Neighborhoods in every corner of the state are looking cleaner. Governor Newsom credits the historic Clean California initiative, celebrating three years of service. He says the program has hauled away enough trash to cover nine lanes of Interstate 5 from San Diego to the Canadian border. That includes 50-thousand tires and 12-thousand mattresses. Nearly 60-thousand volunteers are to thank for making communities healthier.
There’s a new plan to bring more teachers to California. It involves using vacant land on school sites to build affordable housing for other staff too, like custodians and food service workers. Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond says it would be up to each district to decide whether to do this and they’d have to pass bonds to pay for it, with help from the state. He calls this an opportunity to create more than two-million housing units.
Ten more California counties are getting a boost to help people with behavioral health conditions who are living on the street. They were awarded nearly 133-million dollars in the latest round of funding. This is part of a state program to provide urgent housing for those transitioning out of homelessness. Governor Newsom says this will give them a safe place to start the next steps to recovery. He’s urging all counties to use similar tools available.
Triple digit heat is coming to Northern California posing a threat to those battling the flames of the massive Park Fire. National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Rasch says it’ll start warming up today in the Sacramento Valley and foothills. The forecast shows temperatures in the low hundreds Thursday through early next week. Peak heat is expected Saturday. Rasch adds they’re working with meteorologists assigned to the Park Fire and are monitoring weather conditions daily. Mountain thunderstorms are expected along the Sierra Crest, which is higher than the area being impacted by the Park Fire. However, the thunderstorms may produce dangerous lightning, gusty winds and possibly more fire starts.
Local leaders across California are showing their support for Governor Gavin Newsom’s executive order to address homeless encampments. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg believes Newsom has shown unprecedented leadership on the homeless and mental health crisis in California. Steinberg says the plan is to continue the work that led Sacramento to a 41-percent reduction in homelessness. He adds the city needs more shelter beds and is applying for a more than 12-million dollar state grant to add more beds and build affordable housing. Steinberg says Newsom’s order is consistent with Sacramento’s two-pronged approach which the mayor calls “compassionate enforcement.”
Sonoma County Health Services Director Tina Rivera will be stepping down after more than three years on the job. On Monday, Rivera sent a letter to the county Board of Supervisors, saying her resignation will be effective on August 23rd. Rivera has worked for Sonoma County since 2018, starting in the Department of Human Services. About a year ago, the Department of Health Services had a job vacancy rate of 21.5%. Rivera says she has reduced that rate to nine percent.
The Riley Fire continues to burn in Mendocino county. The last update from CalFire shows it is 85% contained. The fire has burned about 12 acres along Riley Road near Camp Noyo since it started on Saturday. No one has been injured, and no structures have been damaged. CalFire is investigating the cause of the fire. CalFire is also responding to a new fire northeast of Covelo. The Bluenose Fire started around 3:30 yesterday afternoon. So far it’s burned between 4 and 5 acres and is 0% contained at the last update.
A Mendocino County man has told a jury for a second time that the 2021 Hopkins fire was started accidentally. Devin Johnson was in a Marin County court on Tuesday, after his lawyers convinced a judge the trial needed to be moved so he would get a fair trial. It’s the second trial Johnson’s been through since May. The first one ended in a mistrial. Johnson maintains his testimony that while he did start the fire, he did not act intentionally. The Hopkins fire was started when Johnson dropped a lit cigarette into dry vegetation, something he says was an accident. The fire burned 257 acres of land and destroyed 30 homes in September of 2021. Video evidence presented in court shows Johnson in the area where the fire started. An area photographer also got a picture of Johnson watching the fire from the Moore Street Bridge in Calpella. Johnson is facing a decade behind bars if he’s convicted.
