The agency was based at Fox Plaza in San Francisco for many years, until it moved in 2014 to Oakland,[2] where it is now based.[3] Subscribers include media organizations in the Bay Area.[3]
In March 2018, journalist Katherine Ann Rowlands purchased all shares of Bay City News, becoming the wire service's sole owner and publisher.[3] Rowlands adopted a "hybrid" business model for BCN; as a companion to the for-profit wire service, she created a nonprofit journalism organization, the Bay City News Foundation (funded by philanthropic contributions) which runs LocalNewsMatters.org, which provides free news for readers.[3]