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What's the difference between California's 2 high-speed rail projects?

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

The federal government on Tuesday began awarding billions in funds to passenger rail projects across the country, including earmarking more than $6 billion for two ambitious projects currently underway in California.The California High-Speed Rail Authority was awarded a historic $3.07 billion in grant funding from the Biden Administration for its state-spanning rail system, while Brightline West was chosen to receive around $3 billion for its SoCal-to-Las Vegas bullet train.Both projects aim to transport passengers to their destination at high speeds from the comfort of electric-powered trains while providing thousands of union jobs during construction, but their similarities mostly end there.So what's the difference between the California High-Speed Rail and Brightline West?First and foremost: scale.The California High-Speed Rail project, aka CAHSR, is the most ambitious public works project in California since the interstate and freeway system was built. The project, in its final ...

In-N-Out Burger is about to reach a milestone

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

Southern California-based In-N-Out Burger plans to open its 399th location Thursday morning in San Juan Capistrano, the company has announced.The restaurant is at 31791 Del Obispo St. and will feature one drive-thru lane, indoor seating for 84 customers and covered patio seating for 28 guests.“The restaurant will employ approximately 80 In-N-Out Burger Associates with a starting wage of $19.00 per hour,” the company said in a news release.The very first In-N-Out burger opened in 1948 at a tiny stand at Francisquito and Garvey avenues in Baldwin Park, a suburb of Los Angeles. Harry and Esther Snyder are credited with inventing the world’s first drive-thru with a two-way speaker box that same year. (Photo courtesy: In-N-Out Burger)The original In-N-Out in Baldwin Park, California. (Courtesy: In-N-Out Burger)Cars line up in the drive thru at an In-n-Out restaurant on October 28, 2021 in Pleasant Hill, California. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)A menu is displayed in the drive t...

Letters: Natural regeneration | Follow advice

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

Submit your letter to the editor via this form. Read more Letters to the Editor.Give park a chanceto regenerate naturallyRe: “Groups sue to stop planting of sequoias by park service” (Page B1, Dec. 4).The piece indicates that the National Park Service is “concerned that natural regeneration may not be sufficient to support self-sustaining groves.” The use of the word “may” suggests the fate of the burned sequoia groves isn’t known with enough certainty to justify hastily proceeding with an expensive project that, itself, has no certainty of succeeding and that may have a lot of unintended consequences as regards ecosystem damage to designated wilderness areas.Chad Hanson, the director of the John Muir Project, one of the groups that filed suit, and others have recently documented that natural sequoia regeneration is, in fact, occurring in many parts of the area in question and maybe other burned patches just need more time. Is this truly a “now or never”...

SF Giants engaged with Scott Boras a year after Carlos Correa debacle

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A year after their megadeal with Scott Boras client Carlos Correa fell apart, there’s no indication the San Francisco Giants or the superagent are shying away from each other this offseason.“We all understand the capacity to do it is there, and the desire, from our meetings with them, is there,” Boras said Wednesday at his annual scrum on the final day of the MLB Winter Meetings. “So we expect them to be very actively involved in the free-agent market.”Good news, considering the Giants could use some of Boras’ clients if they aren’t able to land Shohei Ohtani or Yoshinobu Yamamoto.He represents third baseman Matt Chapman, NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell and the top two center fielders on the market, Cody Bellinger and Jung-Hoo Lee, who was posted Tuesday by his KBO club, the Kiwoom Heroes, beginning his 30-day window to sign.Any would be a nice fit for a team seeking to upgrade its outfield defense, find a co-ace for Logan ...

San Jose: Daycare operators arraigned in child pool drownings

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

SAN JOSE — The mother and daughter who owned an Almaden-area day care where two children drowned in October were arraigned Wednesday on charges that they neglected to ensure a pool gate was closed before letting children roam free in the backyard, leading to the deaths and another child needing rescue.Shahin Gheblehshenas, 64, and Nina Fathizadeh, 41, appeared in a San Jose courtroom to answer to three felony child endangerment charges, and were informed that Fathizadeh is  now charged with seven new misdemeanor child endangerment counts based on separate misconduct allegations involving different children in their care.Both defendants surrendered Oct. 13 at the Santa Clara County Jail where they were booked and released after posting $50,000 bail. Deputy District Attorney O’Bryan Kenney asked Judge Hanley Chew to raise their bail amounts to $350,000 apiece in light of the severity of alleged crimes and the new charges, but Chew put off that decision until a court hearin...

Michelin Bib Gourmand Mexican restaurant Flores opens in San Mateo

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

Hankering for handmade-masa tacos and Old Fashioned cocktails with a carnitas-fat wash? Then head to San Mateo’s new Mexican joint Flores, an expanding Bay Area restaurant chain whose San Francisco location has a Michelin Bib Gourmand award.This newest iteration of Flores opens Dec. 8 in the Hillsdale Shopping Center. It’s the second Flores to debut in recent months, with another having opened in Emeryville in November, and marks the fourth location of the business (another is in Corte Madera).Flores specializes in casual but elevated hyperlocal Mexican cuisine – it features dishes from many states of the country that emphasize punchy flavor and lesser-known ingredients. Dishes on the smaller side include sikil pak (Mayan pumpkin-seed hummus with jicama), quesadilla de hongos with sauteed mushrooms and Oaxaca cheese and ceviche mixto campechano with burnt-tomato aguachile, corn fritters and ono (a fish popular in Hawaii that also goes by the name of Wahoo – exclamation m...

Senate Republicans block aid package for Israel, Ukraine

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

By Clare Foran, Lauren Fox, Ted Barrett, Kristin Wilson and Morgan Rimmer | CNNSenate Republicans blocked aid for Israel and Ukraine from advancing in a key vote on Wednesday in protest over a dispute about border security policy, a clash that threatens to derail passage of the foreign aid.The tally for the procedural vote was 49 to 51, falling short of the 60-vote threshold needed proceed. At the end of the vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer switched his vote to “no” – a procedural move that will allow him to bring up the measure again in the future.Republicans have insisted that the foreign aid must be paired with major border security policy changes. There have been talks to try to find consensus, but no bipartisan deal has been reached over the contentious issue.The stalemate comes amid Israel’s war against Hamas and Ukraine’s war against Russian aggression. The White House issued a dire warning earlier this week that funding for Ukraine is running out and failure to sec...

More rain on the way to Bay Area

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- More rain is on the way to the Bay Area, according to the National Weather Service. Scattered showers will linger through Wednesday night, with another push of rain possible for Thursday morning, the NWS said. Protesters demanding cease-fire march on Golden Gate Bridge Rainfall will be greatest in the North Bay, where 0.25 inch to 0.75 inch of rain is expected, with locally higher amounts in the hills. Around the rest of the Bay Area, we will see 0.15 inch to 0.50 inch with lesser amounts in some valleys, the NWS said.The National Weather Service advises:Planning on wet roadwaysAllowing for extra travel timeLeaving extra space between vehiclesWidespread drizzle is expected ahead of a rain band that will bring light to moderate rain. Thursday's rain could bring the possibility of thunderstorms, according to KRON4 Meteorologist Lawrence Karnow.Friday should see things dry out, and it will likely remain that way in the coming days.Stick with KRON4 for the late...

Women charged with San Jose daycare pool drownings make first court appearance

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

(KRON) -- Two women who operated a child daycare facility in San Jose where two toddlers died made their first court appearances Wednesday afternoon. Nina Fathizadeh and Shahin Gheblehshenas are charged with felony child endangerment. The victims, Payton Cobb, 1, of Hollister, and Lillian Hanan, 1, of San Jose, drowned in the daycare’s backyard pool on Oct. 2. A third child also fell into the pool, was rushed to a hospital, and survived. Fathizadeh and Gheblehshenas' arraignment was postponed Wednesday because the court was unable to provide a Farsi language interpreter. They did not enter pleas. Fathizadeh, 41, and her 64-year-old mother, Gheblehshenas, co-owned Happy Happy Daycare.No adults were watching three young children at Happy Happy Daycare when they wandered through an open pool gate and fell into the pool, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office said. "There is a responsibility to watch over little children in your care like a hawk," District Attorney Jeff Rosen...

OUSD teachers hold unsanctioned pro-Palestine teach-in

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:28:50 GMT

(KRON) -- Teachers with the Oakland Unified School District teachers will hold a Teach for Palestine teach-in on Wednesday afternoon discussing the Israel-Hamas war for kindergarten to high school senior students.  The school district has asked teachers not to take sides in the matter and has not sanctioned the event. It is unclear how many teachers will participate in the teach-in. Teachers who will participate in the teach-in have been put on notice by the school district.  Protesters demanding cease-fire march on Golden Gate Bridge The Oakland School District released a statement regarding the classes, “It is the job of educators to teach students how to think critically not to teach them what to think. We are reminding all educators of their responsibility to adhere to the principles of education and to keep their personal beliefs out of the classroom.”In October, the Oakland Education Association posted a statement of support for Palestine on social media. Howe...