State Sen. Bill Dodd has announced a new bill to better prevent and contain wildfires. The Wildfire Mitigation Planning Act would evaluate wildfire mitigation investments by state, federal and private entities and create better coordination efforts for utility wildfire mitigation. Dodd says with heavy rains and the drought, we still can’t “take our eyes off of the risks that major wildfires present to communities across the state”. Dodd reminds that catastrophic wildfires cost the state and its residents an enormous amount of money and wildfire mitigation also costs over $10 billion/year, and that’s growing. The bill would mean planning every three years for mitigation. Dodd says wildfire prevention requires strong coordination.
A cold case looks to have been solved with the arrest of a man previously of Laytonville. After kayakers found the body of Patricia Joseph in 2005, the case ran cold. The former restaurant owner who was also a trimmer was believed before to have been kidnapped and killed by the man she worked for, Philip William Frase. He was arrested in the case in 2010 while in jail for murdering another employee at his Bell Springs marijuana garden, Steven Richard Schmidt. He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in that death and got three years in prison. Charges in the Joseph death were dismissed a couple years later. But now he’s arrested again by the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department.
A teenager has been arrested in Ukiah for a domestic argument. The Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office reports getting a call last Thursday to Lovers Lane for an 18-year-old male in an argument with his 18 year old girlfriend, Ariana Arnold. Deputies say the argument got heated when the young man tried to leave the home where the pair were arguing. He says Arnold assaulted him. Deputies say he had injuries to match his story, so they arrested the girl for Felony Domestic Violence Battery and Felony False Imprisonment and held her in jail on $25,000.00 bail.
After a suspicious vehicle was spotted by Mendocino Deputies, a man is arrested. Deputies on routine patrol ran into Yecson Delaherran-Rivera who they recognized from previous contact, knowing he was on felony probation with terms which included obey all laws, and a search and seizure waiver. When they searched the vehicle, they found a meth pipe so Rivera was arrested for Felony Violation of Probation and Misdemeanor Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He’s held in jail without bail.
Another arrest by the Sheriff’s Office in Ukiah, this time a man on community supervision was picked up. Deputies on patrol in the 300 block of Brush Street in Ukiah say Jordan Bright was searched due to his supervision status and found with a knife, which is not allowed, along with drug paraphernalia, and several suspected Klonopin pills. He’s charged with violating his supervision, possession of drug paraphernalia and misdemeanor possession of controlled substance without a prescription and held without bail.
A local restaurant will be the first in Willits and the second in the county to be part of the Blue Zones Project. Blue Zones Project Mendocino County has announced Dahvi’s Kitchen which serves Cambodian food and burgers was approved. They’ll be having their official ribbon cutting ceremony and celebration a week from tomorrow, Wednesday, February 24th from 2:00 – 3:30PM with samples of the Blue Zones approved dishes.
More information about the Blue Zones Project Mendocino County is available at mendocinocounty.bluezonesproject.com. For updates on the latest events and local happenings, follow us on Facebook and Instagram at @bzpmendocinocounty.
After the massive flooding over the last couple of months, we have some Disaster Recovery Centers (DRC) and Mobile Registration Intake Centers (MRIC) in Mendocino County. As of Saturday, those impacted by the severe storms and flooding can register, update their FEMA applications, and find out more about state and community programs at the centers. They’re in Point Arena at City Hall, the Willits Branch Library and the Willits Community Center. Hours are generally 9am – 7pm at the centers. You can also apply online with FEMA without going to a center.
Go to DisasterAssistance.gov, use the FEMA mobile app or call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. If you use video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service. Helpline operators are available from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Press 2 for Spanish. Press 3 for an interpreter who speaks your language.
A fire’s been reported at the Gualala Community Center. The Sheriff’s Dept. reports the South Coast Fire Protection District was on scene of a large fire, which they say may have been arson. Ukiah Valley Fire Authority investigators also came to the scene. Video of the fire reportedly showed a man igniting the fire, then running away. Deputies say the fire spread fast and fully engulfed the building. The man, believed to be homeless, was identified as Roland Eskind, a man not from the area, who had only arrived days before. He’s been arrested and charged with willfully and maliciously setting fire to a structure. Deputies are asking anyone if they may have seen something to please call.
A man who used to live in Graton and was mauled by a police dog has won more than a million dollars after filing a civil rights case against a couple of deputies. Jason Anglero-Wyrick, a Black man, was hit with a Taser then Vader, a Sonoma canine deputy was let loose on him in April of 2020, after a phony report he pointed a gun at someone. But there was no gun found and no charges were filed against Anglero-Wyrick. He filed suit in 2021 accusing the deputies of excessive force. He still suffers from the injuries incurred. The whole thing was caught on video by his teenage daughter. Anglero-Wyrick calls the settlement, not a win, but says it would be selfish, for his daughters if he didn’t take the $1.3 million financial compensation. He says it’s not about him since everyday someone else is being attacked, shot or mauled.
The Mendocino Historical Review Board had its first in-person meeting since the pandemic, voting against removing and replacing the water tower staircase on Main Street. Those for the work said it wasn’t historic and the structure needs expensive repairs. They say if it’s replaced it must allow access to the Flow restaurant. Many in the community spoke out or wrote letters giving the proposal a thumbs down. The 120-year-old structure has been in place a half century. Opponents wondered if the structure even needed to be replaced. The board voted the project down 3-2. But they voted unanimously for modifications at the MacCallum House properties, after some previous approvals. And the board also voted unanimously to replace the workshop, part of the roof and some outside lights at the Category I Maxwell-Jarvis House on Little Lake Street.
COVID reaches over 12 million cases to date in CA. The marker reached last week as the state wrestles with more cases of the latest omicron subvariant, XBB.1.5 which is being called the most infectious strain of the virus so far. Still the number of new infections is on the decline and has been settling in recent days, along with hospitalizations. The state hit 12 million cases Friday, but it could also be an under-count as many folks don’t report test results because they test at home.
Since the state continues to snap up more housing opportunities people can afford, plans are announced for a revised bill that forces cities into affordable housing projects. State Senator Scott Wiener crafted that bill five years ago… it helped push homes through permitting and development. Now he’s working to make the charges permanent, by removing a sunsetting clause set to take effect in 2025. His bill meant that cities had to streamline approval on some projects which would then be safe from potential environmental lawsuits sometimes used to slow or stop construction.
An Assemblymember from San Francisco is pushing a bill for food and drinks to be sold in cannabis dispensaries in lounge-like settings. Assemblyman Matt Haney’s legislation would mean food and nonalcoholic beverages could also be sold at cannabis retailers and lounges, like a neighborhood bar or café, where they may also have live music. He says it creates social value. And he says some retailers allow on-site consumption, but they’re not doing that great because you cannot eat or drink there. No alcohol would be allowed. It would be a companion to another bill in the Senate allowing localities and cities to permit food and drink at cannabis retailers.
