A man from Santa Rosa headed to Mendocino County has died. 56-year-old Anthony Irvin was in a pickup truck and for some reason left it on the side of a rural road south of Hopland. He was reported missing Friday night to Santa Rosa Police. The next day Mendocino County deputies apparently found his truck and looked for him but found no evidence he was nearby. He was apparently in a mental health crisis at the time. His description was circulating around for a few days, but yesterday the Mendocino County Sheriff’s office reported his body was found.
There’s a seminar free to Mendocino and Lake County residents regarding mental health issues and substance use disorders in youth. The Mendocino County Office of Education is offering a Youth Mental Health First Aid training, next Thursday. The event is 9am to 2 pm and free for all to attend. The seminar will cover how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental illness and substance use disorders in youth. It gives adults working with children a new skillset so they can support them, and connect them to others who can give them the right care.
There’s been some action at the construction site for a new California Conservation Corps in Willits. The Willits News reports the project will probably take over two years to finish, depending on the weather. A Woodland company is doing the construction. The current Center for the Corps is in Ukiah, but they were unable to expand in that location, so they bought some land across from Adventist Health Howard Memorial Hospital in Willits. The Center will include 12 buildings, which will house administration, dormitories, an education building, recreation building, multipurpose building with kitchen and dining room and a warehouse with a work area and hazardous materials storage room.
An update has been given to the Lake County Board of Supervisors on the Middle Creek Restoration Project which looks to restore some wetlands near Upper Lake. The 1,650 acre area is where the Middle and Scotts creeks meet. Those are Clear Lake’s two largest tributaries. Lake Co News reports the Water Resources agency says it makes up about ½ of the Clear Lake watershed. The two tributaries provide nearly 60% of the inflow and 71% of the phosphorus floating into Clear Lake. The project was reportedly set up to slow the potential for flooding. They will take out levees to accomplish that. There is some concern about endangered species in the area and the cost of the project. The committee on the project meets next in June.
A new report tells the tale of climate change and how wildfires could only get worse. Advisors to lawmakers put out several new reports showing a bleak future for Calif. due to global warming. The Legislative Analyst’s Office reports were unusually dark. They completed a six part series showing how the economy might be impacted and how climate change affects our daily life. It includes talk, not only about wildfires, but also high temperatures and floods. It says that could force more school closures which would get in the way of continued education, childcare and the availability of free school lunches. The report cites facts and case studies to back it all up.
It may not happen after all… Amazon had planned on building a couple of warehouses in Sonoma County, which could have meant countless jobs. One of the two was being pummeled by public opposition, but the other one, could happen still. The North Bay Business Journal is reporting Amazon has put up three sorting and delivery warehouses in Solano and Napa counties already and they were planning to lease a 250,000-square-foot distribution warehouse and another 181,000-square-foot facility. But the owners of the buildings and county planning staff say the whole thing is up in the air now with Amazon pulling out of the lease before the deadline.
The Koi Nation is out of luck after a unanimous vote by the Sonoma County BOS against their planned casino and resort by Windsor. The unanimous vote on the proposed project was first opposed by the Supervisor whose district would have benefitted from the $600 million project. But apparently five other Native American tribes were against the mammoth project too. The tribe, for their part, says they were never informed about a resolution, calling them a “Non-Sonoma County Tribe.” This was in alignment with letters the Board received from the Graton Rancheria, owners of the Graton Resort and Casino near Rohnert Park; the Dry Creek Rancheria, which owns the River Rock Casino near Geyserville; and the Cloverdale Rancheria.
Community Colleges in Calif. have been getting some attention by state lawmakers. There’s a bill being considered to increase adjunct professors’ benefits. A couple of bills to foster better working conditions for part time teachers advanced the state Assembly Higher Education Committee yesterday. The bill by the committee chair, Assemblyman Jose Medina would mean part time instructors, or adjuncts would teach up to 85% of what a full timer takes on. He says it would allow them more stability so they wouldn’t have to teach in various schools. Another bill would create pay equity between part-time and full-time professors. That one is not getting support by the Community College League though. They represent school trustees and top administrators.
The state Legislature is considering the Governor’s plan to allow citizens to sue gun manufacturers. Yesterday lawmakers advanced a bill to empower private citizens to sue people dealing illegal weapons. The state already has some of the most stringent gun laws, but so far has not been able to curb the illegal purchases that continue in the state and stop those dealing so-called ghost guns. The Governor’s proposal would allow residents to file civil lawsuits against those distributing illegal assault weapons, the parts used to build weapons, guns without serial numbers, or .50 caliber rifles.
