Coffee in hand, Benicia? We've got the latest town updates for you. Keep reading to stay in the loop. ☀️
In today's newsletter:
Also on today's calendar: Bay Front Festival and 9 more events.
Today's riddle: What has a cap but no head? 🤔 (Answer below!)
1. Finalists announced: Best of Vallejo & Benicia 2026 (vallejosun.com) — Benicia residents can now vote through Oct. 31 in the 2026 Best of Vallejo & Benicia contest, which highlights dozens of favorite local spots from First Street and Benicia State Park to Benicia Peddlers Fair and local restaurants. Scan the finalist lists to support your go-to cafes, parks, salons, schools, nonprofits, and kid-friendly hangouts that make daily life here special.
2. Oakland's Skyline High cancels football season early due to player availability (nbcbayarea.com) — Benicia High's homecoming football game was disrupted when its scheduled opponent, Mount Diablo High, abruptly canceled its varsity season over player safety concerns, forcing Benicia to scramble for a replacement. Now another East Bay school, Oakland's Skyline High, has also ended its season early due to injuries and low player numbers, intensifying regional worries about football safety and participation.
3. Kern County Tanker Convoys: Fact or Fiction? (californiaglobe.com) — Benicia readers are directly affected by the voluntary 2026 shutdown of Valero's local refinery, which helped idle the San Pablo Bay Pipeline and push more Kern County oil onto trucks instead of pipelines. The piece debunks a viral "Kern convoy" video, then argues that California's regulatory choices and refinery closures, including in Benicia, have driven up fuel costs and dependence on foreign oil.
4. The Energy Report: Europe's Diesel Release Buys Time (investing.com) — Benicia's Valero refinery is highlighted as one of three major U.S. plants whose closures helped create today's severe diesel shortage and high prices, especially in California. The column argues that lost refining capacity, European shutdowns, and war—not crude supply—are to blame, and urges coordinated stock releases over a U.S. diesel export ban to ease costs for farmers and truckers.
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Ok Benicia! So now you're in the loop about what's happening today. Thanks for reading, and see you in your inbox next time! Oh -- and if you like what you're reading, invite a friend to Patch AM!
-- The Patch AM Team
P.S. The answer to today's riddle: "What has a cap but no head?" — A bottle (Thank you Glo M. for sending it in!)
Got a good riddle for PatchAM? Submit it here!
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