Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report

“Home is where the heart is,” but like many of you, I’ve been following international news for years.

I lived in the International House at UC Berkeley during the Iran hostage crisis, and students from many different cultures would gather around the big, boxy television in the “great hall” for the ABC Nightly News, which was the catalyst for Ted Koppel’s “Nightline.” It was a melting pot from America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. (Unlike George Rebane, we didn’t use the term “ragheads.”)

This week, my wife and I have gathered in front of the television to watch the political crisis unfold in Egypt (on a “newish” flat screen TV with better reception). Our son has joined us on some nights, amazed that the guns being shown are not from a cartoon — but real.

We’ve spent most of the time watching Anderson Cooper on CNN, who is now on the scene, as many correspondents have been during past world crisis.

Just for fun, I flipped to Fox News to see their version.

There was no broadcast from Egypt. Instead, Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck were on air, arguing about America’s politics with Europe during World War I and II. Two talking heads who couldn’t agree on the basic facts.

It reminded me that Fox has built its audience on the domestic front, largely flacking for the tea party, Sarah Palin and the like. Political polarization is the order of the day. Rupert Murdoch seems to think America is the Australian Outback.

Fox has a large following. But if it an achilles heel, it is surely international news.

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Russ Steele has posted this press release on his blog from the ERC, confirming that our Congressman will address the group, as I mentioned previously. The meeting is open to the public:

“Congressman Tom McClintock to Address Business Community at Thursday’s Economic Resource Council Board Meeting

Grass Valley, CA. — U.S. Congressman Tom McClintock will address questions and concerns of the business community at the Nevada County Economic Resource Council’s Board meeting on Thursday, February 3, 2011. The meeting will begin at 7:30 A.M. and will be held at the Nevada County Association of Realtors building, Esterly Hall, 336 Crown Point Circle, Grass Valley.

New ERC CEO, Ron Moser, who assumed his responsibilities on February 1, will also be introduced at the meeting, which is open to the public.”

It might be a good time for some people to show up and find out what Tom thinks about re-opening the Idaho-Maryland Mine, the Dorsey Drive intersection and other projects.

I’m going to be “out of pocket.”

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SmithGroup Inc. will be the architect of the Nevada County Courthouse, the state announced on Tuesday.

The press release is here.

SmithGroup is a national leader in sustainable design, according to its website. The 800-employee architecture, engineering, interiors and planning firm is composed of client industry-focused practices serving the education, healthcare, workplace and science & technology markets.

SmithGroup is ranked the 8th largest architecture and engineering firm in the U.S. by Building Design & Construction magazine.

Though based in Detroit, it has offices nationwide. One of them is on Battery Street in San Francisco.

The architects typically subcontract out smaller parts of such a large project.

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This press release was emailed to me while I was on the road, but I can still post remote from the parking lot of Newcastle Produce. Eat your heart out George Rebane!

Today, after six years of on-and-off negotiations, the City of Nevada City will take title to Sugarloaf, the promontory that has always graced the town as its backdrop.

In 2004, Friends of Sugarloaf was formed with the goal of protecting Sugarloaf Mountain as public open space. The group was formed by Liz Ely, Laurie Oberholtzer, Charles Woods, and Bob Wyckoff. Their first action was to ask Nevada City to set aside State Proposition 40 recreation bond funds of $379,000 to purchase the 32 acre mountain. Next, they asked the City to request that County recreation mitigation fees in the Nevada City impact zone be set aside to add funds to the potential purchase. Mayor Conley Weaver and Councilman David McKay spearheaded the efforts to secure the funds. Each and every City Council since has diligently pursued moving forward on the project while protecting the needed funds.

With Laurie Oberholtzer as Coordinator and 200 members strong, Friends of Sugarloaf spent the next 6 years working with the property owners and the City towards a successful sales agreement. With the deadline for expenditure of State Proposition 40 grant funds looming, Nevada City successfully negotiated a $450,000 sales agreement in the spring of 2010. After a series of bumps, including 5 sessions in probate court, an escrow finally opened in December, 2010 which allowed the State to disburse the funds. A bridge loan of $71,000 was provided by the Nevada County Land Trust to make up the balance and the City will apply to the County for its recreation mitigation fees to repay the loan to the Land Trust.

Said Oberholtzer, “It was a nail biter all the way to the end, but it was worth the stress, the suspense, and the wait. We want to thank, in particular, the property owners, George and Marison Mull and Kriss Halpern for their foresight in selling the property to Nevada City to be preserved as open space. Their representative Andy Cassano was extremely helpful. The city staff, particularly Gene Albaugh, Hal DeGraw, and Bill Falconi all put their hearts and energy into the final negotiations which were complex, to say the least.”

“Sugarloaf is a powerful and important presence, the backdrop to our beautiful town. Now it will be protected forever and the magnificent 360 degree view of Nevada City and its surroundings will be available for all to enjoy,” she concluded.

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The Nevada City Council voted 4-1 to table whether Grass Valley or the county Sheriff should run Nevada City’s police department, as I discussed the other day.

It doesn’t mean any deal is dead — it just means the timing was wrong, on the heels of a contentious B&B debate that divided the town. Nevada City wants to keep its options open, including hiring a new police chief when the current one retires.

But The Union doesn’t seem satisfied with the outcome.

•The newspaper has long been pushing for Nevada City to consider outsourcing its police services in editorials by the editor/publisher (who lives elsewhere).

•Last week, after the decision, the newspaper published a “draft” report prepared by the Grass Valley police chief to run Nevada City’s police services. Though not much of a “deal” for Nevada City, it surely would bring revenue to Grass Valley, whose police department has been criticized for a big budget (thanks to annexing the Brunswick basin).

Now, seemingly still not content, The Union is running a poll asking all of its subscribers what the residents of Nevada City should do about outsourcing their police services.

When will The Union back off and accept the decision? Or when will it also begin asking why the cash-strapped city of Grass Valley is not considering having the county Sheriff bid on police services for its residents?

Over the years, Nevada City has been pushed around by many forces in our community. But it’s always managed to come out fine, going back the days when the government center was threatening to go to Grass Valley (but didn’t).

BTW, I read in the newspaper the other day that the local park near our home was an “eyesore.” I checked it out this weekend with my son and his friend. To the contray, it has brand new playground equipment and it looked good.

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“Hundreds of environmentalists, union members and liberal activists converged on Rancho Mirage on Sunday to rally against what they see as the influence of two of the nation’s leading financial backers of conservative causes,” the L.A. Times is reporting.

“The protestors waved signs condemning ‘corporate greed,’ chanted slogans and surged toward a line of helmeted police officers at the entrance to a resort where billionaires Charles and David Koch were holding a retreat for prominent conservative elected officials, major political donors and strategists.”

“Protest organizers said they hoped to raise awareness about the Koch brothers and what activists portray as their shadowy attempts to weaken environmental protection laws and undercut campaign contribution limits.”

The rest of the article is here.

The Koch brothers’ war against Obama — from the New Yorker magazine — is here.

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Under a “donate” tab, the Nevada County Tea Party Patriots has a page that reads: “Donate Contribute Now! Help the Nevada County Tea Party Patriots Grow.

“You can send a check, or use the PayPal button below. Please make your checks payable to NCTPP. Mail to: NCTPP 3026 Nevada City Highway, Grass Valley, CA 95945″

“Thanks for your contribution to our growth and ability to foster political change in our community.”

Then under a separate, “mission statement” tab, a page reads:

“Nevada County Tea Party Patriots, Inc. operates as a social welfare organization organized under section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code. Contributions to Nevada County Tea Party Patriots, Inc. (NCTPP) are not deductible as charitable contributions for income tax purposes.”

Here’s a thought: On the donate page, also tell people that their contributions are not deductible. People need to be reminded about how 501(c)(4)’s operate.

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According to the career page of its corporate parent, Nevada-based Swift Communications, The Union is seeking a graphic designer:

Graphic Designer – Full-time available. The Union is looking for a talented professional to join our fast-paced, award-winning graphic design team. Position entails building daily a high-volume of effective print and web ads, as well as, special section and page design. The ideal candidate will understand and design effective marketing ad layouts. Candidates must have InDesign, PhotoShop, Illustrator, Flash and QuarkXPress skills in a Mac and PC environment. Must be a fast-learner and customer-service oriented with a positive attitude, as the position involves working closely with many coworkers and departments. Able to multi-task, prioritize, type 45 wpm and demonstrate excellent attention to detail, as well as, solid spelling and grammar skills. Experience in newspaper graphic design a plus. Be prepared to show samples of your work. Send resumes to: hr@theunion.com Attn: Sharla Cartzdafner, Human Resources, 464 Sutton Way Grass Valley, CA 95945.

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“The Obama administration appears to be now preparing for an Egypt without President Hosni Mubarak, pushing the hard-line 82-year-old leader to swiftly meet the cry from the streets for greater political freedom while growing ever-more doubtful that their longtime ally can survive the upheaval,” the L.A. Times is reporting.

“The administration is not yet ready to abandon Mubarak — at least in public. Officials continue to strike a cautious tone in their statements, fearing that openly supporting calls for Mubarak’s removal would alarm other U.S. allies in the region.

“But both current and former government officials say the days of autocratic government in Egypt are over — with or without Mubarak.”

The rest of the article is here.

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