I know it’s not technically spring, but it sure feels like it. Spring is the best time of the year in Santa Clarita, is it not? And this year, the hills are actually green!
News
- Las Lomas Land Ownership: Jim Holt at The Signal reports today that county authorities have determined that developer Dan Palmer does not own all the land slated for the controversial Las Lomas project. Half the parcels in the Las Lomas development area are owned by an elderly Van Nuys man named Fred McHaddad. Holt broke this story earlier this month and the fallout has been interesting: a Los Angeles City Councilman and Assemblyman Smyth have called for an investigation into the matter, and another LA City Councilman who supported the Las Lomas project has gone on the offensive against the Newhall Ranch project. The Las Lomas company has said that they have options to buy the land they don’t own, but “papers filed with the county list the developer as the sole owner of the 555 acres,” a fact that Smyth used in his call for an investigation. Link
- January Real Estate numbers bleak: Reach for the Tums: Fewer than 100 homes were sold in Santa Clarita in January 2008, some 42.4% less than last year (172 sales vs 99). Median housing prices in Santa Clarita dipped below $500,000 for the first time in almost four years to $460,000. That’s some 21.8% -$127,900- off last year. Condos fared no better; the median price for condos has fallen below $300,000, and only 31 of them were sold in January, which beats the previous low record of 38 set in November 2007. Southland Regional Association of Realtors SCV president summed up the market in her statement: “Buyers are expecting whopping discounts and sellers are not being realistic with their asking prices…there are plenty of opportunities but the market is deadlocked.” Deadlocked? Signal has a good report, but it’s not online, so check out the Daily News’ report.
- DA Still pondering charges against bus driver: The District Attorney’s office has asked for more time and information before it makes a decision on whether to charge a Santa Clarita Transit bus driver who collided with a motorist in Stevenson Ranch last month. The collision claimed the life of a 25 year old female driver of the car. A decision is expected within a week. Carol Rock has more.
- City out $30k for Gin Blossoms, hopes for make-up concert: The band with 90s hits that was to headline a party after the Amgen Race had a “rain or shine” clause in their contract with the City of Santa Clarita, and unfortunately, it rained. So now the city is out some $30,000 -plus another $10-15k for the setup- but it’s hoping to schedule another Gin Blossoms concert, perhaps for a discounted rate. Katie Geyer has details on that and the Amgen Race’s impact on the local economy in her report.
- Remember this guy? Ralph Drollinger, the controversial evangelical minister who led the “Mayors Prayer Breakfast” last year here in Santa Clarita, is back in the news again. The Sacramento Bee reports that Drollinger is under fire for claiming that God is disgusted with members of other faiths. “Although they are pleasant men in their personal demeanor, their group is more than disgusting to our Lord and Savior,” Drollinger wrote about an alternative fellowship group that meets in the Capitol. It’s not the first time Drollinger, who is a Santa Clarita resident if I recall correctly, has come under fire for comments he’s made in Sacramento. In 2004 he called Catholicism a false religion and said that female legislators with children were sinners; those comments came to light in Santa Clarita just a few days before Drollinger was to lead a prayer breakfast attended by then Mayor Marsha McLean and several other city council members. SacBee.com
- Contrary views on Bank of Santa Clarita: The business bank just released its 2007 results and reported assets of some $144 million and a 25% increase in deposits over 2006, but that’s not enough for some bank industry geeks. For some reason, bank bloggers mention the Bank of Santa Clarita often in dour reports on the state of local banking. From the hingefire financial blog: “An evaluation shows that the bulk of financial weak banks that are publicly-held are located in California,” and the Bank of Santa Clarita is listed as having a “safety rating” of “D.” It continues: “This concentration of questionable institutions in a single state, where a large amount of lending has been provided to real estate developers, likely means that a good number of these banks will face liquidity troubles over the coming year as these commercial loans go sour.” Link
- Another new roller coaster at Magic Mountain? The theme park, desperately trying to become more family friend, will build another family-friendly roller coaster ride by the spring of 2009, reports the LA Times travel blog. That’s the second new ride planned for the park announced in recent weeks; park officials hope to add a Thomas the Train kiddie ride this year. There appears to be a lot of vacant space at the park; apparently Psyclone, Freefall, and Flashback have all been removed. Link
Blogs, Opinion & More
- Hillary, Barack, and City Council politics: The LA Times has called Hillary Clinton a “reasoned, structured essay,” and Barack Obama a “lyrical poem filled with promise.” Tim Myers has a similar line of thought in his latest WRB blog post in which he talks up the national election and relates it to our local city council, the power of incumbency and the incompetence of the Hart Board (hint: despite all the Hart District problems, both incumbents won in last year’s election that saw pathetic turnout). Link
- Save Newhall Hardware blog: Someone has created a blog who’s title is simply “Save Newhall Hardware!” There’s not much at the site right now other than some google video of the February 12 council meeting and links to press coverage. Are people still holding out hope that something can be done? The City Council kiboshed the idea of financial assistance for the business, and NH has been advertising liquidation sales info almost every day in The Signal.
- Alternative view of John Boston: “Much of his output I considered to be gibberish nonsense couched in humor that was, at times, viciously directed at local citizens of sterling character,” Signal reader Richard Beekman opines in a LTE today. “He left like a lamb, hoisted on his own petard.” And later in the LTE section, another reader wonders why The Signal parted ways with Boston to which the editor replies, “Actually, Mr Boston parted company with us.”
- Santa Clarita Wikipedia hot: Several anonymous folks have been working hard to expand the Santa Clarita page on Wikipedia, the popular free and user-edited encyclopedia. New information on the page includes a long list of television and movie productions filmed locally, information on transportation. Link
- 1 millionth hit on Hometownstation.com expected today: The website for KHTS AM 1220 has grown extensively in the last few years and will celebrate its 1 millionth hit sometime today. To celebrate, the radio station is going to give away a prize package worth $750 if you are the lucky 1 millionth hit/click. Click your way around and monitor this page, or hit F5…if you win, a special password will appear. Link