Month: June 2011

Register for Worlds Greatest Bicycle Parade

bike-parade.jpg“Get ready to register!”  With these words, Bicycle Parade Committee Webmaster Stewart Savage announced that members of the public, starting Friday, July 1, can register on-line to participate in the historic 2011 “Parade of Bicycles” – an effort to break the Guinness World’s record (set by Davis just last year) for the longest single line of moving bicycles.

The website address is www.worldsgreatestbicycleparade.com and once on the site, folks just need to click on the “Registration” link and follow the simple directions to register.  “Hundreds of visitors have already checked out the site in the few weeks that it’s been open, and now the wait is almost over.  Folks will be able to officially register to be part of this fun and historic parade,” said Savage.  The Davis Odd Fellows Lodge announced a few weeks ago that they would lead an effort to break the Guinness World’s record for the longest single line of bicycles.  The attempt will be made on Sunday morning, October 2.  The current record is held by Davis at 916 bikes in a “parade” last October.   Visitors to the web site are encouraged to visit the “FAQ” page where they can find answers to frequently asked questions about the bicycle parade, as well as the parade rules and other useful information.

GOVERNOR JERRY BROWNTO ATTEND THE PARTY AT THE RANCH

BREAKING NEWS FROM WEST YOLO DEMOCRATIC CLUB

The  “Party at the Ranch”is  on Sunday, June 26 from 5:00 to 8:30 PM.  It will be at the Rominger Ranch: Go north on Railroad Ave/Co Rd 89 from Winters about 6 miles, turn left on CR 29, take first dirt road to the left, go 1 mile (to #28681 County Road 29).

The purpose of this event is to gather funds to enable full participation of the West Yolo community in the 2012 elections.  We want to see full registration of all eligible people, including our Latino majority.  We again will help by phoning and writing to key areas in the Country to make our involvement count.  We want to be sure that our elected representatives carry forward our desire for a more humane and just society.

Commentary: The Hypocrisy of Weist and the Firefighters Whining About Paycuts

Mayor Krovoza Pledges to Fight for Rank and File Employees –

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On Tuesday night, the City Council Chambers were packed in part by city employees, protesting the proposed city budget that sought to deal for the first time with the very real fiscal reality that the City of Davis faces.

City employees have some very real concerns. Unfortunately in part they have been misled by people like Bobby Weist, the President of the Davis Firefighters Union, who organized this protest but is also largely responsible for many of the conditions, at least on the compensation side, that along with the prolonged economic downturn has led to the need for reform.

Editorial: Let’s Make Law Day 2012 Even Better!

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Judicial Watch has been thinking hard about the Yolo County Law Day.   Law Day is a national observation honoring the legal system, especially the criminal justice system, and the people (particularly cops, lawyers and judges) who create and administer it.  Often the activities include educational opportunities for school students, such as visits to the courts or the production of mock trials, to give them a sense of the fundamental and basic role the law plays in maintaining our culture and civilization.
In Yolo, it often takes the form of a gathering in the administration building for a free lunch, with speeches and awards by and for those who work for the system.  The last one, held on May 2, 2011, was such a magnificent spiritual, cultural and political celebration of “the Law” that we simply could not bring ourselves to report upon it.

 

Angry City Employees Pack City Hall

welcome-to-wisconsinIt turns out that the hard work is just beginning for the council, as they attempt to steer the city back onto the course of fiscal discipline.  Last week, led by Mayor Joe Krovoza, the council initiated a bold plan to restore fiscal sustainability.

This week, with sweltering heat, ineffective air conditioning and a packed house, the council faced the music.  The anger was apparent in signs from the employees that included “Welcome to Wisconsin” and “I’m More Than an FTE.”

Council Gives Go Ahead For ConAgra To Move Forward

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On a hot night that was packed in part with speakers for this item and in larger part with speakers for the budget, the council made a decision to move forward and approve staff recommendations on a narrow 3-2 vote with Councilmember Dan Wolk acting as the apparent swing voter on this issue.

The meaning of that vote was not clear, with many arguing, like Mayor Joe Krovoza, that staff recommendations 3 and 4 were very big steps which he said feels “like we’re crossing a chasm.”  He noted, “I don’t feel the timing rush to move forward with the project now as opposed to a year from now” given the pipeline, other projects that have been approved and the weakness of the market.

The Possibility of Getting an Extension of Discharge Requirements Could Enable Davis to Hold Off on Water Project

water-rate-iconThe Davis Enterprise is reporting today that according to a state official, the City of Davis “could push back deadlines to clean up its water by as much as a decade and hold off tripling residents’ water bills,” something that the Vanguard has been suggesting for quite some time.

The Enterprise, citing Ken Landau from the State Water Regional Control Board, reports that a new law would allow the city to “apply for further extension on requirements to clean up the water they discharge into the environment.”

Public Defender Angered At Trial Continuance Without Good Cause

Yolo-Count-Court-Room-600As a general matter of speaking, trials are set for a given date, but can be granted continuances based on a notion of good cause.  What constitutes good cause may seem somewhat nebulous, but it generally is reserved for matters of logistics – the unavailability of a key witness, the failure to receive evidence with sufficient time to review it, delays caused by reports or tests from other agencies, etc.

Last week the case of Kenneth Woodall was confirmed for trial to begin on Monday.  That means both parties – represented by the Deputy DA Ryan Couzens and Deputy Public Defender Dan Hutchinson – agreed they were ready to proceed.

Judge White Issues Final Gang Injunction in West Sacramento

broderickThe Yolo County District Attorney’s office issued a press release announcing that Yolo County Superior Court Judge Kathleen White issued a final “Judgment Granting Injunction After Trial” against the Broderick Boys criminal street gang in West Sacramento.  The gang injunction issued by the court imposes a curfew and restricts other activities of gang members in a defined area within West Sacramento called the “Safety Zone.”

According to the DA’s office, “After hearing all of evidence at trial and reviewing the exhibits and the post-trial briefs, Judge White found that the Broderick Boys is a criminal street gang, the Broderick Boys has created a public nuisance in the Safety Zone by its conduct and activities, and the public nuisance caused by the Broderick Boys has created irreparable harm to those who live and work in the Safety Zone.”

Redistricting Plan: Bad for Yolo; Good for Competitiveness and Democrats?

senate-2012.pngYolo County officials are necessarily concerned that the county is currently slated to be cut into thirds, separating, of all things, Woodland from Davis, two communities just seven miles apart.

“The maps could disenfranchise the interests of Yolo County citizens,” wrote Supervisors Jim Provenza and Don Saylor, speaking on behalf of the county Board of Supervisors in a letter to the California Citizens Redistricting Commission

Brown Reconnoiters on Budget – Actually He Plans to Make Republicans Irrelevant

Jerry-BrownGovernor Jerry Brown may have angered his own party by vetoing their flawed budget last week, but it was clear from the start that his true target was Republicans, whom the Governor is rapidly losing patience with.

Last week, despite the veto, he called the efforts of the Democrats in the Legislature “valiant,” suggesting that the $11 billion in painful cuts was a noteworthy accomplishment.  “I commend them for their tremendous efforts to balance the budget in the absence of Republican cooperation,” the Governor said

Death Penalty Study: $184 Million a Year in California

san-quentinU.S. 9th Circuit Judge Arthur L. Alarcon and Loyola Law School professor Paula M. Mitchell wrote a study released last week entitled, “Executing the Will of the Voters: A Roadmap to Mend or End the California Legislature’s Multi-Billion-Dollar Death Penalty Debacle.”

They examined a combination of state, federal and local expenditures for capital cases over three years to estimate the additional costs of capital trials over and above the cost of a standard murder trial.

California Behind the Same-Sex Marriage Curve

Central_Park_1This week in California the issue of same-sex marriage has re-surfaced, due to the ruling that Judge Vaughn Walker was not conflicted out due to his own sexual orientation.

Regardless, in 2008, the state voters narrowly passed a ban on same-sex marriage.  However, that ban is now in question as a federal court has already ruled it unconstitutional.  Emerging in the last couples of years, also, is opinion polling that shows an increasing number of California voters more and more inclined to support same-sex marriage.

Sunday Commentary: Budget Gimmicks and Fiscal Responsibility

Pothole-stockThis week we saw something very unusual – in fact I did not realize at the time just how unusual it was – we saw a Democratic Governor veto a budget that failed to, in a real way, balance the budget.

According to Governor Brown, it was the first time in history that the state budget has been vetoed.

Changes At Westlake Follow Community Meeting

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On June 1, more than 150 residents attended what was a dubbed a “Save Our Store” rally.

They came to lend moral support, give valuable community feedback and send a strong message that the West Davis community was not going to let their store go without at least a valiant fight.

Council to Look Again At Cannery Park

Con-Agra-Feb.jpgStaff Recommends 20 Acres Business Park, Ignores Elephant of Peripheral Development –

As we have written, Cannery Park is a tempting target for residential development, filled with pitfalls in terms of the city’s overall land use policy and residents’ reluctance to approve larger peripheral development.

While the Vanguard has called for the city to abandon efforts to change zoning at the Cannery site, at least until it can evaluate the ability of the city to develop other sites for business park purposes, so far the council has not gone that far.

Prison Reform and The War on Drugs Nexus

war_drugsAmid the prison reform debate and concerns about prison over-crowding is an understanding of the role that the war on drugs has played in creating the prison issue.

In this article we will examine the conservative case for ending the war on drugs, the fear tactics and why they don’t make sense, and the cost-benefit analysis of the criminal justice system.

Is the Time Right to Move From 4 to 3 Person Firefighter Crews?

Overtime.jpgAnnounced at the last city council meeting was that the city will have a report from CityGate by June, which will be ready for the public by August on fire staffing issues.

The Vanguard has been told that the four-person fire engine crew is very much on the table.  Previous research has shown Davis is one of the few cities that has kept the four-person team.

Governor Brown Delivers the Quick Veto

Jerry-BrownThose who do not believe that Governor Jerry Brown is a different kind of Governor might want to look at his quick veto of his own party’s budget.

In a video release on Thursday, the Governor delivered a quick message that he would not not sign Senate Bill 69 and Assembly Bill 98, which together comprise the state budget passed by the Legislature on June 15, 2011.

Announcements About 2011 World’s Greatest Bicycle Parade

bike-paradeMay 26

Not content to rest on their 2010 laurels, the Davis Odd Fellows Lodge has today launched the 2011 version of their “World’s Greatest Bicycle Parade.”

“On October 3, 2010, the Davis community set a new Guinness World’s Record for the longest single line of bicycles with 916 bikes and riders,” said Odd Fellows spokesman Dave Rosenberg.  “Today we launch the process to break our own world’s record.  The new bike parade will start in front of the Davis Odd Fellows Lodge Hall on Sunday, October 2, 2011, at precisely 10:02 a.m.  I suggest you start oiling your spokes.”