Palo Alto News

With demand for emergency medical services on the rise, the Palo Alto Fire Department is preparing to add a fourth ambulance to its fleet and rebrand itself to reflect its changing role.

Anthony Barnosky first thought the e-mail was a joke. As an expert in species extinctions who had just sounded the alarm over looming environmental crises, he had grown used to bizarre messages filling his inbox.

Around 6:47 p.m. Sunday, July 13, a man armed with a semi-automatic pistol confronted two teenagers at gunpoint near Gilbert Avenue and Pope Street in Menlo Park, then fled with their wallets and cellphones.

Federal authorities have struggled to find places other than cement jail cells at the border to house the thousands of refugee children, some of them toddlers, pouring in from Central America.

Last week, roughly 2,000 people joined me for the annual FreedomFest conference in Las Vegas, and it offered an opportunity to poke fun at the TSA, a federal agency that seems to probe and prod a bit too aggressively even when encountering innocent and harmless passengers.

The California State Resources Control Board has initiated a water conservation plan to fine California residents up to $500 a day for wasting water outdoors.

Tad Toulis headed a 24-person panel of design experts from consultancies, corporations and universities in judging nearly 2,000 entries and naming 27 gold, 58 silver and 91 bronze IDEA winners from among the 514 finalists.

SANTA CRUZ >> Locally owned Lighthouse Bank posted a profit of $448,000 for the quarter ending June 30, down 22 percent from the prior quarter and down 17 percent from a year ago, after lending jumped 10 percent and $282,000 was stashed in loan loss reserves.

Q I really appreciate the articles you publish that go into the history and technical reasoning behind why our roads were designed the way they are.

There is a huge country music show at The Rodeo Club in San Jose this Friday night.

Santa Clara County is evaluating long-term options to control traffic on Silicon Valley's busiest roads, such as new over- or underpasses and lane additions.

A pharmacy supervisor at the VA was placed on leave after complaining about errors and delays in delivering medications to patients at a hospital in Palo Alto, California.

The birth of a new baby, while joyful, can also bring a great deal of stress and anxiety - especially if the child arrived well before the due date.

Q I understood that gas prices were going to fall about 50 cents a gallon this summer.

Alex Guevara of Mountain View was arrested Saturday, July 19, for allegedly breaking into multiple cars in Palo Alto.

This newly remodeled 2-story home for sale in gorgeous Crescent Park offers 4 Bedrooms, 3 Bathrooms, and patio decks on both floors.

The company has vowed to appeal a $23 billion judgement. Camel cigarettes, an R.J. Reynolds brand, are seen on display at JJ&F Market in in Palo Alto, Calif.

The kitchen and, in the background, bedroom in Airstream's Santa Rosa model is featured in the Santa Barbara Auto Camp.

Traffic at Page Mill Road and Foothill Expressway is often backed up during the morning and evening commutes.

Election season formally got under way this week in Palo Alto with seven people pulling nomination papers for City Council.