john ramose shows us why. >> reporter: morrison canyon road was carved out in the 1800s for horses and wagons to use. and while there is disagreement for should be using it now, everyone seems to agree, this is not a place for cars and people should mix. what looks like a walking path is actually a two-way city street, or at least it was until 2018 when the city closed it to cars because things were getting pretty crazy. >> my friend and i would walk up here a lot and at one point she actually got sideswipe by a mirror from a car. >> the road is less than nine feet wide in some spots with sheer cliffs on either side. fremont closed the street after the vargas plateau regional park was built at the top of the mountain. but lance king says the problem really started when gps apps began sending cars on the road as a shortcut to highway 680. >> i'd be going down on my bike and i'm coming up on a car, they are not looking out the windshield, they are looking down at their phone. >> after two years of temporary car closure, last week the city council made permanent. but an attorney represent

tonight john ramose reports that mostly has to do with housing.>> reporter: marin has been identified as the most racially segregated county in the bay area and what is happening on this piece of property may hold the reason why. in 2004 phil richardson created a plan, he said at the city's request, to build multiunit housing on this, the last large vacant lot in the town of mill valley. >> when i started the project the neighbors above me wrote a letter to the town saying they were concerned this project would decrease their property values. >> the arguments started pouring in about traffic problems and environmental impacts. phil finally gave up but he thinks there was another unspoken concern. >> it is a general community feeling that you know, especially low income family housing would be bad because i don't know, the people they would consider living in the multifamily housing. >> having six of the 10 most segregated cities in the area some say it is marin's resistance in the multifamily housing that keeps prices up and people of color out. there are lots of complexes in san rafa

john ramose has some answers.>> reporter: most of us are measuring the covid-19 pandemic in terms of months, but the price we will be paying for it could last for generations. during this endemic the american economy has been getting cpr from the federal reserve. east bay economist says that the fed has been buying up most of the bonds that chris has approved for stimulus programs, turning them into a kind of phantom money. >> they said okay we see that the federal government will issue this much debt, we have to monetize that debt and hold interest rates low. because the risk of interest rates blowing high very quickly are a concern. >> keeping interest rates low keeps the economy moving, but if they should rise, the amount of money the government would have to pay in debt would skyrocket. >> all of a sudden interest payments will be absorbing a big chunk of the federal budget. >> of berkley professor says we are not feeling it now because of the low interest rates, but that could change. >> right now is not the time to be taking action but it may be a time to be thinking about the

john ramose reports, while it may not solve all their financial problems, it may offer a way to hang on until real help can arrive.>> reporter: much of walnut creek's fortunes ride on the success of their nightspots, but with so many things shut down the city is desperately looking for a way to help survive. walnut creek created a community task force called the rebound committee helping restaurants pivot to outdoor dining. and reopened his chicken pie shop three years ago and it was just beginning to make money when the pandemic hit. so, he invested in an outdoor space and said his clientele was beginning to grow. >> i felt kind of happy, like it looks good. but then we had the shutdown again for outdoor and indoor. i don't know what to say. >> the mayor says he feels henry's, and every other restaurant owners pain. here we get to a point where restaurants are just starting to make some headway and then everything shuts down on them and now they can do business other than take-out or delivery. the city has up to half $1 million in unspent sales tax money in the council will consider

john ramose reports from testing site in berkley.>> reporter: 'twas the day after christmas and all through the bay area people are wondering what this holiday is going to do for the spread of covid-19. this covid-19 testing kiosk in berkley saw a quiet but steady flow of customers today.>> it's not something i really enjoy but it's something that is necessary. >> she sees the same bubble of friends but gets tested once a week, she is concerned about infections climbing as people travel together with family and friends. >> it's scary. i think we've been in this pandemic for nine months now, so i can understand how people are like well, it's the holidays and i don't want to be alone. >> jason lucero flew to maryland for thanksgiving and upon returning he spent two weeks in quarantine, and today, despite feeling fine, he got his mouth swabbed at the request of his housemates. >> it's peace of mind for my roommates really, but i could be asymptomatic and this could be a bullet to the head for the roommate. >> there are worries about the number of people who spend time traveling or hitting the

john ramose has reactions.>> reporter: there's no doubt that workers can use some extra money to help make ends meet, the question is, is this a time for businesses to be paying for raises. the wage hike will be one dollar with small businesses paying $14 per hour larger ones 15. >> marin county is probably one of them more expensive counties to live in. and it's important for people to be able to work only one job instead of multiple jobs to pay rent. >> it will actually be the third increase since january of this year. jeff copeland calls a carwash in detail center that employs 60 people. >> that means these 31 dollar an hour increases cost our business about $1500 a day more than it would have the year before. >> he says the wage hikes are coming so thickly that it's not possible to pass on the cost to consumers. and with the public shutdowns, businesses are starting to fail. last week i deli across the street shutdown, a chilies closed and the men's warehouse is out of business. but some don't mind the increase. and say that businesses have to have a realistic business model. >> w

. >>> i'm john ramose in san francisco. protests are breaking out all over the world including here in san francisco over the way the indian government treats small farmers. we will explain the situation, coming up. spore make a spectacular sunset over the bay area this evening. some high clouds ovhead once again tomorrow. we will talk about >>> the nba just announced the 40 players tested positive for covid-19 is all the teams reported for training camp. the regular season is expected to begin in three weeks.>> tried to connect the dots with me as i try the local angle. the worriers found out that he will begin the season december 22 at brooklyn against former warrior kevin durant and the nats who are now coached by the former santa clara star steve nash. steph curry interviewed his golf buddy, president barack obama. they talked for 45 minutes about everything from barack obama's memoir to his jumpshot that went viral last month.>> that's what i do, that's what i do!>> can i borrow that's what i do, that's what i do! >> d

john ramose has some answers.>> reporter: most of us are measuring the covid-19 pandemic in terms of months, but the price we will be paying for it could last for generations. during this endemic the american economy has been getting cpr from the federal reserve. east bay economist says that the fed has been buying up most of the bonds that chris has approved for stimulus programs, turning them into a kind of phantom money. >> they said okay we see that the federal government will issue this much debt, we have to monetize that debt and hold interest rates low. because the risk of interest rates blowing high very quickly are a concern. >> keeping interest rates low