Thursday a Cruise robotaxi drove through a green light in front of an oncoming firetruck “with its forward facing red lights and siren on, the San Francisco Police Department said in a statement to Reuters.” The San Francisco Chronicle adds that the Cruise vehicle’s passenger “passenger was treated on the scene and shared taken in an ambulance to a hospital, though the company said the injuries were ‘non-severe.’ The company added in an email to the Chronicle that the passenger was on the scene walking around and talking to emergency responders before being taken to the hospital.”

By Friday California’s Department of Motor Vehicles said it was investigating the “concerning incidents,” according to TechCrunch. But it adds that the AV-regulating agency also “called for Cruise to reduce its fleet by 50% and have no more than 50 driverless vehicles in operation during the day and 150 driverless vehicles in operation at night until the investigation is complete.

Cruise told TechCrunch it is complying with the request. Cruise also issued a blog post giving the company’s perspective of how and why the crash occurred.
Cruise’s blog post points out the firetruck was unexpectedly in the oncoming lane of traffic that night. But meanwhile, elsewhere in the city…

The same night, a Cruise car collided with another vehicle at 26th and Mission streets. The company said another driverless car, which had no passengers, entered the intersection on a green light when another car ran a red light at high speed. The driverless car detected the other car and braked, according to Cruise, but the two cars still collided…

The collisions came a day after city officials asked state regulators to halt their approval of robotaxi companies’ unrestricted commercial expansion in the city, citing concerns about how the robotaxis’ behavior impacts emergency responders.
Last weekend Cruise was also criticized after “as many as 10 Cruise driverless taxis blocked two narrow streets,” reports the Los Angeles Times:

Human-driven cars sat stuck behind and in between the robotaxis, which might as well have been boulders: no one knew how to move them…. The cars sat motionless with parking lights flashing for 15 minutes, then woke up and moved on, witnesses said.
Cruise “blamed cellphone carriers for the problem,” according to the article — arguing that a music festival overloaded the cellphone network they used to communicate with their vehicles.

Thanks to Slashdot reader jjslash for sharing the story.

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It’s hard for 79-year-old concierge Thomas Wolfe to move through San Francisco’s historic Fairmont Hotel without a tale of celebrity or bit of high society gossip popping into his mind. 

A passing dog reminds him of when Lassie’s trainer, Rudd Weatherwax, stayed in the 1907 Beaux-Arts landmark. A settee prompts him to tell the tale of Vogue’s André Leon Talley taking up the entire piece of furniture with an expansive gown. 

“When they told me royalty was going to be here,” Wolfe told the famous fashion journalist, “I didn’t realize it was going to be you.” 

Wolfe, celebrating five decades of service, has cared for actual royalty (when he met the Queen Mother at the Ritz Carlton in London he knew “exactly what to do”) and celebrities ranging from Marlene Dietrich and Ivana Trump to Bob Hope and Tony Bennett. The Fairmont has been the choice of every president from William Howard Taft to Joe Biden. But a concierge doesn’t take care of only the rich and famous. 

Concierge Thomas Wolfe, left, speaks with guests Carole Quin, center, and Peter Quin, right, at The Fairmont, in San Francisco. | Source: Jeremy Chen/The Standard

The etymology of “concierge” is Latin for “fellow slave,” and the duty of a concierge is to “be subservient almost to a fault,” said Elizabeth Wilson, administrator of the prestigious Les Clefs d’Or society for elite members of the profession.  

Not every concierge receives the distinction of entry to the Les Clefs d’Or (it’s more difficult to become a member of the group than to get a job at the FBI, people have told Wilson), but everyone in the field aspires to it. Now with 44 member countries in the organization, Wolfe set up the American chapter himself as the first representative of the profession in the U.S. 

“He is a treasure,” said Evan Baker, director of communications at Les Clefs d’Or. “No concierge in the USA would be where we are today without him.” 

The proof of a Les Clefs d’Or concierge is the organization’s signature pin—two crossed golden keys in honor of both its name (it means golden keys in French) and the profession itself, since concierges used to be the ones to keep the keys for Medieval castles, the only ones trusted with access to all rooms. 

Wolfe greets every person who passes by with a smile and a cordial greeting. For him, there’s nothing more important than showing people they are valued—something everyone needs but which can feel in short supply these days. 

“It’s not just taking care of the guests,” Wolfe said. “But all the people who are around you.” 

The Art of a Concierge  

Everything about Wolfe makes you feel like you’re interacting with a character in a Wes Anderson movie—more specifically, M. Gustave in The Grand Budapest Hotel. Wolfe sports bright red glasses and long coattails; he has a half-Chihuahua, half-Greyhound service dog named Chanel; he cracks witticisms and inside jokes. 

Wolfe landed his first hotel job as a humble desk clerk in Washington, D.C., before moving on to a similar position in 1967 at a swankier venue: the Ritz Carlton in London. It was there that he first fell in love with the job of concierge, a position that didn’t yet exist in the U.S. 

“I was amazed by his great style, by the way he carried himself,” Wolfe said of the concierge he met in London. “I thought to myself, I’ve got to have this job, this is the job for me.” 

But he soured on the idea after learning how long it could take to become a concierge—as much as 18 years—and moved to San Francisco in 1973, lured by the sophistication and quality of life in the city.  

Within a month of his new job at the stately Fairmont, hotel owner Richard Swig told him of his dream: building the first concierge program in the United States. Swig said he wanted Wolfe to start it, in part because of his European experience.  

“That’s not opportunity knocking,” Wolfe said. “That’s opportunity smashing the door down.” 

Concierge Thomas Wolfe types on an old typewriter at his desk in The Fairmont. | Source: Jeremy Chen/The Standard

That wasn’t the only time Wolfe seemingly manifested his reality, according to his recollections. After Donald Trump bought the Plaza Hotel in 1988, Wolfe heard Ivana Trump—who was in charge of managing the new acquisition—talking on television about her vision for Manhattan’s most famous hotel. 

She wanted the best of everything, including the “best concierge in the country.” Wolfe took note, and he eventually wrote a letter to Ivana Trump in the language the family understood: highly self-confident. 

He referred to The Plaza in flowery terms, calling it the “jewel of Fifth Avenue,” and then he staked his claim: “You said you wanted the best concierge in the country,” Wolfe wrote. “Mrs. Trump, I am that man.” 

Wolfe sent off the letter almost as a joke, assuming it would never reach her and that it was more likely to end up in a dumpster, unopened. 

Four days later, he received a call from the Plaza. Ivana wanted to know how quickly he could get there. Two weeks later he flew to New York City for what he thought was a job interview, but upon arrival, he was told where his desk would be—he already had the job.

Wolfe worked at the Plaza for five years, where he fielded some off-the-wall requests. Once a business magnate from Switzerland demanded a Ferrari GTO, one of the rarest cars in the world. 

The concierge didn’t miss a beat. He asked: “Do you have a color preference, sir?” Wolfe’s love of cars (the concierge drives a black MGB sports car) came in handy—he procured it for the hotel guest by the end of the day. 

Concierge Thomas Wolfe poses for a portrait in front of his 1980 MG MGB Limited Edition car at The Fairmont. | Source: Jeremy Chen/The Standard

Wolfe has also been on the receiving end of some good fortune, thanks to his position. Of all the celebrities Wolfe has met, Tony Bennett remains one of his favorites. When the beloved baritone came to San Francisco for the 50th anniversary of his legendary song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco,” Wolfe received a surprise call after he had left work. 

The announcer for Bennett’s show had laryngitis, and the Fairmont’s manager had a request: could Wolfe, with his radio announcer voice, step in to introduce Bennett in the Venetian Room, where the singer had first crooned his famous San Francisco-themed ballad? Of course, Wolfe said yes. 

“That’s it,” he later told his wife. “I’ve done everything now.” 

It’s not all glitz and glamor—Wolfe is also part security person at the Fairmont, attending to some of the more quotidian duties of the job. Walking through the hotel’s elegant lobby, he tells a guest to get their feet off a coffee table and chides children for playing with the revolving door. He takes care of the grande dame just as he does his guests—all of this wouldn’t exist without her. 

Concierge Thomas Wolfe poses for a portrait at The Fairmont, in San Francisco on Wednesday, August 9, 2023. | Source: Jeremy Chen/The Standard

While Wolfe has handled the fabulously wealthy for five decades—from London and Tokyo to New York and San Francisco, once rolling out a (literal) red carpet for the diva Marlene Dietrich all the way from her room to the service elevator to the stage and then rolling it up again—he demurs when asked what it’s like to have intimate access to such elite characters. 

“No matter who it is, we’re just a couple of people here,” he said. 

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WASHINGTON — A 32-year-old man in Washington, DC told police he beheaded a handyman and cut off his arms before dumping some of his remains in the backyard of his apartment building, authorities said.

According to court documents filed Thursday, police said Lavaughn Barnes confessed to putting the victim’s head, arms and personal documents in a garbage bag, the Washington Post reported. According to the newspaper, prosecutors said the bag was picked up by city cleaners and taken to a landfill.

On February 3, Metropolitan Police Department officers discovered the remaining human remains in the yard behind a semi-detached house in the Brookland neighborhood of the city’s northeast. According to the Post, Barnes lived in the basement.

According to police, Barnes was arrested Wednesday in connection with the death of Abdulio Arias-Lopez, whose remains were found in the bag and in the yard, WJLA-TV reported. According to the television station, he was charged with second-degree murder.

According to court documents, Arias-Lopez showed Barnes paint he intended to use in the duplex’s kitchen. As Arias-Lopez walked away, Barnes reportedly followed him and pointed a stun gun to his back, WJLA reported.

Documents show Barnes confessed to stabbing Arias-Lopez twice before taking his body to the basement, according to the TV network. Barnes then allegedly said he went to a hardware store to buy an ax, which he used to chop up the handyman.

Police said the coroner had not determined a cause of death, but there was evidence the victim had stab wounds and was shot, the Post reported. Police said the remains found were skeletons and “mummified,” according to the newspaper.

Forest experts estimated that Arias-Lopez’s remains had been at the residence since November.

Police say the remains were found after Barnes’ sister told him on February 3 to clear the bamboo overgrowth in the garden, the Post reported. According to court documents, Barnes told his sister he found human remains and they both called police, the newspaper reported.

Police conducted a search of the property and continued their investigation, but Barnes reportedly called authorities on Wednesday and confessed to the killing, WRC-TV reported.

Officers using cadaver dogs found evidence of blood in the basement where Barnes lived, as well as on the back door of the basement and the back porch of the semi-detached house, the Post reported.

Police said they also found a machete, a large fixed-blade knife, four jackknives, brass knuckles, a stun gun, a drain cover, kitchen knives and cleaning supplies.

At a hearing in DC Superior Court Thursday, Barnes’ attorney Anthony Matthews argued police had “no probable cause” to charge his client, the Post reported. He also questioned the credibility of his statements to investigators, calling them “suspicious at best.”

But Judge Renee Raymond ordered Barnes detained pending a March 29 hearing.

“It seems incredibly random,” Raymond said. “The deceased happened to be there. The additional step of decapitating the deceased and removing his limbs—for no reason that Mr. Barnes himself can identify—makes it clear that there is no condition, or combination of conditions, that can reasonably ensure the safety of the community. “

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An 81-year-old San Francisco resident was told she had to leave her home.

As the San Francisco Chronicle first reported, a note was posted on the door of Rosemarie Benter’s Page Street condo on April 20, telling her she had three days to vacate the premises.

Benter said she bought her home decades ago, but a loan she took out to pay her property taxes created a chain of problems that led to her home being sold in a foreclosure sale. Benter told NBC Bay Area that she will not go out without a fight.

An 81-year-old San Francisco woman has been told she must vacate the home she has lived in for more than three decades. Kris Sanchez reports.

“Yes, I’m a tough old bird,” said Benter on Sunday.

Benter said she has lived in the Victorian home in San Francisco’s Upper Haight for more than three decades. She explained that she was able to initially own the house on a “joint lease” and then retain ownership when the unit was split into condominiums.

Benter said she took out a reverse mortgage on her property back in 2007.

Currently, Benter said, she’s dealing with a variety of health issues, including arthritis and the effects of a recent stroke. In July 2021, Benter said she sought help paying for her healthcare costs and property taxes. Benter said she was put in touch with a realtor who pressured her to sign papers to use her home to take out a loan.

Originally, Benter said she was told the loan would be $8,000, but the loan turned out to be more than $9,000 and then went up to over $13,000, including interest and fees.

“I was repeatedly told, ‘No, no, no, no one is going to kick you out for an eight thousand dollar bill,'” Benter said.

Then, in February 2023, Benter said, “There was a knock on my door, I think it was around 11 a.m., and the man said, ‘Hi, I’m here to repossess your house.'”

“And I said, ‘What do you mean?'” Benter recalled, “he said, ‘If you don’t have thirteen thousand dollars to pay this debt, it’s going to be sold in 29 minutes.'”

Benter said her home was sold at a foreclosure sale to the highest bidder.

An attorney for the buyer released a statement to NBC Bay Area on Monday.

“My client’s intention is to reside in this property, but if Ms. Benter wishes to buy it back, my client is willing to negotiate,” said attorney Joanna Kozubal.

Darren Orr, an attorney with the nonprofit Legal Aid for the Elderly of San Francisco, is now representing Benter. Orr explained that Benter contacted the nonprofit after the foreclosure sale and his team attempted to reverse the foreclosure, which they believe was based on a “completely unscrupulous and predatory loan.”

Benter said she was surprised to find the eviction notice on her door on Friday. She said whoever delivered the notification didn’t call her or ring her doorbell to let her know. Benter only found out about this from a reporter.

The statement states, “Eugene Gardner has acquired the property by escrow and title to the property has been duly completed.” The notice is signed by Kozubal.

Benter said when she saw the news, she panicked. “I was like, ‘This is it, Monday morning they’re going to show up with a sheriff and a truck and get me out of here.'”

But Orr explained that the scenario Benter envisioned was unlikely to materialize Monday, and that several other procedural steps would have to happen before Benter could be formally deported.

“Legally, we would expect that [Gardner] will seek eviction and unlawful detention to try to evict Ms. Benter as soon as possible. We will of course defend Ms. Benter in this lawsuit and we certainly hope to be successful in that,” Orr said.

On Monday, Orr said Benter will file a lawsuit against the broker and lender she worked with, as well as the new buyer. He said this lawsuit will prompt the court to find Benter as the rightful owner of the condo and seek damages for the damage caused to her.

Benter said she still hopes she can spend the rest of her life in her home.

If that’s not possible, she has no idea what she’s going to do.

“I can’t live on the streets and afford nothing,” she stressed.

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Tesla will be relocating its headquarters from the Bay Area to Austin, Texas at some point in the near future, and CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to take another blow at San Francisco on his way out.

In response to a Fox News article about a special Tuesday election in Austin to restore law enforcement funding after it was cut last summer, Musk tweeted, “Austin should be his city, not a copycat in San Francisco.”

Austin should be his city, not an imitator of San Francisco

– Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2021

Interestingly, after the George Floyd protests last summer, Austin went much further than San Francisco in “police discovery”.

In August 2020, Austin City Council decided to cut $ 150 million from its $ 434 police budget in 2021 – while San Francisco cut $ 80 million over two years. San Francisco has an annual police budget of around $ 700 million, meaning SF saw a 6% annual drop in police funding while Austin saw a whopping 35% drop.

Homicides have increased year over year in both cities, with Austin seeing a much larger increase (71%, according to the Fox News article) than San Francisco (5%, according to the city’s crime dashboard). Because homicides are the least likely to go unreported, some view statistics as the best measure of a city’s rising crime rate.

In response to rising murder rates and a Texas law signed by Governor Greg Abbott punishing cities that cut police budgets, Austin City Council voted in August to bring funding back to pre-summer 2020 levels.

The special elections on Tuesday will take place on a separate voting measure called Proposition A, in which the city would have to employ two police officers per 1,000 residents and provide incentives to hire officials who speak other languages ​​in addition to English.

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Septum. 02/23/2021, 12:38 am

• App-based cleaning platform incorrectly classifies workers, the city says
• Handy argues that an injunction would force a change in the business model

Handy Technologies Inc. must begin treating its workers as employees immediately because the app-based Handyman platform cannot demonstrate that it meets the requirements to be classified as an independent contractor under California law, the San prosecutor said Francisco with a state judge on Wednesday.

The city sued Handy in March for its worker grading practices. In May, San Francisco filed for an injunction, arguing that under California’s strict Worker Status Act, Assembly Bill 5, workers who use the cell phone platform are white-collar workers.

Handy exercises a great deal of control over its “pros,” the city claimed in its briefing, including a request to …

Maeve Allsup

Legal Rapporteur

© 2021 The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.

All rights reserved

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MENDOCINO (AP) – Tourists flock to the seaside town of Mendocino by the thousands for its Victorian homes and cliff walkways, but visitors this summer will also find public portable toilets and signs on picket fences asking, “Severe drought. Please save water. “

Hotels closed their lobby toilets and residents stopped watering their gardens in the misty outpost about 150 miles north of San Francisco after two years of little rain drained many of the wells Mendocino depends on for drinking water.

Mendocino’s water problems were exacerbated in recent weeks when the town of Fort Bragg a few miles further north – its main reserve water supplier – notified officials that its drinking water reserves had also plummeted after the Noyo River reached its lowest flow in decades.

“This is a real emergency,” said Ryan Rhoades, superintendent of the Mendocino City Community Services District, who helps manage the water in the city’s aquifer.

Eric Hillesland and his wife would normally not have to buy water until the end of July or August to supply the Alegria Inn, their 10-room bed and breakfast right on the ocean. But the estate’s well began pumping little water earlier in the year, and by February they were ordering 3,500 gallons (13,250 liters) a week.

Then the couple stopped watering the gardens and switched from glass to paper plates to serve welcome cookies. You plan to use microfiber sheets that use less water to wash.

“We also ask our guests to be aware of the severity of our water shortage and not to take the long showers they are used to at home,” said Hillesland.

Mendocino relies on groundwater, accessible through a network of around 400 private wells, many of which were hand dug when the former mill town was founded in the 1850s. Local residents and business owners keep their water in storage tanks, including some on historic redwood water towers.

Signs warn visitors of the severe drought in Mendocino on Wednesday 4th August 2021. Tourists flock to the quaint seaside town of Mendocino for its Victorian homes and cliff walkways, but visitors will also find portable public toilets and dozens of picket fences this summer announcing the quaint Northern California hamlet: “Severe drought, please save water.” (AP Photo / Haven Daley)

The city has about 1,000 residents, but its economy depends on about 2,000 people visiting daily during the high season from May to October, Rhoades said.

Traditionally, companies had to fetch water in autumn. But after a second dry winter, many had to order much earlier than before.

Due to the pandemic and stay-at-home orders, there were few visitors last year when townspeople noticed their fountains were producing less. The Bay Area and Sacramento weekend getaway is now teeming with guests.

This has forced local residents and business owners to find sources of drinking water further away, which has doubled the price of water. Some restaurants are reducing their opening hours to save costs.

In February, Hillesland paid $ 300 for a delivery of 3,500 gallons (13,250 liters). Now it costs $ 600.

If things get worse and they need to start closing rooms, “then we are in a situation like the beginning of the pandemic – no income but still plenty of mortgages and insurance,” he said.

Many longer-term solutions are being considered, including providing water by barge, plane, and train, and adding community storage tanks up to 500,000 gallons (1.9 million liters), with the U.S. National Guard or Army Corps of engineers are being asked to set up a mobile desalination plant and even mist detection. But all of them are expensive, and the city needs state and federal government support, Rhoades said.

A company that had developed a new technology to detect moisture in fog suggested setting up a free test site in Mendocino and selling the water to the community. However, Rhoades said the infrastructure would detract from the city’s scenic views and getting a permit would be a challenge. A desalination plant would face similar licensing and environmental hurdles.

“Transporting treated water from an inland source could be a faster solution, even if it is expensive,” he said.

Robert Pinoli, president of the Mendocino Railway, which operates the historic Skunk Train, said he was ready to help. The Willits train has been traveling through redwood forests and river canyons to Fort Bragg since 1885.

Pinoli said he could quickly find tank cars, attach them to the locomotive, and deliver up to 200,000 gallons (757,000 liters) per trip. He identified a source for tank trucks in 2015 when Fort Bragg was experiencing a water shortage and was considering buying inland water to transport it to the coast. Officials scratched these plans after it rained.

He said that if Willits decides to sell his water and Fort Bragg chooses to buy it, “we will become a logical vehicle for moving water on a fairly large scale.”

Willits officials recently decided against selling their water to the parched city.

Right now, Mendocino residents rely on people like Brian Clark, who sells water from his well outside of town and transports it by truck. Clark said he couldn’t keep up with demand.

“I really hide from the phone because I get a lot more calls than I have water and I hear from people I have never met, never heard from, and who I cannot help,” he said.

Clark, a longtime resident, said Mendocino hadn’t had such water retention issues since the 1970s, when California experienced the worst drought ever.

District officials’ short-term solutions include waiving the permit requirements for storage tanks that can hold up to 5,000 gallons (18,900 liters) and identifying wells with excess water near Mendocino. Officials are also asking the state to help fund the larger private tanks, Rhoades said.

“Now, while their wells are reasonably productive, I want residents to be able to store more water to survive the next four months. And when you have to buy water, you get the best bang for your buck, ”he said.

© Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Seyfarth Synopsis. On December 18, 2020, San Francisco imposed a 10-day quarantine on most people traveling or returning to the city for more than 24 hours. The order does not apply to travel within the larger Bay Area or to certain visitors, including those who stay no longer than 24 hours, those seeking medical treatment, and those coming into town to provide essential services. While the regulation does not require employers to monitor their employees’ personal journeys, the order does require employers to prohibit workers from returning to work if they become aware of the journey. Any non-working time due to this travel quarantine is regulated by the employer’s existing leisure time guidelines. The order is valid until at least January 4, 2021. Fortunately, the order is unlikely to affect a famous traveler on December 24, unless their sled fails and they have to stay in town for more than 24 hours.

In response to COVID-19-related concerns about vacation travel, San Francisco has issued a mandatory quarantine order for many people traveling in and out of the city. The order runs from December 18, 2020 to January 4, 2021 and requires most people to travel to the city for more than 24 hours or return home after 10 days of quarantine. While affected individuals may leave home to be tested for COVID-19, a negative test does not shorten the 10-day quarantine period.

Exceptions.

The order makes exceptions for some travelers. For example, this does not apply to:

• People who started their trip before December 18th;
• Individuals who move through San Francisco but do not stay longer than 24 hours; and
• Other Bay Area residents (defined as people from Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, and Sonoma counties).

However, the order encourages residents and individuals in the Bay Area who began traveling before the order went into effect to adhere to the quarantine policy.

For parents and children concerned about the Order’s impact on Santa, the 24-hour exemption is likely to apply to his December 24th work.

The order also excludes a number of key workers and others who come to the city for specific assignments, including:

• Licensed Healthcare Professionals
• Anyone who comes to San Francisco to work in an acute hospital
• Individuals who perform essential government functions or work on essential infrastructure
• People caring for minors, the elderly or people with disabilities
• People receiving medical care
• Individuals asked by their employer to enter the city to work for an essential San Francisco company due to a staff shortage
• Individuals traveling for law enforcement or a court order
• Individuals who are members of professional or university sports teams and who travel for a game
• People who are part of a film production, provided they meet certain requirements

Impact on employers.

The city’s FAQs make it clear that employers may have some responsibilities as part of the ordering process. Corporations are not required to (and cannot under applicable California law) restrict their employees’ personal travel, nor are businesses required to inquire about where their employees have traveled. However, if an employer learns that an employee has traveled outside of the Bay Area, the employer must prohibit the employee from returning to work during the quarantine period.

The appointment does not require companies to approve paid employee quarantine time off. Instead, it deviates from the normal guidelines of an employer. If the employee is entitled to free time under these guidelines, they should be given it. However, if the employee’s conduct or leisure time is contrary to the employer’s normal guidelines, the employee may be disciplined.

Note.

The only companies asked to order are transportation facilities. You must notify incoming travelers by either giving the travelers a copy of the notice accompanying the order or by posting the notice and making periodic announcements.

While hopefully this is a quick caveat, employers should brush up on travel order in San Francisco and be prepared if they learn of employees traveling outside of the Bay Area on vacation.

Seyfarths Workplace Solutions can help you with these and other COVID-19 questions.

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