Gov. Gavin Newsom recently said he doesn’t understand why sports stadiums could be built quickly but other major projects couldn’t. If he really didn’t know, then he probably just learned.

sports are popular. Not so with all public building projects. Some are hated.

The Democratic-dominated legislature taught the Democratic governor a lesson in real-world politics and policy-making: Don’t try to punch past your weight.

When the legislature is united, it is equal to the executive.

Newsom was trying to get lawmakers through his last-minute proposal to expedite construction of a highly controversial water tunnel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

Environmental groups and Delta residents, including local farmers, are strongly opposed to the $16 billion, 45-mile project that would divert Sacramento River water to southern aqueducts for irrigation and to cities, including Los Angeles.

Lawmakers opposed Newsom and flatly refused to consider his tunnel acceleration plan, forcing him to relent and withdraw the proposal. It was a humiliating setback for the governor of California.

The Delta plan was part of an 11-bill bill that Newsom belatedly introduced and brought into budget deliberation on May 19. It had no real connection to the budget, but the governor’s move allowed his package to escape scrutiny by legislative policy committees. His goal was to cut bureaucracy and make it easier to build transportation, clean energy, and water projects.

Previous legislatures and governors – Jerry Brown and Arnold Schwarzenegger – created regulatory shortcuts to make it easier to build soccer stadiums and basketball arenas. The stadiums were not built for various reasons, but at least two swanky basketball arenas were built – for the Sacramento Kings and the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco.

“I love sports,” said Newsom, a former Santa Clara University Broncos college baseball pitcher. “But I also love roads. I love transit. i love bridges And I love clean energy projects like what we’re seeing here.”

Newsom unveiled its infrastructure acceleration package for a future solar farm near Modesto in May. He also thought about building wind, battery storage and semiconductor plants. Add regional trains, bridges and water storage facilities, and the Delta Tunnel to the list.

“It’s not just about stadiums,” Newsom continued. “And we proved that we can do that for stadiums too.

“Why the hell can’t we apply that to all these other projects?”

That’s a valid question. I’ve asked myself that in previous columns.

One answer is that stadiums and arenas are built by powerful billionaires who can wield a great deal of political clout. You can help politicians run for re-election. If nothing else happens, they may be asked for playoff tickets.

But the more important answer is that professional football and basketball are hugely popular with voters. It’s bipartisan. There is only marginal resistance to helping team owners build local playgrounds.

Contrast that with the proposed tunnel, a 39-foot-wide pipe that would channel fresh Sacramento River water from the North Delta into aqueducts in the more saline South Delta. The delta is California’s most important water hub, serving 27 million people and irrigating 3 million hectares.

The tunnel would run beneath the delta, robbing farmers and small communities of the freshwater that now flows through the West Coast’s largest estuary. And it would reduce freshwater needs for struggling baby salmon, which are already an endangered species.

Newsom and state water agencies counter that the tunnel would save the delta as California’s premier sanitation facility. This would ensure the reliability of water supplies to farms and coastal towns in the San Joaquin Valley. Otherwise, the prognosis for the delta is bleak as climate change will cause sea levels to rise and possible earthquakes could flatten the dikes.

Delta opponents, however, argue that sea-level rise is another reason to keep freshwater flowing to ward off saltwater from San Francisco Bay. And they point out that no earthquake has ever seriously damaged a levee in the delta. In fact, there is no major error below the delta.

Bottom Line: Delta residents do not trust state water authorities to operate the tunnel in a way that protects them and the estuary. They fear being drained the way the Los Angeles Aqueduct created the Owens Valley a century ago.

Governors have been trying to build this project in one form or another for six decades. They were defeated either by voters or by a coalition of Delta people and environmentalists.

This time Newsom tried to play hard. He threatened to veto the legislature’s pet budget projects unless they approved his proposal to speed up construction of the tunnel and other infrastructure projects.

Key to his plan is the questionable goal of reducing the time it takes to resolve claims under the California Environmental Quality Act. He’s asking for a 270-day grace period if a judge thinks it’s feasible. That seems impractical.

Legislative leaders told the governor last week that the Delta Legislature was a failure. He pushed her anyway, but finally gave up on Monday.

The remainder of the infrastructure acceleration package was left to further negotiations.

Newsom could still have some wins in the end. But at the delta the old left-hander was hit and should never have taken the hill.

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People fishing in Elk Slough in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta near Courtland.

To paraphrase Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry in the 1973 classic Magnum Force, a governor must know his limits.

Even a governor with little political opposition and a very friendly, usually cooperative legislature has limits to power.

This time Governor Gavin Newsom may have found his limits. Key lawmakers are fighting back against his late-introduced law to expedite construction of a highly controversial water tunnel under the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

As is his pattern, Newsom attempts to squeeze through legislation at the last minute, denying lawmakers and the public adequate time to evaluate and discuss the proposal. This really gets on the nerves of lawmakers, whether they are leaders or backbenchers.

“It feels disrespectful to him [legislative] process,” said State Senator Susan Talamantes Eggman, D-Stockton, at a Senate committee hearing on the governor’s proposal this month.

“To try to do something like this at the last minute on such a controversial issue is so inappropriate,” said Rep. Carlos Villapudua, D-Stockton.

Newsom waited until May 19 to propose outline infrastructure legislation for lawmakers to pass within five weeks as part of the annual state budget. What he proposes has nothing to do with the budget. But he can hold lawmakers’ favorite budget items hostage to their votes for his proposal

Newsom proposed a sweeping package of 11 bills that would facilitate the construction of clean energy, transportation and water projects, including the Delta Tunnel.

This would be achieved essentially by reducing environmental protection. Lawsuits filed under the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970 would have to be completed within 270 days unless a judge determines it is impracticable. Such lawsuits can drag on for years.

Governors have tried for six decades to build this project in some form, but have been repulsed by grassroots activists or state voters.

The delta is California’s most important water hub, serving 27 million people and irrigating 3 million hectares.

“It’s the backbone of our state’s water system,” says Wade Crowfoot, secretary of the state agency for natural resources. “We have borrowed time at the Delta. It is highly vulnerable to saltwater intrusion and is at risk of sea rise as a result of climate change. And there is a risk of earthquakes.

Project opponents — particularly Delta residents, including farmers — claim that future saltwater intrusion is one reason the tunnel should not be built. It would siphon water from the fresher northern delta before it could flow through the saltier southern end, as it does now, pushing back the salt water intruding from San Francisco Bay.

The saltier water would be disastrous for Stockton, smaller Delta communities and agriculture, opponents say.

In terms of earthquake risk, no earthquake has ever damaged a dike in the delta and there are no major faults under the estuary. Anyway, couldn’t a major tremor damage an underground tunnel?

The fishing industry and boaters fear that reducing freshwater flow through the delta will decimate salmon stocks and exacerbate toxic algae that clog waterways in summer.

Villapudua authored a letter to Newsom and lawmakers, signed by 10 lawmakers from both parties, asking for the tunnel project to be removed from the governor’s package.

“It wasn’t very wise to include the delta,” says Sen. John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, a former natural resources secretary who helped persuade the then-governor to consider the delta. Jerry Brown’s failed twin tunnel project.

“A $16 billion project like [the tunnel] is likely to have a significant impact on a large, ecologically sensitive and important area. Something of this magnitude should not be rushed through an environmental assessment process.”

Oh yeah. The Cost: Virtually everyone knows that the price for this 45-mile, 39-foot-wide tunnel would be much higher than advertised. And so far there isn’t even any funding for it. Water users would pay.

Newsom should listen to Dirty Harry.

George Skelton is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times.

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To paraphrase Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry in the 1973 classic Magnum Force, a governor must know his limits.

Even a governor with little political opposition and a very friendly, usually cooperative legislature has limits to power.

This time Governor Gavin Newsom may have found his limits. Key lawmakers are fighting back against his late-introduced law to expedite construction of a highly controversial water tunnel under the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

As is his pattern, Newsom attempts to squeeze through legislation at the last minute, denying lawmakers and the public adequate time to evaluate and discuss the proposal. This really gets on the nerves of lawmakers, whether they are leaders or backbenchers.

“It feels disrespectful to him [legislative] process,” State Senator Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) said at a Senate committee hearing on the governor’s proposal this month.

“To try to do something like this at the last minute on such a controversial issue is so inappropriate,” said Rep. Carlos Villapudua (D-Stockton).

Newsom did so last year and later boasted about his success in blocking lawmakers. Towards the end of his two-year term, the governor sent the legislature an ambitious package of climate action proposals, and most of them passed.

A governor can “block” lawmakers by holding their bills hostage. He could refuse to sign a bill written by a lawmaker who votes against his proposal. By waiting long enough for a governor to submit his bills to the legislature, he also greatly reduces the time opponents have to organize opposition.

That year, Newsom waited until May 19 to propose a draft infrastructure bill, which he was scheduled to pass by lawmakers within five weeks as part of the annual state budget. What he proposes has nothing to do with the budget. But he can hold lawmakers’ favorite budget items hostage to their votes for his proposal

In addition, the governor’s legislation can be enshrined in budget “trailer” legislation that does not require scrutiny by policy committees.

Newsom proposed a sweeping package of 11 bills that would facilitate the construction of clean energy, transportation and water projects, including the Delta Tunnel.

This would be achieved essentially by reducing environmental protection. Lawsuits filed under the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970 would have to be completed within 270 days unless a judge determines it is impracticable. Such lawsuits can drag on for years.

As for the tunnel, the vote required for approval by a key Delta oversight committee would be reduced. Protection for endangered wintering cranes would be relaxed. And the role of local interests in the design of the tunnel would be weakened, they fear.

Governors have tried for six decades to build this project in some form, but have been repulsed by grassroots activists or state voters.

The delta is California’s most important water hub, serving 27 million people and irrigating 3 million hectares.

“It’s the backbone of our state’s water system,” says Wade Crowfoot, secretary of the state agency for natural resources. “We have borrowed time in the Delta. It is highly vulnerable to saltwater intrusion and is at risk of sea rise as a result of climate change. And there is a risk of earthquakes.

“We cannot remain in limbo year after year because of litigation. Let’s figure out how to streamline the litigation and give the tunnel a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

And if it doesn’t work, he says, the state can “go back to the drawing board and take a different approach.”

Project opponents – particularly residents of the delta, including farmers – claim that future saltwater intrusion is one reason the tunnel should not be built. It would siphon water from the fresher northern delta before it could flow through the saline southern end, as it does now, pushing back salt water intruding from San Francisco Bay.

The saltier water would be disastrous for Stockton, smaller Delta communities and agriculture, opponents say.

As for seismic hazard, no earthquake has ever damaged a delta dam and there are no major faults under the estuary. Anyway, couldn’t a major tremor damage an underground tunnel?

The fishing industry and boaters fear that reducing freshwater flow through the delta will decimate salmon stocks and exacerbate toxic algae that clog waterways in summer.

“The whole system collapsed,” says Barry Nelson, advisor to the Golden State Salmon Assn. That’s partly because of the huge fishing pumps in the Southern Delta and government regulations that often deprive baby salmon of strong enough water flow when attempting to migrate to the sea.

“The tunnel would make that possible [state] to dramatically increase pumping capacity from the Sacramento River system and further reduce the salmon population,” says Nelson.

That would depend on how the tunnel is regulated. But the opponents of the tunnel do not trust the state regulatory authorities.

Villapudua authored a letter to Newsom and lawmakers, signed by 10 lawmakers from both parties, asking for the tunnel project to be removed from the governor’s package.

“It wasn’t very wise to include the delta,” says Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), a former natural resources secretary who helped persuade the then-governor to do so. Jerry Brown’s failed twin tunnel project.

“A $16 billion project like [the tunnel] is likely to have a significant impact on a large, ecologically sensitive and important area. Something of this magnitude should not be rushed through an environmental assessment process.”

Oh yeah. The Cost: Virtually everyone knows that the price for this 45-mile, 39-foot-wide tunnel would be much higher than advertised. And so far there isn’t even any funding for it. Water users would pay.

Newsom should listen to Dirty Harry.

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To quote a new report from the Office of the Controller and Economic Analysis in San Francisco, “the advent of the delta variant has stalled aspects of the city’s economic recovery,” with a decrease in the time residents spent outside their homes to have; another drop in office visits; and a decline in sentiment among small businesses and new business registrations that were half the pre-COVID-19 average in the past month.

While the average speed of movement on local highways has increased again during evening commute times, it is still below pre-Covid levels, due to lower use of public transport compared to underlying employment growth.

And as we outlined last week, while the weighted average asking rent for an apartment in the city has increased, the implied vacancy rate in the city has actually increased rather than decreased over the past few weeks, reversing a six-month decrease in inventory. We’ll keep you up to date and stay tuned.

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SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) – San Francisco health officials announced that a mass testing site for COVID-19 will open in the south of the city’s market on Wednesday as cases increase due to the Delta variant.

The 7th and Brannan Street location will have the capacity to run up to 500 tests per day and offer drive-thru and walk-up services, officials said. The website results would be available within 24 to 48 hours.

CONTINUE READING: Suspect arrested in connection with fatal shootings in Vallejo

The SFDPH said the website will only be operational by appointment, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week. The general public can make appointments but are encouraged to get tests from their health care provider first or to purchase rapid home tests.

“We are responding to this fourth surge in COVID-19 by doing what we know works best – and that is vaccinations, indoor masking, and further expanding our testing capabilities with this new, high-volume test facility” said Health Director Dr. Grant Colfax said in a statement.

CONTINUE READING: Small businesses in Santa Clara County offered grants to help reduce the risk of COVID

On August 8, the seven-day average of new cases in San Francisco was 225 per day as the Delta variant drives rising cases, mostly among the unvaccinated. On June 15, when the state fully reopened its economy, the seven-day average was 10.

“We know the most important thing people can do to protect themselves and their friends and family is vaccination, but with the Delta variant here and cases at a higher level than we’d like, testing remains an important one Part of our strategy to slow the spread of this virus, ”Mayor London told Breed on Monday.

Officials said the new test site brings the city’s current testing capacity to about 5,000 tests per day.

MORE NEWS: COVID: Lafayette Art & Wine Festival 2021 canceled due to virus concerns

For dates on the SoMa site and other city-run testing sites, see sf.gov/gettested.

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CUPERTINO (CBS SF) – A surge in COVID cases fueled by the Delta variant is thwarting Silicon Valley companies’ plans to get workers back into offices.

Apple reportedly postponed plans to get most employees back to the office from September to October. Many smaller companies do the same.

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“The first concern is the type of new virus called Delta,” said Bochen Wang, who runs a small financial services startup called Zeitro.

His company only has 15 employees but is grappling with some of the same problems as the tech giants.

“We should be back on July 1st and have postponed our return to the office
plan three months later. Now it will be October or November 1st, ”said Wang.

Google had planned to bring back 60 percent of its employees for a few days a week from September. But now the schedule is in question as the company is observing what is known as a “dynamic” situation.

In the meantime, the City of San Jose is seeking the gradual return of its 6,000 employees and the reopening of the City Hall on August 2nd.

CONTINUE READING: UPDATE: I-80 will reopen after the big rig fire in El Cerrito closed EB lanes for hours

“We are not currently planning to change our current plans,” said spokeswoman Vicki Day.

And this week, Santa Clara County brought back many of its 22,000 employees who were still working from home.

“We prepared ourselves by having the vaccination status of each employee determined,” said District Chairman Dr. Jeff Smith.

Smith said over 90% of the county workers are vaccinated and all
must be masked in all public areas of the district buildings.

But many public and private company employees are in no hurry to get back to the office. They hope to be able to permanently extend work from home for at least a few days a week.

“Your productivity has increased significantly,” said Zeb Feldman, a CEMA Union official who represents 2,000 people in the county.

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“You have been able to work from home successfully and we would like to push employers like the county in that direction,” Feldman said.

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Striper Time … in the delta. Check out this dandy 9 pound striped bass caught by St. Helena angler Eric Titus. It was in the avant-garde of 45 fish they caught that day. He said the conditions were perfect: clear, warm and weak wind.

* Jeff Soo Hoo told us that the West Bank Strip was holding. His client caught and released a 20-pound striper on a rat L-trap in shallow water. Sometimes it was difficult to fish this stretch because a lot of boats came there. Johnny Tran of New Romeos Bait in Freeport reported that garlic spray-coated pileworms, bloodworms, or sardines caught both men and women.

* Get your Delta Fix before the hot weather. The holiday months bring large numbers of recreational boating and high winds that can make the main rivers just too dangerous to fish. The hot days inland create a chimney effect that pushes large amounts of air upwards and draws the sea air directly over San Francisco and through the gaps – directly into the delta. I learned this firsthand from famous professional bass angler and Delta expert Dee Thomas. Stefano Particelli and I fished with Dee in the delta on a hot June day. Dee said, “We’re going to stick with the little cross muds today – those winds will make the big rivers dangerous.” I will never forget this advice.

Clear sea bass … Well, finally, after over a year without water, my fishing partner Doug Roberts and I went bass fishing earlier this month. A few tough little weather events and water temperatures below 60 degrees made it difficult. But our pro guide Bob Myskey (274-0373) put us on 29 fish for our two-day trip. We had to dig deep into his tackle box for these fish; needed Carolina Rigs, Ned Rigs, Drop Shots, and Live Minnows to get the job done. That is the subtle hallmark of a top guide – his willingness to keep trying different baits, baits and locations.

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EVAPCO Selects Delta T Equipment as Commercial HVAC Representative in Southeast Texas 2021-03-24 | Supply House Times

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SAN FRANCISCO, March 23, 2021 / PRNewswire / – The Delta Dental Community Care Foundation and Meals on Wheels San Francisco today announced a partnership to improve the oral health of the Bay Area’s most vulnerable seniors. Meals on Wheels received a grant from $ 500,000 in support of his operations and to start planning for future work.

March, 20th World Oral Health Day is a global campaign encouraging people to “band together to reduce the burden of oral disease”. Seniors face unique oral health challenges, but are a group that is sadly overlooked. Getting older shouldn’t mean living with oral health problems or tooth loss.

“Improving the oral health of older adults is a priority for the Delta Dental Community Care Foundation,” he said Kenzie Ferguson, Vice President for Foundation and Corporate Social Responsibility at Delta Dental von California. “Meals on Wheels by San Francisco is an incredible organization that can help us understand the challenges facing this group and work directly with vulnerable seniors to provide education, resources and services. “

Meals on Wheels already offers special diets for customers who have problems chewing or swallowing. This makes them a natural partner in solving problems related to vulnerable older adults and oral health. The Delta Dental Community Care Foundation aims to find ways to understand oral care challenges in older adults and is working with partners on solutions to remove these barriers.

“We are grateful to have received this scholarship and we applaud Delta Dental for strengthening it during a time of crisis for our vulnerable population of senior citizens living in the city,” he said Ashley McCumber, CEO and Executive Director of Meals on Wheels in San Francisco. “Our partnership will allow us to provide education and other resources to our customers so they can be more proactive about their oral health.”

Proper nutrition is essential to oral and general health, and there are specific links between oral health and food insecurity that make this partnership particularly relevant. Food insecurity is associated with an increased risk of dental caries, which causes tooth decay. On the other end of the spectrum, missing teeth or other conditions that cause mouth and jaw pain make eating difficult and affect the ability to eat properly.

March is March for Meals Month – a time when local Meals on Wheels programs across the country are recognizing the re-approval of the Older Americans Act of 1972, which paved the way for funding for nutrition programs for seniors. The programs, including San Francisco, invite local, state and federal officials to deliver meals to seniors’ homes while raising awareness of food insecurity issues that older adults face on a daily basis.

More activities have been added due to concerns about COVID-19, including sending maps, making phone calls, and holding Zoom meetings with local and state officials. Delta Dental has provided Meals on Wheels customers with 4000 dental kits and sent around 1000 cards with them in mind.

Via the Delta Dental Community Care Foundation

The Delta Dental Community Care Foundation works with local communities to improve access to care, support dental education, and fund research that advances the field of oral health. Since 2011, the foundation has more than awarded $ 60 million in 15 states and DC The foundation is the philanthropic arm of Delta Dental of California and its affiliates, including Delta Dental Insurance Company, Delta Dental of Pennsylvania and Delta Dental from new York, Inc.

Media contact:

Tami Holzman
[email protected]
415-216-4367

SOURCE Delta Dental Community Care Foundation

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