was essentially flat. san francisco, however, saw an increase. abc seven news reporter suzanne fawn joins us live from the newsroom with a closer look at the shift in san francisco. suzanne, so ama and dan back in october 2022, census numbers for the year before revealed that san francisco lost more than 6% of its population. >> that's 55,000 people that moved out of the city in a single year during the pandemic. but that latest number, the latest census numbers, show that san francisco is making a comeback. new census numbers show people are coming back to san francisco. the exodus in the wake of the pandemic is over. >> i think the pandemic really changed a lot of people's lives, so i'm glad they're coming back. i think that's wonderful. >> according to census bureau data, san francisco's population is up, growing between july 2022 and 2023. by about 1200 people to just under 809,000. that's an increase of 0.15. i'm a little surprised at the number. the

rebound following a big drop in 2021, shown here with the light blue line. >> as a chef, a lot of my friends had left statewide. >> california lost more than 75,000 people from 2022 to 2023, but things are starting to turn around, says chef danny mirza, a san francisco resident. >> i just started getting the phone calls asking if i know of anybody with jobs available in our industry. again which is huge for us. >> we've spent a lot of time in tahoe, a lot of people went to tahoe. they weren't prepared for year round life in tahoe, so i'm not surprised that people want to come back. >> the pandemic allowed people to work remotely and in places that were a lot less expensive, but that's now changing, says the public policy institute of california. >> now employers are being a little bit fussier in some cases about people showing up in person at least a few days a week. and i think that's drawing people back to california because the dynamic and high paying jobs, especially in the bay area, are still here.

>> the bay area is also seeing a resurgence. >> the bay area in general, actually, it's not just san francisco has seen something of a turnaround. and we have some new dynamic industries like ai that are drawing people back to the state. >> kevin ho, a real estate broker in san francisco with vanguard properties, says things have definitely improved. >> we have a lot of sellers who have previously would have left the city. now they're upgrading and staying in the city, buying bigger and better homes. we have clients who are locating and relocating back to the bay area. we had a couple just closed on an iconic property who are moving here from miami and experts say san francisco is in recovery mode. >> they say san francisco needs to build more housing and make housing more affordable for people to be able to stay. meanwhile, kevin ho, the real estate broker we talked to, says he's seeing big crowds during open house on sundays. and he says listings are selling in less than a week. live in the newsroom. suzanne forn, abc seven news. >> interesting. okay, suzanne, thanks a lot. population changes are due to many factors. obviously domestic migration, international immigration, as

well as births and deaths. how do changes in san francisco compare to changes across the country? well, let's run that down for you. by the numbers. the us census bureau says 60% of counties nationwide saw population increases. population went up in pretty much every county in florida, 96% of them texas counties saw some of the fastest and biggest population increases in far northern california. lassen county saw the biggest population decline by percentage, losing almost 4% of its population. los angeles had the biggest total decline, losing more than 56,000 people. that translates to 0.58. that is a noticeably smaller drop, however, than the year before. it is still the most populous county in the country. >> well, it was hard to miss the wind. today, there is a wind advisory, in effect, awfully gusty. >> we shot this video in the north bay today. abc seven news meteorologist sandhya patel is tracking the current conditions outside sandy. >> yeah, and dan and anna, those

winds have died down a bit at the lower elevations, but not the higher elevations. take a look at this live picture from mount tam, where you will notice a very shaky camera as we look back towards sutro tower. right now at the lower elevations, gusts to 28 at napa, 24 in livermore. you will notice, though, 40 mile an hour wind gusts out of the northeast on mount diablo. wind advisory up until 11 a.m. tomorrow, 45 to 55 mile an hour. wind gusts up to 60 in the hills as we go. hour by hour, you will notice the winds picking up again later on tonight. going into tomorrow morning, they will be strong uh- 3637 miles an hour. and then as you look at some of the peak wind gusts, you will notice 72 mount diablo, mount eminem, 70 healdsburg hills 62. that offshore wind brought us the warmth. it is 71 for a high in san jose. napa santa rosa, santa cruz, 68 in the city and in oakland, 67. livermore still hanging on to mild to warm weather. right now we're in the 60s and the 70s. i'll let you

know when the winds will drop off and how long this warm weather will last. coming right up, ama. all right, we want to know. >> thank you. sandhya. san francisco faces a new lawsuit over street conditions. tenderloin residents are suing the city, hoping the courts will intervene and improve things. abc7 news reporter luz pena is here to explain. luz. that's right. san francisco's officially in the middle of two lawsuits, one by the coalition on homelessness and now by a group of tenderloin residents and businesses who are accusing the city of tolerating illegal drug dealing and a growing number of homeless encampments. >> as san francisco woke up to a lawsuit by five residents and two businesses in the tenderloin, the city's drug market hotspot, that are at their wits end because the city has treated their neighborhood as a containment zone for narcotics activity and all the problems associated with that. matthew davis represents the tenderloin residents who want to remain anonymous. in their complaint, one of the plaintiffs, a mother of two, documented being threatened with knives and hammers outside her

home. these photos, showing a glimpse of their daily lives every day at all hours. >> people are dealing drugs and using drugs in front of their apartment building. there are encampments. people are lighting bonfires. their sidewalks are filthy with all types of problems from used syringes to human waste. >> the phoenix and best western hotels documented inaccessible sidewalks for guests and drug use throughout the area. the phoenix hotel decided not to renew their lease next year. >> the business is down so much because of the conditions around their hotel, randy shaw, director of the tenderloin housing clinic, is hoping this lawsuit leads to change in the area. >> we hope we get our constitutional rights protected, which has not been the case, and the people should not treat the tenderloin as if, oh, you want to sell drugs, you can do it in the tenderloin, but don't do it in cow hollow. >> in response to the lawsuit, in a statement, the city attorney's office said in part, the city is making efforts to

reduce crime, disrupt open air drug markets and address homelessness, all while complying with the preliminary injunction issued in the coalition on homelessness case. the mayor said they're seeing improvements in the tenderloin at un plaza in the daytime, but at night it's still an issue and we're going to continue to do everything we can to work as aggressively as we can to focus our resources and attention on the tenderloin. we met melvin jr in the neighborhood. he has lived in the tenderloin for 20 years, and was glad to hear that a group of residents are suing the city. he doesn't feel safe in the area anymore. >> it's horrible. now. just yesterday, someone pulled a knife on me while i was walking home from work for no apparent reason at all. >> and these residents and businesses are not seeking any financial compensation from the city. they just want the courts to intervene and help the tenderloin. the city has about a month to respond to this lawsuit. luz pena, abc seven news. >> lucy, thank you so much. the case against the protesters arrested for shutting down the

bay bridge has been dismissed. protesters accepted a diversion agreement to do five hours of community service, and the group as a whole will pay about $4,500 in restitution, 78 protesters have been charged for shutting down the bay bridge on november 16th in a cease fire protest. the protest blocked westbound traffic on the bridge for more than two hours yesterday, protesters calling for a ceasefire in gaza shut down part of san francisco international airport for more than three hours, part of the off ramp to the international terminal was impacted, along with two security checkpoints. no one was arrested. new details in the effort to recall, alameda county district attorney pamela price, the registrar of voters, is going to manually verify the signatures to determine if the effort can advance about 73,000 signatures are needed. organizers collected more than that, about 123,000. a random sampling was conducted to verify the signatures. today the registrar says that was not sufficient to verify if enough meet the threshold. if things check out after the manual

count, the effort goes to the county board of supervisors to set a special election. >> now it is neck and neck to replace retiring representative anna eshoo. this is district 16 in the u.s. house. it includes most of the south bay and the peninsula stretching from pacifica to los gatos. sam liccardo was in the lead. he'll be one of the two candidates in november's general election, for sure, but the battle for second place is very close. evan low now has a 63 vote lead over joe simitian. votes are still being counted, so this obviously could still change. another close race for the state senate is district seven, which covers contra costa and part of alameda counties. berkeley mayor jesse arreguin is in the is the clear frontrunner here. jovanka beckles is increasing her lead over dan kalb for second place, and it's looking more and more like prop one will pass. it would use billions in bonds to provide housing for the homeless and the mentally ill. right now, it's got 50.2% support with 22,000

more yes votes than no votes. but it's looking like it will pass. a voter turnout is better than expected, actually, for the primary, it is up now to 32. nearly average turnout in a california primary election has been running about 33% over the past 20 years. and remember, you can find race results from california's primary election right there on our website. easy to find. go to abc seven news.com in the north bay. >> a deal is in the works to save a beloved child care center from closing the fairfax san anselmo children's center, a lifeline for low income families , received an eviction notice earlier this year. but as abc seven news reporter cornell bernard explains, a new purchase plan could allow families and teachers to stay. >> it's feeling more hopeful. it's feeling more positive. >> teacher mariana giordano is ready to exhale, following news that the fairfax san anselmo children's center may not be closing its doors after all. >> i think there's a light at the end of the tunnel.

>> it's really, really exciting to hear that we are moving towards the steps of being able to stay here. skin that you snuggle up, cuddle up and lay in the nonprofit center opened in 1973 that offers low income families, subsidized child care. >> the property is owned by the ross valley school district, but last january, the board moved to evict the child care center because the building needed too many repairs. >> you are required to remove from the premises. >> cut to this month, where a new nonprofit, the siderman legacy children's fund, is offering to buy the property from the district for $2 million and lease it back to the children's center. >> we will be able to remain at the property as long terme tenants and that deal also says that the property will have to remain as a child care center in perpetuity, and so that will allow us to stay, which is very exciting. >> yard sign supporting the sale of the children's center are popping up across town, nearly 100 families depend on this facility most every day, and

it's super, super important to keep us here. >> we serve a great purpose in our community, especially being one of the or the only low income child care in the ross valley. >> renovating the children's center will not be cheap. it could cost $8 million, but marin county officials are hoping that federal funds will help with the bill. in a statement, a spokesperson says the county's request for a 2.5 million federal fiscal year 25 earmark would contribute to those needed property and building improvements, in addition to a $2.5 million loan pledged by marin community foundation. the center is also applying for other local and state grants, the ross valley school superintendent says after a year's work invested, the district has laid the foundation for a successful transition. a school board vote on the sale is scheduled for march 27th. >> that this is just the first step that we've been hoping for. for a long time in fairfax. >> cornell, bernard, abc seven news coming up next, the debate over what's underfoot synthetic

turf versus real grass and other alternatives, what some south bay parents are asking for, plus a new push for a 32 hour workweek. >> a california senator is behind a bill to change rules if you have heart failure, entrust your heart to entresto. entresto helps improve your heart's ability to pump blood to the body. don't take entresto if pregnant; it can cause harm or death to an unborn baby. don't take entresto with an ace inhibitor or aliskiren, or if you've had angioedema with an ace or arb. the most serious side effects are angioedema, low blood pressure, kidney problems, or high blood potassium. ask your doctor if entresto is right for you.

salonpas lidocaine flex. a super thin, flexible patch with maximum otc strength lidocaine that contours to the body to relieve pain right where it hurts. and did we mention, it really, really sticks? salonpas, it's good medicine. some advocates over a proposal to replace playground surfaces at some schools with artificial turf. they claim heat and chemicals from the turf could be harmful, not just to the kids but to the environment. abc seven news south bay reporter zach fuentes shows you what some in the community would like to see instead. >> big concerns from many parents with students in the

sunnyvale school district. >> my kids and all kids deserve to play on surfaces that are safe and natural and healthy. >> the district is proposing changes to playground surfaces at six elementary schools as part of overall site improvements. the district board of trustees is looking into replacing floor matting at playgrounds with synthetic turf. courtney jansen has one child in the district and another set to start there in the fall. community group mothers out front silicon valley has mobilized parents like her who have been concerned. >> when i actually was first approached about this nine months ago, i didn't care and i'm just gonna admit it, i didn't care. and i did a little bit of research, she said. >> that research led her to find out things about synthetic turf. she found unsettling. she said that included the high heat it can produce that could be uncomfortable for kids, and also environmental concerns. parents and advocates are also worried about the risk for chemicals known as pfas, which are often found in artificial turf. the epa says that pfas may be linked to harmful health effects in humans and animals. >> my kids are young, their systems are developing, their

bodies are developing, and they're going to be extra susceptible to the effects of these chemicals, community groups who have worked with the parents say there's also the threat of broken turf blades causing plastic pollution, how they'll get blown or washed down the storm drains, and wind up in the creeks and then in the bay. >> one alternative, the groups are pointing towards is engineered wood fibers, which are actually are great and easy to take care of and inexpensive. we reached out to the sunnyvale school district, which said in part, we understand our community's concerns regarding using synthetic turf for our playground surfaces and why they are recommending wood chips as an alternative. we have reviewed both synthetic turf and wood chips and are recommending pfa free synthetic turf based on our analysis. but the group say that even the turf that claims to be free of pfas still contains similar chemicals that aren't widely tested and may be harmful because we don't know it should should be rejected until we know it's safe, especially for our young children. the sunnyvale school district board of trustees will be discussing bids for the project at their thursday night meeting in sunnyvale. zach fuentes, abc

seven news. >> it's drought map thursday, the day we get a new look at california's drought conditions, 95% of california is not in a drought a year ago, about half of california was out of drought. the california water resources control board is proposing more relaxed regulations for water conservation. so relaxed some say they may not be enough. the changes would involve agencies that provide water for things like toilets, showers, landscaping and car washing. any cuts to those agencies wouldn't begin until 2027 and would be spread out to 2040. some environmentalists believe that could actually do more harm than good. >> the updated regulations makes it too easy to kick the can down the road, and we have no time to waste. our next drought is right around the corner. we need strong water efficiency standards now. not in 2040. water regulators had been accused of asking cities and water agencies to cut back, too much too quickly. >> the state water board will hear public comment and vote on

the updated plan in july. if approved, it will go into effect next year. >> all right, let's turn to the weather forecast. show a lot of flowers in that video. feels like spring, doesn't it? >> i think i have nine roses coming out on one bush. sandia is pretty incredible. i'm pumped. it's impressive. and i did nothing. it just rained. it just happened. yeah. i was going to say you have a green thumb now and ama uh- everything's blooming. >> you probably notice allergies are up. let's take a look at live doppler seven right now and we'll talk about what is going on. so area of high pressure uh- has been building in the wind flows from the high to the area of low pressure, which has really just been retrograding. and so as a result, we're just smashed right in the center of it all. that's why we've had the downsloping or the diablo northeasterly winds providing us with the warm up. so we're going to check out the winds right now , mount diablo 33 miles an hour. this is, believe it or not, an improvement considering you reached wind speeds over 70 mile

an hour gusts earlier this morning. oakland hills right now 34. mount eminem 40 mile an hour. winds here are some other wind gusts for lower elevations. it was 44 at oakland airport. napa, livermore 4038, in half moon bay, 31, in san jose. as we look at a view from our pier 39 camera. certainly it is a beautiful view, but you can see that it is windy out there. 67 degrees in san francisco, 68 in oakland it is in the 70s, still in hayward, san jose, 69. half moon bay, 66 degrees a bouncy view from emeryville. camera as we look back towards salesforce tower, upper 60s napa, santa rosa, fairfield 65. right now in livermore and from our san jose camera. just bright skies tonight and tomorrow. gusty winds will continue friday forecast includes sunshine and spring like weather again, so if you like today's weather, you're going to like tomorrow and the weekend weather will include mild to warm conditions for the bay and inland, but the coast will start to cool as the fog rolls back in. so let's go hour

by hour and talk about the winds. first, the wind will continue. 7:00 tonight, 2530 mile an hour winds. they ease a little bit, only to pick up again during the overnight hours tomorrow morning you may be woken up by the gusty winds once again at 8 a.m. 37 napa 33, in oakland and topping out over 40 miles an hour by noon in calistoga. but the rest of you, you will notice the winds are starting to subside and they really do drop off considerably by mid afternoon to early evening. so we will get a break from the wind. let's go hour by hour in case you're stepping out tonight at 7:00. still very mild in the 60s. later on tonight 9:00 50s and 60s. and then tomorrow morning we start out in the comfort zone. by noontime, it's already warming up into the 60s, and early afternoon will feature temperatures that get up into the 70s. i'll show you where they'll ultimately end up tomorrow morning. 40s, 50s. windy in the hills, windy at the lower elevations. clear start and warming up fast in the south bay. cupertino 73, san jose 7571

degrees in santa cruz. it's just going to be so nice on the peninsula. redwood city, los altos 7369 pacifica, downtown san francisco 71 degrees 70, in daly city in the north bay, low 70s from sausalito to san rafael, napa, 74, in santa rosa and the east bay 73, oakland fremont head inland castro valley 73, concord 72, along with walnut creek, 74, in fairfield. here's your accuweather seven day forecast, and it does feature more warmth, more wind tomorrow. but don't worry, lighter winds for the weekend and still springlike around the bay and inland with 70s. but temperatures do start to back off a bit at the coast, especially with the fog returning monday. you get a little bump up in those numbers with mid 70s again, just as we change seasons on tuesday evening and then after that we're back to cooler and cloudier ama and dan and maybe even a slight chance of showers by thursday. >> it's still march. >> it is. we get showers. >> yeah. thanks, andrea.

>> well, on that subject, winter may be almost over, but girl scout cookie season? what? oh, that just got extended. more thin mints for

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>> i don't know why we didn't lead our newscast with that. >> i agree. >> fast food employees in san jose are taking their fight for better work conditions to city hall ahead of a critical vote. they rallied after delivering a petition signed by 2500 residents. they want the city council to include a fast food fair work ordinance in this year's budget discussions. the ordinance would guarantee that all fast food employees can earn paid time off. it would also clear the way for training against wage theft, workplace discrimination and other issues. >> today is the first of many opportunities for us to lobby this building. these council members to demand that they act on your behalf. >> on tuesday, the san jose city council will cast a vote that decides whether the city will move forward with creating this ordinance. >> coming up next, a warning about a crime trend in oakland. when you're sitting in your car, you need to watch out. also ahead, our prisons aren't overcrowded, but our streets sure are. >> that's marc klaas, the father

of polly klaas. he's part of our latest abc seven originals report called struck by justice the impact her case had on california's criminal justice system. and it

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as he will not reopen. we're talking about horn barbecue on mandela parkway. the owner, matt horn, says the decision comes from a number of challenges beyond last november's fire, including vandalism and what he calls continuous theft and crime in the area. >> the oakland police department says it's making progress when it comes to reducing crime citywide, but one type of robbery is on the rise. >> scary stuff to abc seven news reporter anser hassan has the story. >> oakland police are warning of a rise in smash and grabs, but now it's happening. as people sit in their cars at this incident from february. oh my god. oh my god. opd says in several recent cases, victims were either sitting in their vehicles or stopped while driving the suspect breaks the passenger side window and grabs the driver's belongings. >> what i've noticed is there will be a driver there will be a

passenger, and then the guy in the back seat will kind of hop out, smash the window. they use like a little tool and then they just grab whatever. >> lamar works security in oakland. he's seen these types of smash and grabs many times. people are getting desperate. >> so i mean, unfortunately with no police chief, they take advantage of the opportunity of no police being out there. and yeah, unfortunately, you know, we got to live in terror. >> oakland police weren't available for comment, but in a statement they write that they are actively investigating and tracking this current trend and that commanders have begun deploying additional officers to areas of the city that have experienced the surge in armed robberies. robberies over the past 12 months are up 27% compared to the annual average. over the last three years. the city averaged 74 robberies a week over the last 12 months. so far this year, there have been 715 robberies. >> unfortunately, i have seen it quite a bit. and, it's a scary feeling to know that you're not

safe even just sitting in your car. >> opd suggests ways to reduce your risk by keeping your valuables in the trunk or under the seat. if you think you're being followed, drive to a safe place and call 911 and if attacked, remain calm and do not resist an whose a lifelong oakland resident says oakland is dealing with a lot right now, but she's not giving up on her city. she does, however, think more police presence would help. >> you're sitting in your car eating lunch or, you know, reading a book, and it's just really unfortunate. and i hope, hopefully, our leaders get a chance to turn this around and make oakland what it should be and what it can be in oakland, anser hassan abc7 news. >> you can get the full picture of crime where you live with the abc seven neighborhood safety tracker. >> it shows you a wide range of statistics on public safety over the years. for san francisco, oakland and san jose. you'll find it on our website, abc seven news.com. >> today, a father of a michigan school shooter was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for his

son's actions just a month after the shooter's mother was also convicted for classmates of ethan crumbley were killed in his 2021 attack, prosecutors say james crumbley bought the gun for his son and failed to secure it. james and jennifer crumbley are the first parents in the u.s. to be convicted for their child's school shooting. they were tried separately, but will be sentenced together next month. their son, who was 15 at the time of the shooting, is serving a life sentence with no chance of parole. >> senator bernie sanders today introduced a bill for a 32 hour workweek, and you wouldn't lose any pay. >> we have not changed the fair labor standards act. this was in 1940. we came up with a 40 hour workweek, 1940. who is going to deny that the economy has not fundamentally and radically changed over that period of time? so to suggest that we have to maintain what we put in place 84 years ago does not make a lot of sense to me. >> california senator laphonza butler joined sanders on this

bill, a four day, 32 hour workweek study done in the uk over the course of a year found it led to more efficient and happier employees. listen to this. 89% of the companies that took part in the pilot program decided to extend it. >> tough on crime policies were big winners in last week's elections, but are they the right approach? a new abc seven originals documentary, struck by justice, looks at how the kidnaping and murder of polly klaas brought about an era of tough on crime policies, including the three strikes law, which was adopted 30 years ago this month. here's a preview. the number of violent home invasion robberies in oakland continues to rise. >> do you realize you're in front of a federal building and you're doing drugs? they don't care. you say that all harkens back to the last decade's worth of criminal justice reform. >> our prisons aren't overcrowded, ed, but our streets sure are. some blame proposition

47 for the increase in crime. >> prop 47 was approved by voters in 2014. two years after the three strikes and you're out. reform it made simple drug possession a misdemeanor. but it also made some nonviolent property crimes, misdemeanors as well. that is, if they exceed $950 in value. >> so if you look at our power tools here, you'll see they all have electronic tethers on them. this is an alarm system. >> troy welch owns several hardware stores. he says thefts are frequent. >> to get above 950, it takes a lot. and in a hardware store, you could have arms full of stuff and walk out and still do well under $900. >> the idea that proposition 47 inspired or kicked off some crime wave in california does

not match with the data. proposition 47 is very limited to petty theft and drug possession. it has nothing to do with breaking into your home or your garage or your car, or drug dealing, or these massive smash and grabs. none of these crimes are covered by proposition 47. >> organized theft rings may also be driving those mass thefts in stores that have been caught on camera. so has fentanyl. the rise of this cheap, addictive drug may be driving crime the way crack cocaine addiction was blamed for a rising crime in the 1980s. >> so how are you funding your drug habit? right? a young man, they did an interview with, he just said, yeah, i went in and i stole from from the store and i'm out here selling it because i need to feed my addiction. >> california's $950 threshold

to charge a theft as a felony is among the harshest in the country. 40 other states have laws that are more lenient. texas is the most lenient. its threshold is $2,500. >> study after study shows that stiffer and stiffer punishments actually don't decrease crime. don't interfere crime. in fact, they are criminogenic, meaning you send somebody to prison, you start to really interfere with their lives. it makes it harder to find a job, makes it harder to have housing. you lose connection with your family. and actually, the more times you go to prison, the more likely that you are to commit a new crime. longer punishments, harsher punishments, they're actually not decreasing crime. ironically, they can increase crime >> so at this store here, we get this recurring crime. it's usually a guy with a hoodie and he'll pretend like he's looking

at the menu. and then as soon as the cashier looks the other way, he'll grab the tip jar and run out. so i don't get upset about it because i see myself in that. the kid that came and stole the tip jar was like, i was like him , man. yeah, instead of sending him prison, maybe somebody should go talk to him. you need to deter the crime, obviously, but at the same time, and you got to give people a second chance. and here in california, we put a redemption value on soda cans. $0.02 or $0.05. human life should have some redemption values on it, too. >> i think some people can be rehabilitated. i don't think a sexually sadistic psychopath can be rehabilitated. and once somebody is slipped into violent crime. no, i don't think they can be rehabilitated. i don't think there should be attempts to rehabilitate them. i think we should throw them away and lock up the key. i think violent people should be behind bars. >> struck by justice, the impact of polly klaas is now streaming on the abc seven bay area app. >> still to come from seven on

your side. cheated out of your tax refund. a bay area mom thought she'd lost thousands to a thief, but there was one little thing that prevented them from stealing her money and high speed rail at a high price. >> how much more money? the project says it needs to complete. what voters approved nearly two decades

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it's between santa monica and downtown l.a. the self-driving cars cannot yet use freeways. a reporter for our sister station in los angeles took a test drive today. he had to walk a few blocks to the pick up location and says the ride was smooth and moved easily through traffic. >> i have to admit, it's a bit unusual to not have anyone in the front, and it's just stopping and starting and moving along. >> it is weird, right? waymo also started operating today in austin. today's service launch comes just a day after san mateo county filed an appeal with the state to try to stop waymo service there, citing safety concerns. >> speaking of transportation, california high-speed rail is about to get more expensive, a lot more. the rail authority says it will cost an additional

$100 billion to complete the project. the money could fund would fund the san francisco to los angeles line that voters approved back in 2008. the original cost of the project was estimated to be $40 billion, but now state officials say it will cost about $35 billion just to run the 171 mile line between bakersfield and merced. and the project needs an extra $100 billion to extend the line to san francisco and l.a. the ceo of california's high-speed rail authority says the project is still viable. >> the only way you get the public is by performing better, and i think the authority is performing better today than it was, and i think it will going forward. >> the rail link is estimated to be finished by 2033. >> today's windy weather will stay with us for a while. sandhya has a look at the winds

time to protect your vehicle from winter's wrath. of course, the hot sun can be tough on vehicles too.

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seven on your side. >> it's very creepy, let alone you know the steam is already coming out of my ears. >> brianna rooney was about to e-file her tax returns last week when she found out somebody had beat her to it. >> breanna rooney claimed to dependents refund amount 8900 and some change. >> brianna said she was finishing her taxes at h&r block when that message came up on the computer screen. a return had already been filed in her name. >> you know, in my head, i'm freaking out because this is a big deal, h&r block said it would investigate, but no answers. >> brianna called the irs. >> yes, there has been a return filed in your name with your social 100. everything in the file is like they were, you know, immediately i start asking her like, what's the account number? where is the refund going? and she's like, ma'am, we legally cannot give you any of that information. thankfully, brianna had an irs pin number which the thief could not supply , so the irs blocked any payment to the scammer, said, hold on,

person who are you? verify yourself and they didn't verify so they didn't get it. they would have got the refund. they'd be out shopping with nine grand of my money. >> still, brianna must submit this affidavit to prove her identity and file a long form tax return. even then, she was told it could take up to two years to get her tax refund. about $6,000 on hold. what's worse, the irs would not say what information the thief knew about her and her two children. >> that's what freaks me out the most. my new baby and my 12 year old. like they're young. their information is out there. >> the irs has been using more fraud filters to deter theft. it flagged more than 1 million suspicious tax returns last year. >> as you find out about identity theft within the federal tax system, you want to let the irs know immediately. or if you get a letter from the agency and find out that way reactively, you want to respond to that immediately. >> if you think you may be a victim of tax id theft, log on to irs.gov. identity theft

central. you'll find information on what to do for seven on your side. karina nova abc seven news. >> so upsetting when that happens. well tomorrow seven on your side is hosting a tax chat. united way bay area is sponsoring this opportunity. get your questions answered by tax professionals by sending them in now go to abc seven news.com. click seven on your side and you'll find the form right there to submit your question. then watch tomorrow right here on abc seven. >> all right. one last check on the weather. yeah. >> and sandy has been watching el nino, which always produces some weather patterns here. what's the latest on that sandy. >> yeah. so an advisory just came out today from the climate prediction center. and as we take a look here, lowers sea surface temperature were observed near the equatorial pacific in february. they're saying there's an 83% chance that we transition to neutral this spring, april through june. and a 62% chance that we have a la nina developing this summer. now, historically, la nina is follow el nino. we'll see what happens. we do have wind

warnings, advisories and watches up and down the state. it is breezy around parts of california as we are in that pattern, and windy here for some areas. 28 miles an hour right now and gusts in napa. livermore. 24 clear skies though, and terrific air quality as a result. tomorrow morning starts out windy, but afternoon not terribly windy. we'll go with breezy and certainly a warmer day. upper 60s to the mid 70s. as we look at saturday, the coast cools with the fog rolling in but still warm inland. same thing on sunday and then monday will bump up those temperatures. how about that? the accuweather seven day forecast. enjoy the warmth through saint patrick's day weekend. spring starts on tuesday. on monday, wonderful. yeah. >> thanks, sandy. >> all right, well, before we get steph on the ballot for president, can we get him back on the court? >> he could. he could do everything all the same time. yeah. let's go, let's go steph

uh- the warriors open steph curry is healthy. just to play saturday night against the lakers. that game here on abc a super thin, flexible patch with maximum otc strength lidocaine that contours to the body to relieve pain right where it hurts. and did we mention, it really, really sticks? salonpas, it's good medicine.

good evening. eric armstead spent nine years with the 40 niners. in fact, he was the niners most tenured player. but the reality of the nfl is you can't pay everybody on the team.

the 40 niners wanted armstead to take a pay cut. he said. no thanks to that, he's now agreed to a three year, $51 million deal with the jacksonville jaguars. and that reunites him with the gm that drafted him here trent baalke the 30 year old armstead. he's a force when he's healthy, but he played in only 12 games last year at 17 million bucks a year. armstead is actually getting the money he thought the niners were going to be paying him. meanwhile, his replacement is maliek collins, acquired in a trade with houston . little younger and less expensive than armstead, a player he respects a lot. >> obviously, i don't think you replace a player like eric armstead, the person that he is in the community, the person that he is on the field, i don't think you replace that. i'm just here to add my skill set and, bring what? i bring what i, who i am to the table. seeing that success and seeing, you know, the nfc championships and all that, i just want to come in and help bridge that gap that to get us over the hump. >> a few hours ago, the a's

wrapped up their second set of meetings with the city of oakland and alameda county. the subject extending the a's lease at the coliseum until 2028. before their presumed move to las vegas. now, the meeting, described as productive by the a's and the mayor's office. they'll meet again april 2nd. keep in mind, though, the a's desperately have to find a place to play soon, and the city does not have really very much incentive to help them at all. so we'll see how that works out. meanwhile, spring training a's and cubs and that that hot dog wrapper is mine. uh- a's presumed ace jp sears five innings struck out three. gave up just two runs on five hits. but the cubs they have a new ace shota imanaga struck out 9 in 4 and a third gave up three hits did not allow a run. it's a21 game in the eighth. here it comes. there it goes. the cubs david bowie homering off of sean newcomb. a's lose three one. the giants were off. a's and giants will meet tomorrow in mesa. first round of the 50th players championship. jack nicklaus making sure his name is etched on the trophy. three times because he won it three times.

it's the island green on 17. ryan fox the tee shot either in the drink or in the hole, and it is in the hole only. ace of the day. fox tied for 22nd at three under par. there's a three way tie for first at minus seven. are never ever seen this before. big ten tournament farrell payne goes for the dunk and the ball somehow gets stuck between his hands and the rim. watch this. it never actually goes through. it just it's like it's frozen right there. they actually called him for offensive basket interference because he's holding on to the rim. so this would be without authority. payne finished with 11 points but minnesota lost to michigan state. one more look at ts weird by ten. whoopsie uh- warriors vit lron and the lakers saturday night here on abc seven. y with steph on the court. hopefully the ankle is better. laste they played on abc steph went for 46. that game went to double overtime won by l.a. 145 144. and as i mentioned earlier today is steph curry's 36th birthday. with his family helping him celebrate.

>> it's your birthday day. how does it feel to be 36? it's your birthday. >> i'm just trying to eat my tomatoes. >> what? what's wrong with you? >> all right. abc seven sports, sponsored by your northern california honda dealers. the back story on that is when his daughter riley turned ten. steph surprised her with a pair of curry tens, and she was stunned. and she said, i'm just trying to eat my tomatoes. and that's why he said he's just trying to eat his tomatoes. so it's all tied together. it's pretty funny to hear him say happy birthday to steph. yes, thanks. enjoy your tomatoes. >> all right. that is going to do it for this edition of abc seven news. thank you for joining us. i'm ama daetz and i'm dan ashley for sandyha patel. >> larry biel all of us have a great evening. we appreciate your time. we'll see you again at 11.

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from vancouver, washington... and now, here is the host of "jeopardy!"-- ken jennings! [cheers and applause] [applause] thank you, johnny gilbert. and welcome back to the finals in the tournament of champions. in yesterday's game two, all three of our finalists were cruising through the double jeopardy! round with solid scores, and then this happened. true daily double. okay. [cheers and applause] [applause] - what is petrified wood? - that is correct. you have, whoa, $43,600! [cheers and applause] [applause] that daily double wager was the third largest in "jeopardy!" history and the biggest ever made by anyone not named james holzhauer. [laughter] and it slingshotted troy to a runaway victory. both he and ben have now picked up one win apiece, but remember, this is a best-of-seven series where the first player to notch three victories will be declared our champion. so we know we have at least two more games ahead of us. yogesh, troy, ben, good luck.