By Ken Stone

Reprinted with permission from Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  Rep. Susan Davis celebrates her victory at Golden Hall on Nov. 6, 2018. Photo by Chris Stone

​September 4, 2019 (San Diego) - In a stunning announcement Wednesday, Rep. Susan Davis said she would retire after the current term in Congress — her 10th since election in 2000.

“I have struggled to make this very difficult decision,” she said in a statement. “I will not seek another term in Congress. My decision today represents a desire to live and work ‘at home’ in San Diego.”

Update September 4, 2019: More bodies have been recovered and a handful still missing are presumed dead.

By Chris Jennewein

Reprinted with permission from Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo:  The dive boat Conception on fire off Santa Cruz Island early Monday morning. Photo courtesy Santa Barbara County Fire Department 

September 3, 2019 (Santa Barbara) - Authorities reported 4 bodies recovered and 30 more passengers missing after a dive boat caught fire early Monday morning in the Channel Islands off Santa Barbara.

By Miriam Raftery

August 30, 2019 (La Mesa)  The future of transportation has sparked debate across our region. SANDAG and MTS are both moving forward on goals to boost transit access with options such as better trolley and bus service with high-speed rail as a long range option.

But what about reducing traffic gridlock and meeting transportation needs of residents in areas that currently lack adequate transit options?  Should building massive housnig projects in the backcountry that add to traffic gridlock be curtailed? 

Recently,  East County Magazine’s radio show interviewed La Mesa Councilmembers and attorneys Colin Parent and Kristine Alessio on transit issues. Parent  is director of Circulate San Diego and Alessio is the Vice Chair of SANDAG’s regional planning committee.  

Click here to hear our full interview, originally aired on KNSJ radio, and scroll down for highlights.

By Miriam Raftery

September 1, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) – Epiphany “Epie” Lopez of Potrero, best known for his portrayal of bandito Cruz Lopez in the Gaskill Brothers Gunfighters, passed away on August 22, 2019 at age 71.

Born January 8, 1948, he was related to the Machados, one of the first families in Old Town, San Diego, though not to Cruz Lopez.  “My family has been in San Diego since 1769,” he once stated. 

Hear our interview with Councilman Bill Baber

By Miriam Raftery

September 1, 2019 (La Mesa) – After years of battling illegal marijuana dispensaries and recently licensing the city’s first legal medicinal cannabis dispensary, La Mesa is considering an ordinance to legalize recreational adult-use sales and manufacturing. 

Councilman Bill Baber and Mayor Mark Arapostathis served on a subcommittee that recently held a meeting with cannabis industry representatives. Next up, staff is preparing ordinance language for the City Council to consider on September 10^th, when the public can weigh in with comments.

We sat down for an interview with Councilman Baber that originally aired on KNSJ radio.  You can hear the full interview by clicking the audio link, or scroll down for details.

Baber says if the measure is approved Sept. 10 and at a second reading Sept. 24, La Mesa could see its first legal recreational cannabis sales starting as early as January 2020. The first sales of recreational marijuana would be through dispensaries already approved for medical marijuana sales, providing they have operated without significant complaints or legal issues.

By Miriam Raftery

August 31, 2019 (Washington D.C.) – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission today announced that after 133 reports of cooktop elements turning on by themselves, 26,300 cooktops are being recalled by Whirlpool. They were sold under the brand names Whirlpool, KitchenAid and JennAir and manufactured from Dec. 2016 and July 2019. The recall includes cooktops with a glass cooking surface, touch controls, radiant and downdraft radiant models.

By Mike Allen

August 30, 2019 (Santee) -- The Santee City Council agreed to adopt a community choice model for purchasing its future electricity but isn’t sure yet what the model will look like.

By Miriam Raftery

August 30, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) – Darrell Issa, who retired in January from the 49^th Congressional district, has set up an exploratory committee and put up a campaign website to run for embattled Congressman Duncan Hunter’s neighboring 50^th Congressional district seat.

“I have received such a tremendous outpouring of encouragement from supporters inside the district, and around the state and across the Nation,” Issa states on the website.

Issa  once delivered a response to President Obama’s State of the Union speech in 2011.  Among other things, Issa stated, “You know, it doesn't take a genius in the private sector to know that you can save literally hundreds of billions of dollars in federal spending if you can make it more responsive. That's the main job.”

The Republican Congressman was best known on Capitol Hill for leading numerous investigations into the Obama administration, former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and Attorney General Eric Holder as chair the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. But his record has drawn controversy and even allegations of corruption.

East County News Service

August 28, 2019 (San Diego’s East County) – Hot weather is here again. The National Weather Service has issued an excessive heat watch from Friday morning through Saturday in San Diego’s desert areas. Temperatures could reach 115 in the low deserts and 105 in the low deserts.

CEA gains more than 23,000 policies in July

East County News Service

Photo:  Ridgecrest earthquake 

August 28, 2019 (Sacramento) — The California Earthquake Authority (CEA) gained 23,861 earthquake insurance policies in July, the second-largest monthly net increase in CEA’s 23-year history. This growth was driven by the magnitude 6.4 and 7.1 earthquakes, and a number of aftershocks, that struck on unnamed faults near the Mojave Desert town of Ridgecrest starting on the Fourth of July holiday.

By Miriam Raftery

August 27, 2019 (San Diego) -- The National Weather Service in San Diego has released a new video with the fall and winter outlook.  The prediction is for warmer than average fall and winter weather, with near average to below average precipitation, though atmospheric rivers are still possible, says meteorologist Alex Tardy.

By Miriam Raftery

August 26, 2019 (Washington D.C.) – A radical proposal by the Trump administration’s U.S. Forest Service would allow logging and road building on up to 75% of our nation’s public forest lands without environmental review or public input.  

Today is the deadline for public comments, which you can submit at this link: : https://www.regulations.gov/comment?D=FS-2019-0010-0001

The proposed changes to the National Environmental Policy Act established in 1970 would allow the agency to also ignore impacts on climate change, habitat, and recreational use of federal forests such as Cleveland National Forest in San Diego County and federal forests surrounding national parks such as near Yellowstone and Sequoia.

East County News Service

August 24, 2019 (La Mesa) – La Mesa Police Department’s traffic unit will conduct a DUI checkpoint tonight in the 4900 block of Spring Street from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.  LMPD will also have extra officer on the road now through Sept. 2 over Labor Day weekend looking for drivers suspected of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

The Department is partnering with law enforcement agencies nationwide in the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” enforcement campaign over Labor Day weekend.

Labor Day Weekend remains one of the deadliest times of year for alcohol-involved crashes. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 376 deadly crashes nationwide during the 2017 Labor Day holiday period (Sept. 1 to Sept. 5). Among those crashes, more than one-third (36%) involved a drunk driver. Last year, two people were killed, and 31 others injured in California on Labor Day alone.