Are Facebook and Instagram Hurting Children?

Palo Alto City Council voted to permanently close California Avenue to cars.

Santa Clara County now files the second-highest number of gun-violence restraining orders in the state, with cases involving people known to be armed and threatening themselves and others. But an array of court fights could upend the legal foundation for red-flag laws.

Amid ongoing turbulence with office space vacancies, Google and an Australian development firm are ending their agreement to create four work and live districts in the South Bay worth $15 billion, including Downtown West in San Jose.

Cupertino may be forced to lay off dozens of workers, cut services and put new tax measures on the ballot to compensate for the loss of nearly $60 million likely to be ripped from its budget.

Current Milpitas City Council member and former Milpitas Unified School District board member Hon Lien has announced she is running for mayor.

The San Jose-Evergreen Community College District will be adding a new trustee to its board after the Nov. 7  special election. The community college district, which is governed by a seven-member board, has five candidates vying for the District Area 7 seat: Diego Barragán, Lisanna Dominguez, Stephen Eckstone, Clay Hale and Anthony Macias.

Los Altos School District is asking voters to approve renewing and growing an existing parcel tax levy in a special election. Measure A would enact a $295 annual tax on each parcel of land within the district.

Former Milpitas Mayor Rich Tran, 38, is vying for his old office in the November 2024 election.

In a bid to reach its sustainability and decarbonization goals, Mountain View is working on a transportation ordinance aimed at reducing drive-alone trips and parking demand in the city.

The grant comes after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a determination that said leaded aviation gas posed environmental and health risks and should be regulated under the federal Clean Air Act.

A Santa Clara County spokesperson said the county granted permission to the city to clear out Four Corners after conditions at the encampment had “deteriorated” from a recent homicide, suicide, overdoses and arson.

The closure of California Avenue to traffic has sparked debate among business owners and residents, and now city staff is proposing to keep it closed for at least another year while a firm develops alternatives for its future.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan unveiled the first iteration of city “scorecards” to track progress in key areas,  hoping this will serve as a model nationwide.

The builder’s remedy has come to roost in San Jose, with a major project now planning to scale back by several thousand homes.

Janice and Joseph Gali of Gali Vineyards in Watsonville still have fruit hanging. There’s good news and bad news, as with anyone trying to ripen coastal syrah this season.

Ned Thomas was appointed as Milpitas’ new city manager. The Beat sat down with Thomas for an in-depth interview to discuss his current priorities, as well as some of his experiences working for the city.

A new study by Joint Venture Silicon Valley found the region’s median home sale price reached a peak of $1.53 million in 2022, bolstered by three top competitive markets—Fremont, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale.

Angelo Heropoulos, owner of Hero Ranch Kitchen and Flowers Restaurant in Saratoga, has taken over the storefront most recently occupied by Pasta Armellino, which shuttered in October.

In a study published in Nature Sustainability, scientists assessed the potential for wide-scale synthetic production of dietary fats. The raw materials are the same as those used by plants: hydrogen in water and carbon dioxide in the air.

A shrubby Palmer oak tree in Riverside County is around 13,000 years old, making it California’s oldest tree and one of the longest-lived organisms on earth. Some people are concerned that a proposed development could threaten the tree.

California’s population of homeless veterans has plateaued despite billions of dollars in state spending to create housing for former service members. Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to shift resources to focus on veterans with serious mental health conditions.

Two theme park giants, Six Flags and Cedar Fair, announced they are merging. It could have potential impacts on California theme parks like Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.

Tribes like the Muwekma Ohlone have been asking UC Berkeley for decades to give back ancestral remains from burial sites around the Bay Area. The school is in the process of repatriating 4,400 remains and 25,000 tribal items.

California's Death Valley is Earth’s hottest place and North America’s driest place. Intense rains, though, are causing lakes to briefly reappear.

It’s that time of the year again when people can get health insurance through Covered California. Here’s more information on how to apply.

The USA is likely to see consistent job growth from the transition to net zero, but the gains will be unevenly distributed, shows a new analysis conducted by Imperial College London researchers and published in Nature Climate Change.

Four technology companies, including Google, have announced they're laying off close to 1,700 workers in California. This follows tech layoffs that have been underway since last year.

California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas has endorsed Rep. Adam Schiff in a crowded U.S. Senate race. Other candidates include representatives Barbara Lee and Katie Porter.

The acquisition includes the Daou brand, Daou Mountain Estate, four luxury wineries, and around 400 acres of vineyards in Adelaida District of Paso Robles in San Luis Obispo County.

Researchers tell LAist that half of California’s population of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep, which are endangered, died last winter due to record weather. Causes of death include avalanches, starvation and getting eaten by mountain lions after moving to lower elevations for food.

A UCLA climate scientist says California’s redwoods might not last in their current groves for another 100 years. An effort is afoot to plant redwoods elsewhere in more potentially hospitable climates, such as the Pacific Northwest.