The Davis Enterprise Friday, March 31, 2023

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Reaching for the top

Rocknasium summits three decades of community

By Aaron Geerts Enterprise staff writer

When it first opened in 1992, Rocknasium became not only Davis’ go-to spot for indoor rock climbing, but one of the first gyms of its kind in the country. Thirty-one years later, the Rocknasium stands tall on a mountain of success while remaining grateful for the community that makes visiting this gym such an incredible experience.

With amazing places to climb (relatively) nearby like Lake Tahoe or Yosemite, the Rocknasium was created to give climbers an off-season place to train. Nowadays, it’s a self-described full-service community climbing gym where everyone from every walk — or climb — of life and skill level is welcome.

“We have a nice welcoming opportunity and package for first-timers,” said Rocknasium general manager and jack-of-alltrades facilitator, Imani Latif. “You can just walk in and we’ll get you started learning how to do different types of climbing like bouldering. That’s climbing without a rope

boulder wall, boulder circuits, 110-plus climbing routes and 22-foot horizontal lead roof. See ROCKNASIUM, Page A7

Police release video of rural shooting

By Lauren Keene Enterprise staff writer

West Sacramento police released this week a video compilation showing the events leading up to an officer’s fatal shooting of a Dunnigan man last month.

The 11-minute video, which contains potentially disturbing footage from a drone and several officers’ body-worn cameras, can be viewed on YouTube and the West Sacramento Police Department’s website.

Hector Valdez Perez, 63, was the subject of an arrest warrant charging him with sex crimes with a child, authorities previously reported. Yolo County SWAT team members attempted to serve that,

Candidates weigh in on city finances, housing

n Editor’s note: This is Part 1 of coverage of Wednesday’s League of Women Voters Davis Area candidate forum featuring the two candidates for Davis City Council District 3. Part two will run in Sunday’s Enterprise.

By Anne Ternus-Bellamy Enterprise staff writer

The two candidates seeking the District 3 seat on the Davis City Council weighed in on topics ranging from affordable housing to peripheral development to city finances during an online forum hosted by the League of Women Voters Davis Area on Wednesday evening. Francesca Wright and Donna Neville are vying to succeed former mayor Lucas Frerichs in the May 2 election. At the League forum, the two candidates were asked a series of questions, some provided in advance and others that came from audience members. Here are a collection of some of the questions and answers: How would you assess the current and longterm financial health of the city of Davis? Given your assessment, what are the most important actions

See CANDIDATES, Page A6

Novelist Robinson to discuss science fiction, climate change

By Jeff Hudson

Enterprise correspondent

Kim Stanley Robinson

Courtesy photo

In drone footage posted on YouTube, Yolo County law-enforcement SWAT Team members use an armored rescue vehicle for cover to approach a trailer in rural Dunnigan in an incident that would end in the fatal shooting of the man they were attempting to arrest.

along with a search warrant, on the morning of Feb. 14.

“Mr. Perez had a history of violence associated with

arrests and prior investigations,” including a previous

See SHOOTING, Page A7

has been publishing science fiction for 40-plus years, and his carefully researched books often include realistic characterizations of scientists, researching decidedly plausible future trends rooted in present-day problems and situations.

In recent years, much of Robinson’s attention has focused on climate change, including his 2017 novel “New York 214o,” which depicts New York after global warming (and the consequent melting of polar ice) has

caused the sea level to rise, inundating city streets and converting portions of Manhattan into a metropolitan area that in some ways resembles Venice.

Along the way, Robinson became one of the few science-fiction writers to publish articles in Scientific American. Time Magazine has singled him out as a “Hero of the Environment.” Robinson has addressed think tanks, and spoken at international climate summits. The New Yorker has referenced him as “one of the most important political

See ROBINSON, Page A7

Raging Grannies are recruiting

The Raging Grannies of Davis, a group of local progressive activists who perform parody songs and street theatre in the community, is currently recruiting new members.

The Davis chapter is one of many around the world. The Raging Grannies is an international organization initially formed in Canada in 1987. There is no age requirement and you do not need to be a grandmother to join. Membership in the Davis chapter is free.

Those who may be interested are invited to attend a rehearsal and sing along, or just listen, and see if it is something they’d like to do. The twice monthly rehearsals are held in Davis. Members may choose what rehearsals and events they attend based upon their own schedules.

To find out more, e-mail The Raging Grannies of Davis at davisraginggrannies@ gmail.com .

UC Davis researchers name new fish species

Meet the McCloud River redband trout

By Kat Kerlin Special to The Enterprise

The McCloud River redband trout, or O. mykiss calisulat, is newly identified as its own distinct subspecies of rainbow trout in a study from UC Davis. It is the first newly identified subspecies of Pacific trout since 2008 and the youngest rainbow trout subspecies by more than 100 years.

The study, published in the journal Zootaxa, notes that fish biologists have suspected the McCloud River redband trout was its own subspecies since at least the 1970s, but only newer genetics techniques — including genomewide DNA sequencing — allowed the UC Davis-led team to tease the puzzle apart and confirm it as a subspecies.

Northern California’s McCloud River originates from spring-fed streams near Mount Shasta before passing over a series of waterfalls, the McCloud Falls. The waterfalls are impassable to upstream movement of fishes and divide the Upper McCloud River from the Lower McCloud River.

The McCloud River redband

O. mykiss calisulat, the McCloud River redband trout, is the first newly identified subspecies of Pacific trout since 2008.

trout is the only known native fish found in the Upper McCloud Basin.

“It’s persisted so long in isolation,” said lead author Matthew “Mac” Campbell, a research affiliate with the Department of Animal Science’s Genomic Variation Laboratory.

“They’ve survived in glacial refugia during the Pleistocene era and have been above those waterfalls for at least 10,000 years.”

‘Beautiful trout’

Rainbow trout subspecies are often named after male scientists. When considering a name to use, Campbell said this fish was clearly in the range of one tribe, the Winnemem Wintu.

“They already had a name for the fish — a few thousand years before I did,” Campbell said.

So, Campbell worked in consultation with the tribe to formally describe for western science the

subspecies, O. mykiss calisulat

The McCloud River redband trout is known as “cali sulat” in the Winnemem Wintu language, with “cali” meaning good or beautiful and “sulat” the term for trout. The words were combined for its scientific name to follow formal scientific naming conventions.

What’s in a name?

O. mykiss calisulat populations are already supported by current fisheries management policies, so the new name doesn’t change its protective status. Naming it, however, acknowledges its inherent significance.

“This is a part of the history and heritage of California that’s often not recognized,” said Amanda (“Mandi”) J. Finger, associate director of the Genomic Variation Laboratory at UC Davis. “It’s the story of our state, the tribes, the hatchery. This fish deserved to be named.”

The study’s additional coauthors included Ensieh Habibi and Grace Auringer of UC Davis, Molly Stephens of the UC Merced Natural Reserve System, Jeff Rodzen of California Department of Fish and Wildlife, or CDFW, and Kevin Conway of Texas A&M University.

The study was funded through the CDFW.

— UC Davis News

To the rescue

Bob Dunning is on vacation. The Wary I will be back in The Enterprise on Wednesday.

Neville holds fundraising lead in District 3 race

By Anne Ternus-Bellamy Enterprise staff writer

Donna Neville held a fundraising lead over Francesca Wright as of the latest campaign finance reporting period for the Davis City Council District 3 race.

Neville and Wright are vying to succeed former mayor Lucas Frerichs, who joined the Yolo County Board of Supervisors in January. The district they seek to represent, which encompasses much of the center of Davis, including downtown, will be on the Tuesday, May 2, special election ballot that District 3 residents will be receiving by mail next week.

delivery $3.69 per week

$3.23 per week

weeks $89.30

For the reporting period of Jan. 1 to March 18, Neville reported 102 individual campaign contributions totaling $12,085. She also loaned her campaign $10,000 and had $14,620 in cash on hand as of March 18.

Among those contributing to Neville’s campaign were Frerichs; Davis City Councilwoman Gloria Partida; former Supervisor Helen Thomson; former state Sen. Lois Wolk; Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters; and former City Councilwomen Rochelle Swanson and Ruth Asmundson.

Other contributors included some former Davis Joint Unified School District trustees and a number of current city commissioners.

Wright, meanwhile, reported 83 individual contributions totaling $9,015

and loaned her campaign $2,000. As of March 18, she had $6,319 in cash on hand.

Contributors included former DJUSD trustee Cindy Pickett; former Yolo County Public Guardian Cass Sylvia; and a number of city commissioners past and present, including Georgina Valencia, Larry Guenther, Richard McCann, and Linda Deos.

Several individuals donated to both Wright’s and Neville’s campaigns.

Rules around filling a vacated City Council seat limited the ability of the council to call for a special election until the seat was actually vacated, leading to a somewhat shortened campaign season.

The council called for the special election on Jan. 3, the same day Frerichs was sworn in to the Yolo County Board of Supervisors and officially vacated his council seat. However, council members had earlier expressed their support for filling the seat via special election rather than appointing Frerichs's replacement, and both Wright and Neville had signaled their plans to run prior to January.

Regardless of who wins on May 2, it will be the first time in more than a decade that two women serve on the five-member Davis City Council.

The last time there were two female council members was from 2010 to 2012 when Swanson and Sue Greenwald were on the council.

Members of the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office Off-Highway Vehicle Team conducted a search-and-rescue mission Saturday while patrolling trails in the area of County Road 40 in northern Yolo County. A man in his 40s suffered a neck injury while riding a dirt bike in the area. Using GPS coordinates, searchers located the man, who was transported to the hospital by REACH medical helicopter and continued to recover from surgery as of Thursday. The Capay Valley, Yocha Dehe and Williams fire departments, Cal Fire, California Highway Patrol and Napa County Sheriff’s Office also assisted in the rescue.

coUrte Sy photo

Steve MacMillan/Uc DaviS photo

Briefly

Bike Club holds social event

All who would like to enjoy Davis bike culture are invited to the avis Bike Club Membership Social at 7 p.m. Monday, April 10, in the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame at Third and B streets.

Invite your friends; cake will be served.

Kathy Ormiston, this year’s organizer for the March Madness challenge invites all to celebrate the more than 16,645 miles members rode during March — the equivalent of biking halfway around the world.

Medals will be presented to the top three finishers and T-shirts will be handed out to everyone who signed up.

An amazing slide show of fun rides taken during the month will be presented by Anne Huber.

Yolo County offers free garden class

WOODLAND — Spring is around the corner and it’s time to dust off your gardening tools and begin preparing for a spring and summer garden.

Yolo County residents are invited to learn about gardening basics with Treva Valentine, a UC Master Gardener, on Wednesday, April 19, from 5:15 to 6:30 p.m. at the Hanna & Herbert Bauer Memorial Community Garden in Woodland.

This free, interactive class is presented by the Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency and will cover topics such as soil preparation, strategies for planting and timing for planting summer crops. There will also be time to ask questions. No gardening experience is required to attend.

This class is available to all and is part of HHSA’s commitment to providing education to help residents eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and live healthier lives.

Pre-registration is required by April 18 and can be completed by contacting David Linebarger at 530666-8429 or david. linebarger@yolocounty .org.

Dress for cold weather and wear shoes that can get dirty.

The garden is at 137 N. Cottonwood St. in Woodland, behind and along the west side of the HHSA Bauer Building. In the event of steady rain, the class will be postponed or canceled.

Community garden classes are offered for free throughout the year by HHSA.

Learn about garden activities and classes at https://bit.ly/ BauerGarden.

Looking ahead to science camps

By Sara Thompson

Special to the Enterprise

Staff and volunteers are looking forward to holding our annual Summer Science Camps again this year. Explorit camps are designed with a camper’s academic, social, and emotional growth levels in mind. Each camp includes engaging, hands-on science activities and crafts that will facilitate informal science learning, while our campers have fun. Offered this summer are camps designed for those entering Kindergarten through second grade and third through fifth grade.

Leading our summer camp season is “Something Wild.” Campers will observe live animals and study hands-on specimens to learn the fun and interesting ways animals have adapted to survive and thrive in their habitats.

“Mars Challenge” will have our older campers solving a variety of challenging questions about space habitation. What does it take to successfully travel to and live on Mars? Campers learn their way around our solar system, then focus their efforts to design a mission to Mars. By the end of the

week, teams will have launched experimental rockets, studied the atmosphere, designed systems for food and water, and built shelters to insure a successful mission.

Calling all “Junior Builders”! Learn about everyday simple machines and how they are used. Build arches, bridges, and buildings to see how the engineering is different between them.

Campers will learn the Design Engineering Cycle and apply it to daily challenges with “Extreme Engineering”. Who can build the strongest bridge, tallest tower, and safest building? By the end of camp, we will know!

Become a junior paleontology with “Stones & Bones”. Learn about the Earth’s past by participating in geology and paleontology hands-on labs. From mammoths to megalodons, if

you’re passionate about the prehistoric, this camp is for you.

Finishing up the summer camp season is “Best of Explorit.” Campers build, experiment, play and explore the best of all the science camps of the summer. Experiment with animals, space, engineering, fossils, and geology as Explorit celebrates the end of the summer season.

Summer Science Camp registration is open, and spaces fill quickly! Price is $185 Explorit members and $210 for non-members. To join a camp’s waiting list, fill out our online form at https:// www.explorit.org/camps.

Explorit’s coming events:

n Explorit is celebrating an “Egg”travaganza on Saturday, April 8, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Egg-themed crafts and activities include making a spring themed book mark, an egg shaped suncatcher, bunny ears, handprint art, exploring different experiments with eggs, and meeting some live chicks. Admission is $5 per person. Explorit members, ASTC, and those age 2 and under free.

n Our exhibit “Explorit Rocks!” is open to the public on Fridays

Sutter seeks hospital volunteers

Enterprise staff

Sutter Davis Hospital invites local residents to become volunteers to support key areas of the hospital.

“There is a sense of joy when you join with others for a cause that you care about,” said Georgia Waid, one of the volunteer copresidents for the Sutter Davis Hospital Auxiliary. Waid regularly volunteers her time at the hospital.

Volunteer positions are open in the emergency department, gift shop, information desk and patient services. Volunteers also can serve as liaisons to the surgery department. The Sutter Davis Hospital Auxiliary is sending out a special call to action for added support, given April is National Volunteer Month and National Volunteer Week is April 16 to 22.

Prospective volunteers must complete an application form, pass a background check and obtain a health clearance. Applicants interview individually with the membership coordinator. Volunteers are

Obituary

placed into specific work areas of their choosing and are given regularly scheduled shifts, based upon their availability each month. Volunteers will have a minimum of two four-hour shifts per month.

Waid, who moved to Davis in 1978, has a long history of volunteerism. She has devoted her time to causes from humanitarian and youth organizations to various service groups. She even held professional positions for volunteer organizations. She began volunteering at Sutter Davis Hospital in 2015 and immediately felt welcomed.

She says she appreciates how the volunteers are included in many of the hospital’s general activities and are kept updated on matters most pertinent to them.

“The teamwork at Sutter Davis Hospital is so positive and is part of the culture there,” she said.

While volunteering clearly helps others in need, it also benefits volunteers themselves — including supporting their mental

Charlotte ‘Sheri’ Cole

1938—2023

Charlotte “Sheri” Cole of Davis died, peacefully held by her loved ones, at home on March 27, 2023.

She was born in Pennsylvania in 1938 to F. Nelsen and Charlotte. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Baldwin-Wallace College and married fellow alum Ron Cole in 1959. In 1959, Sheri began a long teaching career that spanned from New York to California.

Her children were born along the path of Ron’s ophthalmology training; Debby in Montana and Stuart in Michigan. She earned her master’s degree from Eastern Michigan University. In 1969, the family moved to California, where

Ron served as an ophthalmologist at Travis Air Force Base. Sheri taught in Fairfield, the ECE department at Solano Community College, and worked for three years as consultant/sales representative for The Economy Company.

The family relocated to Davis after Ron left the Air Force. She served as a reading specialist with San Juan Unified School District, and taught reading in Dixon USD, from where she retired from teaching in 2005 after a 37 year career.

Her five grandchildren were the joy of her life. She was blessed with a very loving and supportive family, caring neighbors and

and physical health.

“Numerous studies have shown the positive health effects associated with volunteerism, from lower blood pressure to living longer,” said Dr. Deven Merchant, chief medical executive for Sutter Davis Hospital. “The socialization and positive connections our volunteers build at the hospital can be big mood boosters, too, which can enhance overall mental wellness and lessen the chances of depression.”

Waid shares how she and her fellow volunteers relish the chance to give back to the hospital.

“Many of us talk about the gratitude we have for the care we and/or our family and friends have received at Sutter Davis. That is probably one of most often cited reasons for volunteering here,” she said. “We are proud of Sutter Davis and so thankful it is here.”

For information or to sign up as a volunteer candidate, visit https://www. sutterhealth.org/volunteeri ng/sdh.

enriching friendships.

Preceded in death by her sister, Evangeline Eresian, she is survived by husband, Ronald J. Cole; children Deb and Drew Kelner of Virginia, and Stuart Cole and Ellie Mackay of British Columbia; favorite grandchildren Noah Kelner, Ethan Kelner, Tara MackayCole, Calum Mackay-Cole

from 1 to 4 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is $5 per person. Explorit Members, ASTC, and those age 2 and under free.

n A membership to Explorit grants the recipient free visits to Explorit’s regular public hours, discounts on events, summer camps and workshops, and gives you ASTC benefits to visit other museums throughout the world. To purchase or for more information visit https://www.explorit. org/membership or call Explorit at 530-756-0191.

n School programs are available to schedule for next school year. We have educational programs that travel to schools and options for field trips at our facility. Please call 530-756-0191 for more information or to schedule.

n Now is a great time to donate and help Explorit continue to educate and inspire the scientists of tomorrow: https://www.explorit. org/donate.

— Explorit Science Center is at 3141 Fifth St. For information, call 530-756-0191 or visit http://www. explorit.org, or “like” the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/explorit.fb.

Prescribed Burn Assoc. hosts meeting in Winters

Special to The Enterprise

Thanks to funding through CalFire’s California Climate Investments Fire Prevention Program Grant, the Yolo Prescribed Burn Association will monthly meetings to recruit members and educate the public about prescribed burning. Prescribed Burn Associations are community-driven networks consisting of landowners and residents with the common goal of putting “good fire” back in the ecosystem.

As catastrophic wildfires become a growing concern in California, prescribed burning is being used to reduce hazardous fuels and manage wildfire. Unlike highintensity wildfires, prescribed burning is the controlled application of fire under preplanned management objectives and precise environmental conditions. In addition to managing wildfire risk, prescribed burning is a cost-effective management tool that can be used to maintain and

and Molly MackayCole; sister Barbara Achtermann of Pennsylvania; John Eresian of New Hampshire; and Gary and Diane Cole of Ohio.

generate desired native vegetation and promote a healthy ecosystem.

The next informational meeting will be on Thursday, April 20, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Winters Fire Department, 700 W. Main St. in Winters. The April PBA Meeting will focus on Permitting and Compliance and the Yolo PBA Gear Trailer. Yolo PBA staff will provide an overview of the Yolo PBA Gear Trailer and demonstrate safe and effective use of the tools. The Gear Trailer is equipped with all of the tools necessary to conduct a safe prescribed burn including personal protective equipment, fire line hand tools, drip torches, water suppression systems, hose line, and more and will be available for loan to Yolo PBA Members.

To join the Yolo PBA network, visit its website and join the mailing list at www.tinyurl.com/yolopba. For questions, reach out the Bailey Adams, Yolo PBA Coordinator, at adams@yolorcd.org or call 530-661-6188.

As floods endanger the S.J. Valley, Newsom cuts funds for floodplains

By Mikhail Zinshteyn CalMatters

Last fall, when the state Legislature authorized $40 million for floodplain restoration, Julie Rentner knew just what she would do with it. Her group, River Partners, would spend more than a quarter of the funds buying a 500-acre dairy farm abutting the San Joaquin River in Stanislaus County.

Then millions more would be spent on removing debris, sheds, manure heaps and levees. They would plant native vegetation, and eventually restore the parcel to its natural state as a woodland and floodplain.

When floodplains like these are allowed to fill with water, they can reduce flooding impacts elsewhere along the river, so the project could protect communities downstream, including Stockton, which is highly vulnerable to flooding.

Rentner said crews of community members were ready to begin the work.

But in January, the money disappeared.

In a move that upset and baffled local leaders, conservationists and floodplain advocates, Gov. Gavin Newsom, in his 2023-24 budget

proposal, eliminated all $40 million that had been allocated for San Joaquin Valley floodplain restoration this year.

This year’s floods have highlighted the need for improved — and more equitably distributed — flood protection efforts throughout California. Restoring floodplains, many experts agree, is one of the most cost-effective ways to protect communities from flooding.

San Joaquin Valley lawmakers of both parties and local leaders say Newsom’s budget cut could endanger their communities, and that it signals a disparity in how the state distributes funding for flood protection. San Joaquin Valley communities vulnerable to flooding are largely home to underserved, low-income Latinos.

Sen. Susan Eggman, a Stockton Democrat, said this winter’s storms “underscore the need for significant new investments for flood protection.”

“It is imperative that the legislature reject the proposed $40 million cut for San Joaquin Valley floodplain restoration,” she said in an email to CalMatters.

To former Assemblyman Adam Gray, who rallied for floodplain restoration work

in the valley, the governor’s proposed $40 million cut demonstrates inequality in how the state distributes assistance. Gray and several lawmakers said the Central Valley’s low-income, disadvantaged communities often get cut first.

“When money gets dedicated to our region, some of the other regions don’t mind taking from us,” said Gray, D-Merced who served in the Assembly from 2012 through 2022.

It’s unclear what effect the funding cut will have on future flooding in Stockton and the rest of the San Joaquin Valley. But Rentner said if the dairy farm project had gone as planned, the land could have been partially restored already, absorbing floodwaters and potentially lessening impacts along the river in Stockton.

It remains to be seen if the funding cut will be included in the May revised budget and signed into law in the budget this summer.

But California Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot told CalMatters that the governor’s proposed budget, for now, renders all of the floodplain money unavailable.

In addition to the project in Stanislaus County, nine

other projects for restoring 2,400 acres along the San Joaquin River had been slated to begin, with their $13 million in funding now in limbo, Rentner said.

“These projects were shovel-ready,” Rentner said.

Restoring a floodplain typically involves removing, lowering or setting back levees to allow swollen rivers to expand laterally onto uninhabited land. This reduces pressure on levees elsewhere, lessening the chances that they’ll rupture. Most of California’s historic floodplains have been separated from rivers by levees and converted to agriculture.

“Levees effectively straitjacket the river and either push floodwaters downstream to unprotected communities or actually bottleneck a river and cause flooding upstream,” said Josh Viers, a professor of water resource management at UC Merced who has studied floodplains for more than 20 years. “Setting levees back gives the river room to roam.”

As scientists, environmentalists and legislators recognize the benefits of floodplains, interest in restoring them has grown across party lines. Floodplains also offer

seasonal foraging ground for juvenile salmon and nesting grounds for waterfowl. And they can help recharge the San Joaquin Valley’s depleted groundwater basins.

‘Nowhere for that water to go’

Mike Machado, a farmer near Linden who served in the State Assembly and Senate for 14 years, until 2008, said the governor’s proposal is one of many examples of the state choosing to fund flood protection projects for wealthy regions but not for poorer ones like the San Joaquin Valley.

“They conduct cost-benefit analyses to determine if the value of what they’re protecting is greater than the cost of protecting it,” Machado said. “In places like Pajaro and low-lying areas of San Joaquin County, the value of lives seems to be discounted to the value of economic wealth.”

Earlier this month, the rising Pajaro River broke through an aging levee that provides inadequate protection to the Monterey County town of Pajaro, forcing about 3,000 residents — largely Latino farmworkers

— to evacuate and damaging about 900 homes and buildings.

Republican Assemblymember Heath Flora, whose district includes the northern San Joaquin Valley, said the shortage of floodplain acreage along the San Joaquin River increases the region’s vulnerability to flooding. He said the nearrecord Sierra Nevada snowpack, when it melts, could cause even more flooding.

“If we get a warm spring, we are in big trouble,” Flora said. “We have nowhere for that water to go, and it’s coming, whether we like it or not.”

Flora said “it’s hard to understand” why the governor cut floodplain funds that have bipartisan support and could provide an array of benefits — not just for flood control but also creating new greenspaces and recreation opportunities.

“The low-income, underserved communities that the governor likes to talk about … this is their backyard, and so it’s interesting that we say we care about these people but inevitably the projects that affect them the most seem to be the first to get cut,” he said.

“To have (the floodplains funding) stripped away is

incredibly frustrating.”

Rentner of River Partners said the sooner the state spends the money in the San Joaquin Valley, the better.

“It’s really a fractional downpayment on improvements that we would have reaped the benefits of — even this year,” Rentner said. “If we don’t pay now, we’re going to have to pay a lot more later.”

Explaining why the funding was cut, Crowfoot said the state in recent years enjoyed a budget surplus, allowing for “historic investments … in these multibenefit floodplain investments.” But Newsom estimated in January that California is facing a budget deficit of about $22.5 billion.

“Then fiscal conditions changed quite rapidly and we found ourselves having to make cuts, and that’s not easy because we’re cutting priorities that we acknowledge to be priorities, which is why we funded them in the first place,” Crowfoot said.

“This does not represent a change or diminishment of our long-term priority to significantly expand floodplains in the San Joaquin Valley and beyond,” Crowfoot said.

The $40 million may be restored in the next budget cycle, he said.

“If fiscal conditions improve, and the general fund improves, it will be automatically restored,” he said. This could happen by what’s referred to as a fiscal trigger process, though it wouldn’t be until January. Newsom’s office did not respond to questions about his cuts to floodplain funding.

Tale of two valleys

Officials say vast differences in flood control infrastructure in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys illustrate the unequal investments in the two regions.

Along the Sacramento River, the vast Yolo Bypass, which covers tens of thousands of acres, is designed to take on floodwaters from the Sacramento River during and after storms. This helps ease pressure on the levees protecting Sacramento and ultimately reduces the risk of a devastating flood in the state’s capital. The smaller Sutter Bypass serves a similar function.

In comparison, the San Joaquin Valley lacks expansive areas where the river

can sprawl.

River Partners is nearing completion on a 2,000-acre floodplain project called Dos Rios Ranch Preserve at the confluence of the San Joaquin and Tuolumne rivers. But Machado said other projects to restore the San Joaquin Valley’s floodplains have lagged.

While the Yolo Bypass, which runs between Davis and Sacramento, is undergoing a substantial expansion, “there’s a proposal to do the same type of project on the San Joaquin River (that’s) never (been) finished,” he said. The Paradise

Cut Bypass Expansion Project, just upstream from Stockton, has not moved past the planning stage.

(The project has not been fully funded and is not part of the budget cuts.)

“It’s been, like, 15 years in the making,” said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta, an environmental justice group in Stockton.

“We always lose on infrastructure funding here.”

U.S. Representative Josh Harder, who represents parts of the Delta region and San Joaquin Valley in the House, said the

proposed cuts endanger a region he called “one of the most vulnerable in the nation to severe flooding.”

“Now is not the time to cut critical funding for floodplain management or any other flood mitigation efforts,” he said.

Assemblyman Carlos Villapudua said the defunded projects were already underway, making Newsom’s cuts even more devastating.

“We’ve already moved the ball down the field,” said Villapudua, a Stockton Democrat. “The planning process takes a lot of time

— man hours, labor hours. We understand that he (Newsom) needs to make cuts, but this is the one area he should not be taking money from, especially not right now.”

On March 24, Villapudua’s office asked lawmakers to sign a letter pleading with the governor to restore the funding. The letter has not yet been sent to Newsom as Villapudua gathers more signatures.

“It sometimes upsets me that he (Newsom) forgets about the Central Valley,” Villapudua said.

Photo by Martin do nasciMento calMatters

Walker Slough and the East San Joaquin River Levee in Stockton on March 25. These low-income neighborhoods could flood as water backs up from the San Joaquin River.

CANDIDATES: Council contenders take on the issues

you would advocate for to improve the city’s financial health?

Neville: In my professional life, I actually drafted the criteria that are used for the California State Auditor’s local government highrisk program to assess the fiscal health of all California cities. Davis falls pretty much in the middle when it’s ranked against other cities. But let’s not be in the middle. Let’s find creative ways to address our fiscal challenges.

We know we don’t have enough money to do all the things we want. We know our roads are in bad shape and we have a significant funding gap between what it will cost to repair them and what we reasonably expect to take in in revenue.

We also know that we have what feels like an overwhelming unfunded liability that we need to pay down related to our employee pensions and other benefits.

But there are ways to address it.

First, we need more revenue. This requires a robust economic development plan that sets out our priorities for attracting and retaining businesses in our downtown and other commercial hubs. We can’t flourish if we have empty retail spaces.

Second, we need to find ways for the innovative businesses that want to locate in and stay in Davis to stay here. This doesn’t need to be a large innovation park. But we need to tap into the talent produced here at (UC Davis) and make sure that those innovative businesses that want to locate in Davis can do so. These businesses and the jobs they create will invigorate our economy.

Wright: The city is required by law to submit a balanced budget, but that does not mean that we have filled sufficient staff vacancies to deliver high-quality services, nor have we set aside sufficient reserves to provide for the longterm maintenance needs of our roads, parks and facilities.

The annual shortfall is $7.6 million, or about 10 percent of the annual budget. Clearly, we need strategies to maximize revenue and includes property taxes, sales taxes, hotel taxes, while preserving the character of our town. This will require restoring vibrant retail, attracting tourism and facilitating ease of building permitting upgrades

I will support the arts, attractive public spaces, local business and improved

customer service in our building and permitting and land use planning. For example, we could increase property tax revenue by accelerating permitting of real property upgrades and infill. We could use smarter permit application screening tools that require less staff time. And we could add fees for expedited services that could pay for the additional staffing.

We need a champion to help our local businesses revitalize and our innovators to plant roots to grow the enterprises of the future. The city is in the process of hiring an economic developer. This person will need to meet our business leaders to identify barriers to break and opportunities to create.

The Davis downtown plan has the potential to bring significant changes to the city. Tell us about your highest priorities for implementation of the plan and why?

Wright: The downtown specific plan is the first area in our city to be regulated by form-based code. This new model promises to accelerate the permitting process. It has opened opportunity for increased building height up to seven stories in the core and densification along G Street and is projected to provide 1,000 more units of housing. This is not an action plan to be implemented, but rather a land-use planning guide for developers as they consider potential projects. The ability of developers to get financing is currently the greatest limiting factor for its implementation.

As a City Council member, my priority for the downtown plan will be to address two key missing areas, which are … planning for the trees … and envisioning street scapes and transportation options.

The issue of imagining transit as we densify currently lacks the people power needed to problem solve. Four of our six positions in our planning department have been vacant for over a year. The climate emergency demands we plan for a future of clean transportation.

Neville: Our new downtown plan positively transforms the way we do land-use planning in the downtown area. It provides project development applicants certainty about what they can build and where. It also removes many of the barriers that previously discouraged the development of multi-story, mixed-use developments that include housing — barriers such as

parking, density and setback requirements. But the downtown plan alone won’t revitalize our downtown economically, nor will it ensure that the housing we desperately need gets built.

I have two key priorities: In terms of housing, we need to put additional tools in place, such as a revenue stream for a Housing Trust Fund and possibly housing impact fees or commercial linkage fees that will truly serve as incentives to building the housing we need in the downtown area. Without these tools, the city has no leverage to require that a project applicant actually builds housing on any given parcel. If elected, putting these tools in place will be my top priority.

Economic vitality … the downtown plan needs to be accompanied by a robust economic development plan that sets out a proactive approach for attracting and retaining businesses to downtown that will bring in additional revenue to reinvigorate our downtown. We need to reach out to the owners of those vacant downtown spaces and work with them to find viable tenants. This is important because we absolutely need to generate additional revenue and our downtown is the key place to do this.

What are the top three issues raised by constituents in District 3?

Wright: The most frequent item I hear has to do with conditions of our roads and paths. The second thing has to do with housing. As I talk to young families, in particular, and especially those that are renters who want to get into a permanent home, houses are very expensive and there’s not very many available.

Thirdly, there’s issues of high expectations for services … and our staffing is at about three quarters of what it used to be and that’s because of budget

constraints. So ... figuring out what the priorities of the community (are) is an interfacing role that council members will need to address.

We have to let people know about opportunities for creating multigenerational housing on their property through infill and ADUs. One thing that hasn’t been talked about is I’m hearing there’s quite a few residential vacancies so we have an up-trending housing market and investors are holding vacant homes. I think we need to consider a residential vacancy tax … once we have the data to know how many of these there are. And of course we would need to account for extenuating circumstances of families.

Neville: No surprise, I’m hearing the same three things pretty much. Our roads are a mess. What are we going to do about the infrastructure? People are concerned about the affordability of housing and there are also concerns about homelessness.

In terms of addressing our roads … finding the money to repair the roads, this is where my background in public finance is going to be really helpful. There is money available, there are ways to find money to fix the roads…

But addressing housing affordability is really at the heart of my campaign. I know that we need to update our General Plan. This is key. And we’ve got to work together as a community to actually find common ground in terms of

what our vision is for our city’s future.

I’m going to promote the development of denser, more affordable housing by continuing to streamline our permitting process and putting other mechanisms in place, including a stable revenue stream for the Housing Trust Fund. These tools are essential if we’re really going to build the kind of housing that we need.

What is your vision for the city of Davis?

Neville: My vision is a city where children can safely ride their bikes to school; where people who want to live here can fulfill the dream of actually having stable housing; where it’s possible for working families to buy a home that is affordable; where we have a vibrant downtown that is flourishing and welcoming to everyone. I want our city to be welcoming, to be inclusive and sustainable. I want it to be a place where people of all walks of life can afford to live and thrive. Our housing unaffordability is literally turning us into a community that is pricing out lowand moderate-income families and that is not the community that I want to see in the future. I want to work very hard to make sure our community is as inclusive and affordable as we possibly can be. And the experience that I have working to solve complex public policy issues lends me to addressing this issue. I know how to take a problem apart, get the facts, really work, listen to the experts,

and I really dig in and I work hard to find solutions that will work for all of us.

Wright: Davis has had a very interesting history of attracting leaders who were willing to imagine something different. We have Village Homes, where the water that falls percolates into the ground and you can walk and gather fruit to bring back into your home, where it has a community center. We have a walkable town, where in most areas you can walk to a grocery store or ride your bike. These were put in place in the 80s with very visionary leaders who recognized that how we design our space influences how we use our space and it influences the connectivity between the people in our space.

And I would like us to restore that energy and look at all the amazing assets we have. We have a very creative town. We have incredible art. We have an array of small family restaurants. We have a wild area outside of the town. We have birds that people travel to see. I think we need to restore our image, revitalize our image as a vibrant place that cares about the earth, that cares about each other, that makes sure that there’s room for every person of every color and every economic background, that they can make it home. And that will happen with very good land-use planning, with very good communication with the community and with utilizing our commissions and talented members of our community. ORDER TO

To

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Golden Mountain International LLC is seeking a Managing Director full time DETAILS: Supervising guiding and delegating other senior leaders in their duties, appoint other managers and department heads Develop execute business strategies to achieve short- and long-term goals establish and carry out the organizational goals policies and procedures Supervise activities related to the products and serv i c e s c o n s u l t w i t h o t h e r s e n i o r l e a d e r s a n d e m p l o y e e s about general operations Direct and oversee financial and budgetary activities ventures analyze financial statements sales reports and other performance indicators Collaborate with senior leadership to build enterprise account management functions with scale expertise and process Assign Work and ensure that projects and services are completed on time help identify places to cut costs and to improve performance policies and programs Analyze industry trends to determine the most promising advertising plans and develo p f e a s i b l e b r a n d p r o m o t i o n s t r a t e g i e s i n l i n e w i t h s a l e s schedule and company's brand core values for sales growth and competition Initiate market research analyze findings to understand customers and market opportunities for the company's brand building, promotion and projects Establish and maintain relationship with customers government officials business partners and media representatives and use these relationships to develop and maintain the company

Francesca Wright, center, hangs out with her husband Lee Bartholomew and daughter Ayala Kalisher.

Donna Neville is pictured with husband Ted Grosholz and pup Ella.

ROCKNASIUM: Adding space for poles

to a limited height. There’s auto-belaying, which is climbing without a partner, but being able to get to the top with a harness. Then there’s top-roping which uses any of the ropes we have set up at the gym. With that one you use a partner to hold the rope for you as you climb. There’s also a quick orientation/ belay class that takes about half an hour. Then people are free to climb for as much as they can handle. We also have intro classes and some stellar instructors who give a more indepth orientation to the gym and more pointers on climbing technique.”

Beyond being a haven for novice climbers, the Rocknasium features over 5,000 square feet of vertical terrain fit for mountain goats disguised as advanced, human climbers to train. Regardless of skill level, climbing is an exercise that’s unique as it is challenging. Alongside the gym’s 16-foot boulder wall, boulder circuits, 110-plus climbing routes and 22-foot horizontal lead roof, the Rocknasium also has free-weight equipment, treadmills, belly dancing classes and pole-dancing classes in their studio.

“There’s not a right or

wrong way to climb. I’ve seen people of all different ages, sizes, abilities and levels be able to accomplish the same goal of starting here and finishing there but doing it all in different ways that suit them best,” said Latif before going into the Rocknasium’s expansion. “We took over the neighboring unit and added another 30% of space. We’re adding a new, 16-foot bouldering wall and we’re upgrading our workout area with more free weights, squat racks and cardio machines too. I also teach pole-dancing classes, and we have about 10 pole-dancing classes a week. So, we’re increasing the size of our studio pole space and will have six poles altogether so we can

better accommodate the high demand for our classes.”

Although the Rocknasium offers a litany of ways to exercise, its decades of success are, without a doubt, built upon a foundation of community the owners and employees have cultivated all the while.

“When I first moved to Davis to go to college, I had no sense of community and felt out of place. Then I got hired at the gym which brought me out of my shell because I met the core community of members here. My network of people I knew expanded with this common concept of climbing that united us all. I’ve climbed at gyms all over the world, and this is the only one where so many people

walk in and know almost everyone by name and have some connection with them,” said Latif. “Here, there’s a greater sense of community. We now do monthly potlucks and have some of the best-attended competitions for members to get everyone together for a good time. People call this their home and a safe space because of the community here we try to provide and maintain.”

The expansion work at the Rocknasium is expected to be finished within the next couple of months, but it’s open now for whoever wants to join this fun-loving, tight-knit community.

The Rocknasium is also hosting the Banff Mountain Film Festival at the Brunelle Theater on the Davis High School campus at 315 W. 14th St. from April 10 to 11. The gym is also featuring its first-ever Pole Dancing Showcase on May 20 at 7 p.m. Stay up to date on these events and everything else going on at the Rocknasium at www. rocknasium.com, by phone at 530-757-2902, in person at 720 Olive Dr, Suite S, or by its social media accounts — @rocknasium on Instagram or Rocknasium on Facebook.

— Reach Aaron Geerts at aaron.geerts@ mcnaughton.media.

ROBINSON: Younger writer gets a chance to shine, too

writers working in America today” (in addition to being “one of the greatest living science fiction writers”). Climate researchers have mentioned Robinson’s climate fiction (sometimes dubbed “cli-fi” rather than “sci-fi”) in their own articles.

In 2020, Robinson published “The Ministry for the Future,” a big, much-discussed book that offers Robinson’s most detailed depiction (to date) of a near future in which scientists and political leaders contend with problems triggered by climate change. On the cover of “The Ministry for the Future” is a plug from former president Barack Obama, who picked the novel as one of his “favorite books of the year.”

Commentator Ezra Klein, founder of the website Vox and now a columnist for the New York Times, wrote, “If I could get policymakers, and citizens, everywhere to read just one book this year, it would be Kim Stanley Robinson’s ‘The Ministry for the Future.’ “

And in 2022, Robinson published a memoir, “The High Sierra: A Love Story.” Robinson has been an avid backpacker in the Sierra since the 1970s. In the memoir he writes of how the stark rocky peaks of that mountain range have influenced his science fiction writing over the decades.

SHOOTING: Officers used drones, robots

From Page A1

conviction for assaulting a police officer in 2017, West Sacramento police said in text accompanying the video.

That’s why the SWAT team — comprising members of the Woodland and West Sacramento police departments and the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office — was deployed to serve the warrants, with Yolo County crisis negotiators also standing by.

They arrived in multiple vehicles, including an armored vehicle, at about 8 a.m. on the County Road 88C property in Dunnigan, where Perez resided in a blue tarp-covered trailer at the rear of the property, drone video shows.

“Within minutes of their arrival, officers attempted to make contact with Mr. Perez, but he did not respond,” authorities said. Over the course of about four hours, SWAT team members used a public-address system and called his known acquaintances to try to negotiate Perez’s surrender.

Sci-fi night

Novelist Kim Stanly Robinson, a resident of Davis since the late 1970s, will discuss his books, and science fiction generally, at “An Evening of Science Fiction” on Saturday, April 8, at 7:30 p.m., at Davis Senior High School’s Brunelle Performance Hall, 315 W. 14th St. in Davis. This free event is sponsored by the Yolo County Library, the Yolo County Library Foundation, and Stories on Stage Davis.

Registration is required. To register for this free event, visit: tinyurl.com/scifievening2023. Yolo County Library Foundation and Stories on Stage Davis are accepting donations through the registration link to further support early childhood literacy, literature and theater arts. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the event begins at 7:30 p.m. The Avid Reader will sell Robinson’s books and the author will be available for signing after the event.

All this publicity has netted numerous speaking engagements for Robinson.

On March 1, Robinson spoke at the University of San Diego, warning that “we are in a situation of high danger ... things are heating up.” On March 7, Robinson was the Climate Day speaker at a large convention in Anaheim, and told listeners that taking action on climate change is an “all hands on deck situation.” In midMarch, spoke at the University of Utah, and told the Salt Lake Tribune “we’ve already started a catastrophe. Now the project is to minimize that catastrophe by every means we can think up.”

When Robinson speaks on April 8 in Davis, he’ll offer thoughts about his recent

books, and take questions from the audience. Actor Tim Gaffaney will read one of Robinson’s short stories set on Mars.

And for this librarysponsored Davis event, Robinson judged science fiction short-short stories written by Yolo County high school students. The winning story has an eerie title: “We Made the Afterlife Better” written by Tristan Cooper, a 12thgrader at Winters High School. “The thing I like about science fiction is that it’s somewhat realistic,” Cooper told The Enterprise via email. “It’s fun to theorize and think about because it’s realistically feasible in the real world. Also, future stuff is just cool.”

Several student actors

from Davis Senior High School will read Cooper’s story onstage, including 11th-grader Truman Duren, who is an aspiring writer himself, interested in using science fiction to “portray the fear and possibility of the unknown.” Another student reading Cooper’s story is Ila Oakley Bremson, an 11-grader who enjoys performing, reading, and spending time outdoors.

The officers also used a robot to breach the trailer’s front door and deployed two small drones into the residence, but they became disabled after entering, police said. The released video also showed several officers inserting a pole camera into the trailer’s bathroom, where Perez apparently grabbed at the device.

At that point, officers retreated from the trailer and made additional announcements over the PA system, and later tossed a cell phone into the trailer to get Perez to communicate, but again got no response.

“Facing a lack of communication and Mr. Perez

barricaded in the trailer, officers deployed CS gas (tear gas) to gain compliance,” police said.

That measure forced Perez’s exit from the trailer, which he made with what appeared to be a kitchen knife in his right hand, his clothing already bloodied in areas from an unknown source.

“Show me your hands! Drop the knife!” officers ordered repeatedly as Perez left the trailer, turned and began walking to the right, where several SWAT officers stood positioned behind a tree.

A West Sacramento police officer first struck Perez with a less-lethal 40mm round, “but it was ineffective, and Mr. Perez maintained possession of the knife,” police said.

Another West Sacramento officer positioned inside the armored vehicle fired two shots from his service weapon, causing a fatal wound to Perez’s torso. Drone footage shows him collapsing onto the ground, the knife falling from his hand.

The officers and paramedics that had been stationed nearby began medical aid on the wounded Perez, but he died at the scene.

West Sacramento Police Chief Rob Strange identified the officer who fired the fatal shots as a 7½-year veteran of the agency who, after being placed on administrative leave following the shooting, has been authorized to return to duty while continuing to cooperate with the ongoing investigation into the incident.

The Davis Police Department’s completed investigation will be reviewed by the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office, a process that Strange said likely will take several months.

Courtesy photo

Work continues to make Rocknasium bigger and better.

From Page A1

Citrus Circuits wins Sacramento robotics competition

Special to The Enterprise

Davis robotics team 1678 Citrus Circuits took first place the annual Sacramento Regional at the ARC Pavilion at UC Davis, which it hosted. This event included a total of 46 teams from throughout California and a team from Shanghai, China. The competition ran from March 24 to 26, and is Citrus Circuits’ second regional competition triumph of the season.

At the competition, Citrus Circuits went undefeated for 10 matches during qualifications, ranking second overall. They were then chosen to compete with their alliance partners, Team 254 The Cheesy Poofs from San Jose, and Team 3189 Circuit Breakers from Placerville.

Their alliance won four matches in the double-elimination round before taking home the title after two successful finals matches.

Citrus Circuits also earned the Excellence in Engineering Award for the second time this season, which is awarded for demonstrating a professional approach to the design process. The team was recognized for their innovative approach to balancing on the

Charging Station during the endgame.

During the regional, Citrus Circuits led several different tours at the event for Girl Scout troops from Davis, Woodland and Dixon, as well as participants from the team’s Women in STEM Empowerment (WISE) program for elementary-school girls. The students were able to observe robots being worked on up close, as well as watch matches between teams. Members of 1678 also served as volunteers to help run the tournament throughout the weekend.

This year, teams are playing FIRST’s 2023 game Charged Up presented by The Gene Haas Foundation. In this game, each match begins with a 15-second autonomous period where teams cannot manually control their robot and must instead run an autonomous program to score cones and cubes into an upper, middle and lower goal located at the end of the field.

After the first 15 seconds, teams gain control of their robots to continue scoring and in the last 30 seconds attempt to balance up to three robots on the Charging Station.

Citrus Circuits was founded in

Pets of the week

Lots of animals are waiting for “forever homes” at the Yolo County Animal Shelter, 2640 E. Gibson Road in Woodland.

Among them is Shaggy (A200827), a Rhodesian ridgeback mix who’s 9 months old, fun and full of smiles smiles. Shaggy has movie-star good looks and is a sweetheart that came in as a stray. Shaggy had a rough start in ice but adjusted quickly to lots of TLC and playtime.

Also hoping for a good home is Hello Dolly (A201580), a friendly and exquisite 4-year-old shorthaired black rabbit. Dolly is litter-box trained, loving and playful. She and her

brother Mufasa have lived indoors and have been delightful while waiting for their forever family.

For information on adopting, contact adoptycas@gmail.com. All shelter animals are up-todate on vaccinations, microchipped, and spayed or neutered.

Staff is available to assist via phone during business hours at 530-668-5287. Shelter hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Friday, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays. To meet any adoptable YCAS animals, visit friendsofycas.org. To volunteer, sign up at tinyurl.com/yolovolunteer app. Follow on at @ycas. shelter and Instagram at

Citrus

2004, and is based at Davis High School. The team consists of almost 100 students from high schools and junior high schools in the

Davis Joint Unified School District. Major sponsors include UC Davis, DJUSD, TechnipFMC, Lockheed Martin, Bayer and Intuitive.

of a

this

The team will be competing next at the Silicon Valley Regional in San Jose on April 6 to 8. For more information go to www.citruscircuits.org.

Lab Puppies

@yoloanimalshelter.

Rotts of Friends Animal Rescue has eight adorable, 3-week-old Labrador cross puppies.They will be ready to go to their new homes in about six weeks, but you can put a deposit down now to hold one. All pups come up-to-date on vaccines, are microchipped and will be spayed or neutered at a later date by

Rotts’ vet. The shelter will cover the cost. They also come with free lifetime obedience training classes.

Carmela is a beautiful 1to 2-year-old spayed female Rottweiler with a happy wagging natural tail. This girl is very friendly, walks well on leash, knows some commands and is cratetrained. She will make a wonderful addition for a

family with older children or a new best friend for a couple or single person.

Rotts of Friends won’t be having an adoption morning on Saturday. The staff will be at Paws-For-ACause Walkathon benefiting the Solano SPCA. Interested people can call Renee at 530-681-1326 to set up a private appointment.

Bring proof of homeownership, such as a mortgage statement or property tax bill. If you rent, bring proof that you are allowed to have a dog in your home, such as a pet clause in your lease or a note from your landlord.

All dogs adopted from Rotts of Friends are healthy, microchipped, upto-date on their vaccines and come with free lifetime obedience-training classes. For information, visit facebook.com/rottsoffriends.

Special to The Enterprise

Carmela

Hello Dolly Shaggy

Courtesy photo

Circuits and their alliance partners complete a successful triple balance at the end

finals match at

month’s regional robotics competition in the ARC Pavilion at UC Davis.

10 performances from pop to folk head to Mondavi

By Jeff Hudson Enterprise correspondent

Ten very different performances over some twelve days — from American roots music to European art music to contemporary pop music. That's the busy schedule at the Mondavi Center between Friday, March 31, and Tuesday, April 11.

This weekend

n Arty chanteuse Meow Meow will bring her singular style of elegant (and also surprising) cabaret entertainment, backed by a trio of drums, cello, and piano, to — the Jackson Hall stage at the Mondavi Center on Friday, March 31, at 7:30 p.m., backed by a trio (drums, cello, piano).

The Boston Globe described her onstage presence thus: “Meow Meow performs song-anddance numbers (in various languages) and monologues from comic to mournful ... If she’s the cat, we’re the ball of yarn.” Meow Meow has done an album with Pink Martini, titled “Hotel Amour.”

Tickets are $95-$35 general, limited seats available at MondaviArts. org and at the door.

n Ranky Tanky with Dom Flemons is an ensemble of musicians who hail from coastal lowlands of South Carolina who specialize in folksy/rootsy music that draws on African American traditions.

Ranky Tanky’s 2020 album

“Good Time” received a Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music album, and the group won a second Grammy this year for a live album recorded in New Orleans.

Ranky Tanky performs at the Mondavi Center on Saturday, April 1, 7:30 p.m. tickets are $65-$25 general, MondaviArts.org and at the door.

n The Alexander String Quartet will return on Sunday, April 2, at 2 p.m. with chamber music of Antonin Dvorák: the String Quartet in A-flat Major, Op. 105, and the String Quartet in G Major, Op. 106, both dating from 1895, when Dvorák was at the peak of his powers as a composer.

Music historian and composer Robert Greenberg will offer commentary. Tickets are $65-$35 general, MondaviArts.org and at the door.

Next week

n Sammy Miller and the

Congregation — a sevenpiece band (drums, trumpet, sax, piano, bass, sousaphone, vocals) that plays a energetic (and occasionally irreverent) traditional “joyful jazz” with a bit of vaudeville theatricality on the side — performs in the intimate Vanderhoef Studio Theatre for three nights next week. The group has played the Kennedy Center and clubs such as SFJazz. Shows are Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 6-8, all at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $45-$65 general, MondaviArts.org and at the door.

n The Hella Cappella showcase — organized by The Spokes, described as “UC Davis' premiere allfemale-identifying a cappela group” — returns for this 19th annual extravaganza on Friday, April 7, at 7:30 p.m. in Jackson Hall. Also participating will be pop vocal ensembles from UCLA, UC Berekeley, Stanford, the University of Oregon, and UC Davis.

This popular event featuring student talent usuallly draws a big, enthusiastic crowd, and has sold out the house in some years. Tickets are $38 general, MondaviArts. org, and at the door.

n Russian-born pianist

UC Davis’ free April concerts feature new, creative music

By Michael G. French Special to The Enterprise

From new works by graduate student composers to diverse music ensembles celebrating Picnic Day, the UC Davis department of music offers a variety of free performances in April.

In three concerts of premieres by UC Davis graduate composition students, including Orkun Akyol, Peter Chatterjee, Paul Engle, Max Gibson, Jacob Lane, Trey Makler, Bryndan Moondy, James R. Larkins, Joseph Donald Peterson, Emily Joy Sullivan, Joseph Vasinda, and Zoë A. Wallace, will be performed at the Ann E. Pitzer Center.

n Icelandic violinist Hrabba Atladottir now living in Davis, who has appeared with several Northern California ensembles as well as the UC Davis Empyrean Ensemble, performs new pieces for solo violin on April 7 at 5 p.m.

n PinkNoise, an ensemble known for its contemporary improvisational performance practice, performs graduate student

works on April 13 at 12:05 p.m. as part of the Shinkoskey Noon Concert series. In addition, PinkNoise will perform its own unique program on April 14 at 5 p.m.

n Violist Wendy Richman, a founding member of the International Contemporary Ensemble and regular violist with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, gives the first performance of graduate student compositions on April 28 at 5 p.m.

The department of music offers a performance and the opportunity to explore the Sound Lab on Picnic Day, April 15.

n In the Music Courtyard, located between the Pitzer Center and the Music Building on Hutchinson Drive, visitors can enjoy students performing in the Bluegrass and Old Time String Band, Mariachi, AfroCuban, and Capoeira ensembles, performing music from Cuba to Brazil, to Appalachia. Performance begins at 11 a.m., and from 10 to 10:45 a.m. visitors can see the many different instruments

explained and demonstrated.

n During “Sound + Humans = Magic” students (“Humans”) will perform live electronic music (“Sound”) starting at 10 a.m., with the audience outside, on the (North) Mrak Hall lawn.

Starting at 11 a.m., visitors are welcome into the Sound Lab to get handson experience with some of their synthesizers and other sound-producing tools.

This Picnic Day event is at the Sound Lab located in the Art Annex, 221 Cushing Way, beginning at 10 a.m.

Also, “A New Life for the Harpsichord” on April 20 at 12:05 p.m. features Faythe Vollrath, a UC Davis lecturer in music, in a concert that features 20thcentury works composed for an instrument primarily associated with Baroque music, along with flute, oboe, clarinet, violin and cello. Cathie Apple, Cindy Behmer, (also a UC Davis lecturer), Sandra McPherson, Amy Lindsay and Timothy Stanley join Vollrath to perform works by Elliott Carter, Manuel

Vladimir Feltsman returns to Jackson Hall on Saturday, April 6, at 7:30 p.m. with program of music for solo piano from the late 1700s and early 1800s by W.A. Mozart and Franz Schubert — both became remarkably talented composers while in their teens, and were also fine pianists; alas, both also died while in their 30s.

Feltsman emerged as a prominent young pianist in the 1960s/70s; he left the Soviet Union in the 1980s and settled in the

U.S. Now 71, Feltsman has an extensive discography; he is a regular at the Aspen Music Festival and also gives concerts several times a year in New York, Florida, and elsewhere. Tickets are $79-$45 general, MondaviArts.org and at the door.

n On Monday, April 10, and Tuesday, April 11, (both at 7:30 p.m.), noted American conductor James Conlon will lead performances of music by composers Erich Wolfgang Korngold, Arnold Schoenberg, Franz Schreker,

Alexander von Zemlinsky — European composers of Jewish heritage who rose to prominence in the early 20th Century, then had their musical careers derailed (and in some cases ended prematurely) as the Nazis came to power. Titled “Recovered Voices,” these two concerts will feature musicians from the Colburn School of Music in Los Angeles. Tickets will be free to the public, available online at MondaviArts.org.

Concert endowment. For information about additional concerts and performances by the

College of Letters and Science’s department of music, visit arts.ucdavis. edu/music.

de Falla and Libby Larson. The concert in the Pitzer Center is made possible by the Shinkoskey Noon

Scott Lind/courte Sy photo

Members of UC Davis Bluegrass and Old Time String Band will perform on Picnic Day this year.

courte Sy photo

Sammy Miller and The Congregation will play at the Mondavi Center from April 6 to 8 in the Vanderhoef Studio Theater.

‘Rye Lane’: Definitely worth a visit

Rom-com is a dazzling treat for the senses

By Derrick Bang Enterprise film critic

This is such a colorful, effervescent sparkler: a truly giddy cinematic romp.

Director Raine AllenMiller’s accomplished feature debut, a 2023 Sundance crowd-pleaser, has been dubbed the next evolution of romantic comedies. The elements are classic, but Allen-Miller’s execution gets much of its razzle-dazzle from Victoria Boydell’s kinetic editing and cinematographer Olan Collardy’s dynamic camera placement and lens choices, which take maximum advantage of the vibrant South London settings.

In lesser hands, the result would be a cacophonous mess, but AllenMiller knows precisely how to structure each scene for maximum charm. The resulting film races through its economical 82 minutes, leaving us breathless and wanting more. (A refreshing change, that, given the bloat that afflicted so many recent high-profile Hollywood entries.)

Dom (David Jonsson)

and Yas (Vivian Oparah) meet cute under awkward circumstances: in a bank of unisex toilets at his friend’s art exhibition, where he’s sobbing noisily in one stall, reeling from a recent break-up. Embarrassment prompts a rapid return to composure, of sorts, and that might have been the end of it.

But Yas is buoyant, giddy and difficult to ignore; she

Starring: David Jonsson, Vivian Oparah, Karene Peter, Benjamin Sarpong-Broni

Available via: Hulu

also talks a mile a minute. Dom is transfixed: a moth hovering in her incandescent glow, and a spark ignites. They linger together long enough for him to pour out his troubles, because he’s that way: wearing his heart on his sleeve. Yas is a good listener.

But then he departs, reluctantly, for a final meeting with his ex, Gia (Karene Peter), to obtain closure of a sort. That’s a difficult proposition, given that she cheated with — and now is in a relationship with — his best friend, Eric (Benjamin SarpongBroni). It becomes clear, as this café encounter begins, that Gia is a self-centered bee-yatch who expects Dom to be comfortable with her version of their break-up.

Before Dom can humiliate himself further, by agreeing with this nonsense, Yas unexpectedly crashes the gathering. Pretending to be Dom’s new main squeeze, she turns things completely upsidedown, with a breathtaking few minutes’ worth of snide comments, subtle putdowns, not-so-subtle digs and pointed accusations. Gia and Eric can’t quite fathom what has hit them

(Sarpong-Broni is hilariously clueless).

We’re on the floor, laughing so hard that it hurts.

What follows borrows from the giddy, 24-hour “chat structure” of 1995’s “Before Sunrise,” as Dom and Yas navigate various parts of South London. But the atmosphere here is different than that of Richard Linklater’s earlier genre classic; Allen-Miller goes more for the magical intensity of succumbing to love, when every hour — every minute — seems timeless, and a single day feels like it’ll never end.

These two twentysomethings are captivating opposites. Yas is energetic, witty and unapologetically chaotic: a free spirit who seems unfazed by anything. Dom is quieter, hesitant, disinclined to be bold; he carefully chooses his words and actions. They initially revisit their individually

familiar, weird and wonderful South London haunts — The Horniman Gardens, Brixton, Peckham Rye — seeing them anew through each other’s eyes; we eagerly tag along for the ride.

Collardy favors a fish-eye lens, which rounds all sharp angles and corners: perfectly fitting the renewed manner in which Dom and Yas enjoy their surroundings.

This sight, sound and dialogue montage features an unexpected cameo by a high-profile British actor, under circumstances that include a droll inside joke.

The subsequent phase, in a nifty display of specialeffects flashbacks, finds Dom and Yas observing and re-living each other’s ego-crushing moments. The takeaway — to Dom’s surprise — is that Yas isn’t quite as self-assured as she seems: a revelation highlighted by a theater filled

with a couple hundred Doms, witnessing her discomfiture with a wide variety of reactions (both audacious and quite funny).

Although the story is punctuated by dozens of briefly glimpsed sidebar characters — given droll monikers such as “Hoverboard Guy,” “Peckham Cowboy,” “Popcorn Man” and “Restaurant Crooner” — Jonsson and Oparah pretty much carry this film by themselves.

They have no trouble doing so.

Their shared chemistry is palpable, their joyous enthusiasm granting both a warm glow (although that could be more of Collardy’s camera tricks). The experience is exhilarating, as if we’re just a few steps behind them at every moment, bathing in the radiance of their mutual discovery and sparkling banter.

(Be advised, though: You’ll likely need subtitles. Everybody’s South London accents are extremely thick. And — trust me — you don’t want to miss a single delicious word.)

The equally lively underscore and soundtrack come from London-based music producer, composer and artist Kwes, whose input deftly compliments the ups and downs of Dom and Yas’ courtship.

After the depressing slog through so many dreary Best Picture Oscar nominees, it’s refreshing to experience a film that understands the powerful joy of cinema.

I look forward to whatever Allen-Miller does next.

— Read more of Derrick Bang’s film criticism at http://derrickbang. blogspot.com. Comment on this review at www. davisenterprise.com.

Introducing new podcasting services

By Autumn Labbé-Renault

Special to The Enterprise

The last two decades have witnessed incredible acceleration and wholesale change in media technology, and during that time I’ve used and written about these changes as they affect life here in Yolo County.

From tape-based production to digital files and on-demand to live streaming, I’ve chronicled what our community asks for, how they use it, and what has staying power.

And it’s a clear case of the more things change, the more things stay the same. Because in the end, what perennially reemerges is quality audio production, and in particular, the kinds that keep us connected locally.

When I was on the air weekly during the pandemic with the “COVID-10 Community Report,” my inbox was flooded with kind words from listeners who told me that hearing my voice — and

Davis MeDia aCCess

those of my guests — each week was a sort of lifeline.

As we work towards completing phase one of a remodel and reopening more fully, our staff at Davis Media Access has been focusing on launching a new suite of podcast services, part of our paid services menu.

DMA has been teaching community members how to obtain good audio during video production since 1988, when we were called Davis Community Television. And since 2004, when we launched low-power radio station KDRT, we’ve taught those same skills to community producers in the radio environment.

So, what exactly is a podcast?

It’s a prerecorded, evergreen show that listeners can stream at their convenience or download to listen to later.

Podcasters choose their topics, typically record and edit themselves, and post on the platform(s)

Pence Gallery hosts annual garden tour

Enterprise staff

Enjoy a self-guided tour through five private gardens in Davis on the Pence Gallery’s Garden Tour from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 7.

Watch painters Allison Spreadborough, Sophie Banspach, Barbara Smithson, Teresa SteinbachGarcia, Marie-Therese Brown, Kathleen Gamper, and Raquel Cox create beautiful landscapes right before your eyes. Yolo County Master Gardeners will teach plant selection and landscaping.

Attendees should visit the Pence to purchase art for the garden (see below), or to pick up a gift bag (limited to the first 200 people) with special discounts and treats. This event provides essential funds to support the mission of the Pence Gallery, a nonprofit art organization.

Tickets are $25 in advance for members, $30 for non-members, or $35 on the day of the event. Online ticket sales open April 5 through pencegallery.org, which can be mailed to you with a small additional mailing fee or picked up at the Pence starting April 7.

Tickets are available for purchase in person on April 7 and will be sold through Redwood Barn, Newsbeat and the Pence Gallery.

of their choice. Their short, topical segments frequently have niche appeal — though some have amassed huge followings — and many people listen during their daily run or commute.

You might think that podcast listenership declined during the COVID-19 pandemic because people were no longer listening on their daily commutes. Writing for media analytics giant Burrelles, Craig Nolden notes, “When people are forced to spend more time indoors, they naturally end up spending more time consuming media.

This was true for my fellow coworkers on the East Coast during the 2016 Snowpocalypse, and it’s true now for COVID-19. Podcasting has been great attracting new listeners who just want some normalcy in a time that is anything but normal.” (https://burrelles.com/whypodcasting-has-survived-andthrived-during-covid-19/).

The other development in recent years is that the nonprofits, as well as members of academia, have added podcasts or are required to create them as part of the grants they receive, and that’s really driven the new suite of services. Recently, DMA’s Production Manager Jeff Shaw and Training Manager Alex Silva-Sadder worked with Hui International on their podcast series.

Executive Director Lucy Morse Roberts said, “Hui International (aka CalGalsMedia) was thrilled to partner with Davis Access Media as we launched our podcast, Unlimited Possibilities: Uplifting Women's Voices and Visions for a Better World.

“Jeff trained our team and Alex assisted in producing our podcasts in English and Dari. Through our partnership with DMA, we were able to share women's voices and visions for transforming the lives of other women and creating a better and

more just world for all. The voices shared were dynamic, diverse and inspirational. We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with DMA,” Morse said. Learn more about Hui International at https:/huiinternational.org Podcasting can be generalized into three areas: Planning, Production, and Publication. What’s needed by anyone at each stage might vary, so DMA has broken things down based on the level of support that might be needed, and what DMA can provide given its mission, values, and operational capacity.

Want to learn more? Please visit https://davismedia.org/content/dma-podcast-services-overview and let us know how we help with your podcast projects.

— Autumn Labbé-Renault is executive director of Davis Media Access in Davis, where she uses local media as a tool for strategic community engagement and doing good. Reach her at autumn@davismedia.org.

Davis Rep stages ‘En Las Sombras’ reading

Enterprise staff Davis Repertory Theatre presents “En Las Sombras,” the second performance in its Saturday Series, presented in partnership with Yolo County Library.

The group will stage “En Las Sombras,” written by Jordan Ramirez Puckett, at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 15, in the Blanchard Room at the Stephens Branch Library, 315 E. 14th St. in Davis.

Royalties for this production will be donated to RAICES (The Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, www.raicestexas.org) and the Davis Phoenix Coalition (www.davisphoenixco. org.)

Inspired by the separation of families at the southern U.S. border, the play received multiple awards at the 2021

Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, including the Darrell Ayers National Playwriting Award, the Latinx Playwriting Award, and an award for Distinguished Achievement. It has received readings nationwide at theatres including Orlando Shakes, Keegan Theatre (Washington DC), parity productions (New York), and Central Washington University.

Of the play’s dynamic tone, Ramirez Puckett says, “The story incorporates a tremendous amount of childlike wonder and play while incorporating some Mayan mythological traditions. But there is also a real terror and horror vibrating underneath everything that is happening.”

“En Las Sombras” is an adventurous parable that fol-

lows Xenia and Luz, two children traveling with their mother to God's Gate.

On the other side is the promise of safety and a life free from hunger and suffering, but when Xenia and Luz are separated from their mother, it becomes clear that the gods may not be quite ready to share the riches that lie beyond. “This myth asks us to consider why we've allowed our gods to become so powerful and what we can do to stop them,” a news release said.

The reading will be performed in English with ASL interpretation. It is appropriate for children ages 10 and up.

About the artists

Jordan Ramirez Puckett (playwright) is a Latiné

writer from the Bay Area, currently living in New York. Their plays include “Transitional Love Stories,” “The Battery,” “En Las Sombras,” “To Saints and Stars,” “A Driving Beat,” “Las Pajaritas,” “Restore” and “Inevitable.”

Nicole C. Limón (director) is an actor/director/playwright and theatre faculty at CSU Sacramento. She is founder of Matriarchy Theatre and Associate Artistic Director of Teatro Espejo. Recent directing credits include “Everybody,” “Dance Nation,” “Quantum,” “Fade” and “Blood at the Root.” Limón holds an MFA in Acting from UC Davis, studied at the Centre for Indigenous Theatre in Toronto, and is a member of Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.

Courtesy photo

Yas (Vivian Oparah) and Dom (David Jonsson) stumble their way into a relationship against all manner of colorful and playful South London locales.

YOLOlaughs

By Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

Charles M. Schulz

Disasters show what our priorities are

By José Vadi

Special to The Enterprise

California has consistently responded to threats to our infrastructure, seasonally now with the increased impacts of climate change. Yet the stratification of our priorities building infrastructure was exposed in the wake of the floods that struck Pajaro Valley between Santa Cruz and Salinas.

Much of this past month exposed the infrastructure problems glaringly facing the state of California: Its past, present and future relationship laid bare by the Pajaro Valley floods, the Silicon Valley bank failure, and the prolonged, over-budget highspeed rail project in the Central Valley.

California experiences nearly every type of emergency a year, seasonally switching our concerns like the weather was a traffic jam commute. But the progressive stereotype of California is sullied in times of emergency by our judgment through inconsistent approaches to aid and response. The victims are frequently the poor and undocumented, yet the major players of Silicon Valley and its network of wealth are priority protected.

The Silicon Valley Bank crisis started Wednesday, March 8, with a massive selloff and bank-run by anti-regulation, free market shareholders who later pleaded for urgent government aid and takeover intervention. By Sunday, the Biden administration had announced SVB investors’ money would be available by the start of the next workweek. Less than a week and a key component of the infrastructure of Silicon Valley was saved.

More funds are also being requested by the California High-Speed Rail Authority, whose recent report estimated that the new price tag for the initial Central Valley portion would cost $35 billion, up from its initial $22.8 billion estimate. Meanwhile, the official ridership projections had dropped by 25%. Republicans are already calling for dismantling what’s been constructed of the high-speed rail before most Californians have even seen it.

All of these issues surrounding the state’s economic, transit and safety infrastructure smacked capital leaders in the face this month. Pajaro is an unincorporated community devoid of much of the infrastructures of their Monterey neighbors. Though it was recognized as early as the 1960s that Pajaro’s levees, built in the late 1940s, were “not adequate” for the water system it holds, Monterey County never invested in repairs because doing so for a low-income community never benefited their balance sheet. Multiple floods have tormented the valley since, with this year’s the most brutal example.

Commentary Letters

We’re behind on high-speed rail, and decades behind on much more accessible and doable technologies as a levee for a town’s proper water system. And we see the economic sway Silicon Valley has on the state and federal level. But like the counties that tolerate the open problems of their unincorporated neighbors, the question for the state is prioritizing those infrastructural plans that recognize innovation and ambition, like high-speed rail, and the ability to withstand ever-violent storms and longer California winters in the state’s agricultural hubs.

Will we invest in communities who, through their blood, sweat and labor, give industries billions in profits? Will we provide them basic public services in 2023?

Just beyond Silicon Valley are the very real needs of towns like Pajaro, towns that level up to a massive ag industry.

Indeed, who will win the race between the effects of climate change on California and the state’s willingness to build support for the most vulnerable? This month, we were reminded the cost of losing.

— José Vadi is the author of “Inter State: Essays From California” and “Chipped,” a forthcoming nonfiction collection on skateboarding. His work has appeared in the Paris Review, The Atlantic, PBS NewsHour, the San Francisco Chronicle, Free Skate Magazine, Alta Journal and the Yale Review.

Local officials try to strike back

Immediately after state legislators passed the landmark SB 9 and 10 in 2021, taking most local landuse decisions away from city councils and county supervi sors, resentful local officials vowed to run a referendum campaign and kill those new laws.

The two measures essentially eliminated R-1 single family zoning everywhere in California, allowing up to six housing units on lots formerly limited to one and making approval automatic for high rise residential buildings on all streets reasonably close to mass transit.

That meant easy permitting, for example, for buildings up to five stories on any street where officials suddenly open a new bus line. It was not limited to areas in walking distance of rail or subway stops.

But the referendum mounted by dozens of local officials never got off the ground that year, partly because the coronavirus pandemic drove the cost of gathering initiative petition signatures to unprecedented heights — as much as $16 per signature in some parts of the San Francisco Bay area.

So the promised anti-density referendum never made the 2022 state ballot and the landmark laws remain on the books. Neither has produced much action as yet, in large part because no one has demonstrated that the authorized

Neville for City Council

new housing would be profitable. There’s also a shortage of construction workers.

By contrast, a previous law allowing “ADUs” — additional dwelling units often called “granny flats” — on virtually all onetime R-1 properties has produced major results. It is hard to find a significant home remodel or rebuild in this state that does not include one. Some cities are making ADUs major policy instruments in efforts to satisfy state housing density requirements.

No one knows whether most of these are occupied by renters or family members of the property owners. But some longtime property owners are downsizing into new ADUs, allowing their adult children and families to move into their properties’ main houses.Into this picture now step some of the same folks who vowed in 2021 that they’d repeal SB 9 and 10.

They hope to circulate petitions for a new initiative aimed not only at those two laws, but the other housing

density requirements now being imposed around California via a spate of new laws passed by pro-density legislators led by state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who has spearheaded this movement for most of the last decade.

Wiener claims only massive new construction can solve the state’s housing shortage, variously estimated at anywhere from 1 million to 3.5 million dwelling units by state authorities over the last five years.

That, of course, ignored the vast store of vacated office buildings, mini-malls and big box stores created by the pandemic. It’s much cheaper and faster to convert them to housing than building new units while fighting off lawsuits and ever-inflating costs for materials, land and labor. Held up by labor unions and legislators until recently, conversions are now taking off.

The putative new initiative would likely not interfere with those changes, because they cause little variation in building footprints and won’t alter neighborhoods.

But it could stymie more attempts by the state to take over land use decisions long the purview of local governments and local ballot measures.

“We’d like to fix the ambiguities some people saw in our previous proposed

listens extremely, that she is someone who has a vast well of experience in public policy to draw upon, and you also know that she is someone that will move decisively once she has the facts.

initiative” said Anita Enander, a city councilwoman and former mayor of Los Altos Hills, near San Jose. “Our new effort should be more generally supportable. It would simply say that when state law and local land use laws conflict, the local ones will prevail. A lot of people don’t want extreme dense housing. They just want to live in their own homes.”

Added Dennis Richards, a former longtime member of the San Francisco planning commission, “Taking this field away from local government is a way of wiping out democracy.

People like Wiener are saying it does not matter what local residents think about their own cities, or how they’ve voted.”

Historically, local control has usually won out over centralized planning when Californians have voted on it. Sponsors of the hoped-for measure say polling indicates 60 percent to 65 percent approval. Even if it’s not actually that high, don’t bet against this effort once it gets going. Email Thomas Elias at tdelias@aol.com. His book, "The Burzynski Breakthrough, The Most Promising Cancer Treatment and the Government’s Campaign to Squelch It" is now available in a softcover fourth edition. For more Elias columns, visit www.californiafocus.net

I got to know Donna Neville when we both served on the city of Davis Finance and Budget Commission. I will never forget the day Donna was sworn in as her late father was there and he was beaming with pride for his daughter as he, too, has served on a city commission — The Senior Citizen Commission. Service is in her blood and indeed Donna spent her career as an attorney in public service for the State of California.

During our time together on FBC I became more and more impressed with Donna’s ability to synthesize data to get to the heart of an issue. We also became friends, and I enjoy our walks along with Ella, her blonde Golden Retriever, despite Ella’s need for lots of petting and shedding all over me.

To know Donna, as I do, is to recognize that she is someone that will always do her homework, that she is someone that

Speak out

President

When I moved on from FBC to the Planning Commission, I was pleased to be able to turn the duties of chair over to Donna. She is a leader I trusted, and for the citizens of District she is a leader you will be honored to have represent you.

Michelle Weiss Davis

Wright for City Council

Francesca Wright is an inclusive and innovative leader who is not going to follow insular ways of doing things that have led to stalled Davis business opportunity and housing logjams.

With her experience, Francesca successfully brought about constructive change to how we keep each other safe and how we plan and implement policy. As a leader within Yolo People Power,

The Hon. Joe Biden, The White House, Washington, D.C., 20500; 202-456-1111 (comments), 202-456-1414 (switchboard); email: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact

U.S. Senate

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 331 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202-224-3841; email: https://www. feinstein.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/ e-mail-me

Sen. Alex Padilla, 112 Hart Senate Office

Francesca worked to create the Davis Department of Social Services and Housing. Francesca Wright was also instrumental in the implementation of community law-enforcement oversight, a positive model for the nation; a framework where we are all part of the solution to keep each other safe.

Francesca has consistently sided with democracy and access to decision makers. I got to know Francesca these past five years on foot, visiting people in their apartments and single family homes all over Yolo County — to encourage them to vote. She won’t wait for city meetings to get voter input.

Her success at solving problems comes from the people. Francesca brings strength to the council, strength to remove barriers and build trust in decisions for business, housing, climate action, and equity.

Please join me in voting for Francesca Wright for Davis City Council.

Scott Steward Davis

Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202224-3553; email: https://www.padilla. senate.gov/contact/contact-form/

House of Representatives

Rep. Mike Thompson, 268 Cannon Office

Building, Washington, D.C., 20515; 202225-3311. District office: 622 Main Street, Suite 106, Woodland, CA 95695; 530-753-5301; email: https:// https:// mikethompsonforms.house.gov/contact/

Governor Gov. Gavin Newsom, State Capitol, Suite 1173, Sacramento, CA 95814; 916-4452841; email: https://govapps.gov.ca.gov/ gov40mail/

letters will not be accepted. We reserve the right to edit all letters for brevity or clarity. Mail letters to The Davis Enterprise, P.O. Box 1470, Davis, CA 95617; bring them to 315 G St.; fax them to 530-756-1668; or email them to newsroom@davis enterprise.net.

Bethany Hamilton is the girl who had her arm bitten off by a shark while she was __________ near her home in Hawaii.

Bethany Hamilton is the girl who had her arm bitten off by a shark while she was __________ near her home in Hawaii.

Maybe you’ve seen the movie, Soul Surfer. It is about Bethany and her experience.

Bethany’s parents put her on a surfboard before she could walk and when she was eight years old, she won a surfing competition.

Maybe you’ve seen the movie, Soul Surfer. It is about Bethany and her experience. Bethany’s parents put her on a surfboard before she could walk and when she was eight years old, she won a surfing competition.

Bethany was thirteen years old when she was attacked by a shark. Maybe you would like to know what she was thinking when it attacked her. She was definitely ______________, but she stayed calm by focusing on surviving and trusting God.

Bethany was thirteen years old when she was attacked by a shark. Maybe you would like to know what she was thinking when it attacked her. She was definitely ______________, but she stayed calm by focusing on surviving and trusting God.

After losing her arm, Bethany had to learn how to do many everyday things all over again. It took time and ___________ to learn how to get dressed and prepare food. After the first few weeks of being home from the hospital she decided she wanted to get back in the water and surf again. She was only thirteen years old and she was not afraid to try. Her biggest challenge was learning how to surf again. By working at it every day and believing in herself, she learned how to surf and then became a champion surfer.

After losing her arm, Bethany had to learn how to do many everyday things all over again. It took time and ___________ to learn how to get dressed and prepare food. After the first few weeks of being home from the hospital she decided she wanted to get back in the water and surf again. She was only thirteen years old and she was not afraid to try. Her biggest challenge was learning how to surf again. By working at it every day and believing in herself, she learned how to surf and then became a champion surfer.

Bethany is now 21 years old and is still _____________ about surfing. She is a pro surfer, but she also enjoys

Bethany is now 21 years old and is still _____________ about surfing. She is a pro surfer, but she also enjoys

height of a wave is the distance from the trough to crest. Do the math to discover the height of the biggest on record.

Learn to draw some cool surfers in eight easy steps! Visit: www.kidscoop.com/kids

Learn to draw some cool surfers in eight easy steps! Visit: www.kidscoop.com/kids

part of mental health. Use the sports section to find examples of optimistic and pessimistic statements. Circle statements in green. Circle pessimistic in red.

Attitudes are part of mental health. Use the sports or editorial section to find examples of optimistic statements and pessimistic statements. Circle optimistic statements in green. Circle pessimistic statements in red.

Eat a rainbow! Don’t forget to have a “rainbow” diet: Many colors and lots of variety in your vegetables and fruits. Be creative and hunt down the ones YOU like!

Eat a rainbow! Don’t forget to have “rainbow” diet: Many colors and lots of variety in your vegetables and fruits. Be creative and hunt down ones YOU like!

tennis, swimming (of course), and soccer. She says that to have a healthy body, kids should “find a sport you like and stick with it.”

tennis, swimming (of course), and soccer. She says that to have a healthy body, kids should “find a sport you like and stick with it.”

At bethanyhamilton.com, she gives healthy tips, like recipes and advice on staying away from alcohol and avoiding soda. Having a healthy attitude is just as important as having a healthy body. She told me that you should “be your unique self” and “look for the good in situations.”

At bethanyhamilton.com, she gives healthy tips, like recipes and advice on staying away from alcohol and avoiding soda. Having a healthy attitude is just as important as having a healthy body. She told me that you should “be your unique self” and “look for the good in situations.”

Bethany is a true healthy hero who ___________ many people all around the world. So, if you think living a healthy life is too hard, then just think about Bethany and your perspective will be completely different. Can you live a healthy lifestyle?

Bethany is a true healthy hero who ___________ many people all around the world. So, if you think living a healthy life is too hard, then just think about Bethany and your perspective will be completely different. Can you live a healthy lifestyle?

Yes! It’s possible!

Yes! It’s possible!

Puzzle answers, games, opinion polls and much more at: www.kidscoop.com OBSTACLES ATTITUDE

Pretend you are a newspaper reporter covering a story about a famous woman. Write a headline and lead sentence telling about this person.

Pretend you are a newspaper reporter covering a story about a famous woman. Write a headline and lead sentence telling about this person.

The height of a wave is the distance from the trough to the crest. Do the math to discover the height of the biggest wave on record.

Blue-and-Gold runners on track at Stanford Invitational

Enterprise staff

The UC Davis track and field teams return to competition after a week off to compete in the prestigious Stanford Invitational.

The two-day meet will begin today at the Cobb Track & Angell Field.

This marks the second meet of the season the Aggies will go up against a large and competitive field at Stanford.

The field includes Air Force, Alabama, Arkansas, Boise State, BYU, Cal, Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, Colorado, Colorado State, Gonzaga, Hawai’i, Idaho, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, Long Beach State, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, San Diego State, San Francisco, San Jose State, Seattle, SMU, Stanford, Syracuse, UC Riverside, UC Santa Barbara, Utah, Washington, Washington State, Weber State, West Virginia, Wisconsin and many more.

The last time the Aggies competed was on the very same track they will toe the line on this weekend.

Kerrington Smith was the highlight of

the meet for the Aggies, as she sailed to the fifth-best mark in program history in the triple jump at 40 feet, 2.75 inches.

Men’s tennis

UC Davis will attempt to bounce back from a tough Monday loss at Nevada when Cal Poly visits the Marya Welch Tennis Center today for a Big West Conference match.

UCD (1-0 in the Big West, 7-5 overall) has had trouble with Cal Poly (0-0 in the Big West, 4-7) in recent years, having won the last four matchups going back to 2017.

First serve is set for noon.

Women’s water polo

UCD (2-0 in the Big West, 13-9) aims to start a new winning streak when it returns to Big West Conference action at the Schaal Aquatics Center today at noon, hosting No. 6 UC Irvine (12-6, 3-0 Big West).

On Saturday, also at noon, the Aggies welcome Santa Clara University.

AGGIES: Fielding percentage at .978

From Page B8

straight games, the reigning Big West Field Freshman of the Year has now got himself a four-game hitting streak and leads the Aggies in on base percentage.

Freshman players on the Aggies’ roster continues to develop. That starts with Joey Wright at shortstop.

The play of Braydon Wooldridge, Ethan Kang and Leighton Helfrick has found the Aggies shuffling the lineup more than intended to mix and match depending on pitching matchups.

The Aggies have already transformed their defense from a season ago. UCD currently leads the Big West in fielding percentage at .978.

The Roadrunners are led by head coach Jeremy Beard, who is in his seventh season at the helm.

The ‘Runners have seen contributions from Matthew Kurata who has been on a tear as of late, sporting a .450 batting average.

The ‘Runners have been riding behind Comnos all year who has a team-high 29 strikeouts and a 3.56 season ERA.

Bakersfield has had

some steep competition to start the season and are a team that can’t be overlooked.

Toting a record of 8-5 at home, the Roadrunners seem to always play better in front of their Hardt Field supporters.

After this weekend’s games, UCD will play at Saint Mary’s College in a non-conference game in Moraga on Tuesday. Game time is scheduled at 3 p.m.

Then the Aggies jump back into Big West action, still on the road, at UC San Diego.

Thursday’s game starts at 6 p.m., Friday 5 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m.

Leroy yaU/UC Davis athLetiCs-CoUrtesy photo

UC Davis’ Kerrington Smith, seen here competing at a home meet earlier this year, is expected to compete in the triple jump at the Stanford Invitational this weekend.

BasketBall

Murray holds new record; Kings earn playoff berth

Enterprise staff

SACRAMENTO — Kings forward

Keegan Murray made his 188th 3-pointer of the season in the third quarter of Wednesday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Murry’s trey passed Donovan Mitchell (2017-18 at 187) as the NBA’s All-Time Rookie 3-point leader.

Murray, 22, is the first player in franchise history to hold the All-Time NBA Rookie 3-Point record and is one of six players to record 180 3-pointers or more within a single season in franchise history.

He currently ranks ninth in franchise history for made 3s in a season.

Murray currently ranks 11th in the NBA in 3-point field goal percentage of players who shoot more than six 3-point field goals per game.

Among NBA rookies, Murray ranks third in 3-point shooting percentage (40.7%) and sixth in both scoring average (11.9) and total points (883).

In addition to Murray making history, the Kings clinched an NBA Playoff berth

for the first time since the 2005-06 season with a 120-80 win over the Blazers at Moda Center in Portland, Ore.

Murray finished with 13 points in the game.

Malik Monk was the Kings’ leading scorer with 19 points. De’Aaron Fox followed with 18 points, Kevin Huerter 17 and Domantas Sabonis 15.

The Kings, currently the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference, secured homecourt advantage with the victory over the Blazers.

The Kings become the seventh team in the NBA and the third in the Western Conference to clinch a spot in the playoffs, which begin April 15.

Game 1 of the first-round series will be played in Sacramento.

Before the playoffs start, the Kings have six games left in the regular season.

Sacramento will play Portland again today at 7 p.m.

Then the Kings host the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday at the Golden 1 Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Big West Delta league

Mike Bush/enterprise file photo

Joey Wright, seen here batting in a Big West Conference game at Dobbins Stadium on March 18, and the UC Davis baseball team make the short trek to Kern County to play at CSU Bakersfield in a three-game series that starts today at 6:05 p.m.

Aggies will take on Roadrunners

Enterprise staff

Today marks the first of many road games for the UC Davis baseball team.

UCD (1-5 in the Big West Conference, 7-13 overall) will look to use their latest 10-3 victory against Loyola Marymount University as momentum in its upcoming conference series at the Cal State Bakersfield. The three-game series runs through Sunday.

Scheduled to take the mound in Friday’s game, which the first pitch should go at 6:05 p.m., is Aggies’ left-handed pitcher Bryan Green versus the Roadrunners’ right-hander in Ryan Verdugo. Green has shown his ability to mow down hitters. Posting the lowest ERA among the UCD staff, Green has a 3.74 ERA and .98 WHIP. He has 32 strikeouts this season, including 11 against Santa Clara recently. He’s ranked 10th in the conference in strikeouts. Saturday’s probable starters are UCD’s Alejandro Huezo against Bakersfield’s left-hander in Matt Comnos. This game is also scheduled to start at 6:05 p.m. Carter Delaney is the probable starter for the Aggies in the series finale on Sunday, which is scheduled to start at 1:05 p.m. The Roadrunners made no announcement on their starting pitcher.

The Aggies will be playing in their first road games since March 12.

Led by Alex Gouveia, who put together a 3-for-4 day at the plate, UCD scored double-digit runs for just the third time this season against the Lions on Monday. Adding to his already elite hitting profile to start the year, Gouveia leads the Aggies in batting average at .321 and has the best strikeout to at-bat ratio in Division 1 baseball. Spearheading the offensive charge with his knack to spray doubles all over the field. Gouveia is currently tied for the Big West lead in doubles hit with Cal State Fullerton’s Nate Nankil, and has a team-high 42 total bases with just two strikeouts.

Another Aggie in Mark Wolbert seems to be turning the corner at the right time and finding his stride. After a midseason stretch without recording a hit in four

Blue Devils even series with Wildcats

Enterprise staff

ELK GROVE — Light the beam for the Davis High baseball team.

Franklin High players were shouting the Sacramento Kings’ famous phrase during Thursday’s Delta League game on the Wildcats’ field.

But Davis (7-1 in the Delta, 8-3 overall) is the one that could flash a blue beam similar to its school colors with a 3-2 win.

“We’ve been playing close games all year, but today we showed better resilience in the face of adversity,” said Davis head coach Ethan Guevin.

The victory puts DHS and Franklin (7-1 in the Delta, 11-2) tied for second place. Both are behind leader Elk Grove (8-0 in the Delta, 11-1).

Davis and Franklin meet again today on the Blue Devils’ diamond

for the finale of the best-of-three series. Game time is scheduled at 4 p.m.

The Blue Devils broke a 2-2 score in the top of the seventh inning with a run.

A single in the top of the sixth inning plated Blue Devil runner Brain Chin, as DHS tied the game at 2-2.

Franklin scored its final run of the game in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The Blue Devils scored their first run in the top of the third frame.

The Wildcats plated their first run in the bottom of the first inning.

Davis had six hits in the game.

Carter Stoltz had two of the Blue Devils’ hits, which included a double.

Reyan Islam joined DHS teammates Gizaw Baker, Chin and Andrew Keegan in having a hit

each.

“It was really nice to have the guys come off the bench and contribute in a big way,” Guevin said. “Our entire bench has done a great job of staying ready and being great teammates all season.”

On the mound, three Blue Devil pitcher split time. Cade Castles, along with Bryson Schelp and John Schacherbauer, combined to hold the Wildcats to five hits. Castles and Schacherbauer allowed one hit each.

Castles and Schelp struck out three Franklin batters each.

“Our pitching has done a great job of keeping us in the game and all three guys today were outstanding,” Guevin said.

After today’s game, the Blue Devils take a break from league play to compete at the Fresno Tournament. Davis will take on Clovis East Monday at 7 p.m.

Blue Devil first baseman Carter Stoltz (15) waits for the throw down to get the Franklin runner in Thursday’s league game in Elk Grove. Stoltz had two of DHS’ six hits, which helped in beating the Wildcats 3-2 to even the series at 1-1 each.

Mike Bush/enterprise photo Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray, talking to the press after the team’s home game against the Utah Jazz on March 25, holds a new 3-point shooting record.

Mike Bush/enterprise photo

Davis runner Brian Chin touches home plate in

Mike Bush/ enterprise photo