Idyllwild News

Nearly 140 people attended the Idyllwild Indivisible meeting at St. Hugh’s Episcopal Church Monday night. This group of concerned locals is dedicated to the advancement of sustainable economic, environmental and social justice. The group, at its first meeting two weeks ago, divided into three subgroups to address and create plans for action in each of the three areas (economic, environmental, and social justice). The budding group has already outgrown the church and the Rainbow Inn.

New Village Market owner Jay McCormack knows groceries. And he knows turnarounds — taking an existing market and with careful analysis of its location’s demographics, building a business that caters to and suits the community. McCormack is in Idyllwild for the long haul. “I have a 10-year lease with options for an additional 20,” he…

In a press release, Idyllwild Water District General Manager Jack Hoagland reported Monday that IWD had experienced a spill of treated effluent from one of the district’s disposal ponds. The spill, he said, occurred as a result of a small slump failure of the extremely saturated soil in the earthen berm supporting the pond, extensive…

At the Feb. 9 felony settlement conference for Neil Cooper, his attorney requested that the court transfer his case to the mental health court. The Riverside County District Attorney’s office did not object. A hearing on his request was set for Tuesday, Feb. 28. The Idyllwild resident was arrested on Jan. 6, and subsequently charged…

Persistent, arduous, excruciating and challenging, these were the speaker’s words, which preceded a standing ovation. On a cold Saturday and late in the afternoon, more than 70 people came out to hear about the future of the Idyllwild Community Center. Janice Lyle, president of the board for the San Jacinto Mountain Community Center, opened the…

Capt. Leonard Purvis will replace Capt. Joe Borja on Thursday, Feb. 16, as the new commander of the Riverside County Sheriff Department’s Hemet Station. Borja is retiring and for the last month has been working with Purvis on the transition. Purvis and Borja visited the Town Crier on Monday, Feb. 6. Purvis, with more than…

On Saturday, Feb. 11, Caltrans has scheduled road work on Highway 74 in Mountain Center near Keen Camp Road. A Hot Line Construction crew will be replacing a utility pole. The work may take from 9 p.m. Saturday until 4 a.m. Sunday.

The Riverside County budget doesn’t play fair. The fiscal year 2016-17 budget, which the Riverside County Board of Supervisors adopted this fall, was very tight and there was agreement for minimal increases next year while awaiting revenues to grow. However, rather than slowly balancing revenues and expenditures, the budget is rapidly turning red, bright red,…

Inclement weather returned to the Hill last week. Fortunately, Saturday and Sunday were dry. On Friday, some drizzling rain fell throughout the Hill, but on Monday, showers returned for the day and continued into Tuesday. Total rain, from Friday, Feb. 3, through Tuesday morning, Feb. 7, was 0.9 inches at the U.S. Forest Service’s Keenwild…