Archive - News Article
June 21st, 2011
The Bureau of Land Managementâs Bishop Field Office will conduct a open-to-the public field exam and two public scoping meetings for the Ewind Farm and ENEL (Padoma) wind monitoring project areas within the Black Lake, Adobe Valley, and Granite Mountain areas west of Benton in eastern California.
June 20th
If there are any dreamers out there who may have thought that Meb-the K has lost a step or two, they didnât see him win the San Diego half -marathon two weekends ago in his home town. ...
In other running news, Deena Kastor finished 25th in the New York Road Runners half-marathon earlier this months, just three months after giving birth to her first child. Linat Masai ran away from a field that featured 12 Olympians to win in 31:40, 29 seconds ahead of Aheza Kiros of Ethiopia, to win her second straight Mini 10k. ...
The search continues in Yosemite National Park for missing hiker George Penca, who was last seen at the top of Yosemite Falls on Friday, June 17. Due to the fact that the area has been thoroughly searched by personnel and dogs, the terrain is rugged and steep, and no clues have been found, search efforts are being scaled back.
June 17th
By
George Shirk, Times Senior Writer
Grim work on Town
finances cuts, and cuts, and cuts
There may as well have been blood in the streets.
The Mammoth Lakes Town Council, facing a shortfall budget of more than $2 million and a deadline of June 22 for a reckoning, took out its machetes on Wednesday night and got to work on the finances.
Three police officers will have to go. Any improvements to the townâs dilapidated police station are a ha-ha-ha.
At least one staffer â maybe more â will have to leave Public Works.
By
George Shirk, Times Senior Writer
Ready to have 50,000 people land on your front porch?
Literally.
Under plans announced this week, Mammothâs airport next winter will handle four flights a day, seven days a week. It will also handle seven flights a day on the busy Friday-Saturday-Sunday-Monday weekends.
Moreover, the airport will serve travelers from San Diego and Orange County for the first time, fulfilling the wishes of Mammoth-loving SoCals who found the trip to Los Angeles International as irritating as the six-eight-hour drive up here.
June 16th
On Saturday, June 11, the Mono County Sheriff Search and Rescue (SAR) Team was called out to help a snowboarder with a broken leg.
Payam Pakbin, 28, of Los Angeles, was walking up a steep, icy slope with a friend near Tioga Pass when he lost his footing and slid down into a rock field, suffering a femur fracture. Other backcountry skiers in the area heard his yelling and responded to help. One of the responders skied down to his vehicle and drove down Highway 120 until he was able to contact authorities on his cell phone.
June 15th
The Tioga Road will open for the season on Saturday, June 18 at 8:00 a.m. for all vehicle traffic. The Tioga Road, bounded on both sides by State Highway 120, is the popular east-west crossing of the Sierra Nevada.
Vault toilets are available in several locations along the road.
There are several no-stopping zones along the road, which are clearly marked with road signs.
By
Wendilyn Grasseschi - Times Staff Writer
A possible wind farm near Benton has some area residents up in arms, especially nearby property owners.
The proposed project is still at the preliminary stage, with only a few test towers planned â if the rest towers are approved by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).
But with the potential for many more of the 200-foot-tall wind towers, some residents are none too pleased with the whole idea.
âThis is one of the most important habitats for birds in the county,â said Emmy Cattani, an owner of the Adobe Ranch, located northwest of Benton.
Mammoth Hospital has announced the arrival of new General Surgeon, Dr. Kenneth Deck, specializing in breast disease and breast surgeries.
Dr. Deck comes to Mammoth Hospital from Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Laguna Hills, Calif., and currently sees more than 200 breast cancer patients annually. He will offer his expertise in the area of mastectomy, lumpectomy and breast reconstruction to those patients diagnosed with all types of breast disease.
June 13th
By
Wendilyn Grasseschi - Times Staff Writer
William Crosby, a Mammoth Lakes resident who earlier this year filed a claim for damages against Mono County and the Town of Mammoth Lakes following his arrest for an alleged medical marijuana violation, has now filed a lawsuit against both entities in federal district court.
Crosby was arrested in December, 2010. He has maintained since then that he was following the medical marijuana laws. The county rejected his claims for damages last month.
By
Wendilyn Grasseschi - Times Staff Writer
A possible wind farm near Benton has some area residents up in arms, especially nearby property owners.
The proposed project is still at the preliminary stage, with only a few test towers (six) planned and with full approval by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) still not certain.
But with the potential for many more of the 200-foot-tall wind towers coming on line (should the test towers show good results) some residents are none too pleased with the whole idea.
June 10th
By
George Shirk - Times Senior Writer
The town on Wednesday got its first look at a proposed âbowling centerâ along Old Mammoth Road.
It was as if fireworks had gone off overhead.
âFull speed ahead,â exclaimed Planning Commissioner Sharon Clark when she and two other commissioners saw the presentation.
The project is called âRock âN Bowl.â It is the brainchild of local real estate investor Dan OâConnell and Mammoth architect Bruce Woodward.
âItâs one of those things the town desperately needs,â Woodward said.
The commission took no action on the project, nor was it was asked to.
By
Wendilyn Grasseschi - Times Staff Writer
Despite rumors, unseasonable spring storms, more untimely cold temperatures and triple the normal amount of snow for this date, the road over Tioga Pass is still scheduled to open by the end of June.
âI can say with reasonable certainty that the pass will open within the next few weeks,â said Yosemite National Park Service spokesman Scott Gediman on Wednesday.
âWeâre this close,:â said Mono Countyâs interim public works director, Jeff Walters. âWeâre this close, but weâre not there yet.â
Hearty kudos to John Connolly and the Recreation Dept. crew for organizing Town Cleanup Day, which goes off tomorrow morning. Picnic at noon in Mammoth Creek Park. ...
Mammoth Motocross rolls into town next week (first practices are Thursday) and as usual we (and the restaurants) are jazzed. DC Moto is in on the act this year and will host a golf tournament at Sierra Star featuring DC motocross riders Tyler Bereman and Chris Plouffe in the competition....
Yosemite National Park will begin work on several park roads, beginning
next Monday, June 13. The majority of the work will occur in the El
Portal area, including Old El Portal, Rancheria, El Portal Trailer Court,
the El Portal office areas, and the El Portal Road. Work will also include
the Hodgdon Meadow area, residential and administrative roads, as well as
the main entrance road to Foresta.
The general scope of the project includes applying a seal coat over many of
the existing asphalt roads, either a chipseal or microseal. Additional
