- Young Laguna Nigel college student missing after car found in Castaic: 19 year old Bryce Laspisa, a Laguna Nigel resident studying at Sierra College near Chica, went missing over the Labor Day weekend under strange circumstances. Details of what happened to him aren't clear, but to sum it up, Bryce took a pill usually prescribed to ADHD patients, tried to break up with this girlfriend, had his friends take away his car keys from him (only to have his mother call the friends and ask them to give Bryce his keys back) then started on a 2 day drive from Chico to Laguna Nigel, ending up somehow in Castaic where his SUV was found overturned on/near the boat ramp, its back window broken with some kind of safety tool. And that's all that anyone knows so far; Bryce apparently survived the crash as blood was found and a duffel bag was opened after the crash, but he was acting damned strange prior to it, visiting the boat ramp at least three times before the crash. Volunteers and SCV Search and Rescue staff searched around Castaic yesterday to no avail; parents meanwhile have mounted a big social media campaign and are attracting media attention from around the state. SIGNAL, CBS 2, KHTS
- And in other motoring mis-adventures in the SCV this weekend, an elderly woman crashed her Nissan into a Persian restaurant at Bouquet & Haskell, three were injured in a six car crash on the northbound I-5 near Gavin Canyon and our Deputies removed one drunk from the streets during their Friday night DUI checkpoint at Newhall Ranch & Grandview Drive.
- And just as I was getting optimistic about the SCV's future, here comes the Mighty Signal, raining on my parade with a whole series looking at Armageddon scenarios in the SCV. Do you want to ponder how many ways the SCV has tried, and will probably continue to try, to kill you or damage your property? Here's a joyful quote from Lila Littlejohn on the greatest threats to life and property in the SCV " Since [the great Tejon Quake]— and no doubt long before — the Santa Clarita Valley has been shaken by earthquakes, scoured during savage storms or charred in wildfires. During its nearly 26 years of existence, the city of Santa Clarita has been declared a federal disaster area 11 times, said Donna Nuzzi, Santa Clarita’s czar of emergency management." And that's just the first piece, the SIGNAL has way more where that came from, including a list of disasters that have struck the SCV (my favorite has to be the Pico Canyon quake of April 1893, in which a mob of angry residents marched on Mentryville, convinced that the nascent oil operation, among the oldest in the world, was responsbile for the shaking) and a chat with CalTech's "earthquake lady" about predicting earthquakes, whether or not dogs are reliable indicators of earthquakes, and how we'll probably never be able to forecast quakes like we can forecast the weather.
- Ray Kutylo starts a fun and open-ended survey asking what you'd like to see in the center of the new Newhall Round-about, currently under construction at Newhall & Main street. Recall last week that the Council decided the two final art works weren't really art, and have asked for something different. And Ray's folks have some good ones, from a free wifi tower beaming internet to all of Newhall to Petz' suggestion of an active oil derrick to help pay for continuing Newhall redevelopment, to moving a Heritage Oak from the soon to be leveled P-Canyon area Disney will build on to Newhall. FACEBOOK
- Speaking of the City, Luke "On the" Money has a great piece covering last week's informal discussion over pizza of the three voting rights act lawsuits pending against Sulphur Springs, COC, and the City of Santa Clarita. Attorney Kevin Shenkman, one of the plaintiff's attorneys, says the law is quite clear on all this and it will be shown that the City and other defendants are breaking the law with their at-large systems. Berta was there and says she can't see how districts would benefit regular people over an at-large system, while Al Ferdman, another council-candidate, had perhaps the most cogent comment in the article, saying "this frames a discussion that the city is changing." Darn tootin'. SIGNAL
- And while we're at it, the other attorney suing us in the CVRA matter is Lancaster Mayor R. Rex Parris, an odd man to be sure, who over the weekend proved his oddness when he wrote a long Facebook post about Chinese nationals coming to the Antelope Valley and giving birth to Chinese-American children. To be sure, Chinese nationals visiting America and giving birth to American babies is a "thing," as was profiled by the LA Times earlier this year, so Parris may be on to something. My only concern is that fertile Chinese women have apparently skipped the SCV's Mayo hospital, and I want to know why. Does its reputation extend that far? Why can't we get in on the birthing tourism craze? Who wouldn't want to have their baby int he SCV rather than the high desert among the antelopes and tumbleweeds? FACEBOOK
- And one last one on the CVRA suits: Petz says we're all being hypocrites by not pointing out that Santa Clarita Parks commish and all round cool guy Mike Cruz is named as minority who has run for office in the lawsuit. Cruz is of Cuban or Puerto Rican ancestry (can't remember, besides is there a difference?) yet he has immense power as a Parks Commissh, so how can the at large voting system be unfair to minorities? Or so Petz argues FACEBOOK
- Pro immigration reform protesters once again showed up at Buck McKeon's SCV offices on Saturday to pressure our Congressman to support the dead-again/live-again immigration reform bill. I think it's really dead now but lost interest a few weeks ago. SIGNAL
- The City now has 28 different ways you can follow them on social media. Yes, they actually counted them all up. The Google+ presence leaves something to be desired. Why don't they start doing City Council meetings over Google's superb Hangouts system? CITY BRIEFS
- Joe Messina celebrates Labor Day by suggesting we change its name to "American Dream Day," a day in which celebrate not just union workers who got us the 8 hour work day and such, but real American successes, entrepreneurs who "risk it all" to follow their dream, and incidentally only need labor help once they've become successful. It must really chap Messina that he has to discuss things with the Teachers Unions at Hart, a union that represents public teachers who taught everyone, including entrepreneurs, how to be successful in life. SCVNEWS
- John Boston with a great piece on the James Dean mystery, Tips, and Dean's famous supposed last meal in the SCV before he died. TIME RANGER
- Holy Smokes: The Hart Indians set a school record in their season opener on Friday against Santiago High School, scoring 56 points in a win. Hart's QB, Brady White, passed for a school record 472 yards, and the Indians overall recorded almost 700 yards in offense. Are the glory days back for the Indians? KHTS
- Steve Lunetta with a gem of a piece comparing self-absorbed young people of today with people who believe global climate change is real, you know, like a group of scientists commissioned to study the phenomenon believe. I guess the point is that if you believe greenhouse gas emissions have resulted in climate change, you're as selfish as a teen ager who uses his smartphone instead of talking with members of his family at dinner time. SIGNAL
- For the young selfish readers of SCVTalk: a great piece on how to explain twerking to concerned SCV parents. NY TIMES
- Mike D. interviewed various SCV VIPs about their views on Labor Day BBQ. Illuminating responses, to say the least. SCVTALK
- Yay! John Boston's first SantaClarita.com piece is here. It's a funny piece about his old truck, government cheese and Eddie Haskell. Head over there and leave a welcome note for John! SANTACLARITA.COM
- LA Times columnist rakes Magic Mountain over the coals for its horrible service to guests who have lost things, like cell phones, on rides at the park. LA TIMES
Nine years of the Valley’s town square · 2006–2015
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