enterprise THE DAVIS
SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2022
Report details issues in drug diversion program By Lauren Keene Families take advantage of the amenities at Solano Park. The housing complex, which serves the families of UC Davis students, will close next year after six decades.
Enterprise staff writer
Residents who spoke to The Enterprise this summer, however, said their apartments required frequent maintenance and probably could not hold out for much longer. “At this point,
The Yolo County District Attorney’s Office announced last week modifications to its diversion policy in low-level drug cases, saying it now files formal charges as an “incentive” for offenders to seek treatment for their addictions. Only about 10 percent of offenders engaged in treatment under prior policy that avoided the charging process, according to a DA report analyzing the diversion program’s effectiveness during its first year. Read the report here: Harm Reduction Diversion Analysis Others involved in the program, including Yolo County’s public defender and Health and Human Services officials, say the pilot project fell short because it lacks support services that have proven successful in other diversion programs. The Harm Reduction Policy, adopted by the DA’s Office in January 2021, called for those arrested for minor drug-related crimes — possession and intoxication offenses, for example — to be referred to the HHSA for assessment and treatment instead of going to court. More serious offenses, such as drug
See SOLANO, Page A5
See DIVERSION, Page A4
Caleb Hampton/ Enterprise photo
Solano Park half-closed for final year By Caleb Hampton Enterprise staff writer Solano Park, a residential community at UC Davis that has housed students with families for the past 60 years, is preparing to close for good. Last year, the apartment complex stopped offering leases to new residents, leaving nearly a third of its 276 apartments empty. This summer, residents are vacating the buildings in the southern portion of Solano Park. Next year, the remaining
residents will move out, with the complex ultimately slated for demolition.
associate vice chancellor for housing, dining and divisional operations at UC Davis.
Solano Park was built in 1962 using a construction design meant to last 50 years, campus officials told The Enterprise. Due to the age of the buildings, UC Davis “decided that building new housing up to modern standards would be a better use of resources than funneling money into a property that is at the end of its projected life cycle,” said Mike Sheehan,
Plans to close Solano Park were announced nearly a decade ago. Since then, residents petitioned campus leaders several times to keep the apartment complex open. They hoped to preserve the community’s unique family environment and prevent the elimination of UC Davis’ most affordable housing. “It’s a really unique place,” said Monica Garcia, an
undergraduate student who lives at Solano Park with her husband and three children, speaking about Solano Park’s vast green spaces and big trees. “They don’t make apartment complexes like this anymore.”
Morrill announces council candidacy Pioneer Elementary
welcomes new principal
By Anne Ternus-Bellamy Enterprise staff writer Adam Morrill, who works for the city’s Public Works Department, has formally announced his candidacy for the Davis City Council. Morrill is running for the District 4 seat, which represents East Davis, and which is currently held by Councilwoman Gloria Partida, who will be seeking re-election. They are the only candidates so far to declare for District 4, which will be on the Nov. 8 ballot. In his announcement on Friday, Morrill said he was born and raised in the Bay Area where he met his high school sweetheart and wife
VOL. 124, NO. 91
INDEX
Business ���������� A3 Dial-A-Pro ��������B6 Living ����������������B3 Classifieds ������B5 Explorit ������������B3 Obituaries �������� A4 Comics ������������B4 Forum ��������������B2 Sports ��������������B1
By Aaron Geerts Enterprise staff writer
Courtesy photo
Longtime Davis resident Adam Morrill — pictured with, from left, daughter Hannah, wife Nicole, and daughter Samantha — has announced he will be running for City Council. of 22 years, Nicole. “We both came to Davis as undergraduates and after graduating, decided this is where we wanted to
WEATHER
raise our family,” Morrill said. The couple has two
See MORILL, Page A4
Rachana Sidhu is officially the new principal at Pioneer Elementary School. Arriving from the Bay Area, Sidhu comes into this position with a litany of teaching and leadership experience, positivity and unbridled enthusiasm. She was born in New Jersey, but Sidhu considers Fresno her home after her family moved there when she was still a youngster. When she graduated from UC San Diego later in life, she not only left with a degree in biology, but a love for
working with and teaching children. “In college I knew I wanted SIDHU to do Taking over someat Pioneer thing in science, but I also enjoyed working with kids and tutoring them. So, I wanted to have a career that blended those things together and I became a biology teacher at the high-school level for six years,” Sidhu
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