Latest News
The Almost Daily Briefing, May 19, 2026
The Almost Daily Briefing
Published news articles from local, regional, and national media on topics of interest to the #LoveLafayette Community separately
LOCAL NEWS
Ambitious Walnut Creek Watershed Restoration Meeting Tuesday - Lafayette’s Creeks Committee will review updates tied to the long-running Walnut Creek Watershed Restoration Plan beginning with a special 6:30 p.m. site visit before the regular meeting convenes. (Patch)
Danville To Debate Helping Fund Dublin Event Center - Danville and other Tri-Valley cities are asked to consider using tourism assessment fees to help fund a 100,000-square-foot event center. (Patch)
Man sues Contra Costa County after ordered to remove signs on his property - An El Sobrante man is suing Contra Costa County, claiming the county violated his free speech rights after he was ordered to remove numerous signs on his property, including some that contained swastikas. The county says the displays violated their sign ordinance, but the ACLU says the county’s actions violate the constitution. (NBC)
State Farm violated law in handling of L.A. fire insurance claims - State Farm could face millions of dollars in penalties and a possible temporary suspension of its license in California as a result of hundreds of alleged law violations related to its handling of claims from the Los Angeles County fires last year. (CalMatters)
Scams targeting elders are on the rise: Here’s how to stay safe - Scams on older adults have led to a fourfold increase in losses over four years, federal data shows. (East Bay Times)
San Francisco homeowner dropped by insurer due to flat roof - Flat roofs aren’t the only issue: Of the 20 largest home insurers in California, which together collect more than 90% of premiums in the state, nearly all place some type of restriction on the type of materials roofs are made out of, their slope or their age. (San Francisco Chronicle)
LOCAL HAPPENINGS
Chamber of Commerce's annual Taste of Lafayette – downtown on Tuesday, May 19
Memorial Day Holiday – City Administrative Offices will be closed on Monday, May 25
Lafayette Planning Applications Received
Major Development Projects Map
Lafayette Community Information & Emergency Radio AM 1670
Shop, Dine & Gather in Lafayette
HOUSING, TRANSPORTATION AND CITY PLANNING
Concord-Navy land deal moves closer to unlocking massive plan - Concord officials have reached a potential turning point in the long-running redevelopment of the former Naval Weapons Station […] After years of negotiations with the Navy, the agreement would allow planning work to move forward on the massive redevelopment project, including preparation of a "specific plan," environmental reviews, and future entitlement approvals. The agreement would also set project costs. (Patch/MSN)
Bay Area city suddenly scraps plan for town square, angering locals - Formerly a lumber mill, a vestige of Antioch’s industrial past, the vacant lot on Second Street is now a tipping point. A city-owned property, the size of two city blocks, the yard will help decide what’s better for stimulating downtown: open it up to private development, or advance its original plan for establishing a town square. (SF Gate)
This California beach town had one of the nation’s largest population drops - The city of Santa Cruz, popular with surfers and known for its classic beach boardwalk, recently saw one of the largest population decreases in the country, according to newly released figures from the U.S. Census. The population of the coastal destination of roughly 62,000 dropped by 1.3% between July 2024 and July 2025, according to the Census — the ninth largest decline in the country of cities with more than 50,000 people. (San Francisco Chronicle)
To sell a home in this East Bay city, it must be climate friendly - Berkeley is requiring home sellers to make green upgrades as a condition of sale. (East Bay Times)
Contra Costa’s anti-sprawl boundary draws fire as housing pressures grow - Regional housing policy has focused on increasing density in cities by encouraging multiunit infill and transit-oriented housing, the thought being that residents would benefit from being near amenities. But as Contra Costa Taxpayers Association President Marc Joffe says, not everyone wants to live in an apartment. (Mercury News)
Is Sacramento building enough homes to keep housing affordable? A city planner explains - At the end of 2025, Sacramento was almost 30% of the way toward its cumulative goal, with three and a half years left in the eight-year plan. (Sacramento Bee/MSN)
Taylor Swift, lawsuits and quirky exemptions: How empty homes tax works in other cities - If Measure A passes on June 2, San Diego would join a group of cities in the U.S., Canada and abroad that tax second homes or properties that are unoccupied for most of the year. San Diego’s “non-primary home” tax, as it is being called, would impose an initial annual levy of $8,000 on more than 5,000 homes that are vacant for 183 days or more — plus a $4,000 surcharge for corporate-owned dwellings. (East Bay Times)
Expert Says Housing Supply Shortage Is Central to California Affordability Crisis -California’s housing affordability crisis is rooted primarily in a shortage of homes and a political system that has made it too difficult to build them, according to Bowman Cutter, who says state and local leaders must confront supply constraints if they want rents and home prices to fall. (Davis Vanguard)
The Return for These Investors Isn’t Money, It’s More Affordable Housing - Local governments are trying to create housing that is permanently affordable by investing directly in construction. They are rewriting how housing programs have traditionally operated. (New York Times)
3 cities making strides in housing affordability - Ivory Innovations recognized a housing finance program in Boston and housing policies in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and New Rochelle, New York, for their ingenuity. (Smart Cities Dive)
Waymo plans to bring driverless rides to more Bay Area neighborhoods - The expansion would bring Waymo vehicles to Willow Glen and Vista Park in San Jose, and to Cupertino and Campbell. The company said the new territory would add about 60 square miles to its Bay Area service area, bringing the total to more than 330 square miles. (San Francisco Chronicle)
MIXTAPE
Rancho Cantina coming to Danville
Homelessness falls in Alameda County as Bay Area sees fragile signs of progress
Orinda’s 9,300-Square-Foot Food Hall Is Really Taking Shape
Voters to consider $688 million in Bay Area school bonds
PG&E shutoffs, outages affect 46000 across Bay Area, Northern California
Homelessness falls in Alameda County as Bay Area sees fragile signs of progress
San Francisco wants more street festivals. Vendors say parking tickets could drive them away
SF supes vote to rein in sprawling citizen-commission system
California lifts ban on heavy-duty autonomous vehicles
The West is drying up — and AI data centers aren't helping
Concerns about Trump cuts to US Forest Service abound as wildfire season comes
ER Visits For Tick Bites At Highest Level In A Decade
MEANWHILE IN ANOTHER LAFAYETTE
Lafayette Parish voters rejected a critical library funding measure, turning down a 10-year renewal of the $3.12 property tax that keeps the parish’s nine-branch public library system running.
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The Almost Daily Briefing (ADB) is an aggregation of links to news articles from local and regional newspapers, magazines, websites, and other news sources. Its purpose is to alert readers to current issues and affairs that may impact Lafayette. The ADB does not promote, favor, disfavor, support, reject, or endorse any position, candidate, campaign, or proposition, and nothing about the ADB, including the selection, presentation, arrangement, or content of the links presented should be construed as an advocacy position.
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