San Benito County Local News: Business, Economy & Jobs


All Local Business, Economy & Jobs News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

Image caption: Long-duration energy storage, such as this thermal energy storage facility, allows renewable energy sources to operate at full capacity without overloading the power grid.
How California Leads the Race For Long Duration Energy Storage

Long-duration energy storage is essential if renewables are to become the basis for a future, carbon-neutral power grid. Here's how California is leading the race to store energy from solar, wind, and other clean sources for use whenever it's needed.

Image caption: How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland

California has used reclamation districts to turn millions of acres of unusable swamps into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush. Here’s how it happened.

Image caption: Zoning laws tell you what you can and can't build on the property you own. How does government get away with that?
How Zoning Laws Shape California and Society

Zoning laws determine what can be built and where. These laws have shaped California, but are they really just tools for social engineering? The history of zoning is closely tied to racial segregation, as well as the state's shortage of …

Image caption: They help feed the whole country, but life for California’s farm workers remains a struggle.
How California Feeds the Country

California stands as America’s agricultural powerhouse, growing half of its fruits and vegetables. Here’s how California farming has shaped the state, from the early missions to today’s “factories in the field.”

Image caption: Though life expectancy has declined in recent years, Californians still live longer than most Americans.
Want to Live a Long, Healthy Life? Move to California

Life expectancy in California exceeds all but three other states, but how long you live depends on which county you live in. They're not all equal. Why? The answer may lie in political policies.

Image caption: Owning homes is the primary way the middle class builds wealth, and an option no longer available to most Californians.
Is California’s Housing Crisis Making Inequality Worse?

California has some of the worst economic inequality in the United States. Is the housing crisis a cause?

Image caption: Moss Landing in Monterey Bay is the world’s largest battery storage facility for solar and other renewable energy.
Solar Power and California’s Clean Energy Goals

Solar power, and a network of giant battery storage facilities, are playing an essential role in moving California toward its goal of exclusive reliance on renewable energy sources.

Image caption: Thousands of homeowners have been kicked off their fire insurance policies.
California Fire Insurance Crisis: How the State Helps Homeowners

As California insurance companies have revoked the fire policies of thousands of homeowners, the state has taken steps to get them covered again.

Image caption: The cycle of crime and homelessness is escalating, but it doesn't have to be that way.
Homelessness and Crime in California: Even More Complex Than You Think

The links between homelessness and crime are complex, and the idea that unhoused individuals present a danger to their community seems to be exaggerated.

Image caption: Water is a human right under California law, but it doesn’t always work out that way.
Agriculture and Water Shortages in the State’s Breadbasket, Explained

Residential wells are drying up in the state’s main agricultural region at the same time that agricultural businesses consume almost 90 percent of the water there.

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04/24/2024
The City of Hollister Planning Commission considered a new Starbucks at Fourth Street and Westside Boulevard in its April 25 meeting.

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04/18/2024
The California Public Utilities Commission will consider on May 9 a new proposal that would change how Californians pay for electricity.

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04/16/2024
Applications are open for the San Benito Leadership Institute program, designed to cultivate emerging community leaders.

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04/14/2024
A coalition of timber businesses filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the embattled Pacific Gas & Electric Co., alleging $225 million in damages caused by the 2021 Dixie Fire.

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04/11/2024
Image for display with article titled Gourmet Alley Work Begins

Construction began this week on the City of Gilroy’s grant-funded makeover of Gourmet Alley in the downtown, and some business and property owners are concerned about the possible impact the work will have on their operations.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

04/11/2024
A California Republican’s bill would exempt low and middle income wildfire victims from solar panels requirements on rebuilt homes that didn’t have them when they burned down.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

04/08/2024
Anti-tax groups in California have qualified a measure for the November ballot that would make raising state and local taxes much more difficult. It’s a showdown that’s been building for nearly five decades.

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04/05/2024
The San Juan Bautista City Council considered a draft ordinance reducing restrictions on food trucks operating in the city.

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04/05/2024
The union representing Hazel Hawkins nurses organized a rally, calling for hospital management to drop its bankruptcy appeal and focus on services.

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04/05/2024
Not filling open positions in state government, cutting a school facilities program and several climate initiatives, delaying funding for public transit — these are some of the first steps that California officials plan to take to deal with a looming multibillion-dollar budget deficit.

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04/04/2024
Image for display with article titled Hospital Board to Appeal Bankruptcy Decision

The San Benito Health Care District announced that it is planning to appeal the U.S. Bankruptcy Court’s ruling that denied the district’s Chapter 9 filing for Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital.

California Local Pin Marker From Los Angeles Times...

03/30/2024
Captains of fishing boats on the California coast are bracing for salmon fishing to be severely restricted — or possibly canceled for a second year.

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03/29/2024
Local activist Andy Hsia-Coron announced he is preparing to start the signature gathering phase for a new slow-growth initiative titled "Empower Voters to Make Land Use Decisions Initiative."

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03/29/2024
According to emails obtained by CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang in response to a public records request, a range of employers have been trying to figure out if they must pay $20 ever since the law was signed late last September.

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03/27/2024
Image for display with article titled Court Rejects Hollister Hospital’s Bid to Go Bankrupt

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court has struck down the Chapter 9 filing by the San Benito Health Care District (SBHCD), refuting its claims that Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital is insolvent.

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03/23/2024
The developer of the Lands of Lee project to develop housing on Fairview Road has sued San Benito County for denial a permit to proceed, citing process violations of various laws.

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03/21/2024
The reaction from the California Nurses Association to the ruling of Judge Stephen Johnson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern California District of California that the hospital did not satisfy one of the statutory requirements to remain in Chapter 9 Bankruptcy.

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03/21/2024
The petition for bankruptcy filed by the San Benito Health Care District was dismissed with the finding that Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital was unable to prove insolvency.
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