The Best and Worst of 2023

As Palo Alto officials prepare to expand the city's inventory of historic buildings, they are confronting a stark reality: About half of the property owners whose homes would be added to the list aren't happy about it.

Los Altos City Councilmember Neysa Fligor has been selected to serve as the next president of the Cities Association of Santa Clara County. Her term will expire in December.

Santa Clara had a busy year, from committing to the construction of hundreds of homes, to accusations and legal troubles among officials, to millions of dollars flowing into the city from headliner events at Levi’s Stadium.

Reporters take one last walk down memory lane.

When the Palo Alto City Council gets back to business in January, it will face two tasks. One is electing a mayor. Another is considering whether it’s time to come up with a new system for electing a mayor.

A political action committee that supports local pro-business candidates has announced its endorsements for next year’s San Jose City Council and mayoral elections.

In a bid to revitalize a key gateway to downtown Mountain View, a local developer is proposing to build a seven-story condominium and commercial complex at the corner of Castro Street and El Camino Real.

Two-thirds of community college students in California admit to struggling to meet basic needs. The California Community Colleges’ Student Ambassador Program has empowered more than 50 students to act as resource guides to help them.

Leaders of a parental rights advocacy group announced they’re planning to sue California Attorney General Rob Bonta over the way his office has characterized a 2024 ballot initiative they authored.

The California Department of Water Resources has found that the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada mountains is at just 25% of normal levels for this time of year. This could potentially impact water supply and wildfire protection.

Los Angeles County has entered the medium category of COVID-19 hospitalization defined by the CDC, with providers warning that illnesses like RSV like to travel in tandem with the virus. Officials are urging the public to mask when visiting hospitals or other indoor facilities.

The dawn of 2024 meant that California’s minimum wage rose from $15.50 to $16 an hour. That puts the Golden State at the second-highest minimum wage for a U.S. state, trailing only Washington state at $16.28 an hour.

A law passed by the California legislature in 2023 has gone into effect banning licensed gun holders from bringing their firearms to places like playgrounds, churches and casinos. The law faces an ongoing challenge in the federal court system.

Just as you might intend to change your diet or workout plan, resolve to make changes that will allow you to meet financial goals.

Under new state laws, five cities will test cameras to catch speeding drivers and cruising bans will be lifted statewide. The first is supposed to improve road safety, but critics of the second say it will endanger the public.

Visitors can see the critically endangered Lord How Island stick insect, on display for the first time in North America, in a special habitat at the zoo’s Wildlife Explorers Basecamp.