kitchen. [ music ] complete bay area news coverage starts right now. this is ktvu, channel 2 news, 10:00 news. >> oakland baseball fans rally behind their as tonight in a passionate plea to keep them in oakland. good evening, everyone, i'm frank somerville. >> and i'm julie haener. it was standing room only in a packed meeting in oakland. where the city's planning commission was putting together a pitch to keep the as in town. considering a site called victory court near jacqueline and square for a new ballpark. ktvu's ken wayne stepped out of that meeting to bring us this live report? ken? >> reporter: julie, a two and a half hour meeting on the stadium proposal is just now

wrapping up. as fans showed up tonight wearing a simple message: stay. they gathered outside city hall before the meeting even started. >> but it is important to be in a place that has the chance for a strong revitalization. and the jacqueline square site i think is the best one. >> reporter: the proposed 20- acre site would be home to a new 39,000 seat stadium close to bart and the freeway. so many people packed tonight's planning commission meeting the fire marshall ordered some people out. more filled in overflow hearing room to watch the proceedings on t.v. as supporters told the planning commission why the jack london square location with its shops and restaurants is better than the current site at the coliseum. priority is having something to do before the games and after the games as you leave the stadium. >> reporter: others worried about traffic gridlock in the already congested neighborhood. there was a substitution suggestion of building a

stadium elevated above the freeway. critics didn't like that idea. >> you cannot build a massive terrorist target that you can drive a semi-truck full of explosives under. >> reporter: tonight's meeting is the first step in creating an environmental impact report which will eventually go to the oakland city council for a vote. >> we can come up with a win- win. a ballpark excellent for baseball and excellent for the fans but that can also really generate jobs and revenue for oakland. >> reporter: there is still a long way to go. it could be well into 2011 before the planning commission approves an eri. by the way, there were no oakland as representatives who spoke at the planning commission meeting tonight. live in oakland, ken wayne, ktvu, channel 2 news. a competing plan to build a ballpark for the as in san jose will likely be delayed. san jose mayor chuck reid said today plans for a downtown ballpark near the hp pavilion probably won't make it on the march 8th ballot. he said first major league

baseball has to give the okay since the san francisco giants hold territorial rights to san jose. proposition rights supporters asked an appeals court judge to remove himself from a hearing next week. they questioned the judge's impartiality because his wife is an out spoken opponent of proposition 8. he has a wife who has taken appeals against the ban. if the judge excuses himself another judge would be chosen at random and the hearing would probably be postponed. the san francisco attorney in an infamous dog malls case lost her appeal. her 15 years to life sentence has been agreed with. in the high profile trial after her dog killed a neighbor in an apartment building hallway in

january of 2011. she was sent to prison but released in 2004 after a judge reduced the conviction to manslaughter. a different judge later reinstated the murder conviction and sent her back to prison. her attorney may now take the case to federal court. san mateo firefighters battled a fast moving house fire this evening. the fire is in a home at 29otay avenue at the intersection of san message well way. the first alarm was called in at quarter after seven. two minutes later it went to two alarm. firefighters said when they arrived flames were shooting out the back home. we have been told no one was hurt. at this point it is too early to say what caused it. a man who police say was armed with a knife and attacked a stranger is in the hospital tonight after a police dog reportedly bit him several times. petaluma police say the suspect hold-up at the room at the best western inn on south mcdowel boulevard at 3:00 this afternoon. swat teams surrounded the motel around 6:30 tonight, the officers and the police dog

stormed the room. the suspect was captured and taken to the hospital. police say the victim who was injured earlier today suffered only minor injuries. new sketches and a reward what oakland police are hoping will lead them to two men suspected of sexually assaulting three women. rob roth with our report. >> reporter: oakland police released these composite drawings today. they hope the sketches will help them break an especially brutal case. >> this is a very terrifying event that took place involving three women, sexually assaulted and robbed. we need to get those suspects off the street. >> reporter: police say a 26- year-old woman was walking out of the west oakland bart station in the early hours of november 20th and was heading home. when she got to 11th and market streets a mile away two men held her at gunpoint. police say she was sexually assaulted. her attackers then made her withdraw cash from an atm before forcing them to take her to apartment where police say they robbed and sexually

assaulted her two roommates. the sketches come from descriptions provided by the three victims. >> we are hoping these sketches will help jog's somebody's memory on who the suspect are and help us identify them. >> reporter: the suspects are described as african men american. one is 20-year-old with a moustache and goatee. the other is 20 to 25-year-old with a moustache and beard. >> what is unique about the car is it has a square spoiler on the rear of it. we are hoping somebody will be able to identify the car. >> police say the three victims have since moved out of oakland. many women we spoke with say 24th dread walking in west oakland after dark. >> i try to get an early shift so when night-time comes i can already be in the house. >> reporter: the observing police department is offering a $30,000 reward for information leading to the arrests of the sexual attackers. in oakland, rob roth, ktvu, channel 2 news. positive news on many

economic fronts sent stocks soaring today. for the dow one of the best days of the year a pick-up of almost too points that came as the federal reserve said the economy is growing in most parts of the country. and there is word of gains in manufacturing. the nasdaq was up 51 points. job gains helped fuel the rally which saw both the dow and the nasdaq rise more than 2%. u.s. companies added 93,000 jobs last month, according to payroll processor adp. also today the labor department said workers are more productive than previously estimated. meantime, demand for suvs is driving u.s. auto sales to their highest levels since the cash for clunkers program. thanks to the hot selling edge suv, ford leads the way with sales up 20 percent in november from november of last year. chrysler sales are up 17%. but gm sold more vehicles than anyone else fueled by the chef ray equinox and gmc terrain the

sales rose 11% overall. there won't be any new oil drilling under the florida coast under a plan released today by the obama administration. prior to thebp oil blow-out it was supposed to be allowed. but the gulf coast oil drilling won't be allowed for at least seven years. it excludes drilling to the north of florida along the seaboard. that bp oil spill caused people all across the question to question whether seafood in the gulf is safe to eat. hundreds of chefs all across the country including many here in the bay area are trying to ease those fears. ktvu's janna katsuyama explains what they are doing. >> reporter: in san francisco tonight, it isn't just bay area catches that are showing up on local restaurant plates. chef alexander ong at beetlenut is frying up salt and pepper jumbo prawns from the gulf of

mexico. it is part of a nationwide effort to help fishing industry in the gulf. >> a lot of fishing men and fishing women for that matter who have families to feed and they are losing business. >> reporter: this chef is one of more than a dozen bay area chefs that are putting their reputation behind gulf seafood in a special promotion tonight. they say images of the spill gave a false impression that the seafood has been tainted. but the chefs say test versus shown the fish is fine. >> the seafood coming out of the gulf is the most tested product right now out there. >> reporter: next door at cafe des ami the chef was serving prawns to serve with san francisco's own dungeness crab. a tribute to fishermen and women from the gulf in the bay. >> for myself and all of my peers this is a way to say without the fishermen we've got nothing. without the fishermen you're eating chicken tonight.

>> reporter: nearly 300 restaurants nationwide are participating in the event tonight. the customers seem to be eating it up. >> i think that's a wonderful idea. we should promote the people who suffered from the oil spill. >> everybody is looking to see that it's safe. so it's probably the safeist place to have seafood in the country right now. >> reporter: except for maybe san francisco. san francisco is one of 30 cities participating in tonight's event. and the gulf of mexico is said to supply nearly half of the nation's seafood. reporting from san francisco, janna katsuyama, ktvu, channel 2 news. [ music ] a picture perfect sunset at the coast. but there is rain on the horizon. who it will affect and when. tomorrow's forecast in about ten minutes. >> more strawberries are grown in california than anywhere else in the world. but now state approval of pesticides for the strawberry fields has raised some health concerns. three days near freezing

temperatures and no heat. officials in one school district get an earful about the chilly classrooms. ktvu, channel 2 news, dependable live coverage of breaking news. the bay area's major news of the day. and complete in depth coverage. plus the forecast for the area where you live. frank somerville, julie haener, ktvu, channel 2 news at 10:00, complete bay area news coverage.

. one farmer says it scares the day let's out of him. he is talking about a pesticide that has been approved for use on the californian multimillion dollars crop. some say it isn't safe but others say they need it to say

competitive. lloyd lacuesta with our report. >> reporter: domestic strawberries are out of season right now. but in santa cruz county they can be found in some markets. these are from watsonville. strawberries are $160 million a year industry here. the number one crop in this county. california grows 90% of the nation's strawberries. but they are vulnerable to pests. now the state has approved the use of the pesticide methyl iodide, a potential carcinogen. >> i am paying attention to what the scientists are saying and i have listened to them talk about it and it scares the day lights out of me. it is a very dangerous chemical. >> reporter: he is an organic grower. but he is still worried about growers using the pesticide posing possible danger to workers and people who live near the strawberry fields. he is part of a coalition of environmental and farm worker groups asking governor elect

jerry brown to stop the use of the pesticide. >> this is a cancer-causing pesticide that is being pushed by the largest private pesticide company in the world. we believe that those corporate interests have overcome science and really trumped science. >> reporter: the department of pesticide regulation says use of the chemical will require permits and strict guide lynns must be followed. the director of the agency said. , it is being recommended after the pesticide methyl bromide was banned because it completes the ozone layer. growers need to have a replacement pesticide, otherwise the industry would be at a disadvantage with foreign strawberry growers. but organic strawberry grower jim cochrane says there are too many risks. >> there is a lot of concern.

and i think it's not smart. it's not a smart move. >> reporter: the pesticide may be in use by the spring harvest season. live in santa cruz, lloyd lacuesta, ktvu, channel 2 news. >> and ktvu.com has more details about the pesticide, including the epa stance on that chemical. just look tore the right now section. loud complaints may be heard tomorrow during a meeting on the state's planned high- speed rail route. there is a recommendation to build the first 65-mile section in the central valley from the small town of borden to cochrane. critics call it the train to nowhere. supporters say the rail line has to start somewhere. the rail authority is under a deadline to pick a route by the end of the year or lose some federal funds. >> as of right now more than half the expected witnesses have testified in the preliminary hearing for the suspects in that richmond gang rape case. seven men are charged with a number of crimes.

all but one of those men could face life in prison. a police officer testified today about some of the graphic details of the alleged gang rape of that 16-year-old girl. once this hearing is over, it will be up to the judge to decide if there is enough evidence for a trial. in san francisco, the city's long-standing battle with a man described as a notorious scofflaw is over. they have agreed on a $46,000 payment. he remodelled and expanded his residence. he eventually declared bankruptcy after transferring some of his assets to others. but the city traced those assets. jen is currently jailed on charges that he forged construction documents. >> another san franciscoan threw his hat into the circle to be the election. the field is already crowded

with candidates, including state senator yee and supervisor bevan duffy. the current supervisor said he would let harris decide who replaces here as san francisco's district attorney. harris won the state attorney general's race and will be joining newsom in sacramento when he becomes the lieutenant governor next month. ktvu contacted harris' office and her spokeswoman said there is no word on her choice as yet. ktvu has learned tonight that a plan to cut costs in the oakland schools has backfired and left some students shivering at their desks. for three days, at least two schools have not had any heat despite some very cold weather. ktvu's heather holmes is live at one of the schools affected by that problem tonight. heather? >> reporter: well, frank, there is no escaping the cold here at frank middle school. students walk up these steps into their classrooms only to find it's just as cold. for the passed three days this tobacco-free campus has also

been heat-free. >> it's been very colorado. i just bundle up a little and just shiver. >> and i can't feel my hands. and i can't think straight. >> reporter: who could. when these students arrived at school this morning it was a bone chilling 40 degrees. >> we asked our teachers if we could turn on the heaters. they say they don't control it, that the district does. but what can help is that we bring coats and stuff and like scarves and gloves and stuff. >> reporter: the district does control the heat at this middle school through a centrally operated system. but that's not the issue. the problem lies in the district's decision to shut down the heating system during the thanksgiving holiday, a move designed to save money. >> but something we encounter at many of the sites that have older facilities and older equipment is that when you restart the equipment after the break, it's not operating effectively. >> reporter: after three days of cold classrooms, some parents question the district's holiday shutdown, saying that there has been a history of the older heating systems such as

this one not firing up again, then why turn them off? >> i think that they can find another way to try and save money other than cutting the heat. >> obviously the system is not working as it should so it needs revision. and that's something we're discussing. over christmas we will be handling it differently. don't expect a repeat of this. >> reporter: the district tonight apologizes and says all of its maintenance personnel trained on these heating systems is now working on the problem. frank and julie here, the heat is expected to be restored by 11 a.m. tomorrow morning. reporting live tonight here in oakland i'm heather holmes, ktvu, channel 2 news. [ music ] and we've been tracking the clouds and the wet weather to the north of us the last few days. this weather system is lingering on the north coast. you see the showers have been up there. point arena and areas north up into crescent city. not here yet. the showers, well, they are headed our way but they are no big deal. don't change your plans. get back in a little bit with

the computer model and show you exactly when we expect the showers. but whatever we get, very light not a lot of rain from this. actually weakening as we speak and becoming less impressive. 42 degrees overnight. the clouds help out a lot because they warm things up. 44 in fairfield. 44 in concord. day-time highs still in the 50s. wake up cloudy and cool. might even see some sprinkles in the north bay. when i come back the latest computer model loaded up. it's changed. these models are going back and forth. show you back here in a minute. >> air quality control officers are patrolling the bay area to spare the air. the current weather conditions are keeping smoke too close to the ground. homes that have fireplaces as the only permanent source of heat are exempt. the bay area saw nine days this year on which smog levels

exceeded federal standards up eight days in 1999. san jose and livermore followed with three days each. a family is reunited with their dog. why she is much more than a pet. she is also now considered to be a hero. >> world aids day and what is for some a startling and unexpected change. that story is still ahead. [ music ] . >> ktvu.com, complete bay area news coverage.

. >> former detain' sarah shoard released a music video. wrote the song for her fiancee and friend still being held in iran. [ music ] >> it's called a piece of time and is available for sale on

amazon. she says the money raised will be used for expenses to win the release of her fee an same shawn and their friend josh. she wrote this song while in solitary confinement in a tehran prison. view her video in its entirety. look for the link at ktvu, ktvu.com. today is world aids day a time for people to remember just how bad it once was and how far we have come since then. one person today said early on there was so much death it felt like war. these days people who have hiv/aids are living longer but still no cure. ktvu science reporter john fowler has our report. >> reporter: the city hall glows red for 25 million worldwide aids deaths. at golden gate parks age memorial grove a moving ceremony. the campbells remember a son and brother. >> our family comes, like, every year to this. so it is kind of a big day. >> reporter: gloria brought flowers for lost friends. >> i am benefitting from the therapies. but you know, there is a

tremendous loss that we have to honor. >> reporter: some recalled scarier times. >> it felt like a war. and as opposed to being surrounded by bombs and carnage, you were being surrounded by death. >> reporter: 30 years ago this street was ground zero for what then was a 100% rapidly fatal epidemic. today medical science has turned it into a chronic manageable disease. now the issue is aging with hiv. >> i've been positive for 25 years. i was diagnosed in 1985. >> reporter: 62-year-old kelly houston says three anti-virals keep him healthy. he volunteers for clinical trials. >> there is always the hope and always the possibility. and the necessity to figure this out. >> reporter: 53-year-old desmond in the black coat hiv positive and still dating says some fear her hiv status. >> afraid to go any further with me in a relationship.

and others are just fine with it because they have educated themselves and they know what to do. >> reporter: doctors say every day hiv affects more people. >> we will never get over this if we don't educate people about it. you know, starting with the politicians on down. >> reporter: still many have hope. >> my son being in high school, you know, kids are much more educated, i believe, on aids issues. >> reporter: a cure remains out of reach. but just last week researchers revealed a breakthrough drug therapy that prevented hiv infection 95% of the time in a group of gay men. health and science editor john fowler, ktvu, channel 2 news. on this world aids day an oakland church is doing its part in its fight against the disease. out allan temple baptist church this evening, the california prevention and education project conducted three hiv testing be free hiv testing. 45 people got tested. organizers say many of them were young people who are often at risk because of un protected sex. two sisters who lost their

father to aids and are now aids activists were among those being tested. >> we heard -- we are here today because we want to know our status and want to live a long healthy life and just trying to educate young people who are here with us to know their status. >> she happily showed us her result. she tested negative. [ music ] >> one family was given a very special gift. show you what she has to go through to do so. and video inside a bay area card room is now the subject of a lawsuit not only for the fight it shows but for how it came to be. >> closed

. a family was reunited with their hero today. they credit her with saving their lives when a fire broke out at their home.

that hero, in this case, is the family dog. she was also badly hurt. ktvu's amber lee is live tonight in hayward with more. amber? >> reporter: frank, we're in front of the apartment building where a fire nearly killed a family and their pet. this broken garage door is part of the damage. tonight a man who lived here told us how the family dog saved his entire family's life. for the first time in five weeks this afternoon darryl steen set eyes on his beloved pitbull diamond at eden pet hospital in the valley. the two last saw each other on the night it left the single father and his two daughters homeless. >> saved my family. i owe her everything, you know. i owe this dog everything. >> reporter: steen told us 1- year-old diamond is a quiet dog. she rarely barks. but on october 24th around 1:30 a.m. diamond woke steen up by barking. >> i wanted to know what she was barking up so i got up and what are you barking at?

i go to my living-room and the whole living-room was engulfed in flames. >> reporter: he and his whole family escaped with only the clothes on their backs. rushed to the hospital with smoke inhalation. steen thought she died in the fire. diamond suffered serious injuries, nerve damage to one leg and burns to 30% of her body. she is expected to make a full recovery. >> she will have permanent scarring so she will always have that sort of her badge of honor. >> i appreciate it so much what you guys did. >> she has become sort of a mascot for everybody. >> reporter: the bill for diamond's medical care is more than $5500. steen told us his own injuries prevent him from returning to work as a forklift driver for two months. >> i have to buy everything all over again because i lost everything. >> reporter: steen is looking for a new home to rent, one that will allow him to keep diamond. >> you are a superstar, diamond, you are a hero. >> reporter: steen says there is no way he will be separated

from his dog again. appropriately named diamond, precious and truly a man's best friend. the hayward animal shelter is accepting donations to help steen pay diamond's medical bills. reporting live here in hayward, amber lee, ktvu, channel 2 news. we have an update now on a story we told you about earlier this week. we learned today concord police arrested a 14-year-old boy and two 15-year-old boys who are accused of killing two chickens at an elementary school. police say the boys hung the chickens up by their necks sometimes before thanksgiving. they were raised by second graders and then given to an after-school program. the teens were arrested today and then released to their parents. it is not clear if they ever attended the elementary school. the santa cruz county jail inmate who escaped outside dominion hospital on monday is back at the county jail tonight. march ease jr. had been at an undisclosed medical facility after a swat team captured him

late monday afternoon. he faked a shoulder injury as part of his plan to escape. officials say he knew he would be un shackled in order to get an mr ism. that's when he overpowered a deputy and stoled her gun. the sheriff's department is reviewing how it handles inmates outside of jail. nap at that police have now released the names of the two police officers involved in the fatal shooting of a man reported to be suicidal. on sunday two officers fired on richard potia after they said he produced a knife. napa police say the one fired a pistol and the other used a taser. at the request of the police they are investigating -- conducting an investigation. a video posted online on youtube is raising questions about privacy and what amateur photographers can and can't do. they want to know who shot the video and has filed a lawsuit. ktvu's allie rasmussen reports. >> reporter: this video on

youtube called casino fight 555 shows a man in a black suit, a security guard wrestling with a patron at the card table. lucky chances casino says the two others paint their business as a disorderly and unsafe place. >> i am surprised this doesn't happen a lot more often. >> reporter: this man who didn't want his face shown says many card room people have seen this video. >> video again would that make you not come back here. >> no, anybody who comes to this place won't be deterred by something like that i guarantee you. >> reporter: we showed the video to a law professor. >> my first impression is that it is not somebody videotaping the fight. it is someone taping the security camera taping the fight. >> reporter: in the upper left- hand corner you can see a time code on the screen. in the lawsuit lucky chances says someone did, in fact, film the video directly from a surveillance camera monitor. that makes the video the card

room's property. >> this is a big area of internet law and privacy. >> reporter: in an era of cell phone cameras and hand-held recorders he says there will be many more lawsuits like this in the future. amateur videographers should beware. >> if you're used to taking out your film and filming everything that's there, you may be filming something that you don't really have authority to do so. >> the owners of lucky chances don't know who posted any of the videos because youtube allows people to upload content under an alias. a youtube spokesman will reveal the identity of the users if ordered by a judge to do so. a lucky chances representative told us to speak to the company's attorney. however, we were unable to reach him. the bidding is underway at a santa monica auction house tonight for the coffin that once held lee harvey oswald's body. he is believed to have assassinated john f. kennedy.

shot and killed by jack ruby while in police custody and was buried in the coffin in 1963. but his body was exhumed in 1981 to determine if, in fact, it was oswald or a russian agent buried in the coffin. he was buried again in a new casket. at this hour the highest bid for the coffin is $6,000. a lake at that hope restaurant owner takes drastic action. what he did after a bear broke into his restaurant not once, but four times. [ music ] and right now i'm tracking some showers. they are in northern california. show you the latest computer model and how it will relate to your neighborhood. i will see you back here. >> and the window is open. now the waiting game is on at mavericks. the big changes planned for this year's surf contest. [ music ] you want some fiber one honey clusters?

yeah. you must really care about him. what? no, no. you gave him fiber. no she didn't. this tastes way too good to be fiber. they're delicious crunchy clusters with sweet honey and half a day's worth of fiber. you care about my fiber? not really. i care about your fiber too. i have for a while. ok, carl. why don't you care about her fiber? hey carl. [ male announcer fiber one. cardboard no. delicious yes.

. the santa clara county sheriff's office tonight is holding out a carrot to hundreds of people who have warrants in the county. they launched operation second chance today. the program allows people with non-violent misdemeanor criminal and traffic warrants the option to walk into any law enforcement agency in the county and get a citation with a court date without being arrested and booked into the county jail. one san jose woman with warrants for not paying court

fines says she was happy to take the offer. >> you can't beat it. it's better than having it hanging over your head. it's better than having it keep you up at night. >> reporter: the second chance program runs through the end of december. in news of the world tonight, in iran the government declared a two-day public holiday in tehran today because of the polluted area. the capital has some of the most polluted air anywhe in the world. weather conditions are making it worse right now. all government offices and schools are closed until friday. it was the second time in a month that a pollution alert there was declared. in japan an avalanche struck a group of six skiers. one of them ended up dying in the mountain in the central part of the country. the 8500-foot mountain thern when the avalanche roared down the slopes. two of the skiers are in serious condition. two others have non life threatening injuries. the sixth man escaped unharmed. and in london about six inches of snow shut down the airport

today and it will remain closed until tomorrow. hundreds of flights were cancelled stranding thousands of passengers. the early winter-like storm that brought the snow to london has also affected much of europe causing a lot of flight delays and thousands of traffic accidents. more snow is in the forecast. a tahoe restaurant owner is taking wildlife officials to task. he said he was forced to shoot a charging bear after it broke into his restaurant for a fourth time. bill hunter says he believes the bear came in search of food yesterday as it had in the past. it once broke in and ate two three gallon tubs of ice cream. hunter says he tried yelling at the bear to try to scare it away. but then he went for his gun. >> the bear got really agitated, charged around the table there and shot him right here. he went over towards the fireplace, crossed the 30, 35 feet within a heartbeat. he was on me before i really had a chance to do anything. >> hunter says he called the wildlife officials twice before the shooting but they did

nothing. he says he doesn't regret killing the bear because he felt it saved his life. but he feels badly because it was such a beautiful animal. the bp gulf oil spill topped yahoo's list of most search requests for 2010. a man-made oil spill beat celebrities for the first time in years. second on yahoo's list is world cup soccer. then came the celebrities. number there three was teen singer miley cyrus and followed by kim kardashian who is famous just for being famous. and lady gaga game in fifth. >> what officers found on a shooting scene. the changes being made this year at the big wave surfing contest. >> and our meteorologist mark tamayo is tracking the train and who it will affect right up after the break.

. we are following developing news in san francisco right now where police are on the scene of what they say appears to be a homicide. this is video just into the channel 2 newsroom. so far this is what we know. around 9:00 tonight, police were called out to the 400 block of 23rd avenue in the richmond district. police say they entered an apartment and found a man who had been shot. paramedics were called but the victim was pronounced dead at the scene. police have not released any information on a possible suspect. the window is now open which means that any time between now and february the maverick surf competition could be held. this year people are going to notice something different about the contest. ktvu's robert handa tonight with the two biggest changes that are being made. [ applause ] >> reporter: the world's top surfers are anxiously waiting for the maverick surf contest to start. many were here monday for opening ceremonies at pillar point near half moon bay. starting today and until

february 28th surfers are essentially on call. when the waves get big enough the competitors have 24 hours to show up. >> it is exciting. gives me butterflies though when i think about it. it's on. this could happen any time now all we need is a big swell. >> reporter: the contest is now called jay at mavericks invitational with the profits set up for a surfer the late jay moriarti. the competitors will decide when the contest is on. >> the surfers vote. so all 24 participate in calling the event. and the majority will rule. >> it's a pretty big deal. i mean the surfers are the one that is know what's going on and watch the maps. >> reporter: for fans the biggest proposed change is they want to where all spectators from the beach because of damage and injuries caused by rogue waves last year. >> in the past they have brought the buses and they tried to really push too many people out to a place that couldn't handle it. >> we learn that people don't always follow the signs and

don't always do the right thing. >> reporter: but fans we talk to say they want to see the contest up close. >> have somebody out there to tell the people how far they need to be out. but it is a public beach and the public needs to watch the top surfers. >> reporter: so surfers can see the scenery they plan to broadcast the contest and video streamed all over the big area and then hope big waves show up and big crowds don't. in santa cruz, robert handa, ktvu, channel 2 news. we have new information tonight on a story we first brought you last night. california state parks had to reduce services once again today following a new round of budget cuts. california's 278 state parks are losing another $15 million from their annual budget of about $300 million. that's on top of $14 million cutbacks last year. at diablo state parks the cutbacks mean rangers are reducing trash pick-ups and closing the restrooms. >> we don't have the maintenance staff.

all of our infrastructure is in dire straits. >> some parks have having to close campgrounds and eliminate other services. officials say if you are planning a trip to a state park, it's best to call ahead to make sure the services you expect are still available. a proposal by the san francisco transportation authority to charge commuters $6 to enter or exit the city during peak hours isn't sitting too well with neighbors. the san mateo county association of governments is urging officials there to sign a letter opposing the plan according to a local newspaper. they say the toll would unfairly hurt san mateo county residents who work in san francisco. the federal aviation administration is now allowing mexican airline carriers to add flights to the u.s. they raised mexico's safety rating back to its highest level. lowered in july when the faa found that mexico's civil aviation system wasn't up to international standards. the move still allowed flights but mexican carriers could not

expand. [ music ] it's cool out there but not as cold as it has been. temperatures gradually warming with the increased clouds. the napa valley we have got low 40s, upper 30s up here now. it will be cool and there will be frost. but the cloud cover out there warmed us up a little today. mild to very cool tonight. not freezing though in many locations as we have been the last few nights. here is the system. it's weak. i mentioned a little bit last night it doesn't have a lot going on with it. it is spread out. not well organized. in the computer models are jumping all over the place with the timing. it looks like right now the showers want to stay north. they are light up there. when they slide south on friday, they are light down here. like light like sprinkle, sprinkle, intermittent windshield wipers. i will show you the model coming up. a cool morning tomorrow. clouds. tomorrow looks a lot like it did today. 44 in concord for your overnight low. 44 in fairfield.

50 in oakland. it's cool but certainly not upper 20s as we saw earlier. the increasing clouds. the high pressure breaks down. the dry goes away. but the wet isn't that wet. this is mainly thursday into friday afternoon. and you can just see, you know, just not a lot going on. computer model will bear this out a little bit. this is the latest run. the most recent model. it has changed from the 6:00 run. tomorrow morning sprinkles may be. here we are thursday a little after lunch. maybe some drizzle. maybe a sprinkle. everybody else just cloudy like today. and then look at it it recedes and goes north. friday at 6 a.m. maybe some sprinkles for the morning commute. so you get the picture even if this occurs not a deal breaker for your thursday or friday. you can see how this thing is stretched out. it recedes north again as we go into saturday they paint us with a little bit. see some sprinkles and drops

here and there thursday through friday. not well organized. none of it looks like a big deal. the weekend right now looks cloudy with maybe a few sprinkles on sunday. just a lot going on. and it is not organizing so tough to pinpoint. but if you are doing outside work, just be prepared, especially in the north bay on thursday. and then for the south by and the rest of the bay friday will be your best bet for a few sprinkles. it will not shut you down. if you are painting or pouring concrete it problemly will because of the relative humidity. i know that's an issue. not just a big del. it is cloudy and it will stay that way. update tomorrow. hopefully things get more organized tomorrow. >> thank you, bill. >> as the sun went down this evening jews from around the bay area gathered in san francisco's union square to hell separate hanukkah, the -- celebrate hanukkah, the festival of light. [ music ] >> there was dancing and music as the flame went through the crowd before lighting the first candle on the 22-foot menorah. for the next seven days the

giant menorah is scheduled to be lit at 4:30 every afternoon. >> what are you doing today? >> santa popped up in the ice rink today as some 200, 300 it, 3 and 4-year-olds got a turn on the ice. some of them it was their first time on the ice. it was a joint program by jump start a school readiness program and boston property. the giants are making more news. the sports is up next.

. >> sports director mark ibanez joins us now. the giants sure have been busy lately. >> took care of business in the world series. in the off season more business. >> it appears that pat the bat will be back. reports tonight indicating the giants have agreed to a one- year deal with the outfielder pat burly after he was picked up well into the 2010 season. the south bay product came through with quite a few big hits for the team he ended up following. wound up with 18 homeruns for san francisco. after a hitless world series the future with the team certainly was in doubt. the deal is said to be for a discounted salary, yet loaded with incentives. bad news with a very thin silver lining for the 49ers. frank gore will not need surgery to repair the fractured hip he suffered in a win

against arizona monday night. but he will nonetheless miss the rest of the season. his replacement barging through the window of opportunity. both anthony dixon and wine westbrook with stellar efforts to give the cardinals earning them the nickname thunder and lightning from the coach but who is who? >> i got to be the thunder because i like to draw the boom a little bit. me and westbrock been working together all year. i have learned a lot from him. i am looking forward to learning from him more. frank is down you know so we got to pick up the slack. >> things aren't going to change because of our leader going down. if anything, we have to be able to step up and definitely, you know, put guys into places where frank definitely did the things that we needed for him to do. >> i don't know about you but a sad and redundant tradition this time of year in college football complaining and convincing about the rights and the wrongs of the bcs system until they finally get it

figured out into a playoffs solution it will go on and on. stanford's program is rightfully flying high in a wait and see pattern right now as the bowl game is to be determined after the auburn and oregon teams play their final regular season games this weekend. meanwhile cardinal coach is not sweating anything out really. just wanting his team to kind of relax and enjoy this successful moment. >> i think it's good to let them have a little bit of time here where they are sprinkled with magic dust for a week or so. and then i will lassoo them back in and get back to work and get ready for that ball game. >> all right. sticking to the college ranks but switching sports. randy bennett and st. mary's had their hands full with 17th ranked san diego state. matt had three team high 15. but man down 15 at half. second half the aztecs are in cruise control. the number 17 team in the country. and their leader scorer right

there chase with the nice shot. and that is the sporting life for wednesday night. quickly, though, cal and uso are winners tonight in college hoops. thank you. thank you for joining us tonight. >> good night.