Coronavirus Roundup: Bay Area Dining Favorites Close For Good; Olympian Hones Skills On SF Back Porch
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- The tsunami of news about the current coronavirus outbreak and now the shelter-in-place can be overwhelming. To help you navigate through what you need to know -- KPIX.com/KPIX 5 News/CBSN Bay Area -- will be publishing a news roundup each morning of the top coronavirus-related stories from the last 24 hours so you can start your day with the latest updated developments.
Good News -- Neighbors Helping Neighbors
Mountain View High School Music Teacher Wrestles Tech to Keep Choir in Sync and Online
MOUNTAIN VIEW -- Meet the Madrigals, one of five Mountain View High School choirs that continue to practice after the shelter-in-place closed their campus in March. Music teacher Jill Denny looks forward to their Zoom meetings. "It's actually emotional because I miss them so much that it gets me choked up each time I see them," Denny said. The weekly classes bring routine and connection --- a comfort when life sheltered at home feels nothing like normal. Read More
For Uplifting Stories Of Neighbors Helping Neighbors Visit Our Better Together Section
Coronavirus Headlines
Industry Survey Paints Dire Picture Of COVID-19's Impact On Bay Area Restaurants
SAN FRANCISCO -- It's the first in-depth look at how San Francisco restaurants are doing since shelter in place orders suddenly shut businesses down. The Golden Gate Restaurant Association survey representing more than 400 restaurants in the Bay Area paints a dire picture. The numbers reaffirm the future of so many restaurants may be in trouble. The phone rang just 15 times at Chouquets in Pacific Heights all day on Sunday. Business isn't booming for restaurants. "It's a really bad situation these days but to see all the people who are supporting us it gives us so much hope and I'm glad I have a job," said Sofia Salahmars. Read More
Retail Businesses Look Forward to Restricted Reopening in Marin County
NOVATO -- Beginning Monday morning, a number of Bay Area counties will relax some of their shelter-in-place rules. In Marin County, some so-called "non-essential" businesses will be allowed to reopen with a lot of conditions. Many of the small stores in downtown Novato offer products and services considered non-essential. All the "closed" signs have made a walk down the sidewalk a bit depressing for resident Sophia McCrea. "I want to be a part of society again. I miss it," she said. "I miss being out and about. I'm tired of being at home." Read More
Newsom Renews Call for Federal Aid 'Not Charity' to States Grappling With Pandemic-Driven Deficits
SACRAMENTO -- California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sunday said the nearly $54 billion budget deficit the state is facing is a direct result of the impact from the coronavirus pandemic and not because of existing financial troubles. Asked by Jake Tapper on CNN's "State of the Union" how much of the state's financial crisis is a result of pre-exisiting financial obligations, Newsom said, "None." That $54.3 billion is a direct result of COVID-19. Just a few months ago, I introduced my January budget but, with, again, a projected surplus. We paid off 100 percent of our debt we had inherited over seven or eight years ago. We were using $9.13 billion of the surplus last year to pay down long-term pension obligations," Newsom said. Read More
2020 Football Still Possible for SJSU Spartans, 2 Other Big Cal State Teams
SAN DIEGO -- The California State University system's plan for a mostly virtual fall semester due to the coronavirus pandemic doesn't necessarily close the door on football at its three schools that play in the far-flung Mountain West Conference. San Diego State is looking at having football players return to campus no earlier than July 7 and is making plans to play the season as scheduled, athletic director John David Wicker said. SDSU is proceeding because it envisions a fall schedule that includes a hybrid model of classes, in which some students will be on campus for in-person instruction such as labs while other classes will be held online. Read More
California's Historic Homeless Hotel Quarantine Shows Progress, Need for More Rooms
SAN FRANCISCO -- Anxiety mounted every time someone at the homeless shelter sneezed or residents got too close. For Matthew Padilla, a 34-year-old with a pacemaker and asthma, catching the novel coronavirus would likely mean death. So he jumped at the chance to move into a hotel room for free as part of a new California program. Within days, he and his husband, Nito, were in a room near Los Angeles' Koreatown, where meals are delivered along with health screenings. "At the shelter I was constantly getting up, checking on him," said Nito Padilla, 36. "And here I know he's safe. I know he's OK." Read More
Pleasanton-Based Specialty's Cafe & Bakery Becomes Latest COVID-19 Shutdown Victim
PLEASANTON -- Specialty's Cafe & Bakery, a Pleasanton-based chain that had locations around the West Coast and as far away as Chicago, announced Sunday that it is going out of business after 33 years, an apparent victim of the coronavirus pandemic. It had seven locations in San Francisco's financial district, two in Oakland and employed hundreds of workers. In the city, the chain's operations had tried to stay afloat since the shelter-in-place order went into effect in mid-March shuttered most nearby offices by offering take out and delivery. But it wasn't enough. On Sunday, the chain replaced the front page of its website with a simple one-paragraph message. "Specialty's Cafe & Bakery is closing after 33 years of business." Read More
UC Berkeley Graduates Entering An Uncertain World Shaped By COVID-19; 'I'm Supposed To Be Doing Great'
BERKELEY -- Tyler Lyson watched his parents' financial collapse in the Great Recession, a decade ago. He vowed he'd find the security they never had: He would get a college degree. The 28-year-old won a full scholarship to the University of California-Berkeley and, on Monday, will become the first in his family to graduate from college. "I'm supposed to be doing great," he said. Instead, he feels powerless and panicked, with a political science degree that seems worthless. Read More
Olympic Fencing Medalist Alexander Massialas Hones His Skills On San Francisco Back Porch
SAN FRANCISCO -- Like his fellow Summer Olympians, fencing star Alexander Massialas had his gold medal dreams put on hold when the 2020 Tokyo Games were postponed and rescheduled for 2021 because of the coronavirus outbreak. And like all San Franciscans, Massialas has learned to adapt to life under the city's strict shelter-in-place policies. So instead of training in a local gym, Massialas has been entertaining his neighbors with intense training sessions on his back porch along with his father and coach, Greg Massialas. "For most Olympic athletes, they've been working towards this for a lifetime," Greg Massialas told the San Francisco Chronicle when the Games were postponed. "The mind-set has to be to you can only control the things you can control." Read More
Giants, A's Games Will Have Much Different Look In COVID-19 Return
SAN FRANCISCO -- It's still unknown when Major League Baseball will return to Bay Area parks this year, but one thing is for certain -- the games will look much different. MLB officials have banned all mascots, including the San Francisco Giants beloved Lou Seal and Oakland A's Stomper, from the stands. And there may not even be fans in the stands to miss him. But that's just the tip of the iceberg among the changes being debated by the league. With showers at ballparks discouraged and players possibly arriving in uniform, like they did when they were teenagers. Team personnel will be banned from eating at restaurants on road trips. Read More
San Francisco Man Turns To Facebook Ad To Line Up Virtual Dates During COVID-19 Lockdown
SAN FRANCISCO -- A San Francisco man tired of dating apps decided to cut through the noise by buying Facebook ads to market himself. "Hey what's up, I'm looking for a girlfriend," said David Wu in the 22-second ad. "But since I'm sick of dating apps, I thought it would be a hilarious idea to pay for Facebook ads to find one." After two weeks, the 28-year-old received more than 60 applications from prospects who saw his targeted ad. Read More
Businesses Uncertain Curbside Pickups Will Help Them Survive COVID-19 Fiscal Challenges
SAN MATEO -- San Mateo County health officials just gave the green light for certain retail stores to allow curbside pickup starting Monday. And it may be just in time for many cash-strapped, shuttered businesses. New data shows April's plunge in retail sales nearly doubled the record drop set just a month earlier. But many owners are skeptical about how much revenue can be generated, as another month of rent owed, is just around the corner. For 36 years in the music collecting and selling business, Tommy 'Toonz' Predovitch has run and owned Vinyl Solution Records in San Mateo. Read More
Speaker Pelosi Calls on SF Corporate Landlord Veritas to Return $3.6 Million PPP Loan
SAN FRANCISCO -- U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) is calling on Veritas, one of the city's largest corporate landlords, to return its $3.6 million small-business loan. Pelosi issued a statement on Saturday that read in part: blockquote>"The Paycheck Protection Program is designed to be a lifeline to help vulnerable small businesses retain their workers and pay other expenses during the devastation of the coronavirus crisis. PPP loans should be directed first and foremost to the small businesses with the greatest need, particularly minority, women and veteran-owned businesses that are struggling. Read More
Napa Valley Pizza Chef's Online Italian Food Cooking Demos Draw Worldwide Audience
ST HELENA -- A celebrated Napa Valley chef offered a simple online cooking class to draw business to his pizza restaurant and it has become so popular that people now tune in from around the world. Tra Vigne Pizzeria in St. Helena is hurting just like all restaurants in this era of the coronavirus. So, owner Nash Cognetti began offering take-out kits to help customers recreate his authentic Italian pizza. "We thought this would be something people could do at their home," Cognetti explained. "They could cook and still have restaurant-quality food but they could have a little fun doing it." To help his customers, Cognetti hosted a live, online cooking lesson on his Facebook page. Read More
Vocal Anti-Lockdown Protesters Call on Livermore Mayor to Reopen City
LIVERMORE (KPIX) -- Anti-lockdown protests have been sprouting up across the country and California in recent weeks. On Saturday that movement, as some have described it, came to Livermore. "We're not making any kind of statement other than the fact that we love our small businesses," Len Digiovanni told a cheering crowd in downtown Livermore. They met beneath the Livermore flagpole and they brought plenty of flags with them. To sum up their sentiments on the shelter-in-place order: they've had enough. Read More
