r/berkeleyca

AC Transit implemented the second phase of a 25-cent fare adjustment Wednesday. Riders will now pay $2.75 for local single-ride fares using Clipper or contactless payment and $3 with cash, increased from $2.50 and $2.75, respectively. 

The completion of the adjustment marks the first time the transit district has increased fares since 2019. The first phase of the fare adjustment took place in July 2025 and saw the local adult cash fare increase from $2.50 to $2.75, as well as the Transbay cash fare increase from $6 to $6.50. 

While AC Transit could potentially cut $53 million from its operating budget if the passage of a transportation sales tax fails in November, the fare hikes are unrelated. According to AC Transit’s spokesperson Robert Lyles, the adjustments were approved before the COVID-19 pandemic, but their implementation was paused to ease the financial burden on riders.

Harshita “Khushi” Nair, a legal studies student and rising senior at UC Berkeley, passed away in June at age 21. 

Nair was from Fremont and graduated from Washington High School. She studied at Ohlone College before transferring to UC Berkeley. She was an active member of the ASUC Office of the President, serving as a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice intern. She was also a member of the Undergraduate Women in Law club. 

Esha Sharma, a friend of Nair, first met her during the spring semester in Hindi 100B, where the two got to know each other through conversations in Hindi.

First July 4th in Berkeley! Not feeling particularly patriotic but still interested in checking out any firework displays tomorrow.

Hi everyone,

I recently moved to Berkeley and live across from San Pablo Park. I've been spending my time exploring the city, learning about the different neighborhoods, and getting a feel for the community.

Professionally, I work in banking, but I'm not here to advertise anything. I genuinely enjoy helping people understand financial topics and making complex things easier to navigate.

If anyone ever has general questions about banking, credit, debt management, small business banking, or financial planning, I'm always happy to share knowledge and point people in the right direction.

More importantly, I'd love to meet new people, make friends, and become part of the community. If you have recommendations for local events, volunteer opportunities, coffee shops, hiking groups, sports leagues, or other ways to connect with people in Berkeley, I'd love to hear them.

Thanks, and Happy 4th of July everyone! 🇺🇸

UC Berkeley School of Law professor John Yoo, best known for authoring the “torture memos,” will advise a Department of Justice investigation into an alleged yearslong conspiracy against President Donald Trump.

Yoo will assist prosecutors in Florida looking into whether former intelligence and law enforcement officials who scrutinized Trump illegally conspired against him.

Yoo led the DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel under former President George W. Bush and helped author memos used to justify torture against terrorism suspects, which the DOJ later rescinded. He has since remained an advocate for expansive presidential power.

I'm doing a research project on gender-affirming care roadblocks (especially wait times), and I'm curious as to what the wait times are for care in the the East Bay. I'm under the impression that most people can get HRT fairly quickly (though I know there's a shortage and some people don't get it quite as fast), but that surgery is more of a wait and that wait is more pronounced on Medicaid. I'm comparing that to places with public healthcare, like the NHS in the UK. The wait times there are much longer (unsurprisingly, maybe) than in the U.S. and people can get their care faster if they have private insurance (similar to the Medicaid-private health insurance divide in the U.S.). But there are also organizations like GenderGP and Eden Life that advocate for trans patients and can speed up gender care. Mostly, I'm trying to pinpoint what we're really talking about when we talk about "average weight times" for care to get a more complete picture, and how it compares to weight times for other categories of healthcare. So, if you've had experience with gender-affirming care in the East Bay, what kind of wait did you have for HRT, for mental health care (if you wanted it), and for surgery? What was your insurance situation, and did you ever contact a third-party org that could reduce your wait in the public insurance system. Thanks for your help.

I want to know what your dream store/cafe/gathering place/public service etc. would be!

Is anyone a current resident at Parker and can leave any kind of feedback on their place? I know the Berkeley group is not highly regarded here, but I'm hoping this place is better since it's newly renovated lol

I got a 5 and 3 year old. I value convenience overall I’ve personally done the SF tourism attractions before so I don’t mind if I skip them with my kids. What’s a good playground?

I’m in my twenties but I’m not a Cal student and don’t enjoy being around them. I don’t like the status obsession that a lot of Cal students seem to have and I’d rather stay away from businesses and activities where it’s mostly students.

Are your kids grown and flown? Friends fragmented, or work no longer your everything? I'm starting a monthly gathering for women in the Berkeley/ Oakland area who are looking for community - not dating, therapy, networking or senior center vibes - just an opportunity to meet other similar women in your community for conversation and connection. We've done the carpools, cooked the meals and put in our time - now let's support one another and build a community just for us (for once).

Please DM me if you would be interested in the kick-off at the end of August.

I am hoping this community can help me find referrals for a respite care individual for my very best friend’s adult autistic son, “J.” She recently tragically lost her husband with whom she wonderfully coparented my sweet “nephew.” J generally lives with the family of the caregiver who has helped care for him since he was diagnosed at age 2. J began living with them almost FT when he was about 26 years old. He is now 29 years old. My friend has J with her for about a week every month, but sometimes things come up with the caregiver’s family or with my friend where she needs extra help now that her husband is no longer with her. J is a wonderful, sweet, loving, nonverbal man, but can’t be left by himself. The combination of her grief, the demands of that kind of one on one care and her age (she is 71) can be overwhelming, and we are both trying to find someone she can call to watch J if she needs help. J is a Berkeley High grad from the special needs program and was educated through all the Berkeley school system. He is much loved and not difficult in any way - not violent or a bolter, etc. but the load on my dearest friend is heavy. Does anybody have any referrals? (She is of course, aware of the regional center, but this need goes much beyond that given his age.) Thank you!

are you (or someone you know) moving soon? we have around 70 boxes from a move we just did here to Berkeley, looking to give them away and reuse them for someone else, instead of just put them in the recycling! pickup in north Berkeley. if you’re interested, please let me know!

Hiii where is everyone watching the Mexico World Cup today ? Would like to go to a fun watch party to see everyone !!!

A number of proposed amendments to Berkeley’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance could appear on the ballot this fall if approved by the Berkeley City Council today. The amendments are mostly aimed at expanding tenant protections. 

The proposed changes, authored by Councilmember Cecilia Lunaparra, represent minor updates to the ordinance, which underwent more significant expansion after Measure BB passed in 2024. They result from a collaborative process between the Rent Board and City Council members. 

A significant change in the proposed amendments sets a 10% limit on annual rent increases, tying the limit to state law. Currently, the state limit does not apply to Berkeley landlords because Berkeley’s generally stricter rent code supersedes state law. The limit applies regardless of “banked” rent increases, which accrue when property owners do not charge the maximum cost dictated by the Rent Board’s rent ceiling.

Hey everyone:) I’m a recent grad and I’ve been staying here in Berkeley for the first time during the summer, for July 4th what events do you know of that is happening during the day? For context it’ll just be me and my boyfriend and so far we have plans to go to the farmers market if it’s still running that day and plan on hitting Jupiter’s for lunch, we’d like to stay in Berkeley during the day because we’re going to go out to sf at night ALSO bonus points if anyone can give me fun weekend activities for us to do on a typical weekend since that’s when he usually comes it can be in Berkeley or probably max 35-40 minutes from Berkeley since he doesn’t mind driving. Thank you in advance, go bears!

The blue band number is NPA 22 8 BF 3914

This bird was purchased from Mike Briard in Martinez CA by someone from Oakland (he didn’t have further info).

It was killed in my yard, and I believe another of the same kind was also killed a week earlier (no band found). They were attacked by a large murder of crows in the same location.

Anyone that can share in facebook groups for Parlor or Rollers (more likely) or has advice on getting word to the owner would be appreciated.

I don’t know why I’ve become so invested in this but it was horrible to witness and I would take in additional birds in a heartbeat if needed.

As California’s Silicon Valley booms with prosperity and the state’s wealthiest residents grow ever wealthier, UC Berkeley and Paris School of Economics professor Gabriel Zucman champions specialized taxation of the ultrarich.

In his new book, “We Need to Tax Billionaires,” Zucman proposed the aptly named “Zucman tax,” an “unavoidable” minimum tax for extremely wealthy individuals, equal to 2% of their wealth.

“The idea is that extremely wealthy individuals should have to contribute to society … every year, no matter their individual circumstances,” Zucman said in an email. “In contrast, past wealth taxes in Europe or Latin America largely exempted the billionaires, because they were full of loopholes.”