Virtual Adventurer, a new mobile app has been launched by California State Parks. The app will connect park visitors to interactive information of the history, cultural and natural landscapes. In a release in Lake County News today, the program supports the department’s Reexamining Our Past Initiative with compelling content and history of people and places. The Virtual Adventurer app for augmented reality helps tell the stories of parks with holograms and 3D imaging. Adventures will be continually added as parks are uploaded into the programming. So far there are nine parks participating in the app, including the Jack London State Historic Park.
There’s continuing road work in Mendocino County this weekend thru next week. Caltrans says the Hog Farm Hideaway event north of Laytonville has lane closures on Highway 101 in effect from 5a to 5p today through Sunday. In the Ukiah Daily Journal, on Highway 101, tree work is happening today with one way traffic in effect until 4pm south of the Dora Creek Bridge. New bridge work will begin Monday on Route 162 at Crawford Creek, with one way traffic from 7a to 7p with slight delays for drivers.
California’s retail price for electricity is almost double the national average, a new law may lower your bill by about 30 percent. Electric bills could soon be based on your income. A new state law passed last year requires the California Public Utilities Commission to approve pricing on a flat fee and sliding scale based on income, according to CNET. The state currently helps low-income residents pay per-kilowatt-hour prices. The new law would change the system to income-graduated fixed charges. The commission is considering about a dozen proposals with groups like The Utility Reform Network proposing a flat fee for all customers. The commission hopes to have a new structure in place by 2025, with a decision on proposals early next year.
A controlled burn became uncontrolled yesterday south of Ukiah. It happened just before 3pm around Oak Knoll Road and Fircrest Drive. Firefighters reported the fire as slow spreading and under 2 acres. Firefighting aircraft was deployed, but canceled as ground resources controlled the perimeter, according to reports in KymKemp. A helicopter was on scene observing the fire from the air. About an hour later firefighters stopped the spread and encircled the flames.
A dirt biker experienced a major head injury when they fell down an embankment on Low Gap Road west of Ukiah yesterday. MendoFever reports a medevac was requested just after 4pm as first responders began pulling the patient from when they’d fallen down 30 feet from the road on the Ukiah Valley floor. An air ambulance was headed to the scene. The incident is being investigated.
The City Council of Lakeport projects a budget of $18.4 million for fiscal year 2023-2024 this week. Expenditures for the city total about $30 million, according to the Record Bee. 84 percent of the general fund revenue comes from local taxes and is slated to have around $800,000 in the general fund. The council will meet again on June 20th to adopt the budget. The city manager says the city is being conservative and isn’t adding any new projects. Some projects are being carried over from the previous budget, including the Carnegie Library improvements, police vehicles and more. Officials say this year’s budget cycle has been challenging.
A couple of Clear Lake Hitch projects in Lake County have received funding from the state. $71 million has been dedicated to address drinking water shortages, species protection and populations impacted by drought. A half a million dollars will go to stream gages and well tansducers for use in Clear Lake to measure streamflow, well pumping and water use. Another half million dollar project will measure groundwater and stream water interactions in the Clear Lake Region. In total $1 million to support the Clear Lake hitch, deemed an emergency last February by the Board of Supervisor. Statewide, $10 million is dedicated for immediate and near-term financial support for small communities whose water supplies were impacted by drought. $55 million will address dry wells with repair, replacement and more, and $5 million in direct relief grants for small-scale farmers.
The Fort Bragg City Council set their agenda for next Monday’s meeting; in it, a resolution to approve animal services with the Mendocino Coast Humane Society. There is also a resolution to authorize a grant application with the State Water Resources Control Board for a construction study of a Recycled Water Facility. In the public hearing agenda items is a hearing on the eminent domain proceedings for an easement, and discuss a project to build a primary water transmission line. The Elm Street Lift Station is on the docket as well as a special tax measure for street maintenance and improvements. Their meeting is set for Monday at 6pm in Town Hall.
The Lake County Board of Supervisors met Tuesday and proclaimed June as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. They also heard from the community development director and code enforcement manager to consider cannabis code enforcement project that will cost around $3 million. Officials say the money will help Lake County combat illegal grows at a high level, according to the Record Bee. The program puts policies in place to enforce codes. Another program called WRAP, designed to keep kids from using marijuana will be funded by the Lake County Office of Education. Also at the meeting, the Cobb Municipal Advisory Council presented an update with a budget of $70,000. The council also talked about small business loan programs aimed at helping businesses re-grow after catastrophic events.
The WON BASS Tournament in Lakeport has a Cobb fisherman in the lead. Nathan Phillips is more than 9 pounds ahead in the 11th A nnual California Open Pro-am bass competition. In the Record Bee today’s final round weigh-in begins at 2pm in Library Park with an award ceremony to follow. Phillips took the lead Wednesday and then improved on it yesterday with an almost 18 pounds of fish.
EBT theft in Lake County is on the rise, with dozens of victims. In Lake County News, thousands of dollars has reportedly been stolen from their cards. The Director of Lake County Social Services told the news that they can’t reimburse victims more than one month’s allotment. The department is tracking and reporting the EBT thefts to the state. This month there were 49 cases with about $45,000 stolen, most of that has been replaced. The cases involved CalWorks and SNAP program recipients. Client awareness of EBT security has been rolled out in social media, texts and directly to people affected. The Department of Social Services says if you have an EBT card, keep your PIN safe and secret, cover your hand when entering your PIN and change it often. The state has plans to update the cards to include smart chips next year.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed an El Nino advisory yesterday. The event has formed early and is likely to be strong according to the AP. NOAA announced that it may add some extra heat this summer. Coming months early, this El Nino has room to grow. Usually, El Nino slows hurricane activity in the Atlantic and may increase cyclones in the Pacific. Scientists have said that next year is more likely to set a heat record, but this El Nino came earlier, putting this year in the running for the warmest year on record. This summer, the event will impact the Southern Hemisphere. El Nino hits hardest December through February with heavy rains forecasted along the west coast.
The Fort Bragg Animal Shelter will close on the 1st of July. There have been reports of the imminent closure, but officially, the Mendocino County Animal Services formally announced the closure, according to the Advocate News. The Humane Society Shelter will stay open. The closure is part of the county’s cost cutting efforts. The Director of Animal Care Services say the closure will save the county about $125,000 annually. The Humane Society has changed to accept strays and surrenders from anywhere in Mendocino County in 2020. They are a no-kill shelter. The Human Society helps provide low-cost spay and neuter services, euthanasia and vaccines in the midst of a veterinarian shortage on the coast.
The Ukiah City Council will hold a special meeting today to go over the budget and Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan. According to the Ukiah Daily Journal, the meeting is scheduled for 3pm at the City Council Chambers. In the posted agenda is Riverside Park with over $760,000 in grant money to do flood surveys, and rehab. The Ukiah Skate Park is on the agenda with a request for a quarter million dollars to add a band stand, install lighting and more. The city will consider a park for the Wagenseller Neighborhood and request up to $5 million next year, working with the Rural Communities Housing Development Corporation. And the council will discuss funding for Oak Manor Park to install a bathroom.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service will host public open houses this month along the west coast to talk about sea otter reintroduction. The public will have the opportunity to engage with the department and ask questions about the next steps in recovery efforts. In MendoFever, the southern sea otter is threatened under the Endangered Species Act. An assessment done last year found that reintroduction of the otter would help the species recover. The open houses will work to inform residents along the coast and help craft proposals. An open house is planned in Fort Bragg on June 26 from noon to 3pm at the Noyo Center. There will be an open house at Point Reyes Station on June 27th from 5 to 7:30pm at the Bear Valley Visitor Center.
California lawmakers are working on bills that would triple the penalties for violating emergency water orders. One bill would give enforcement more muscle to penalize anyone who violates state orders by pumping water from rivers and streams. Work for AB460 began last November when ranchers continued pumping water from the Shasta River after being told to stop, and got what CalMatters is reporting as minimal fines. The bill ads the authority to issue stop orders to address potential harms. If orders are ignored, the fines could go up to $10,000 per day versus $500 per day under existing law. There’s an additional bill would investigate legitimacy of senior water rights claims. The bills have cleared the Assembly and are headed to the Senate.
The Governor’s announcement of his proposed 28th Amendment to the US Constitution would not change the Second Amendment. In KCRA news, there has never been a US Constitutional amendment proposed by a state that passed. To add an amendment, a simple majority, or 34 states would have to come to a joint resolution in a constitutional convention. If a convention is triggered, 75 percent would have to vote yes for the amendment to pass. Yesterday lawmakers said there were starting to put the resolution together. Some republicans in the state say Newsom’s proposal is a political stunt. The governor quoted the state’s death rate as 73 percent lower than Texas.
