Vallejo's status as the most affordable Bay Area city in which to rent could change, according to the people at Zumper, an industry analysis firm.
"While Vallejo had the fastest growing one-bedroom rent last month, along with Mountain View and Petaluma, Santa Rosa rent, the second most affordable, is still around 9 percent more expensive than Vallejo's," Zumper spokeswoman Crystal Chen said.
Report: Vallejo rents continue rising, though still area's most affordableAll Northern California Kaiser Permanente hospitals - including the Vallejo and Vacaville medical centers - received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association's#xa0;Get With The Guidelines-Stroke#xa0;Quality Achievement Awards, health plan officials said.
Also, 20 hospitals earned a place on the Target:#xa0;StrokeSM#xa0;Honor Roll-Elite Plus, the organization's award for excellence in rapid stroke care.
Kaiser Vallejo among those recognized for stroke careAMERICAN CANYON >> A new strip mall near the Napa Airport is set for discussion during a Joint City Council/Planning Commission Workshop, along with some Fire District business, at Tuesday's city council meeting. The meeting's public portion is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.
The proposed Norcal Commercial Center Project is located at the southwest corner of Highway 29 and S.
New development and Fire District business on tap for American Canyon City Council on TuesdayAt least some of the estimated 50 or 60 locals who attended Thursday's Tax Town Hall at the Florence Douglas Senior Center came away with more clarity - and plenty of concern - about the nation's recently adopted new tax law.
The purpose of the meeting was to give attendees information about the new laws, relevant to seniors specifically, an organizer said.
Dozens of seniors leave better informed, still worried, from new federal tax laws talk in VallejoAMERICAN CANYON >> If city officials were hoping for a consensus among residents to make it easier to craft an ordinance regulating cannabis cultivation and sales in town, they were disappointed after this week's workshop on the issue.
Community Development Director Brent Cooper said positions on pot came from both ends of the opinion spectrum, from the event's 40 or so attendees.
American Canyon holds well-attended recreational pot workshopIn less than a month, five California Highway Patrol officers have been struck by vehicles while helping motorists on local freeways - five too many, say agency officials. In response, the CHP is launching an anti-DUI campaign.
Of the last five collisions involving CHP vehicles in the San Francisco Bay Area, three were DUI related, officials said.
CHP launches zero-tolerance campaign after five officers hit on Bay Area freeways in past monthMore than 30,000 hazardous trees in fire-impacted North Bay communities - some 13,000 of them in Napa County - have been cut down by Pacific Gas and Electric Company crews, to reduce wildfire and public safety risk, company officials announced Thursday.
PG&E will haul away larger wood its crews cut down near its power lines in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake counties at no cost to property owners, but, if the wood qualifies, customers must request the wood removal service.
Opt-in program to have PG&E remove dangerous trees in fire area ends next monthThere are too few women in the building trades, as far as Tradeswomen, Inc. and the carpenters union's officials are concerned. However, they want women to know there are a slew of trades-related career choices through which good money can be made.
So, for the first time in Fairfield, the organizations have partnered with the Bay Area Apprenticeship Coordinators Association to hold a "Women Can Build" Carpenters Apprenticeship Day from 10 a.
Solano area trade union woos women with trade fair in FairfieldLocal hospital officials say they were braced for this year's flu season.
Sutter Solano officials say the number of flu cases coming in seem to be about the same as past years, though the number of people admitted to the hospital with the flu is higher this year.
"Sutter Solano Medical Center is seeing about nine to 12 cases of the flu per day," Emergency Department manager Gary Cole said.
Sutter Solano, Kaiser Permanente report no staffing issues related to flu seasonImprovement to Highway 37 through Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties as well as increased numbers of ferries were among the congestion-abatement elements approved Wednesday by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission's Bay Area Toll Authority affiliate. But, it's going to cost Bay Area drivers.
Agency members approved a resolution to place on the June 5 ballot in all nine Bay Area counties, a sweeping $4.
Bay Area traffic congestion to get $4.45 billion in relief, paid for through higher tollsEnthusiastic, sustained applause followed the balding, white-haired, 86-year-old Holocaust survivor as he made his way up the center of the St. Patrick/St. Vincent High School gym on Wednesday to take the microphone.
It was the retired lawyer's third or fourth time speaking to St. Pat's students, some 500 or so of whom filled the gym for the special assembly featuring Hungary native Bernie Rosner.
Students hear Holocaust survivor's story first hand at St. Patrick-St. Vincent HighRep. Mike Thompson (D- St. Helena), on Tuesday, joined Reps Bill Johnson of Ohio, Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, and Arizona's David Schweikert in introducing a bill designed to improve access to prescription medications for Medicare beneficiaries, Thompson's office staff announced.
H.R. 4841, the Standardizing Electronic Prior Authorization for Safe Prescribing Act, will make the processes more efficient, they said.
Thompson co-sponsors legislation to improve prescription access for Medicare beneficiariesAll that potential Vallejo's been hanging on to for decades is about to be realized, with some half billion dollars of development in the pipeline right now, the city's Economic Development Manager, Ron Gerber said.
Mayor Bob Sampayan said that was his main takeaway from a recent presentation Gerber made to a group of international economic development students.
Vallejo's potential coming to fruition?Rep. Mike Thompson, State Sen. Bill Dodd, and State Assemblymember Tim Grayson will host the grand opening of their new, shared office in downtown Vallejo from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, their staff members announced.
It's the first time in decades that local representatives have shared a space, they said.
New all-in-one elected officials offices Open House set for ThursdayRep. Mike Thompson's staff has been fielding calls from local seniors concerned about how the newly passed "Republican tax reform law" is going to impact them, so, he is hosting a Town Hall for Seniors planned for 3 p.m. Thursday.
"There's a ton of confusion out there among seniors and every other kind of taxpayer," Thompson spokesman TJ Adams-Falconer said Tuesday.
Thompson to hold Vallejo Town Hall on new GOP tax law's impact on seniorsPart of Curtola Parkway in Vallejo is closed until further notice, following the collapse of a portion of a pedestrian overcrossing, Vallejo City and California Department of Transportation officials announced.
Working closely together, Caltrans closed Curtola Parkway between Solano Avenue and Lemon Street as of 1 p.
Partial collapse of pedestrian overcrossing prompts Vallejo street closureA police chase through parts of Vallejo on Sunday ended with a Vallejo man taken into custody, Vallejo Police Department Lt. Herman Robinson said.
A man later identified as Eric Hill, 46, of Vallejo, was seen trying to park a stolen vehicle in a parking lot in the 2500 block of Sonoma Boulevard just before 12:30 p.
Vallejo man leads police on a car/foot chase through parts of townA Vallejo man was arrested at Kaiser Permanente Vallejo Medical Center for trying to shoplift from the gift store there, on Monday, Vallejo Police Department Lt. Herman Robinson said.
"Monday morning, a gentleman entered the Kaiser gift shop and was observed placing several items into a bag he was carrying," he said.
Vallejo man arrested for trying to steal from the Kaiser gift shopThe prize for the best decorated table at the 143rd Annual Vallejo Chamber of Commerce Installation Dinner on Friday, went to the steampunk-themed City of Vallejo, which even had city officials, including Mayor Bob Sampayan, decked out in steampunk.
This year's event sold out at 320, the Times-Herald's Shawna Gilroy said.
Vallejo's 'steampunk' mayor swears in Chamber's new board, officersTouro University California is welcoming Vallejo native Sarah Sweitzer as Provost and Chief Academic Officer to join the school Jan. 29, school officials announced.
"Dr. Sweitzer's intelligence, enthusiasm, and talent are exemplary," Touro College and University System President Alan Kadish said.
Vallejo woman welcomed as Touro's new provostDue to scheduled road closures for the Women's March Napa Valley in downtown Napa on Saturday, Vine Transit buses that normally operate on Third Street will run on First Street starting at 9 a.m., with temporary stops at Seminary and Main Streets, agency officials announced.
The Seminary stop is the nearest to Napa City Hall, where the march is scheduled to start at 10 a.
Napa women's march Saturday prompts bus route changesUnemployment rose slightly in both Solano and Napa counties in December, though it remains lower than expected in both, according to the latest figures from the California Employment Development Department, released Friday.
Solano County's jobless rate was 4.1 percent in December, up from 3.
Unemployment up slightly, but still relatively low in Solano, NapaVallejo may have a dozen new international ambassadors who city officials hope will go home to their far-flung native countries with a positive impression and a desire to do good works.
On Thursday, 12 Soka University of America students from 10 countries accompanied educator Mary Patrick Kavanaugh on a Bay Area tour to study social enterprise and economic development.
Class of international college students get schooled in VallejoRents in the Vallejo area continue rising, threatening to eliminate what may be the only relatively affordable housing market in the Bay Area, according to an industry publication's year-end report.
Having analyzed rents in more than 50 Bay Area cities, RENTCaf#xe9; found that while "rent growth slowed down in pricey markets like San Jose or San Francisco, the Bay Area's most expensive cities saw rents decrease," officials said in an email.
Continued rent increases in Vallejo, Solano County, Napa area shrinks 'affordable' optionsNAPA >> There are several ways Napa County people displaced by the North Bay fires can exercise their right to vote, Registrar of Voters John Tuteur said in a news release Wednesday, spelling them out.
"Voters who lost their homes in the October 2017 Napa Fire Complex have several ways to make sure that they receive their June 5, 2018 Primary Election vote by mail ballots," he said.
Vote by mail options for Napa area voters who lost homes in October firesThe southbound State Route 29 on-ramp from Lincoln Avenue in downtown Napa will be closed weeknights likely through March, so the California Department of Transportation can widen shoulders on the ramp and install a concrete barrier, agency officials said.
For worker and public safety, the southbound Highway-29 on-ramp from Lincoln Avenue will be closed 11 p.
Road work means closed Highway 29 exit in Napa through MarchAMERICAN CANYON >> The long-awaited Watson Ranch Project took a baby step forward with the unanimous approval Tuesday of a "Term Sheet and Project Schedule Agreement," at the City Council meeting.
The agreement between the City of American Canyon, American Canyon I, LLC and the Newell Family allows for the continued analysis and processing of the project, once called the Town Center.
American Canyon's Watson Ranch Project inches forwardAMERICAN CANYON >> The new Ikea warehouse opening soon in American Canyon needs several dozen warehouse workers and is holding a job fair next month to find them, Mandy Le of the American Canyon Chamber of Commerce said.
The job fair is scheduled from noon to 5 p.m. Feb. 20 at the American Canyon Welcome Center, 3860 Broadway, Suite 103.
New American Canyon Ikea logistics center seeks to hire dozens of warehouse workersNAPA >> The deadline for Napa County residents who want to apply for Covered California health plans, including Blue Shield of California, Kaiser Permanente, Western Health Advantage, and HealthNet, is Jan. 31, county officials said.
To assist with enrollment, the Napa County Health & Human Services Agency will offer extended business hours during January on until 6 p.
Napa County urges residents to get health coverageVallejo Police responded to reports of shots fired Monday night but wound up with only a few shell casings and a security video of a car fleeing the scene, Lt. Herman Robinson said.
Calls came into Vallejo Police Department dispatch at about 10:15 p.m. of shots fired in the area of Webb Street and Grandville Avenue, and when officers arrived, they found a number of shell casings in the street, but no victim or damage, he said.
Shots fired in Vallejo neighborhood may be connected to video of fleeing carCalifornia State University Maritime Academy's Captain Harry Bolton, Director of Marine Programs and Commanding Officer of the USTS#xa0;Golden Bear, announced he's retiring after the upcoming summer training cruise.
Captain Bolton, a 1978 Academy graduate, returned to Cal Maritime on May 1, 2008 after a 30-year career with American Maritime Officers.
CMA's Bolton to retireIn the wake of devastating California wildfires, State Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) introduced new insurance reform legislation aimed at helping victims of such fires and other major disasters, his office staff announced.
The October Tubbs, Atlas and Nuns fires were in Dodd's district.
The bill, co-authored with Sen.
Dodd floats disaster insurance reform billA hiker stumbled onto a man hanging from a tree in a Vallejo park at about 2:30 p.m. on Monday, the victim of an apparent suicide, a Vallejo Police Department spokesman said.
"A hiker came upon a guy hanging from a tree in the back part of Blue Rock Springs Park," Lt. Steve Cheatham said. "He hiked back down, called the PD, and lead us to the site.
Hiker finds apparent suicide victim in Vallejo parkHere's what will be open and closed Monday in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Closed or not operating:
. The cities of Vallejo, Benicia and American Canyon
. Solano and Napa county offices
. Solano and Napa public libraries and the Benicia Public Library.
.
Open/Closed for MLK Day on MondayHere's what will be open and closed Monday in observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Closed or not operating:
. The cities of Vallejo, Benicia and American Canyon
. Solano and Napa county offices
. Solano and Napa public libraries and the Benicia Public Library.
.
Open/Closed for MLK Day on MondayNAPA >> Dr. Patrick J. Sweeney, superintendent of Napa Valley Unified School District since July 2010, will retire on June 30, at the end of this school year, he announced Friday.
"It has been an honor and privilege to serve the students, families, faculty, staff, administrators, classified managers and Board," Sweeney, 61, said in an announcement to staff.
Napa school district superintendent announces retirementVallejo and American Canyon are closer to earthquake fault lines than anyone knew until the 2014 South Napa Earthquake shook loose information scientists didn't have before. The California Geological Society has released a new and revised Alquist-Priolo Earthquake Fault Zone map covering the area, agency officials announced Thursday.
Vallejo, American Canyon, added to earthquake fault mapsMonday's Martin Luther King Day event begins at 9 a.m. with a march that will travel from the corner of Tuolumne and Tennessee Streets to Hogan Middle School at 850 Rosewood Avenue, where the planned program is scheduled to start at 10 a.m.
Clarification: Monday's MLK event in Vallejo starts with march at 9 a.m.Vallejo's 22nd annual Martin Luther King event helps mark the 100th anniversary of the local NAACP branch's incorporation, event organizer Jimmie Jackson said.
"This is a good year; the branch was incorporated in June, 1918," he said.
To help celebrate, event organizers have planned a program, in advance of the annual march, that includes a keynote address by Pastor Marvin D.
Monday's MLK Day event in Vallejo to stress moving forwardNAPA COUNTY>> A Fairfield man was killed in a crash caused by a rock slide on State Route 121 Tuesday evening, California Department of Transportation and Napa area California Highway Patrol officials said.
The highway remained closed between Wooden Valley Road and Vichy Avenue in rural Napa County until just before 1 p.
Fairfield man identified as victim of Napa area rock slide crashDepending on the weather, mandatory bridge inspections will be performed on Interstate-80 in Fairfield on Thursday, the California Department of Transportation, officials announced.
The inspection of multiple overcrossings above I-80 are part of Caltrans' regular preventive maintenance schedule.
Solano County freeway lane closures on ThursdayThere have been two or three drownings in Vallejo residential swimming pools in the past five years, police and fire officials said, but lawmakers hope new rules that kicked in Jan. 1, will help prevent such tragedies statewide in the future.
A man drowned in Vallejo last year, Vallejo Police officials said.
New swimming pool laws meant to help prevent child drowningsA bill designed to provide preschool to all 4-year-olds statewide was introduced by Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa), his office announced.
"Adopting universal preschool is an investment in our future that will pay dividends for years to come," Dodd said in a statement. "As a father and a grandfather, I know that there is no more precious resource than our young people.
Bill Dodd floats universal pre-school billNAPA >> Napa Valley residents and visitors can ride Vine Transit for free Jan. 15 to 17 as part of the "Resolution to Ride" campaign, which encourages people to give public transit a try in 2018, agency officials announced.
"Whether the goal is to stress less during your commute, help the environment or save money, taking public transit is a great way to check off a number of boxes on New Year's resolution lists," they said.
Vine Transit offers free rides Jan. 15 to 17The fate of the "orphaned" Mare Island Cemetery may have come a step closer to a solution Monday, following a conference call between Vallejo Mayor Bob Sampayan and the retired Navy captain whose efforts to save the sacred site, appear to be about to bear fruit.
"The call involved a discussion of seeking the transfer of the Mare Island Naval Cemetery and adjacent land for additional grave sites to the (Veterans Administration) for integration into the National Cemetery System," Capt.
Possible solution to Mare Island Cemetery situation in sightNew information indicates that the first fatal car crash of 2018 may have been caused by a motorist who drove off afterwards, and Vallejo Police Department officials are trying to track that person down, they announced Tuesday.
Traffic investigators have learned that the cause of the Jan. 4 crash that killed 23-year-old Mario Soto-Landa of Vallejo, was "the result of an additional vehicle that did not remain at the scene," police said.
Officials: Mystery driver likely at fault for Vallejo's first fatal crash of 2018Rep. Mike Thompson on Monday, released a statement about the services he provided to constituents and the legislation he sponsored in 2017.
"As a Member of Congress, serving you is at the very heart of the work I do every day," the statement reads. "That's not only by voting and working on your priorities, but by being your champion in the federal government.
Thompson recounts his 2017 accomplishmentsThe founder and former owner of one of downtown Vallejo's oldest business fixtures has passed away, friends and family of Christ Pappakostas said Monday.
"With great sadness, I have to announce the passing of our long-time parishioner Christ Pappakostas," lifelong friend Deme Stall-Nash said on Facebook.
Pappakostas, longtime downtown Vallejo smoke shop owner diesAn emergency regulation was adopted Monday by the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board) to help facilitate recovery from "the unprecedented damage" caused by the October 2017 wildfires in the forested portions of Napa, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties, officials announced.
The North Bay Wildfires were the deadliest and some of the costliest in California history, they said.
Emergency rules adopted to support North Bay Wildfires recoveryNearly 11,000 Vallejo residents are among those selected for a pilot program from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. aimed at lowering energy use, by charging more for it during peak hours, utility officials announced.
PG&E customers should be receiving letters in the mail about a new CPUC "Time of Use" pilot program, in which some 150,000 customers territory-wide will test out this new program, officials said.
Vallejo to lead region in testing new PG&E rate planWeather permitting, the new Laurel Street Bridge should be open to traffic by Friday, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) officials announced.
Work has been completed on a major portion of construction of the new Interstate-780 Laurel Street Bridge, located over I-780 just east of downtown Vallejo, they said.
Laurel Street Bridge work finished, expected to reopen by FridayAMERICAN CANYON >> Several businesses here have had their windows shot at over the past several months, so police posted a notice on the department's Facebook page in the hope of shaking loose some leads, American Canyon Police Chief Oscar Ortiz said.
"It's a repetitive problem, that's been going on since about November," he said.
Police looking into windows being shot out in American CanyonAMERICAN CANYON >> The Walmart Supercenter's parking lot on Friday became the site of a stakeout that helped police nab one of several suspected carjackers, American Canyon Police Chief Oscar Ortiz said.
The incident began with an armed carjacking in Fairfield early Friday evening, he said.
The alert about the crime went out at about 6 p.
Fairfield carjacking ends in American Canyon arrestAmerican Canyon High coaches and players were disappointed with their energy two days earlier against St. Patrick-St. Vincent.
Senior Malik Ghiden and company wouldn't let it happen again.
Ghiden poured in a game-high 33 points and the Wolves dispatched visiting Rodriguez 74-52 on Friday in the final boys basketball preseason tune-up of 2018.
Ghiden scores career-high 33 as American Canyon High boys beat RodriguezThe magnitude 4.4 earthquake that shook the Bay Area early Thursday rattled some nerves in and around Vallejo, though some folks snoozed right through it.
The temblor struck at about 2:39 a.m., some two miles from Berkeley, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), which reported fielding more than 34,000 calls about it from the public.
Thursday's Berkeley-centered temblor woke folks in and around VallejoCalifornians are kicking off 2018 with the most expensive gas to begin a year since 2014, according to AAA, but prices are expected to fall in coming weeks as travel demand subsides after a busy holiday travel season. At $3.05 per gallon for regular unleaded, Vallejo's gas prices Thursday were higher than the national average ($2.
Vallejo, statewide gas prices likely to drop in coming weeksAMERICAN CANYON > > A Vallejo man was arrested on suspicion of attempting to sell narcotics early Thursday morning.
According to police, at around 2 a.m., an officer spotted a suspicious vehicle with mismatched plates on its front and back. The suspect, 29-year-old Gregory Sottan, was detained and his car was searched.
Vallejo man arrested on suspicion of intent to sell methCrews managed by the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery have completed the removal of wildfire debris on properties in Butte, Nevada, and Yuba counties following October's devastating Northern California wildfires, agency officials announce.
Since Nov. 16, crews removed more than 63,000 tons of ash, debris, and contaminated soil from 250 properties in which owners chose to participate in the CalRecycle-managed cleanup, they said.
CalRecycle completes wildfire debris removal in several Northern California countiesThough it's too early to worry about a repeat of the recent drought, Wednesday's Department of Water Resources manual snow survey in the Sierra Nevada east of Sacramento, found little snowpack - which was predictable after a dry December statewide, agency officials said.
Measurements at Phillips Station revealed a snow water equivalent of .
Snowpack test disappointing, but not yet worrisome, officials sayState Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa) was among several lawmakers who introduced a bill that seeks to prevent a utility firm like Pacific Gas & Electric Co. from raising rates in response to fines or penalties leveed against it.
PG&E is already pushing back.
"While there has been no determination on the causes of the Northern California wildfires that took place in October, it is clear that California needs much broader reforms that recognize the mutual interests of customers, utilities, investors, insurers and others as we work together to address the impacts of climate change including more frequent and more damaging wildfires," PG&E spokeswoman Deanna Contreras said in a statement.
Dodd co-introduces bill to prevent utility from recouping fines by raising ratesThe Napa Valley Model Railroad Historical Society filed suit last week against the Napa Valley Expo for violating environmental law - an action prompted by the latter's decision to evict the former from its longtime home, it was learned Tuesday.
The non-profit model railroad society filed suit on Dec.
Napa model railroad society sues Napa Valley Expo for evicting it after 47 yearsTraffic lanes on State Route 29 in American Canyon and St. Helena will be striped over two days, the California Department of Transportation officials announced.
The painting of traffic lanes is related to sidewalk improvement projects which added new curb ramps along SR-29 in both cities, they said.
Caltrans work on Highway 29 on Wednesday, ThursdayDowntown Vallejo is home to a "one-stop" legislators' shop, as the region's elected officials now share office space on Virginia Street.
Rep. Mike Thompson, State Sen. Bill Dodd and Assemblyman Tim Grayson officially moved in to their new digs at 420 Virginia St. on Tuesday.
"The reason I initiated this was because my Solano County constituents had to pay a toll to see their assembly representative, and that was unacceptable," Grayson said.
New one-stop government shop opens in downtown VallejoVallejo Police Department officials are looking for at least two men who broke into a Vallejo cellphone store early Tuesday and made off with a cash register and a single phone, Lt. Kent Tribble said.
Police officers responded to an alarm activation just before 2 a.m. Tuesday, at Technology Wireless in the 1800 block of Springs Road, where they found the store's glass door broken out, Tribble said.
Vallejo cellphone store robbed; phone, cash and cash register taken