>> eric: welcome to assignment 7. today on our program. >> a contractor charges big s bigront but where is the work? i'm michael finney, "7 on your side" is coming up. >> eric: also an effort to save one of san francisco's famous landmark. it's falling into disprepare. plus, bay area engineer who has made a kindle e-reader into a fool tool for the disabled. >> we begin with good news about the develops side project. the project between pacifica and half moon bay is on track for december opening. transportation reporter heather ishimaru went in for a >> reporte look. >> reporter: the tunnel portals

look completed. southbound roadway is finished and northbound tunnel the surface is halfway. >> i would like to think this is the last of the major mile stions supporting the roadway. >> man and machine work together to pour a nine inch thick layer of concrete. each tunnel will be four feet wide with a two foot shoulder on the left and eight feet on the. >> right the original budget $272 million ballooned to $439 million, all of it federal emergency relief funds. >> caltrans says the price went up because of surprises inside the mountain. >> we did a lot of core samples to find out what the conditions would be inside the mountain. we pretty much found the conditions, the problem is they changed much more frequently

than expected. >> reporter: the bridge and tunnel should be reliable route along the coast between pacifica and montera unlike highway 1 that is chronically closed. >> it's for the community. basically it's bypass the difficult roadway out on the coast and for vehicles now to have a much safer travel through the mountain. >> tunnel should be open to traffic at the end of the and the old highway 1 will be open to hikers and bikers. heather ishimaru, "abc 7 news". >> eric: an east bay contractor is accused of failing to deliver on a promise. it was supposed to have solved installed some new windows but never started. >> big picture windows here. >> the house still has same windows, a problem for her husband tom who is battling cancer. >> he is more sensitive to cold

than he used to be. >> the company hired this company to put in new double pane windows. the contract calls for installing ten of them for $8900. they demanded a big deposit, 50% up front. >> as long as i'm going to get windows and they will come, i will pay that money. >> reporter: she put down $4995 way back in juneen when it came time to install them, the company did not show up. the company cancelled and then promised a new date. that didn't happen either. >> i started calling them, do you have me on your calendar yet? >> reporter: no, she was not on calendar. she drove to the offices, only she found this abandoned site. >> we were over there knocking on the door and ringing the rep. >> reporter: finally she

received an e-mail he said he was laying off employees. >> he told me i need to come clean with you now. we have to release most of ourw. workers. >> i was mad. >> warning consumers that we are investigating them and concerned and careful to consider hiring him for any other jobs. >> reporter: state license board says the regulator agency is investigating complaints from five other consumers who hired him and didn't get the windows. >> where folks have paid 50% of contract price up front. >> it's illegal in california for a contractor to require a 50% deposit for a job with more than $500. by law, they can only charge 10% up front or a thousand dollars whichever isn't less. >> we found there was men a number of cases where he has required more than 10% or more

than a $1,000 down. >> reporter: he said he would not provide any response to report. in an e-mail to the woman, he he saidam prepared to refund the entire amount of the deposit. i am truly embarrassed about this. that was back in october. >> never got anything. >> we learned when he was getting this business, he was starting a new one. he obtained another fund. but he is still responsible to pay his old customers. >> he still has to pay his old debts. >> first is trying to get the consumers back their money. >> even in increments is whole lot better than nothing. >> reporter: good news for them. they say they have sent them a

refund check. also the contractor state license board, they did refund deposits for three of the consumers who filed complaints sand trying to refund everyone. >> eric: in sacramento a fresh look at old idea. the government is intended to be by the people for the people. but a system with lobbyists really is. here is nannette miranda. >> reporter: it's hard to have everyday --. >> you can only tell when a big vote is about to happen in the legislature. they are packed with lobbyists. a new report found a record $285 million was spent in 2011 trying to influence sacramento. mostly from public employee unions and corporations. california teachers association spent the most, $6.5 million. service employees international doled out $5 million.

petroleum association spent $4 million. >> i don't know if voters are getting hurt. voters cannot put up $200 million in lobbying. >> groups under proper 20 declined comment referring to us government advocates. yes, a lobbying group for lobbyists. the president didn't call back, but clearly the goal is to sway opinions and maybe votes. >> just regular people can have an enormous impact. >> assemblyman roger dickinson say special interests do not have a bigger say. >> they can be helpful and be informative but they should never be a substitute for the people that represent. >> community college student and cal recipient doesn't feel that way. she has met with lawmakers begging them not to slash

welfare, but nothing worked. >> i feel as if i am the weakest link because i don't have that economic foundation to where they can look and pay attention to me. i constantly feel that i'm being ignored. ignored. >> report also notes there are nearly 2,000 registered lobbyists here, that is 16 lobbyists per lawmaker. >> eric: still ahead a crash course for a teachers. they say how it can be done. >> all in all it's a dream come true. >> eric: trading in their career for a hard-hat [ male announcer ] for some reason those five food groups sound a whole lot better when you put them in a taco shell instead of a pyramid. old el paso. when you gotta have mexican.

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>> eric: in june san francisco voters may have a chance to decide the fate of the most iconic landmarks. some believe coit torch is

falling into disprepare. >> coit tower is one of san francisco's jewels, beet birltd back in 1933 but critics believe it's losing it's sparkle. especially the murals that cover the rauls walls inside. >> generally they are not getting the love it needs. >> john is a head of a committee protect coit tower which got signatures to put an initiative on the june ballot. the measure would make it city policy to use much of the money made here from concessions and elevator rides for preservation. >> last time there was major restoration was back in 1990. >> very little money, less than 10% of the dollars the city raises from coit tower comes back, but i think all the money needs to be spent here, but if it's needed, whythis not make ts the priority. >> reporter: but city strategy in tight budget times is spread

money through the rec the recred park system. >> money we make at coit tower and golden gate park and candlestick park keeps our rec centers and parks operating. >> his approach to generating revenue for his department is being met with some resistance. proposed ballot initiative calls for limiting commercial activities and private events at coit tower. >> this are helping to keep them in good shape, that would be a smarter approach. >> all the money we made a coit tower stayed at coit tower. playground in china to that town next store wouldn't have funding like for custodial staff. >> they are pledging a quarter million dollars one time face lifted for the murals which is under the jurisdiction of the arts commission. in san francisco, arrow lynn tyler, "abc 7 news". >> eric: a nonprofit group is guiding dozens of people hoping

to become the next wave of oakland teachers. they are diverse group which lilian kim tells us is whole idea. >> you teach all day and ay at night. >> these are fired teachers getting a crash course what it's going to take to get a job. most are minorities who grew up in oakland. >> i was one of those kids who was misunderstood. i have a clear understanding what is going on out there. i can help. >> the nonprofits federally funded group teach tomorrow in oakland thinks so, too. they recruited this diverse pool of applicants. they are helping minority teachers can turn around the dropout rate which is about 40%. >> we need to have young men who can see african-american me teaching who teaching who are leading schools

to use different strategies. >> according to information collected from the sta2% of 92%f the students at oakland unified are minorities but teaching staff less than half are people of color. >> reporter: sheryl moore a former city worker says she was so tired of hearing the numbers she decided to come out of retirement. she will be able to talk to black students others may not. >> i may look like a mama figure to them. get yourself -- whereas another teacher may not say it that way. >> it will take up to a year and a half to get credentials. they will be helping them every step of the way to change the look of oakland schools. lilian kim, "abc 7 news". >> eric: career transitions aren't unusual especially in this economy but it's rare to see someone give up a boardroom seat for a hard-hat.

david david louie has the story of one executive who made that switch. hasor much of her life worked some of the best known tech companies then this happened. a garage fire that started next door spread to her house in 2001 prompting a career change. a long simmering dream to hard-hat barbie and donning work boots learning construction. it was a switch from high-tech to zblgt i dreamed of it but it took courage to get out here and do it. all and all this is a greem dream come true. >> she has her contractor's license and business partner. they formed a construction firm. >> it needs to be kitchen, catering services. >> their partnership is rare in the male dominated business but it resonates with clients where

women make key decisions instead of men. the women>> it's the woe calling the shots. >> similarly they divide their responsibilities. >> what i've been able to do is bring in deep analysis and planning and cost estimation in running an operation profitably. he brings the skill to manage a trade and understanding the business codes. >> when they remold modeled this suite they recognized what she brought to the project. >> i could see with a nice combination and discussions of design so they were more realistic. >> reporter: a career switch isn't easy but once accomplished it is rewarding. >> in the case of her, a fire at her house was the big catalyst. >> eric: up next, a

controversial bear hunt on the nevada side of lake tahoe. a raging debate over allowing it. >> a bay area man's labor of love. his inspiration for reworking kindle to make it reader

lake tahoe is ground zero in a bear hunt. dan ashley has more. get em up. >> dan: hunting bears was illegal. this wildlife video they scare bears away from populated areas. but they launched a first ever bear hunt and allowed the use of dogs. rules allow to shooting up to 20 bears but fewer were killed. >> we had 14 bears taken, night males and five females. >> dan: chris is with the nevada

department of wildlife which caught 100 baiting the bears. >> using apples and bacon grease and scented oil that would attract the bears. >> dan: the hunt has created a huge out cry especially at lake tahoe. he runs the bear league which helps with problem bears. instead of calls of bears in garbage, she got calls about hunt wers guns. >> we got calls people were frightened and scared on the hiking trails. california has had their unto go for years, more than 200 bears were killed last year. because the range is huge, so hunters stay out of the tahoe area. in nevada, most bears live in a small corner of the state right near tahoe. the hunt is tiny it hit a nerve. >> people in tahoe are very

wildlife friendly. we want to live with the wildlife. >> so wildlife commission is considering a compromise. >> maybe to restrict the hunting in the tahoe basin to basically not have the hunting there. >> dan: one proposal calls for no hunting inside the tahoe rim trail, a trail that roughly follows the crest of the mountains around the lake. a group called no bear hunt nevada welcomes any limits on the hunt. they say it should be farther from the lake. >> i think it's crazy. they are proposing that the rim trail perform the boundary while 3 million people hike on that rim trail. the hunters use the trail, the bears use the trail. it's a recipe for disaster. >> dan: wildlife commission will consider starting the season later in the year on december 15. >> that will eliminate a lot of tourist traffic that culminates with the labor day weekend. >> dan: they call the hunt cruel

and not enough research on the number of bears in nevada. state officials say they have solid science behind them. >> eric: most people choose a tablet computer based on what it can do but a man thought it was more important to make it work the way he wanted to. >> by using the up and down but the zblons if the bedroom in santa cruz looks like a miniature radio shack, he spent hundreds of hours building a surprise gift for his sister who suffers from cerebral palsy. >> holding a book is difficult for her. >> reporter: he wanted to give her the gift of reading through the popular kindle reader. since her disease has destroyed the motor control in her hands, it was hard to use. >> it's a great device for reading but requires dexterity

which she doesn't have. >> reporter: so he set out to build control panel. then marrying it to the circuitry sooch much more works. >> i didn't use their keyboard at all. then through a lengthy trial and error process figured out how their keyboard worked. >> then cracking the software to make the key bord work. glen was able to bring the device to his sister. a moment he captured on home video. >> the wear this works here, we've got a number of buttons down here that basically will control the kindle for you. >> after few minutes of trail and error she was turning the pages of a virtual book. >> pretty cool. [ laughter ] >> using his sister's feedback

he is now working on streamlining the design because his ultimate goal is on create a device to help her but other disabled readers, as well. >> up next, the drive to discover a way to ease your commute the new technology borrowed from the modern electric car. [ female announcer ] what would you call an ordinary breakfast pastry that's been wrapped in a flaky crust stuffed with a gooey center toasted up all golden brown then given a delicious design? a toaster strudel. pillsbury toaster strudel. so delicious...so fun. mom, we're dying. no you're not, you're just hungry. make some totino's pizza rolls. we don't have any! front... left, totino's. [ male announcer ] well done mom! less drama, more fun! totino's pizza rolls.

>> eric: skated boards are mod earning technology from the modern electric car. drive-thru to discover a batter way to get to work. >> i don't actually have a car anymore, i don't have a bike much anymore. maybe when it rains but for the most part i take it everyday. >> david is a computer program they are san francisco south of market. his board is powered by lightweight batteries that drives a high-tech motor just like a prius. >> absolutely, it's just like a prius. when people ask me about my skateboard, i couldn't afford prius but about the same thing.

>> it's not the first electric skateboard but first electronic one, available online for few months. it starts at $500 and comes in four sizes. >> big shift most of the components are off the shelf. i think made it affordable. a controller, blue tooth controller. it goes about three miles an hour. you up the speed you push the joystick up and take you up to 19 miles an hour. sto to slow it down, use the motor as the break. >> where the motor will slow you down to cover some of the energy braking. >> i really don't have any skateboarding sense at all. i think i ride it like a snowboarder. i've never fallen off of it and never gotten hurt.

it's very sturdy. >> it's like a regular skateboard. some people don't want to push anymore. >> now i'm supposed to say to you, don't try this on your own board. with the next step commuting in, richard hard. >> eric: thanks for joining us. we'll see you next time.