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Kurtenbach: New SF Giants manager Bob Melvin is the right man to implement Farhan Zaidi’s vision — whatever that is

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

The Giants have a new manager, and he’s the perfect choice to implement president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi’s vision for the team.Whatever that vision might be these days.Now, Bob Melvin’s bonafides shouldn’t need to be listed here. Suffice it to say the longtime A’s and former Mariners, Diamondbacks, and Padres skipper is an egoless man of high character who knows the game inside and out and wants to come home to the Bay Area. (He was raised in Atherton, helped Cal to the College World Series, played for the Giants, and was a famous patron of Piedmont restaurants.)Any team would be lucky to have Melvin, who won manager of the year in both leagues. The Padres’ organizational dysfunction has worked to the Giants’ benefit here.Yes, Melvin is the man for the job. He previously worked with Zaidi in Oakland and can understand and implement advanced strategy while keeping a feel for the game and maintaining good clubhouse spirits (well, in every clubhouse that didn&#...

Correction: San Jose tiny homes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

A story that ran in the local section on Sunday, Oct. 22, about a planned tiny home shelter in San Jose incorrectly reported that individual tiny homes will have private bathrooms. Residents will have access to private bathrooms in a shared community space. 

Single-family house in San Ramon sells for $1.5 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

34 Winterwind Court – Google Street ViewA 2,056-square-foot house built in 1992 has changed hands. The spacious property located in the first block of Winterwind Court in San Ramon was sold on Oct. 3, 2023, for $1,510,000, or $734 per square foot. The layout of this two-story house includes three bedrooms and three baths. In addition, the house provides an attached two-car garage, granting ample space for parking and storage purposes.Additional houses have recently been sold nearby:A 2,056-square-foot home on the 300 block of Winterwind Circle in San Ramon sold in May 2023, for $1,525,000, a price per square foot of $742. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In January 2023, a 2,294-square-foot home on Fallen Leaf Circle in San Ramon sold for $1,575,000, a price per square foot of $687. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Fallen Leaf Circle, San Ramon, in August 2023, a 3,020-square-foot home was sold for $2,050,000, a price per square foot of $679. The home has 4 bedrooms...

San Jose man charged in PG&E transformer bombings now faces federal indictment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

SAN JOSE — A man already jailed and charged locally with planting bombs on PG&E electrical transformers in South San Jose now faces a federal indictment for the same alleged crimes, according to authorities and court records.Peter Karasev, who has been charged in Santa Clara County with planting explosives on PG&E transformers, now faces a federal indictment for the same alleged crimes. (San Jose Police Dept.) Peter Karasev, 36, of San Jose, was indicted by a federal criminal grand jury Oct. 19. The indictment accuses him of two counts of damaging the property of an energy facility, and one count of using fire or an explosive to commit a federal felony.Karasev has been in the Elmwood men’s jail in Milpitas since his arrest March 1 by San Jose police following an investigation into two explosions reported Dec. 8 — outside the Macy’s department store at Westfield Oakridge Mall — and Jan. 5 at Snell Avenue and Santa Teresa Boulevard.The mall bombing was d...

DMV shuts down Cruise robotaxis in San Francisco, saying company misled on safety

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

The California Department of Motor Vehicles on Tuesday shut down the problem-plagued Cruise autonomous taxis in San Francisco, saying they were an “unreasonable risk to the public” and that the company misrepresented how safe they are.The agency said Cruise, to get its permits back for testing and deploying driverless taxis with no human backup, would have to provide it with information about “how it has addressed the deficiencies that led to the suspensions.”The suspension has no set duration, the DMV said.In August, the state Public Utilities Commission gave GM’s Cruise a green light to take paid fares in hundreds of robotaxis with no human backup in San Francisco, despite incessant reports of the cars obstructing emergency vehicles and bottlenecking traffic. San Francisco Board of Supervisors president Aaron Peskin at the time called allowing the autonomous technology on public roads “a recipe for death” and said the vehicles were “...

Big homebuilder lands deal to buy long-time hotel in Los Gatos

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

LOS GATOS — A big Bay Area homebuilder has struck a deal to buy a Depression-era Los Gatos hotel as a potential prelude to a housing development at a prime location.Summerhill Homes has obtained a purchase contract to buy Los Gatos Lodge, a well-known hotel on a choice site in Los Gatos.The homebuilder is buying an 8.8-acre site at 50 Los Gatos-Saratoga Road, according to documents filed on Oct. 20 with the Santa Clara County Recorder’s Office.The terms of the purchase agreement weren’t disclosed in the public filing.“We will replace the lodge with housing,” Anabelle Salum, director of marketing with Summerhill Homes, said in a comment emailed to this news organization.The garden-style hotel totals 128 rooms and consists of multiple buildings.“The original hotel was built in 1936 and has not undergone significant remodeling or reconstruction since the 1970s,” a report circulated in 2014 by the Town of Los Gatos stated.In the wake of the coro...

Mayor says West Maui to reopen to tourism on Nov. 1

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

By Audrey McAvoy | Associated PressHONOLULU — All of West Maui except for burned-out sections of historic Lahaina will reopen to tourism on Nov. 1 following the deadliest U.S. wildfire in more than century, the mayor of Maui County said Monday.Mayor Richard Bissen said he made the move after talking about it with his Lahaina advisory team, the Red Cross and other partners.West Maui has about 11,000 hotel rooms, or about half of Maui’s total. Travelers evacuated those hotels after the Aug. 8 fire raged through Lahaina town, killing at least 99 people and destroying more than 2,000 buildings.Hawaii Gov. Josh Green last month declared West Maui would officially reopen to tourism on Oct. 8 to bring back badly needed jobs and help the economy recover. Bissen modified the governor’s declaration with a phased plan, allowing a small section on the northern edge of West Maui to open first with the rest to follow at an undetermined date.The community has had an impassioned debate ...

An Oakley man allegedly set up and killed romantic rival on Valentine’s Day. Now his high school friend and mistress will take the stand against him

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

MARTINEZ — A 27-year-old Oakley man is before a jury facing charges that he murdered a romantic rival on Valentine’s Day, after arranging for his mistress to set up the victim by messaging him on Instagram and arranging an evening rendezvous.Jose Quintanilla is charged with murder and conspiracy in the death of 21-year-old David Olivares, a Brentwood resident who Quintanilla had accused of sleeping with his wife, according to prosecutors. As a result, Quintanilla allegedly plotted to set up and kill Olivares, arranging for 24-year-old Sabrina Glenn to set up a meeting at Woodland Hills Park in Pittsburg, and getting a ride to the park from his high school friend, 24-year-old Angel Rodriguez.“(Olivares) thought he was going to have a first date on Valentine’s Day,” Deputy District Attorney Kevin Bell told jurors in his opening statement on Monday. “Little did he know he was minutes away from being murdered.”The defense does not deny the exist...

Warriors start regular season Tuesday with home game against Phoenix Suns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

(BCN) -- The Golden State Warriors start the 2023-24 NBA regular season Tuesday evening by hosting the Phoenix Suns in San Francisco. The 7 p.m. game at Chase Center, along with being the season opener, will be the first game former Warriors star Kevin Durant has played at that arena with fans watching. Who is Danny Serafini? Bay Area native goes from top MLB draft pick to murder suspect After winning two championships with Golden State and then leaving in 2019, the same year the new arena opened, Durant played a game there in the 2020-21 season but fans weren't in attendance due to COVID-19 protocols.Fans at Tuesday's game will receive a limited-edition Opening Night shirt.The Warriors finished the 2022-23 season by bowing out in the Western Conference semifinals against the Los Angeles Lakers after winning the championship the season prior.More information about the team, including how to buy tickets for Tuesday's game and others this season, can be found at https://www.nba.com/...

Video: Car crashes into Oakland wings restaurant, arrests made

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:47:02 GMT

(KRON) -- A car that crashed into an Oakland wings restaurant Tuesday morning was caught on video. According to the Oakland Police Department, officers responded to a ShotSpotter investigation at around 10:45 a.m. Tuesday in the 1600 block of 64th Avenue.Arriving at the scene, officers detained multiple individuals and recovered two firearms. The firearms incident and arrests were related to a vehicle crash at 65th Avenue and International Boulevard, police said. ‘I’m not OK’: Moments before off-duty pilot allegedly tried to bring down plane revealed in court docs Video from the scene shows a black Audi sedan with no license plate and what appear to be bullet holes in the rear window. The vehicle has seemingly crashed into the front of Wings 6IX5IVE, a chicken wings and sandwiches restaurant located at 6432 International Boulevard.No information was provided on whether anyone was injured in the incident.