Photo galleries and videos from The Mercury News https://www.mercurynews.com Bay Area News, Sports, Weather and Things to Do Thu, 16 Nov 2023 17:17:51 +0000 en-US hourly 30 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.1 https://www.mercurynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/32x32-mercury-news-white.png?w=32 Photo galleries and videos from The Mercury News https://www.mercurynews.com 32 32 116372247 Photos: Pink salt ponds drawing scores of visitors off Bay Area trails https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/16/photos-pink-salt-ponds-drawing-scores-of-visitors-off-bay-area-trails/ Thu, 16 Nov 2023 15:00:40 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10216584 Pink salt ponds at Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge are drawing crowds wanting to check out the water’s Barbie hues, and that has created a problem as people have been wandering off the trails and trampling on sensitive areas. U.S. Fish and Wildlife has a simple yet clear message to the public: “Stay on the trails.”

In recent social media posts, the organization highlighted Pond A12 at Alviso Marina County Park. “These ponds provide a home to migratory and resident birds, including threatened and endangered birds like the cute western snowy plover. To keep you and the wildlife safe, stay on the Alviso Slough Trail to take your pictures. Please take pictures from the trail, not the pond.”

The Fish and Wildlife Service also offered the broad scientific explanation for the pond’s color: “It’s natural. Tiny microscopic organisms specialized to live in very salty water live here, including the microscopic algae known as Dunaliella salina and halobacterium.”

Meanwhile, Santa Clara County Parks explains on its website that a nearby levee project could be making A12’s water pinker than usual: “In 2021, Valley Water, the State Coastal Conservancy and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) began construction of the South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Project (Phase I) between the Alviso Slough/Guadalupe River and Coyote Creek. The levee construction requires very low water levels, therefore we did not replenish water into these ponds as they naturally evaporate throughout the summer. As a consequence, Pond A12 got saltier and pinker.”

Visitors ignore signs informing visitors to stay on the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors ignore signs informing visitors to stay on the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Visitors ignore signs informing visitors to stay on the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors ignore signs informing visitors to stay on the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Birds can be seen from the Alviso Slough Trail at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
Visitors stand in an area closed to the public off of the Alviso Slough Trail next to the pink hue, due to algae, that can be seen at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay Wildlife Refuge in Alviso in San Jose, Calif., on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group) 
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10216584 2023-11-16T07:00:40+00:00 2023-11-16T09:17:51+00:00
California’s first lesbian Senate leader could make history again if she runs for governor https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/16/californias-first-lesbian-senate-leader-could-make-history-again-if-she-runs-for-governor/ Thu, 16 Nov 2023 14:11:45 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10218056&preview=true&preview_id=10218056 By ADAM BEAM  | Associated Press

SACRAMENTO  — The first time Toni Atkins acted as the governor of California, she used her powers to honor the passing of San Diego Padres baseball player Tony Gwynn while playfully rebuffing Jimmy Kimmel’s advice that she “ invade Oregon. ”

It was 2014, and Atkins — the first lesbian to be the speaker of the state Assembly — was filling in for former Gov. Jerry Brown, a quirk of the California Constitution that requires governors to put someone else in charge whenever they leave the state.

Atkins, now the president pro tempore of the state Senate, has filled in as governor a few more times since then, most recently in July when she signed three bills into law and quipped that she was thrilled to once again step into the governor’s shoes, “ although I have better shoes. ”

Now, the 61-year-old lawmaker is turning her attention once again to the governor’s office — only this time, she’s exploring a much longer stay.

“I’m very interested in looking at that possibility” of running for governor, Atkins told The Associated Press in an interview, saying publicly for the first time what many have assumed since she announced she would step down as the Senate’s top leader next year. “I am looking at it seriously.”

The race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom will likely be a Democratic free-for-all sure to attract the party’s top talent for the chance to lead the nation’s most populous state and the world’s fifth largest economy. California voters have never elected a woman to the governor’s office, nor a person who is openly LGBTQ. And a host of other Democratic candidates are also vying to make history.

Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis was the first to formally announce her candidacy just a few months into Newsom’s second term. Tony Thurmond, the Black state superintendent of public instruction, is also in, along with former Controller Betty Yee. Attorney General Rob Bonta, who is Filipino, has said he is seriously considering a run.

But Atkins is banking on her experience to give her an edge. That includes a brief stint as mayor of San Diego, one of the nation’s largest cities. And it includes becoming just the third person and first woman ever to hold both of the Legislature’s top jobs: speaker of the Assembly and president pro tempore of the Senate, where she negotiated eight state operating budgets and had her hands in countless major policy decisions.

“I sort of feel like I’m addicted to responsibility,” she said. “I think experience counts and matters, and I believe I have experience to continue to contribute in some way.”

California’s top legislative leaders are some of the most powerful people in the state, but it often doesn’t feel like it. While they negotiate major polices, it’s the governor who gets the attention when the deals are done.

That’s especially true for Atkins, who has been a more quiet leader than most. During her tenure as Senate leader, Democrats have grown their caucus to 32 out of 40 seats — their largest majority since 1883. That majority means there is little incentive to work with Republicans. But Atkins made sure Republicans had their bills heard in public hearings and even pushed for former Republican Leader Shannon Grove to be included in briefings with the Newsom administration.

“She always included us and there was never any surprises. I didn’t agree with what was going on, but we had input and participation,” said Grove, who noted she and Atkins bonded over their impoverished upbringing and a shared love of country music icon Dolly Parton. “She understands that we represent a portion of Californians as well and we were duly elected and therefore our voices should be heard.”

Atkins grew up in rural southwest Virginia, where her dad was a miner and her mother was a seamstress. Her childhood home did not have running water, and some of her earliest memories are of walking down a hill with her twin sister to fetch water from a spring to use for cooking and doing laundry.

As a young lesbian in Appalachia, Atkins dreamed of moving to California. She got her chance when her twin sister joined the Navy and was stationed in San Diego. Atkins moved there to help care for her sister’s young son, and never left.

In San Diego, Atkins was director of a women’s health clinic that performed abortions. She was also politically active, working to help elect Christine Kehoe to the San Diego City Council. Kehoe hired Atkins to work for her, and then urged her to run for her seat when Kehoe was elected to the state Assembly.

“Toni is not the kind of person that wants to be the smartest person in the room. She wants to be the most helpful and effective person in the room. And oftentimes she is,” Kehoe said.

Atkins followed her mentor to the state Legislature in 2010, where she soon found herself in a contentious race for speaker against Anthony Rendon of Los Angeles. Atkins won, but left after two years to run for the Senate.

It wasn’t long before Atkins was selected by her colleagues to lead the state Senate, forcing her to work with Rendon, who had replaced her as speaker in the Assembly. Their relationship was rough at times, but fruitful for Democrats. Their partnership expanded Medicaid to include all eligible adults regardless of immigration status and free meals for public school students.

“We had problems, but I think it was, you know, related more to ambition than anything and, you know, probably to an extent immaturity on my part, too,” said Rendon, who plans to run for state treasurer in 2026. “Toni Atkins is a very forgiving person. I have not always been the easiest person to deal with. But she, you know, kept coming back and trying to forge a relationship.”

Atkins said she is most proud of the policies that were inspired by her impoverished upbringing, including helping implement the federal Affordable Care Act and creating a tax credit for poor families worth several hundred dollars.

Those wins are part of what’s driving her potential run for governor, too.

“I see what you can do when you’re in that role,” she said. “There is something about being at the table.”

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10218056 2023-11-16T06:11:45+00:00 2023-11-16T06:15:53+00:00
Look inside Frozen land pitched for Disneyland expansion https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/16/look-inside-frozen-land-pitched-for-disneyland-expansion/ Thu, 16 Nov 2023 12:52:41 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10217972&preview=true&preview_id=10217972 The world’s first Frozen-themed land set to debut at Hong Kong Disneyland offers a glimpse of what the future could hold for the Disneyland resort over the next couple decades under a reimagined long-term vision for the Anaheim theme park resort district.

A Frozen land was pitched in 2021 as a possible project for a proposed theme park expansion in the DisneylandForward plan presented to the city of Anaheim.

Arendelle village will serve as the centerpiece of the World of Frozen themed land opening Monday, Nov. 20 at Hong Kong Disneyland.

The backstory for the new World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland brings to life the Kingdom of Arendelle for a “summer snow day” celebration in a themed land featuring two rides, a show, a restaurant and two shops amid Nordic-inspired architecture.

The Frozen Ever After water ride at Hong Kong Disneyland updates a similar attraction that opened in 2016 at Epcot in Florida.

Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs becomes the latest peak to join the man-made mountains made by Walt Disney Imagineering at theme parks around the world. The sleigh-themed kiddie coaster features a dark ride-style show section along a 1,000-foot-long steel track that wraps around and through the Arendelle mountain.

The “Playhouse in the Woods” interactive theater experience features video projections, audio-animatronics and Arendelle citizens celebrating “summer snow day” with Elsa and Anna.

The new World of Frozen themed land at Hong Kong Disneyland also includes the Golden Crocus Inn restaurant serving Nordic-inspired meals, the Northern Delights sweets shop offering chocolates, ice cream and baked goods and the Tick Tock Toys and Collectibles gift shop at the exit of the water ride.

The DisneylandForward proposal seeks to update a 1990s Anaheim city plan to allow for a mix of theme park, hotel, retail, dining and entertainment on the eastern and western edges of the Disneyland resort.

ALSO SEE: Disneyland tightens pin trading rules to rein in ‘pin-sanity’

The long-term planning proposal dangled six possible projects based on “Frozen,” “Tangled,” “Peter Pan,” “Zootopia,” “Toy Story” and “Tron” as the types of lands and attractions Anaheim is missing out on under current city planning and zoning guidelines.

In addition to Hong Kong’s Arendelle village, Frozen themed lands are nearing completion at Disney theme parks in Japan and France.

The Frozen Kingdom will be part of Fantasy Springs, the newest port set to debut at Tokyo DisneySea in June 2024. The Tokyo Disneyland expansion will feature the Frozen boat ride along with an Arendelle castle restaurant and village shops.

The new lands and attractions coming to Tokyo DisneySea “could be the perfect inspiration for the future of Disneyland Park,” according to the DisneylandForward website.

The Kingdom of Arendelle — a third Frozen land — is under construction in Walt Disney Studios Park at the Disneyland Paris resort in France.

Florida’s Epcot theme park at the Walt Disney World resort is already home to the world’s first Frozen Ever After water ride and a meet-and-greet location where visitors can snap photos with Elsa and Anna in the Norway pavilion of World Showcase.

Wandering Oaken's Sliding Sleighs coming to the World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland. (Disney)
Wandering Oaken’s Sliding Sleighs coming to the World of Frozen at Hong Kong Disneyland. (Disney) 

That will eventually leave only two Disney theme park resorts worldwide — in Anaheim and Shanghai, China — without a Frozen-themed land or area.

Shanghai Disneyland has a Frozen sing-along show — much like the film that once played in the Sunset Showcase Theater at Disney California Adventure that now screens “Mickey’s PhilharMagic.”

The Broadway-caliber “Frozen Live” show at the Hyperion Theater in Disney California Adventure closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and didn’t return with the reopening of the park.

Disney has announced that a “Frozen 3” sequel is in development.

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10217972 2023-11-16T04:52:41+00:00 2023-11-16T07:29:50+00:00
California program to lease land under freeways faces scrutiny after major I-10 freeway fire https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/15/california-program-to-lease-land-under-freeways-faces-scrutiny-after-major-los-angeles-fire/ Wed, 15 Nov 2023 16:55:17 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10216419&preview=true&preview_id=10216419 By JULIE WATSON and AMY TAXIN | Associated Press

LOS ANGELES — The area under an elevated Los Angeles freeway that burned last weekend was a kind of open-air warehouse with businesses storing everything from wood pallets to cardboard boxes to hand sanitizer on lots leased by the state through a little-known program that now is under scrutiny.

The blaze Saturday burned about 100 support columns, forcing the closure of a vital mile-long stretch of Interstate 10 near downtown that is used by hundreds of thousands of people daily. It could take crews working around the clock between three and five weeks to repair the freeway, Gov. Gavin Newsom said.

Newsom said the state would reassess the practice of leasing land under roads to bring in money for mass transportation projects.

Details of that program remain opaque. Newsom’s office directed questions about whether the state has any regular inspection protocols to state transportation officials. The California Department of Transportation, known as Caltrans, did not respond to questions about inspections or provide information about how many properties the state leases.

  • Traffic builds up near a section of Interstate 10 that...

    Traffic builds up near a section of Interstate 10 that has been closed due to a fire in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. It will take at least three weeks to repair the freeway damaged in an arson fire, the California governor said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

  • A ramp to Interstate 10 is seen in Los Angeles,...

    A ramp to Interstate 10 is seen in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. California Gov. Gavin Newsom says a stretch of I-10 in Los Angeles that was burned in an act of arson does not need to be demolished, and that repairs will take an estimated three to five weeks. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

  • Motorists wait for a signal to change near a section...

    Motorists wait for a signal to change near a section of Interstate 10 that has been closed due to a fire in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. It will take at least three weeks to repair the freeway damaged in an arson fire, the California governor said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

  • Smoke rises from a small fire as motorists exit through...

    Smoke rises from a small fire as motorists exit through a ramp off Interstate 10, where a section of the freeway is closed due to a recent fire in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. It will take at least three weeks to repair the freeway damaged in an unrelated arson fire, the California governor said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

  • Crews continue to clear debris and shore up a stretch...

    Crews continue to clear debris and shore up a stretch of Interstate 10, Tuesday morning Nov. 14, 2023, in Los Angeles. It will take at least three weeks to repair the Los Angeles freeway damaged in an arson fire, the California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (Dean Musgrove/The Orange County Register via AP)

  • California Gov. Gavin Newsom, center,, speaks during a news conference...

    California Gov. Gavin Newsom, center,, speaks during a news conference about repairs for a stretch of Interstate 10, Tuesday morning Nov. 14, 2023, in Los Angeles. It will take at least three weeks to repair the Los Angeles freeway damaged in an arson fire, the Newsom said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (Dean Musgrove/The Orange County Register via AP)

  • A detour information sign stands along Interstate 5 while a...

    A detour information sign stands along Interstate 5 while a section of Interstate 10 remains closed due to a recent fire in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. It will take at least three weeks to repair the freeway damaged in an arson fire, the California governor said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

  • Motorists exit through a ramp off Interstate 10 as a...

    Motorists exit through a ramp off Interstate 10 as a section of the freeway is closed due to a fire in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. It will take at least three weeks to repair the freeway damaged in an arson fire, the California governor said Tuesday, leaving the city already accustomed to soul-crushing traffic without part of a vital artery that serves hundreds of thousands of people daily. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

  • The Porter Junction Cafe owner Anette Lopez comments on how...

    The Porter Junction Cafe owner Anette Lopez comments on how the closure of Interstate 10 has affected her cafe, decorated with interstate signs in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. California Gov. Gavin Newsom says a stretch of I-10 in Los Angeles that was burned in an act of arson does not need to be demolished, and that repairs will take an estimated three to five weeks. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

  • A truck enters a ramp to Interstate 10 in Los...

    A truck enters a ramp to Interstate 10 in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. California Gov. Gavin Newsom says a stretch of I-10 in Los Angeles that was burned in an act of arson does not need to be demolished, and that repairs will take an estimated three to five weeks. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

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State Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, who represents part of downtown Los Angeles, said officials should disclose how many sites are leased under the program, the terms of contracts, how much money the program generates and how the state ensures companies comply with the contract requirements.

“Some of those actions could have prevented what we now see happened underneath the 10,” Santiago said.

Apex Development Inc. has leased the land under Interstate 10 since 2008. One condition of Apex’s contract stipulated it not allow flammable or hazardous materials to be stored there.

The fire that spread quickly over 8 acres (3 hectares) was fed by pallets, cars, construction materials and other items being stored under the freeway in an industrial neighborhood. No injuries were reported but at least 16 homeless people living in an encampment there were taken to shelters.

No arrests have been made and Newsom has said investigators are trying to determine if more than one person was involved in what officials said was likely arson.

Prior to the fire, state officials filed a lawsuit against Apex saying the company stopped paying rent last year and owes $78,000.

The lawsuit also says Apex was subleasing to six other companies. That can be legal if the company received permission from state and federal regulators but Apex did not, Newsom said.

Apex has confirmed the litigation but has not answered other questions through a lawyer.

Owners of two of the companies that subleased the property said they had warned of fire danger and other hazards related to homeless people living under the freeway. Luis Cartagena of Eagle Wood Services said he decided to stop using the space for his wood pallet business more than a year ago because he was losing so much to theft.

“Since day one there was a lot of homeless people there, drug dealing, prostitution and there was a lot of theft,” he said. “I couldn’t leave anything.”

Rudy Serafin said he’s been leasing space under I-10 from Apex since 2009. He uses it to store supplies for businesses in the garment district including hangars, boxes and bags. He also stores office supplies including hand sanitizer, which is flammable.

He estimates he lost $800,000. “I don’t know what I am going to do. I am 49 years old. I have no other resources. This is my livelihood. This is what I feed my kids with,” he said.

Serafin said he’s been unable to get insurance for his business because of concerns about homeless people using cooking fires in the area. He said he and other businesses called the city repeatedly to request a cleanup of the encampment. The city removed homeless people from the space once, and then encampments quickly returned, he said.

The city didn’t respond to a request for comment about whether they had received complaints or removed people from the site. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Monday warned against assumptions that homeless people had started the blaze.

Serafin said he and other contractors received a notice from the state transportation agency in May saying Apex wasn’t paying its rent. Serafin and other business owners then decided to stop paying Apex, but then lost access to their properties. They resumed paying and tried to work directly with Caltrans but the agency’s lawyer said he couldn’t negotiate with them, Serafin said.

Serafin said he signed a contract with Apex back in 2009 but could no longer find it.

The danger of storing flammable materials under elevated interstates has drawn the scrutiny of federal investigators in the past. After a 2017 fire collapsed a section of Interstate 85 in Atlanta, the National Transportation Safety Board criticized the Georgia Department of Transportation’s decision to store construction materials beneath the bridge without assessing the fire risk. The department said it immediately changed storage practices.

California Fire Marshal Daniel Berlant said investigators have identified where Saturday’s fire started and what caused it after sorting through the rubble for evidence, but did not specify what they found. He had no information on a suspect and said investigators are talking to witnesses, including homeless people and nearby business owners.

An estimated 300,000 vehicles use the stretch of freeway daily, which runs east-west across the heart of the metropolis and connects with other major freeways. The city has been urging people to avoid the area, take buses and trains, or work from home.

___

Taxin reported from Orange County, California. Associated Press writers Sophie Austin in Sacramento, California, Christopher Weber and Stefanie Dazio in Los Angeles, Jeff McMurray in Chicago, and Anisha Frizzell in Atlanta contributed to this report.

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10216419 2023-11-15T08:55:17+00:00 2023-11-15T09:02:46+00:00
Searching for the chicken in Petaluma, the former Egg Basket of the World https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/15/searching-for-the-chicken-in-petaluma-the-former-egg-basket-of-the-world/ Wed, 15 Nov 2023 14:30:28 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10208968 Kingdom of 10,000,000 White Leghorns. Chickaluma. The Egg Basket of the World.

These were all once nicknames for Petaluma, a charming little city in the agricultural bosom of Sonoma County. By the early 1900s, a booming poultry industry, driven by a locally designed egg incubator, saw the area producing 120 million eggs a year. There were Egg Day parades led by Egg Queens, the world’s only poultry pharmacy and more money on deposit in the banks, per capita, than any other place on earth.

But how chickeny is Petaluma… now?

To find out, my partner and I drive into the countryside under a misty sun that looks like a big egg yolk. We carry the determination of Cool Hand Luke to eat 50 eggs or explode trying. Entering Petaluma, evidence of its feathered past peeks out from every corner. Chickens are painted on fading shop walls, metal roosters stand outside a restaurant, and the fairground harbors a huge sculpture of a white hen. That last one requires occasional repairs, because the local children like to ride it like a horsey.

Stellina Pronto in downtown Petaluma is an Italian bakery with pastries, sandwiches, egg fritattas and Third-Wave coffee. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group)
Stellina Pronto in downtown Petaluma is an Italian bakery with pastries, sandwiches, egg fritattas and Third-Wave coffee. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group) 

For breakfast, we stop at Stellina Pronto, an Italian bakery downtown that makes a stellar egg frittata. The owners used to run Osteria Stellina in Point Reyes; when that closed during the pandemic, they opened this casual place which serves pastries, sandwiches and third-wave coffee accompanied by Straus dairy. The counter is piled so high with fresh-baked treats, we have a brain fizzle – do we want a breakfast puff with Point Reyes Toma cheese … or tomato focaccia … or a hazelnut brutti ma buoni (a Piedmontese meringue whose name means “ugly but good”)?

Eggs. Eggs. Eggs. Get here before 11 a.m., if you want the best chance of snagging Stellina’s fluffy frittatas, which come with local Caggiano Italian sausage and Hobbs ham or fresh veggies with herbs and cheese. They’re slow-cooked in a cast-iron skillet with organic eggs from Coastal Hill Farm, a co-op west of town that gets Instagram raves like: “Your eggs r the best we have ever had in our lifetime! The color looks like yellow velvet and the taste is insane!”

Our thirst for albumen now lit, we head out in search of the real, raw deal. The countryside around Petaluma is peppered with farm stands that sell fresh eggs by the dozen. They’re usually more expensive than at grocery stores, but you’ll taste the difference in quality when whipping up something delicious at home.

Chickens crowd a fence at Hicks Mountain Hens in Novato, Calif. The farm has a stand where people can buy fresh eggs, honey and local butter. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group)
Chickens crowd a fence at Hicks Mountain Hens, a farm just south of the Petaluma. The farm has a stand where people can buy fresh eggs, honey and local butter. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group) 

We pull up at Hicks Mountain Hens, an unmanned stand that sells fresh eggs ($10 per dozen) and raw honey and that has a coin-operated machine for chicken feed. When we approach the machine, what previously was an empty nearby field becomes a sea of chickens – thousands of beaks and beady eyes and flapping wings pressing against the wire fence. A tourist family delights in the frenzy, with the little girl tossing feed into the hive-mass of poultry.

Up the road is Tenfold Farmstand, tucked in a historic two-room schoolhouse that dates back to 1895. Barn shelves are stocked with chard and eggplants and mini Juliet tomatoes, as well as organic vegetable starts for your garden. Inside are intricate floral arrangements, baskets of the season’s last strawberries – dark-red and deeply fragrant – and the treasure we seek: fresh eggs from Tara Firma Farms, with yolks like liquid gold ($15 a dozen).

Tenfold Farmstand in Petaluma sells local produce and eggs and hosts live music and events, all from a historic two-room schoolhouse. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group)
Tenfold Farmstand in Petaluma sells local produce and eggs and hosts live music and events, all from a historic two-room schoolhouse. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group) 

Tenfold is something of a community hub. On Friday mornings, it has live farm music and Blooms End, a traveling bakery pop-up with a cult following. And the events lineup includes vintage-clothing sales, holiday fairs, kids’ book swaps and classes on making kokedama – Japanese-style balls of moss for growing ornamental plants.

While we now have eggs – which will later be transformed into sponge cake and fresh pasta – what we don’t have are answers. How did Petaluma get to be such a poultry town? We head to the free Petaluma Historical Library and Museum located downtown in a gorgeous Andrew Carnegie library, which has a permanent exhibit about the local chicken industry on its upper mezzanine.

There’s a 1950s egg-cleaning machine with long screws like some backwoods torture device, poultry lung and kidney removers and photos of one of the city’s many Egg Queens who marched in egg parades. This Queen’s wearing a feathered dress and posing on a chicken sculpture among her adoring retinue – a barnyard Venus de Milo.

A historic photo of an Egg Queen at an exhibit about Sonoma's poultry history at the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group)
A historic photo of an Egg Queen at an exhibit about Sonoma’s poultry history at the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group/Used with permission from the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum) 

It was around the 1870s, when a local dentist named Isaac Dias patented an artificial egg incubator, that the industry started taking off. The incubator sped up the process of hatching, allowing hens to skip nesting duty and lay more eggs. By 1925, Petaluma was the largest poultry center in the world with 2 million hens, and by the time World War II rolled around, it had hit peak production of 612 million eggs a year.

Dias was later joined in marketing his incubator by a fellow named Lyman Byce. When Dias died in a suspicious duck-hunting accident, Byce endeavored to take the credit for the invention and erase Dias’ name from history. At the museum, a portrait of Dias has his face blank because no photos of him exist anymore. Downtown there’s a mural of Byce by “his” incubator; hunched over and sporting a shady mustachio, he literally looks like he’s stealing eggs.

Petaluma eventually fell from poultry prominence due to a variety of reasons, including industry automation and lack of government subsidies. We study a USDA poster about egg quality – an AA egg means the “white is thick, stands high” – then head out for more eggs, this time in liquid form. Barber Lee Spirits is a craft distillery whose barrel-tasting room sports a mural of a fierce rooster. You can get flights of double gold-winning spirits such as single-malt rye, heirloom-corn bourbon, absinthe and moonshine, or cocktails as expertly made as anywhere in San Francisco.

Barber Lee Spirits is a craft distillery in a brick warehouse in Petaluma that serves its award-winning liquors in flights or cocktails. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group)
Barber Lee Spirits is a craft distillery in a brick warehouse in Petaluma that serves its award-winning liquors in flights or cocktails. (John Metcalfe/Bay Area News Group) 

We get a Fuzzy Buzzy Julep with bourbon, honey, lemon, fresh mint and a topping of egg white ($15). If you’re into eggy drinks, they’re happy to whip you up something experimental – a Midnight Rider with apple brandy, activated charcoal and egg white, say, or a Big Baller with absinthe blanche, Madeira, brandied cherry syrup and frothed egg.

At this point, we’ve become well-enough acquainted with eggs that we want to meet their grown-up relative, the chicken. Across the way is Easy Rider, a restaurant that opened last year whose chef, Jared Rogers, specializes in Low-Country cuisine from Appalachia and the Carolinas.

We grab a seat at the bar, where our server presents us with a glassy vitrine covering a smoky plate of steak tartare with muffuletta olives, house steak sauce and… a country egg ($18). Can’t avoid them! Then comes a platter-for-two of fried chicken marinated in Frank’s RedHot and served with collard greens, bacon-topped mac ‘n’ cheese and a silver tureen of herby-white bacon gravy ($35.50).

The meat is supremely juicy under its crackling, salty, paper-thin crust. The gravy seems like a hat on a hat, but that’s Southern cooking – we dip everything into it, with no regrets.

“What came first, the chicken or the egg?” Who knows: We’re just happy to enjoy it all here in the still-kicking poultry heartland of Petaluma.


If You Go

Stellina Pronto: Open 6:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday-Monday at 23 Kentucky St., Petaluma; stellinapronto.com.

Petaluma Historical Library & Museum: Open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Thursday-Sunday at 20 Fourth St., Petaluma; petalumamuseum.com.

Tenfold Farmstand: Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Sunday at 5300 Red Hill Road, Petaluma; tenfoldfarmstand.com.

Hicks Mountain Hens: 7590 Point Reyes-Petaluma Road, Novato; instagram.com/hicksmountainhens

Barber Lee Spirits: Open from 3 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday at 120 Washington St., Petaluma; barberleespirits.com.

Easy Rider: Open daily from 4:30 p.m. at 190 Kentucky St., Petaluma; easyriderpetaluma.com.

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Photos: Ex-‘RHOC’ Elizabeth Lyn Vargas lists renovated La Quinta estate for $9 million https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/15/ex-rhoc-elizabeth-lyn-vargas-lists-renovated-la-quinta-estate-for-9m/ Wed, 15 Nov 2023 12:45:32 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10216150&preview=true&preview_id=10216150
  • The foyer. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

    The foyer. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The living room. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

    The living room. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The former library is now another living room. (Photo by...

    The former library is now another living room. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The family room off the kitchen. (Photo by Bowman Media...

    The family room off the kitchen. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The kitchen. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

    The kitchen. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The primary bedroom. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

    The primary bedroom. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • The guest house’s main living area. (Photo by Bowman Media...

    The guest house’s main living area. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

  • A view of the pool area. (Photo by Bowman Media...

    A view of the pool area. (Photo by Bowman Media Group)

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Former “Real Housewives of Orange County” cast member Elizabeth Lyn Vargas has put her La Quinta Polo Estates home on the market after a complete renovation for $8.995 million.

The list price is nearly triple the $3 million she paid for it in February 2021, records show.

“My blood, sweat and tears have gone into this remodel, and a lot of money, and I’m now finally finished,” Vargas said in an Instagram post in October.

Built on a 2-acre lot in 1991, the roughly 10,000-square-foot home has six bedrooms and eight bathrooms.

Updates include new flooring, fixtures, interior and exterior paint and kitchen and bathroom remodels, according to TMZ, which first reported the listing, twice.

TMZ reported Vargas initially put the home up for sale at $9.95 million in March 2022. It resurfaced Nov. 10 at its current ask.

While the listing is spare on actual details, before and after MLS photos show its transformation from a red-roofed Spanish style with terracotta to a modern luxury home.

A towering portico leads to the foyer of the main house. Beyond it lies the living area where built-in display cabinets flank the fireplace surround and raised hearth in the all-white space with decorative ceiling beams and marbled floors.

Up a few steps is a full wet bar and piano area.

What had been the library off the great room is now another living room.

French doors open the main living areas onto the lush, resort-style grounds that boast a large pond teeming with over 300 koi, a pergola-covered barbecue center and a great room with a fireplace, a swimming pool with a fountain feature, a spa and a tennis court.

There’s also a guest house.

Back inside the main house, a door separates the dining room from the eat-in gourmet kitchen with a waterfall island and a breakfast nook. The kitchen flows into the family room.

At the opposite end of the house is the primary suite. It has two walk-in closets and a bathroom with a jetted tub and a separate shower. French doors open the primary bedroom to a large sitting room, which leads to a home gym with a bathroom.

A perk of living in the gated community is access via private entrance to the nearby polo fields, where tournaments and music festivals are the big draw.

Bravo fired Vargas in 2021 after one season on the show. She’s opted to keep the listing in the Bravo housewife family with Gina Kirschenheiter, Travis Mullen and Dave Archuletta of First Team Real Estate.

In addition to reality television, Vargas is known as a businesswoman. Her brands include being the founder and president of Newport Beach-based Vargas Spirits, the parent company of Vargas Vodka. She also established the no-kill We Care Rescue Ranch foundation whose work includes raising money for free and low-cost spay and neutering.

 

 

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10216150 2023-11-15T04:45:32+00:00 2023-11-15T04:47:15+00:00
Ghost Tire Memorial placed at site of Malibu crash that killed 4 Pepperdine students https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/15/ghost-tire-memorial-placed-at-site-of-malibu-crash-that-killed-4-pepperdine-students/ Wed, 15 Nov 2023 12:37:03 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10216112&preview=true&preview_id=10216112 Family, community members and students from Pepperdine University gathered in Malibu on Tuesday, Nov. 14, a month after four students were killed in a crash along Pacific Coast Highway to call on Caltrans to improve safety conditions along the stretch of coastal road.

Roughly 100 people stood along the 23600 block of Pacific Coast Highway where four “ghost tires” were placed to honor Niamh Rolston, 20; Peyton Stewart, 21; Asha Weir, 21; and Deslyn Williams, 21, all seniors at Pepperdine’s Seaver College of Liberal Arts.

  • Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University and sign...

    Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University and sign white tires, one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four...

    Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four white tires near Pepperdine University one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University...

    Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University...

    Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University, one month...

    Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University, one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four...

    Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four white tires near Pepperdine University one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University and sign...

    Friends and family members gather near Pepperdine University and sign white tires, one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four...

    Friends and family members place flowers and candles by four white tires near Pepperdine University one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University, one month...

    Family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University, one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

  • Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University,...

    Friends and family members comfort each other near Pepperdine University, one month after four students were killed. Four white tires were place in a lot by the collage in the memory Tuesday, Malibu CA. Nov 14, 2023. Photo by Gene Blevins/Contributing Photographer)

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“Deslyn would do anything for the people she loved,”  Bridget Thompson, a roommate of three of the victims, said through tears. “Niamh was pure joy and love personified, Asha was the most emotionally intelligent person I’ve ever met, Peyton was everything good. So nurturing, so kind.”

On Oct. 17, Fraser Michael Bohm, 22, was speeding when he crashed into several parked vehicles on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, authorities said. Those parked vehicles struck the four students, killing them.

“I lost my best friends, I lost my roommates, I lost my bridesmaids, I lost my maid of honor, I lost my everything,” Thompson said. “We lost four girls who were going to change the world.”

The ghost tires initiative, created in August by the non-profit group Streets Are For Everyone, takes inspiration from ghost bikes, roadside memorials meant to honor cyclists who were killed in a crash.

“A ghost tire is a white painted tire that is an artistic pop-up memorial that symbolizes a person whose life has been taken because of a speeding driver,” said Damian Kevitt, executive director of Streets Are For Everyone. “We were not able to put the tires where the crash actually happened because of how dangerous the area is.”

The tires were decorated with messages from friends and family before being nailed into the roadside.

“We’ve never placed four ghost tires at one time,” Kevitt said. “And it’s painful.”

Since 2010, there have been 58 fatal crashes and 210 injury crashes along the stretch of highway in Malibu, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Capt. Jennifer Seetoo.

“That’s an average of one fatality every 2.7 months, more than four fatalities a year,” said Barry Stewart, Peyton’s father.

“We had a year’s worth of fatalities in a few seconds four weeks ago tonight,” he said.

During the service, family members called on Caltrans officials to implement additional safety measures along the road, specifically in the area of the crash, referred to as “Dead Man’s Curve.”

“There shouldn’t be a highway tearing through a neighborhood with families, schools,” said David Rolston, Niamh’s father.Caltrans officials said they have completed 24 projects of around 130 recommendations made by the city in 2015, and at least a dozen more are in the works.

“Caltrans expresses its condolences to the families and friends on the tragic loss of the four students and we take this situation seriously,” officials said in a statement on Tuesday. “Caltrans has implemented numerous upgrades and safety enhancements to Pacific Coast Highway from Santa Monica to Oxnard in recent years.”

The city has spent around $39 million on traffic safety improvement projects since 2015 that include a bike route along Zuma Beach, more pedestrian crosswalk signals and intersection improvements.

Another $8 million has been set aside for future projects including median improvements near Paradise Cove and Zuma Beach, and a pedestrian undercrossing at Corral Canyon Beach.

But parents of the victims said the speed of which these projects are being completed is unacceptable.

“Caltrans has implemented one safety measure every 8.7 months since (2015),” Stewart said. “An average of three people die along Malibu PCH every 8.7 months.”

“That math doesn’t work. Fix PCH,” he said.

Bohm, 22, of Malibu, pleaded not guilty in late October to four counts each of murder and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. His attorney claimed his client was being chased at the time following a road rage incident.

On Sunday, Nov. 19,  54 more tires will be added next to the four students’ tires in recognition of World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims.

“And we’ll have 10 more extra tires, unfortunately, because until Caltrans acts we’re gonna have to add more tires to those 58,” Kevitt said.

Rolston, Stewart, Weir and Williams will all be awarded their diplomas posthumously, the university said.

“Now I stand here with four huge holes in my heart trying to figure out how to live a life without them.” Thompson said

 

 

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10216112 2023-11-15T04:37:03+00:00 2023-11-15T04:38:22+00:00
NorCal Champs! Archbishop Mitty takes down St. Francis to win Open Division volleyball title https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/14/norcal-champs-archbishop-mitty-takes-down-st-francis-to-win-open-division-volleyball-title/ Wed, 15 Nov 2023 05:41:04 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10215851 SAN JOSE – When Amiya Kuchibhotla spiked the ball and made the final point, the Archbishop Mitty gymnasium erupted as the 3-1 NorCal Open Division victory went final. 

The senior middle hitter became one of many Monarchs mobbed together in the center of the court, the team having vanquished St. Francis for the final time in 2023, the last of six meetings between the elite volleyball programs. 

The San Jose school denied St. Francis back-to-back NorCal Open titles, gave Mitty two of the past three and put another championship banner in its crowded rafters. 

The Monarch’s next stop? A trip to Santiago Canyon College in Orange County for the state Open Division championship game. 

“I’m so happy and so grateful, especially since it’s my senior year,” Kuchibhotla said. “I’m super-excited.”

Archbishop Mitty won the first set 25-12, scoring the final five points behind a flurry of emphatic kills and aces. Sophomore Makenna Crosson had five kills, one ace and a block in that dominant set.

“We wanted to find our rhythm, and we wanted to make sure St. Francis would know that we weren’t going down without a fight,” Crosson said. 

St. Francis' Sacha Touma spikes the ball as #10 Archbishop Mitty's Makenna Crosson #15 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt to block during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)
St. Francis’ Sacha Touma spikes the ball as #10 Archbishop Mitty’s Makenna Crosson #15 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt to block during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) 

The next set was much more competitive, with St. Francis coming back from an early 3-0 deficit (all three points scored on Katelyn Cook kills) and eventually taking a 20-18 lead. But Mitty’s hitting combo of Crosson and Isabella Romero had three kills each after that to give the San Jose school a 2-0 lead.

“We knew they were going to have a response, and they did,” Mitty coach Jon Wallace said. 

That good run of form continued in the third set, where St. Francis went on a 4-0 run keyed by outside hitter Taylor Williams and middle hitter Ella Fulton to go up 12-8. Erin Curtis and libero Whitney Wallace, Jon’s daughter, also played well in the 25-19 win with the season on the line. 

“You know, win or lose, we still battled.” St. Francis coach Lake Merchen said. “They’re still one of the best teams in the state, and you know, if that’s not something to be proud of, I don’t know what is.”

The fourth and final set featured a number of rallies and great blocking, serving and hitting. Mitty led 16-11 at one point, but St. Francis scored four consecutive points to cut the lead to 16-15. From there, Mitty kept St. Francis at bay to win the final set 25-20. 

Standing in between Mitty and its first state title since 2017 is Mater Dei-Santa Ana. The 42-2 team from Orange County defeated defending Open Division state champions Cathedral Catholic-San Diego 3-1 in the SoCal final. 

Wallace said his Monarchs saw Mater Dei play at a tournament earlier this season, and knows claiming a state crown will be a tall task. 

“We know what it’s going to take,” Wallace said. “We’ve gotten pushed to our limits (this season), so hopefully we’ll show up and do well down there.”

  • Archbishop Mitty players celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win...

    Archbishop Mitty players celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Maya Baker #1 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Maya Baker #1 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt to block a spike by St. Francis’ Taylor Williams #2 during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Nicole Macalintal #8 holds the championship plaque as...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Nicole Macalintal #8 holds the championship plaque as the team sings a school song to celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Isabella Romero #20 spikes the ball past St....

    Archbishop Mitty’s Isabella Romero #20 spikes the ball past St. Francis’ Taylor Williams #2 during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty players including Katelyn Sentous #17 and Katelyn Cook,...

    Archbishop Mitty players including Katelyn Sentous #17 and Katelyn Cook, #7 from right, and teammates celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Maya Baker #1 blocks a spike by St....

    Archbishop Mitty’s Maya Baker #1 blocks a spike by St. Francis’ Taylor Williams #2 during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty players celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win...

    Archbishop Mitty players celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • St. Francis’ Grace Gowdy #14 spikes the ball as Archbishop...

    St. Francis’ Grace Gowdy #14 spikes the ball as Archbishop Mitty’s Isabella Romero #20 tries to block during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Isabella Romero #20 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Isabella Romero #20 and Amiya Kuchibhotla #5 attempt to block a spike by St. Francis’ Taylor Williams #2 during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Makenna Crosson, #15 Katelyn Cook, #7 Amiya Kuchibhotla,...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Makenna Crosson, #15 Katelyn Cook, #7 Amiya Kuchibhotla, #5 and Isabella Romero, #20 from left, celebrate a point during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match against St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Nicole Macalintal #8 and teammates celebrate their NorCal...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Nicole Macalintal #8 and teammates celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty players pose for photos after their NorCal Open...

    Archbishop Mitty players pose for photos after their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty’s Katelyn Cook, right, #7 and Maya Baker #1...

    Archbishop Mitty’s Katelyn Cook, right, #7 and Maya Baker #1 celebrate their NorCal Open Division volleyball win over St. Francis at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Archbishop Mitty students cheer as Director of Student Activities Greg...

    Archbishop Mitty students cheer as Director of Student Activities Greg Walker does pushups to celebrate the girl’s volleyball team victory over St. Francis during their NorCal Open Division volleyball match Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

  • Posters of former Archbishop Mitty students turned pro athletes, including...

    Posters of former Archbishop Mitty students turned pro athletes, including soccer player Brandi Chastain, softball pitcher Keilani Ricketts and NBA basketball player Aaron Gordon, from left, are seen as the Mitty girl’s volleyball team takes on St. Francis during their NorCal Open Division match Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2023. (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group)

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Photos: Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion with a pool made from a container listed for $5 million https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/14/photos-fire-resistant-oakland-hills-mansion-with-a-pool-made-from-a-container-listed-for-5-million/ Tue, 14 Nov 2023 21:54:19 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10215251 A newly renovated mansion in the Oakland hills complete with an eco-conscious pool and a restored Airstream is for sale for $4.995 million.

A pool made from a shipping container.
Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion listed for $5 million (CircleVisions/Aerial Canvas). 
Living room with exposed beams.
Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion listed for $5 million (CircleVisions/Aerial Canvas). 

The rustic-style house has four bedrooms and six bathrooms in 4,318 square feet. It blends in natural elements of wood beams and stones, as well as fire-resistant materials.

Bedroom overlooking Oakland hills.
Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion listed for $5 million (CircleVisions/Aerial Canvas). 
Modern kitchen with exposed stones.
Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion listed for $5 million (CircleVisions/Aerial Canvas). 

The property boasts generous amenities and sustainability. Features include a dual-person home office, a bocce ball court, an outdoor kitchen and a spa. A  20,000 Kwh solar system, Tesla Powerwalls and a pool made from a reusable shipping container are among the environmentally conscious elements. A refurbished vintage Airstream also offers extra living space.

Michael Wilhelm with Compass is the listing agent.

Inside renovated Airstream trailer.
Fire-resistant Oakland hills mansion listed for $5 million (CircleVisions/Aerial Canvas). 
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10215251 2023-11-14T13:54:19+00:00 2023-11-15T04:07:31+00:00
Before and after: Photos show destruction of World War II-era hangar by massive fire https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/11/14/before-and-after-photos-show-destruction-of-tustin-hangar-by-massive-fire/ Tue, 14 Nov 2023 12:54:44 +0000 https://www.mercurynews.com/?p=10214376&preview=true&preview_id=10214376

The north hangar was one of two enormous twin structures at the former Tustin Marine Corps Air Station built by the military during World War II for blimp operations.  Over the years, the hangars became beloved landmarks in the community and even served as sets for the TV show “Star Trek” and the film “Pearl Harbor.”

In the early hours of Nov. 7, firefighters responded to reports of a blaze at the north hangar. The cause is still under investigation.

The two mostly wooden hangars – each is 17 stories tall, 1,000 feet long and 300 feet wide – were quickly built at the base to house 12 blimps to patrol the West Coast against Japanese submarines. In later years the hangars were used by helicopter squadrons until the base was shuttered.

According to the American Society of Civil Engineers, which named the hangars one of the “Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks” of the 20th Century, the Tustin hangars are two of the largest wooden structures ever built, and contain the largest covered, unobstructed open space of any structures in the world. In August 1978, the hangers were designated as a National Historical Landmark.

 

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10214376 2023-11-14T04:54:44+00:00 2023-11-14T04:59:02+00:00