San Francisco, CA
World's first hydrogen-powered commercial ferry set to operate on San Francisco Bay, officials say
SAN FRANCISCO — The world’s first hydrogen-powered commercial passenger ferry will start operating on San Francisco Bay as part of plans to phase out diesel-powered vessels and reduce planet-warming carbon emissions, California officials said Friday, demonstrating the ship.
The 70-foot (21-meter) catamaran called the MV Sea Change will transport up to 75 passengers along the waterfront between Pier 41 and the downtown San Francisco ferry terminal starting July 19, officials said. The service will be free for six months while it’s being run as part of a pilot program.
“The implications for this are huge because this isn’t its last stop,” said Jim Wunderman, chair of the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority, which runs commuter ferries across the bay. “If we can operate this successfully, there are going to be more of these vessels in our fleet and in other folks’ fleets in the United States and we think in the world.”
Sea Change can travel about 300 nautical miles and operate for 16 hours before it needs to refuel. The fuel cells produce electricity by combining oxygen and hydrogen in an electrochemical reaction that emits water as a byproduct.
The technology could help clean up the shipping industry, which produces nearly 3% of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions, officials said. That’s less than from cars, trucks, rail or aviation but still a lot — and it’s rising.
Frank Wolak, president and CEO of the Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association, said the ferry is meaningful because it’s hard to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vessels.
“The real value of this is when you multiply out by the number of ferries operating around the world,” he said. “There’s great potential here. This is how you can start chipping away at the carbon intensity of your ports.”
Backers also hope hydrogen fuel cells could eventually power container ships.
The International Maritime Organization, which regulates commercial shipping, wants to halve its greenhouse gas releases by midcentury.
As fossil fuel emissions continue warming Earth’s atmosphere, the Biden administration is turning to hydrogen as an energy source for vehicles, manufacturing and generating electricity. It has been offering $8 billion to entice the nation’s industries, engineers and planners to figure out how to produce and deliver clean hydrogen.
Environmental groups say hydrogen presents its own pollution and climate risks.
For now, the hydrogen that is produced globally each year, mainly for refineries and fertilizer manufacturing, is made using natural gas. That process warms the planet rather than saving it. Indeed, a new study by researchers from Cornell and Stanford universities found that most hydrogen production emits carbon dioxide, which means that hydrogen-fueled transportation cannot yet be considered clean energy.
Yet proponents of hydrogen-powered transportation say that in the long run, hydrogen production is destined to become more environmentally safe. They envision a growing use of electricity from wind and solar energy, which can separate hydrogen and oxygen in water. As such renewable forms of energy gain broader use, hydrogen production should become a cleaner and less expensive process.
The Sea Change project was financed and managed by the investment firm SWITCH Maritime. The vessel was constructed at Bay Ship and Yacht in Alameda, California, and All-American Marine in Bellingham, Washington.
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco considers closing some permanent supportive housing
In San Francisco, homeless advocates are expressing concern as the city considers potentially closing some of its permanent supportive housing sites. As the San Francisco Chronicle reported, homeless service providers reported that the mayor’s chief of health and human services met with housing providers last month that the city was working on a list of potential buildings to be closed.
Multiple homeless advocates told NBC Bay Area they had heard about this proposal and the general approach by Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office to reexamine how the city uses permanent supportive housing.
“This is something that’s been discussed for a few months at this point,” said Christin Evans, a former San Francisco Homeless Oversight Commissioner and current small business owner in the city.
Advocates describe permanent supportive housing (PSH) as a more stable and long term option for people experiencing homelessness, providing a place to live that is directly connected to the health and social services a person needs when transitioning out of homelessness. San Francisco currently has more than 9,000 site-based permanent supportive housing units.
Mayor Daniel Lurie’s press secretary, Charles Lutvak, shared a statement on Thursday, noting, “… our administration is prioritizing tools to get people struggling with addiction into treatment and the path to stability.”
“Permanent supportive housing is a critical one, but we need to make it work better,” Lutvak continued, noting the city is spending $300 million a year while also facing hundreds of millions of dollars in federal cuts.
Lutvak also said it is not determined yet whether the city will be closing permanent supportive housing beds in the coming months.
Still, the conversations so far are enough to have advocates worried.
“Every housing unit you get rid of, you’ve got additional homeless people on the streets,” said Jennifer Friedenbach, executive director with the Coalition on Homelessness.
Friedenbach said there are currently thousands of people on the city’s waitlist to get into permanent supportive housing.
“Permanent supportive housing does work. It has been studied to death, and it is the primary resolution of homelessness that has the highest level of success,” she added.
This conversation about permanent supportive housing units is unfolding as the city already faces a 643 million dollar budget gap. But advocates argue, while housing is expensive, it will cost the city even more to have unhoused people in the city who are disconnected from a place to live or support services.
“We’re cutting really essential services for our most vulnerable san Franciscans, and its actually going to harm our recovery as a city,” Evans said.
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco tops US housing market as homes sell far over asking, report says
The average San Francisco home sold for nearly 90% over the asking price in March, according to Redfin.
The city is now the most expensive metro area in the country.
Artificial intelligence is driving much of those costs, as companies grow and hire, with many requiring staff to work in person.
Housing inventory, on the other hand, isn’t keeping up.
NBC Bay Area spoke with Arrian Binning, an agent with the Binnings Team at Christie’s San Francisco, who said the city is expensive but worth the investment.
“San Francisco is one of the best markets in the world,” Binning said. “I’ve seen supply constriction benefit property owners, so when you’re a property owner in a market that has scarce inventory but also is an engine of growth, that’s kind of the trifecta in terms of investing your hard-earned dollars into a new home.”
San Francisco bumped San Jose out of the top spot.
In San Jose, the median home price in March was more than $1.46 million, about what it was a year ago.
NBC Bay Area’s Kris Sanchez has the full report in the video above.
San Francisco, CA
Thousands head to San Francisco’s East Cut for 415 Day Market & Party
On April 15, back in the year 1850, San Francisco was first incorporated as a city. Each year on April 15, many in San Francisco celebrate 415 day, honoring that anniversary and the date that aligns with the city’s area code. Wednesday, thousands of people headed to The Crossing at East Cut for a night market to ring in the occasion.
This night market was hosted by San Francisco-based record label EMPIRE along with the East Cut Community Benefit District. The event brought a fleet of food trucks and local vendors to the plaza at The Crossing at East Cut, as well as musical talent performing throughout the evening. This night market was free for attendees and drew in people of all ages, many of whom were decked out in their most San Francisco-inspired outfits.
“We are so honored to have this happening here at The Crossing at East Cut, to be welcoming people from across the city, from across the Bay Area, to come see what downtown can be, and to celebrate the beauty of San Francisco,” said Andrew Robinson, the executive director of the East Cut Community Benefit District. Robinson explained that this was the Benefit District’s first time helping to put on the 415 Day celebration. He noted that the event brought in welcome business and foot traffic to the neighborhood.
EMPIRE CEO Ghazi Shami, who is a San Francisco native, was at the event too. Shami explained to NBC Bay Area that the event is a chance to put a spotlight on the creative community in San Francisco.
“I’m a product of my environment, I love San Francisco,” Shami said.
“It’s perfect time to celebrate, like our cultural diversity, music, food, street fashion, all the things that make San Francisco unique,” he said.
Shami added that he hopes next year to see even more 415 Day celebrations across San Francisco.
“I hope this becomes something that everybody adopts and celebrates no matter where you’re from,” he said.
The crowds at the event continued to grow throughout the night. People stopped to take photos with a giant, illuminated “415 Day” sign at the plaza.
“Just seeing this community come together, the diversity, the music, the food, we got it all in San Francisco,” said San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, addressing the crowd at the start of the event.
An artist who goes by the name Mando told NBC Bay Area he though the event was “well orchestrated,” he enjoyed the food, drinks, and entertainment.
Mando, who lives in San Francisco, said he thinks 415 Day is an important holiday for the city.
“I think celebrating 415 Day is like a religion, if you’re from the city you basically gotta live it up today, today is the day,” he said.
“The bridge, the city, the everything, the music, the culture, it’s a beautiful thing, today’s the day to just let it all out and not care about nothing,” he continued.
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