Looking for canned cocktails, but unsure where to get them? Senator Bill Dodd has drafted a bill to make it easier for convenience store owners to offer them up. His bill allows 16-ounce cans of distilled mixed spirits that have a 10% alcohol content by volume or less to be sold in convenience stores. SF Gate reports certain businesses can carry the cans, but their licenses, type 21 ABC, are expensive. The rub is that many convenience stores only carry type 20 ABC licenses. That’s just for packaged beers and wines. Dodd’s bill would allow type 20 licensees to sell canned distilled spirits too.
The California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s wife, an Assemblymember, is removing herself from anything related to the budget for her husband’s office because she leads a legislative subcommittee overseeing the Justice Department’s budget. Assemblywoman Mia Bonta has recused herself from public safety spending. She is the head of Assembly Budget Subcommittee 5, for which Atty. General Rob Bonta’s agency, falls under. She put out a statement over the weekend saying she doesn’t think there is a legal or ethical conflict, but just the same, she has recused herself so residents “have absolute confidence in the legislative process.”
Artic cold temps are headed to the North Coast. The National Weather Service in Eureka is warning a cold front is headed our way, and with it, comes sea-level snow by Thursday. That means Ukiah could be getting some of the powdery, fluffy stuff. The cold will move in this morning from southwestern Canada with strong gusty wind along the coast and exposed ridges. The most wind is forecasted for Southern Mendocino and Lake Counties. Freezing temperatures are predicted to last through the weekend.
A new report says Mendocino County is falling behind in licensing legal cannabis grows. The report in SF Gate says just a dozen of the County’s 832 active cannabis farms have gotten their annual licenses. As opposed to more than 63% of farms in Humboldt County. The news site got the numbers from the Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) directly. 49% of the state’s cultivation licenses have been renewed annually. The rest could lose their temporary licenses due to what farmers say, is the fault of county government officials. The Mendocino Cannabis Alliance has also sent a letter to the Governor and the Cannabis Control Director to help or the county’s industry could fail due to negligence by the county government.
People are preparing for spring and summer at the Lake Sonoma Marina. Staffers say their phone lines are lighting up with people interested in boat rentals and slip leases. Lake Sonoma Area Resort reports they’ve had an unusual amount of lookie loos, just coming to see the lake level after so many winter storms, and so many years of drought before this. Lake Sonoma went from a 40 year low the first week of December to about 99% of its water supply threshold in around 10 weeks. The general manager of Sonoma Water says they’re all shocked by the levels. They manage the water supply pool at lakes Sonoma and Mendocino.
Round Valley will be hosting an Earth Day Festival this year. It’s happening for the first time in three years. The Friends of the Round Valley Public Library will be hosting. Money raised will go to the Library and the Library Commons, their community center. They’re partnering with the Round Valley Indians, area schools and the greater community to bring the event into reality. Their theme is to bring awareness to the natural world. They will have student projects and presentations, educational movies, workshops, live music, library activities and a youth art show April 22nd from 11am to Dusk.
There’s a fundraiser for the Gualala Community Center being planned after a fire destroyed two of their buildings. They’re looking for community donations but will also try to get state and federal assistance so they can rebuild their gathering place. “The ‘Community Center ReBuilding Fund’ looks to raise more after one pledge of up to $100,000 from a local resident towards a matching fund campaign. Right now, they’re only accepting through US mail, but are looking for ways to expand beyond that. Contributions can be made payable to “Gualala Community Center” with a memo of “ReBuilding Fund” and mail it straight to the Gualala Community Center. They’re also looking for more volunteers to help with the rebuild. You can call the board of directors or email them gualalacc@gmail.com.
A warning has been sent to students at Cal Poly Humboldt because of a sex assault. The “Timely Warning Bulletin” was sent to be in compliance with the Jeanne Clery Act so that other students are not victims of a similar crime. The notice reminded to seek help from a trusted friend or to get support from the Campus Advocate Team which is open 24/7 and is a free resource. The assault reportedly happened in the Cedar Residence Hall, but no suspect was named and no description released.
A concert is being hosted by the Friends of the Mendocino College Coastal Field Station and Natural Sciences to raise money. The Alex de Grassi benefit concert is this Saturday at 7pm on the Ukiah Campus of Mendocino College to raise money for the Coastal Field Station. A professor of Earth Science at the college says de Grassi also has an Earth Science degree, but from UC Berkeley. But Dr. Steve Cardimona, added it is de Grassi’s musical talents that have captivated audiences for decades. The concert starts at 7pm. The fundraiser to add on to the goal of raising $250K. They reached about halfway last summer.
A renowned photographer from Mendocino County has died. Roger Franklin worked at the Ukiah Unified School District too but became popular in the county because of his many photos of concerts, car shows and other events. The 75 year old was known by his close friends and family as Rog. They say he used his camera to get into hundreds of concerts, beer fests and more, and in return he shared his work with musicians, promoters and performers for free. He died Jan. 27th and a memorial is planned for March 25th at Near & Arnold School of Performing Arts in Ukiah.
A free meal has been provided by the Ukiah Elks Lodge for first responders. On Friday, January 27th, the Sheriff, police, firefighters, EMS workers and search and rescue volunteers were invited to the Elks. More than 30 paid guests were there for dinner and Elks Club members served 19 meals free of charge to their honored guests.
A pedestrian has been killed by a driver in Lakeport. Police report an officer was on patrol and spotted a Beige 2002 Chevy Tahoe collide into a pedestrian walking westbound on Eleventh St. The officer asked for emergency medical aid for those hit and blocked off the area. But the pedestrian was declared dead on scene. The driver stopped and was not believed to be impaired by drugs or alcohol. They also told the officer they were not driving in an unsafe manner. Police say the investigating into what happened will involve toxicology reports. The names have not been released until the victim’s family is notified.
A new law that won’t allow law enforcement officers fired from one agency to hop to another has gone into effect. With that a former Former Bragg officer is the first officially decertified in the state. Christopher Awad worked in the Fort Bragg Police Department from 2012 to 2020 when he was investigated for misconduct related to a DUI where he arrested a woman, and later became friendly with her. The Mendocino County DA put him on the list 3 years ago as an officer with a bad record for not telling the DA about his relationship with the woman. Since then, Awad has gone public to say he believes how he was treated was unfair and retaliatory.
A new bill looks to come up with ways to beat back climate change with the help of some state agencies. Assemblyman Jim Wood’s bill asks the State Water Resources Control Board and California Department of Fish and Wildlife to find ways to improve climate resiliency and drought preparedness. Policies including diverting water in coastal watersheds when there are water shortages or dry years, coming up with dry-year water management plans, coming up with drought response measures for localities that help decide future investments in watershed health and water supply reliability. Wood commented that having consistent and predictable drought response helps both fish and people.
A man who used to live in Ukiah has been found guilty of felony assault with a deadly weapon. Timmy Cooper was also found guilty of personally inflicting great bodily injury on the victim. He used a chain on another person, breaking their arm. He also has four prior Strike convictions, including burglary, robbery and bank robbery with a deadly weapon. The case goes to the
Probation Department, but Cooper is facing 43 years to life.
A company truck from Redwood Valley Market had its catalytic converter stolen. Apparently store surveillance footage caught someone on camera early yesterday morning, pull up in a dark-colored sedan. Footage grabbed a shot of the driver’s face, but it was covered, maybe in a face mask. Mendo Fever is reporting this is the suspect in the theft. It’s about $4,300 to replace the catalytic converter, more than what the market says the truck is worth. And their insurance won’t cover the theft.
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