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These California cities are considered to be the 'best' places to live

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

Multiple California cities and neighborhoods were ranked among the “best” places to live in the nation, according to Niche’s 2023 rankings.City Center in Santa Monica was ranked as the sixth “best” city to live in, while Mid-City, another neighborhood in Santa Monica, was the 15th . The majority of California cities considered the “best” places to live are affluent areas, such as Santa Monica and Palo Alto.For example, the median price of a home in Santa Monica is $2 million and an average price in Palo Alto is $3.5 million, according to Realtor.com.Out of the 17,916 cities and neighborhoods included in the ranking, Los Angeles was considered to be the 8,770th “best” place to live.Some California cities included on the list:6th: City Center (Santa Monica)15th: Mid-City (Santa Monica)18th: University South (Palo Alto)24th: Wilshire/ Montana (Santa Monica)28th: North Downtown (Palo Alto)31st: Ocean Park (Santa Monica)52nd: Ventura (Palo Alto)58th: Evergreen Park (Palo Alto) 59th:...

Man killed in Walnut Creek crash Sunday was outside stopped van, authorities say

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

WALNUT CREEK — The California Highway Patrol continued to investigate the death of a man Sunday morning who was killed when he was struck by a car while standing outside his stopped van.The name of the man killed was not released Monday pending confirmation and notification of his next of kin.The driver of the vehicle that struck the man was hospitalized with major injuries, but their condition was not available Monday.The collision happened about 5:42 a.m. Sunday at Alderwood Road and Treat Boulevard, in unincorporated Walnut Creek.The CHP said its preliminary investigation indicated a Nissan van, driven by the man who was later killed, was stopped facing westbound on Alderwood at Treat Boulevard. The man driving the van had exited the vehicle and was standing behind the vehicle, the CHP said.Investigators have not said why they believe the van was stopped.The CHP said a Honda Accord traveling westbound on Treat Boulevard approached the stopped van. The Honda driver lost cont...

Melrose at the Villages — new rental homes in Fairfield 

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

Welcome to Melrose at the Villages, new single-family residences within the Villages at Fairfield master-planned community. Melrose offers three stylish floor plans ranging in size from approximately 1,691 to 2,146 square feet with three to four bedrooms and two-and-a-half to three bathrooms. All three floor plans feature 9-foot ceiling heights throughout, quartz kitchen countertops, spacious primary suite with walk-in closet, upstairs laundry room with full-size washer and dryer, upstairs tech area or loft, and attached two-car garage. The homes at Melrose also include energy-conscious features such as solar panels, tankless water heater and LED lighting throughout.This is the four-bedroom Begonia floor plan at Melrose. Located in northeast Fairfield, this growing community offers a convenient location close to shopping, dining and entertainment. Take a stroll through nearby Linear Park or enjoy the fresh air at Rush Ranch Open Space and the beautiful views at Rockville Hills ...

Finland just doubled NATO’s border with Russia

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

By Lorne Cook | Associated PressBRUSSELS — The blue-and-white Finnish flag rises outside NATO headquarters Tuesday afternoon, making Finland a member and doubling Russia’s border with the world’s biggest security alliance.The move is a strategic and political blow to President Vladimir Putin, who has long complained about NATO’s expansion toward Russia and partly used that as a justification for his country’s war with Ukraine.“What we see is that President Putin went to war against Ukraine with a declared aim to get less NATO,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said. “He’s getting the exact opposite.”Like all NATO members, Finland will benefit from the collective security guarantee that an attack on one is considered an attack on all.NATO has said that it has no immediate intention to step up its presence in Finland. Some members have deployed troops there for war games over the last year.Russia immediately warned that it w...

Pleasant Hill shooting victim identified

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

(KRON) -- Police are investigating a homicide in a Pleasant Hill strip mall parking lot that left one dead. This is the first homicide since 2021, according to Pleasant Hill's crime statistics.Police responded to reports of a shooting just before 1:15 a.m. Monday in the parking lot of Farrington's Bar just one block away from City Hall. Police said they found a 37-year-old man from Concord dead at the scene. Pleasant Hill police have not confirmed what caused the incident, but they did have to call in Concord police to help with crowd control.This victim in the homicide has been identified as Oscar Laredo Arellano, 37, of Concord. Concord jewelry store burglarized by three masked individuals Video shows a chaotic scene at Pleasant Hill Plaza. It sits off Contra Costa Boulevard and Gregort Lane just west of I-680. Video shows multiple people in distress. Police have also taped off a large part of the strip mall and placed evidence markers near a sedan and the body that laid not far...

It's a girl! First baby rhino born at Safari West in Santa Rosa

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (KRON) -- A 100-pound white rhino calf was born in Santa Rosa on Sunday evening, and she's the first calf born on the premises at Safari West, the park announced in a press release. Wild parrots could become San Francisco's official animal The baby rhino, born to mom and dad Eesha and Ongava, arrived around 5:30 p.m. The rhino calf is now nursing and bonding well with mom Eesha. The baby girl has not yet been named. (Photo courtesy of Safari West)(Photo courtesy of Safari West)"We feel fortunate and honored to contribute to the growth of global rhino populations and aid in the conservation of this magnificent protected species." -- Safari WestMother rhino Eesha arrived at Safari West back in the summer of 2008. Since then, tens of thousands of visitors have seen her and learned more about the plight that rhinos currently face in the wild. Eesha didn't show much interest in the male rhinos at Safari West until 2021 when she was introduced to newcomer Ongava. The ...

Wild parrots could become San Francisco's official animal

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The wild parrots of Telegraph Hill are not shy about making their presence known. On any given day, a flock of the noisy, colorful birds can be seen flying over different parts of San Francisco. Two county supervisors say the parrots deserve a fancy title, as the city's official animal. More than 27,000 voted in the San Francisco Chronicle's poll asking which species deserves the title. Parrots won over sea lions by a slim margin.Wild parrots originally came to the city as exotic pets decades ago. There are reportedly between 200-300 wild parrots living in San Francisco today.County Supervisor Myrna Melgar wrote on Twitter Monday, "There you have it. San Franciscans voted. These wild colorful tropical birds came to SF as pets; regained their freedom, reinvented their lives and flourished in our foggy welcoming City. I will be introducing the legislation." Supervisor Aaron Peskin will co-author the legislation. 1 bird that escaped Oakland Zoo remains on the ...

Legisladores de Maryland logran un acuerdo sobre el presupuesto del estado

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

Los legisladores de Maryland llegaron a un acuerdo el viernes sobre el presupuesto estatal de $62.5 mil millones que incluye realizar importantes inversiones en la educación desde el jardín de infantes hasta el grado 12.En un punto destacado importante, acordaron asignar $900 millones para costos futuros a la enorme ley de reforma de financiamiento de la educación pre-K-12 del estado conocida como Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, una prioridad de la legislatura que incorpora gradualmente mayores cantidades de financiamiento en años futuros.Las diferencias entre las dos cámaras de la Asamblea General se relacionan con una propuesta del plan presupuestario inicial del gobernador Wes Moore. El mandatario primero propuso asignar $500 millones adicionales para el plan, mientras reservaba $500 millones para proyectos de transporte no especificados.La Cámara de Representantes transfirió $400 millones de los fondos de transporte para agregarlos a la futura financiación del plan, lo qu...

Policía: atacante planeó durante meses el mortal tiroteo en la escuela de Nashville

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

El mismo día en que decenas de estudiantes protestaron frente al capitolio de Tennessee para pedir mayor control de armas tras el reciente tiroteo en una escuela de Nashville, la policía local dijo este lunes que el/la atacante planeó la masacre durante meses. Los investigadores aún no saben con certeza cuál fue el motivo que llevó al tiroteo en The Covenant School que dejó seis muertos, entre ellos tres niños de 9 años. Audrey Hale, el/la autor/a del tiroteo, una persona transgénero de 28 años que había asistido en el pasado a esa escuela cristiana privada, dejó escritos en su vehículo y en su casa que están siendo analizados por la policía de Nashville y por el FBI. “Se sabe que Hale tomó en cuenta las acciones de los autores de otras matanzas”, dijo la policía local.  El FBI revela una razón que habría enojado al atacante del tiroteo masivo de 2017 en Las Vegas Una por una: surgen detalles sobre las víctimas de la masacre es...

Polish president Duda hails a European Games without Russia

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:24 GMT

GENEVA (AP) — Ahead of his country soon hosting the multi-sport European Games with no Russian or Belarusian athletes, Poland President Andrzej Duda thanked Olympic officials on Monday for excluding the military invaders of Ukraine. President Duda was accepting a flame of peace for the games from the Rome-based European Olympic Committees one week after the IOC detailed how it wants Russians and Belarusians to return to international competitions before the 2024 Paris Olympics. Poland has consistently urged sports leaders during the war to ban Russia and Belarus, and Duda revealed he would welcome Ukraine’s president on a visit in two days’ time. “As the host of the European Games,” Duda said in translated comments about the competition that opens on June 21, “I will be able to look in the eye of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and tell him, ‘Volodymyr, these Games are going to be the Games of peace and the Games of calm with no pretenses, with no imitation that everything is all righ...