- San Francisco Unified School District is paying a consulting firm, Alvarez & Marsal, $2.8 million to help resolve an ongoing payroll-system crisis that has left thousands of teachers unpaid or underpaid. Mission Local reports that this was a no-bid contract, and some community members see it as irresponsible to pay one firm $175,000 a week to fix the mistakes of another private contractor, Infosys, which created the broken payroll system. [Mission Local]
- That flooding situation at 100 Van Ness on Tuesday morning was allegedly the work of a completely naked man, building resident Michael Nien, who may or may not have been having a mental episode when he opened a high-pressure firehose valve. Also Nien had recently been posting on Facebook about trying to get the police or building management to address threats he was allegedly receiving by text from another building resident. [SFist / KTVU]
- The man who died after falling into a woodchipper in Menlo Park on Tuesday has been identified as 47-year-old Jesus Contreras Benitez of Redwood City. [KRON4]
- After the New York Times wrote off San Francisco's art scene as dead back in August, local art scene folk are lashing back and saying the scene is alive and well and the Times needs to stop with their SF-bashing bullshit. [Chronicle]
- National Park officials have been trucking water out to drought-stricken Point Reyes, for the thirsty tule elk. [Chronicle]
- L.A.-based Bottom Bunk Sneaker House, a shoe brand run by an ex-con that donates some profits toward helping the formerly incarcerated, is opening a store in Walnut Creek. [Bay Area News Group]
- A new live-action game space for adults has just opened in Berkeley. [Hoodline]
- Regina Spektor has canceled an upcoming Warfield show because she has COVID and says she lost her voice in recent days. [Chronicle]
Photo: Tyler Casey
