Animal cruelty reported in Tomales
Tuesday March 20, 2007 –– TOMALES – A rancher at 10:53 am reported a cow killed by someone with a small caliber gun. Cow had three bullet wounds. Rancher said the animal was wounded on Monday but didn’t die until today. Rancher had some witness information. Report filed for 597A PC cruelty to animals. This incident was similar to another on Feb. 16 on Marshall-Petaluma Road. When area ranchers were interviewed about the killings several recalled a simailar incident about a year ago. However the rancher involved with that incident wasn't located. Posted Monday March 26, 2007.
UPDATE:
Farm Bureau establishes reward fund for cattle killer's arrest Sonoma County Farm Bureau has established a reward fund to assist law enforcement officers in their investigation and arrest of those responsible for shooting and killing three cows in Marin County over the last month.
The roadside shootings shocked the Sonoma-Marin farm community, which is coming together to raise money to solve the case. Sonoma County Farm Bureau’s reward fund will be in addition to the $7,000 already offered by other groups outraged by the drive-by shootings on rural back roads.
“Sonoma County ranchers are very concerned about this senseless killing of cows. There are no county borders when it comes to horrifying cases like this. We all need to work together to arrest and convict those responsible for these random acts of violence against livestock,” said Lex McCorvey, executive director of Sonoma County Farm Bureau.
McCorvey said increasing the reward money could help in getting someone to come forward with valuable information. The $7,000 already offered in the cow killings includes $5,000 from the Marin Humane Society and $1,000 each from the Marin County Farm Bureau and the California Department of Fish & Game.
Fish and Game is offering reward money because officials believe those responsible for killing the cows also are the poachers who killed three deer over the last month in the same area.
Chileno Valley rancher Mike Gale, president of the Marin County Farm Bureau, said a witness saw someone speeding away in a small, tan-colored sedan following the cow shooting last week on Chileno Valley Road. On Feb. 16, cows were shot and killed in pastures on the Gambonini and McDonald ranches, both located along the Marshall-Petaluma Road in west Marin County.
Gale said a small caliber handgun was used to shoot the cows.
Contributions to the reward fund can be sent to Sonoma County Farm Bureau, 970 Piner Road, Santa Rosa, 95403. Further information is available from Lex McCorvey at: 707- 544-5575.
Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival -- A Community Fundraiser
It is number 34
Posted Thursday Feb. 22, 2007 --------- By Joel Hack – Common knowledge has it that when you hit 30 everything starts to go downhill. The Bodega Bay Fisherman’s Festival at 34 is heading into a strong and upbeat year.
Two dozen volunteers were at the Festival’s monthly meeting Wednesday evening. A little rain didn’t slow them down. Festival President Ginni Bassi called on each committee leader to give reports. Problems were brought up and the group discussed and teased out solutions. The group approved several small changes to a diverse set of items: craft’s booth changes, pricing for the wooden boat challenge and feeding the volunteers.
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Harbor View subdivision moves another step closer to construction
Supervisors deny appeal
Posted March 26, 2007 -------- Bodega Bay Concerned Citizens appeals of Sonoma County approvals of the Harbor View subdivision are running out. The most recent appeal of approvals of 70 new single family dwelling building permits was denied by the County Board of Supervisors Tuesday, March 20.
Supervisors initially approved the first phase of building permits in September 2006. Bodega Bay Concerned Citizens filed an appeal. The hearing date for the appeal moved – from December to January to March 20. The Concerned Citizens contend the County should not be approving the subdivision for a variety of reasons.
The Board of Supervisors initially approved an EIR for the project in 1994. Concerned Citizens filed a lawsuit that cited traffic impacts. It was ultimately decided by the Appellate Court in 1998. They filed another lawsuit that claimed the County did not have authority to issue the building permits was also decided by the Appellate Court in 2005. Appeals of the planning process and planning decisions have halted construction since 1984.
This latest denial of their appeals puts the project yet another step closer to construction. Most avenues of appeal are already exhausted. The latest denial by the Board of Supervisors has already been appealed.
The Concerned Citizens were in Superior Court March 8 seeking a temporary injunction to stop County approvals and halt construction. The Judge denied that request. On March 14 the Concerned Citizen’s lawsuit seeking a preliminary injunction was also denied. The lawsuit the Concerned Citizen’s filed that sought the injunctions will be scheduled to be heard in three or four months. A judge’s decision denying injunctions is sometimes indicative of the final outcome of the suit.
The Concerned Citizens have another avenue of appeal in addition to their filing this new (third) lawsuit. Four of the building permits issued are within an area that can be appealed to the State Coastal Commission. They have 10 days from the Supervisor’s notice of final action to the Coastal Commission to file that appeal. These permits are for three homes and one permit for entry landscaping, signage and a grading permit for a redo of a wetland parcel.
The subdivision is owned by RJB-GP, Inc. that is owned by Richard Battaglia of Newport Beach. Battaglia also recently bought Porto Bodega RV Park and Marina.
Battaglia spokesman Philip Young issued this statement, “Our plans for construction are to complete the 14 affordable houses plus the small community building which is a part of the affordable [portion] building permits granted to us last August 2006, and then start construction on 30 of the 33 lots currently approved by the County as to building permits. The affordable houses (lot 26, Phase 1) actually has construction going on now. The timing for starting construction on the next 30 homes is to get them started during this summer’s building season.”
The 27-acre subdivision's entry to Highway One is Harbor View Way just to the north of the Inn at the Tides. JH
State Park Rangers logbook
After a long absence Supervising Ranger Jeremy Stinson will be preparing reports for Navigator readers.
WEEKLY REPORTS: SONOMA COAST STATE BEACH --- March 10– March 23, 2007
Saturday 3/10:Rangers towed an abandoned vehicle at the Vista Trail parking lot. After dark, several groups of juveniles were evicted from the beaches for curfew. A park visitor reported motorcycles being driven off road in Willow Creek. Rangers searched the area and were unable to locate the off-roaders.
Sunday 3/11: Warm weather brought large crowds to the beaches. Rangers were kept busy with traffic collisions on Highway One in front of the ranger station and at North Salmon Creek. Rangers arrested a 34-year-old Santa Rosa man for an outstanding warrant at Goat Rock.
Monday 3/12: Rangers rescued three rhinoceros auklets from South Salmon Creek and turned the rare birds over to bird rescue.
Wednesday 3/14: Two under age drinkers received citations at Schoolhouse Beach. Rangers issued a citation for a dog on the beach at North Salmon.
Friday 3/16: Rangers arrested a 52-year-old Cazadero man for DUI at Goat Rock. Later in the evening, Rangers were called to the Bodega Dunes campground for a noise complaint and arrested a 71-year-old Oxnard man for public intoxication.
Saturday 3/17: Rangers issued five citations for minor in possession of alcohol at the Bodega Dunes campground. Bodega Bay Fire, PG&E and rangers responded to a transformer fire in the Bodega Dunes campground.
Thursday 3/22: Rangers contacted a couple for public nudity at Vista Trail and arrested a 34-year-old Sebastopol man for possession of methamphetamine and violation of probation.
Friday 3/23: A vehicle over the side of the cliff at Carmet Beach prompted a response from Rangers, Lifeguards, Bodega Bay Fire, CHP and Sonoma Sheriff Dept. Rescuers searched the area and were initially unable to locate any occupants from the vehicle. State Parks Lifeguard Clark Hale located the victim, a 46-year-old Cotati woman, several hundred feet north of her crumpled car. She was flown to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital by Henry One. The cause of the accident is under investigation.
Marine LIfe Protection Areas initiative comes to town
by Joel Hack
Posted Friday March 23, 2007 -------- State Fish and Game came to town Wednesday. They made a presentation designed to include local “stakeholders” to identify areas of the Coast in need of protections.
A majority at the meeting were commercial or sport fishermen at the Bodega Bay Grange Wednesday. The process the Fish and Game folks are beginning again is the result of a law passed in 1999. The process started then and floundered because of a state budget crisis. A second attempt met the same fate. This time the process is funded with a combination of state money and private donations. Notably the Packard Foundation contributed to sustain the process through December 2008.
Fishermen fear the Marine Life Protection Act will shut them out of fishing grounds and seasons. Much of the meeting held Wednesday evening was to allay those fears.
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Local fisherman drowns at Mason’s Marina
Posted 10 am, March 21, 2007 -------- A Wheatland man with a fishing boat docked at Mason’s Marina was pulled from the water next to the docks about 11 p.m. Tuesday evening. Residents of the marina called 911 and assisted lifting the heavy man out of the water.
Updated -- click below
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to see Bodega Bay School kids win
Gov. Schwarzenegger Issues Statement on Senate Committee Approval of Relief Funding for Salmon Fishermen
Posted Friday March 23, 2007 -------- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today issued the following statement after the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee approved $60.4 million in funding for salmon fishermen, tribes and businesses in California and Oregon impacted by last year's fishery failure on the Klamath River. The funding, which is part of the federal emergency supplemental package and is also contained in legislation passed by the House of Representatives today, must still pass the full Senate and be signed by President Bush.
"I am pleased that our efforts, including those by Senators Feinstein and Boxer, Congressman Mike Thompson and the entire delegations from California and Oregon, have resulted in a critical step toward final approval of $60.4 million in long overdue relief for the salmon fishermen and the businesses that depend on a plentiful fishing season.
"The restricted salmon fishing season along the West Coast has created a substantial economic hardship to our communities along the coast. My administration will continue to work with California's federal representatives and the executive branch for the ultimate approval of this critical funding."
The Iraq war supplemental funding bill passed the House Friday. The bill contained a deadline for the end of US involvement in the war in Iraq. The bill also contained $60.4 million for Pacific Coast salmon fishermen. President Bush vowed to veto the bill when it reaches his desk.
Real Estate sales in Bodega Bay
By Joel Hack
Posted March 16, 2007 -------- News of real estate lenders problems prompted sell-offs on Wall Street. But news of declining real estate prices are routine in Sonoma County and Bodega Bay.
Lenders of subprime home mortgages are squeezed by the high numbers of homeowner’s defaults. The stocks of those lenders are at rock bottom lows. Recent DataQuick Information Systems surveys show Sonoma County home sales dropping 7.9 percent matching the Bay Area decline. Home prices also declined 2.7 percent. Both figures are for the month February. The effects of the crisis in subprime loans are not part of the figures yet. Experts warn that the high flying home market will fall further since subprime buyers will not be part of the market.
Here in Bodega Bay both the number of homes and their prices fell in the past two years. The Bodega Bay Real Estate report (under page 2 button above) shows a price decline of about 10 percent in the past year. A table of prices from 2002 through 2006 is below.
Figures compiled by DataQuick show Bodega Bay home sale prices declined 19 percent in 2006 and 36 percent in 2005. They derive their numbers from a comparison of square foot prices that may not account for homes with or without a view or upgrades and other amenities.
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Increased fishing opportunities for trollers
Posted Wednesday March 14, 2007 --------- If the salmon cooperate, this year’s commercial and recreational salmon fishing seasons promise bountiful returns.
Last week the Pacific Fishery Management Council met and proposed three options for the commercial trollers. All of the options greatly increased the number of fishing days for fishermen from Washington to Southern California. The season off the Sonoma Coast will be include fishing in May, July, August and September. Last year’s calamitous season was closed except for a few weeks in late July and August. Skippers were also limited to 75 fish per boat per week. With the exception of a big “bite” in late July the boat limit wasn’t met.
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State Park Rangers logbook
After a long absence Supervising Ranger Jeremy Stinson will be preparing weekly reports for Navigator readers.
WEEKLY REPORTS: SONOMA COAST STATE BEACH ---March 1– March 4, 2007
Friday March 2: Rangers contacted a couple for illegal camping at Schoolhouse Beach. Neither the 18-year-old man nor 16-year-old girl had a valid driver license. Rangers contacted the girl’s father and arranged for her to be picked up. Rangers advised the man not to drive. Later in the day, Rangers observed the man driving and cited him for driving on a suspended license.
Saturday March 3: Rangers evicted illegal campers from Schoolhouse Beach and Campbell Cove. At Shell Beach, rangers arrested three Santa Rosa men for burglary from an automobile. One of the men was also charged with violation of probation. In the early evening, Rangers stopped a 37-year-old Santa Rosa man for erratic driving at Pacific View and arrested him for driving under the influence. Later, at Wright’s Beach campground, rangers were dispatched to a report of a domestic violence. A 44-year-old Guerneville man was arrested for domestic violence.
Sunday March 4: Rangers, Sheriff's Deputy , CHP and Bodega Bay Fire were dispatched to Campbell Cove for a traffic collision. Two people received minor injuries. Rangers arrested a 21-year-old Bodega Bay woman for assault with a deadly weapon and domestic violence after investigating and finding that the woman allegedly intentionally crashed her car into her boyfriend’s pickup.
News Shorts
-- Caltrans says, " The Bodega Bay job at Lucas Wharf is 85 percent complete. The main construction should be complete sometime in late Spring, with the road realignment set to be finished in summer. No traffic controls are in effect and all businesses remain open."
-- County records show the purchase price of Porto Bodega was $3.7 million. The original asking price when the marina went on the market three years ago was $4.9 million.
Better prospects for salmon season
by Joel Hack ---- Posted Tuesday Feb. 27, 2007 -------- Biologists predictions of the possible salmon harvest are up and so are the hopes of salmon fishermen.
Last year’s season was a disaster. Dave Yarger, President of the Bodega Bay Fishermen’s Marketing Association said, “I wouldn’t have survived if I didn’t get disaster loans from the feds. There was no way I could keep making the boat slip rent and all the other payments.”
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Update March 10, 2007 -------- The Pacific Fishery Management Council (PFMC) meeting in Sacramento March 5-9 closed with a preliminary decision to forward three alternatives for the Ocean Salmon 2007 season.The full Council will meet to set the season meetings March 26-27. All three alternatives forecast a longer season than last year. Boat limits are not included in the alternatives. Last year Ocean trollers were severely limited to a short season and a 75 fish per boat each week limit.
Meetings on MLPA scheduled
Posted March 8, 2007 -------- The California Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) Initiative has scheduled five public workshops in the MLPA North Central Coast Study Region.
For the rest of the story -- Click to go to Page 2
The good taste burglars arrested
Posted Monday, Feb. 26, 2007 -------- A couple arrested in Santa Rosa Tuesday, Feb. 20 had property taken from burglaries on Heron Drive and Duck Court Feb. 10 and 11. Property taken in the two burglaries was recovered.
The arrests were the result of fingerprints recovered at the two homes. Resident Deputy Charlie Bone found fingerprints on a wall sconce glass chimney and a votive candle. Melissa Loucks, 27, and Shannon Gardner, 27, each left prints that were identified. Concurrently with the investigation by Sonoma County Sheriff’s detectives, Santa Rosa Police Department was investigating Gardner. He was arrested at a storage unit in Santa Rosa driving a stolen truck.
When Santa Rosa detectives arrested Gardner they saw goods in the storage unit that were possibly stolen. That led to a search warrant issued for the storage unit. Loucks was the co-tenant with Gardner of the storage unit. Santa Rosa detectives in the course of their investigation called the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Property Crimes Unit inquiring about Loucks and Gardner.
After his arrest Gardner made bail. The next day both he and Loucks showed up at the storage unit which Santa Rosa police detectives had under surveillance. Detectives arrested the pair in the stolen Lexus they drove to the storage facility.
Inside the storage unit detectives found property associated with the Bodega Harbour crimes. Additional stolen property from other Sonoma County burglaries was also found at the storage unit. The pair did not have a fixed address but were moving from place to place. Searches were conducted at several possible places where the couple was believed to be staying, at one residence several computers were found but have not yet been connected to other crimes.
Deputy Bone said, “I’ve been doing this for 27 years and never got prints that good.” Bone said he looked for surfaces that would show fingerprints well. The burglars picked up the sconce and broke the glass chimney. The glass chimney, with the prints, was left behind.
Over 30 items were taken from each home, much of the property was recovered from the Heron Drive burglary. Some of the property from Duck Court was recovered.
Bone said, “These arrests don’t mean the burglaries are over. They (the couple) could be part of a ring of thieves or have learned their burglary techniques from others.” The method of burglary is quite distinctive.
Sonoma County Sheriff’s Property Crimes Unit Detective Adrian Mancilla worked with Deputy Bone on the investigation. When Santa Rosa detectives checked to see if the Sheriff’s Property Crimes Unit had any information on Loucks, Mancilla connected her name to the print identified with the Duck Court crime.
Bail was set at $40,000 for Loucks. Bail for Gardner was set at $100,000. Both were released from custody after posting bail. Gardner has another arrest warrant outstanding and has posted bail for several other arrests.
Bodega Harbour Homeowners Association is installing video cameras at both entrances to the subdivision. They are also reconfiguring the guard shack at South Harbour Way to increase security.
Bodega Bay Fisherman's Festival -- A Community Fundraiser
It is number 34
Posted Thursday Feb. 22, 2007 --------- By Joel Hack – Common knowledge has it that when you hit 30 everything starts to go downhill. The Bodega Bay Fisherman’s Festival at 34 is heading into a strong and upbeat year.
Two dozen volunteers were at the Festival’s monthly meeting Wednesday evening. A little rain didn’t slow them down. Festival President Ginni Bassi called on each committee leader to give reports. Problems were brought up and the group discussed and teased out solutions. The group approved several small changes to a diverse set of items: craft’s booth changes, pricing for the wooden boat challenge and feeding the volunteers.
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Click to visit the Fish Fest website
Obiturary: Mark Gonnella
Occidental’s landmark Union Hotel co-owner Mark A. Gonnella has died at age 51. Family members said he died at his Occidental home of a form of cancer.
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Abalone Season Reopens on the North Coast on April 1
The season opener for divers and shore pickers to hunt for California's famous red abalone in waters north of San Francisco Bay is April 1.
The open season for the delectable mollusk will run from April 1 through June 30 with a one-month closure during July to give the resource a „breather‰ at a time of year when abalone take has traditionally been high. The season resumes on Aug. 1 and runs through Nov. 30.
Regulations governing the sport take of red abalone have helped to preserve the tradition of abalone diving and shore picking in northern California for nearly 100 years. For 2007, red abalone regulations include:
* Free divers and shore pickers (16 years or older) must possess a valid sport fishing license as well as an Abalone Permit Report Card (also known as a „punch card‰). The use of scuba is prohibited.
* Abalone taken must exceed the minimum size limit of 7 inches measured along the longest shell diameter.
* The daily bag limit is three per day, with a maximum limit of 24 abalone per year.
* Abalone Permit Report Cards must be returned to DFG within 30 days of the close of the season (due Dec. 30, 2007). Report cards should be mailed to DFG‚s Fort Bragg field office at 19160 South Harbor Drive, Fort Bragg, CA 95437-5798. The cards may be submitted early. Regulations also require that report cards be returned even if no abalone were taken.
For the full set of abalone regulations, check the 2007 Ocean Sport Fishing regulations booklet, available wherever fishing licenses are sold and online at www.dfg.ca.gov/regulations.
This is the seventh year an Abalone Permit Report Card has been required in addition to a fishing license for each person taking abalone. Those taking abalone are required to immediately punch a hole in the appropriate area on the card and record catch information for each abalone taken once they reach shore or boat. The report card is a valuable tool that helps DFG manage the northern California red abalone fishery. Data from the cards are used along with other information to estimate landings - information that helps biologists monitor the health of this sport fishery. For more information about California‚s red abalone, visit the DFG Web site at www.dfg.ca.gov/mrd/abalone.html.
