A wind-whipped wildfire charred 130 acres in the heart of Redding today, burning within 20 yards of the Sundial Bridge and causing evacuations along Hilltop Drive.
Between 3,000 and 4,000 customers lost power this afternoon while Redding Electric Utility crews worked to reroute electricity from the Sulphur Creek Substation, at the bottom of Market Street near the fire, an REU spokesman said. By this evening most had power restored.
Swirling north winds - with gusts up to 30 mph clocked at the Redding Municipal Airport at the time of the fire - fanned the flames from where they started at about 11 a.m. on Sulphur Creek Hill across the four lanes and a median on North Market Street.
From there the fire spread up toward homes, apartments and condominiums on Hilltop Drive and into the Turtle Bay Exploration Park's McConnell Arboretum and Botanical Gardens, and prompted the evacuation of Turtle Bay Elementary School where classes were in session.
The encroaching fire also caused the evacuation of residences along the Hilltop Drive's west side as it winds above the Sacramento River. Crowds gathered at vistas along Hilltop to watch the fire's fast spread below as it pushed toward the Sacramento River and the Sundial Bridge.
Fire crews had the fire contained by 4 p.m., five hours after it started. More than 300 firefighters and 45 fire engines, as well as air tankers and helicopters in the air and bulldozers on the ground, fought the fire.
Cause of the fire is under investigation,apparently.
Fire damaged about 20 percent of the botanical garden's plants. Fire burned on both sides of the garden's fences and close to the Sundial Bridge.
On the riverbank it was about 20, 25 yards from the bridge, as near as I could see.
If you want to see my videos of the fire from across the Sacramento River, go to www.youtube then ronlargent and you will see them.
Best wishes,
Ron Largent Keller Williams Realty of Redding, CA
www.ronlargent.comThis was partially from the news release.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Big Fire In Redding Near Turtle Bay Exploration Park
Friday, August 22, 2008
Why are we being taxed by the State?
The State of California is considering "borrowing" or seizing local tax funds, redevelopment tax increment, and transportation tax funds from our Cities and Counties to balance their budget! There is nothing good about this for our local community. It would be the height of irresponsibility to take these funds when the voters have overwhelmingly passed measures to stop this destructive process, not once, but twice!
Shasta VOICES participated in a press conference yesterday together with officials from the City of Redding, City of Anderson, City of Shasta Lake, Shasta County, Chamber of Commerce, Shasta Builders Exchange, and Shasta Association of Realtors in opposition to balancing the state budget by seizing our local government funds. The entire community is working together regarding this timely and important issue!
We hope you would also be compelled to send letters in opposition to this proposal before it's too late. Feel free to use the attached letter as a guide in writing one of your own. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you for your continued interest and support!
Ron Largent Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
www.ronlargent.com
Shasta VOICES participated in a press conference yesterday together with officials from the City of Redding, City of Anderson, City of Shasta Lake, Shasta County, Chamber of Commerce, Shasta Builders Exchange, and Shasta Association of Realtors in opposition to balancing the state budget by seizing our local government funds. The entire community is working together regarding this timely and important issue!
We hope you would also be compelled to send letters in opposition to this proposal before it's too late. Feel free to use the attached letter as a guide in writing one of your own. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you for your continued interest and support!
Ron Largent Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
www.ronlargent.com
Shasta Voices Alert in Redding, CA
The State of California is considering "borrowing" or seizing local tax funds, redevelopment tax increment, and transportation tax funds from our Cities and Counties to balance their budget! There is nothing good about this for our local community. It would be the height of irresponsibility to take these funds when the voters have overwhelmingly passed measures to stop this destructive process, not once, but twice!
Shasta VOICES participated in a press conference yesterday together with officials from the City of Redding, City of Anderson, City of Shasta Lake, Shasta County, Chamber of Commerce, Shasta Builders Exchange, and Shasta Association of Realtors in opposition to balancing the state budget by seizing our local government funds. The entire community is working together regarding this timely and important issue!
We hope you would also be compelled to send letters in opposition to this proposal before it's too late. Feel free to use the attached letter as a guide in writing one of your own. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you for your continued interest and support!
Ron Largent Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
www.ronlargent.com
Shasta VOICES participated in a press conference yesterday together with officials from the City of Redding, City of Anderson, City of Shasta Lake, Shasta County, Chamber of Commerce, Shasta Builders Exchange, and Shasta Association of Realtors in opposition to balancing the state budget by seizing our local government funds. The entire community is working together regarding this timely and important issue!
We hope you would also be compelled to send letters in opposition to this proposal before it's too late. Feel free to use the attached letter as a guide in writing one of your own. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Thank you for your continued interest and support!
Ron Largent Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
www.ronlargent.com
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Tuesday night I was at the City Council meeting when the Turtle Bay funding issue came up.
This is what came out in the paper this morning, and it tells it all.
Turtle Bay Exploration Park will see its Redding subsidy shrink by 1½ percent, or $5,000.
The City Council on Tuesday approved that cut along with a number of others to streets, parks, planning and other departments as City Hall starts to feel declining revenues.
The cuts -- which amounted to roughly 1 percent across the city's $67 million general fund -- come on top of a ½ percent trim approved in February.
The city plans to extend its hiring freeze to 2013 and shave some $700,000 each year off the money it puts into paving streets and patching potholes. Even so, the city plans to spend $4 million on streets this year -- roughly $3 million more than in years past, City Manager Kurt Starman told the council.
The reduction of Turtle Bay's annual subsidy to $345,000 from $350,000 reflects that 1½ percent cut made across the general fund this year.
Council member Patrick Jones cast a lone vote against the $5,000 cut to Turtle Bay, calling for a more drastic reduction of $100,000 to $150,000 to wean the nonprofit museum and cultural center of its subsidy.
Vice Mayor Rick Bosetti, also on record as wanting Turtle Bay to stand on its own, voted for the $345,000 contribution after raising questions about the size of the McConnell Foundation's support for the organization.
Turtle Bay CEO Mike Warren said Turtle Bay would have to cut entire programs or close for a day if it lost the city subsidy.
Turtle Bay Exploration Park will see its Redding subsidy shrink by 1½ percent, or $5,000.
The City Council on Tuesday approved that cut along with a number of others to streets, parks, planning and other departments as City Hall starts to feel declining revenues.
My take on this whole issue is that in the next budget meeting, we will see further cuts, and Turtle Bay may be cut even further.
An interesting issue....with alot more to be said.
Ron Largent www.ronlargent.com
Keller Williams Realty of Redding, CA
.
This is what came out in the paper this morning, and it tells it all.
Turtle Bay Exploration Park will see its Redding subsidy shrink by 1½ percent, or $5,000.
The City Council on Tuesday approved that cut along with a number of others to streets, parks, planning and other departments as City Hall starts to feel declining revenues.
The cuts -- which amounted to roughly 1 percent across the city's $67 million general fund -- come on top of a ½ percent trim approved in February.
The city plans to extend its hiring freeze to 2013 and shave some $700,000 each year off the money it puts into paving streets and patching potholes. Even so, the city plans to spend $4 million on streets this year -- roughly $3 million more than in years past, City Manager Kurt Starman told the council.
The reduction of Turtle Bay's annual subsidy to $345,000 from $350,000 reflects that 1½ percent cut made across the general fund this year.
Council member Patrick Jones cast a lone vote against the $5,000 cut to Turtle Bay, calling for a more drastic reduction of $100,000 to $150,000 to wean the nonprofit museum and cultural center of its subsidy.
Vice Mayor Rick Bosetti, also on record as wanting Turtle Bay to stand on its own, voted for the $345,000 contribution after raising questions about the size of the McConnell Foundation's support for the organization.
Turtle Bay CEO Mike Warren said Turtle Bay would have to cut entire programs or close for a day if it lost the city subsidy.
Turtle Bay Exploration Park will see its Redding subsidy shrink by 1½ percent, or $5,000.
The City Council on Tuesday approved that cut along with a number of others to streets, parks, planning and other departments as City Hall starts to feel declining revenues.
My take on this whole issue is that in the next budget meeting, we will see further cuts, and Turtle Bay may be cut even further.
An interesting issue....with alot more to be said.
Ron Largent www.ronlargent.com
Keller Williams Realty of Redding, CA
.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Granzella's in Williams, CA is Open and Ready for You
Granzella’s Is Open and Ready for You
For those of us that had eaten at Granzella’s Restaurant and Deli in Williams, CA the news last October that the restaurant had “burned to the ground” in an afternoon electrical fire was hard to believe. We were absolutely shocked, stunned, and saddened. “Are you kidding?” was the question most asked when the story got around, because the landmark establishment was one of those that you thought was invincible. The restaurant was destroyed in the fire, but fortunately many of the various collectibles were saved, including the deer and elk heads in the Sports Bar section. Shortly after the fire, the owners, Jim and Bev Granzella announced that “they would rebuild” and we all had hope restored.
For 6 months during the rebuilding project the restaurant relocated across the street from the original building and served a limited menu, but assured all of us that the famous menu and deli that made the restaurant so popular would return in the summer. Well folks, it has happened and 2 weeks ago the “New Granzella’s” opened, and it is as good as the original and maybe even better.
For starters, they have expanded the front patio area, making it a perfect place to either wait to eat or relax after the meal. Plenty of shade and plenty of conversation by the looks of the crowd there last week at 3 PM. The entrance with the famous double doors is a replica of the original, and then as you enter into the restaurant the entire deli area has been expanded to about twice the original size. The main restaurant has the same floor plan as before, but everything is new, although the décor makes it look “old”. The olive tasting bar has been moved to a larger area, and the olive sales area has been expanded, but the feeling of a general store is still very much there. The delicious looking Bakery area is much larger, as is the “gift store”, but again, just like the design and feel of the original store. In the back is the huge Sports Bar which has also been expanded from what it was but very much the “place to go” to watch Monday Night Football in Colusa County.
The menu for the entire restaurant is the same; the décor is the same; and the “down home atmosphere” with the smiling and helpful waitresses and staff is just about as nice as it could be. Just a delightful place to go and have a meal, a snack, a dessert, or even a “soda in the Sports Bar”. If you have not been to Granzella’s in downtown Williams, you have missed a Northern California classic, and you should make it a must as you travel Interstate 5. And, for those that have been there, it is open and ready for you. You’ll really enjoy the “New Granzella’s”….it is a winner.
Ron Largent
August 3, 2008
www.ronlargent.com
Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
For those of us that had eaten at Granzella’s Restaurant and Deli in Williams, CA the news last October that the restaurant had “burned to the ground” in an afternoon electrical fire was hard to believe. We were absolutely shocked, stunned, and saddened. “Are you kidding?” was the question most asked when the story got around, because the landmark establishment was one of those that you thought was invincible. The restaurant was destroyed in the fire, but fortunately many of the various collectibles were saved, including the deer and elk heads in the Sports Bar section. Shortly after the fire, the owners, Jim and Bev Granzella announced that “they would rebuild” and we all had hope restored.
For 6 months during the rebuilding project the restaurant relocated across the street from the original building and served a limited menu, but assured all of us that the famous menu and deli that made the restaurant so popular would return in the summer. Well folks, it has happened and 2 weeks ago the “New Granzella’s” opened, and it is as good as the original and maybe even better.
For starters, they have expanded the front patio area, making it a perfect place to either wait to eat or relax after the meal. Plenty of shade and plenty of conversation by the looks of the crowd there last week at 3 PM. The entrance with the famous double doors is a replica of the original, and then as you enter into the restaurant the entire deli area has been expanded to about twice the original size. The main restaurant has the same floor plan as before, but everything is new, although the décor makes it look “old”. The olive tasting bar has been moved to a larger area, and the olive sales area has been expanded, but the feeling of a general store is still very much there. The delicious looking Bakery area is much larger, as is the “gift store”, but again, just like the design and feel of the original store. In the back is the huge Sports Bar which has also been expanded from what it was but very much the “place to go” to watch Monday Night Football in Colusa County.
The menu for the entire restaurant is the same; the décor is the same; and the “down home atmosphere” with the smiling and helpful waitresses and staff is just about as nice as it could be. Just a delightful place to go and have a meal, a snack, a dessert, or even a “soda in the Sports Bar”. If you have not been to Granzella’s in downtown Williams, you have missed a Northern California classic, and you should make it a must as you travel Interstate 5. And, for those that have been there, it is open and ready for you. You’ll really enjoy the “New Granzella’s”….it is a winner.
Ron Largent
August 3, 2008
www.ronlargent.com
Keller Williams Realty in Redding, CA
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