Businesses OK with new ban
BY STEPHANIE LAM Daily Post Correspondent
Palo Alto residents and businesses are having mixed feelings over the city’s new ban on detached trailers and renting out RVs parked along city streets, a process known as “vanlording.”
Some RV dwellers nervous
Some local businesses say they are in support of such efforts and are tired of seeing an increase in the number of RV dwellers around their stores.
THE UPDATE
CORRECTION: A caption in yesterday's Post was incorrect, Robert Marinaro took the photo.
TANKER SEIZED: The U.S. has seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela as tensions mount with the government of President Nicolas Maduro. Using U.S. forces to seize an oil tanker is incredibly unusual and marks the Trump administration’s latest push to increase pressure on Maduro.
FED CUTS RATE: The Federal Reserve reduced its key interest rate for the third time in a row yesterday but signaled that it may leave rates unchanged in the coming months. Chair Jerome Powell signaled at a news conference that the Fed would likely hold off on further rate cuts in the coming months while it evaluated the health of the economy. And in a set of quarterly economic projections, Fed officials signaled they expect to lower rates just once next year. Yesterday’s cut reduced the rate to about 3.6%, the lowest it has been in nearly three years.
GOT A GOLD CARD?: President Trump has announced the launch of [See THE UPDATE, page 4]
Yet the ban concerns some RV residents, who say they worry about more police officers coming through the area, and a lack of clarity on housing alternatives.
These days, Teresa Sanchez says she is feeling stressed by the amount of times police have asked her to move her RV, which is parked along Faber Avenue. Sanchez, who lives alone in the RV she owns, receives financial support from her son in San Diego. San-
chez, who was born in Mexico, says her English is limited and it is sometimes difficult for her to understand what officers are saying.
“They keep saying, ‘Move the trailer, Move the trailer,’” Sanchez says, sitting on her bed. “But it’s not that easy.”
Under the two ordinances, which were passed on Monday in a 6-1 vote
[See BAN, page 22]
School’s supporters voice anger
BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ Daily Post Staff Writer
Teachers, parents and students of TIDE, a tech-focused magnet school in Menlo Park, yelled their frustrations of the possible closure to the Sequoia Union High School board yesterday.
Parent Olga Yushina was one of the dozens of parents who started talking back to the board after trustee Rich Ginn started explaining why the board is considering closing TIDE.
During a board meeting on Nov. 12, it was reported that enrollment, program offerings and the health of the district. At that meeting, the board discussed the disproportionate amount of resources TIDE needs to
ANGER, page 23]
Vice mayor skipped after tumult
BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ Daily Post Staff Writer
After a year of accusations and tense meetings, the East Palo Alto City Council ditched its usual promotion of the city’s vice mayor to mayor.
Instead, council unanimously voted for Councilman Webster Lincoln to be mayor during Tuesday’s meeting. Councilmen Ruben Abrica and Carlos Romero said they opposed the nomination of Vice Mayor Mark Dinan from becoming mayor because of
previous racist remarks and lack of transparency.
“People have been shocked with the way Mr. Dinan has somewhat imperiously tried to impose ideas on other folks and alienated folks, which is unfortunate
[See TUMULT, page 22]
[See
LINCOLN
DINAN
SUPPORTERS of a small high school in Menlo Park hold up signs at a school board meeting yesterday. Post photo by Adriana Hernandez.
Locally owned, independent
Jury to weigh ex-college official’s fate next year
BY Adriana Hernandez Daily Post Staff Writer
Yesterday marked the end of the defense case of former San Mateo County Community College District Chancellor Ron Galatolo.
Galatolo, whop is facing 27 felony charges, chose not to testify.
Instead, Galatolo’s attorney, Chuck Smith, put on a number of character witnesses from the college district yesterday, including former trustee Patricia Miljanich, former Skyline College President Regina Stanback-Stroud and former Vice Chancellor Tom Bauer. Miljanich left the board in 2015. Steinbeck-Stroud left the district in 2019 and Bauer retired in 2022.
Jurors will be taking a break due to the holiday and hear closing arguments on Jan.6, according to District
Attorney Steve Wagstaffe. Galatolo, 61, of Menlo Park, is being charged for taking bribes from contractors, tax fraud, misappropriation of public funds, conflict of interest and embezzlement for over a 10-year period.
Galatolo would attended many sporting events, concerts and go on luxurious trips with contractors who did work for the district, according to Deputy District Attorney Joseph Cannon.
The jurors heard from present and former employees of the district, close friends and a contractor.
Former Vice Chancellor of Facilities, Jose Nunez took a plea bargain on Jan. 5, 2022, after being hit with 15 felonies, and has not been sentenced yet, as it depends on his testimony against his former boss. Galatolo is out on $150,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 6 for closing arguments.
a “gold card” program offering legal status and a pathway to U.S. citizenship. Individuals can pay $1 million, and corporations can pay $2 million per foreign-born employee. The program is meant to replace EB-5 visas and is aiming at attracting top talent and generate federal revenue. Trump said the funds will benefit the U.S. government. The program effectively offers a green card, but Trump argued it will mean a stronger path to citizenship.
TROOP PAY RAISED: The House votes to pass a sweeping defense policy bill that authorizes $900 billion in military programs. The bill includes a pay raise for troops and an overhaul of how the Department of Defense buys weapons.
SOCIAL MEDIA SCREENING: Travelers who are now able to come to the United States without a visa might soon need to provide social media, email, and family history details to the Department of Homeland Security. The Trump administration has increased monitoring of international travelers. And now, Customs and Border Protection is proposing collecting five years of social media data from travelers from about roughly 40 mostly European and Asian countries who can now come to the U.S. for tourism or business for three months without visas.
MOORE FIRED: Michigan has fired football coach Sherrone Moore. The university announced yesterday that an investigation found evidence of an “inappropriate relationship with a staff member.” Officials stated that Moore’s alleged conduct was a “clear violation of university policy.”
MIAMI’S NEW MAYOR: Democrat Eileen Higgins won the Miami mayor’s race on Tuesday, defeating a Republican endorsed by President Trump to end her party’s nearly three-decade losing streak and give Democrats a boost in one of the last electoral battles ahead of the 2026 midterms.
LOUVRE THIEVES HAD SECONDS LEFT: Thieves who stole over $100 million in crown jewels from the Louvre in October escaped with just 30 seconds to spare, according to a French Senate inquiry. The probe found only one of two cameras covering the break-in point was working, and security staff lacked enough screens to monitor footage. When the alarm sounded, police were sent to the wrong location. The report cited outdated equipment and poor coordination. All four suspects have been arrested, but the jewels remain missing.
MILITARY ZONE: The Trump administration is adding another militarized zone to the southern U.S. border to support border security operations — this time in California. The Department of Interior yesterday said it would transfer jurisdiction along most of California’s international border with Mexico to the Navy.
Clara, and we’re qualified to publish legal notices such as Fictitious Business Name Statements (FBNs) and legal name changes. For more information, email ads@padailypost.com. © 2026 Palo Alto Daily Post. All rights reserved.
Deaths
San Mateo County Coroner’s Office: Dec. 9
Joyce Brandy, 97, no hometown listed
Paul Robert Runnion Sr., 69, of Redwood City
James Michael Bradley, 85, of Colma
Santa Clara County Medical Examiner's Office:
Nov. 18
Stephen Rigdon, 69, of Sunnyvale
Elena Bourova, 92, of Mountain View
Junko Itoi, 88, of Los Altos
Nov. 15
Sheryl Krasnow, 91, of Palo Alto
Raul Lopez, 68, of Sunnyvale
Nov. 14
Marian Christensen, 64, of Los Altos
Ricardo Ricafort, 75, of Menlo Park
Evgeny Morozov, 49, of Burlingame
Nov. 9
Frits Levenbach, 87, of Millbrae
Births
Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City:
May 24
Zohan Shafique Khan, a boy
Mina Li, a girl
Sath Sanyal, a boy
May 23
Parker June Lacues, a girl
Jiacheng Liang, a boy
May 22
Max Geng Feng, a boy
Marcus Grant Jasmin, a boy
May 21
Giada Lucia Brusaferro, a girl
Cristobal Flores Esparza, a boy
Oliver Alkuino Villegas, a boy
May 20
Ziya Arif Vora, a girl
May 19
Tara Bharathwaj, a girl
Summer Claire Chen, a girl
County rejects fired trainee’s claim
BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ Daily Post Staff Writer
The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors rejected a claim from a fired correctional officer hired by former Sheriff Christina Corpus who alleged she was let go because of her disability after being involved in a high-speed crash.
Jasmine De La Cruz, a trainee at the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, requested the board to cover her lost wages, benefits and damaged reputation, but supervisors denied her request on Tuesday. De La Cruz’s attorney, Ryan Kraft from the Venardi Aurada firm, submitted the claim on Oct 29, alleging that she was discriminated against for not accommodating her disability.
Kraft and De La Cruz did not re-
spond to the Post’s inquiries for comment.
Deadly high-speed crash
De La Cruz, a trainee at the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office, was a passenger in a white Cadillac sedan going 120 mph in Burlingame on April 19 at 3:30 a.m., according to a CHP statement. The car had two passengers, one of them being De La Cruz, CHP Officer Jovita Ojeda previously told the Post.
CHP officers tried to stop the car, but driver Armando Jose Lopez kept going, leading to a pursuit. Lopez was driving the car southbound on Highway 101 and exited at Marsh Road, lost control of the car and overturned.
Lopez, 21, of South San Francisco, had major injuries and was pronounced
dead at the scene by paramedics. One passenger tried to run away but was arrested, Ojeda said at the time. De La Cruz was injured and taken to the hospital.
The Marsh Road off-ramp from southbound 101 was closed for investigation, where an illegal gun was found in the car, Ojeda said.
Unable to work
De La Cruz’s injuries rendered her disabled, and she notified the sheriff’s office of her inability to work and asked to use her benefits and leave, according to the claim.
The sheriff’s office fired her on May 6 because of her injury and denied her benefits, the claim states.
De La Cruz was originally hired by the Sheriff’s Office on Dec. 2, 2024,
according to spokeswoman Gretchen Spiker.
Other
trainee issues
De La Cruz’s incident was one of a series of issues related to trainees hired under former Sheriff Corpus.
In March, trainee Maxwell Rauenbuehler, who had only been on the job for a month and was working overtime, discovered a dead inmate.
In October 2024, the Post reported that a jail deputy trainee left a gun in a fanny pack at Crepevine at 1310 Burlingame Ave. in Burlingame.
On Dec. 2, 2024, an alleged sexual assault between a male and female inmate happened due to a trainee transporting inmates incorrectly, according to emails between judges Stephanie Garratt and Elizabeth Lee to Corpus.
DA: Man assaults neighbor in theft attempt
BY ADRIANA HERNANDEZ Daily Post Staff Writer
A Belmont man has been charged for assaulting his neighbor after attempting to steal from his apartment, a prosecutor said.
Bravo’s neighbor was in the process of moving out on Sunday at 10:55 p.m. when he found Bravo in his apartment at 300 Block of Oxford Way, according to Wagstaffe.
Bravo was rummaging through the bedroom until the neighbor confronted
Marco Bravo, 40, was charged on Monday with burglary and assault with a knife after being arrested on Sunday, according to District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.
him. But Bravo yelled at him, saying he wasn’t supposed to be there, Wagstaffe said. Bravo ran out, but later charged toward the neighbor with a knife, the DA said.
The neighbor slammed the door before Bravo could come back inside and called the police. Bravo tried to push the door open with his body, but police
arrived to arrest him, Wagstaffe said. Two credit cards were missing and the TV was moved from the bedroom into the living room, according to Wagstaffe. Bravo pleaded innocent and faces up to eight years in prison, the DA said. Bravo was released from jail on his own recognizance and will be back in court on Dec. 17.
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Zuckerberg helps local parks group
Friends of the Palo Alto Parks has received a $50,000 donation from Dr. Priscilla Chan and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who are Palo Alto residents.
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According to Roger Smith, a board member of the Friends group, the donation is among one of the largest the organization has received, and a first from the Zuckerbergs.
Plans for the money
The money will support the Friends of the Palo Alto Parks efforts to enhance parks and open spaces throughout the city of Palo Alto, the organization said in a statement.
“We are incredibly grateful for Priscilla and Mark’s generosity and their commitment to our nonprofit’s mission,” said Jeny Smith, President of the Friends of the Palo Alto Parks board. “This donation will make a meaningful difference in our ability to preserve and improve the parks and open spaces.”
According to Roger Smith, the money will be used for several projects including improvements to the Foothill Preserve Interpretive Center and renovation of Lytton Plaza. The Plaza is the area with seating and a fountain next to Pizza My Heart.
“We’re so happy to be one of the first people to receive a check of that size,” he said. “We have a lot of needs, but not a lot of funds.”
About the nonprofit Friends of the Palo Alto Parks is a volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization committed to supporting and improving Palo Alto’s parks, open spaces, and recreational amenities.
The organization said it will provide more details on the specific projects the money will fund in a future announcement.
For more information about this organization, go to https://www. friendsofpaparks.org
Celebrate this joyous time with all the Hanukkah essentials. Whether you are cooking from scratch or savoring our Chef-prepared Hanukkah meals, we have everything you need for the Festival of Lights.
You Might Be Eating a Credit Card in Plastic Every Week -
And It Could Be Killing Your Future
The Real Gut Doctor Exposes the Hidden Health Crisis Lurking in Your Food, Water, and Air - and Why It’s Silently Rewiring Your Body.
By Dr. Frances Mark, Pharm.D.- Longevity Concierge
Dr. Jeffrey Mark, M.D. - The Real Gut Doctor
It sounds impossible, but the truth is chilling. The average person may be consuming the equivalent of a credit card’s worth of plastic every week. Global studies show that microplastics are now in nearly every human organ tested: our hearts, our brains, our blood, even the cells that create new life. These fragments are not passive. They are foreign invaders, infiltrating your arteries, short-circuiting your hormones, inflaming your brain, and quietly dismantling the body’s repair systems from the inside out.
What once felt like science fiction has become a modern medical emergency. Plastic particles are being discovered in living human heart tissue, in the plaques of arteries removed during bypass surgery, and in brain samples of patients suffering from dementia. This isn’t a distant environmental issue. It’s a personal one. It’s not just that plastic surrounds us. It’s that it has entered us. Each sip of bottled water, each reheated takeout meal, and each breath of city air brings more of these synthetic fragments into your bloodstream, your gut, and your most vital organs.
Emerging evidence now connects this invisible invasion to some of the most devastating chronic conditions of our time. When microplastics enter your bloodstream, they carry toxic chemicals like BPA and phthalates, potent endocrine disruptors that hijack hormonal balance and accelerate aging. Studies are showing associations between plastic accumulation and insulin resistance, hypertension, infertility, thyroid disorders, dementia, and even early cardiovascular death. These particles trigger oxidative stress, inflammation, and immune confusion; the root mechanisms that underlie nearly every modern disease. The frightening part? You won’t feel it happening until it’s far too late.
At All Functional Health, we have dedicated our careers to exposing these silent health saboteurs. Traditional medicine is not equipped to find or fix this level of cellular damage. Standard lab tests cannot detect microplastic toxicity or the hormonal chaos it creates. That’s why our clinic developed the TOXIC BURDEN EVALUATION ; a precision testing protocol that identifies hidden plastic metabolites, inflammatory biomarkers, endocrine disruption, vascular oxidation, and gut permeability. It’s an advanced, science-backed assessment designed to catch what everyone else misses, and to give you the roadmap to reverse it.
If you’ve been struggling with chronic fatigue, unexplained weight gain, brain fog, mood swings, infertility, or cardiovascular issues while being told “your labs are normal,” the answer may not lie in your diet or your stress levels. It may be buried in microscopic fragments of plastic lodged in your tissues. Every day that goes by without understanding your toxic load is another day your body continues the slow burn of cellular damage. Once embedded, these particles can remain for decades, corroding your health from within.
All Functional Health is not just another wellness practice. We are the nation’s leading authority in Functional, Regenerative, and Longevity Medicine, built on a mission to redefine what true healthcare means. We don’t manage disease. We dismantle it at the root. Our patients don’t come to us because they’re sick. They come because they refuse to settle for “fine.” They come because they want energy, clarity, strength, fertility, and a future that lasts
The question isn’t whether you have microplastics inside you; the evidence says you do. The question is how much damage they’ve already done, and how long you’re willing to ignore it. Prevention is not about fear. It’s about freedom. The freedom to live unburdened, to reclaim the vitality that modern life has stolen, and to protect the future you’ve worked so hard to build.
We invite you to take the first step toward reclaiming that freedom. Schedule your personalized Toxic Burden Evaluation today. Call (650) 586-3988 or visit www. AllFunctionalHealth.com. Don’t wait for disease to define your story. The silent invasion has already begun, but at All Functional Health, we know how to fight back. All Functional Health. Where Prevention Becomes Power.
Schedule your free consultation today
Dr. Jeffrey Mark,
M.D. - 5X Board Certified in Functional, Regenerative, Metabolic, Longevity Medicine & Gastroenterology
By Dr. Frances Mark, Pharm.D. - Longevity Concierge / Authority in Drug-Free Healing
www.AllFunctionalHealth.com
Suicide rate falls
The U.S. suicide rate dropped slightly last year from some of the highest levels ever reported, preliminary data suggests. Experts say it’s hard to know exactly why, or whether the decline will continue.
A little over 48,800 suicide deaths were reported in 2024, according to provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 500 fewer than the year before.
The overall suicide rate fell to 13.7 per 100,000 people.
Suicides rose for nearly two decades aside from a two-year drop around the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Then they shot up again, to more than 14 per 100,000 from 2021 to 2023.
Range of factors involved
Experts caution that suicide — the nation’s 10th leading cause of death in 2024 — is complicated and that attempts can be driven by a range of factors. Contributors include higher rates of depression, limited availability of mental health services and the availability of guns. About 55% of all suicide deaths involve firearms, according to CDC data.
Rates vary across age groups and locations. For example the suicide rate for Americans in their late 20s and early 30s fell significantly in 2024, but it remained pretty stable for other age groups. And rates fell in the South and Midwest but not in the Mountain West.
“There’s a lot to dig into as we’re starting to think about what could be responsible for a potential decline,” said Katherine Keyes, a Columbia University public health professor who studies suicide.
That includes understanding “whether this is a blip on the radar” or the start of a prolonged decline, she added.
Prevention efforts
It has helped that some large health systems — including the one run by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs — have set up programs to screen or identify at-risk people, said Dr. Christine Moutier, chief medical officer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
Another possible contributor is a 3-year-old national crisis line that allows anyone to dial 988 to reach a mental health specialist. It has a special option for military veterans, a group at higher risk for suicide.
But the Trump administration last summer eliminated an option that connected callers with a counselor trained in supporting LGBTQ+ people under age 25 — another group at high risk.
Suicides are often underreported, with some families seeing shame in having a loved one’s death listed as a suicide, said Alexandra Lord, a public health historian at the National Museum of American History, and that likely continues to be true to some extent.
Rare drug saves babies
When Alessandro Barbera was rushed to a California hospital with infant botulism in October, his father had barely heard of the disease, never mind the rare and costly treatment that likely saved the newborn’s life.
Now, however, Tony Barbera is deeply grateful for BabyBIG, the sole antidote to the paralyzing and potentially deadly illnesses linked to contaminated ByHeart infant formula.
“It is hugely remarkable,” said Barbera, 35, whose son is slowly recovering.
The botulism outbreak tied to ByHeart formula has sickened at least 51 babies in 18 states since August — and showed the value of the treatment made from blood plasma donated by a small group of scientists and other volunteers.
About BabyBIG
Licensed in 2003, BabyBIG is the brand name for human botulism immune globulin, an IV medication that uses antibodies from volunteers vaccinated against botulism to help babies too young to fight the disease on their own.
The treatment was the brainchild of the late Dr. Stephen Arnon, who was a scientist with the California Department of Public Health. In 1976, Arnon and colleagues identified the rare form of botulism that affects infants younger than 1 — and then spent his 45-year career figuring out how to treat it.
The medication relies on donors who are vaccinated against botulism. They then undergo a procedure that harvests blood plasma that contains antibodies against botulism types A and B.
PALO ALTO
FRIDAY
4:44 a.m. — Auto burglary, Jacaranda Lane and Ash St.
8:23 a.m. — Stephanie Aldean Fava Gonye, 58, of San Francisco, arrested on a warrant, 200 block of Hamilton Ave.
11:11 a.m. — Auto burglary, Ramona St. and Lytton Ave.
1:11 p.m. — Jonae Marie Green, 25, of San Francisco, arrested for grand theft and possession of stolen property, Stanford Shopping Center.
6:40 p.m. — Man says another driver started following him and flashing his light on him as he was driving on Highway 101, and when he got off the freeway and stopped at an intersection on San Antonio Road, the other driver pulled up next to him and shot at his window, shattering it. Misael Enrique Zamora, 20, of Palo Alto, is later arrested in the incident for vandalism and negligently discharging a firearm. A BB gun is recovered from Zamora’s vehicle.
SATURDAY
7:36 a.m. — Leon Henry Ayiers Jr., 53, of Palo Alto, cited on a warrant, 400 block of Alma St.
8:43 a.m. — Juan Enrique Huizar Rodriguez, 27, of Mountain View, arrested for possession of drugs for sale and possession of drug paraphernalia, Wilkie Court and Wilkie Way.
6:29 p.m. — Theft from a vehicle, 1500 block of Arastradero Road.
8:40 p.m. — Rakeshwan Nair, 59, of Palo Alto, arrested for being a felon in possession of a stun gun and on a warrant, 2100 block of E. Bayshore Road.
10:27 p.m. — Miguel Angel Magana Callejas, 26, of Mountain
View, arrested for DUI and driving with a suspended or revoked license, 800 block of San Antonio Road.
STANFORD
NOV. 30
4:03 p.m. — Petty theft, Stanford Stadium.
DEC. 1
9:23 a.m. — Identity theft, 700 block of Campus Drive.
12:34 p.m. — Electric scooter stolen, 300 block of Roth Way.
3:15 p.m. — Bicycle stolen, 600 block of Escondido Road.
MENLO PARK
TUESDAY
6:34 a.m. — Burglary, 1000 block of Tehama Ave.
10:08 a.m. — Fraud, 700 block of Laurel St.
10:52 a.m. — Grand theft, 700 block of El Camino.
10:57 p.m. — Osvaldo Madrigal, 44, of Menlo Park, arrested on a warrant. Location not disclosed.
MOUNTAIN VIEW
OCT. 21
4:53 p.m. — Weera Pleinnikul, 54, transient, cited for theft, 200 block of Castro St.
6:38 p.m. — Dennis Hisamoto, 64, of Mountain View, cited for display of false vehicle registration, Cuesta and Montalto drives.
OCT. 23
8:49 p.m. — John Trujillo, 50, of Mountain View, cited for creating a public nuisance, 900 block of E. El Camino.
OCT. 24
10 a.m. — Ruben Arce, 79, of Redwood City, cited for driving the wrong way on a street, San Antonio Road and Nita Ave.
7 p.m. — Robert Degrave, 63, transient, cited for creating a public nuisance, 1-99 block of W. El Camino.
OCT. 25
6:31 p.m. — Marco Cesarano, 46, of Palo Alto, cited for battery at Best Buy, 715 E. El Camino.
10:04 p.m. — Francisco Palafox, 18, of San Jose, cited for exhibition of speed on a roadway, Mariposa Ave. and California St.
DEC. 1
8:49 a.m. — Theft, 300 block of Chiquita Ave.
6:01 p.m. — Theft at Target, 555 Showers Drive.
6:18 p.m. — Steven Jordan, 20, of Mountain View, arrested for false imprisonment, Fair Oaks St. and Stanford Ave.
8:05 p.m. — Auto burglary, 100 block of Castro St.
8:20 p.m. — Auto burglary, 200 block of Hope St.
8:21 p.m. — Auto burglary, 100 block of Castro St.
8:31 p.m. — Auto burglary, 100 block of Castro St.
8:47 p.m. — Auto burglary, 100 block of Castro St.
9:24 p.m. — Auto burglary, 100 block of Castro St.
ATHERTON
TUESDAY
1:13 p.m. — Check fraud, 1-99 block of Manzanita Road.
5:17 p.m. — Bicycle stolen, 500 block of Middlefield Road.
REDWOOD CITY
SATURDAY
12:36 a.m. — Samuel Flourscher, 31, of Kansas, arrested for theft of a vehicle, possession of a stolen vehicle and falsely identifying himself to police, Chestnut St. and Broadway. Arrest made by San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies.
12:59 a.m. — Justin Edward Blanton, 45, of Redwood City, arrested for DUI, 2600 block of El Camino.
1:01 a.m. — Pedro Antonio Gonzalez Mejia, 44, of East Palo
Alto, arrested for narcotics possession and on a warrant, Rolison Road and Annette Ave.
1:22 a.m. — Miguel Angel Rodriguez Hernandez, 41, cited on warrants, Seaport Blvd. and Blomquist St. Incident handled by San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies.
1:34 a.m. — Man says two men robbed him of a speaker, Seaport Blvd.
1:48 a.m. — Woman reported to be yelling slurs, Cassia St. Police are unable to find the woman.
1:51 a.m. — Bryan Alexander Juarez Ramos, 34, arrested on a warrant, Haven Ave. and Haven Court. Arrest made by San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies.
9:59 a.m. — Two-vehicle accident, Whipple Ave.
10:22 a.m. — Arvind Shrikrishna Bhamidipati, 30, of San Jose, arrested for DUI, Whipple Ave. and Veterans Blvd.
11:34 a.m. — Armando Estrada Garcia, 45, of Menlo Park, arrested on warrants, 2400 block of El Camino.
2:58 p.m. — Eri Miranda Coronado, 22, cited for driving with a suspended or revoked license, Lathrop and Cedar streets. Citation given by San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies.
SAN CARLOS
FRIDAY
11:09 a.m. — Identity theft and fraud, 100 block of Vine St.
SATURDAY
11:27 p.m. — Enrique Jimenez, 28, of San Jose, cited for driving with a suspended or revoked license, 1000 block of Holly St.
BELMONT
TUESDAY
12:47 a.m. — Honda Accord stolen, Fifth Ave.
5:13 a.m. — Vehicle stolen in Belmont found by San Jose police with the owner’s son driving it. The son is cited.
PALO ALTO
3946 Louis Road, 94303, 3 bedrooms, 1508 square feet, built in 1957, Mary Campbell to Elena and Petr Hosek for $2,600,000, closed Nov. 10
645 Maybell Ave. #A, 94306, 3 bedrooms, 1182 square feet, built in 1955, Wade Living Trust to Xiuyuan and Yichen Zhou for $2,800,000, closed Nov. 13
2590 Webster St., 94301, 4 bedrooms, 1962 square feet, built in 1946, Finebaum Spouses Trust to Tri Bomen LLC for $3,150,000, closed Nov. 12 (last sale: $2,000,000, 01-27-16)
EAST PALO ALTO
340 Weeks St., 94303, 2 bedrooms, 970 square feet, built in 1932, Straton Properties LLC to Daniel and Juan Carrillo for $1,100,000, closed Oct. 28
MENLO PARK
610 Gilbert Ave. #2, 94025, 2 bedrooms, 1175 square feet, built in 1973, Diane Strachowski to Ganna and Ivan Petrychenko for
$1,230,000, closed Oct. 31 (last sale: $445,000, 0729-02)
MOUNTAIN VIEW
149 Flynn Ave., 94043, 3 bedrooms, 1653 square feet, built in 2021, Grandwell LLC to Hanchen and Xiaotong Li for $1,800,000, closed Nov. 13
103 Whits Road, 94040, 3 bedrooms, 1339 square feet, built in 1995, Hsieh Family Trust to Wenping Zhang for $1,920,000, closed Nov. 13
LOS ALTOS
35 Alma Court, 94022, 4 bedrooms, 1961 square feet, built in 1958, Jhjm Trust to Melika and Mehdi Sajjadi for $5,200,000, closed Nov. 10 (last sale: $2,102,000, 11-28-12)
ATHERTON
11 De Bell Drive, 94027, 3 bedrooms, 3070 square feet, built in 1946, Mary and John Cornuelle to Kellogg and Kay LLC for $5,500,000, closed Oct. 28
PORTOLA VALLEY
300 Cervantes Road, 94028, 3 bedrooms, 2490
square feet, built in 1970, Gropper-Westphal Family Trust to Peter Perlegos for $3,925,000, closed Oct. 28 (last sale: $2,000,000, 03-06-02)
WOODSIDE
380 La Questa Way, 94062, 1 bedroom, 520 square feet, built in 1978, Robert Isaacson to John Fruttero for $3,500,000, closed Oct. 29
REDWOOD CITY
843 Portwalk Place, 94065, 2 bedrooms, 775 square feet, built in 1987, Nielsen Trust to Gregory and Alicia Woodfall-Jones for $162,000, closed Oct. 31
221 Shorebird Circle, 94065, 2 bedrooms, 1018 square feet, built in 1986, Sharolyn Kriger to Yumeo Kii for $789,000, closed Oct. 28 (last sale: $658,000, 05-13-14)
SAN CARLOS
3334 Brittan Ave. #9, 94070, 2 bedrooms, 1040 square feet, built in 1973, Vasiliou Trust to Dorothy and Andrew Liu for $780,000, closed Oct. 27 (last sale: $925,000, 08-06-20)
John sold this home for $2,873 per square foot versus the 2024 average of $1,623 across Los Altos Hills sales with other listing agents.
Curious what your home might command in today’s market? Call John today for a no obligation consultation of your home to see what he did differently to get these results for his clients Discover the difference a tailored
John sold this newly built home for $2,873 per square foot — outperforming the average of $1,858 per square foot for homes zero to five years old. That’s an impressive $1,015 more per square foot , delivering over $4,250,000 in additional value to his client at close.
Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley
Critics and audiences are loving TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s “Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley,” now playing at Palo Alto’s Lucie Stern Theatre. BroadwayWorld called it “delightful. A holiday gift.” San Francisco Chronicle says the “charming” holiday sequel to Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” has “all the wit that readers have cherished for 200 years.” Don’t miss your chance to celebrate the holidays with favorite characters and see this Regency romance live onstage--”Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley” performs live through December 28. Buy your tickets today at theatreworks.org.
SYMPHONY SAN JOSE PARTNERS WITH New Ballet to present Tchaikovsky’s beloved Nutcracker with choreography by Dalia Rawson, set in turn-of-the-century San Jose. This unique production showcases local landmarks through stunning scenic elements, including a replica of the historic San Jose Light Tower and a 1905-inspired skyline. First-act costumes
draw from period dolls in the History San Jose archives, while the second act celebrates the region’s past as “The Valley of Heart’s Delight,” featuring orchard blossoms alongside classic ballet scenes of snowflakes, waltzing flowers, and the Sugarplum Fairy—creating a magical holiday experience for the whole family. www.symphonysanjose.org
SMOKEY ROBINSON: UP CLOSE – Hits and More. Thursday, Dec. 18 at The Guild Theatre. Doors open at 7 p.m., show starts at 8 p.m. Buy your tickets now to see this legend in an intimate setting with only 200 other fans.
also write a check (payable to Ladera Community Church, memo: Navigation Center Baskets) or give through a charitable gift account/ DAF. Contact Amy at amy@ ladera.org with any questions. LLC is located at 3300 Alpine Rd., Portola Valley.
ALEJANDRA IS THE HOSTESS AT Sundance the Steakhouse in Palo Alto. Let her seat you in one of the finest steakhouses in the bay area and you’re on your way to enjoying a lunch or dinner you won’t soon forget. Sundance has a historic sports lounge if you just want to pop in for a cold one and a yummy appetizer. Surrounded by local sports memorabilia the lounge is the perfect spot to chill out and get a new perspective on the day. The appetizer menu offers gourmet yummies like filet mignon spring rolls, calamari, tempura gulf prawns, hibachi ahi sashimi, crab cakes and more. Come by and see what it takes to stay in the restaurant business for over 50 years. Sundance The Steakhouse is located at 1921 El Camino Real in Palo Alto or call (650) 321-6798 for reservations or more information.
HOLIDAY GIFT BASKET DRIVE FOR Life Moves Navigation Center. Sunday, Dec. 14 at 11:00 a.m. Ladera Community Church (LCC) is once again partnering with Life Moves to bring warmth and joy to the residents of the Navigation Center. LCC has a long-standing connection with Life Moves, especially through its monthly lunch service at the Navigation Center. Each monthly visit is a chance to share food, fellowship, and compassion with those navigating challenging transitions.Donations can be made by credit card through ladera.org. You may
AREA JAZZ MUSICIAN ED Johnson and Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Carol McComb will host their 44th Annual Holiday Concert on Sunday, December 21st at the Immanuel Lutheran Church, 1715 Grant Rd, Los Altos. Doors
BAY
open at 5:30. The concert starts at 6PM. In addition to Ed Johnson and Carol McComb, this yearly event features the Gryphon Carolers, Kris Strom on saxophone and flute, Kris Yenney on cello, Valerie Rose on violin, Walter John Bankovich on keyboards, Preston Carter on bass and Brian Rice on percussion. Join us for an unforgettable evening of music from around the world delivered in a myriad of styles ranging from Brazilian to Celtic, from bluegrass to R&B Gospel and in between. Tickets available at https://bit.ly/3WYMJL3.
“THE PERFECT XMAS GIFT: A professionally restored photo of a family member, is about as personal as personal can get. Every day, Paul brings new-life to worn, faded, damaged photos, creating keepsakes worthy of passing along to future generations. Unlike assembly-line approaches common to impersonal online services, success comes from a very intimate approach, an insistiance on meeting all clients, working from his own scans, always keeping end-use in mind and providing digital files for all possible printing needs. The artist points out, “I have no website, don’t use AI, some say my work is handcrafted. Most new projects come from referrals. It’s very rewarding, almost feels like raising the dead.” Consultations and estimates are free. Call 650.272.1019, to discuss how to become the most cherished member of your family.
KAMAKSHI AYYAR’S PERSONAL BIOGRAPHER SERVICE is dedicated to preserving your and your loved ones’ legacies through conversation-based storytelling. From moments,
Get into the holiday spirit with Smuin’s The Christmas Ballet, onstage at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts this weekend for five performances only. Shows run December 11-14. Tickets and more information at smuinballet.org/christmas. Pictured: Smuin Artists Cameron Cofrancesco and Shania Rasmussen in rehearsal for The Christmas Ballet. Photo by Maximillian Tortoriello Photography.
like the birth of a child, to decades-long journeys, like a big anniversary or birthday, Kamakshi will work with you to weave together details and create treasured heirlooms. Capture milestones, celebrations, and life experiences to pass down to future generations. She can also interview two or more people together to record their memories of an event or experience, or just have them talk about their relationship. As a Columbia University-educated seasoned journalist, Kamakshi will use her skills to
help you tell your story in your own words. Visit www.kamakshiayyar. com or call (650) 656 1075 for more details.
COME ON DOWN TO WILLOW’S Market in Menlo Park today and order your Christmas feast. Don’t forget to pick up a couple bottles of your favorite wine. We’d suggest the Opus One to go with your prime rib dinner. Give Nick a call to place an order at 650-322-0743 or stop in and say hi at 60 Middlefield Rd in Menlo Park.
Holiday Waste Service Schedule
GreenWaste of Palo Alto is closed on Christmas (December 25) and New Year’s Day (January 1). If your regular collection day falls on or after one of these holidays, your collection day will be moved to the next day for the rest of the week. Regular collection schedules will resume the following week.
Entertainment Incoherent script derails ‘Ella McCay’
BY JOCELYN NOVECK
Associated Press Writer
“I can’t trust my brain right now,” says our hero, Ella, deep into James L. Brooks’ bafflingly disjointed, uneven, unfunny and illogical “Ella McCay.”
And finally, nearly two hours into a perplexing muddle of a storyline, we have some clarity of thought. No, dear, we want to tell Ella, played by the lovely Emma Mackey, who is truly the only reason to watch any of this. No, your brain is fine (and by the way, what a depressing line to put in the mouth of your most intelligent character — a hard-working woman in politics). It’s your script you can’t trust, Ella! Run away from it. Now.
Half-baked tangle
It’s hard to understand how “Ella McCay,” the first original feature from writer-director Brooks in 15 years, goes so utterly haywire. Is this really the same mind that wrote “Broadcast News”? “Terms of Endearment”? “As Good As It Gets”? We get a bit of a hint in the studio’s press notes, which mention that Brooks began his script “without a specific storyline in mind.”
Hmm. Perhaps that (unintentionally) explains this tangle of half-baked characters and subplots — each more head-scratching than the next, but also boring — and an ending that’s unbelievable, by which we mean not believable. What’s even less believable is that smart supporting actors like Jamie Lee Curtis, Ayo Edebiri, Woody Harrelson and Rebecca Hall didn’t walk out in protest of a lack of coherence. (Well, actually, Hall is gone in a matter of minutes.)
The main action takes place over three days in 2008, in an unnamed state. An aggressively folksy Julie
Kavner as narrator tells us Ella is a great person, and super-bright, and at 34, one of the youngest people to serve as lieutenant governor.
Family ties
Her family includes her weaselly father (Harrelson, intermittently amusing) who, in a flashback to when Ella was 16, loses his job in a sexual harassment scandal.
Soon after, when Ella’s mother (Hall, wasted) tells her that Dad is moving the family to California, Ella insists on staying put, at her school. She’ll live with her loyal and loving
Aunt Helen (Curtis), who runs — of course! — the diner next door.
Flash forward 18 years, and Ella is summoned by her governor boss (Albert Brooks). He tells her he’s in line for a Cabinet position, which means Ella would be interim governor.
There’s one prickly problem. Ella is enmeshed in scandal; she’s been having amorous relations, with her own husband, in a room that’s technically state property.
After a series of muddled subplots, somebody finally just says “this script is a mess.” Oh, wait — that’s just the scribble in my screening notebook.
Anyway, it all comes to a climax in a confrontation with Ella’s political opponents. Soon after, when Ella and Helen have a screaming session, it’s tempting to join in.
Like them, we’re confused. We’re annoyed. And we’re not getting these two hours back.
Release info
“Ella McCay,” a 20th Century Studios release in theaters tomorrow, has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association “for strong language, some sexual material and drug content.” Running time: 115 minutes.
RISING STAR — Emma Mackey in “Ella McCay.” 20th Century Studios via AP.
The new Met Gala co-chairs have been announced, and it’s a high-powered quartet: Beyonce, Venus Williams and Nicole Kidman will join Vogue’s Anna Wintour in hosting the starpacked event next May.
Williams, who has never hosted before, takes the role seven years after her younger sister and fellow tennis champion, Serena, was co-chair. Beyonce was honorary chair in 2013, and Kidman co-chaired in 2003 and 2005. Wintour, of course, oversees the annual event, a fundraiser that last year brought a record $31 million to the coffers of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute.
The museum also announced a gala host committee, chaired by designer Anthony Vaccarello and filmmaker Zoe Kravitz. It includes musicians Sabrina Carpenter, Doja Cat, LISA, Sam Smith
and Yseult; dancer Misty Copeland; actors Teyana Taylor, Elizabeth Debicki, Gwendoline Christie and Lena Dunham; basketball player A’ja Wilson; models Alex Consani, Paloma Elsesser and Lauren Wasser; Vogue editor Chloe Malle; and artist Anna Weyant.
All eyes on Beyonce
For years, Beyonce, a seven-time gala guest, has been one of the mostwatched celebrities on the carpet, keeping everyone in eager anticipation of her (fashionably) late arrival. In 2015, she made it worth the wait with a daring Givenchy gown that, with its strategically placed beading, gave new meaning to the term “sheer” and heralded the ubiquity of the naked dress trend.
No word on what she will wear next; the dress code for the May 4 gala has yet to be announced.
by council, it is illegal to leave a trailer not attached to a vehicle on a city street.
Residents are banned from renting an RV as a living space, store an RV for lease on the street or charge someone for a street parking spot. Those who violate these orders can be fined $500. While the new rules are currently effective, police won’t enforce it until two weeks after signs are posted.
Part of a wider issue
The bans are part of a wider initiative by the council to prevent residents from living in RVs parked along city streets. The city already bans cars from being parked for more than 72 hours. The council is also looking to introduce safe parking locations and sanitation services to people living in RVs, banning vehicles from certain streets and creating new permit requirements. Sanchez said she knows of many RVs
that are being rented out on Faber, and doesn’t know what will become of the inhabitants if the process gets banned.
Businesses OK with it
Then there are others who believe the bans will help alleviate issues surrounding a lack of street and parking spots for locals and businesses.
Steven Wong, president of Wong Electric said he thinks the bans are a “good idea.” In the last year, he’s seen an increase in the number of parked RV campers along 4067 Transport Street, where his business is located. The RVs take up valuable parking space around the store and even though there are 72 hour tow-away notices, Wong said, they are not all enforced.
“Sometimes the office staff don’t feel safe walking around; they get approached by folks who are a little bit aggressive,” he said. “It’s not good for the morale of the company.”
Unfortunate for all
Marguerite Poyatos, an Operations Coordinator at Palo Alto Glass on 4085 Transport Street, said she is also frustrated by the lack of parking spaces available. Many RVs are parked along the street, and Poyatos says she worries about a lack visibility for pedestrians.
Poyatos said she is glad to see the council addressing the issue, and feels the issue is a complicated one for everyone involved.
“As far as people who are paying property taxes and earning a living and running a successful business, there’s not anyone like looking out for them,” she said. “Its definitely affected businesses and it’s unfortunate, all the way around for everybody.”
for East Palo Alto,” Romero said. Romero said there are other elected officials in San Mateo County who have shared instances of heated debates with Dinan.
“That type of attitude may not bring East Palo Alto the fruits and the benefits that it should be getting,”
Romero said. Dinan and Martha Barragan led the charge earlier this year to censure Romero for calling Lincoln “deaf and dumb” after Lincoln tried to end a debate about housing in August since Romero was repeating himself.
Abrica said he disagreed with how council previously moved forward with the parking permits, with no debate, and recently extended a contract with Flock Automated License Plate cameras.
“I don’t think that was transparent, and it wasn’t until 250 people showed up in this chamber that the decision was reversed,” Abrica said, talking about the parking permit debacle over the summer. Dinan said it was not true that council was trying to “slide permit parking through.”
Not off the hook
When Abrica served on the 2013 council, former Vice Mayor A. Peter Evans was up for the mayoral seat but was not supported by members due to misconduct, he said. Evans was caught on video throwing a cup full of coffee at a lawyer during a meeting and, in another instance, told a Jewish developer to “go back to Israel.”
“I am not going to support a white man who everybody’s letting off the hook,” Abrica said.
Abrica previously said he experienced racist comments from Dinan, calling him a “snarling dog” in a social media post to the community after a meeting in May.
Saw this coming
“When I ran for City Council, I knew that the first move was going to be to call me, a white guy in East Palo Alto, a racist,” Dinan said.
Dinan said he was very proud of what council accomplished over the last year on enforcing parking
ABRICA
ROMERO
WHERE NEXT? — Teresa Sanchez, who lives in her RV along Faber Place in Palo Alto, is nervous with the city’s crackdown on RV dwellers. Post photo by Stephanie Lam.
rules, improving park lighting and providing free YMCA access.
There were times when there was conflict, and the first move was to call him a racist for doing something that didn’t benefit the community, he said. Dinan apologized for any online comments that may have offended people.
Barragan, who was mayor this year, nominated Dinan as mayor, but the nomination was rejected after she and Lincoln abstained and Abrica and Romero voted no.
Romero nominated Abrica to be mayor, but he “respectfully declined.”
Council reached an agreement after Dinan nominated Lincoln.
Dinan and Lincoln joined council last year.
A new era
“We’re trying to start a new era, and we can not start it with finger-pointing, accusations. This all defeats the purpose of our moving forward as a city,” Former Mayor Donna Rutherford said during public comment.
Rutherford, who has been previously on council for 13 years, said council members have to stop taking things personally and stick to the facts. She said she had to take a moment to breathe before speaking because of the intense meeting.
“We cannot start off on the right foot this way. We’re not gonna agree on everything, but we need to work for the betterment of this community,” Rutherford said.
Legal Notices
ANGER –––––––
stay open. A subcommittee found that approximately was $39,000 spent per student at TIDE compared to $22,467 in other high schools, according to Superintendent Crystal Leach.
The board did not make a decision yesterday but discussed options on how to move forward with the financial findings. The district will look into a deeper into these figures in January, according to Leach.
Yushina said the board should use data that is available to the public for transparency. She said she felt the board was not actually listening to parents.
“You guys didn’t answer us. You’re ignoring us, and now you’re just straight lying to our faces with numbers that don’t exist. And you call this transparency?” Yushina said before other parents started yelling and the board went on a five minute break.
Before the break, parents started yelling “stop lying” at the board.
Time to reevaluate
Trustee Sathvik Nori said the board should reevaluate its budget to keep the school open.
The board will hold community meetings on Jan. 13 and 15 to hear from students, parents and school employees. The district will also make a page on its website to answer frequently asked questions about the proposed closure.
TIDE, located at 150 Jefferson Drive in Menlo Park, was opened in 2019 as a magnet school with a tech focus. The district spent $9.33 million in 2014 to buy the site that can host about 400 students. Then-Superintendent Jim Liandes told the Post at the time that the site was chosen because it met the district’s requirement for a small site in the southern portion of the school district, which spans from Belmont to East Palo Alto.
The district has four comprehensive high schools, Menlo-Atherton, Carlmont, Sequoia and Woodside. Aside from TIDE it has two other small campuses, East Palo Alto Academy and Redwood.
Baby born in Waymo taxi
Self-driving Waymo taxis have gone viral for negative reasons involving the death of a beloved San Francisco bodega cat and pulling an illegal U-turn in front of police who were unable to issue a ticket to a nonexistent driver.
But this week, the self-driving taxis are the bearer of happier news after a San Francisco woman gave birth in a Waymo.
The mother was on her way to the UC-San Francisco medical center Monday when she delivered inside the robotaxi, said a Waymo spokesperson in a statement yesterday. The company said its rider support team detected “unusual activity” inside the vehicle and called to check on the rider as well as alert 911.
Waymo, which is owned by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, declined to elaborate on how the vehicle knew something was amiss.
The company has said it has cameras and microphones inside as well as outside the cars.
The taxi and its passengers arrived safely at the hospital ahead of emergency services. Jess Berthold, a UCSF spokesperson, confirmed the mother and child were brought to the hospital. She said the mother was not available for interviews.
Waymo said the vehicle was taken out of service for cleaning after the ride. While still rare, this was not the first baby delivered in one of its taxis, the company said.
The driverless taxis have surged in popularity even as they court higher scrutiny. Riders can take them on freeways and interstates around San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles and Phoenix.
Home & Garden
