Two former staffers say Aspire’s Berkley Maynard Academy failed to provide IEP services and retaliated against employees. State records and staff accounts have sparked lawsuits and scrutiny.

An analysis of millions of California pregnancies reveals a sharp rise in prenatal opioid use over the past decade, with newborns increasingly born into withdrawal and requiring intensive medical care. The surge is fueling calls for expanded maternal treatment programs.

President Trump signed the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, restoring whole and 2% milk to school lunch menus. Bay Area districts will decide if and when to change their offerings.

A gas leak at 5th and Pacific in Alameda sent students and neighbors out of their homes Wednesday night as crews worked to secure the scene. PG&E was notified.

Affiliates of Kaiser Permanente will pay $556 million to settle DOJ claims they inflated Medicare Advantage payments by adding diagnoses after visits. Former employees stand to receive about $95 million.

After years of delay, Berkeley's Cheese Board will sell baked goods and cheese from a shipping container while it expands next door.

A gas leak in Alameda led to evacuations and road closures near Island High School. The Alameda Police Department is managing the emergency, with shelter-in-place orders for nearby schools.

Oakland will dispatch officers to Levi’s Stadium for the Super Bowl and multiple World Cup matches under a reimbursable MOU, even as the department grapples with staffing shortfalls and heavy overtime spending.

A developer wants to build a seven‑story senior living tower on the old Red Cross parcel in Rockridge, and neighbors have rallied over height and shadows. The plan leans on California’s density bonus law to push past local rules.

Berkeley faces a leptospirosis outbreak among pets and rats at a local homeless encampment, posing health risks to residents. Officials urge relocation and cautionary measures.

A West Oakland volunteer says he was robbed after hauling roughly 80 bags of illegally dumped trash; he filed a police report and will pause solo cleanups.

Dave & Buster’s will occupy 55 Harrison in Jack London Square this spring, bringing games, big‑screen sports and new jobs as a new state law loosens waterfront rules.

UC Davis won state grants to study cancer among firefighters, pairing wearables and blood tests with air sampling to hunt for hazardous exposures and biomarkers.