Why the Lies of ‘Trumbo’ Matter

The movie “Trumbo,” currently in Bay Area theaters, makes a hero of Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo and others of the Hollywood Ten, and villainizes their political opponents in Hollywood, including actors John Wayne and Robert Taylor and columnist Hedda Hopper. Since its re … | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

New coronavirus variant found in Bay Area is linked to Kaiser outbreak

The variant, which is different from the U.K. variant, is stirring significant concern, as researchers scramble to figure out whether it is more contagious than other strains or could impact the effectiveness of the vaccine. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

SF inspector listens to prisoner’s phone call, uncovers state unemployment scam

Here’s the story of the county inmate’s phone call that uncovered California’s billion-dollar jailhouse unemployment scam — by accident. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

How big was San Francisco’s pandemic exodus? Look at U-Haul traffic

California suffered the steepest outflow of residents via U-Haul rental truck among all 50 states in 2020, with San Francisco the epicenter of the Bay Area’s pandemic exodus for DIY movers, new data shows. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

California must burn more of its forests to save them

Prescribed forest fires can prevent larger, more intense blazes later. California has known for decades that it needs to do more of that work — and the state is finally catching up, but slowly. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Renters fled S.F. and the Bay Area in 2020 – but many didn't go far

A 2020 review by apartment listings website Zumper found that many of the renters who deserted the Bay Area in droves, causing prices to plummet, likely didn’t land too far away. Here’s a look at the data on renter interests, behavior and prices. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Airbnb Denies Refunds for Cancellations Based on Pandemic Stay at Home Orders

The pandemic presents a stress test of Airbnb’s peer-to-peer marketplace model, in which guests and hosts are left to navigate unprecedented uncertainty on their own. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Airbnb Denies Refunds for Cancellations Based on Pandemic Stay at Home Orders

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@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Stanford apologizes after doctors protest vaccine plan that put frontline last

Physicians at Stanford Medical Center held a raucous protest Friday, accusing the university of prioritizing the wrong health care workers to receive the coronavirus vaccine ahead of residents and fellows who work directly with COVID-19 patients. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Infill housing is critical for a healthy region and climate

In order to more completely address climate change, we need to think beyond energy infrastructure and tackle our housing crisis as well. To do this, we need to change the way we build. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Castro homeless woman (“Princess Leia”) known for wandering into traffic is dead

The Castro’s “Princess Leia” slept on concrete. She cycled in and out of jail and the hospital. Help was within reach, but she was too sick to accept it. What does compassion mean in a city that lets its most vulnerable die in plain sight? | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

BART police reverse dozens of ODs:‘A body in the morgue if Narcan wasn’t around’

The Bay Area’s crises of mental health, substance abuse and homelessness continue to bleed into BART’s train system, challenging its leaders to respond to safety and public health crises. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

S.F.’s building department is a mess. It's no wonder pay-to-play rules the day

San Francisco’s building department has a 58-page guide called “Getting a City Permit.” It reads: “Obtaining a city permit can undoubtedly be one of the most confusing processes you may ever experience.” That’s the truth. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Zodiac Killer cypher solved by amateur sleuths after 51 years

The decoded text from the Zodiac Killer reads: “I hope you are having lots of fun in trying to catch me. ... I am not afraid of the gas chamber because it will send me to paradice (sic) all the sooner because I now have enough slaves to work for me.” | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

SF school district revamps controversial assignment process to boost diversity

The district will abandon the current system, which gives elementary school families the opportunity to request a spot in any site in the district, with assignment made through a complicated lottery system that gives some priority to siblings and those in the neighborhood. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

California lawmakers try again to make it easier to build housing

The legislative package to address California’s housing shortage next year could look a lot like it did this year. Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins and Sen. Scott Wiener plan to bring back bills that would make it easier to split lots, convert homes into duplexes and build sm … | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bay Area restaurants consider closing due to outdoor dining ban

California’s new stay-at-home order means Bay Area restaurants are adjusting their food purchases to include ingredients with longer shelf life, contemplating layoffs and considering temporarily closing due to the possibility of outdoor dining ending. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Pandemic patient with swastika tattoo leaves doctor questioning his compassion

A Jewish doctor, a Black nurse and an Asian American respiratory therapist worked to save the life of the man on the hospital gurney struggling to breathe. He begged them to save his life. Dr. Taylor Nichols stared down at the swastika on the man’s chest. “Don’t let me die, doc,” … | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Oakland judge blocks new H-1B pay rules

Trump administration restrictions on H-1B visas for skilled workers were blocked Tuesday by a federal judge because they were not submitted for public notice and comment. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

S.F. renters gain rare leverage in pandemic, with vacancies way up prices down

Apartment vacancy rates have more than doubled since last year in San Francisco during the coronavirus pandemic. The spike in supply has caused prices to plummet and put renters in a rare position of power in the historically competitive market, analysts say. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Apple exec indicted 4 alleged role in Santa Clara pay-to-play gun permit scandal

Apple’s Chief Security Officer Thomas Moyer is accused of bribing members of the Santa Clara sheriff’s office in a bid to secure concealed-weapon permits. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bay Area agency seeks to restrict car commuting after pandemic is over

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission scrapped a controversial work-from-home requirement for Bay Area companies but still aims to cap car commutes in an effort to slash greenhouse gas emissions. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

He revolutionized video gaming from his garage. Then the world forgot him

The self-taught engineer was behind one of the most significant inventions of the century: the first video game system with interchangeable cartridges, which revolutionized the industry. In the world of 1970s Silicon Valley, he did so as one of the sector’s few Black men. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Gavin Newsom breaks his own rules to go to a birthday party

Gov. Gavin Newsom attended a birthday party for one of his political advisers at The French Laundry last week that included people from several households, the type of gathering his administration has discouraged for Californians during the coronavirus pandemic. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Proposition 15, California’s sweeping property tax reform, defeated

California’s biggest real estate tax proposal in over four decades was narrowly defeated, in the latest setback for progressives in the high-turnout presidential election. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

No more natural gas in new San Francisco buildings starting next year

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to ban natural gas in new construction, legislation that will apply to more than 54,000 homes and 32 million square feet in the city’s development pipeline. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

California Proposition 24 Passes, leading the way for a “Cali GPDR”

Privacy advocates led by Alastair Mactaggart, a wealthy San Francisco developer, proposed the measure because they say California’s existing privacy law is at risk of being watered down at the Legislature. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

First the UCs didn’t require SAT, and now it’s not allowed, says court

A state appeals court prohibited UC on Thursday from considering SAT or ACT scores from new applicants, in a victory for students with disabilities. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Interactive map displays California property taxes paid

Proposition 15 got map creator Ian Webster interested in property taxes in California, but he wanted the data to speak for itself. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bay Area live theater industry sees bleak future: ‘No one has a plan’

The performing arts industry has been ravaged by shelter-in-place orders that have halted performances and darkened stages; thrown millions of performers, stage crew members and administrative staff out of work; and left some theaters teetering on the brink of insolvency. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

PG&E Outage Map

Enter your address in this PG&E outage map to see real-time updates on how your area is affected by power shut-offs — plus see how outage areas line up with fire risk zones. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Rampant shoplifting leads to another Walgreens closing in S.F

Speculating on where all the merchandise had gone, a clerk at the Walgreens at Van Ness and Eddy said, “Go ask the people in the alleys, they have it all.” | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Stephen Curry’s latest venture beyond sports: A book club called Underrated

In the latest indication that he’s not willing to stick to sports, Warriors point guard Stephen Curry is launching a book club called Underrated. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

MUNI expects to lose the majority of bus lines as financial devastation mounts

Up to 40 of the bus lines that San Francisco cut at the beginning of the pandemic are not coming back unless the city finds a new revenue spigot, transportation chief Jeffrey Tumlin said this week. Just about every aspect of San Francisco’s transportation future looks grim. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

S.F. might change 44 school names, renouncing Washington, Lincoln

Parents and principals at schools were forced to scramble this week to brainstorm new school names while also juggling the demands of distance learning in a pandemic. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

S.F. rent prices plunge as much as 31% – steepest decline in U.S., report says

According to the September rent report from listings website Realtor.com, San Francisco’s rental prices experienced the steepest declines in the nation year-over-year in all three of its categories: studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Yes, people are leaving San Francisco. Is the city on the decline?

San Francisco’s bleak economic vital signs over the past six months strongly suggest residents are leaving amid record job losses, widespread remote work, and a coronavirus pandemic that shows no signs of ending. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Elite Lowell High School admissions would become a lottery under new SF proposal

S.F. school officials to consider temporary random lottery admission for entrance into academically competitive Lowell High School given lack of spring grades and inability to administer standardized tests. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

‘Worst in the state’: S.F. sales tax data show likely population decline

Sales tax data show San Francisco’s population probably declined during the coronavirus pandemic. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

San Francisco homes for sale at 15-year high as listings outpace buyers

San Francisco’s residential real estate market saw brisk activity from July through September with a steep increase in both sales and inventory, a Compass report said. A significant jump in buyers was not enough to keep up with the deluge of new condos and homes. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bid to open S.F. ice cream shop turns into a bitter saga due to byzantine rules

Should it cost $150,000 to open an ice cream shop in San Francisco, a city riddled with vacant storefronts? Clearly not — and Prop. H would help fix the broken system. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

California wildfires bring internet outages

Fires bring down utility poles and cut off power, which internet networks depend on. With evacuation orders and other emergency communications dependent on online communication, the latest wildfires highlight the need for more resilient connections. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

California to use market power in bid to lower drug costs

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California will attempt to use its massive market power to increase the availability and lower the cost of prescription drugs under a bill Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Monday. The new law requires the California Health and Human Services Agency to c … | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bay Area planning agency advances 60% work from home mandate

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission advanced a controversial mandate that large Bay Area employers keep 60% of their workers home each workday to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and congestion. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

San Francisco lets just one person delay eco-friendly projects

We just got a wake-up call about climate change, but San Franciscans are still arguing about the measures we need, like bike lanes and better public transit, to help combat it. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Bay Area transfixed by foreboding, orange, smoke-choked skies

A staggering amount of smoke billowing off fires burning since August have drifted to lower elevations, turning skies ominous tones of red, orange and gray. Hours after sunrise, it still seemed dark outside and the dim orange hue continued throughout the day. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Twitter seeks subtenants for its SF HQ, as its own employees stay home

Twitter has listed 104,850 square feet for sublease at its San Francisco headquarters after adopting a permanent work from home policy amid the coronavirus pandemic. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago

Foreboding Skies over the SF Bay Area

A staggering amount of smoke billowing off fires burning since August have drifted to lower elevations, turning skies ominous tones of red, orange and gray. More than hour after sunrise, it still seemed dark outside. | Continue reading


@sfchronicle.com | 3 years ago