KZYX Community News

April 19, 2021 — Today, about seventy people who have been homeless or at high risk for it are moving into Live Oak Apartments, a former Best Western Inn in Ukiah. The building is part of the state’s Project Homekey initiative. Last year, counties got money specifically to buy lodging establishments and convert them into permanent housing for vulnerable populations. Mendocino County received $9.6 million, and has spent most of the time since purchasing the building installing kitchenettes and remodeling common areas.

April 16, 2021 — The Board of Supervisors decided this week to follow Humboldt County’s approach to code enforcement against cannabis scofflaws, which includes real time aerial surveillance, hefty fines, and property liens.

And scientists with the California Dept of Fish and Wildlife told the board that the proposed cannabis cultivation ordinance to replace Phase III does not adequately address the cumulative impacts that cannabis grows have on water bodies and habitat loss.

April 16, 2021 — Redwood Valley residents met with county supervisors this week to start on a wish list for community needs that could be funded with some of the $22 million settlement from PG&E. Suggestions ranged from new fire trucks to improvements on the grange, which served as a community hub during the 2017 firestorm. And, with roughly 200 agricultural water connections getting shut off in a few days, fire hydrants and water security were top of mind.

April 14, 2021 — Supervisor Glenn McGourty organized a water informational session at this week’s board of Supervisors meeting, calling on the board to come up with an emergency response to the  drought.

With Lake Mendocino lower than it’s ever been, Redwood Valley Water District is shutting off irrigation services to its 200 agricultural customers on April 19. Jared Walker, the district general manager, is expecting to reduce water to fifty gallons per person per day for critical public health and safety water use only.

April 12, 2021 — The regional behavioral health training center in Redwood Valley, which was purchased with Measure B funds, could open after the pandemic as an emergency operations center and hub for public safety trainings.

The Board of Supervisors held the first of four listening sessions with entities making a pitch for some of the $22 million PG&E settlement money last week. 

April 7, 2021 — Joe Louis Wildman, a longtime union organizer and Democratic activist, died Sunday, not long after retiring. He was the Secretary Treasurer of the North Bay Labor Council, an SEIU representative, and a business agent with operating Engineers Local #3. He was also Treasurer for the Inland Mendocino Democratic Club, and the owner of the Sprinter van that served as the club’s mobile headquarters during the pandemic.

April 7, 2021 — The family of Gerardo Magdaleno, the mentally ill man who was beaten by Ukiah police last week, is preparing to sue the city. Their lawyer, Isaak Schwaiger, is a civil rights attorney who specializes in police brutality cases. The case has not been filed yet, but Schwaiger says “It is primarily an excessive force lawsuit...but it also has a component that’s derived from the Americans with Disabilities Act.” Another claim will be inadequate training at the UPD for dealing with people having a mental health crisis.

April 5, 2021 — A little over a dozen people marched on Civic Center in Ukiah Saturday, calling for an end to police brutality and more mental health services in the wake of Gerardo Magdaleno’s beating at the hands of Ukiah police officers. On April first, Magdaleno, a schizophrenic bipolar man, took some non-prescription drugs after running out of his psychiatric medications. He was wandering nude on south state street when an encounter with Ukiah Police Officers escalated into officers tear-gassing, Tasing, kicking, and punching Magdaleno multiple times in the head.

March 23, 2021 — A detailed proposal for building a psychiatric health facility in a rural part of the county was filed under public expression on the agenda for yesterday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, though the item came up Monday during Measure B discussions.

On Monday, the board asked staff to come back with two proposals for a psychiatric health facility, one called the Ranch concept for a rural puff, and the other for Whitmore Lane.