berkeley - SFist - San Francisco News, Restaurants, Events, & Sports

Police Arrest SF Man After Gunfire Incidents Near UC Berkeley, Discover Arsenal In His Home

The Berkeley Police Department has arrested a San Francisco man in connection with multiple shooting incidents on October 26 in which no one was reportedly injured. And when they served a warrant at his home, they found a lot of weapons.

Bay Area Sports

ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ Coming to Berkeley Saturday for Big Cal Game

The Cal Golden Bears will be in the national spotlight Saturday as ESPN’s ‘College GameDay’ will be broadcast live from Berkeley for the first time ever, but if you want to get your sign on TV, you better get there by 6 am.

City of Berkeley Approves Deal With BART for New Housing Development at Ashby Station

Berkeley's city council this week voted to approve a long-delayed deal to authorize BART to move forward with building hundreds of new housing units on the parking lot property at Ashby Station.

Even In Liberal Berkeley, Aggressive Encampment Sweeps Set to Begin

A ruling by the Supreme Court allowing cities to crack down on illegal camping without necessarily providing shelter to the unhoused has even brought Berkeley's city council around to approving more unfettered encampment sweeps.

SF Restaurants, Food & Drink

This Weekend’s Bizerkeley Food Fest Set to Serve Up ‘Meat Eater-Approved Vegan Food’

The Bay Area’s big Labor Day weekend street fair will be Sunday’s fourth annual Bizerkeley Food Fest, with samples and delicious dishes galore of eats “made by vegans for a meat eater's tastebuds.”

Humpday Headlines: Early Morning Fire Destroys Berkeley Commercial Building

Two early morning fires in two days destroy commercial buildings in the East Bay; a man at the center of the BBQ Becky video has died; and SF's Castro Street is set to lose some palm trees.

'Scholar-Activist' Indicted By Grand Jury for Arsons at UC Berkeley; Arson Attempt at Oakland Federal Building Comes to Light

Casey Goonan, the 34-year-old self-described "scholar-activist" who was arrested last month in connection with a series of small arson fires on the UC Berkeley campus that appeared to be Gaza-related acts of protest, has now been indicted by a federal grand jury.

East Bay 'Scholar-Activist' Arrested for UC Berkeley Arson Incidents That Were Possibly Linked to Pro-Palestinian Protest

A 34-year-old man was arrested Monday in connection with multiple arson incidents and the firebombing of a campus police vehicle at UC Berkeley, and these may have been acts of protest over the university's treatment of pro-Palestinian protesters.

Bay Area Sports

83-Year-Old Golden Gate Fields Has Run Its Last Race, Closed Permanently on Sunday

The Berkeley-Albany horse-racing track Golden Gate Fields, the last full-time horse-race track in Northern California, ran its last race ever on Sunday as the facility is now closed permanently. And no one has any idea what will happen next to those 140 acres.

Housing Moves Forward at People's Park After State Supreme Court Rejects 'People as Pollution' Argument

The California Supreme Court has ruled in favor of UC Berkeley and against a neighborhood group in a lawsuit that was testing the boundaries of the state's environmental review laws for new developments.

Number of Homeless In Berkeley Drops 45% In Promising Sign; Oakland's Number Still On the Rise, Though

The number of unsheltered homeless people in Berkeley dropped by nearly half in the two years between the biennial point-in-time homeless censuses in 2022 and 2024, according to a preliminary report.

Berkeley Protesters Have Broken Into and Occupied Empty Building In Renewed Pro-Palestine Protest

Just after UC Berkeley had successfully cleared the large tent encampment that was protesting the university's military- and Israel-related investments, another renegade group has occupied the school's empty Anna Head Hall, though their anti-semitic graffiti may not be helping their cause.

Berkeley Schools Superintendent Denies Widespread Antisemitism Claims, But Says 'Our Babies Sometimes Say Harmful Things'

Enikia Ford Morthel, superintendent of the Berkeley Unified School District, was one of three leaders from liberal public school districts called to testify before a congressional committee today.

Berkeley Schools Superintendent Called to Testify Before Congressional Committee Over Antisemitism Claims

Much like the presidents of Harvard, UPenn, and Columbia have in recent months, the superintendent of the Berkeley Unified School District is being called to testify before a Republican-led House committee.

UC Berkeley Gaza Solidarity Encampment Grows to 175 Tents; Violence Breaks Out at UCLA Protest

The college campus protests sweeping the nation have of course also swept UC Berkeley, with an estimated 175 tents now pitched at Sproul Plaza — up from just a dozen last week — and classes have been canceled at UCLA today amidst an outbreak of violence at that school’s protest.

Berkeley-Born Israeli Hostage Appears to Still Be Alive, After 201 Days, In Newly Released Video

Berkeley native Hersh Goldberg-Polin was taken hostage in Israel on October 7 and even had his arm blown off in the process, but a new-proof-of-life video from Hamas, which appears to have been shot Wednesday, shows him very much alive.

Arts & Entertainment

Photos: Two Baby Falcon Chicks Hatch on Berkeley Falcon Cam, and on Earth Day to Boot

That’s two newborn baby falcons just after hatching beneath their mom Annie atop the Berkeley Campanile on Monday morning, and two more little hatchlings are expected to bust out of their shells in the days to come.

Berkeley To Repeal Natural Gas Ban, Probably Because the Courts Are Forcing Them To

After a lawsuit for the California Restaurant Association, that group says the City of Berkeley is going to repeal their ban on natural gas in new buildings that went into effect in 2020.

Berkeley Mother Allegedly Stabbed and Killed by Her Own Daughter While Daughter Was Having Mental Health Episode

A 60-year-old Berkeley woman was stabbed and killed Sunday afternoon in her University Avenue apartment, and her 23-year old daughter who reportedly has mental health issues is in custody on murder charges.

Day Around the Bay: Berkeley to Return Two-Acre Plot of Land to Ohlone People

A stretch of I-680 in Pleasanton will be closed for repairs this weekend; Girl Scout Cookie season is being extended for another week; and Berkeley is returning a sacred plot of land to the Ohlone people.

State Supreme Court Set to Hear Berkeley People's Park Development Case, Rule on 'People as Pollution'

The California Supreme Court has now set a date to hear arguments in an appeal that has been holding up development of the People's Park site in Berkeley for over a year.

Activists Paint Street Mural Around Shipping Containers at Berkeley’s People’s Park, Get Harassed by Security

A group opposing the housing complex being put up in People’s Park used their Super Bowl Sunday to paint a street mural around the shipping containers barricading the park, and you’d better believe there was a contentious brush with campus police.

People's Park Once Again to Become Flashpoint of Protest as UC Berkeley Moves to Wall It Off

We are likely to see another few days of protest at Berkeley's People's Park, after campus and city police descended Wednesday night to execute an elaborate operation in which 160 shipping containers are to be used to wall off the park on all sides.

Berkeley's Ban On Gas-Powered Appliances Once Again Blocked By Ninth Circuit

On Tuesday, the Ninth Circuit issued a ruling denying an "en banc" rehearing of a case that was decided by a three-judge panel of the court last April, blocking Berkeley's ban on natural gas appliances in new construction.

It’s a ‘Banner Year for Baby Newts’ as Newt Crossing Season is in Full Swing in Bay Area

Berkeley is the kind of city where they will shut down roads to create a safe newt crossing zone, and the newt enthusiasts’ efforts may be paying off, as people say they’re seeing “twice the number of baby newts this year than we had last year.”