Bel Air, CA

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California’s Air Resources Board is expected to vote on Thursday to approve a plan that will ban the sale of new gas-powered vehicles in the state by 2035.

The proposal, “Advanced Clean Cars II,” aims to have 35% of new vehicles sold in 2026 be zero-emission with increasing percentages each year. A full ban on new sales of gas-powered vehicles in California would be enacted in 2035.

“This is going to do a lot to clean up the air in California and to fight the crisis that we have of air pollution and climate change,” Bill Magavern with Coalition for Clean Air told KTLA’s sister station, KTXL in Sacramento Wednesday.

The regulation will help California meet clean air standards by cutting emissions, resulting in a 25% reduction in smog-forming emissions from passenger vehicles by 2037.

The new regulation only applies to new car sales and does not impact existing gas-powered cars and light trucks, which will still be legal to own and drive beyond 2035.

The proposal also calls for requirements for warranties, durability, streamlined fast-charging, capable charging cords, repair information, and battery range.

“A lot of people have range anxiety. They’re always worried they’re going to run out of charge, but there are so many chargers around the country. And you hit a button in your car and it tells you where the next charging station is and it’ll take you right there,” said Eileen Yurek, an electric vehicle owner.

The Advanced Clean Cars 2 regulation also offers incentives to manufacturers to build low-cost electric vehicles to make them more affordable.

“It’s easy for people that have enough wealth, but we need for this revolution to make its way to everybody and to give clean mobility for all Californians,” Magavern said.

California already has the nation’s largest electric vehicle market in the country with over 1.1 million vehicles registered. That comprises 43% of the nation’s plug-in vehicles.

“They’ll love them. It’s like sitting in your armchair at home; it really is. They’ll really love their cars,” Yurek said.

If Advanced Clean Cars 2 is approved, it will then go to the federal Environmental Protection Agency for its approval.

The pandemic-induced high-end real estate bubble has been broken, especially in California, according to new data provided to the Wall Street Journal.

After riding high following the pandemic—when selling an upscale house nationwide suddenly meant fierce bidding wars and astronomical selling prices—the high-end market has faltered. Some of the reason for the downswing include inflation, recession wariness, and rising interest rates.

A new report by real-estate brokerage Redfin reveals that in the three months from June through August 31 of this year, sales of luxury homes—defined as the top five percent of homes based on estimated market value—declined 28.1 percent nationwide compared to the same period last year. That represents the largest decline since at least 2012, when Redfin began recording such info, and is an even deeper drop than the 23.2 percent decrease seen during the arrival of the pandemic in 2020.

High-end California residences did particularly poorly, according to Redfin’s data. In Oakland, the number of home sales dove by almost 64 percent while San Jose and San Diego were hit by declines of over 55 percent. In Los Angeles, the number of home sales fell by 44 percent.

For comparison, the number of home sales fell 55 percent in Miami and just 12 percent in New York City.

“Six months ago, people were buying homes over-ask and with no appraisal,” San Francisco real-estate agent Herman Chan of Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty told WSJ. “They didn’t even bat an eyelash. Now, it’s like crickets.”

In L.A. meanwhile, the future of mansions will be on the ballot in November. A pending “megamansion tax”—a ballot measure that would increase the tax on the sale of multimillion-dollar properties to help pay for housing the homeless—has real estate investors squaring off against the bill’s backers, the grassroots group United to House L.A., according to Bloomberg.

A “yes” vote would mean increasing the transfer-tax rate on the sale of L.A. residential and commercial properties worth $5 to $10 million to four percent, and increasing properties valued at $10 million or more at a 5.5 percent rate—both way up from the current 0.45 percent rate.

If passed, the money would go toward building new housing and offering services such as down-payment assistance for first-time home buyers and eviction prevention.

While it’s hard to imagine that an undeveloped property topping out at a whopping 260 acres could still exist in Los Angeles, just such a parcel is currently up for auction. The private Senderos Canyon spread is located in Bel Air and represents 6 percent of the total land mass of the ultra-pricey L.A. neighborhood.

“It’s about three times the size of Disneyland,” says co-listing agent Scott Tamkin of Compass’ Tamkin Real Estate Group. (Note: While Disneyland theme park itself is around 85 acres, the entire Disneyland resort including hotels and California Adventure is about 500 acres.)

The seller, who is unidentified, has set a minimum bid of $39 million for the crown-jewel property, which was last on the market in March for $60 million. It had first hit the market back in 2013 with a price tag of $125 million. Senderos Canyon is being auctioned by Paramount Realty USA and bidding for the 260-acre Bel Air property is open through March 15. “We feel now is the ideal time to let the market bring the best offer,” says Tamkin. Adds Paramount Realty founder Misha Haghani, “This property falls into a category we commonly refer to as unique and difficult to value — these types of properties really make great candidates for an auction. There aren’t many comps for a property like this. We were shocked to learn when this assignment first crossed our desk that there were 260 acres of property that hasn’t been developed in Bel Air.”

On Feb. 17, the Los Angeles City Council, responding to a motion filed by council member Katy Yaroslavsky, voted to explore purchasing the Senderos Canyon tract.

One of the challenges in selling the property is finding a moneyed buyer who would either want such a large chunk of land for themselves or who would be willing to go through the complicated process of developing it. The untitled land is zoned residential and equine, according to Tamkin. “Ideally it would be used for residential or perhaps a wellness center. Someone could build up to 17 homes by right,” he says, adding that to build more homes than that number would require a variance.

Attempting to rezone the property and develop it for commercial uses such as a shopping center or hotel would likely be considerably more difficult to pull off. For example, a proposed Bulgari Hotel in Benedict Canyon has already encountered stiff community resistance.

The seller of the Senderos Canyon property, which according to The Real Deal is a limited-liability company called Giro Properties — is also offering a discount of $2 million to a buyer who would close the deal before April 1. That’s the date that the city of Los Angeles’ new Measure ULA transfer tax, which raises money for affordable housing, goes into effect. For real estate sales of more than $10 million, the new tax will add 5.5 percent to the transaction. “Essentially the seller is passing on those savings to a buyer who submits an acceptable bid and closes by the end of March,” says Haghani.

Auctions of multi-million-dollar properties in L.A.’s most expensive residential neighborhoods are not unheard of. In 2021, the Hearst Estate sold at auction for $63.1 million to billionaire Nicolas Berggruen, while last year Fashion Nova owner Richard Saghian submitted a winning $141 million for developer Nile Niami’s mega-mansion The One (initially listed for $295 million).

One of the biggest private land deals in Los Angeles recently was the sale of the late Paul Allen’s Enchanted Hill estate in Beverly Hills; the 120-acre property sold in December 2021 for $65 million.

“This could really be the ultimate playground for the high-net-worth individual,” says Haghani of Senderos Canyon, envisioning that an owner may want to build their own private golf course or plant a vineyard. “We sold a 33-acre property in Pennsylvania for an NHL hockey owner and he put in ATV trails on his 33 acres. Imagine what you could do with 260 acres.”

Updated, Feb. 21: Added information about Los Angeles City Council plans.

Now, this is a story all about how Bel-Air isn't going anywhere.

Peacock announced March 17 that its modern-day reimagining of iconic ‘90s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air has officially been renewed for a third season.

The series stars Jabari Banks in the lead role of Will Smith, a troubled teen whose life changes when he moves from Philadelphia to his wealthy aunt and uncle's home in Los Angeles.

And the actor celebrated the renewal news in a video with the rest of his co-stars. "That's right, we're back for season 3!" he wrote on Instagram. "The fans like you made this happen and we can't thank you enough."

Banks also reflected on how the role changed his career forever.

"Working on BelAir for the past two years of my life has been an amazing, life changing opportunity," the 24-year-old added. "I've learned so much about myself, and I can't thank you all enough for your continued support! Bringing this story back to life was no easy task, but through love anything is possible. We have poured so much love into this project. We've poured so much of ourselves into this project."

photosThe Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Cast, Then and Now

Bel-Air s ensemble cast also includes stars Adrian Holmes, Cassandra Freeman, Olly Sholotan, Coco Jones, Akira Akbar, Jimmy Akingbola, Jordan L. Jones and Simone Joy Jones.

Season two also welcomed a very special new, er, familiar face: Fresh Prince's Tatyana Ali, who played Ashley Banks on the original series.

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A post shared by Jabari Banks (@jabaribanks)

Following its 2022 debut, Bel-Air broke records as Peacock's most-watched original series premiere, and season two showed continued success as the streamer's most-watched original sophomore launch to date.

Seasons one and two of Bel-Air are currently streaming on Peacock. Keep scrolling to see if more of your favorite shows have been renewed or cancelled this year.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — With Christmas weekend approaching, shoppers are preparing for last minute grocery rounds for Christmas dinner. This year, some larger chain stores such as Walmart and Target more will be closed on Christmas Day with limited hours on Christmas Eve. However, if you're local to the Sacramento region, here are a few options for grocery stores that will be open on Christmas Eve in the Northern California area.

Food 4 Less will be open 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. for last minute shopping at all locations on Christmas Eve, and will be closed Christmas Day.

The supermarket will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve and closed on Christmas Day. Normal hours will resume the rest of the week.

Grocery Outlet will be open at all locations Christmas Eve from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and closed on Christmas Day.

Raley's and Bel Air stores will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve and will be closed Christmas Day. Normal hours will resume throughout the rest of the week.

Safeway will be open Christmas Eve from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Hours and store openings will vary from location to location on Christmas Day. Check with your local Safeway to confirm.

All locations for Save Mart will be open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve and closed on Christmas Day. Normal hours will resume the rest of the week.

Smart & Final will be open at all locations Christmas Eve from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. and closed on Christmas Day.

All Sprouts Farmers Market locations will be open Christmas Eve from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and will be closed Christmas Day.

Trader Joe's will be open at all locations Christmas Eve and close at 5 p.m. All stores will be closed on Christmas Day.

The organic Whole Foods Market in Sacramento will be open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Christmas Eve and will be closed Christmas Day. Normal hours will resume throughout the rest of the week.

WinCo Foods will be open on Christmas Eve from 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and will be closed Christmas Day. Opening hours may vary by location.

99 Ranch Market will be open for business on Christmas Eve from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. for all Northern California locations, and closed Christmas Day.