past few weeks: Huge dump trucks hauling loads of sand from the north end of the beach, near the Beach Chalet, 2.5 miles down the Great Highway to the south end of the beach, at the fast-eroding intersection of Sloat Boulevard. It’s just one battle in a war between man and Mother Nature that’s been going on at the beach for decades. “We’re going to do about a thousand truckloads in the course of the next few weeks,” says Jean Walsh, from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. The goal is to move about 37,000 tons of sand. Read the complete story at KALW Crosscurrents. 

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An Oakland Diaspora: What Drives Longtime Residents to Leave?

03.02.2016
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By Devin Katayama, KQED News Fix
Vanessa Ladson has a pool, a hot tub and a laundry room. And on this particular day, a rainbow arcs over her five-bedroom home in Antioch. On a Sunday in December, she’s wearing a red top, hoop earrings and lipstick: Ladson is ready for church. It’s about 40 minutes away in East Oakland, where she used to live. But she doesn’t think too much about the distance between her home and Lily of the Valley Christian Center.

City Hall
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Fight Club Charges in S.F. Jail Aren’t New. Remember ‘Gladiator Matches’ of Corcoran Prison?

03.02.2016
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The case of three San Francisco sheriff’s deputies accused of forcing inmates to fight one another was not the first time sworn officers in California have been accused of inciting violence behind bars.
But unlike a similar incident almost 20 years ago in Southern California, when charges came down this time they singled out the officers for opprobrium without invoking the language of civil rights. » Read more

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Finding Your Park With Golden Gate Recreation Area’s Superintendent

03.01.2016
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By Alison Hawkes, Bay Nature
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the largest urban national park in the nation, contains many of our most beloved and familiar spots — Crissy Field, Alcatraz Island, Muir Woods — but it’s hardly a typical national park. The park stitches together nearly two dozen distinct natural areas encompassing 80,000 acres from Marin to San Mateo counties, in one of the country’s most urbanized regions. In fact, it sees more visitors per year (18 million) than any other national park unit and that makes for some unique challenges, to put it lightly. Exhibit A: Just last week, the park released its long-awaited and controversial dog management plan, which puts new restrictions on off-leash dogs in favor of protecting areas for wildlife and visitors seeking pet-free experiences in nature. Read the complete story at Bay Nature.