• After 18 years in business, the beloved Uptown neighborhood eatery is set to close on January 29 due to failed lease negotiations. The landlord that oversees the property has essentially doubled the rent for Luka's Taproom, making it financially unsustainable for the restaurant — which was founded in 2004 and has since also led the restaurant collective called Community Kitchens that serves meals to unhoused Oakland residents — to renew its lease at the end of the month; the cocktail bar and no-frills burger bastion is expected to hold a large, celebratory event in late January. [Hoodline]
  • Booster shot eligibility has been expanded to cover kids between 12 to 15 years old in Solano County. “With the surge of COVID-19 cases after the holiday season, we urge community members to get vaccinated and receive their booster shot, if eligible,” said Bela T. Matyas, M.D., M.P.H., Solano County Public Health Officer on the update, adding that “vaccination remains the most effective method for fighting the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, especially with the spread of the Omicron and Delta variants in our community.” [KRON4]
  • The San Francisco Ballet has announced its 89th repertory season gala — which is set to be the company’s first in-person gala in two years — has been postponed two months to March 24… because of Omicron. [SF Examiner]
  • A rancher in Contra Costa County was killed by a bull on Thursday, and the bull was apparently then shot by police after it threatened first responders. [Chronicle]
  • In case you need a reminder: Now's the time to swap your cloth face coverings for N95 masks, quarantining for 10 days seems to still be the appropriate amount of time for a symptomatic coronavirus infection, and unlike past variants: Omicron can produce a positive PCR COVID-19 test result in as little as three days. [Oaklandside]
  • UC Berkeley students continue pushing for remote learning as the January 18 semester start date looms. [ABC7]
  • Children too young to receive a COVID-19 vaccine are being hospitalized at an alarming rate across the country. [Associated Press]
  • Though Omicron is believed to be "milder" than past VOCs, its highly infectious nature has, again, placed New York hospitals on the brink of collapse — some healthcare safety-nets already being severely strained as COVID-19 case counts still rise to new highs. [New York Times]

Photo: Getty Images/Ralph Navarro