Updating . .   

Black Friday still lures some shoppers, despite the pandemic -- Crowds appeared smaller and lines seemed shorter, but shoppers still awoke early on Black Friday for deals and tradition. Suhauna Hussain, Terry Castleman in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

New COVID-19 spike spreading beyond urban areas to all corners of California -- The autumn COVID-19 surge has now spread not only through major urban areas like Los Angeles but across California and even to the far northern rural reaches of the state, a troubling sign as the state faces its greatest challenge from the pandemic yet. Rong-Gong Lin II, Sean Greene in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

One San Diego ZIP code averages 30 new cases of COVID-19 daily -- As COVID-19 cases spike across San Diego County, one ZIP code in south San Diego has seen an average of 30 new cases a day since since Oct. 22, more than any other ZIP code in the county. The ZIP code 92154 encompasses the neighborhoods of Otay Mesa, Nestor, Egger Highlands and Tijuana River Valley. Lauryn Schroeder, Andrea Lopez-Villafaña in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/27/20

A short guide to quarantining after holiday travel -- If you traveled over the Thanksgiving holiday, it’s time to go into quarantine. Specifically, if you went out of state, California has issued a travel advisory recommending that you quarantine for 14 days. Jessica Roy in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Frustrated, lonely and isolated, low-income seniors are hit hard by the pandemic -- With no place to go, many seniors spend days in their room, with food delivery their only human contact. Gary Warth in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/27/20

South L.A. medical school receives $7.7-million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies -- When Jessica Bodden was accepted into medical school six years ago, she didn’t realize the amount of loans she’d be saddled with. Kailyn Brown in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

After Trump administration yanked approval, Sacramento homeless shelter will move forward -- Six months after the Trump Administration blocked Sacramento officials from opening a large homeless shelter under the W-X freeway, Caltrans is allowing the project to move forward anyway. Theresa Clift in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/27/20

Wildfire  

Santa Ana Winds Raise Risk Of Wildfires Friday In SD County Mountains, Valleys -- Gusty Santa Ana winds and low humidity will significantly raise the risk of wildfires through Saturday morning in the San Diego County mountains and inland valleys, according to the National Weather Service. KPBS -- 11/27/20

Covid Economy  

Coronavirus will have cut California’s tourism industry nearly in half by end of 2020 -- Nearly 40% of California jobs lost during the coronavirus pandemic are in the hospitality and leisure industries, and revenue from travel spending will fall by more than half this year. Gregory Thomas in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

Life, death and pandemic greet California’s struggling Main Streets -- Konstantinos Varelas twisted a string of blue komboloi — Greek worry beads — outside his family’s restaurant on Main Street in El Monte. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

He lost his quesadilla stand to the pandemic. Now he feeds needy people -- After a lifetime of working for other people, Heleo Leyva struck out on his own last year. With his brother Filimon, he opened a quesadilla stand in East Hollywood, named after their hometown in Mexico. Andrew J. Campa in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

As the pandemic grinds on, more SDG&E customers falling far behind on their bills -- In yet another example of the negative economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of San Diego Gas & Electric customers who have fallen more than four months behind on paying their utility bills has jumped sharply since February. Rob Nikolewski in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/27/20

Climate  

Along the crumbling Sonoma coast, an ambitious project paves the way for ‘managed retreat’ -- Here at Gleason Beach, once referred to as Malibu North, the beach gets drowned during high tide. Bits of concrete and rebar are all that remain of 11 clifftop homes that have already surrendered to the sea. A graveyard of seawalls, smashed into pieces, litters the shore. Rosanna Xia in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Policy & Politics 

The latest check on Gavin Newsom’s political ambitions? California’s unemployment fraud -- An unemployment fraud scheme that duped state government into paying tens of millions of dollars to criminals could become the biggest scam against taxpayers in California history. Sophia Bollag in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/27/20

California Policy and P  olitics This Morning  

Retail workers fear for their safety this Black Friday: ‘An anxiety attack waiting to happen’ -- For retail workers, Black Friday is, as Hernandez puts it, the “most dreaded day of the year.” But this year, the day they hate has also become one they fear. Suhauna Hussain in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

LA County reports another 5,087 coronavirus cases on Thanksgiving as dining bans kick in -- As Los Angeles County‘s rekindled ban on outdoor dining kicked in, many restaurants shifted their Thanksgiving serving strategy to takeout and delivery service on Thursday on a most unusual, pandemic-framed holiday. The item is in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/27/20

Nevada surge: 1 case a minute, 1 dead every 2 hours -- The Nevada Department of Public Health released an alarming fact ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday: In the Silver State, COVID-19 is now spreading so fast that someone is diagnosed with an infection every minute and someone else is dying from it about every two hours. In a series of tweets Wednesday, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak called the situation dangerous. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/27/20

Basketball center violated public health orders, Placer County officials say. Now, dozens have coronavirus -- More than two dozen people have tested positive for the coronavirus after taking part in youth basketball tournaments at a Placer County facility that officials said held the events in violation of public health orders. Michael Williams in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

This San Francisco hospital will be among first to get COVID-19 vaccine -- UC San Francisco is one of seven California hospitals chosen by the state's Public Health Department to be among the first in the world for early distribution of Pfizer's COVID-190 vaccine. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/27/20

California church petitions U.S. Supreme Court over coronavirus restrictions -- Attorney’s representing Pasadena-based Harvest Rock Church and Harvest International Ministry are seeking intervention by the U.S. Supreme Court as they battle restrictions instituted by Gov. Gavin Newsom who aims to stem the rising tide of coronavirus cases. Sean Emery in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/27/20

Covid Economy  

Arellano: Dejected L.A. restaurants serve their last meals, fear for the future -- The dinner soundtrack at Michael’s on Naples for Wednesday was all about the sad slow jams — classic Motown, Gamble & Huff, Al Green. They tapped into the mood that night at the Long Beach bistro and at thousands of restaurants across Los Angeles County. Gustavo Arellano in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Disney theme park division lays off another 4,000 employees, bringing total to 32,000 -- Disney’s theme park division will lay off another 4,000 employees in addition to the 28,000 already terminated as the company continues to struggle with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the eight-month closure of its Anaheim theme parks. Brady MacDonald in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/27/20

‘My family collapsed’: Why Sacramento’s Latino families face a higher risk of eviction -- When the coronavirus pandemic hit, Maria Aguilar lost her job cleaning an office building. Shortly after, she and her three children became infected with the virus. “It affected me tremendously to see my children sick,” said Aguilar, 41, in Spanish. “I wasn’t healthy enough to take care of them.” Theresa Clift and Kim Bojórquez in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/27/20

Homeless families sought shelter from COVID-19 in vacant houses. CHP officers evicted them before Thanksgiving -- California Highway Patrol officers forcibly removed people who had “reclaimed” vacant, publicly owned homes in El Sereno late Wednesday — the night before Thanksgiving — amid a surge in COVID-19 cases. Sarah Parvini in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

S.F. renters gain rare leverage in pandemic, with vacancies way up and prices way down -- Apartment vacancy rates have more than doubled since last year in the San Francisco rental market, as many tenants have deserted the market during the coronavirus pandemic. Kellie Hwang in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

Charities are getting creative during COVID-19. The unexpected ways some are staying afloat -- Every day during October, 66-year-old Los Angeles resident Mitch Besser stepped outside to his Concept2 rowing machine, muscling out a total for the month of 500,000 meters, or nearly 311 miles. Ronald D. White in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

EDD   

These forms put jobless Californians at risk of identity theft. It will take months to fix them -- Despite stark warnings that using Social Security numbers on many mailings is putting Californians’ identities at risk, the Employment Development Department has told the state auditor that it will take until August to stop using the numbers on its top three forms. David Lightman in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/27/20

Education 

For a learning pod of homeless students, school days unfold in a motel carport -- A dozen bleary-eyed children bundled in sweaters, jackets and knit caps trickle into the motel carport, taking seats at metal desks evenly spaced atop the gasoline-stained concrete. Diagrams of the alphabet and solar system are taped to the beige stucco wall. Laura Newberry in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Deportation 

Taylor: Dad who returned to U.S. to take care of daughter awaits deportation -- Some days Hulissa Aguilar, a freshman at Arroyo High School in San Lorenzo, has to force herself to get out of bed. It’s not because she loathes distance learning. It’s because each day she gets closer to losing her father, Hugo Aguilar, who is scheduled to be deported to Mexico before the end of the year. Otis R. Taylor Jr. in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

Also . . .   

Lopez: Column: Among the many volunteers deserving of thanks, this high school student is a standout -- Today, a few words of thanks. To all the volunteers in Santa Clarita who have been delivering meals to the homes of seniors throughout the pandemic. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Proposed aerial tram for Dodger fans ignites controversy at Los Angeles State Historic Park -- To the average visitor, the Los Angeles State Historic Park looks to be an urban oasis — a serene expanse of rolling grass and shady glens tucked between Chinatown and the Los Angeles River. Louis Sahagún in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

Employers and Workers  

BART, unions reach accord over labor contracts, but layoffs still possible -- BART and its largest labor unions, eager to avoid contentious negotiations while the transit system recovers from precipitous ridership drops during the pandemic, said Wednesday that they’ve agreed on three-year contracts. Michael Cabanatuan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

Street  

'Not in my city': Bay Area resident films man posting Nazi stickers -- A Marin man went viral after confronting an individual seen putting Nazi stickers around downtown Fairfax. Katie Dowd in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/27/20

With all of December still to come, S.F. has already topped 2019 homicide numbers -- As homicides rise throughout the Bay Area during the coronavirus outbreak, San Francisco police have reported 45 killings this year, compared with 41 for all of 2019. Black people, who make up less than 6% of the city’s population, accounted for nearly half the victims. Bob Egelko in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/27/20

Blackouts 

SoCal Edison cuts power to more than 5,000 homes on Thanksgiving amid wildfire concerns -- More than 5,000 Southern California Edison customers in Ventura and Los Angeles counties were without power on Thanksgiving evening, with 100,000 more at risk of having the lights turned out as high winds led to elevated wildfire risk, officials said. James Queally in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/27/20

POTUS 45  

Trump commits to stepping down if electoral college votes for Biden -- President Trump said on Thursday that he would leave the White House if the electoral college voted for President-elect Joe Biden next month, though he vowed to keep fighting to overturn the election he lost and said he may never concede. Josh Dawsey in the Washington Post$ -- 11/27/20