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UKIAH, Calif. – Mendocino College will officially open its new library and learning center this week.
The public is invited to celebrate the opening at a gathering beginning at 3 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14.
After a brief presentation and welcome, guests will participate in a self-guided tour and featured presentations of the new facility.
Following the tour refreshments, prepared by the Mendocino College Culinary Arts students, will be served.
Visitors will be greeted by College Board President Joel Clark and by Richard Cooper, chair of the Measure W Oversight Committee.
“This new building provides the opportunity for students to increase their learning in a facility that maximizes the use of technology with an emphasis on interaction among staff, faculty and students,” said Interim Superintendent/President Roe Darnell.
The center includes a spacious library, a learning center, the Math Engineering Science Achievement program, a disabled resource center and a new language lab.
Visitors touring the facility will have the opportunity to enjoy student and staff demonstrations of programs provided by the center.
The library/learning center was designed by TLCD Architecture and constructed by Midstate Construction at a cost of $28 million.
The center was built as a result of community support through Measure W.
On Nov. 7, 2006, voters in the Mendocino-Lake Community College District passed Measure W authorizing $67.5 million in facility bond funds.
Measure W passed with 62 percent voter approval, substantially greater than the 55 percent required for passage under Proposition 39.
The Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee was formed in December 2006 by appointment by the college board of trustees.
This committee, as required by law, is comprised of members representing specific interests, including business, senior citizens, taxpayer organization, Mendocino College students, a college support organization and at-large members.
The oversight committee is charged with overseeing the expenditure of bond proceeds and ensuring that bond proceeds are expended only for the purposes set forth in Measure W.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Wildland fires in Lake’s neighboring counties are close to being fully contained.
The North Pass Fire, located 10 miles northeast of Covelo in Mendocino County, and the 16 Complex in the Rumsey Canyon area of Colusa and Yolo counties were set to be fully contained on Monday, but by Monday night officials reported that some work still remained to be done.
The North Pass Fire, which includes two fires caused by lightning on Saturday, Aug. 18, has burned 41,983 acres and was 97-percent contained by Monday night.
The estimate for full containment for the North Pass Fire was pushed back to this Friday at 6 p.m.
The 391 fire personnel assigned to the incident were working on patroling the fire area, making repairs and mopping up, officials reported.
A forest closure order remains in effect for the area, and Forest Highway 7 is closed due to fire line repairs, according to the US Forest Service.
The 16 Complex, two fires four miles apart on Highway 16, was 95-percent contained at 17,944 acres, with 980 personnel on scene, Cal Fire reported.
Firefighters were continuing to strengthen control lines, extinguish hot spots and make repairs, according to Cal Fire.
Cal Fire said full containment is expected on Tuesday.
The complex’s cause remains under investigation.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Firefighters kept a wildland fire on Cow Mountain from expanding on Monday, and at the same time more than doubled containment on the blaze.
The Scotts Fire remained at 4,618 acres on Monday night, with containment rising to 35 percent over the course of the day, Cal Fire reported.
Based on a perimeter map Cal Fire issued on Monday, which can be seen above, the fire is primarily located in Lake County, with a small spur stretching eastward into Mendocino County.
Cal Fire spokesman Mike Carr said firefighters’ efforts had paid off, and the fire – which began burning Friday afternoon west of Scott Valley Road and east of Ukiah – had been slowed down considerably by Monday.
In the first hours of the fire it had burned quickly, running up ridges through dry brush and vegetation, burning a total of 1,600 acres by nightfall Friday.
The fire had moved quickly in the first two days due, in part, to hot weather and topography. With regard to topography, Carr explained that fires burn more quickly when moving uphill.
Over the last day, the fire has slowed as it’s backed down hillsides. Carr said firefighters also have been able to prevent it from moving into drainages.
Based on how the fire was looking on Monday evening, Carr said they were optimistic about keeping the fire in its current footprint, with Cal Fire continuing to estimate that full containment would be reached on Saturday.
Thanks to a number of factors – among them, aggressive firefighting, more containment lines, a slowing of the fire’s action and better weather, including reduced winds – Carr said the threat had been reduced for the Blue Lakes and Scotts Valley Road areas, where an estimated 300 homes and 40 outbuildings were in the fire’s path at one point.
As a result, early on Monday evening the evacuation warning for Scotts Valley Road – which had been issued the previous day for the area from Highway 20 to Hendricks Road – was lifted. Blue Lakes had been under an evacuation order for several hours on Friday night before residents were allowed to return home.
Scotts Valley Road remains open to residents only. The Cow Mountain Recreation Area has been closed at both the Scotts Creek and Mill Creek entrances, Mill Creek Road is closed, and the Glen Eden and Valley View Trails are closed, officials reported.
The number of personnel assigned to the incident was increased again by about 260 on Monday to 1,642, with 161 engines, 44 fire crews, 12 helicopters, 30 bulldozers and 27 water tenders, Cal Fire reported.
On Monday afternoon a 50-year-old male firefighter from a strike team was taken off the lines with heat exhaustion. Carr said the firefighter was taken to the hospital and treated, and will be able to return to work on the fire.
There have so far been three to four such cases of heat exhaustion, but all of the firefighters have been able to return to duty, and thus are not counted as injuries, Carr said. Based on that definition, no injuries have occurred so far.
Carr said the fire’s cause remains under investigation.
In recent days a number of community members have voiced concerns about what role arson might have played in the recent string of wildland fires.
In response to those concerns, Carr explained, “California is prone to wildfires.”
That’s due to the hot climate, terrain and large numbers of people living in the wildland-urban interface. “You have all of those fire causes coming together,” he said.
All of the recent major wildland incidents in Lake and neighboring counties remain under investigation, with no final causes given. Carr said those investigations can take time – some are left open for months while the fact finding process takes places.
“Sometimes it’s premature to rush to a judgment,” he said.
In other fire-related news, a California National Guard Black Hawk helicopter that was being used for water drops had to touch down in Scotts Valley early on in the firefighting effort due to mechanical issues.
Torie Clay posted a picture of the helicopter on Lake County News’ Facebook page, reporting that it landed on her family’s property on Friday.
Carr said the helicopter had transmission problems and had to be taken out of commission.
On Monday the helicopter remained grounded. “They haven’t decided what they’re going to do with it yet,” Carr said.
A crane could be brought in to put it on a truck or another helicopter may be used to lift it out and transport it, he said.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Monday evening officials lifted an evacuation warning for the Scotts Valley Road area outside of Lakeport.
The evacuation warning was issued on Sunday morning for Scotts Valley Road, from Highway 20, south to Hendricks Road.
Cal Fire said the warning was lifted Monday based on increased containment on the Scotts Fire, burning since Friday afternoon.
By Monday morning, the fire had burned approximately 4,618 acres and was 15 percent contained.
Officials said the potential threat to the Blue Lakes and Scotts Valley Road areas has been reduced.
Fire crews are continuing to work toward full containment of the fire, Cal Fire said.
Residents are reminded that fire equipment and personnel will remain in the area for several days and are urged to use caution when traveling the fire area.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – While acreage continued to climb on Monday on a wildland fire burning on Cow Mountain, firefighters also made more progress in getting containment on the blaze, which resulted in one report of heat exhaustion on Monday.
The Scotts Fire, burning since last Friday, increased to 4,618 acres on Monday, with 15 percent containment, Cal Fire reported.
The fire is located on Cow Mountain, west of Scott Valley Road and east of Ukiah, in steep and rugged terrain.
Incident command, based at the Lake County Fairgrounds, continued to utilize aircraft, fire crews and dozers on the incident, where 1,380 personnel were assigned on Monday. The focus was on building and strengthening containment lines.
Resources assigned included 131 engines, 38 fire crews, nine airtankers, 11 helicopters, 26 bulldozers and 20 water tenders, Cal Fire reported.
Cal Fire said fire crews and equipment have been successful in holding the fire south of Highway 20, west of Scotts Valley Road and east of Cow Mountain Road.
Cal Fire officials said Sunday that the fire had two flanks moving laterally, to the east and west, with the progression stopped on part of the fire that had been moving toward Blue Lakes.
A case of heat exhaustion also was reported on Monday. Just after 3 p.m. one male strike team member was being transported out of the fire area.
The Scotts Valley Road area – from Hendricks Road to Highway 20 – remained under an evacuation warning on Monday.
The fire was reported to be within a mile of both Scotts Valley Road and the Blue Lakes area, with a total of 340 structures threatened.
Officials said the Cow Mountain Recreation Area has been closed at both the Scotts Creek and Mill Creek entrances. Mendo Rock Road access to North Cow Mountain Road is closed at Mill Creek, with Mill Creek Road also closed.
Cal Fire said Scotts Valley Road was open to residents only on Monday.
Highway 20 through Blue Lakes remained open with no traffic control reported.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – Amidst a conversational throng of scientists and experts in geothermal power production, Calpine reopened The Geysers Geothermal Visitors Center on Thursday, Aug. 30.
Approximately 40 people attended the grand reopening, including geothermal representatives, local officials and business leaders.
During the event geothermal experts spoke on geothermal production and gave a walk through of the newly remodeled facility in Middletown.
The Geysers is the world’s largest geothermal production facility.
Mike Rogers, Calpine’s senior vice president of the geothermal region, described the geothermal fields below the area straddling the Lake and Sonoma County line as “a phenomenal resource.”
The new exhibition room is filled with interactive learning tools to help demystify the science of geothermal power production and give visitors a greater understanding of Lake County’s role in energy production.
The visitor’s center, located at 15500 Central Park Road in Middletown, is open Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Email John Jensen at