Category: Bay Area

1116 Casaba Creek Court – Google Street View A 2,536-square-foot house built in 1974 has changed hands. The spacious property located in the 1100 block of Casaba Creek Court in San Jose was sold on May 1, 2024. The $2,400,000 purchase price works out to $946 per square foot. This two-story home offers a capacious living environment with its four bedrooms and three baths. Outside, the home presents roofing composed of wood shake roofing / shingles materials. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. In addition, the house features a two-car garage, providing ample room for vehicles and storage needs. The property occupies a sizable 8,880-square-foot lot. These nearby houses have also recently changed hands: A 1,844-square-foot home on the 7100 block of Anjou Creek Circle in San Jose sold in May 2023, for $1,826,000, a price per square foot of $990. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. In March 2023, a 2,574-square-foot home on Anjou Creek Circle in San Jose sold for $2,260,000, a price per square foot of $878. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. On Bartlett Creek

MEET THE TOP TEAM: VALLEY CHRISTIAN Valley Christian finished the regular season on top of the West Catholic Athletic League, beating Serra in the WCAL tournament championship on Friday. The teams tied for first place in league play, and the San Jose school was awarded the top seed in the Central Coast Section Division I bracket. Valley has won four of the past five titles in the CCS’s top division. The Warriors, who stayed in the Top 5 of the Bay Area News Group rankings all season, will bring a 26-4 record into their playoff opener at home on Saturday against eighth-seeded St. Francis. Valley’s resume includes wins over Cardinal Newman, Elk Grove, Palo Alto, Jesuit-Carmichael Leigh and Serra. Kole Laubach , Quinten Marsh and Rohan Kasanagottu lead a talented pitching staff that has a 1.36 ERA. The Warriors hit for contact and power. Senior Tatum Marsh leads the team in home runs (six) and batting average (.365). Hunter Fujimoto, Nathan Choi and Brock Ketelsen also make contributions to an offense that averages more than five runs per game. Valley Christian High’s Quinten Marsh (24)

SAN JOSE – Crews on Monday evening battled a three-alarm blaze at a Buddhist temple in San Jose. The fire was reported around 5:50 p.m. at Chua Duyen Giac at 97 Foss Ave., near Interstate 680 and Alum Rock Avenue, San Jose Fire Department spokesperson Jake Pisani said. Crews called a second alarm just before 6 p.m. and a third alarm shortly after 6:20 p.m., Pisani said, adding that the blaze was finally knocked down around 8:45 p.m. Pisani said four residents who live behind the temple were displaced as a result of the fire. No injuries were reported and crews managed to keep the flames from spreading to adjacent buildings. The cause of the blaze is under investigation. #SJFD crews are on scene of a three-alarm fire at a Buddhist temple on the 90 block of Foss Ave. Four residents displaced. No injuries or transports. Please avoid the area. pic.twitter.com/0TzKj7zOA3 — San José Fire Dept. (@SJFD) May 14, 2024 Check back for updates.

OAKLAND — Frank Somerville, the former KTVU news anchor, has pleaded no contest to alcohol-related reckless driving in a plea deal that dismisses most of the charges he racked up during disputes with family members last year, court records show. Somerville pleaded no contest Monday to the lone charge, a misdemeanor, and to violating probation for a prior drunk driving case. The deal brings to a close a case that stemmed from Somerville’s two arrests within a nine-hour period last year. Family members accused Somerville of showing up drunk and fighting with them after he was asked to leave, which he denied. In exchange for his no contest plea, Somerville will serve a 30-day jail sentence, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Charges of criminal threats, assault and trespassing were all dismissed. Somerville told the Chronicle he feels “vindicated” but admitted he made mistakes too. Somerville, 66, anchored the 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. newscasts at the station from 2008 to 2021. His 31-year career at KTVU ended on Jan. 31, 2022, when his contract expired and the station opted not to bring him back. He

DISCOVERY BAY – A 53-year-old Tracy man has been sentenced to six months of home confinement for a cyber attack on the Discovery Bay Water Treatment Facility in 2021, prosecutors said. The sentence was handed down on May 8, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. A federal grand jury indicted Rambler Gallo last June, charging him with a single felony count of transmitting a program, information, code and command to cause damage to a protected computer, prosecutors said. Gallo pleaded guilty to the charge. Gallo was a full-time employee for a Massachusetts-based company that contracted with Discovery Bay to operate the town’s water treatment plant, which serves 15,000 residents. Prosecutors said Gallo installed software on his personal computer and the company’s internal network that gave him remote access to the plant’s computer system. Roughly five weeks after he resigned on Nov. 25, 2020, Gallo accessed the plant’s computer system and sent a command to uninstall software that protected the water treatment system, including pressure, filtration and chemical levels, prosecutors said. Other employees discovered the software was disabled a day after the cyber attack. Gallo’s actions

A 55-year-old grandmother swam 17 hours across the Gulf of the Farallones this weekend, braving jellyfish, darkness, fog, frigid water and the shark-infested “Red Triangle” to become the first person in history to complete the treacherous outbound route. For Amy Appelhans Gubser, of Pacifica, Friday was like any other day. She worked her usual 10-hour shift in fetal cardiology at UC San Francisco. Then at 3:25 a.m. Saturday, without a wetsuit, she jumped off a boat into dark waters under the Golden Gate Bridge and began swimming — stopping only when she reached a bobbing buoy at Southeast Farallon Island, 29.7 miles away, at dusk. Members of her support team, who monitored her safety from a fishing boat, erupted into cheers. “When I touched it, I was so grateful. Not just that I had this opportunity to complete this swim, but that it went so flawlessly,” she said Monday after riding her bike to the dentist, her voice still raspy from immersion in salt water. But in the world of extreme marathon swimming, the miles between the Farallon Islands and San Francisco are reputed to

After 38 years in business, Jing Jing Gourmet, Palo Alto’s much-loved Szechuan and Hunan restaurant, is set to close its doors this Sunday, May 19. “The expenses are too much for us,” said restaurant manager Betty Tsai, daughter of restaurant owner Susan Tsai. In recent years, the cost of rent, labor and materials increased while customers’ dining habits shifted, as fewer people commuted to work nearby, she says. The restaurant’s lease ends at the end of May. The plan is for the business to find a new location nearby — potentially in Mountain View, Sunnyvale or Santa Clara — and focus on takeout, delivery and catering services, Tsai says. “We want to express our deepest thanks for your patronage over the years,” the Tsai family announced on the restaurant’s website. “It has been an honor serving this community for 38 years, and we are so grateful for your support and friendship.” You have just a few days left to enjoy the restaurant’s signature dishes, from tea-smoked duck ($24.50) to kung pao chicken ($17.95), won tons ($12.50), barbecue pork buns ($3) and yuzu citrus cheesecake ($3.50

By Wafaa Shurafa, Joseph Krauss and Samy Magdy | Associated Press RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Aid workers struggled Monday to distribute dwindling food and other supplies to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians displaced by what Israel says is a limited military operation in Rafah, as the two main crossings near the southern Gaza city remained closed. The United Nations’ agency for Palestinian refugees said 360,000 Palestinians have fled Rafah over the past week, out of 1.3 million who were sheltering there before the operation began. Most had already fled fighting elsewhere during the seven-month war between Israel and Hamas. Israel has portrayed Rafah as the last stronghold of the militant group, brushing off warnings from the United States and other allies that any major operation there would be catastrophic for civilians. Hamas has meanwhile regrouped and is battling Israeli forces in parts of Gaza that Israel bombarded and invaded earlier in the war. U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq said Monday that another 100,000 Palestinians have been displaced in northern Gaza following recent Israeli evacuation orders there. That would mean that around a fifth of Gaza’s

Who is the top team? The path to the CCS championship will run through Mountain View. St. Francis lost the Central Coast Section Open final last year to come up just short of a three-peat. The top-seeded Lancers are the best team in the CCS again and should win a third Open trophy in four seasons. They recorded a shutout in 13 of 25 games, blanked three opponents to win the prestigious Michelle Carew tournament in SoCal, and run-ruled a dozen challengers. The 25-0 Lancers went undefeated in West Catholic Athletic League play for the fourth time in five seasons. Their dominance starts in the circle. Texas A&M commit Kate Munnerlyn has a 0.54 ERA in 91 innings, striking out 162 of 309 batters she’s faced. No. 2 starter Shannon Keighran is committed to Boise State and has a 1.31 ERA with 102 strikeouts in 64 innings. They can hit, too, batting .400 as a team. Reigning WCAL player of the year Jaime Oakland helps make sure that her pitchers get the run support they need, sporting a .671 batting average with 32 runs scored

By Lisa Respers France | CNN David Sanborn, an influential saxophonist, who found success across the genres of pop, R&B, jazz and more, died Sunday. He was 78. “It is with sad and heavy hearts that we convey to you the loss of internationally renowned, 6 time Grammy Award-winning, saxophonist, David Sanborn,” reads a statement on his social media accounts. “Mr. Sanborn passed Sunday afternoon, May 12th, after an extended battle with prostate cancer with complications.” Sanborn’s publicist confirmed the accuracy of the post when reached by CNN. He was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018, but continued performing until recently. “Indeed he already had concerts scheduled into 2025,” the statement concluded. “David Sanborn was a seminal figure in contemporary pop and jazz music. It has been said that he ‘put the saxophone back into Rock ’n Roll.’” Born in Tampa, Florida, Sanborn grew up in Missouri. He began playing the saxophone as part of his recovery after contracting polio at age 3, according to his website. “By the age of 14, he was able to play with legends such as Albert King and Little

A popular stretch of road in Sunnyvale is getting a long-awaited upgrade. The City Council recently approved a $2.56 million contract with a South San Francisco-based graving and paving company to resurface Wolfe Road from Homestead Road to El Camino Real, part of a 2019 initiative to update the old pavement. “The city and contractor will be notifying residents in advance about the work and any construction-related impacts,” city spokesperson Jennifer Garnett said in a statement. “We’ll know specifics after we’ve met with the contractor and determined the schedule and construction plan.” The road, which is located south of El Camino and runs more than a mile through the suburbs, was last updated in 2001. An average of 24,354 vehicles travel on Wolfe Road between Homestead Road and El Camino each day. The city does not have available data on the number of pedestrians who use the road, according to Garnett. Money for the project comes from the city’s general fund and various county and state sources. At the end of June, workers are slated to replace the road’s damaged gutters and modify traffic signals

Associated Press PITTSBURGH — Dr. Cyril Wecht, a pathologist and attorney whose biting cynicism and controversial positions on high-profile deaths such as President John F. Kennedy’s 1963 assassination caught the attention of prosecutors and TV viewers alike, died Monday. He was 93. Wecht’s death was announced by the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, which did not disclose a cause or place of death, saying only that he “passed away peacefully.” Wecht’s almost meteoric rise to fame began in 1964, three years after he reentered civilian life after serving a brief stint at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. At the time, Wecht was serving as an assistant district attorney in Allegheny County and a pathologist in a Pittsburgh hospital. The request came from a group of forensic scientists: Review the Warren Commission’s report that concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald, acting alone, assassinated Kennedy. And Wecht, with his usual thoroughness, did just that — the beginning of what became a lifelong obsession to prove his theory that there was more than one shooter involved in the killing. After reviewing the autopsy documents, discovering the president’s

330 Ramona Avenue – Google Street View The spacious historic property located in the 300 block of Ramona Avenue in Piedmont was sold on April 8, 2024. The $2,500,000 purchase price works out to $1,122 per square foot. The house, built in 1925, has an interior space of 2,228 square feet. The layout of this two-story house consists of three bedrooms and four bathrooms. Inside, there is a fireplace. Additionally, the home provides a one-car garage. The property’s lot measures 3,850 square feet square feet in area. These nearby houses have also recently been sold: In April 2023, a 2,831-square-foot home on Ramona Avenue in Piedmont sold for $2,500,000, a price per square foot of $883. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. On Bonita Avenue, Piedmont, in July 2022, a 1,766-square-foot home was sold for $2,050,000, a price per square foot of $1,161. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. A 2,594-square-foot home on the 100 block of Hillside Avenue in Piedmont sold in February 2024, for $2,540,000, a price per square foot of $979. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3

The Athletics placed starting pitcher Paul Blackburn on the injured list Monday as their previously durable five-man rotation was down to two healthy pitchers. Blackburn, the A’s most consistent starter with a 3-2 record and 4.14 earned run average, went to the 10-day IL retroactive to May 11 with a stress reaction of the fifth metatarsal on his right (or push-off) foot. “He’s pitched with it pretty much since spring training,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay told reporters Monday before the A’s (19-23) began a four-game road series against the Houston Astros (15-25). But after the outing on Saturday he felt it more, I think. The day after it usually kind of subsided but it didn’t go away so we had to get it looked at.” After two weeks in a protective boot, Blackburn will be re-evaluated for a potential return date. Blackburn has struggled in two of his last three starts. He gave up seven earned runs in four innings in an 8-1 loss to Seattle Friday and six earned runs in four innings against Baltimore on April 28. The A’s All-Star representative in 2022

By Kasparman Piliang | Associated Press PADANG, Indonesia — Rescuers recovered more bodies Monday after monsoon rains triggered flash floods on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island over the weekend, bringing down torrents of cold lava and mud that left at least 44 people dead and another 15 missing. The heavy rains, along with a landslide of mud and cold lava from Mount Marapi, caused a river to breach its banks. The deluge tore through mountainside villages along four districts in West Sumatra province just before midnight Saturday. The floods swept away people and submerged hundreds of houses and buildings, while forcing more than 3,100 to flee to temporary government shelters in Agam and Tanah Datar districts, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari. Cold lava, also known as lahar, is a mixture of volcanic material and pebbles swept by rainwater down a volcano’s slopes. Additional bodies were recovered Monday, bringing the death toll to 44, Muhari said in a news conference. At least 19 others were injured in the flash floods and rescuers were searching for 15 villagers, he said. Television reports showed relatives wailing as

OAKLAND — A former darling of the #MeToo movement was found guilty Monday of killing his fiancée inside their Pleasanton apartment and dismembering her in a bathroom with power tools. Joseph Roberts, 43, was silent as the jury’s decision was read in an Oakland courtroom. Jurors found him guilty of second-degree murder in the July 2023 killing of 27-year-old Rachel “Imani” Buckner, a recent law school graduate whose mangled torso was found wrapped in a plastic bag and bound with duct tape on an Alameda shoreline. In the gallery, Buckner’s relatives sobbed at a verdict that capped a grisly monthlong trial, which included a pained and detailed examination of Buckner’s mutilated corpse. The jury returned its verdict on its third day of deliberations. Roberts faces 15 years to life in prison when he’s sentenced on June 14. During the trial, prosecutors painted Roberts as a “master manipulator” who dodged numerous complaints of domestic violence in the year and a half before Buckner’s death, all before taking to Tinder and simply going on with his life after the July 2023 slaying. It was a portrayal that Roberts’ attorneys derided as a

809 Terra Bella Drive – Google Street View The spacious property located in the 800 block of Terra Bella Drive in Milpitas was sold on April 26, 2024 for $2,400,000, or $1,004 per square foot. The house, built in 1985, has an interior space of 2,390 square feet. This two-story home offers a capacious living environment with its four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Additionally, the house is equipped with a two-car garage, accommodating vehicles and storage needs efficiently. The lot, which encompasses 5,424 square feet, is further enhanced by both a spa and a pool. Additional houses that have recently been sold close by include: A 1,778-square-foot home on the 700 block of Valencia Drive in Milpitas sold in August 2023, for $1,565,000, a price per square foot of $880. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. In June 2023, a 2,496-square-foot home on Valencia Drive in Milpitas sold for $2,151,000, a price per square foot of $862. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. On Alcosta Drive, Milpitas, in December 2023, a 2,183-square-foot home was sold for $272,000, a price per square

Associated Press FORT NELSON, British Columbia — An intense wildfire could reach a town in western Canada this week, fire experts and officials warned, based on forecasts of winds that have fueled the out-of-control blaze which has forced the evacuation of thousands of people. The British Columbia Wildfire Service said the blaze was burning 2.5 kilometers (1.6 miles) northwest of Fort Nelson. More than 4,700 people have evacuated after an order was issued on Friday. Bowinn Ma, the province’s minister of emergency management, said drought conditions have persisted since last year and no rain is in the forecast. “We are extremely concerned,” she said. “It is extremely uncommon for us to have so many on a evacuation order.” Cliff Chapman, the service’s director of operations, said they were fortunate that stronger winds didn’t materialize over night but said winds are expected to continue to blow west over the next day or two. “We did not see the winds through the evening,” Chapman said. Fire crews and emergency workers were preparing for a “last stand” if the fire advances into the town, said Rob Fraser, mayor

By Kate Golembiewski | CNN This spring, billions of cicadas will emerge after more than a decade underground, ready to climb into the trees and make a ruckus as they sing to attract mates. But some of these insects won’t succeed in their goal of procreating — instead, they’ll be controlled like zombies into spreading a strange fungus that hijacks cicadas’ bodies and behavior. The details of the fungus’ attack on the bugs — destroying the insects’ genitals, replacing their abdomens with a cavity full of fungal spores, manipulating the bugs into hypersexual behavior to spread the fungus further and transforming the cicadas into what some scientists term “saltshakers of death” — may seem like they belong in a creature feature horror movie. But when it comes to the fungus Massospora cicadina, said Dr. John Cooley, an associate professor in residence of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Connecticut, Hartford, “the truth is actually much stranger than science fiction.” RELATED: California has cicadas, too. Here’s what they’re up to in this bumper year.  Periodical cicadas lay their eggs in tree branches, and when

Saint Mary’s is adding a player with a recognizable name via the transfer portal after losing two starters last month. Penny Hardaway’s son Ashton is heading to Moraga after his freshman season at Memphis, where his dad is the head coach. He shared the news of his commitment to Saint Mary’s on Instagram. Ashton Hardaway played in 30 games last year for the Tigers but he made only three starts and his playing time decreased as the season went along. Known for his shooting, Hardaway made 33% of his 3-pointers and averaged 2.3 points per game in his first collegiate season after being ranked No. 92 in ESPN’s Top 100 for the class of 2023. Saint Mary’s will be Hardaway’s fifth school in five years. The 6-foot-8 forward played his senior year of high school at Sierra Canyon in Chatsworth. His junior year was spent at Duncanville High in the Dallas area, where he transferred from Torrance’s Bishop Montgomery. The Gaels lost two-time first-team All-WCC guard Aidan Mahaney to the portal last month, and he later committed to join Connecticut, the back-to-back NCAA champion. Fellow

Trying to find a place to camp in the Bay Area on a sunny weekend can be exasperating enough to make you almost resent California’s outdoorsy nature — or at least, its outdoorsy residents who all want the same thing you do. Trawl the National Parks Service’s camping reservation system, recreation.gov, or the State Parks’ reservecalifornia.com for campsites of any kind — tent, trailer, RV or cabin — in Point Reyes, Big Sur and other popular spots, and it’s not uncommon to see every weekend sold out months ahead. It’s reached such a point that in December, California State Parks announced it was dropping traditional reservations for Mount Tamalpais’ popular Steep Ravine cabins and piloting a lottery system instead. But don’t give up on planning a great summer outing yet. The truth is, there are a ton of other amazing overnight opportunities around the Bay Area, from glamping in a Calistoga yurt in Wine Country to escapist backpacking on Angel Island. We also scouted out what may be the only dog-friendly backpacking opportunity in the region without having to schlep to a national forest (psst