If you’ve gone out to eat at any restaurant in Sacramento County you probably noticed the color-coded sign posted near the entrance with results of the establishment’s latest health inspection. January 2012 marks the 5-year anniversary of Sacramento County’s Green-Yellow-Red food facility rating program. Since the program began, food facilities receiving a green or “Pass” placard increased from 88 to 94 percent, said Val Siebal, director of the Environmental Management Department. At the same time, major health risk violations that could potentially cause foodborne illness have decreased. Restaurants are inspected three times a year and other food facilities twice a year. Routine inspecti

New Website Showcases Achievements, Interactive Map and Constituent Resources Now, there is a new website that showcases Sacramento County’s green strategies, achievements and helpful information. The website – Green Sacramento County – features an interactive map to pinpoint green activity and provides constituents with green news, tips and resources. “Sacramento County can be proud of its commitment to sustainability and smart environmental practices. Our green practices used within our organization and in neighborhoods across the County save money, energy and the environment,” said County Executive Brad Hudson. Green Sacramento County Website Features Green Map is a fun way to see g

In 2011, medical marijuana dispensaries in Sacramento city and county went from being barely legal to riding a wave of potential for acceptance – but in the end, saw the future of their operations heavily scrutinized or banned outright. Here’s what happened on the medical marijuana scene this year: In February, medical marijuana dispensaries in the city were lining up to complete a permit application process that would allow a limited number of facilities to operate within city limits. Pot shops that didn’t apply for the proper permits – or had applications denied through the process – were shut down by city code enforcement. Once the application deadline passed for the first part of a

SACRAMENTO – As foster youth in the Sacramento area spend the holidays away from home, local residents can ensure they still have stockings and presents to open, thanks to United Way’s Women in Philanthropy and Sacramento County’s Gifts From The Heart program. “I cannot imagine how lonely it must feel to be removed from your home, especially during the holidays,” said Lisa Watts, chair of United Way’s Women in Philanthropy. “This is a fantastic way to give back during the holiday season and know that your gift will brighten the holidays for a hurting child.” Visit www.yourlocalunitedway.org to sign up to bring specific gifts for children in Sacramento County’s Child Protective Services o

Sacramento County Supervisors have voted to suspend the automatic annual fee adjustments for several development impact fee programs. “As part of our ongoing effort to encourage business and job opportunities, and improve the local economy, we have held back automatic fee increases on new building projects. This will help new projects get started, help create jobs and add to the economic recovery of the Sacramento region,” said Roberta MacGlashan, Chair of the Board. “This will be the fourth consecutive year we’ve suspended increases as we continue to develop ways to improve the stability and growth of our region.” The programs affected are: • Antelope, North Vineyard Station, Vineyard a

Read "Locke property dispute (part 1)" here. This is my reply to the long response of another of my neighbors in Locke to "Locke property dispute (part 2)" RLM: It was with great interest that I read this. Esch: Glad to have your interest, Ronnie.   RLM: I have never publicly spoken on this matter, neither verbally nor in print--not even anonymously. Esch: According to my friend Jacquie and her friend, who visited me a couple weeks ago, you had quite a lot to say to them about it.   RLM: However, I must dispute some of the claims made. Firstly: There are two separate issues here 1" the manner in which the building at 1265 Levee was acquired by Ms. Esch and 2) the zoning of this propert

Sacramento County has opened five new charging stations for electric cars with onboard battery charging equipment. There is no charge for using the stations. The stations are located downtown and in the Bradshaw Road area and are available on a first-come, first served basis: • Branch Center: Light Fleet Services 4001 Branch Center Rd. 916-875-5608 • Downtown Garage: Parking Office next to toll booths, 725 7th Street.- 916-874-6227 The stations are open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and are open to anyone with a ChargePass card. The chargers work much like plugging in an electric appliance at home and charges take anywhere from 20 minutes to several hours, depending on the a

Continued from "Locke property dispute (part 1)" There was a second response – a very lengthy one - to my first article from an anonymous person posting under the name, “Locked.” I suspect “Locked” is one of my neighbors and a board member of LMA Locke Management Association, the public agency which has filed a lawsuit against me to take my property. Locked’s writing style is recognizable, accusatory, with no factual basis. Original article (part 1) is found here: http://www.sacramentopress.com/headline/56717/Locke_property_dispute_part_1 I’ll take Locked’s questions and comments one by one... Locked: Who's throwing stones? Esch: LMA board threw the first stones at me when they sent me a

On Saturday, November 19, the Sacramento Cat Hospital will host its third annual pet food drive, benefiting Titanic's Pantry (the Sacramento Pet Food Bank). All donations of cat and dog food, canned or dry, will help feed hungry animals throughout Sacramento. The pet food drive will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Sacramento Cat Hospital, 4115 Manzanita Avenue in Carmichael. In addition to pet food, donations of leashes, collars, cat litter, bedding, and other pet supplies are welcome. "If a family is having a tough time paying the bills or feeding their children, they may not be able to feed their pet," said Dr. Billie Bensen Martin, owner of the Sacramento Cat Hospital. "Thi

Local medical marijuana dispensaries recently came under fire as the federal government began cracking down on illegal marijuana growing and dispensing operations across the nation. But wait – medical marijuana is legal in California, right? Yes and no. In the wake of a June 2011 memo sent to state attorney generals from the Department of Justice warning of the federal government’s intention to shut down illegal marijuana operations, there have been numerous raids on dispensaries in California. Some local operators have received warning letters that they may be next. “Joanne,” a dispensary operator in Sacramento who wants to remain anonymous, said Wednesday that local operators have al

Sacramento county jails will receive more than 400 new inmates over the next three months, as a result of new state legislation that goes into effect Saturday – but Sacramento County Sheriff representatives say there’s no room for them, and no money to make room. “It’s too soon to implement it,” Sheriff’s Department Spokesman Jason Ramos said Wednesday, referring to Assembly Bill 109 (AB 109), the new state realignment plan that shifts responsibilities for lower level offenders, adult parolees and juvenile offenders from state to local jurisdictions. “There hasn’t been enough discussion, and funding isn’t guaranteed,” Ramos said. California state prisons were designed to hold 79,858 pri

Refrigerators, televisions, computer work stations and office supplies that started life as county property may end up in some people’s homes after the Sacramento County surplus property sale Thursday. When county programs and buildings are closed down or offices have staff layoffs, furniture and equipment that is no longer needed – surplus property – is sent to the Sacramento county General Services department for storage. General Services stores everything in a warehouse off Goethe Road in south Sacramento. When the warehouse starts to overflow, the county holds the equivalent of an over-sized yard sale, selling the surplus property to the public at deep discounts. In previous years,

Art installations are largely complete as the Sacramento International Airport’s new Terminal B readies to open Oct. 6, and they include a range of pieces from technologically advanced works to traditional painting and mosaic pieces. While not the first thing arriving passengers will see, a giant red rabbit seemingly jumping from outside the building into a waiting suitcase opening up like a vortex on the floor is one of the most-talked-about of the 12 currently installed works. More than 1,600 aluminum triangles make up the rabbit’s exposed surface. The work, entitled “Leap,” is by Denver-based artist Lawrence Argent and is suspended above the ticket hall in the “land side” portion of t

 After years of holding the dubious distinction of tearing apart families at one of the highest rates in California, Sacramento County finally has brought its rate of child removal in line with the state average, the Sacramento Bee reported Monday.  But the Bee left out some good news: The two key measures of safety used by the federal government show that, as entries into foster care declined, child safety improved. Apparently even with budget cuts, setting clear standards and doing a better job of weeding out false reports and trivial cases has given workers more time to focus on finding children in real danger. One would think the fact that Sacramento County used to be the child remo

The County Board of Supervisors will meet Thursday for what they hope will be the final meeting on redistricting for the County. They still have 10 map variations to consider though – a number that has fluctuated since the redistricting process began in late March. According to the 2010 census, the total population for Sacramento County is 1,418,788 – a 16 percent increase over the last 10 years. Just as the state and cities are required to do, the county redistricts every 10 years to balance population numbers in all districts. This requires some adjustments in each supervisors’ district boundaries. The process of making those adjustments began when Elections Department staff received

July 27, 2011, Sacramento Ca.- Investigators from the Galt Police Department, Cosumnes Fire Department, and the Sacramento Metro Fire District worked together to tie 24-year-old Adam Kelly to three arson fires in Sacramento County over a two-week period. The first fire occurred in Galt on July 6, 2011 at 10430 Twin Cities Rd. Firefighters responded to the service area of the Raley's supermarket and found numerous large pieces of recycled cardboard piled up and set on fire. Firefighters extinguished the fire with no injuries and minor damage to the building. The second fire was July 13, 2011 at the 750 block of Moose Creek Way in Galt. Firefighters responded to the report of a fire agains

Sacramento Ca- Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District, Metro's Firefighter Association and UC Davis Children’s Hospital have partnered with Pillow Pets for Life Foundation, a non-profit organization whose aim is to bring comfort to hospitalized children. They have come together with the common goal of collecting at least 1000 donated pillow pets, an actual snugly pillow shaped like an animal character, to distribute to children undergoing medical treatment at UC Davis Children’s Hospital. Sacramento Metro Fire is partnering with the foundation which is using Sac Metro Fire facilities as drop off locations for the Pillow Pets. Once the goal of 1000 is met, Firefighters from the Sacramento Me

The future of development and affordable housing projects in Sacramento is starting to look pretty grim. Gov. Jerry Brown signed the state budget into law June 29, putting two new bills into effect that significantly impact redevelopment agencies: ABx26 and ABx27. “There is no good news in any of this,” said La Shelle Dozier, executive director for the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA). “It’s very detrimental, given the fact that we have an economy that’s struggling.” The two bills go hand-in-hand. ABx26 says redevelopment agencies can opt to discontinue redevelopment activities and be dissolved. ABx27 says that if redevelopment agencies pay a first-year lump sum paymen

A proposed urgency ordinance to regulate medical marijuana dispensaries within the county was voted down by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors June 22, but the issue is far from dead in the water. Representatives of dispensary owners are speaking out in support of regulation that recognizes medical cannabis as a legitimate industry that is here to stay. Max Del Real, a lobbyist for the Sacramento Alliance of County Collectives (SACC), a medical cannabis trade association, spoke at the board meeting in June in opposition to the failed ordinance. “The county had proposed an ordinance that would essentially close down all of the dispensaries in the county,” Del Real said. “They had

As Steve Szalay prepares to leave behind the position of county executive for Sacramento County, current Riverside City Manager Brad Hudson is gearing up to step into his shoes. Hudson accepted a five-year contract with Sacramento County after spending nearly 35 years in county government in Kings and Riverside counties before becoming city manager for Riverside in 2005. Hudson talked to The Sacramento Press about his upcoming move in an interview Thursday. SP: You’ve been in city government for a while now, and prior to that you worked in county government. How will your experiences in the city of Riverside and the counties you administered translate to your work here in the north-stat