Grand Jury report
The 2005-2006 Butte County Grand Jury Report is now available to read.
There is a section focusing on the Town of Paradise. That's all I can give you right now; I haven't had a chance to read through it yet.
Platypus
Post reporter Robert LaHue on
news, sports and anything that crosses his mind.
Robert covers education, courts, county government and parks for The Post. He is a December 2005 journalism graduate of Chico State University and has written regularly for newspapers since the age of 16, doing reporting work for The Orion, Vacaville Reporter, Fairfield Daily Republic, Siskiyou Daily News, Mt. Shasta Herald and (Ft. Jones) Pioneer Press.
June 30, 2006
Jose it ain't so. Actually, it is.
So, the Golden Baseball League officially announced that Jose Canseco has signed a contract to play for the San Diego Surf Dawgs, and that his first game will be on Monday in Chico against the Outlaws. Just to note, the Chico Enterprise-Record reported on the rumors a day before everyone else.
For the record, Canseco is an ex major-leaguer who wrote this book on steroid use in the big leagues.
Now, it's really easy to crack jokes here. You know, like pointing out that a syringe giveaway night in San Diego wouldn't be too much of a stretch, that the Surf Dawgs can replace the giant foam finger with giant foam forearms that fans can bash together, how hard it would be to have a "Jose Canseco Bobblehead Night" because the head would have to be twice as big as normal or that since Canseco will be a designated hitter, he won't need a hard hat while playing in the outfield.
It's also easy to have a laugh from this blurb in the Associated Press' story on Canseco's signing:
A call to Canseco's cell phone got this message:"Hello, Jose Canseco. I have lost my cell phone. If you can, please leave a number when you call. Thank you."
But, being honest, the Surf Dawgs need Canseco. If there's any team in the GBL that needs a marquee name, it's San Diego. Just a little over 20 games into the GBL season, and that's been proven.
Last season, the Surf Dawgs averaged over 1,400 fans per game. It was also last season that the Surf Dawgs had the sport's all-time stolen bases leader Rickey Henderson as a player.
This season, San Diego's average attendance through 18 home games is 925--which is below the attendance numbers the now-defunct Mesa Miners and Surprise Fightin' Falcons had last season.
So, if you wanted to give San Diego the benefit of the doubt, Rickey was good for about 400 butts in the seats at every home game. For an indy league like the GBL, those are 400 very important butts.
San Diego is a tougher sell for indy ball than other cities that have both a big league and indy team, such as St. Paul (the Twins and the Saints of the American Association) or Kansas City (the Royals and the T-Bones of the Northern League), if for no other reason than San Diego has a beach. Minnesota and Missouri aren't as regarded as San Diego is for summer recreational opportunities, so indy baseball has a better chance of catching on--especially if the indy team is doing well and the big league team is tanking. The T-Bones could be going .500 and cruise to solid attendance thanks to the disaster that is the Royals.
Will Canseco be good for the same 400 people as Henderson? Possibly, maybe more. Rickey was an attraction because he's a guaranteed Hall of Famer once he decides to give up trying to be another Julio Franco.
Canseco is wishy-washy on the Hall of Fame (.266 career average, .515 slugging, 462 home runs and 1407 RBIs in 17 major league seasons with seven teams), but he's an attraction for another reason: he's one of the central names in the steroid controversy that has enveloped the big leagues.
That alone could draw crowds, especially with the Barry Bonds haters that are rampant pretty much everywhere on the planet except northern California.
MYCC is online
The Magalia Youth and Community Council now has a Web site up and going.
For those interested, the organization's next meeting will be on Thursday (July 6) at 7 p.m. in the hobby room at the Paradise Pines POA on Wycliff Way in Magalia.
June 29, 2006
Paint a mural!
Dean Moore, one of PRPD's recreation supervisors, called me yesterday morning letting me know the district is holding a contest to repaint a mural at the Aquatic Park pool.
I wrote up a short piece for today's edition of The Post, but it didn't make it in because of space. But here's the Reader's Digest version:
*The mural is located on an outside wall of the changing rooms at the pool.
*The mural measures 4'9" x 10'8"
*The wall is made of cinderblock
*Proposals must be submitted to PRPD by July 19.
Additional questions can be directed to Moore by calling PRPD at 872-6393.
Trash talking with Yamaguchi
I just got out of an hour-plus meeting at Kim Yamaguchi's office, where the supervisor talked about his perspective of the Butte County-Town of Paradise JPA for waste hauling.
Yamaguchi talked with myself and town government reporter Kelly Reed on the contract, which has drawn fierce criticism from some residents and created plenty of talk on The Post's letters page and 49er Speakeasy.
Yamaguchi was one of the four voting members of a committee of county and town officials that voted to recommend a single-hauler franchise with Northern Recycling & Waste Systems for the Town of Paradise, the Magalia area, and down Pentz Road south of Paradise. He spoke in support of the contract--in the form that the committee voted for.
He also stated why he believes the single-hauler contract will save county taxpayers money in the long-run, what might be in store for county residents if the contract isn't approved and just how high he thinks the county's diversion numbers can be with curbside recycling.
The details on what he said will be available in Saturday's edition of The Post.
Upper Ridge in Cyberspace
Magalia resident Hildy Langewis started a group on Yahoo that offers a forum for residents of Upper Ridge communities to talk with each other.
The posts focus on issues such as natural resources and fire protection (big surprise for the Upper Ridge), and have included some interesting comments on the proposed inmate fire camp in Magalia.
District 5 Supervisor Kim Yamaguchi has been among the posters.
Influential Magalians
The Upper Ridge was well represented on this year's list of The Ridge's 50 Most Influential People, which was part of Tuesday's Post.
Here are the names of Magalians I noticed. If I missed somebody or put up somebody that actually lives in Paradise, please let me know and I'll correct the list:
Les Olinger (#7)
Steve Jennings (#8)
Youth Council (#11, has at least one Magalia member)
Darrel Wilson (tied for #23)
Scarlett Kettell (#30)
Debbie Krinsky (#32)
Bob Schofield (#36)
Gene Paul (#38)
Dianne Harmacek (tied for #44)
All Aboard
Platypus.
It’s a strange name for anything, let alone one of the initial blogs at ViewsOnTheRidge.com.
So why did I pick it?
The platypus, an animal indigenous to Australia, has generally been considered a mix of things by us here in the States — generally part duck, part beaver. The platypus is a mammal but lays eggs, which is different than the norm.
That, in a nutshell, it what I intend this blog to be. A mix of things, but different than the norm.
I want to use this blog to enhance the coverage of the beats that I write for The Post — county government, the Upper Ridge and the Paradise Recreation and Park District. I also will use it as a place to post about my sports interests, and will also post links to funny or odd stories I find while searching the Internet.
It’s my hope that it will be different than any other blog or Web site you might find while on the Internet.
Here’s hoping it all goes well. Thanks for dropping by.