- This story blew up the SCV interwebs on Sunday night, but it’s real impact will be felt today: the mighty New York Times has zeroed in on Santa Clarita’s decision to privatize the operation of our three COLA libraries. The article gives some great background on LSSI, the company we’ve hired, and the reporter talks to Marsha McLean (“It’s not privatization,” she says) and Frank Ferry (who takes a page from Glenn Beck and blames the SEIU for the opposition). More on this story later today. NY TIMES
- A problem on Sunday with the SCV’s 911 emergency system resulted in emergency calls going to the Lancaster Sheriff’s Station or simply not getting answered. The system has been repaired but the technical problem forced the SCV Sheriff’s Station to broadcast via Nixle that emergency calls should go to the regular 255-1121 number. WRB
- On the City Council Agenda : The City will hire a parking enforcement company to enforce parking laws around the city for a cost of $300k so that Deputies don’t have to (They spent 900 hours doing that last year), the Council will decide whether to add “slap stags” to the ordinance section on graffiti (stickers and the like), CDBG funds awarded to Old Town Newhall businesses for building improvements, and a Canyon Country annexation matter, but you should read the SIGNAL for that one. COUNCIL AGENDA
- Laura Tapia, of the original SCV Tapia farming family, decries the opening of Sprouts Market as a false farmer’s market. She also breaks the news that something called the Valley Produce Market will move into the old Bristol Farms space in Bridgeport. She says if you want real, locally-grown produce, you have to go to COC’s Sunday Farmers Market or Thursday’s Newhall Farmer’s Market in Old Town SIGNAL LTE
- Newhall County Water District opens its new LEED-certified building up for the Signal. The building boasts energy efficient designs, including solar panels and porous concrete so that rain water doesn’t trickle down into the gutter but instead flows down into groundwater supply. SIGNAL
- Interesting article about a family day program run by Pitchess Detention Center. The Signal talked to one inmate, a Carlos Valenzuela, who’s serving 3 years on assault charges. Here’s what he had to say after meeting up with his two daughters: “It’s not easy to get the macho man out of the heart. Our mothers were beat up. Our sisters were beat up. Our fathers would tell us to be a macho man. I say, ‘Forget about the macho man, and love (your) wife.’ Family is a pleasure from God.” SIGNAL
- Attendance at the Native American festival in Hart Park this year suffered a bit due to the heat and the economy, but the SIGNAL showed up and has a good report
- Cops still looking for fugitive who used to grow pot in a Saugus home SIGNAL
- Local 13 year old girl whose “limbs were so twisted that walking was painful” has brain surgery so successful that she can now run and take dance classes SIGNAL
- OMG Record Breaking Heat wave to continue : 105 on Sunday in the SCV and the heat wave is set to continue. And here you thought it was almost October PRESS TELEGRAM
- Buck McKeon gets 1,000 word profile in Politico. A sample: McKeon is a “low-key” “kingpin of the Republican defense establishment,” who has raised $400,000 from Boeing, Lockheed, Northrop Grumman and General Atomics and is well-liked by both Democrats and Republicans. Politico says if he gets the chairmanship of the House Armed Services Committee it would put him “at the forefront of any showdown with President Barack Obama over Afghanistan, Iraq, potential Pentagon budget cuts and debates on future weapons programs.” McKeon declined to be interviewed because he didn’t want to be thought of as “Measuring the drapes” for the Chairman’s office POLITICO
- McKeon heralds GOP’s “Pledge to America” as “bold solutions that renew our commitment to the nation’s founding principles.” The Signal, to its credit, quotes Democratic reaction to the proposal while KHTS posts McKeon’s press release in its entirety. Think Progress, a liberal blog, takes on McKeon’s claim that the Pledge will reduce America’s Budget deficit THINK PROGRESS
- Speaking of the Pledge, Chris Lim, local tea party leader, isn’t too happy with it because it doesn’t talk about God enough. He also says it doesn’t acknowledge the American people’s duty to overthrow tyrannical government enough TEA PARTY SCV
- What a great couple of events in science and the arts: Tomorrow night at the Santa Clarita PAC, the San Francisco Symphony will play. LAist has details. And on October 15, COC will host a fall Star Party on campus. Visitors will learn about and see Jupiter through a telescope KHTS
- Forget Hart and Canyon’s long-running football rivalry (or the lesser Vikings, who shouldn’t even merit a mention): there’s a hot new football rivalry in town, this time with some Christian spice to add to the mix. Santa Clarita Christian, a solid 8 man squad with championship credibility, took on the new kids of Trinity Classical school last week and thumped them hard, 46-0. Play ended with -apropos to the schools- the mercy rule. Said the SCCS QB, “Once we got a big lead, it wouldn’t look good to start throwing and running up the score.” Whatever you do to the least of these, you do to me. SIGNAL
- Myers with an excellent column exploring the Tesoro annexation issue and school enrollment at SUSD in the context of the SCV’s pervasive apathy and ignorance. Myers says we shouldn’t poke fun at all the uninformed masses who think there’s a legal entity called the “City of Valencia.” But then how would I feel better about myself? SIGNAL
- John Boston’s Time Ranger column full of awesomeness this week: Did you know the SCV used to regularly dine on bear meat? Explains a lot huh? And Boston tells us about Jon Newhall, of the famous family, who resigned from editing the Signal back in 1970 this week because he had a court appointment for growing marijuana on the side of Interstate 5. WRB
- LTE writer says he’s tired of seeing bus-sized SUVs on Santa Clarita streets, advises Congress to increase gas taxes by $1 to encourage drivers to downsize. Predictable reaction from the Signal commenters LTE
A decade of the Valley’s town square · 2006–2015
Comments
15 · as published