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State judges back San Jose decision on downtown “brutalist” building

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

SAN JOSE — A panel of state judges has backed the city of San Jose’s decision to clear the way for a “brutalist” building on a prime site to be bulldozed as part of the creation of a huge downtown tech campus.The state Court of Appeal, in a 3-0 decision, affirmed a 2021 decision by a Santa Clara County Superior Court judge that determined the city acted properly in approving a tech campus on the site of Cityview Plaza, a downtown San Jose office and restaurant complex that was developed over a period from 1968 up until 1985.Preservation Action Council of San Jose, an activist group, filed a lawsuit in 2020 to force city officials to redo an environmental impact report for the campus project, litigation that was part of a quest to preserve the brutalist building. County Judge Sunil Kulkarni ruled in favor of San Jose and against the preservationists, saying the city properly crafted the project’s environmental impact report.San Jose’s approval of t...

Abcarian: What Clarence Thomas calls hospitality looks like corruption

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

I am shocked, shocked to find that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ commitment to originalism — that is, the belief that legal texts should be interpreted as they were understood when they were adopted — comes to a screeching halt the minute he slides off the bench.When Congress passed the Ethics in Government Act in 1978, which requires government officials to report gifts, I’m pretty sure legislators had in mind exactly the sort of relationship Thomas has with the Republican megadonor and Nazi memorabilia collector Harlan Crow.I mean, maybe nothing can stop a venal Supreme Court justice from being lavished with gifts by a conservative billionaire (the rules are lax compared to other public servants), but Congress most certainly requires the grabby justice to disclose the billionaire’s generosity.Thanks to spectacular reporting by the nonprofit investigative outfit ProPublica, we now know that for at least two decades, Crow has served as Clarence and Ginni T...

Stale bread? Put it to good use in all sorts of dishes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

Spring cleaning is a refreshing and cathartic ritual, and the kitchen is a great place to begin. Clean out the refrigerator, toss any items with long-past use-by dates, and refresh those old spices parked in a drawer. As you fill your trash and recycling bins, keep one exception in mind: Under no circumstances should you throw out any stale bread.Stale breads are the faded belles of glorious loaves past. In their prime, they are tender and golden, piping hot from the oven and swirling with yeasty steam when broken apart. Dressed with a pat of butter or a drizzle of olive oil, they are luxuriously simple. And while the pleasure of eating freshly baked bread is sublime, it’s also fleeting. Once the loaves are exposed to air, they cool and begin to lose their moisture, drying out and hardening as time passes. After a day or two, the fragrant fresh loaf is often considered a has-been, banished to the corners of the bread tin, the back of the refrigerator or discarded.Now, before you dec...

Sustainable seafood restaurant Coho a lively addition to Marin’s fine-dining scene

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent JournalThe Coho Salmon Donburi  with Woolly egg Ranch poached egg, baby turnips, wasabina mustard greens, wasabi stems, pink horseradish vinaigrette at Coho restaurant in Mill Valley, California on April 12, 2023. (Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent Journal)Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent JournalCustomers eat inside the dining area at Coho restaurant in Mill Valley, California on April 12, 2023. (Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent Journal)Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent JournalThe Squid appetizer with meyer lemon, garlic, and parsley at Coho restaurant in Mill Valley, California on April 12, 2023. (Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent Journal)Douglas Zimmerman/Special to the Marin Independent JournalGlazed Black Cod   with grilled broccolini, charred sweet potato, maple tahini vinaigrette at Coho restaurant in Mill Valley, California on April 12, 202...

Marin detox center hit with $9 million verdict for San Jose man’s death

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

A Marin County jury has returned a verdict of nearly $9.1 million against a San Rafael detox center over the death of a client.Rahul Pinto, a San Jose tech entrepreneur who was an alcoholic, was admitted to the Bayside Marin Treatment Center in January 2017.“Decedent was drinking a half-pint of vodka per day, and on that day of admission he had consumed four ounces of vodka at 7:00 a.m. and four ounces at 10:00 a.m.,” Bradley Corsiglia, a lawyer for Pinto’s widow, wrote in a wrongful death lawsuit.Pinto’s blood-alcohol content when he was admitted was measured at 0.313%, Corsiglia wrote. By comparison, the legal limit for driving is 0.08%.Within 24 hours of his arrival, Pinto, having gone outside to smoke a cigarette, fell down a set of stairs while returning to his room, the lawsuit said. It noted that the staircase was slippery from rain.Pinto, 41, suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and gastrointestinal bleeding, spent six weeks at MarinHealth Medical Center, was transferred to a San ...

Bay Area physician faces state discipline over DUI crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

The state medical board is considering disciplinary action against a Tiburon physician who pleaded guilty to intoxicated driving.Larry Michael Gentilello, 69, was arrested in September 2021 after a collision that injured the driver in another vehicle, according to the medical board’s filing. His blood-alcohol content was measured at 0.20%, or more than twice the legal limit for driving.Gentilello admitted to a DUI count in July, the board said. A judge placed him on probation for five years, suspended his license for a year and imposed a standard slate of conditions.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | San Jose pedestrian critically injured in collision Crime and Public Safety | San Jose-Evergreen Community College District administrator dies while vacationing in Mexico Crime and Public Safety | 1 person killed, five others injured in Manhattan parking garage collapse Crime and Public Safety | ‘It kind of worked,’ says ...

Meta to announce another round of layoffs as part of restructuring plan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

MENLO PARK, Calif. (KRON) -- A not so good morning Wednesday for thousands of Meta employees who could be waking up to news that they’ve been laid off or that they’re entire team has been restructured with new management.Reports from Bloomberg say an internal memo was sent out to managers at meta, Facebook's parent company, to expect layoffs and restructuring this Wednesday morning. The exact number of layoffs for today is unknown. Judge tentatively OKs $725M Facebook settlement: How to apply for a payout This announcement is said to be part of a cost cutting plan that will end with around 10,000 positions being cut.Reports say those being affected by this will be groups at Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Reality Lab. This is the second round of layoffs the company has done. The first was back in November when it cut around 13 percent of its workforce resulting in around 11,000 jobs being lost.Reports say this internal memo says employees that have not been laid off—will be re-a...

Boehly facing big decisions at Chelsea as season falls flat

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

With his head bowed and his hands in his pockets, Todd Boehly had a rueful look as he walked across the field at Stamford Bridge and likely toward a locker room containing one of the most expensively assembled squads in soccer.Chelsea had just been eliminated from the Champions League by Real Madrid, effectively ending a wild first season under the club’s American ownership fronted by Boehly.It’s mid-April, a time of the season when the team is typically in contention for trophies, domestically and in Europe. Not this year.No manager. No silverware. Seemingly no real direction in a new regime that has overseen an unprecedented level of spending — $630 million — over the last two transfer windows.And just look where it’s gotten them.“I think the first step has been made — an incorrect step, but it has been made,” said Chelsea defender Thiago Silva, who described it as a “hard period for the club, with a lot of indecision.”Indeed, the upcoming weeks and months heading into the o...

US trade rep seeks close economic security ties in Asia

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — The United States hopes to deepen trade ties with Japan as it fortifies cooperation on economic security with its Asian allies and partners, the top U.S. trade envoy said Wednesday. U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai’s visit to Tokyo follows a trip to the Philippine capital, Manila, that she said highlighted a newly emerging partnership among the three countries as they build both economic and defense ties. Tai met with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi to discuss making supply chains more resilient and secure, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Tai also reviewed the status of negotiations on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, or IPEF, a new trade pact proposed by Washington, emphasizing the importance of cooperation with Japan, it said. The framework has 13 members, including the U.S., that account for 40% of global gross domestic product: Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippi...

How to create and maintain a family budget

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:30 GMT

Your money shouldn’t be a mystery, but it is to many people. In fact, 65% of Americans don’t know what they spent last month, according to a 2020 survey conducted by budgeting app Mint.“People are always more optimistic about their finances than they should be,” says Howard Dvorkin, a certified public accountant and chairman of Debt.com.That optimism, combined with a lack of knowledge about where money is going, could lead people down the path to debt or even bankruptcy. However, a family budget can serve as a map to keep you on the road to financial stability.How to make a family budgetBefore sitting down to make a family budget, you need to understand and embrace the importance of this financial tool.“The most important step is the mindset,” says Tatiana Tsoir, a certified public accountant and advisor with consulting firm The Bold Method. “You need to understand why you want or need it.”For some people, a budget can provide a way to...