Mendocino County continues to deal with the situation at the Creekside Cabins near Willits. That site has been closed for sanitary concerns and the 50 or so residents who once called the property home have been ordered out. The temporary bridge built to cross over a large sinkhole should close today, leaving cleanup of the raw sewage that has spilled onto the ground and threatens the nearby creek. California Department of Fish and Wildlife says the threat comes just as the salmon spawning season begins. The Mendocino County sheriff’s office plans to follow up on some unregistered vehicles and trailers reportedly left behind on the land, while Public Health and CalTrans will work with the property owner to restore access. Officials say the property owner is ultimately responsible for the mess.
Six businesses on North State Street in Ukiah suffered damage when a man went on a rock-throwing spree early Wednesday. Police later found him and had to talk him out of hurting himself with a knife he pulled out of his pocket. Officers say it took several minutes to de-escalate the situation but they got the 51-year-old transient from the state of Washington to lower the 6-inch blade from his throat. He ended up in the hospital on a mental health hold. Damage to the businesses in the thousand block of North State totaled around 3,500 dollars.
The recent storms have left a lot of debris behind — both on land and in the water. The Lake County Water Resources Department wants anyone venturing out onto Clear Lake to be careful of trees, branches, and other flotsam washed into the lake. Their advice is to slow down and keep a clear line of sight, especially around dusk and dawn. The department is patrolling the lake and pulling out hazardous d debris but warns boaters to be alert with storm runoff continuing.
Lake County Water Resources Department, US Fish, and Wildlife Service, and consultants are hosting a Virtual Forum to discuss how the County would respond if invasive Quagga or Zebra mussels are ever found or established in Clear Lake. Experts say continued vigilance and collective action is essential and that relenting could invite far-reaching environmental and economic harm. The February 2 webinar will share information on the invasive mussel rapid response and containment transition project, which is intended to improve the current Clear Lake aquatic invasive species program while preparing for an invasive mussel introduction to Clear Lake or Lake County. The results of an invasion would be severe, given the Lake’s central role in the region’s economy and ecology. Given the Lake’s popularity and accessibility, the county says it is important to know the risks—and act now to plan for the worst-case scenario. There is information about the meeting on the website clearlakemusselprevention.org
Willits police have put out more information about an armed robbery at a cannabis-related business at a residence on Creekside Drive last weekend. Officers were called out to that business on Sunday afternoon, where the victims told police that 5 men with guns made off with around 40 to 50 pounds of processed marijuana bud. The robbers then took off in a Jeep Compass with Arizona plates and another vehicle. While the business was approved as a medical consultancy, it did not have permission to store or handle marijuana. City officials say they’ll start a separate investigation of possible unauthorized use.
A plan for a huge ultra-luxury resort east of Middletown is slowly moving forward now that the state Attorney general’s office has dropped its objections. Lotusland Investment Group wants to turn a 25-square-mile property into what it calls an international destination, with 5 boutique hotels with 600 rooms, plus 1,400 residential villas. The AG’s office had concerns that the area was prone to fires, but the developers made some concessions about that risk and greenhouse gas emissions. The Press-Democrat reports it may still be a while before the project gets started though. Lotusland will have to submit fire evacuation plans and the impacts of adding almost 5,000 new people to an area that has about 10,000 people already. There will be public comment and the Board of Supervisors will have to go along. The mega-development is near the site of two major fires—the Valley Fire in 2015 and more recently the LNU Complex fire that burned more than 350,00 acres in 2020. The location is East of Highway 29 near the Napa County line. In addition to the hotels and villas, the plan includes a golf course, polo fields, a spa, and high-end shops and commercial properties.
A bill that would impose a tax on the richest of the rich has been introduced into the California Assembly. The proposal would impose a 1% annual tax on people with a net worth of more than 50 million. For billionaires, the tax would go to 1.5 percent. About 23,000 households would be affected and the tax would bring in an estimated 21.6 billion a year. The plan may be more symbolic than anything else—a similar bill last year didn’t even make it past the first steps in a committee.
A rare sight in a California national park. Special trail cameras set up in the Sequoia and Kings Canyon parks have caught at least one Sierra Nevada red fox—the first time anyone has seen that endangered animal in almost 100 years. Researchers say the videos will help understand the habits and habitats of the tiny population of Sierra Nevada red fox.
