Directors of the Fern Valley Water District approved a $1.7 million budget for 2013-14 and welcomed the return of former director Ron Korman. Next year’s budget (fiscal year 2013-14, beginning July 1) includes a $1.1 million capital improvements program to continue pipeline replacement on Fern Valley Road. Consequently, the district will use about $625,000 of…

At 10:40 a.m. Saturday, July 16, Ryan Lasan Smith, 24, of Oceanside, was riding his black 2006 Yamaha motorcycle eastbound on Highway 74, 3.7 miles west of McCall Park Road, when he lost control while rounding a curve. He laid the bike down and suffered moderate injuries — visible abrasions to elbow and pain in…

By Becky Clark Editor At 4:08 p.m. Tuesday, U.S. Forest Service firefighters were dispatched to a vegetation fire off of Highway 74 in the Santa Rosa area. The fire’s size was 10-feet-by-10-feet. Two engines were kept on scene to handle the spot and all other resources were canceled. Forest Service crews also responded to a…