APPLE'S NEW HQ COULD WORSEN AREA TRAFFIC: CUPERTINO . (AP) — An environmental review has found that Apple Inc.'s new headquarters will have significant traffic impacts along a nearby freeway and roads.
Cupertino city officials on Thursday released a draft of the environmental impact report looking into the impacts of the technology company's new home.
The report found that thousands of commuters will face an "unacceptable level" of congestion along Interstate 280 during the morning rush.
Apple is trying to complete its Campus 2 by 2016, which would span 2.8 million square feet at a cost estimated at $5 billion.
The company said the building will be powered by "100-percent renewable energy" and will be a "great addition to the neighborhood."
SF BAY AREA CITY OKS LICENSE PLATE CAMERAS: PIEDMONT (AP) — A small San Francisco Bay area city that has experienced a rash of home-invasion robberies is moving forward with plans to install cameras to record the license plates of vehicles that enter city limits.
The Piedmont City Council has voted unanimously to spend more than $650,000 on 39 license-plate cameras.
The cameras will not cover every crossing into and out of town. Police Chief Rikki Goede said areas that experience the most burglaries will get them.
Piedmont is surrounded by Oakland, and some residents blame a recent crime surge on Oakland's crime woes.
Critics worry about the cameras' privacy implications.
Piedmont is the latest Bay area city to approve the cameras. Tiburon in nearby Marin County has a camera aimed at the only road in and out of town.
SAN BRUNO CALLS FOR $3.85 BILLION FINE FOR PG&E: SAN BRUNO (AP) — San Bruno city officials are calling on California regulators to fine Pacific Gas & Electric Co. $3.85 billion for the company's role in a deadly pipeline blast in 2010 that killed eight people and destroyed dozens of homes.
The city's lawyers filed the brief on Friday in response to the California Public Utilities Commission's recommendation that PG&E be fined $2.25 billion.
San Bruno officials said the CPUC's terms allow the company to deduct part of the penalty from its taxes, which lets the utility "off the hook."
PG&E has called the fine excessive and said its shareholders have paid more than $2 billion in system upgrades.
NEW BAY BRIDGE SPAN MUCH SAFER THAN OLDER BRIDGE: OAKLAND (AP) — Engineers say the new span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge would be able to handle a large earthquake much better than its aging counterpart which was damaged by the Loma Prieta temblor in 1989.
The Contra Costa Times reports (http://bit.ly/14F5oYt) analysis from three agencies overseeing the Bay Bridge construction shows the new span would be able to withstand shaking from a major quake. The information was presented to Bay Area lawmakers who requested a briefing in the wake of public concerns about the $6.4 billion span's seismic safety.
More than 30 seismic safety rods broke after being tightened in March, forcing officials to scramble to repair the damage.
BUFFETT CHARITY LUNCH AUCTION ENTERS FINAL HOURS: AN FRANCISCO. (AP) — The annual charity auction of a private lunch with billionaire investor Warren Buffett entered its final hours Friday with the rare opportunity still available for the relative bargain price of less than a million dollars — although that wasn't likely to last.
The high bid on the eBay auction Friday morning was $775,100, but the biggest bids often aren't made until just before the end, which was scheduled for 11:30 p.m.
The private audience with one of the most-successful investors and philanthropists ever drew bids of more than $2 million in each of the past five years, including last year's record-setting winning bid of $3,456,789.
All proceeds go to the Glide Foundation, which helps the poor and homeless in San Francisco. The nonprofit relies on the auction to provide a significant chunk of its $17 million annual budget.
Last year's Buffett lunch was the most-expensive charity item ever sold on eBay. The most expensive item ever sold on eBay was a jet that drew $4.9 million in 2001, eBay spokeswoman Karen Sayah said.
Buffett said he will spend several hours discussing whatever the winner wants to talk about, except that Berkshire Hathaway's chairman and CEO won't talk about potential investments.
