Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA) articles from January 2006

Contra Costa Times (Walnut Creek, CA) archives from January 2006

A Texas-sized turnaround: After a recent skid, the Warriors win in Houston for third straight victory.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--HOUSTON -- The hole in the ozone layer is shrinking. And that meteor headed toward the Warriors season suddenly has changed its trajectory. With Saturday's...

Bears serve notice with win over UCLA: No. 11 Bruins are the highest-ranked team Cal has beaten since 1999.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Jonathan Okanes, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--LOS ANGELES -- Raise your hand if you saw this one coming. Yeah, right. Cal pulled off an eye-opener Saturday afternoon, upsetting No. 11 UCLA 68-61 in...

Collins shines, St. Mary's pulls off stunner: Forward scores career-high 31 points to lead the Gaels to an upset win over No. 20 Nevada.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Jennifer Starks, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--MORAGA -- Before taking the floor earlier in the week against Saint Joseph's, St. Mary's College basketball coach Randy Bennett pulled forward Brett Collins aside and...

Dublin City Council members to consider $70 raises.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Sophia Kazmi, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--On Tuesday, Dublin City Council members will consider whether to give themselves a $70 raise. Council members now collect $687.58 a month. The raise would take their...

Fateful turn of events took Lema's life prematurely: The golfer, his pregnant wife and two others died in plane crash.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Ann Tatko-Peterson, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--"It didn't have to happen." Golfer Johnny Potts' words succinctly summed up the 1966 plane accident that took the life of one of the East Bay's best all-time...

Favor low for secular candidates.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Dogen Hannah, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Until almost the last minute, Muhammed Wattan had been willing to buck the trend. The 33-year-old Baghdad resident and Shiite Muslim was determined...

Homeless man's death hits home for his sister.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Karl Fischer and Sara Steffens, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--SAN PABLO -- The year before her brother was killed, he visited only in dreams. Even there, Tim Caravetta proved unpredictable. Wherever her mind...

KB leader addresses housing challenges.
January 1, 2006... Byline: James Temple, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--Los Angeles-based KB Home is one of the nation's largest home builders and one of the East Bay's busiest. The company's South Bay division in Pleasanton is on track...

Learning the art of neon-sign making.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Danielle Samaniego, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--BENICIA -- It's a discipline that shines through everything from Budweiser to the Bates Motel, and is only taught this side of the Mississippi in Benicia. ...

Lema eventually won over Scottish golf fans.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Ann Tatko-Peterson, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--Scottish fans take their golf seriously, which in part explained their cool reception of Tony Lema at the 1964 British Open at St. Andrews. Eventually,...

Raiders are perplexing to the end: Collins and Moss finally click (two TDs), but it's in a losing effort to Giants.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--OAKLAND -- Fans booed Raiders coach Norv Turner in pregame introductions. Those who braved the elements unleashed their vocal cords toward quarterback Kerry Collins...

Raiders fans cook up camaraderie.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Ryan Huff, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--Never mind the miserable Raiders' season, or the gloomy weather or the fact that Saturday night was New Year's Eve. For the Raiders fans who grill in Parking Lot B, it...

Salon on wheels goes to the dogs.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Rowena Coetsee, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--With places to go and three clients waiting in the wings, Dana Coulliard didn't waste a minute. A bedraggled-looking shepherd-mix obediently stood in place as she...

TV show discusses drug use, its effects.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Andrew Becker, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--BRENTWOOD -- While Showtime recently renewed the comedy hit "Weeds" about a suburban mom who supports her family by selling marijuana, another local show that covers...

Top East Bay athletes -- No. 25, Tony Lema.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Ann Tatko-Peterson, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--Tony Lema never had won a major, let alone played storied St. Andrews. Yet, in 1964, he strolled into the British Open just 36 hours before it began. A...

Youths learn lessons on humanity.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Tom Lochner, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 1--An end-of-year camp for children at the Sikh temple of El Sobrante featured music, culture and Punjabi-language classes -- as well as lectures on genocide and other...

No pink slip for Turner_for now.
January 1, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran ALAMEDA, Calif. _ The winds swirled at Raiders headquarters Sunday morning, but they weren't the winds of change thought to be hounding Norv Turner. Yes, folks, Turner remains the coach of the Oakland Raiders. At...

Big salmon run pushes hope of more spawning.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Denis Cuff, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--WALNUT CREEK -- A big salmon run on Walnut Creek for a third consecutive year has buoyed hopes for plans to get fish past barriers to upstream spawning grounds in the...

City owns a hearty connection to beer.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Chris Metinko, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--PLEASANTON -- In a time before all the million-dollar homes, boutique-y downtown shops and SUV-packed roads, Pleasanton's favorable climate -- and an abundance of water...

Council puts hens at top of agenda.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Chris Metinko, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--The Pleasanton City Council will kickoff 2006 by trying to put an end to all the clucking about keeping chickens in the town. About 20 years ago the city made it...

East Bay's first baby of 2006 a surprise at 3 weeks early.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Rowena Coetsee, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--OAKLAND -- Jonathan Michael Tesinsky debuted early Sunday as the East Bay's first baby of 2006. Arriving at 13 minutes after midnight and three weeks ahead of...

HEALTHY HABITS Holistic health system began in Bay Area, spread nationwide.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Judy Silber, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--FREMONT -- Grabbing her walker, Sister Magdalene Robles stood up and pointed straight ahead to the exercise room at On Lok SeniorHealth's center. "There's exercise,"...

Katrina and its aftermath preyed largely on weakest.
January 2, 2006... Byline: John Simerman, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--NEW ORLEANS -- Xavier Bowie, stricken with cancer, couldn't get oxygen for his tank. Thomas Burke, crippled from back pain, couldn't save his Rottweiler, Bobby Lee,...

Marine battalion ready for tour in Iraq.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Tom Lochner, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--ALAMEDA -- Some 180 Bay Area Marines are about to get their first taste of combat in Iraq -- at last. "They're biting at the bit to go," Sgt. Major Enrique Borgzinner...

No obvious culprit for rise in Richmond violence in '05.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Karl Fischer, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--Young black men died at an alarming rate in disputes over turf, respect and money. Too few police officers hopped from call to call as street violence surged in flatland...

No pink slip for Turner -- for now.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--ALAMEDA -- The winds swirled at Raiders headquarters Sunday morning, but they weren't the winds of change thought to be hounding Norv Turner. Yes, folks, Turner...

Public artwork enlivens schools.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Jackie Burrell, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--Public art installations are nothing new on corporate or university campuses. But murals, mosaics and sculptural works have blossomed on public and private school...

Residents to grade Sheriff's Office.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Danielle McNamara, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--Discovery Bay residents will get the chance to grade the county Sheriff's Office on service in their growing community. A five-question survey will be mailed to...

Richmond senior center returns to full-time hours.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Chris Treadway, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--The Richmond Annex Senior Center is bustling once again, two months after the city restored its full-time operating hours. A sign in the window proclaiming...

Storms continue to flog region.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Thomas Peele, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--Firefighters fearing that a failing levee might break evacuated a small Delta town in Solano County late Sunday afternoon as Northern Californians braced for more heavy...

Warriors picture perfect with Diogu in the paint.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 2--HOUSTON -- No matter how you judge the effectiveness of this Ike Diogu-at-starting-center experiment, it's working. If wins are the barometer, the Warriors...

California storms begin to subside, many towns flooded.
January 2, 2006... Byline: Rebecca Rosen Lum Storms that flexed a mighty muscle in California over the weekend backed off Monday, leaving residents, business owners and officials to nurse the ravages of the most severe battering in eight years. Over the...

Lots of `Glory' to go around.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Eric Gilmore The "hate letters," as former Texas Western basketball coach Don Haskins calls them, began arriving just days after his team's 72-65 victory over Kentucky in the 1966 NCAA championship game. "They came in bunches...

Ex's no-call policy is self-defeating.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Jann Blackstone-Ford and Sharyl Jupe Q: My child lives with his mother three hours away. Since I don't particularly get along with his mother, I talk to my son every day on his cell phone. That way I can stay up on his likes and...

Marsupial tooth find bolsters land bridge.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Jackie Burrell WALNUT CREEK, Calif. _ The recent discovery of a 66-million-year-old marsupial tooth in the Netherlands provides fresh proof that a land bridge connected the North American and European continents during the age of...

In pursuit of the true desert icon.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Glenn Gehlke SAGUARO NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. _ We were on a quest. My wife, son and I had set out on a two-week tour of the Southwest and were determined to see the "real" Arizona. We wanted to find the Arizona of Wyatt Earp and...

Another reception awaits Moss: Managing general partner Davis likely will hear out the receiver as the Raiders prepare to revamp for next season.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--The Raiders traded for wide receiver Randy Moss in the hope that he would transform their offense from good to dominant. Sure enough, he led the Raiders in receiving...

As deadline nears, Miles sits and waits: Warriors are facing a decision on whether to keep rookie point guard.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--HOUSTON -- Just seven days left. Just two more games to make his case. All NBA contracts become guaranteed for the season on Jan. 10, and Warriors rookie...

BART riders can count on freebies.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Mike Adamick, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Free rides. Tickets that double as baseball cards. Free coffee. Book gift certificates. Over the past two years, BART has evolved from frugal to...

Better to start saving late than never.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Judy Silber, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Richard Mac Bride doesn't regret the 51/2 years he spent teaching English in Mexico and driving a Volkswagen bus to Argentina and back. The experiences were some of the...

Child care workers get scholarship assistance.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Rebecca Rosen Lum, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Caring for young children is Cindy Brumfield's passion and earning a college degree in early childhood development her goal. Until now, rising tuition costs have...

City funds questioned in study.
January 3, 2006... Byline: John Geluardi, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--RICHMOND -- Richmond residents pay more for public services but receive far less than Bay Area cities of similar size, according to a budget comparison funded by a city...

Cuts to Medi-Cal threaten program's future.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Sandy Kleffman, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Beginning this week, the state will cut by 5 percent its reimbursement rate for doctors who treat California's poorest residents. Some people fear this will cause...

Dental hygienists fight to work on seniors.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Sandy Kleffman, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--The sight stunned dental hygienist Darci Trill. It had been years since anyone looked inside the mouth of the elderly woman, who had dentures. The dentures had...

Fifties are most crucial time to save.
January 3, 2006... Byline: George Avalos, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--For Guy Schwartz, the dot-com implosion became the catalyst for once burned, twice shy when it came to investing. Why? The meltdown of technology stocks scorched...

Java-starved eager for new Starbucks.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Paula King, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--OAKLEY -- When Gloria Zanarini and her family crave a caffeine fix, they are forced to fight traffic along the Lone Tree Way corridor in search of a coffeehouse. The...

Livermore woman pushes for BART.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Bonita Brewer, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Getting BART extended to Livermore is an uphill battle, but resident Linda Jeffery Sailors isn't giving up. Sailors, a former Dublin mayor who now lives in...

Making sure retirement is possible.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Ellen Lee, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Hao-Lin Chen retired from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory a year and a half ago, but found he couldn't stay away. Chen, 64, continued to consult for the lab, and...

Police open case after boys found alone at home.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Laurie Phillips, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--SAN RAMON -- Police in San Ramon are investigating a case involving a father and stepmother of two boys who allegedly left them home alone while they celebrated New...

Students should learn to save early.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Blanca Torres, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Kimberly Veasey's countdown has begun. Six months from now, she will graduate from college and officially enter the "real world." The 21-year-old Martinez native...

Successful investing for your 30s.
January 3, 2006... Byline: James Temple, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--Tick down the financial "do's" for a 30-something, and Samya Ghuloum looks every bit the textbook model. She is paying down her $8,000 in credit cards and school loans,...

pachyderm Plans: Oakland zoo hopes to breed elephants.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Guy Ashley, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 3--OAKLAND -- Osh, the massive bull elephant who recently completed his first year at the Oakland Zoo, is making friends. And that's downright thrilling news for...

Warriors misfire on shot to sweep three-game trip.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II MEMPHIS, Tenn._The Golden State Warriors are such teases. Just when you think they're ready to take off, as soon as it appears as if they've put it together, they go and play a game like they did Tuesday. ...

Final score: Turner no more.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran WALNUT CREEK, Calif. _ Norv Turner arrived to work Tuesday, as planned, only to be told by Raiders managing general partner Al Davis that his coaching services no longer were wanted. Thus ended the worst two-year...

Raiders fire Turner.
January 3, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran WALNUT CREEK, Calif. _ Norv Turner arrived to work Tuesday as planned, only to be told by Al Davis that his coaching services no longer were wanted by the Oakland Raiders. Thus ended the worst two-year stretch in...

Couple fight to save home from swollen stream.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Linda Davis and Scott Marshall, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--ALAMO -- Michele and Matt General are up a creek without a paddle. As of Tuesday evening, the couple's million-dollar home on Finley Lane has two...

Covenant clause overrides homeowner's wishes.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Ryan Huff, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--CLAYTON -- Tom Stoflet loves the wood trim on his home. It's been there since 1979, when he moved to Clayton's new development called Marsh Creek Park Villas. So...

Delta levees withstand onslaught of rain, wind.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Kiley Russell, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--Levee watchers breathed easier Tuesday after the storm that tormented Sonoma and Napa counties left Contra Costa's levees largely intact. The barrage of wind and...

Experts give guidelines on tsunami preparedness.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Tom Lochner, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--EL SOBRANTE -- An international team of experts, including an El Sobrante seismologist, have produced a guide to repairing damage from tsunamis or avoiding it altogether,...

Fed signals bode well for housing.
January 4, 2006... Byline: George Avalos, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--The Federal Reserve hinted that it's close to ending its campaign to raise interest rates, which would be good news for homeowners, home buyers and stock market...

Final score: Turner no more: Offensive problems cost coach.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Steve Corkran, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--Norv Turner arrived to work Tuesday, as planned, only to be told by Raiders managing general partner Al Davis that his coaching services no longer were wanted. ...

Houseboat owners ride out storms.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Andrew Becker, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--The water level in Jim McCord's back yard has started to recede after last week's storms, but with a "pretty good" high tide Tuesday afternoon, the Delta waves still...

Local schools hopeful education plan holds.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Shirley Dang, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--If the governor's $4 billion education plan comes to fruition, Antioch gym classes could shrink, Pittsburg schools could beef up tutoring and West Contra Costa music...

Macdonald Avenue tree cutting upsets resident.
January 4, 2006... Byline: John Geluardi, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--Richmond resident Dick Archer had just arrived at the Bank of America on Macdonald Avenue this past Wednesday when he noticed freshly cut stumps on the sidewalk where...

Missed court dates keep man in jail.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Sophia Kazmi, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--DUBLIN -- A Dublin man accused of raping a 12-year-old girl will remain in jail after he twice failed to appear in front of a Pleasanton judge. Anytus Mills, 25,...

No magical age to leave children home alone.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Jackie Burrell, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--It's the latchkey kid concept taken to extremes -- five- and nine-year-old boys left home alone in San Ramon while their parents headed off for a five-day vacation in...

Nurse says she owes success to mom.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Laurie Phillips, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--PITTSBURG -- Up on the ninth floor at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Oakland, nurse Rosalyn Gipson pauses somewhere in her 12-hour shift to consider how lucky...

Pair who left sons may face charges.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Kelli Phillips, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--SAN RAMON -- Investigators are waiting for a father and stepmother to return from Las Vegas after they left their two boys home alone over New Year's weekend -- and...

Share the Spirit revels in generous donation.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Joyce Tsai, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--A surprise donation of $20,000 on Tuesday revived the possibility that this year's Share the Spirit Campaign might have a fighting chance of reaching its goal. ...

Two more arrests made in liquor store attacks.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Guy Ashley, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--Two more men have been arrested in connection with a rampage through West Oakland during which two liquor stores were vandalized by people claiming to be angry about...

Warriors misfire on shot to sweep three-game trip.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Warriors are such teases. Just when you think they're ready to take off, as soon as it appears as if they've put it together, they go...

Work, raising horses filled Elsie Bailey's life.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Chris Metinko, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--LIVERMORE -- Elsie Bailey worked all her life, first on the farm and later with her husband at several businesses they owned in Livermore, including the Callaghan...

martinez, pleasant hill begin digging out.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Danielle Samaniego, Contra Costa Times, Walnut Creek, Calif. Jan. 4--MARTINEZ -- Joni Holland hasn't been calm since before the storm. "I've never seen it rise like this, never so fast," the Martinez resident said of...

Morrison has stood above rest.
January 4, 2006... Byline: Jonathan Okanes Jan. 4--The beginning of conference play around the nation always is a good time for us college basketball junkies to catch a breather, take a step back and reflect on what we've seen so far and what we might expect...

Do cheaters ever prosper?
January 5, 2006... Byline: Heather Pollock It's the moment you've been dreading for the past week: your big algebra exam. You squirm anxiously in your seat as you wait for the test to drop onto your desk. You haven't studied, but it's no big deal: You know...

After raid, police shut down store that sold marijuana.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Sophia Kazmi Jan. 5--DUBLIN -- A Dublin T-shirt store turned cannabis collective was raided by police the day after Christmas and marijuana sales were shut down. Officers from Dublin, Livermore and the Alameda County Sheriff's...

Are Warriors first in line to acquire Pacers' Artest?
January 5, 2006... Byline: Marcus Thompson II Jan. 5--OAKLAND -- Word is, the only thing holding up the Warriors' trading for beleaguered Indiana Pacers All-Star forward Ron Artest is tonight's game. See, the Pacers don't want to trade Artest and then...

Building, of homes, costs may cool down.
January 5, 2006... Byline: James Temple Jan. 5--California's 12-year run of home building gains will likely end in 2006 as developers pause to clear out excess inventory during the early part of the year, according to a trade group's annual housing forecast....

Cal women are showing the Pac-10 they're for real: Bears are off to an impressive 3-1 start heading into Oregon.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Jonathan Okanes Jan. 5--The notion that Cal had a good women's basketball team this season had been based largely on circumstantial evidence. Sure, the Bears have a talented freshman class and a driven new coach. And yes, they...

City in a bind over drain repair.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Alan Lopez Jan. 5--Albany wants to repair a storm drain at Neilson and Curtis streets that periodically floods two homes on those streets. But it can't afford the estimated $1 million it will cost to fix the problem. ...

County hopes 3 can solve fiscal woes.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Rebecca Rosen Lum Jan. 5--It will apparently take three to pull the county out of the fiscal fire -- at least for the time being. The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday named John Cullen, longtime head of...

Couple who left kids arrested.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Kelli Phillips and Cassandra Braun Jan. 5--San Ramon police on Wednesday arrested a father and stepmother suspected of leaving their two young boys home alone over New Years weekend while their three dogs were cared for by...

Developers revise Treasure Island plans to reflect S.F.'s urban feel.
January 5, 2006... Byline: Kiley Russell Jan. 5--An alluring new San Francisco neighborhood, envisioned for Treasure Island and designed to harness wind, sun and water, is emerging from the imaginations of urban planners and developers. If their plans...

Family returns home to find a muddy mess.
January 5, 2006... Byline: John Geluardi Jan. 5--PINOLE -- The De Rosas were visiting family on the Central Coast last weekend when a neighbor called early Saturday morning with bad news. A wall of mud behind their Pinole Valley home had broken loose...