John Metcalfe is an Oakland-based freelance reporter who's written for Berkeleyside, The Washington Post, The New York Times and The Atlantic. He enjoys covering science, climate and weather, and urban mysteries like what makes the perfect public toilet or where pigeons go to die.
West Berkeley’s commercial vacancy rate was actually lower in 2020 than it was pre-pandemic. A reptile shop is thriving, a plant store has opened and Fourth is turning into a furniture shopping mecca.
A series of armed robberies has unnerved bike riders along popular scenic East Bay roads.
Berkeley has about 58,000 Kaiser members but, until now, has never had a medical center in the city. Ahead of its opening, we look at what it will offer.
Wealthier neighborhoods are leafier and hence healthier, but a new tree-planting program is on the way.
Berkeley in 1916 was the first city to enact single-family zoning, which had the effect of pushing nonwhite people to more impoverished neighborhoods in the south and west.
After years of opposition and lawsuits, Cal has succeeded in cutting down eucalyptus trees near campus.
These business owners switched from building phone booths to sneeze guards, designed a user-friendly testing kiosk and created a “cleanroom” for customers.
Because of Proposition 13, one house on a block might pay $28,000 in property taxes while a similar home only pays $6,000.
Six months into the pandemic, businesses set up to serve UC Berkeley see little business. Property owners who usually rent to students have lots of vacancies.
It’s probably safer than you think, according to medical professionals — and could become safer in the future, if technologies the transit agency is testing now pan out.
Although the pandemic has brought many cultural events to a grinding halt, the arts in Berkeley are not kaput. The city is moving forward with plans for new public art. Here’s what to look forward to in coming months.
Bayer HealthCare’s proposal would add more than 1 million square feet of work space to its West Berkeley campus, erect taller buildings and eventually hire 1,000 more employees.
GoFundMe promises to get funds out relatively quickly, but businesses and nonprofits contacted by Berkeleyside say they have had to wait weeks for money. Others are still waiting.
Berkeley businesses have largely shut down due to the shelter-in-place order, but many of their owners have put up signs with messages for their customers.
With no break from their kids, parents are coming up with different ways to keep them occupied — and also learning when to let go.
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