willie brown, willie mays. >> you always hear about willie. you see him in the see everything he's done in the parks like you see the statue every time you pass by the gates. and so it's just been a huge part of it.

>> this is ktvu, fox two news at 730. >> willie mays was baseball, and his talent inspired countless generations. nice to have you with me on this wednesday night. i'm heather holmes. people have been stopping by mays statue right outside of oracle park, leaving flowers and also shedding some tears. and just across the street from the ballpark, the say hey experience honoring the baseball great was open to fans. the immersive exhibit includes rare photographs, artifacts, and video that chronicles mays life. it's been open since may, but was busy today with people wanting to pay their respects. >> we lost a giant. we really lost a giant. not just a ballplayer giant, but like a giant in history. and we owe so much to him. >> people like him live forever. he's in our hearts. he's part of giants baseball. as long as they're san francisco giants baseball, there's going to be a willie mays. he's just so much of a part of how we became who we are. that may be the house

that barry built, but it's on the foundation of willie mays. >> mays played 21 seasons with the giants, 15 here in the bay area. he charmed countless fans and is widely considered baseball's greatest player. earlier today on the four, we spoke with bay area sports broadcaster damon bruce, who told us that america has lost an icon whose name was synonymous with excellence. >> what's the old saying that, you know, there have only been two artists ever born on planet earth, willie shakespeare and willie mays. this is a man who field, across generations, across the aisle. the one thing that a generation of stubborn old men, you know, try to get 25 million grandfathers to agree on anything you can't find it except for willie mays. >> bruce said that mays passing leaves a hole in the hearts of a generation. a big hole indeed. i'm here now with crystal for a look at the many barriers that mays broke and he did so in his own ways. >> he sure did. and, you know,

while he wasn't as outspoken as some might have liked, he did break barriers in his own way. he actually said, quote, i can do best for my people by doing what i do best. so he really let his game speak for himself. willie mays started in the leagues as a birmingham baron in the deep south at just 17 years old. >> willie mays saw the worst of american society in terms of race prejudice and backlash. jim crow enforcement i really tried to get out of alabama as quick as i could, as one of the first to integrate pro baseball, the star eventually ended up in new york playing for the giants, but when the giants moved out west, he struggled to buy a house in the primarily white sherwood forest neighborhood on mira loma drive. >> when the neighbors complained about a black family in their community, he was not on the front lines, per se, of the civil rights movement, but it was unavoidable for a black man during that time, because at that time, all you needed to be was black to warrant you being

hated, criticized for not being more outspoken during the civil rights movement, he sent a message through his actions, drawing crowds of white and black folks, even those that resisted his blackness could not avoid his prominence as a baseball ball aficionado. >> we should not mistake willie mays humility and nonpublic, you know, confrontation with discrimination as some sign of weakness. >> in 1966, after a black teen was shot by a white san francisco police officer, the black community revolted in what's known as the hunter's point uprising. mays spoke up on the radio, later fundraising for youth activities in hunter's point. >> he was very much so for his community. he was very much so for uplifting, the black community and doing any and everything that he could do to move our plight forward. >> and in 2015, earning a presidential medal of freedom

from then-president barack obama. >> it's because of giants like willie that someone like me could even think about running for president. >> now, mays lived through a very tense time, you know, throughout the civil rights movement as his career was skyrocketing and he may not have been as vocal as muhammad ali or malcolm x, but some might say he represented the silent majority of black america. >> yeah. and he really was one of the very first black athletes to be broadly admired. so how did he handle that in terms of interacting with fans? >> you know, earlier today i was looking through archives and there was a video of him signing baseballs and cards with a bunch of little kids, all black and white people coming to him to get some words of encouragement. so he always put a smile on people's faces. definitely a unifier. >> yeah, he certainly was. all right, crystal bailey, thank you. well, in alabama, where mays was born, a new mural honoring the baseball legend was unveiled today in downtown birmingham. the mural, painted on the side of a building, shows a young mays in his uniform when he played in the leagues for the

birmingham black barons with a caption birmingham's own say hey kid. also in birmingham, an event meant to recognize the legacy of baseball's leagues will now be a national tribute to mays. rickwood field is the oldest professional ballpark in america, opening in 1910. mays got his start there as a teenager with the barons. the giants will face the cardinals there tomorrow. among the many players taking part in the festivities, former mlb pitcher and vallejo native cc sabathia, who reflected on mays unrivaled career. >> hank tells the story about him being a five year old seven year old boy and watching jackie play on this field. you know, and it sparked this dream. so it's literally a direct we're direct descendants of these great baseball players. so to be able to be here and put on this great and, of black baseball feels right. feels good. >> major league baseball has been working to restore the field ahead of the game tomorrow

. the teams are set to wear throwback league uniforms as well. the giants will open oracle park tomorrow at noon so that fans can watch that game in alabama. it will be televised right there on the big scoreboard. the team also plans to place a sculpture with mays's jersey number 24 right there in center field. fans can also sign a condolence book on the warning track, and you can also watch tomorrow's game right here on ktvu. fox two pre game stts at 230 with the first pitch set for 415. we also hope that you can join us for our special post game coverage as well. we'll pay tribute to mays with some memorable moments that you may not have seen before. well, new at 730 tonight. san francisco may soon be making cuts to its free city college program. a new proposal would allow only certain classes to be eligible for free enrollment. on top of that, proposed city budget cuts could reduce funding for the free city college fund from almost $19 million last academic year to just 9.3 million this

academic year. if approved, the reduction in free classes would take effect next year. well, the richmond city council voted unanimously to put a tax measure on the upcoming november ballot targeting the chevron refinery. council members heard hours of public comment from people both for and against the move, if approved by voters in november, chevron would have to pay $1 for every barrel of raw materials refined in richmond. the city says the tax would bring in an estimated 60 to $90 million a year in revenue. chevron claims it already pays the city tens of millions in taxes and says this proposal is biased against the company. organizers say a recall election of oakland mayor shengtao will be on the ballot in november. they say more than 40,000 signatures submitted to the county have now been verified, and that is the number they needed to hit to qualify the recall. backers of the recall blame tal for firing a

popular police chief, missing a deadline for a state grant for crime prevention, and concerns about public safety. >> we need to have a future for oakland businesses needs to thrive, come out, vote, speak. join us. we want to say enough, but no mas, no more deflections from mayor tao. >> well, the city council is expected to take up the recall election at its meeting coming up on july 2nd. a high turnout is expected for the first mayoral recall in oakland's history. be well, new. at 730 tonight, san jose police making two more arrests in connection with that sideshow that happened near santana row over the weekend. the two suspects were involved in an assault on a police officer, as well as violent vandalism. 22 year old tyler durbin d 26 year old gabe durbin were tracked down in san juan bautista and taken into custody. both of thossuspects will be booked into santa clara county jail for inciting a riot,

assault on a peace officer and felony vandalism. detectives are continuing to investigate the sideshow that broke out on saturday night. viral video on social media shows the moment a police officer arrived there on the scene in his suv, surrounded and vandalized by a crowd. more pushback to the panda project in san francisco. the upcoming meeting where opponents plan to voice their concerns and some good news tonight from the fire lines in sonoma county, the improving conditions that led officials to lift evacuation orders and warnings. >> it sure did cool down substantially today, but the day it will top off at 100 degrees and where your bay area forecast is on deck. and coming up next.

state as the sites fire there in colusa county is proving a bit more difficult to control. cal fire says since starting on monday, the fire has burned more than 15,000 acres east of the mendocino national forest and is just 5% contained. some of the smoke from that fire has been drifting right here into the bay area. however, there is some good news tonight from the front lines of the arrow fire in calaveras county, near the town of copperopolis, most evacuation orders and warnings have now been lifted, and containment has increased tonight to 33. cal fire says one firefighter was hurt but is expected to recovery . and there is more good news from sonoma county. the point

fire is now 50% contained and all evacuation orders and warnings have also been lifted. here, more than 1200 acres, though, have burned. but officials are feeling good about where the firefight stands right now. >> i think you'll probably see firefighting assets assigned to this for another week or so, just as a precautionary measure. but the fire is not going to grow anymore. at the perimeter is well secured right now. there's little pockets of vegetation inside that well inside the burn perimeter. >> also today, supervisors ratified a declaration of a local emergency there that allows sonoma county to request state and federal assistance for response and recovery efforts. so i was talking earlier about the smoke that's been drifting from some of those fires right here into the bay area, and that means we're still stuck with it for a little bit longer. we are. >> it's amazing. heather, i was driving to mendocino on monday, and i had to pass dry creek road off 101, and it was smoky. it was smelly. it was very hazy. and then yesterday i was driving back to the bay area. it was

clear there, but here? yes. and it all has to do with the winds. and this is why the bay area air quality district says we are extending our air quality advisory for solano napa and sonoma counties because we have a shift in the wind again. meanwhile, 60 to 87 degrees, that will be our temperature span, which means temperatures will be going back up tomorrow because they came down today, 58 in pacifica. check out san francisco yesterday, 67 degrees today, 58, down from 87 degrees at 79 in livermore and throughout most of the tri valley, 78 degrees in santa rosa today and mid 70s in san jose. it's live. this is our weather camera. big, beautiful bank of low clouds and fog. that's the marine layer invading the bay area and that will make it for some great sleeping weather tonight. now here you go. with that bank of cloudiness lining the sea shore. temperatures currently are in the 50s across the board, except for concord and clayton. stick it out at 73

degrees 72. now in fairfield. otherwise, boy, can you feel the difference. it's up to 15 degrees cooler at this hour than it was just 24 hours ago. the winds are still breezy, adding to that chill in the air. 24 mile per hour winds out towards travis 16 to 18 at sfo with a wind gust very impressive at 32mph. a 14 mile per hour wind up at the international airport. this area of low pressure caused a shield of cloudiness over mendocino county yesterday, and all that is now pushing to the east, replaced with that area of high pressure. so while this is the last day of spring, what do you see what we have in store for you for the first weekend of summer tonight, overnight again, some good sleeping weather. 48 degrees in santa rosa high 40 sonoma and napa backing all the way into guerneville and also rohnert park, 52, in redwood city, mid 50s around castro valley and 53 degrees in san

mateo going up to high in the mid 70s. these temperatures are pleasant, just slightly cooler than where they should be for this time of the year. check this out. your extended forecast. we jump on friday. as far as our numbers are concerned, there's your first triple digit of the summer season that will be experienced in throughout the livermore, pleasanton and dublin area on saturday. heather. >> all right. thanks so much, roberta. appreciate it. >> feels wonderful. it feels wonderful because we're able to now give more to the community, a small nonprofit with some big plans. >> we'll tell you about the new addition that will allow the group to help even more people in n d.

from china to the san francisco zoo say they will turn out in force to a zoo committee meeting

tomorrow. san francisco's board of supervisors approved that proposal that would allow the city to request private funds to build the zoo enclosure for the pandas. a coalition made up of in defense of animals and sf zoo watch says the zoo is already in a financial crisis. they say a new panda attraction will hurt the zoo's bottom line and ability to care for its animals. a new at 730 tonight, the chabot space and science center is getting ready to open its brand new nasa ames visitor center. the center will feature some new exhibits, models, and more. it's all part of a larger partnership between nasa ames research center and chabot to re-envision open stem learning in oakland. the grand opening for the new center is this saturday and sunday from 10 a.m. to four. a small nonprofit that serves the homeless from san jose to oakland is making some big plans for an expansion. after saving up for four years, community seven is getting its own

commercial kitchen, ktvu and ruben tells us this will help this group meet a growing need right here in the community. >> at community saver, they see these new appliances and this 1900 square foot commercial kitchen. and think of how many people they'll soon feed. >> we can double the number. we are serving about 8000 meals and here definitely we will have minimum 15,000 meals. we will be serving per month. >> they've come a long way. 11 years ago, community seva started in san jose when nathan ganesh lost his job in tech. he began bringing his family to the park to feed the homeless. soon others wanted to help too. >> once the word of mouth spread in the community and people started reaching out. and how do we do this? eventually they had more than 3000 volunteers feeding the hungry and helping the homeless. >> they were offering blankets and sleeping bags, socks and shoes, hygiene kits and showers. but they relied mostly on shelter kitchens for cooking. and that was unreliable. >> we were always compromising in the kitchens. we were in.

like either the oven wouldn't work or the stove wouldn't work. >> and so the hunt began for a space of their own. it took four years. during this time, ganesh and met robert egger, the co-founder of world central kitchen, who encouraged him to forge ahead. >> it's anything all i've really been able to do is give a little bit of inspiration, a little bit of guidance when it's needed. but, you know, people like nathan, man, they're just ready to run. they just need somebody to say, you're not crazy, you can do this. and yes, it's smart. >> and so they signed the lease and they're hiring staff to get this commercial kitchen operational. it feels wonderful. >> it feels wonderful because we're able to now give more to the community. >> they say the need is greater than ever, but they'll be able to host more volunteers here, make more meals and do more good. >> everything is new for us, but you know there is a start somewhere we have to start and we are ready for it. >> there will be a special ribbon cutting ceremony for the new kitchen this weekend. community seva expects it to be up and running by august 1st in santa clara, and ruben ktvu fox

two news all right, the bay area well represented at the upcoming olympics. >> a look at the newest additions to team usa's rowing team. then later tonight on the 10:00 news, a multi-million dollar settlement announced just today between snapchat and california's civil rights agency ♪ (ominous music) ♪ ♪ (ominous music) ♪ girl: sydney, what's up? sydney: nothing. girl: are you ok? ♪ (ominous music) ♪ girl: talk to me. just shut up! nicotine's a neurotoxin that can escalate teen irritability. (♪)

around the bay area to mark a pivotal day in american history on june 19th, 1865. union soldiers marched to galveston, texas, to inform thousands of enslaved people that they were free. local leaders across the country have been raising the juneteenth flag outside government buildings. opal lee, who helped lead the movement to make today a federal holiday, held her annual walk for freedom in dallas. in 2016, she walked 1400 miles from fort worth, texas, to washington, dc to draw attention to the cause. >> i'm delighted. i really am that so many of you are celebrating freedom. and i don't mean freedom in texas and freedom for black people. i mean freedom for all of us. and we are free. yet >> lee, who is 97 now, received the presidential medal of

freedom for her work. president biden signed the holiday into law back in 2021. new at 730 tonight, a bay area native has made it on to the olympic rowing team. kara kohler of clayton won her competitions at the 2024 u.s. olympic rowing trials. the uc berkeley alum already has a bronze medal from the 2012 summer games, and now she's officially been selected to represent usa at this year's summer games in paris. congrats to her for making the team will be cheering her on from right here in the bay area. all right, that's going to do it for me tonight. thanks so much for watching. we'll see you right back here tomorrow for the news at 730. in the meantime, don't forget to download the fox local app right there to your smart tv. you can stream all of our newscasts stories and find exclusive content right on your smart tv, including some really grea

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