Keeping a decent insurance plan has only gotten tougher. The re-insurers that backstop companies like State Farm and Farmers are remapping the Capital Region after L.A., say area insurance agents.

In an era of escalating fire disasters, with insurers fleeing large parts of the state and with builders desperate to find ways to construct houses that would better resist the flames, what can we do to defend our neighborhoods?

PODCAST EPISODE: Editor Judy Farah, Managing Editor Dakota Morlan and contributor Steve Martarano discuss April’s cover story on the A’s, the gray wolf’s California comeback and whether or not dire wolves are a good idea. 

The Railyards, an urban infill project, promises to transform downtown Sacramento, nearly doubling its existing size. The property consists of 240 acres north of the Amtrak station on H Street and east of Interstate 5.

Midway through our interview, we’re interrupted by the most incredible sound: the wolves, howling in harmony with each other. We stop talking and sit silently to take it in. It’s a beautiful, special moment.

Since OR-7, nicknamed Journey, made his fateful crossing, the California wolf population has grown to more than 70 since 2011. However, they remain listed under both the state and federal Endangered Species Act. 

Behind a nondescript door in downtown Davis exists a little-known but vitally important piece of infrastructure, the Hydrologic Engineering Center. A recent threat to this center’s existence appears to have passed.