Few people held out much hope for success when Daisy Villanuava opened her art gallery in downtown Vallejo three years ago, but, the nay-sayers are eating crow, now.
The Georgia Galleria, which is an upscale art gallery split into two parts - upper and lower - are across from one another at 419 Georgia Street, a building the 59-year-old, longtime Vallejo Realtor owns.
Local Realtor/artist operates upscale art gallery in downtown VallejoA newly formed Napa area alliance is upping the ante art-wise for downtown Napa, starting with a recently completed mural created by two "internationally recognized artists."
"Knocking on Heaven's Door," by BEZT and Natalia Rak of Poland, now covering the sides of The Napa Valley Register and Napa Auto Parts buildings, is the first public art project of the Rail Arts District (RAD) Napa.
New arts district unveils first mural in downtown NapaThe Super Bowl is Sunday and the Vallejo Police Department wants football fans here to know it is teaming up with law enforcement statewide for a special drunk driving campaign.
Many football fans nationally attend Super Bowl events that include alcohol, so the California Office of Traffic Safety(OTS) and the Vallejo Police Department are teaming up with law enforcement across the state for a special Fans Don't Let Fans Drive Drunk campaign to urge them "to call the right play on Super Bowl weekend by passing the keys to a sober driver before the drinking begins.
Vallejo Police holding special DUI Patrol on Super Bowl SundayVallejo's lone synagogue received Homeland Security funding for a security fence. Now Congregation B'Nai Israel officials face the challenge of paying a city permit application fee.
A (CBI) spokesman appealed to officials during last week's city council meeting to do something about the $8,300 fee the city requires just to apply for the permit to build the fence.
Vallejo's lone synagogue seeks city fee waiver to build security fenceThings are changing in American Canyon, and some of what's new was rolled out at the 23rd annual chamber of commerce board installation and awards dinner on Friday.
The chamber changes started with the event's name, now called "The American Canyon I Am I Can - Together We Are American Canyon - Awards.
American Canyon chamber's Best of the Year named at Friday eventSolano County's housing market fell to third hottest in the country a couple of months ago, and remained there in January, with only the San Francisco and Silicon Valley areas registering hotter, according to the latest realtor.com data.
Although January is traditionally the slowest time of year for real estate, demand remained strong this month even as supplies reached record lows, realtor.
Vallejo area remains nation's third hottest real estate market in JanuarySix Flags Entertainment Corporation - the owners of Vallejo's Discovery Kingdom theme park - was named this month, one of the nation's Best and Brightest companies to work for by the National Association for Business Resources (NABR), company officials announced.
Key measures like compensation, benefits, employee enrichment, engagement, retention, education and development, were analyzed by an independent research firm, they said.
Six Flags named among nation's Best and Brightest employers"No matter where you're from, we're glad you're our neighbor."
That's what the signs say - in English, Spanish and Arabic elsewhere - and also in Tagalog in Vallejo.
"A Mennonite minister back east somewhere made a sign in Spanish, Arabic and English and it was a hit, and it spread," said Jean Ballard of Vallejo.
Inclusivity poster from back east now found in VallejoKaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center got among the highest marks possible from the California Office of the Patient Advocate (OPA), Kaiser officials announced Thursday.
The Permanente Medical Group serving Kaiser members and patients at the Kaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center received 4.
Kaiser Vallejo gets high marks for Medicare members careWeaker immune systems make seniors more vulnerable to the flu, and there has already been at least one flu-related death in both Solano and Napa counties so far this season.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 90 percent of all flu-related deaths and more than half of flu-related hospitalizations occur in people 65 or older.
Tips for staying healthy during flu seasonLocals in the animal rescue game say they're expecting a larger-than-average "kitten season" this year and are concerned about the relative lack of bottle-baby fosters, so some are trying out new ways to get people to save the tiny, mewling lives.
Getting people to volunteer to get up every two hours to bottle feed a tiny kitten (or 20), is never easy, said Ruby Waderich, a longtime cat rescuer with Solano County Friends of Animals.
New concept in kitty fostering being tried in Benicia/VallejoAMERICAN CANYON >> The developers of what city residents and officials hope will one day be its Town Center - now called the Watson Ranch development - walked away from a special meeting Tuesday with, basically, nothing they were asking for, Community Development Director Brent Cooper said.
No one from the firm, American Canyon, LLC, or the lawyer for the Newell family, which owns the property, immediately returned calls for comment Wednesday.
American Canyon's Watson Ranch developer gets none of its requests at special meetingFor more than a dozen years, getting to Mare Island from the Vallejo mainland meant driving, walking or riding a bike. There has been no regular bus service to the island for at least that long.
But, as activity grows on the island, SolTrans, the Solano County transportation agency, has been hearing that bus service is needed to and from the island, so, they're trying it out.
Free bus service to, from Mare Island through Feb. 14For the first time since the Great Recession and the city's bankruptcy, the Vallejo Police Department hopes to hire a crime analyst, police say.
"The Vallejo Police Department is looking to hire for the position of Crime Analyst within the department," according to an advertisement. "We are encouraging applicants from Vallejo to apply for this very important position.
Vallejo police seek to add crime analyst to departmentAdolph "Al" Berenguer of Vallejo said he plans to die with his boots on, though, since he doesn't wear boots, loafers would probably be more accurate. That also might be entirely believable, considering the 88-year-old teacher is still in the classroom at least a couple days a week.
Besides teaching English as a second language, Spanish and Latin at the Vallejo Adult School and the Florence Douglass Senior Center, Berenguer is presently working on his third book.
Vallejo man still in the education trenches at age 88AMERICAN CANYON >> More complications surrounding the so-called Watson Ranch project will be spelled out at a special city council meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday at City Hall, city officials announced.
An update on the status of the Watson Ranch Specific Plan and Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will be provided at the meeting, where city council members will be asked to provide direction on several project-related issues, including whether or not to increase by 126 (to 1,379), the number of dwelling units the project will create.
Special meeting Tuesday to update American Canyon's Watson Ranch projectIf interest in a city by national companies is an indication of its fortunes, Vallejo's are on the rise, as both Panera Bread and Sonic Drive-In are in talks with city officials over where to locate restaurants.
Also, In-N-Out Burger is still trying to find a way to set up shop in the Redwood Plaza shopping center without creating a traffic nightmare, city officials said.
Coming soon to Vallejo? Panera Bread, Sonic in talks with city officialsDue to the generosity and support of its 2016 sponsors, the Solano Hispanic Chamber has announced an increase in the number of Inspire Leaning scholarships to be awarded this year, and an extension of the application deadline. The chamber will award four $1,500 scholarships for college students and seven $750 scholarships to high school seniors.
Hispanic chamber scholarship amounts, deadline extendedThe unemployment rate in Solano County remained unchanged in December, at 5.1 percent, while Napa County's rose to 4.4 percent in December from November's 4.2 percent, according to the latest state figures, released Friday.
These numbers compare with a 5 percent jobless rate in California and 4.
Solano, Napa unemployment steady, risingThe American Canyon Family Resource Center offers free tax preparation to households that earned $54,000 or less in 2016, agency officials announced.
Taxes will be done at Napa Valley College from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays in room 1332, and at the American Canyon Family Resource Center from 12:30 to 4:30 p.
American Canyon Family Resource Center offers free tax serviceA Vallejo woman was robbed at gunpoint as she walked home around noon on Wednesday, by a man who was also on foot, a Vallejo Police Department spokesman said.
The 37-year-old woman was walking from downtown toward her home, heading north on Sonoma Boulevard near Santa Clara Street when she noticed someone else walking on the street, in the opposite direction, Lt.
Female pedestrian robbed at gunpoint by male pedestrian in Vallejo on WednesdayVallejo Police on Wednesday, pulled over what they thought was a car stolen in town earlier in the day, but actually wound up recovering one stolen earlier in the month, Lt. Herman Robinson said.
"At about 4:30 p.m., officers driving southbound on Sonoma (Boulevard) approaching Ohio Street, saw a white Ford Taurus in front of them," he said.
Car mistaken for one stolen, wound up being one stolen earlier this monthNAPA >> Over night, one night next week, Napa County officials plan to spread out and count the number of homeless people in the county, as required by the federal government, officials said.
On the night of Jan. 24 and into Jan. 25, the Napa Police Department, Napa County staff, and other community volunteers will spread out and count homeless individuals as part of the annual Point in Time Count, they said.
Napa city, county to conduct annual homeless count next weekCostco Wholesale will pay $11.75 million to settle allegations that its pharmacies violated the Controlled Substances Act when they improperly filled some prescriptions, Department of Justice officials announced Thursday. The settlement resolves allegations that Costco pharmacies filled prescriptions that were incomplete, lacked valid DEA registration numbers or were for substances beyond various doctors' scope of practice, they said.
Costco to pay millions for pharmacy failuresNAPA >> Recent storms have damaged public facilities significantly enough to prompt Napa County Executive Officer Leanne Link to issue an emergency declaration effective Jan. 8, county officials said.
Recent rainstorms have caused severe damage to several roadways, impacted the operation of the water and wastewater treatment plants at Berryessa Estates and Highlands, and resulted in hundreds of small rock slides, downed trees and power lines, as well as slippage requiring significant repairs, they said.
Napa County declares state of emergency over storm damageVallejo native Chynna Morgan says she's invented a way to take the "what-the-hell-did-you-mean-by-that?" out of electronic messaging with an app that allows you to add your voice or music to them.
Gif Out Loud, which launched last month, is a free app with a Gif and video keyboard that allows you to record your voice, add the perfect song or create your own Gifs or videos, she said.
Vallejoan invents app to add voice to silent video/text messagesAMERICAN CANYON >> In a rare split decision, the city council voted to fill the seat vacated by Belia Ramos' election to the Napa County Board of Supervisors by an open application process, though most speakers on the issue said they favored appointing Joan Bennett, the third-highest vote-getter in the November election.
Empty American Canyon City Council seat to be filled by app processThe City of American Canyon is now accepting applications to fill a vacancy on the city council.
The applicant selected through this recruitment process will serve the remainder of an unexpired term ending in November 2018 and may opt to run for a full term in the November 2018, general election officials said.
American Canyon accepting applications for a city council spotTwo Napa residents were left stranded in a Vallejo park Sunday evening, after they were robbed at gunpoint at a meeting arranged through a buy/sell phone app, Vallejo Police Department Lt. Kent Tribble said.
"We used to get these crimes happening to people who used Craigslist, but this was an app called OfferUp," he said.
Two for-sale app users robbed at gunpoint in VallejoIt was a great year in 2016 for the Vallejo business community and 2017 promises to be even better. That was the basic message of those who spoke at the 142nd Vallejo Chamber of Commerce Installation Dinner on Friday.
More than 200 business, city and regional government officials filled the Dan Foley Cultural Center for the shindig, which featured tables decorated to varying degrees by the companies whose representatives sat around them for the dinner catered by Zio Fraedo's.
Vallejo chamber and friends gather for annual eventAMERICAN CANYON >> The City Council on Tuesday likely will figure out which of three options to use to fill the council seat vacated by Belia Ramos by of her election as Napa County Supervisor.
The four-year term Ramos didn't finish ends November, 2018. She ran unopposed to fill the seat being vacated by Keith Caldwell, who retired.
American Canyon City Council to talk about filling Ramos' seatThose who join the Arbor Day Foundation this month get 10 free flowering trees, organization officials announced. California residents "can ring in the New Year with 10 free flowering trees by joining the Arbor Day Foundation any time during January 2017," they said.
By becoming a part of the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation, new members will receive two Sargent crabapples, three American redbuds, two Washington hawthorns, and three white flowering dogwoods, they said.
Free flowering trees for joining Arbor Day Foundation in JanuaryAMERICAN CANYON >> An armed, masked man held two gas station employees up at gunpoint Thursday, and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash, American Canyon Police Chief Tracey Stuart said Friday.
Just after 10 p.m. Thursday, officers responded to the Chevron station at 401 Napa Junction Road for an armed robbery call, Stuart said.
American Canyon gas station held up at gunpointIf the United States Postal Service is as responsive to public opinion as representatives say they are, the temporary post office at 629 Marin Street in downtown Vallejo will become a permanent location, likely within six months.
Anyone with an opinion on the matter is urged to put it in writing and mail it to Dean Cameron, the postal service real estate specialist who ran a meeting Wednesday on the issue at the new Valle Vista and Couch streets Vallejo Main Post Office.
USPS got earful about need for downtown post office at Wednesday meetingFree business-building seminars, lead by an "international marketing expert" are being offered in Vallejo, organizers announced.
Speaker and author, Mike Blinder, will share marketing secrets to help local businesses get the most bang for their advertising buck, with two free 75-minute workshops where he will offer tips on:
.
International marketing expert offers free business-building seminars in VallejoRep. Mike Thompson, (D-Saint Helena,) this week won a spot on the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, which has jurisdiction over healthcare, health delivery systems, and health research, his office announced.
"With Republicans primed to gut health coverage for millions of Americans, it is more important than ever to stand up and speak out for those at risk of losing everything,"#xa0;Thompson said in a statement.
Thompson named to Congressional health subcommitteeBy April, the owners of the 3-year-old Mare Island Brewing Company hope to be creating their own craft brews in a completely remodeled historic Coal Shed on Mare Island, thanks to a Grow Vallejo Fund loan, city and company officials said.
Work has already begun on the building, brewery co-owner Kent Fortner said.
Special loan helps Mare Island Brewing Co. expandRoxana Damas, founder and CEO of Vallejo-based Diversity RD Global, is one of 170 women selected from more than 4,000 worldwide applicants, to represent Empower Women Champions, a United Nations organization advocating for women's economic empowerment.
In her role as "Champion of Change," the 35-year-old San Francisco native with El Salvadoran roots, will lend her expertise, skills and knowledge to promote women's economic growth locally as well as on a national scale and abroad, she said.
Vallejo businesswoman tapped to participate in international women's empowerment campaignConditions of extreme peril to people and property have arisen within the city of Benicia, so officials have partially activated its Emergency Operations Center and Local Emergency Proclamation.
Residents are asked to remain indoors and avoid all flooded areas.
The decision was made around 9 p.
Benicia declares flooding emergency, urges people to avoid flooded areasBlu Homes, a "green" prefab home manufacturer on Mare Island since 2014, will likely move out of its factory by the end of this quarter, in favor of a less expensive facility, probably in another state, company officials said this week.
They also said they hope to find a similar manufacturing business to move in to the space and that other parts of the firm will remain on the island.
Blu Homes to leave big, blue Mare Island buildingTwo Napa residents were arrested in a stolen car, with stolen plates on suspicion of car theft, and one hospitalized for possible narcotics ingestion, in American Canyon early Tuesday, the city's Police Chief said.
At about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, an American Canyon Police Officer stopped a Honda Accord in the 7000 block of Main Street, Chief Tracey Stuart said.
Napa man, woman arrested in American Canyon on car theft, drug chargesA male shooting victim became Vallejo's first homicide of 2017 when he died at a Vallejo hospital Monday night, a Vallejo Police Department spokesman said.
Police received a report at 7:11 p.m. on Monday of a shooting at an alley in the 500 block of Tuolumne Street.
Within minutes of that call, a male adult arrived at Sutter Solano Medical Center, having been transported by a private vehicle, suffering from gunshot wounds.
Vallejo's first homicide of the year Monday, police sayNAPA >> The public is invited to check out volunteer opportunities on this year's MLK Day of Action and Compassion, the more than 80 agencies and organizations making up The MLK Monday Coalition announced.
The more than 80 organizations, agencies, faith groups and local businesses, invite residents to sign up to volunteer for service projects happening Monday, Jan.
Sign up to volunteer in Napa area for MLK Day next weekTwo of the Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) ferry boats have been in the shop for the past few days, causing trips between Vallejo and San Francisco to be canceled or replaced by buses, an agency spokesman said.
WETA spokesman Ernest Sanchez said it is rare for two boats to be out of commission at the same time.
Two Vallejo ferry boats out of commission causing schedule changesIt's 230,000 books and counting, that the Solano County Library has given away to very young readers as part of its investment in a nationwide program - Reach Out and Read.
Now, Library Literary Services officials are looking for young artists to help with that program by creating a piece of art about the joys of reading, program assistant Teresa Lavell said.
Art contest for youngsters promotes reading for, to childrenGeorge Maichel said he's not sure how the rumor got started that his business - Sac's Tasty Hot Dogs on Springs Road in Vallejo - had closed, but he's been fielding questions about it for days.
The fake news story, just a rumor, appears to have spread on social media and caused some interesting consequences, Maichel said.
Rumors of Sac's Tasty Hot Dogs' demise grossly exaggeratedMore than 1,500 Forest Service positions are available in California for the 2017 field season, agency officials announced.
The Pacific Southwest Region of the USDA Forest Service will be advertising for these temporary positions throughout California's national forests starting Jan. 9.
Temporary positions are available in a variety of occupations including fire, trails, forestry, engineering, wildlife, recreation, fisheries, archeology and administrative support, officials said.
Vallejo-based U.S. Forest Service is hiringThe number of elderly and disabled Solano County residents continues to grow, increasing the need for home care providers. To help meet the need, the Solano County Department of Health and Social Services, (IHSS) or In-Home Support Services Public Authority, hosts caregiver recruitment sessions for qualified individuals to become paid caregivers locally, officials announced.
Solano County seeks paid, in-home caregiversA series of strong storms, with heavy rain and high winds, are predicted for Northern California this weekend and Benicia Fire Department and other officials urge residents to prepare.
National Weather Service forecasters say a major storm should hit the area starting Saturday and continuing through Monday, with another predicted to start Tuesday.
Benicia city officials urge residents to prepare for weekend stormWith the result of the 2016 presidential election still causing alarm among some segments of society, one American Canyon woman has organized an event meant to help ensure that at least accurate information is available.
Sande Sutter said she arranged for several experts to make a presentation on the issue of immigration during the upcoming Trump administration, set for 7 p.
Free immigration under Trump event in American Canyon Jan. 12While the Napa River is not expected to overflow it's banks, heavy rains and localized flooding could be in store for Vallejo, Benicia and American Canyon this weekend and city officials are bracing for it.
The National Weather Service issued a Flood Watch for our area from 4 p.m. Saturday until 4 p.
Local cities prepare for possible flooding this weekendTwo teens were robbed at gunpoint - and one pistol-whipped - in Vallejo on Wednesday, a Vallejo Police Department spokesman said.
The incident happened at about 10:20 p.m. Wednesday near Steffan (Street) and Buss (Avenue), when a 17-year-old male and an 18-year-old friend were walking north on Steffan approaching Buss, when they noticed a black Dodge Charger or Dart pass them slowly and then stop, Lt.
Teens robbed, one pistol-whipped in VallejoOne Solano County city has become the main laboratory for a new app that marries technology with outdoor play for children.
Matt Toner said he knows too many children spend too much time indoors with electronic devices, so he and his business partners developed Biba - an outdoor game/imagination-enabling app meant for use at parks and playgrounds.
Biz Buzz: Fairfield is ground zero for new outdoor play app for kidsTrails connecting Vallejo to American Canyon and the Napa Valley should be ready for use by 2021, now that the project has been awarded $4.2 million in grants, officials of the various agencies involved said Wednesday.
The project will close about 3.6 miles of gaps between the San Francisco Bay Trail and the Napa Valley Vine Trail in the only area where the two overlap, which is mostly in Vallejo.
Millions in grants to fund regional trail gap closures through VallejoHome prices in Solano County continued rising in November at a faster pace than the average across the country, where they also rose both compared to last year and to the previous month, an industry analytics firm's latest report shows.
CoreLogic, this week, released its Home Price Index and forecast for November, 2016 which shows home prices in the Vallejo-Fairfield area increased nearly 11 percent compared with November 2015 and by 1.
Solano home prices still rising faster than national averageIf you're a Vallejo Chamber of Commerce member, you may be sensing some changes afoot, starting with a member survey. It's part of how the agency's new president and CEO, James Cooper, is getting his bearings.
Cooper, most recently head of the American Canyon Chamber of Commerce, took over for Rich Curtola, who recently retired from the Vallejo post.
New Vallejo chamber head hits ground runningKaiser Permanente members in the Santa Cruz area no longer have to travel to other areas to find a medical clinic, with the opening Tuesday of the new offices in Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley and Watsonville, hospital/heath care insurance officials announced. The organization first announced its plans to expand into the county in April, 2016.
Kaiser Permanente now open in Santa Cruz CountySolano County is about to get its first mikvah, a ritual pool designed to strict, biblical specifications.
While most people probably never noticed the lack of a mikvah here, it's loomed fairly large for the area's tiny but growing orthodox Jewish community, whose members have had to travel some distance to find one, Chabad of Solano County Rabbi Chaim Zaklos said.
Area's first ritual bath coming to Solano Jewish communityTwo people were taken to a local trauma center after a solo-vehicle crash on a Vallejo freeway Monday, emergency officials said.
Personnel from the Vallejo Fire Department, the California Highway Patrol and Medic Ambulance responded to a report at about 10 a.m., of a vehicle off the roadway on the westbound Interstate 80 exit to Highway 37, they said.
Two injured in Vallejo solo crashTwo light complected Black women are still at large after trying to steal some merchandise from a Vallejo store Sunday and attacking store employees who tried to stop them, a Vallejo Police Department spokesman said Monday.
The two women, both said to be in their 20s, were seen by an employee of the Factory 2 U store in the 3400 block of Sonoma Boulevard, grabbing two items and leaving without paying for them, Lt.
Two women suspected of stealing merchandise from Vallejo store