By Pennell Paugh

On January 27, 7 to 9 p.m., San Diego Public Library is proud to sponsor the 2022 Showcase, featuring published works by San Diego's most talented authors. The event is live and in-person! The library will be featuring a stunning collection of display cabinets filled with locally authored books from several different genres. The display will be available for public browsing for the entire month of February, afterwards the books will be prepared to circulate for one year. Books will also be featured in an online exhibit. Please visit the Local Author website for more information and to view previous online exhibits.

Multi-award-winning local author T. Greenwood will be delivering a keynote speech. The evening will feature local jazz musicians, Ria & Aaron, light refreshments, a limited open mike event and a few more surprises.

Registration is highly suggested for authors and their guests.

By Jonathan Goetz

Photo: Rich Riel announced settlement in lawsuit over violations of open government laws by Downtown El Cajon Business Partners

January 25, 2023 (El Cajon) – Downtown El Cajon Business Partner is settling a lawsuit over Brown Act violations, according to testimony presented at Tuesday’s El Cajon City Council meeting. But complaints remain over no-bid contracts for downtown events.  The City Council also heard plans to bring back Foodie Fest during the America on Main festival, expand a tiny homes program for the homeless, and build a veterans’ memorial.

An open letter to La Mesa Mayor Mark Arapostathis 

By Aaron Amerling

Photo, left: Kathleen Brand

January 24, 2023 (La Mesa) -- I want to wholeheartedly recommend Kathleen Brand for the planning commissioner spot. She has over 20 years of history serving the people in La Mesa in both volunteer positions and on boards and committees, her work experience is in city planning and she has shown an even-keeled approach to sustaining growth while not losing what makes La Mesa, La Mesa.

By Miriam Raftery

Photos by Deborah Jean Peck via Backcountry Community Bulletin Board on Facebook

January 24, 2023 (Boulevard) – An early morning fire on January 17 has destroyed the Manzanita Diner in Boulevard. Long a popular stop for motorists traveling along historic Old Highway 80, the building has housed a pizzeria and Italian restaurant as well as an earlier Basque restaurant. The diner had also been a gathering place for community events through the years.

Source:  San Diego County Sheriff

January 24, 2023 (San Diego) - There is now more access to lifesaving medication in case of an overdose emergency. 

Sheriff's Deputies are handing out free Harm Reduction Kits when they respond to calls for service. You can also get them for free at any Sheriff's Department Station and Substation. No questions asked.

By Suzanne Potter, California News Service

January 23, 2023 (Sacramento) -- Congressman Kevin McCarthy from Bakersfield announced in his first address as U.S. House Speaker that he wants to combat what he describes as "woke indoctrination" in public schools. But a new poll shows very few voters consider that to be an urgent priority. A survey commissioned by the American Federation of Teachers finds that improving students' academic achievement rates much higher.

By Christianne McCormick

Photo: Project approved for 4757 Palm Ave. in La Mesa’s downtown village, courtesy City of La Mesa

January 23, 2023 (La Mesa) -- On January 10, La Mesa’s City Council ratified the Design Review Board’s approval of the Palm Avenue Apartments, which are slated to be built at the same site where the historic Randall Lamb building burned down during the 2020 George Floyd riots. The vote was 4-0, with Councilmember Laura Lothian abstaining because her office is close to the site.  

The development proposed by Palm Street Ventures LLC has brought about much debate among La Mesa residents. The five-story building would house 64 rental units, with only 29 parking spaces – less than one for each unit.  There will also be room for at least one business in the building, where apartment rents are expected to start at around $1,000 for units designated as affordable and run from $2,100 to $2,900 for other units, per the developer, Palm Street Ventures LLC.

January 23, 2023 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• The CDC issues an advisory about a surge in strep throat cases in kids  (NPR)
• New 988 mental health crisis line sees ‘eye-opening’ rise in calls, texts, chats in first 6 months, data shows (CNN)
• As the pandemic enters its 4th year, there's still much to learn about long COVID (NPR)
• New Tech Targets Epileptic Seizures With Lasers, Robots And Precision Surgery : Short Wave  (NPR)
• FDA no longer requires all drugs to be tested on animals before human trials  (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• Ozone layer is on track to recover in next 40 years, United Nations says  (NPR)
• NASA's Webb telescope has discovered its first exoplanet  (NPR)
• NTSB head warns of risks posed by heavy electric vehicles  (NPR)
• Seattle's schools are suing tech giants for harming young people's mental health  (NPR)
• Scientists Have Reached a Key Milestone in Learning How to Reverse Aging (Time)
• Here’s how the Air Force and Scripps Oceanography measure atmospheric rivers (KPBS)
• A biotech firm says the U.S. has approved its vaccine for honeybees  (NPR)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

January 22, 2023 (Julian) – Here’s an event worth howling about.  The California Wolf Center in Julian is offering guided tours on February 4. The tours last an hour and provide an opportunity to see the facility’s critically endangered wolves and learn about wolf conservation.

By Donna Durckel, County of San Diego Communications Office

January 22, 2023 (San Diego's East County) - A recent analysis of census data as part of the County Comprehensive Broadband Plan showed that approximately 37,000 households in the unincorporated area of San Diego don’t have a broadband internet subscription. This places them at a disadvantage when it comes to things such as online education, healthcare services or emergency notifications.

Free, daylong family event is scheduled for April 29, 2023

January 20, 2023 (Spring Valley) - The Spring Valley Day Planning Committee is looking for vendors, sponsors, and volunteers to participate in Spring Valley Day 2023. The event will be held on Saturday, April 29, 2023 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in front of Bancroft Elementary School where Bancroft Drive and Tyler Street intersect.

By Ken Stone and Chris Stone, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association 

January 19, 2023 (Santee) - Speaker after speaker in front of the Santee YMCA invoked right and wrong, “what is true and what is good,” as they denounced policies that allowed “grown men to parade around naked in women’s showers and locker rooms.”