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‘Prompt action’ on fire insurance has yet to help California homeowners

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

BY LEVI SUMAGAYSAY | CalMattersIn September, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order for “prompt regulatory action” to address the plight of California homeowners facing availability and affordability problems in home and fire insurance.But at its present pace — and with doubts from consumers, lawmakers and insurers about the Department of Insurance’s proposals to alleviate the crisis — help for residents may not arrive until 2026, at least according to the most pessimistic outlook by the insurance industry.Those waiting are Californians like the Smithlines, a retired couple in Forest Hill in Placer County, who actually saw their fire insurance premium balloon to the point that they’ve decided they will have to do without it.Bobbi Smithline said their premium this year tripled to almost $6,000 from $1,800 in 2020. They were on the FAIR Plan — the last resort for residents who can’t find traditional insurance — because Farmers would not renew their previous policy three years ago...

BART Director Rebecca Saltzman won’t seek re-election

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

BART board member Rebecca Saltzman won’t seek re-election to her position and will step down when her term expires in 2024.Related ArticlesTransportation | Man dies after being hit by BART train in Berkeley Transportation | Letters: BART extension | State business | Gun control Transportation | BART paper tickets will no longer be accepted after Nov. 30, accelerating transit agency into digital era Transportation | Borenstein: Can Bay Area leaders meet the moment before it’s too late? Transportation | San Jose BART extension, beset by cost increases and timeline delays, gets $375 million in state funding Saltzman announced her decision Wednesday via X, the social media site formerly known as Twitter. In the statement, she said cited the workload combined with her family life as two of the main reasons for her decision. She first was elected onto the BART Board of Directors in 2012 and represe...

Los Gatos nude resort asking price tops $30 million: real estate agent

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

LOS GATOS — The asking price for a historic nude resort in the Los Gatos hills tops $30 million, a potential property deal that might provide clues about the strength — or weakness — of the Bay Area real estate market.Tucked away in the hills near Los Gatos, the lodge for decades has been a magnet for social nudity enthusiasts and naturists.Founded in 1935 on the site of an old winery that was forced to close due to Prohibition, the naturist resort has survived economic collapse, a world war, creditors, recessions, wildfires and other adversity.Lori Kay Stout has decided to step away from the property that she and her family have owned and operated since 1977.The asking price for the property is $32.8 million, according to a listing by Christie’s International Real Estate Sereno and Joe Pollifrone, a broker associate with Just Realty.That works out to about $292,900 an acre for the property at 20600 Aldercroft Heights Road in Los Gatos.“Lupin Lodge has ...

New weight loss drug: FDA approves Zepbound, a version of diabetes drug Mounjaro for obesity

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

By JONEL ALECCIA (AP Health Writer)A new version of the popular diabetes treatment Mounjaro can be sold as a weight-loss drug, U.S. regulators announced Wednesday.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, or tirzepatide. The drug helped dieters lose about a quarter of their body weight, or 60 pounds (27 kilograms), in a recent study.Zepbound is the latest diabetes drug approved for weight loss, joining Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy, a high-dose version of its diabetes treatment Ozempic.The FDA approved Lilly’s drug for people who are considered obese, with a body mass index of 30 or higher, or those who are overweight with a related health condition, like high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes. The drug should be paired with a healthy diet and regular exercise, the FDA said.In the U.S., at least 100 million adults and about 15 million children are considered obese.The drug tirzepatide in Zepbound and Mounjaro and semaglutide in Wegovy and Ozempic work b...

Driver survives after vehicle hit by train in Oakland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

OAKLAND — A driver was injured Wednesday morning when his SUV was hit by an Amtrak train near Jack London Square, authorities said.His condition was not immediately available.The collision happened about 7:25 a.m. Wednesday at the intersection of Oak Street and Embarcadero West, a few blocks from Jack London Square Amtrak Station.Related ArticlesCrashes and Disasters | ‘Black Panther’ stuntman, three of his children killed in car crash in Atlanta Crashes and Disasters | San Jose reaches settlement for scooter accident that left woman with broken teeth, nose Crashes and Disasters | Tarantula sighting results in car accident in Death Valley National Park Crashes and Disasters | Hit-and-run injures 7-year-old boy trick-or-treating in Berkeley Crashes and Disasters | Truck filled with thousands of pounds of marijuana crashes into California fire station’s gates Authorities said initial reports were tha...

San Jose police arrest second teen in connection to hit-and-run that killed pregnant woman, baby

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

SAN JOSE — Police arrested a second teenager in connection to the Oct. 24 crash in San Jose that killed a woman who was 27 weeks pregnant, as well as her baby, who was delivered after the crash but died in a hospital, according to authorities.The 15-year-old boy was arrested on Nov. 2, police announced Wednesday. Police did not identify the teen or specify any booking charges, citing laws protecting juvenile suspects and saying only that he was believed to have been inside the vehicle at the time of the deadly collision.Related ArticlesCrashes and Disasters | Nine arrested in sprawling Santa Clara County sex-trafficking ring Crashes and Disasters | Ex-San Jose Jr. Sharks coach arrested on suspicion of sexually assaulting child Crashes and Disasters | ‘Party mom’ who wouldn’t take 17 years for alleged drunken teen sex bashes could face 31 years Crashes and Disasters | Red-flag laws for disarming troubled peo...

Four-bedroom home in Saratoga sells for $3.7 million

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

12625 Cheverly Court – Google Street ViewThe spacious property located in the 12600 block of Cheverly Court in Saratoga was sold on Oct. 25, 2023. The $3,650,000 purchase price works out to $1,497 per square foot. The house, built in 1967, has an interior space of 2,438 square feet. This single-story house presents a roomy floor plan, featuring four bedrooms and three baths. Inside, there is a fireplace. Additionally, the home is equipped with a two-car garage, accommodating vehicles and storage needs efficiently. The property’s backyard is further enhanced by both a spa and a pool.Additional houses that have recently been sold close by include:In July 2023, a 2,495-square-foot home on Ione Court in Saratoga sold for $3,700,000, a price per square foot of $1,483. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 2,235-square-foot home on the 12600 block of Lido Way in Saratoga sold in June 2023, for $3,063,000, a price per square foot of $1,370. The home has 4 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms.On Pi...

Kurtenbach: The 49ers’ big second-half question — where’s the juice?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

So much has gone wrong for the 49ers’ defense over the last few weeks, it’s difficult to know where to start making corrections.They need to rev up the pass rush — the acquisition of Chase Young is aimed at doing that. They need to stop calling such plain and predictable plays, which could be helped by film study over the bye.But perhaps this defense’s biggest issue heading into the second half of the season is that it has lost its swagger.And I don’t think defensive coordinator Steve Wilks moving from the coaches’ booth to the sideline is going to help with this.A little film study of my own shows a defense that is devoid of juice.The Niners’ defensive personnel is arguably better than last season. And yet they look to be a shell of that former team.Like a balloon without air, this Niners’ defense looks limp.Someone needs to pump them up.The NFL is a billion-dollar business with innovative coaches, but it’s still a simple game i...

San Jose Sharks acquire defenseman from Minnesota Wild

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks acquired defenseman Calen Addison from the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday for AHL winger Adam Raska and a 2026 fifth-round draft pick.Addison, 23, had five assists in 12 games for the Wild this season and has five goals and 38 points in 92 career NHL games, all with Minnesota. A second-round draft pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2018, Addison was averaging just under 17 minutes of ice time per game this season.Addison would give the Sharks more of a true quarterback on the man advantage as he had been, up until recently, on Minnesota’s top power-play unit. He was third on the Wild this season in overall power play time on ice, averaging 4:12 per game.The Sharks went 1-for-5 on the power play in their 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday, with William Eklund’s second-period goal on a 4-on-3 man advantage proving to be the winner.The victory was the Sharks’ first of the season after 11 straight defeats. San Jose entered W...

The end of the actors’ strike seemed within reach. Why is a SAG-AFTRA deal taking so long?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:32:22 GMT

Christi Carras, Wendy Lee and Meg James | (TNS) Los Angeles TimesAbout this time last week, the major Hollywood studios were optimistic and the performers union SAG-AFTRA was cautiously optimistic that a tentative deal to end the actors’ strike was within reach.One hundred and seventeen days into the walkout that has ground the entertainment industry to a near-halt, such a settlement remains to be seen. On Monday afternoon, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists said in a statement that there still were “several essential items” the sides had yet to agree on.This came after the union formally responded to what the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers described as its “last, best and final offer,” the contents of which are starting to emerge through anonymous sources. The parties have been going back and forth for about two weeks of frequent meetings in an effort to resolve their labor dispute.Despite signs of progress, a deal betwe...