. now at 11:00. a few years later, exhilaration given way to anxiety. bringing b.a.r.t into downtown san jose is going to take longer and cost more. >> it will never be cheaper than it is now. >> will it pay off? >> that was a mess. that was

yesterday, today is today. >> could a celebrity chef be the answer to saving san francisco union square? and oakland makes a last ditch pitch to keep the a's from leaving town. from kpix this is the late news with sara donchey. do you ride b.a.r.t? half a million people used to but the pandemic and crime scared most away. now, b.a.r.t is on the brink. all this week we expose what is wrong and what it will take for b.a.r.t to survive. >> so i think it is good planning, bad execution. good evening to you i'm juliette goodrich in for sara tonight, it took years for b.a.r.t to rumble into the county. fremont was the end of the line when it started. warm springs did not open until 45 years later, 2017, and then in

2020 at the height of the pandemic that was obviously a curveball. the mayor of san jose said this week there is no turning back now. in fact, vta that is paying for the exens just ordered an expensive tool to finish the job. a $76 million tunnel boring machine to dig the last five miles through north san jose and downtown. >> a person wrote to us it seems incomprehensive they are buying a boring machine when there is not enough ridership to fund the service now. let's bring in devon. despite all of the concerns, they say hey, this is still full speed ahead. tell us about it? >> reporter: as someone that grew up in the south there was a collective sense of sadness

when it missed it, when it finally arrived it was supposed to be momentum, epic, the unvarnished truth of what it has been so far has been under whemming the whelming. i can hear the arguments t opened during a pandemic. it is not finished the worst grade you can get is incomplete but there is a risk leaning too far in into mantra of build it they will come. you risk falling on your face. today's story explores the price of getting it wrong. >> i do like the convenience factor of the train. meaning i am able to get from point a to point b without driving. >> reporter: after moving to

san francisco for a few years he lives in san francisco and works in the south bay. >> for me personally i wanted to live in san francisco and b.a.r.t gave me the opportunity for transportation, myself, my two feet and my bike. >> reporter: riding b.a.r.t, he says, saves him time, steers him clear of the headache of traffic and spares him the expense of owning a car at all. >> leaving the apartment to balking to the office it is pretty much about, i would say, an hour 10, an hour 15 which is not b■ad when ou consider he amount of people that sit in traffic in their cars. >> reporter: his experiences more the exception than the rule. according to the valley transportation authority that paid for and built the extense into santa clara county. the prepandemic ridership was 3,000 people using the stations on day one. in september of this year, however, the station's

had combined average ridership of 2300. the original estimate off by nearly 90%. >> i still am supportive. i am disappointed. >> reporter: johnny say former member of the board of directors. he says after being intoxicated by the idea of b.a.r.t for decades now that it has arrived sobering reality is that it is under utilized. and to understand why we may need to turn back the clock a bit. >> i feel exhilarated about today. >> it was not on the list for b.a.r.t's opening celebration, september 11, 1972, opted out of the system years before, it would be more than 47 years, 17,441 days until they joined the party and at $2.3 billion

to extend the system. >> we have to plan for the future. the future of san jose is more business and more housing in the downtown. that is where the station is planned to go. so, i think it is good planning, bad execution. >> reporter: he is deeply troubled by the rapidly rising cost of the final leg of the extension that will bring b.a.r.t into downtown san jose and on to santa clara. the project was supposed to cost $4.7 billion and be completed in 2026. the price ballooned. first to 6.9 billion and then to $9.1 and now $12.2 billion. it will take longer, too. 10 years longer. projected to open sometime in 2036. but carolyn, the general manager says it would be a mistake to let cost

overruns and construction delays delay it >> it is a long-term investment. how much is too much? we don't know. it will never be cheaper than it is now. it has been a major plan in this bay area for over 40 years and we are just about to start digging. so, i don't want to hold it up any longer. >> reporter: working in the world of tech and finance, austin says he understands the concerns about a project behind schedule and overbudget. when it comes to better, more connected transit he is completely on board. >> i used to grow up in chicago and i find public transportation system in the bay area to be lightyears ahead of chicago. and in terms of safety measures and accessibility. >> reporter: the transportation authority hoping that a project, much delayed, does not ultimately become a project derailed. >> reporter: here is a potential problem. not only is

vta on the hook for the construction cost of the extension they have to pay to operate it. that is estimated to cost about $75 million a year when it is fully built out >> yes. fascinating. a great vision, if it happens, wonderful, what if they build it and the riders don't come? >> the problem is the same problem that the entire system is facing right now. depending on riders and without riders they are lacking the revenue. so, they will still be left with the bill and it might strain the budget in other ways you don't want to be backed in the corner where you are choosing between b.a.r.t and buses when transit experts say the real answer is all of the above. >> let's hope the vision pays off and we will stay on it, thank you. great story. now for some of the comments we heard from viewers it seems like many are ready just to write the system off all together but they may not have stopped to really think about what a bay area without b.a.r.t would look like. >> it would erode our overall quality of life would be slower

and more expensive >> it is not going to go away but what if it did? max will take a look at that scenario tomorrow night at 11:00. so stay with us through the week for more of our series b.a.r.t on the brink. you can find all of our stories on a special section on kpix.com. can a celebrity chef help cook up a solution to union square's image problem? >> i feel like we heal two broken hearts >> he is going to try and the length of the lease he is just signs proved it. the battle to keep palo alto car free is over for now. some businesses say pandemic recovery should be a two way street. the temperatures dropping off quickly on a cool evening. a pretty look towards downtown san francisco. we will warm up tomorrow. off shore winds kicking in, too. we will track

that and rain chances in the extended forecast, coming up. ah, the a's appear to be going, going, gone! but can a last ditch pitch from the city keep the team in the town? ♪ ♪ is it possible to be more capable? and more practical? be able to perform here. and here. make a statement while barely making a sound. and command the road, as well as what lies ahead. how we get there matters.

. a year's long battle from banning cars from a bustling

street is over. at least for now. a stretch of the road will stay closed to traffic and the outdoor dining tables and pedestrian mall are staying put for at least another year. so, the first blocks were shutdown to cars at the beginning of the pandemic. now it extends fromel camino real to berk street. they voted to keep it going for another year until they come up with a permanent plan. some people say the closure has created a second downtown of sorts. some say it was hurting their bottom lines. they pushed to reopen one lane to traffic. that went nowhere. to show how divided the community is on this, hundreds of people spoke out last night at a meeting. >> i was grabbing dinner with friends and he was saying having his teenagers come and play on the street and play at activities and enjoy the local businesses created a huge space

for his family to play. i am excited for that to be an opportunity for more families here. >> i am not against car-free streets but i think there were other areas that were for that than this one is. >> they growed to put bike lanes and create a parklet for restaurants. >> no secret that union square has an image problem. it used to be a go-to place. shutter businesses caused foot traffic to fall off. so the mayor made a lofty pledge to make union square the safest place in urban american. and the urban square alliance says they are ready to welcome thousands of people for the apec summit and the holiday season. you can expect more police officers, more security guards to try to stop the smash and grabs and also encourage people to give

union square a second chance or -- >> we have 1200 hotel rooms, businesses, cable car going through here it has still going even if it has been awhile. come down, explore, enjoy and remember why it is so magical here in our city. >> making it safer is one thing but drawing people back to union square is a different matter. and that is why the city is betting big on a celebrity chef. tyler florence just opened up two new cafes in union square. we spoke with him tonight about getting rid of the ghosts of what union square used to be. >> we want it to be a place you come to every day because it makes you feel good. >> look at it. right now. >> yes. look at us. >> celebrity chef from food network tyler florence is doubling down on the efforts to breathe new life into the heart of union square. just in time for the holiday season.

>> which is your favorite here? >> so, it is really hard to choose from. >> inspired by his chase center steak house offers suite and savory options on each side of the plaza. >> 3, 2, 1. >> city leaders celebrated the official opening. it is part of the larger revitalization plan to bring more people downtown. tyler is betting big on its comeback. >> i got a chance to speak to hundreds of people yesterday and today. and i feel like we healed some broken hearts. i really feel that. because when people walk through they did not know, they could not remember how long these places had been abandoned. >> reporter: tyler won a bid to open the two cafes. >> thank you for supporting and believing in san francisco. because we know this city has opinion through tough times but we know what we are made of. we

have been through earthquakes, pandemics, everything that you can think of and still san francisco continues to emerge better and stronger than before. >> reporter: mayor london breed said 27 businesses opened up in union square. >> it was a mess, that was yesterday, today is today. we need to decide collectively as a city that we are all going to be in this together pushing forward. >> reporter: he is committed. tyler signed a nine year lease. >> when you walk in here what do you want people to feel? >> well, i want you to feel warmth. >> reporter: the cafes will be open daily o tuesday, the mayor pledged to add more police officers and ambassadors in union square. >> if people are walking through the park and they will stumble across it or hear the music, smell the fresh baked food and taste the coffee and feel like san francisco is a wonderful place to be.

>> while we were there i got to try some of tyler's favorite sweets >> lemon kurd. toasted marshmallow. >> that is good >> that is yummy. >> the assignment of the night, thank you, betty. the mayor said the number of people visiting union square rose 15% from january to september this year compared to the same time in 2022. all right -- betty always finds the stories. where can i get the best food possible for free >> she is betty yu. that is funny. it is getting cooler, darker earlier, no surprise and i have opened toe shoes in the bay. >> i hope my mom is not watching. >> levitating >> yes. >> now, it is not quite yet

tonight or tomorrow. let's take a look at what is in store. the winds will be picking up. off shore wind accelerating as the storm system, the recent one departs and a lill of air over the pacific building towards the coast, squeezing the atmosphere over the west coast and helping to produce the gusty winds. fairly narrow window of time. the off shore winds that prevents the humidity levels from increasing overnight that is what they usually do as the temperatures cool off. the strongest winds, midmorning tomorrow. you can see the windows in the background. the humidity levels on the low end will be 30-35%. that is not critically low. as the humidity drops, the temperatures warm up tomorrow afternoon, the winds will die down. we will have low humidity levels tomorrow afternoon. the lowest humidity and the strongest winds will not over lap. that helps mitigate the fire threat. with the winds, clear skies over head, solarproduction we will make the most out of our 10 hours and 20 minutes or so of

sunlight. more cloud cover arrives on thursday. it will chip away at that number. low rain chances later this week. it is next week we are looking ahead to the better opportunities. temperatures, cooling off, 37 in livermore, 49 in santa rosa. those communities will have plenty of company in the 40s by early tomorrow morning, most of us starting off with temperatures in the 40s. cool, but normally cool, we are going to warm up nicely. the off shore winds, 2-4 degrees above average, 70 degrees in the santa clara valley, 71 degrees in san jose. the warmest spots will be inland in the east bay. reaching up to the lower 70s. not a lot of variation there. upper 60s for fremont. 60 degrees in redwood city, along the coast. half-moon bay, moving up to the middle 60s. pushing the warmer air towards the coast, around 70 in oakland and inland in the north bay. you will see the temperatures reaching up into the lower 70s as well. you have the best chance because of the

downsloped winds of maybe overachieving a little bit. it will likely be a couple communities in the north bay during the afternoon. let's take a look at the rain chances that will be heading our way. far down-the-line. we have to look at the long-range forecast models. can not just look at one. the two, side by side, there are agreements, there are differences. they disagree on the specific timing of which the first wave is going to arrive. how heavy the first wave of rain will be and when the subsequent waves of rain will come in. what they agree on, waves of heavier rainfall and it may even register as an atmospheric river. the lower end of the scale. we will evaluate as we get more data in. as i said, it is far down-the-line. in fact, let's take a look at the seven-day forecast. inland parts of the bay area you will not see rain within our virtual forecast.

warm weather tomorrow, cool down, thursday, friday, a dry mild weekend, looks nice, saturday, sunday, high temperatures around 70 degrees inland, high temps around the bay as well and then a cool down to go with the higher rain chances as we head into the middle portion of next week. again, the rain could arrive by monday night. might hold off until tuesday night or wednesday. a lot to be sorted out. we will keep going through the possibilities and we will keep you updated on what is likely to be the first significant rainmaker of the season for the bay area. >> we will be ready, paul, thank you. all right, all signs are pointing to the a's getting out of here. fans say oakland has one last play to stop the team from sliding to vegas. it is straight ahead in sports t happened. pop the bubbly. guess what i am talking about.. kpix top plays are here

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. "stay in oakland." >> chants from a's fans inside of the oakland city council chamber tonight as the mayor made a last-ditch pitch to keep the team in town. she is asking the owner to come back to the table. time certainly is running out. mlb owners set to vote next week to approve the team's relocation to las vegas. as you can see a's fans not giving up hope. the mayor says the city has shown a commitment to make a stadium happen in oakland adding they have options. >> we have a road map to get it done. las vegas is just getting started, right, square one. oakland has the finish line right in our sights. if you want a ballpark at the coliseum, we gottch you. >> as the player was starting to speak there was an energy in the fan base. >> a new development tonight

nevada judge just through out a proposed referendum backed by teacher's union that would of given voters on the final say to spend tax dollars on a vegas ballpark. the group could still appeal. joining me now, vern glenn, know we are talking about, not football, but the sharks >> there were chants from the shark tank tonight. at 4:46 i texted scott, emert. he is the media relations czar, i am calling it, tonight, it is the night. i am not right very often. >> what did he say? >> he loved the fact that i texted him and i ended up being right. but the planets were aligned just right after dropping the first 11 games, sharks came out swinging and scoring from the jump. this game was chippy. spicy, several

fights against philadelphia. and here we go. the one timer put the sharks up. for the first time this season we get to finally say sharks win. 2-1 final. no longer among the winless. all right now, got to make sure i have plenty of room for this one. been awhile. here we go. here it comes. the kpix top 5 plays. number 5, san antonio spurs, victor blocked by jackson from indiana. met him and swatted him away from the star rookie. how about number 4, no brotherly shove on fourth and run. the running back, the fake tush push by ohio state. impressive. number 3, i love it

when the little fellas go big. jump ball, 5 '8 against 7 '4. that is like me when i stand next to juliette. [ laughter ] >> a ban, he owns the colts, he was feeling himself dancing to the beat "dreams and nightmares" after a win over the carolina panthers and number one on sunday, we pointed out, our own matt lively who completed the golden gate half marathon in less than two hours. we are not done, today, he hit the links at oracle park, club in his hand, and the intentional accidental splash drive into the cove. if you are scoring at home it was with an 8 iron. i must say, shout out to my producer tonight justin williams who filmed the half marathon and matt's splash drive. >> that is a good friend. >> man behind the camera. >> yes. >> he is looking at the clock going, okay, vern, you are out

of time >> i like this. what is this, i never see you do this. top 5. >> it is a ritual. [ laughter ] >> the director loves to see it coming. >> all right, vern, thank you very much.[music] . well, this is one of the hottest new songs, one super star does not want you to stream it. (♪♪)

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so last week we talked about the new beatles song created with a little help from ai. >> yes it could have to be. >> the surviving band members on that, a different story with a new song created with ai, featuring the voice of latin artist bat bunny. it is going viral on tiktok. let's take a listen.

[music] . >> all right, makes you want to dance. [ laughter ] >> that was done with ai? >> the song has 700,000 streams on spotify and features justin bieber but none of them recorded it. ai replicated them all. bad bunny so mad about it, he is a mad bunny, actually. fans that like it are told to unfollow him. >> one of our production people showed me something that had my voice speaking in spanish. i do not speak spanish and they created my own voice in the language i do not speak. >> that is. >> yeah. >> that is fun >> ai concerns have been at the

forefront of holiday strikes yesterday. actors guild turned down the offer that can have them recreate their likeness after death and without consent from their estates. some are calling it the so-called zombie clause. they are demanding compensation and consent. back to the bargaining table. guys weigh in? >> you have at least have the consent of the family, i think. >> i think so, too. >> yes. duly just. >> that is creepy otherwise. >> yes. kind of creepy. >> yes. what language did you take? you did not >> now nine republican candidates have filed to run for speaker. unclear which of those nine will ultimately get the republican nomination. it's unclear if any of them can, given the sharp divisions within