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Not so free freeways? Officials float idea of adding new fees to L.A. highways

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

Officials are floating the idea of adding new tolls to Los Angeles freeways.An anticipated study from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is expected to show that drivers should pay up if they want to enter certain freeways. Officials said such a program could help ease up traffic in the heavily congested region.Metro is considering the program called congestion pricing, which suggests motorists pay a fee on highways. The cost could depend on how far a commuter driver and entry to certain neighborhoods or business districts.The next step would be seeking input from the public and use that feedback to help design a pilot project, come up with ways to give people better travel options and low-income assistance programs.In an independent report on the matter, the UCLA’s Institute of Transportation Studies estimated that 13% of households might be unduly burdened by freeway tolling in California due to low incomes and travel habits.Michael Manville of the instit...

Storm repairs to force lane closures on Topanga Canyon Boulevard

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

Southern California’s usually wet and destructive winter may be in the rear-view mirror, but not for all drivers.Caltrans is planning to reduce Topanga Canyon Boulevard down to one lane for six months to repair storm damage and reduce the risk of future landslides, beginning Monday, June 5, the transit department announced.Caltrans is planning to reduce Topanga Canyon Boulevard down to one lane for six months to repair storm damage and reduce the risk of future landslides, beginning Monday, June 5. (Caltrans)A map showing the scheduled road work. (Caltrans)The work involves removing boulders and rocks, repairing protective mesh draping on hillsides, clearing drainage systems, and repairing potholes.Caltrans says the lane closures will be at various locations, times, and days, and may involve night work. Drivers can expect to see flaggers directing alternating traffic from Cezanne Avenue in Woodland Hills to the Pacific Coast Highway.Topanga Canyon Boulevard, also known as State Rout...

Breakthrough in winemaking:  Artificial intelligence brings benefits into the wine industry.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

The process of designer’s era completion has triggered the entire exploration of AI capabilities into the business domain. Land of Bessarabia is among the first companies which adopted an innovative approach in the winemaking industry. The company’s founder possessing the outbox thinking brought the new realizations in traditional beekeeping and winemaking. Being a real pioneer and innovator in combining beekeeping and blockchain, the passionate team of Land of Bessarabia decided to go ahead and introduce AI into winemaking, entrusting AI to create the concept for a new range of wines.As a result, the unique range of wines, matured at the finest regions of France, Moldova, Germany and Georgia was created.  Still, the Land of Bessarabia team was eager to determine whether or not AI is self-sufficient to create and invent. The new range of wines created with the AI participation has highlighted the situation. In fact, the label defines the concept combining the story, image, tra...

The Hollywood Spa Facial That Works BETTER At Home!

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

With Thousands Of Units Sold Worldwide, This Is An Amazing, Convenient, And Affordable Facial Sculpting SolutionWe all know how overpriced and overwhelming beauty can be.You can pay for estheticians, surgeons & dermatologists; but they often provide lackluster results… and the cost quickly adds up.Some spend $1,000s on surgical facelifts. Others spend $1,000s on Botox injections and fillers. But, of course there’s no guarantee those won’t ruin your face.The old ways take too long or they just aren’t worth the risk.So, it doesn’t come as a surprise that more and more people are searching for more convenient, simpler solutions to achieve their goals faster and a lot more efficiently!Thankfully, there is a solution that does just that!A US-based startup company has come up with a new innovative and inexpensive device that is changing the way people get face lifts while banishing fine lines and wrinkles.What is it?It’s called MicroSculpt. It uses a dermatologist-ap...

We Know Hotels: Elevating Personalized Hotel Accommodations Beyond Other Concierge Services

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

American Express customers often rave about the company’s concierge service more so than their credit cards. Cardholders have access to a team of knowledgeable professionals who can help them with any number of requests. The concierge service assists cardholders with various tasks such as booking travel arrangements, securing event tickets, making dining reservations, providing recommendations, and helping with special occasion planning. While this comprehensive service is undoubtedly valuable, some cardholders have expressed concerns that its broad approach may make it less effective in handling highly specialized tasks. Nowhere is this more apparent than in how Amex’s concierge team facilitates hotel experiences, from booking to check out.With millions of cardholders looking for any number of random requests, it is not surprising that even a company like American Express can let some things fall through the cracks. American Express would not have the same level of relationsh...

BroadwayHD and Billy Crystal Shine in Screening of  Tony Award® Nominated Musical ‘Mr. Saturday Night’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

BroadwayHD Producers Stewart F. Lane and Bonnie Comley with Billy CrystalPhoto by Eugene Gologursky/Getty ImagesBroadwayHD, the premier streaming service for live theatre, held an exclusive screening and conversation event at 92NY with Billy Crystal, showcasing the Tony-Award® nominated show Mr. Saturday Night.  The evening was an Emmy® 2023 For Your Consideration screening of the hit Broadway musical, filmed live on stage by BroadwayHD. Following the screening, Crystal, a Tony-Award® nominee for Best Actor in a Musical as Buddy Young, Jr., held a Q&A with Tony-Award® winning actress Bette Midler where he spoke about his experience creating, performing in, and capturing the “funniest show on Broadway in years,” according to Variety. Crystal stars in the Tony-Award® nominated Mr. Saturday Night as a comedian trying to reclaim the spotlight while also fixing his family.The 800+ audience in the Kaufmann Concert Hall included the BroadwayHD producers of Mr. Saturday Nigh...

Santa Clara County DA found “no evidence” former Cupertino mayor violated the law

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office is ending its investigation into allegations that former Cupertino Mayor Darcy Paul dictated hiring and firing decisions, stating it found no evidence a crime was committed in the last year.Earlier this month, the Cupertino City Council requested the DA’s office look into Paul’s actions following a city-commissioned investigation by Santa Rosa-based employment attorney Linda Daube that found the council had created a culture of distrust in city staff and “abusive and controlling behavior” from the former mayor.Daube’s investigation also said Paul, who was termed out at the end of last year, had tried to influence the city manager’s hiring and firing decisions. The city has a council-manager structure of government where those powers belong to the city manager. Under the city’s municipal code, a violation is considered a misdemeanor.John Chase, a deputy district attorney with the county&...

Explainer: Why do Serbia-Kosovo tensions persist?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

By Dusan Stojanovic | Associated PressBELGRADE, Serbia — Tensions between Serbia and Kosovo flared anew this week after Kosovo’s police raided Serb-dominated areas in the region’s north and seized local municipality buildings.There have been violent clashes between Kosovo’s police and NATO-led peacekeepers on one side and local Serbs on the other, leaving dozens of people injured on both sides.Serbia raised the combat readiness of its troops stationed near the border and warned it wouldn’t stand by if Serbs in Kosovo were attacked again. The situation has again fueled fears of a renewal of the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives and left more than 1 million homeless.WHY ARE SERBIA AND KOSOVO AT ODDS?Kosovo is a mainly ethnic Albanian populated territory that was formerly a province of Serbia. It declared independence in 2008.Serbia has refused to recognize Kosovo’s statehood and still considers it part of Serbia, even though i...

Court rules Manson follower Van Houten should be paroled

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

By Christopher Weber and Amy Taxin | Associated PressLOS ANGELES — A California appeals court said Tuesday that Leslie Van Houten, who participated in two killings at the direction of cult leader Charles Manson in 1969, should be let out of prison on parole.The appellate court’s ruling reverses an earlier decision by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who rejected parole for Van Houten in 2020. She has been recommended for parole five times since 2016. All of those recommendations were rejected by either Newsom or former California Gov. Jerry Brown.California Attorney General Rob Bonta could ask the California Supreme Court to stop her release. Neither his office nor Newsom’s immediately responded to requests for comment on whether they would do so.Van Houten, now in her 70s, is serving a life sentence for helping Manson and other followers kill Leno LaBianca, a grocer in Los Angeles, and his wife Rosemary. Van Houten was 19 at the time.Newsom has said that Van Houten still poses a dang...

SF Chinatown stabbing suspect arrested, identified

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:50:23 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Police have identified the suspect in a stabbing that took place at a business in San Francisco's Chinatown Monday as 61-year-old Fook Poy Lai. San Francisco Police Department officers responded at around 9:50 a.m. Monday on a report of a stabbing on the 1000 block of Stockton Street. Man who allegedly killed 16-year-old at Livermore Taco Bell extradited from Mexico, arrested Arriving at the scene, officers located a woman with an apparent stab wound. Officers rendered aid and summoned medics to the scene. The woman was transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.A possible suspect, later identified as Lai, was detained at the scene. Lai, a San Francisco resident, was transported to San Francisco County Jail where he was booked for attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, burglary and parole violation.Police say that the investigation remains active, despite an arrest having been made.