Bay Curious

An El Niño is on, and this year, it’s been predicted to be the strongest in decades. Intensified by climate change, this natural climate cycle could bring flooding, road closures, and power outages, but also a healthy snowpack this winter. Bay Curious listener Katie Silva wanted to know, what makes this year’s El Niño different and what can she do to prepare? KQED Climate reporter Ezra David Romero explains how cities in the Bay Area are getting ready and what we can do to protect ourselves, our homes, and our communities.

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This story was reported by Ezra David Romero. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Srishti Prabha and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Randy Hahn has been the local NBC Bay Area broadcaster for Sharks games for over 35 years, ever since the team came here in 1991. For a lot of fans, he is the Sharks. They love his encyclopedic knowledge of the team, the way he weaves a narrative out of each game and above all that he's been through everything they've been through with the team. So why is it, wondered Bay Curious listener Mark Gavartin, that if the Sharks make it past the first round of the playoffs, Randy Hahn won't be on the mic anymore?

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This story was reported by April Dembosky. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Designed by Central Park architect Frederick Law Olmsted, Oakland’s Mountain View Cemetery serves as both a tranquil public park for living visitors and a final resting place for over 200,000 souls. Was it meant to be used in such a way? Katherine Monahan heads there to find out, and while she's there, she hears some grisly stories about some of the graveyard's inhabitants, just in time for Halloween.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Katherine Monahan. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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The Condor Club has been a fixture of San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood for more than 60 years. It's also where Carol Doda first performed topless, ushering in a new era of entertainment in the city's bars. It still features topless dancers today, but this iconic bar may also have some spookier residents.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Zoe Ferrigno. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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The Bay Area has long been associated with countercultural movements — whether it was the Beats of the 1950s, the hippies of the 1960s or the Black Panthers of the 1970s. But often overlooked in that long tradition of local subcultures is the emergence of America’s first official satanic church, which was founded right here in San Francisco. From its beginnings in a black Victorian house in the Richmond District, to its rapid growth that may have helped kick off a wave of “satanic panic” across the country, the story of the Church of Satan is filled with lust, intrigue and a fair amount of theatrics.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Amanda Font. Bay Curious is made by Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme and Olivia Allen-Price. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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The California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, requires state and local agencies to consider the environmental impact of public and private projects. Prop 45 on the 2026 California ballot would change CEQA by speeding up environmental reviews for certain projects such as housing, roads, bridges, and broadband centers.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Laura Klivans. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Proposition 44 on the 2026 California ballot would require private non-profit health clinics serving the lowest income Californians to spend 90% of their revenue on medical services. If they do not, they would pay fees.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Lesley McClurg. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Proposition 43 on the 2026 California ballot would increase the vote threshold to pass new local taxes earmarked for special causes.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Guy Marzorati. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Proposition 42 on the 2026 California ballot prohibits new state personal property taxes and certain retroactive state taxes.

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Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Marisa Lagos. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Proposition 41 on the 2026 California ballot would require more audits on the programs that are funded by special taxes. Is it good governance? Or red tape meant to make it harder to pass new taxes? 

Additional Resources:

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Marisa Lagos. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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