Lacking the votes to pass an outright ban on delivery robots sharing City sidewalks, Supervisor Yee proposed amendments to his initial ordinance that would allow robotic’s companies to obtain permits for testing the robots on City sidewalks in limited areas zoned for industrial uses. 

 

Additional amendments include limiting the robots’ speed, requiring nearby human monitoring, and encouraging the unionization of the workforce at robotics companies.  Yee cites his change of heart as a desire to strike a balance between innovation and pedestrian safety.

 
Also at Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Lee introduced legislation to relocate city departments and inmates currently housed in the squalid Hall of Justice. Farrell’s law banning flame-retardant chemicals in upholstery and children’s products sailed through unanimously on first reading.  Sheehy’s ordinance requiring big grocery stores to report the meats’ antibiotic content was unanimously approved, and his ordinance preventing bicycle chop shops from obstructing city sidewalks passed 9-2.

Trump’s third attempt to institute a sweeping travel ban was blocked by a federal judge on Tuesday.  Out of the proposed 8 impacted countries, restrictions on all but North Korea and Venezuela have been halted.

A new wildfire broke out Tuesday in the Santa Cruz Mountains and quickly spread through dry brush and thick forest, igniting buildings and prompting numerous evacuations around Boulder Creek.

Five firefighters were injured and at least four structures were destroyed before dawn after a building fire late Monday night ignited the hills and sent flames sweeping through trees.

PG&E's stock price is down 17 percent since Oct. 11, when state fire officials said they would investigate whether PG&E’s power lines, blown by fierce winds, played a role in sparking the fires.

One analyst estimated the company could face liabilities topping $12 billion if investigators blame PG&E. Indeed, what appears to be the first lawsuit faulting PG&E for the fires was filed Tuesday by a Santa Rosa couple who lost their home. 

Walsh Construction, a contractor for the Van Ness Bus Rapid Transit project, hit the City with two claims totaling $15M, citing the City’s bidding process as partially responsible for a six month delay in finding contractors to complete necessary sewer and stormwater work. 

The opening of this highly anticipated new line has now been pushed back a full two years, much to the dismay of Supervisors Farrell and Peskin who called SFMTA staff on the carpet for not alerting the Board earlier to the mounting delays.

Previously, families were placed in private rooms at long-term shelters on a first-come, first-served basis, or received prioritization based on medical conditions. Under the new entry system, families with children are required to spend 60 consecutive days in emergency shelters — where beds must be renewed on a daily basis and that often do not provide showers — to receive priority placement.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles, home of the world's slowest lines, may allow driverless cars on the road as early as 2018, to speed things up a bit.

New rules would allow driverless vehicles to operate without a steering wheel, brake pedal or accelerator pedal, because who needs humans anyway?