Michael Hestrin has been Riverside County’s district attorney since January 2015, and he is seeking another four-year term.In 2014, he garnered 55% of the vote to defeat his boss, former District Attorney Paul Zellerbach. Four years later, he nearly doubled the votes cast for him and increased his winning percentage to 66% over challenger Lara…
Editor’s note: On June 7, Riverside County will hold a primary election for district attorney. The three candidates — Incumbent Michael Hestrin, challenger Lara Gressley and challenger Judge Burke Strunsky — have spoken to the Town Crier. All three interviews are in this issue.Lara Gressley, a Northern California native now living with her family in…
By JP CrumrineCorrespondent On Wednesday, April 20, the Riverside County Planning Commission will discuss major changes to Ordinance 927, “Regulating Short Term Rentals” (STRs). Since a new draft Ordinance 927 was release at the end of February, significant modifications have been proposed to the version being presented to the commission. Also, the planning staff has…
The U.S. Forest Service’s (USFS) budget request of nearly $9 billion for fiscal year (FY) 2022-23 (starting Oct. 1, 2022) is $1.5 billion greater than the previous year’s budget. Nearly 40% of the increase is for Wildland Fire Management and Suppression Operations (WFMSO). The National Forest System programs will also receive another $600 million for…
California’s Recycling Agency (CalRecycle) has submitted a proposal to increase credits for returns of recyclable containers. The state’s Beverage Container Recycling Fund (BRCF) has a huge surplus of several hundred million dollars, for which the agency submitted a proposal to return half of the funds to citizens and to invest in more equipment to increase…
California’s drought conditions show no sign of abating. The water year that ended Sept. 30 was the second driest on record. All of California’s 58 counties are under a drought emergency proclamation. January, February and March 2022 were the driest on record dating back over 100 years. Just 6 inches of precipitation were recorded in…
At its March 29 meeting, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved creating an election advisory committee. The committee, composed almost entirely of citizens, is intended “… to provide recommendations to the Board of Supervisors, Executive Office, and Registrar of Voters on improvements to the electoral process to ensure voter confidence and public trust…
CPUC accepting; energy safety office — not so As the number of wildfires and their sizes grow throughout the state, both the governor and the Legislature have taken numerous actions, including new laws and greater oversight of public utilities. However, nothing has yet significantly diminished this threat to millions of Californians, including the thousands of…
Sunday, March 27, in California saw the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline at $5.91, nearly 40% higher than the national average. In Riverside County, it was $5.96 per gallon, but in other areas of California, such as Los Angeles County, the price per gallon exceeded $6 and approached $6.65 in Mono County.The…
At its March 22 meeting, the Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved a request from the county fire department to purchase a dip-tank and a tilt-trailer to move it. Battalion Chief Robert Fish wrote in the justification to the board, “This will significantly improve response times for helicopter firefighting operations by reducing turn-around time for…
