in fact, there is a corner building where the japantown bowl used to be at 1600 western. another travesty that reminds us every day that it was replaced with 42 condo units, not really affordable, and decimated the japantown and it's always remained vacant since that building has been established because the redevelopmental law allowed that to be vacant. it is retail and remained vacant since the 42 units were developed and it is an insult to the japantown community and the rest of san francisco and there's never been a compelling authority that has made sure that that space be occupied because we don't have that kind of vacancy law to do so. that was another gift of urban renewal gone wrong. and so we are trying to line this up between fillmore and upper fillmore and into japantown and throughout the western edition to modernize land use so it is more in sync with planning code. commissioner borden: i think this is great and to ask you guys to work on a credit union or a bank in that area and the check cashing place but not a lot of real banking options for the vimmings

earthquake relief fund doing the fund in san jose in japantown. come by if you can. >>> more local news in a half hour. the "today" show returns in less than a minute. have a great friday. see you back here in a bit. ♪

both japantowns have been busy. in san jose they had a two-hour dropoff which raised thousands of dollars. >> reporter: they held up signs showing their appreciation every time someone drove up with cash or check in hand. >> thank you. >> thank you for doing this. >> reporter: those who drove up at this donation zone gave money not because they knew someone in japan but because they felt it was the right thing to do. >> i feel they'd do the same thing for us. i really do. it's just an unfortunately thing they're dealing with. >> reporter: people also walked up with their checkbooks ready. in two hours they raised more than $14,000. >> i feel bad for the japanese, seeing everything on the news. it could happen to any one of us, you know. i just -- my heart goes out to them and all those people. it's the least we can do is donate $20. >> reporter: inside the buddhist church the sounds of the drum bounced off the wall while people made origami cranes and made cards. >> i think we're all very much interconnected through

i came down here to japantown this morning, i found the jccsj. i said, let me hand out flyers for you, and we're having a fund-raiser tonight, you can help with that. i'm going to be down here at the fund-raiser tonight. >> that's why you're helping tonight? you'll be here tonight and be here to share your story and really try to get people to help people back home? >> yes. japan needs your help. many of us think japan is a first world country. it is, but there are people who haven't had water in days, there's no food, no gas up north. even in tokyo, it's getting to be like that in tokyo. a lot of people think japan doesn't need the money, but japan needs your help. >> i appreciate your time. thank you so much. again, here at the buddhist temple on fifth street in japantown in san jose, we'll be open from 6:00 to 6:30 to receive all donations. all donations will be going toward relief efforts. >> an emotional time for so many people in japan and here in the bay area. here now come the big waves again, nearly a week after our coastline was threate

but there are two extra layers here in san jose's japantown. one is the elder generation who have very connect connections to japan, many of whom have not heard from relatives still living there. then there is the younger generation, many who have never been to japan. the children at lotus preschool in san jose's japantown are talking about the disaster in japan. they will shake their pockets and piggy banks to collect money to donate because even at this tender age, they know how much work is ahead for the survivors. >> they have to build new houses, new buildings, they have to get more food. >> reporter: the teachers are also trying to help the children make sense of a disaster that is difficult for grown-ups as well. >> keeping it really to their level and not scaring them so much, but just teaching them what's out there and how we can be helpful. >> reporter: the teacher says the most important thing is to keep the talk age appropriate. that means basic explanations for her preschool students and planning for her 7 and 9-year-old daughters.

>> in san francisco's japantown a phone bank was underway raising thousands of dollars. >> everybody wants to do something. they donate $10, $20, sometimes even $2,000. but it's absolutely wonderful. >> the united states may be the biggest, i suppose, and especially in northern california and in the bay area, we are very much thankful to those people who actually support us. >> george did much of his reporting this last week from japan. >>> much more ahead on "today in the bay," coming up, we all hope for successful search and rescue evidents like the one in japan. we're going to talk to a local crew about preparation and the training that it takes to be ready for something like. and in every tragedy, heroes are born. coming up a story about the spirit of the japanese people. >>> well, in the weeks since the earthquake result bld and roaring in japan, we have heard about suffering and we have also heard about courage. >> in just a single week in japan, a worst-case scenario has been redefined. words like unimaginable, unthinkable, even up acceptable are thrown about. and yet even the

there will be a donation drop off in japantown tonight between 5:00 and 7:00. the address is right there on the screen. north fifth straight in san jose. >> u.s. troops are doing everything they can to help. they helped clear snow from a japanese air base so they could land the navy is sending up helicopters to survey and help with the search and rescue. troops are ready to help. >> the squadron is being relocated. that's happening right now. as soon as we get set up, we will do all we can to deliver supplies and search and rescue and e vac or whatever the case may be. we are ready. >> u.s. troops in the region are receiving anti-radiation pills before they embark on mission where is they are likely to encounter radiation. >> the japan earthquake did damage a half world away. several bay area counties are joining santa cruz in asking the white house for emergency relief after last week's surge. marla tellez is live at the harbor. it was one of the hardest hit spots. she has a look at how things are recovering today. >> good morning to you. right away i am pleas

commissioner sugaya: last week, i attended two meetings in japantown. one was a community meeting, there was no consensus and made at this point. it will be forthcoming. secondly, it was more of a tour put on by supervisor mirkarimi. we had a walking tour of the area. we were at a lunch where different issues were discussed. it was a short lunch, about 40 minutes. they had taken notes on each of the issues. he said he would be following up with the community on that. it was nice. commissioner antonini: think you to the design review team. we were able to participate in one of the sessions. they went through three projects very quickly. they very quickly got some ideas about what changes they would recommend. we met with other staff members in regard to the public safety building which is going to move in on third mission rock. because it is a public building, unlike other mission bay properties that are private, and those are ones that we are involved in design review. we met with one of the architects involved. if the public is interested, it will be b

san francisco is only one of three japantowns in the united states, and this is something that is near and dear to our hearts. on march 31, we are celebrating the new year, which effectively took place yesterday, on the equinox. the persian culture is fast around the world, with a substantial population here in california -- the persian culture is vast. every year, we have some sort of celebration marking the persian new year. it will be on march 31 from 5:30 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. at the rotunda. it is open to everyone, but we expect it to be tight, because last year, we had about 1000 people, so it will be a little tight on room, but it will be quite fun, fun and for someone who has not seen its -- it. and born in jay gray 1941 in ireland, there was a man -- and born in ireland in january 1941. a true champion of workers' rights. he first came to america with the transport workers union and subsequently worked as a union organizer. he organized the exploited chinese sweatshop workers in san francisco, and along with cesar chavez, he was an instrumental leader with farm workers, and he

we're accepting checks, the japantown community congress is accepting checks and we will be forwarding those on to japanese red cross from here. >> reporter: what else can people do? it's a difficult time for people here financially. >> right. >> reporter: what can people do if they aren't sure financially in a position to help? >> sure. the community congress has a facebook site where we will be posting many ways to donate to give at whatever level people are comfortable giving. we have activities already popping up where people are doing fund-raisers and events and planning out through april. we would love for people to participate. if you cannot give, there are other ways that you can offer support. there's a wonderful website called hope letters where you can send a message to a school child in japan or to a disaster relief worker in japan and offer your support in that way. we will have all of that information on our facebook.com site. >> thank you so much. again, this ceremony will continue until 6:30 today. again, donations will be accepted tomorrow from 5:00 to 7:00 at the budd

as japan struggles to cope, san francisco's japantown is organizing a relief effort.hat they're doing to. he join us at 6:00. finally, the annual st. patrick's day parade in the city of dublin brought out thousands to celebrate today. ♪

reason why i put this in there and make personal motivation and the fillmore in the western area in japantown was under the rubric of the redevelopment agency for approximately 45 years. and the redevelopment tenure of the fillmore and the western edition terminated in january 2009. arguably, there were high points and in my opinion many low points of the experience of urban renewal in that particular area. and one of the them was because of the land use and zoning decisions that have been made along the fillmore corridor throughout the western addition were not consistent with the city's planning code and the desire of how the city's planning code and land use and zoning conditions had evolved over the decades. as a consequence like ine

the relief effort continues here in san jose japantown. i'm standing in a donation drop off zone in front of the san jose buddhist church where people are dropping off cash and checks and waiting for them are the cub scouts here. the community here as already raised more than $35,000, not counting this event and that's just in the last 24 hours. let's look at video here. you see someone dropping off two checks to help out the cause. many happy faces to see that. many in the japanese american community have family fraends in japan and because of this they are responding with money to help those who have lost everything. while people are dropping off money outside, inside of the building behind me they will be folding paper cranes, which in japan is a symbol for good fortune and there is a scroll where people can write personal messages and those in the commune say they are happy to do their part. >> the japanese people are rallying and supporting themselves but at the same time you hear about the actual necessities that are needed. he said

telethon to help the victims of the japanese earthq.uake i'm traci grant live in san ua francisco's japantown. >>> i'm chief meteorologist jeff ranieri tracking the weather once again. a confirmed torna in santan rosa nea king and n pacific whee winds could drop 86 miles per hour this morning. right now we're seeing a lot of that stronger wther move to the south. however, we are tracking another haortou corldeekend that could tuke seve. i'll have the details and the timing coming up. >>> as you've been seeing for the last week, the disaster in japan has had a huge impact. an emotional impact on so many people in the bay area. because so many people have strong cultural and business ties to japan. >> people around the bay area continue to ask, how can we help? not only emotionally but financially. is there a local way to help? the answer is yes. it's happening as we speak. let bring in traci grant who join us from san francisco at the japanese cultural and community center where they're holding a telethon to raise funds for northern japan. i see behind me a lot of activity going on. >> reporte

businesses are starting to collect funds for the earthquake victims and on thursday night, members of japantown are planning a vigil in an earth to raise money for a buddhist temple that might have been destroyed. >> the santa cruz said it suffered $25 million from the tsunami. the news comes as fema inspectors are visiting the harbor, documenting the evidence. their report will be critical if governor brown asks the president to issue a disaster exploration to free up federal funds. >> we did observe a lot of damage. i can't quantify how much had occurred, but the tsunami wave did a lot of damage. >>> fema inspectors are up north assessing the damage. fema will present its findings to governor brown tomorrow. officials are asking the governor to declare a state of emergency following tsunami damage to the harbor at fort bragg. the harbor master says it will cost at least $4 million to repair the damage to the docks. governor brown has already declared emergencies in del noter, san mateo, hum bolt, and santa cruise counties. >>> some in the bay area are concerned about radiation from japan's da

. >>> people who live in san francisco's japantown have already begun efforts to get helped to the island nation. yesterday, members of the japanese cultural and community center gathered at their headquarters to get a relief fund under way to get money to the hardest hit regions. there are ways you can help. just log on to our website, cbssf.com. click on "links and numbers" for a list of agencies that are coordinating relief to japan. >>> let's check weather. julie watts will take care of that. >> starting off with rain in the north bay just now moving in. in fact, hi-def doppler showing that now. let's go ahead and take a closer look at parts of the north bay and see some of the cells as we speak. you can see santa rosa nice moderate cell passing through right now getting showers in petaluma, all the way into wine country, sonoma, napa, showers this morning, as well. eventually, the heavier rain we see in the north bay will taper off as it moves south so showers for pretty much everyone by the end of the day but no, not a rainout for everyone. we'll time that out for you coming up in a

says he will donate part of the proceeds from his four restaurants and at the buddhist temple in japantown they will donate through various organizations. >> this will obviously have proportions on the scale of hurricane katrina and worse. and so talking with our members to make sure we'll be here to provide support for the long term and not just the short term. >> among the groups accepting donations are the japanese community center in san francisco, the red cross, and the national buddhist church of america. >>> governor brown is expected to intense phi efforts to get republican support for his budget plan. he has been negotiating with five republican senators but so far none have voiced support publicly. the governor proposes a five- year extension of sales tax increases and of personal income and vehicle tax hikes that were enacted two years ago. he wants to put the extension on the ballot this june. >>> well, this morning, hundreds of south bay community college students will head off to sacramento. today they plan to press lawmakers though to preserve funding and keep their tuitions

why a couple walked their donation to japantown. >> college students demanding more funding for campusesorecast as budget talks drag on way past governor brown's deadline. >> 7 on your side is answering your tax questions tonight. online at abc 7 news.com, and you can give us a call. >> new and heart breaking stories of devastation and december separation coming out of januarian tonight. >> plane loads awrifd personal accounts of the deadly earthquake, tsunami and aftermath. usgs seismologists inkris kreesed the magnitude of the quake to 9.0, making it the fourth-strongest earthquake ever measured.

thank you, paul, with the japanese cultural center here in japantown.nd we will be keeping you updated on how you can help with the relief fund. >> for more information go to website, there is athe red cross, the salvation army and other charitable organizations that can use your help. >>> 8:35. just within the last hour, president obama asked congress to rewrite the no-child-left- behind law to reform education policy in the u.s. and here in the bay area, some college students are calling on state leaders for funding quality education. claudine wong has more on both of these stories. >>> president obama spoke in arlington, virginia. a couple of big things, including changes to the race to the top program and no child left behind. mr.obama said he wants to continue the program ap open it up. he says local districts will be ayou willed to apply now. he also challenged congress to fix the no-child-left-behind law and wants to focus on creating a framework that makes sure that kids are ready for college and work upon graduation. he wants the program to foc

japanese may be taking the wrong approach to containing it this, is a picture of a vigil starting in japantown to honor victims of the quake. there are dozens of people, as you can see, attending. the community congress also kicked off a fund raising drive to help provide relief supplies to people in japan. organizers tell us money will go to the people of japan. >> and we'll have more on the quake and aftermath in our next half hour. right now, perjury trial of barry bonds is set to begin on monday and there is 50 potential jurors reported to court as the judge dealt another blow on what evidence those jurors would see. >> barry bonds defense lawyer scored a win today. the judge deny aid request to use 11 voice mail messages during their nine-year relationship calling them at most very marginal in terms of rel convenience. alan -- rel convenience. -. >> there is no foundation, nobody, i think is argued they're evidence of anything that has anything to do in this case z maybe it's about time to get down to what evidence is, or isn't. >> prosecutors argue tapes are evidence of a growing steroid

a person who has a store in san francisco's japantown has been desperately trying to get in touch witha city where a nuclear meltdown is especially frightening because brings back the death of her brother. >> he was just a baby. he lived about four and a half. >> finally she got word that her daughter and grandsons are okay. meanwhile, the community center of northern california has created a relief fund for victims and bay area japanese business and community leaders are collecting donations. >> the recovery effort is going to take not days or months. it's going to take decades. i can't go on and on but it has to go on as long as it can. >> donations will be accepting at all union bank locations. 100% of the money will go directly to the victims. while the tsunami damage along the california coast doesn't compare to japan's, there is significant destruction in crescent city and santa cruz. karina rusk has that part of the story. >> reporter: this harbor is what is left of the dock. the debris can be seen everywhere but unfortunately the boats cannot. many of the boats have sunk. chery

i'm also helping out with the earthquake relief fund doing the fund in san jose in japantown.on broadway this sunday. songs already a big hit. one-hit wonders of the '70s and '80s that will have you wanting to put on your platform shoes. we'll get to another song many a few minutes. >>> meantime, on a different topic, lester holt is back from an intense week of fine coverage over in japan. it was a great job, liester. that had to be frightening. >> it was. first of all the suffering of people from the tsunami and continuing aftershocks. then the radiation thing. most of us who were there had covered war zones and most of those things. you get it. you know what the danger is. this one, you look outside. looks fine. you don't know. >> what's coming up on "weekend today"? >> we're talking about a race against the clock. special fire trucks blasting water onto a reactor. now talk about burying parts of the plant in sand and soil as japan asks for help. we'll have the latest. plus, we are following events unfolding in libya as the u.n. security council authorized a no-fly zone and

a man with a store in japantown has tried desperately to get in touch with her daughter and two grandsonsthe threat of a nuclear meltdown is especially frightening because it brings back memories of death of her younger brother. >> he was just a baby. about four and a half. >> fujimoto finally got word her daughter and grandsons are okay. the cultural and community center of insurance california created a relief fund for business and bay area japanese business and community leaders are collecting donations. >> the recovery effort is going to take not days, weeks, months. unfortunately it's going to take decades. fund-raising activity can't go on and on and on but we've gotta go on as long as we can. >> donations will be accepted at all area union bank locations. we're told 100% of the money will go directly to the victims. while the tsunami damage along the coast don't come close to what we've seen in japan, there is significant destruction in santa cruz. karina rusk has that part of the story. >> this void in the harbor is what's left of u-dock. the debris can be seen everywhere but unfo

. >> in japantown, steffan jordan is waiting to talk to his wife that is visiting family.elatives says she is okay. >> i was going to call the airlines and ask but there is enough going on light now. we'll hear this afternoon i'll make a call. >> jordan's 14-year-old daughter stayed home from school today. it just didn't feel right to go. >> reporter: and they have spent every summer in kyodo and she is worried about mom despite assurance she is okay. heather ishimaru, "abc 7 news." >> there is good reason to worry. many are missing. a boat is missing. even one of japan's bullet train is nowhere to be found. an oakland based urban search and rescue team. they may be needed. if they make the trip, skills and training could save lives. laura anthony has that story. >> oakland's task force four spent the morning checking their equipment waiting for the call that could send them to japan. >> when and if the government of fema and foreign disaster assistance, they activate the team, then we come to warehouses such as here. we are given six hours before we are en route to japan.

and japantown and beyond many people were able to eat more contact with family and friends by late this morning. but some are still anxiously waiting for word. in fremont they're hoping for word about her dad. she's from the northern japan city hardest hit where the airport was wiped out. her mom is visiting family in another part of japan. her 67-year-old dad was home alone when the quake hit. he she started calling this morning when finding out what happened. >> i did call my dad first. the land line didn't connect. i tried a cell phone. nothing worked. >> this is her son ethan at the sendai bullet train station and fame picture near her parents' house she's not sure what is left of her hometown. >> earlier it was just... erie to hard owe to see footage. >> and she's hoping her dad will call as soon as his power comes back on. >> i've been able to reach friends who live in sendai. and try to figure out whereabouts they are. and connect to where my dad is. >> and other relatives told him his wife is okay. >> she's due back on sunday. you don't know. >> yes. >> ways going to call airlin

he has a store in san francisco japantown.he's been trying desperately to get in touch with her daughter and grandsons. the threat of a nuclear meltdown is especially frightening because it brings back memories of the death of her younger brother. >> he was just a baby. when the a-bomb was dropped in hiroshima. he lived until about four and a half, and then leukemia killed him. >> she did get word her daughter and grandsons are okay. the japanese cultural and community center of northern california have created a relief fund for victims and bay area japanese business and community leaders are collecting donations. >> the recovery effort's got take not days, not weeks, not months. unfortunately it's going to take decades. this fund-raising activity can't go on and on and on but we've gotta go on as long as we can. >> donations are being accepted at all area union bank locations. 100% of the money will go directly to the victims. while the tsunami damage along the california coast does not even compare to anything we've seen in

. >> in san francisco japantown shop owners stefan jordan is waiting to talk to his wife visiting family. other relatives told him she's okay. >> she was due back on sunday. we don't know. i was gonna call the airlines and ask but i figure there's enough going on there right now. we'll hear probably this afternoon i'll make a call home. >> jordan's 14-year-old daughter emma stayed home from school, she says. it just didn't feel right to go. >> if i did have family, i wouldn't want them to be at school. >> emma has spent every summer of her life there. watching the images of devastation was very upsetting to her. she is worried about her mom despite assurances she's okay. heather ishimaru, abc 7 news. >> am could go up next, a group of firemen from japan are here in the bay area learning how to rescue people in a earthquake but there's questions how they will get home and when. one of the when you've been together as long as we have -- [ carl ] honey, where's the -- top shelf! life can get a bit... routine. that's why i decided to switch things up with cottonelle ultra toilet paper. [ car

. >> in san francisco's japantown, he is waiting to talk to his wife who is visiting relatives. >> she was due back in sunday, we don't know. i was going to call the airlines and ask, i figure there is enough going on there right now. we'll hear this afternoon i'll make a call home. >> jordan's daughter stayed home from school because it didn't feel right to go. >> and she has spent every summer in japan and she is worried about her mom despite assurance she is okay. heather ishimaru, "abc 7 news." >> coming up next, a terrible tour bus accident in new york city leaves 13 people dead. also, a group of firemen from japan are here in the bay area learning how to rescue people in an earthquake but there are question [ mom ] can a little bowl of cereal change your life? i think it can. one of the challenges for kayla being gluten-free is actually finding choices the whole family will love. five flavors of chex are gluten-free, including the honey nut flavor, and that's amazing to a mom like me. as a parent you dot want to have to tell your kids "no" all the time. it's nice for me to be abl

hopefully it will be by the end of today the japanese cultural and community center in san francisco's japantown where we and comcast have teamed up with them to start a telethon that should be kicking off in a few machines. you look at the images that they have set up next to the phone bank and you read about things on line and in the newspapers we have seen the images and we know the need is there. i want to interrupt. here's a volunteer who is on the phone what are you going to say to people who are trying to pinch pennies? we have a couple of success they may be hesitant to donate. >> we're appreciate whatever you can do. a lot of people are suffering. >> we are going to have to run. we are out of time. >> the phone number is on the screen. please participate.

the japantown community congress of san jose. all donations go directly to the consulate of japan for relief efforts. >>> san jose police are searching for a suspect who shot a man outside of a mcdonald's restaurant. officers say a gunman walked up to a man in this 20s outside of the restaurant yesterday during lunch. he shot the man once and then fled the scene. the victim was rushed to a nearby hospital, valley medical center. he is reported to be in critical condition. police don't have very many dames about the suspect. several nearby schools were on lockdown for a short time after that shooting. >>> this morning, state regulators are threatening to fine pg&e $1 million a day. utility has not handed over enough of its records in the wake of the san bruno explosions. specifically, the state committee says the utility hasn't turned over records that would determine if the pressure levels in gas pipes are safe. at a meeting toes the commission could stroet fine pg&e $20,000 for every violation which could total $1 million a day.

the japantown commute congress of san jose will hold a vigil and fund drive today that starts at 6:00jose buddhist temple on north fifth street. all donations go directly to the consulate of japan for relief efforts. >>> all right. switching gears a little at 6:38. check the forecast for today. a storm coming, you think tomorrow, right? >> tomorrow. a nice st. patrick's day before we see that really potent storm make its way into the bay area. and we are pretty concerned about flooding when it comes to this storm. also, thunderstorms are likely as we head into tomorrow afternoon. a lot of instability associated with this one. 47 degrees in san francisco right now. it's pretty cold out there. overall, especially inland, temperatures are about 15 degrees cooler this morning than we we were at this time yesterday. it has everything to do with the sky's clearing overnight. all the heat from yesterday escaped into the atmosphere. a very cold start as a result. you'll need the jacket this morning. you can see here, here is the weathermaker. a well-defined storm with two sides to it. the fir

kraig debro, who has family members in japan, is in japantown right now land trying to reach your -- and trying to reach your family and friends. what do you know? >> i heard from a friend of mine, a foreign editor for the tv network. he told me he can't even get ahold of his mother. here in japan town, this store is like a walgreen's, a discount store. both have relatives in or near sendai. the until i ber one store -- number one store. what happened in japan is weighing heavily on their mind. the worst fears are on their mind, but they say they will follow the normal routine. >> no contact. so i try again. >> reporter: are you worried? >> yes, but i will be okay. >> worry about our family but i have no idea how i can contact them right now, just waiting, for contact from my family. >> reporter: telephone service in japan is very deaf cult as you just heard. ing about the have not contacted their family. i have-in-laws who live in itchy cowy city, which is east of tokyo. we have not been able to contact them on a landline. south of there in itchy hara, that's where that big fire is.