Foreclosed Options
Hurting homeowners find loan modification relief is increasingly elusive.
“This is my home – your home,” Melchor Molina says, in a variation of the old saying, mi casa es su casa, as he opens the door of his light yellow ranch house. It sits ...
Issues / 2010 / Jul 08
15th District Senate Candidate Blakeslee accepts Laird debate challenge...or does he?
Assemblyman Sam Blakeslee (R-San Luis Obispo), who faces off against Democrat John Laird and two minor party candidates in the special state senate election August 17, has accepted two invitations to debate: August 5 in ...
Highlights of the Seaside police log
Pirated Toy Story 3 videos, hide-n-seek with Oxycontin and a lake-dunked parolee - it's just another week in the life of the Seaside Police Department. Excerpts from the Seaside police log for June 18-July 2: ...
The City of Carmel pays $600,000 to settle sexual harassment suit.
The City has spent thousands of dollars in legal fees to defend itself against a sexual harassment and age discrimination lawsuit filed last year by its former Human Resources Manager Jane Miller. Miller alleged that ...
Marina sales tax hike makes the November ballot.
After weeks of heated bickering, the Marina City Council voted last Wednesday to put a 1 percent sales tax hike on the November ballot. The 4-1 vote, with Frank O'Connell dissenting, reflected a last-minute change ...
Monterey County supervisors denounce Arizona immigration law.
The Monterey County Board of Supervisors has approved a resolution denouncing Arizona's strict new immigration law, which allows police to question any suspected illegal immigrants - language many civil rights activists interpret as legalized racial ...
Special Edible
More mouthwatering morsels: Jerry Regester shines, Gilroy garlic gets some love from L.A. and secrets and updates on In N Out.
Stag's Leap does some incredible wines. At last week's C Restaurant wine dinner, Jerry Regester summoned some stunning couses to match. Meanwhile, In N Out's secret menu might have more options than even veteran fans ...
Bruce is Loose
Marina Mayor Bruce Delgado announces plans to run for re-election.
Two score supporters, including County Supervisor Jane Parker, MPUSD board member Dianne Creasey and sheriff candidate Scott Miller, turned out to see Bruce Delgado announce that contentious local politics won't keep him from seeking another ...
Activists sue the state; demand better education funding.
A group of low income students and parents filed suit in Alameda County Monday July 12 in a case that could affect public education in all of California's cash-strapped school districts. Attorneys for the Campaign ...
Election season in the city of Monterey kicks off this week
Monterey voters will elect a mayor and two city council candidates in November, and beginning this week, candidates can request nomination papers from the City Clerk's office. The two year term of Mayor Chuck Della ...
Big Dogs
Los Lobos will perform at Sand City's West End Celebration.
A "VERY, VERY special guest" performance was promised for Sand City's 8th West End Celebration, taking place Aug. 20-22 this year, extended to celebrate Sand City's 50th anniversary. At a press party Thursday, July 8, ...
Sewage spill of as much as 70,000 gallons closes Monterey Municipal Beach.
The Monterey County Health Department issued the closure notice Thursday July 8 at 3:45 pm after the city of Monterey reported the spill along Pacific Street where a storm drain empties in the bay at ...
Just Krilling Time
Gray whales are lingering past season in Monterey Bay.
The solitary gray whale swam up to the boat, opened its mouth and dove through a rust-colored cloud of krill, delighting the humans aboard. “It was almost like he was using the boat as a ...
¡Ask A Mexican! for Jul 08, 2010
One man's take on his culture's stereotypes
Dear Mexican: I’m a (poor) white girl myself, but I have to ask: What’s the deal with all the rich white girls playing such a big role in Fiesta? Why is it always rich white ...
Mayor says Asian capital may help local businesses.
Times are tough, but business is booming in China, and Salinas Mayor Dennis Donohue hopes his city can cash in. The mayor, along with redevelopment head Don Reynolds and a delegation of local Chinese-Americans, recently ...
Questions and solutions for the regional water plan.
Alot of people on the Monterey Peninsula know a lot about the proposed Regional Desalination Project. The Public Participation Hearings held last week by the California Public Utilities Commission proved this beyond doubt. People from ...
Fostering Help
New legislation aims to shelter youths facing difficult circumstances.
Every year some 5,000 teenagers “age out” of foster care in California – the largest number of any state in the union, according to the state’s Child Welfare Services. This means the teens reach the ...
Art Listing for Jul 08, 2010
Art Listing for Jul 08, 2010
HAPPENING THIS WEEK ALTERNATIVE CAFÉ Pao Pao Nest: Two of Brooklyn’s lowbrow heavyweights are put on display as Kevin E. Taylor curates the Gallery’s 23rd exhibit. The art of Aya Kakeda and Fumiha Tanaka uses ...
Real Estate
By The Numbers
$1,600,000 Recent Sale 26273 Ocean View Ave., Carmel Built: 1950 Size: 1,190 square feet Features: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2-car garage Amenities: Ocean views, fireplace, permit to add on 1,200 more square feet Seller: Stephan ...
Shopping for Shopette Developer
Seaside considers assisted living facility for Fort Ord parcel.
The site of an abandoned Army/Air Force gas station and convenience store could become a home for senior citizens, or a new housing development, on the former Fort Ord. On Thursday, the Seaside City Council ...
Brezsny's Astrology
Free Will Astrology
Aries (March 21-April 19): Have you added some bulk and stability to your foundation any time recently, Aries? Have you grown your roots deeper and asked for more from your traditional sources and recommitted yourself ...
Get Involved
Public Citizen
THURSDAY 7/15 PREVENT DRUNK DRIVING | MARINA—Sun Street Centers hosts the monthly meeting of PARTS, Preventing Alcohol Related Trauma in Salinas. Parents, police, teenagers and professionals come together to discuss the issues. Noon. Sun Street ...
Lofty Summit
Dubwize, Cali Nation and The Joint Venture headline first Salinas Music and Arts Summit.
“It’s really truly grassroots,” Vanisha Evans Douvon says. “Everybody’s coming together. Even my brothers and sisters are coming out to set up a stage.” Douvon – orchestra programs manager for the nonprofit Youth Music Monterey ...
If you put a love letter in a bottle, what would it say?
Asked at Carbone’s in Monterey.
Follow-up: What the worst thing you could do on a first date? GIANNI GRECO | Promoter | Monterey A: Why would I want to put a letter in a bottle nowadays? If I’m having to ...
Despicable Me
Totally Gru-vy: Despicable Me is an animated feel-good summer movie that delivers on its promise.
I’m still considering whether I’m ready to blaspheme… No, wait: I’m coming to a decision… Yes, I shall blaspheme: Despicable Me is better than Toy Story 3. There. I said it. Only a little bit ...
Letters to the Editor for Jul 08, 2010
UNHEALTHY POLICIES During a visit on July 2 to my preferred provider, a medical doctor, for my annual physical I was told I needed to complete and sign an authorization form which stated that if ...
Sweet honeymoon
Local female “super group” constellation includes four stars.
Lauren Shera, Andrea Blunt and sisters Christina Bailey and Sara Bollwinkel have been dominant musical forces on their own for several years. Last November, the four united and became a super group. Like the dictionary ...
Borderline Debate
Local attorney hopes immigration reform brings relief.
It’s on – another round in the ongoing national debate about immigration. Speaking at American University in Washington, D.C., on July 1, President Barack Obama launched the opening salvo, urging Congress to take action on ...
Trashy Romance
How a misdirected love story speaks to the crisis in the Pacific.
Late last month, as the sun set on the beach at Spanish Bay, Trish Landon cried. Her love life was in ruins, and she had just lost a job she loved. Landon figured new love ...
Hope Floats
Reigning in locavore extremists with help from a different “slow” food movement.
Locavore fundamentalists might call it blasphemy, but there’s no reason why a meal made with local foods can’t also contain ingredients from the other side of the world. Homegrown vegetables like broccoli and garlic stir-fried ...
Crunchy Credit
Farmers markets grow with electronic food stamps.
Everyone’s Harvest takes its name seriously: Since the Marina-based nonprofit began running local farmers markets, it has allowed low-income people to use electronic benefit transfer cards (EBTs) – the modern version of federal food stamps ...
Red Hot Blues
Lavay Smith and company launch an inspired Blues in the Park summer.
Lavay Smith credits public radio for tuning her in to great music she may not have heard otherwise. Some of her favorite shows were “The Johnny Otis Show” on KPFA in Los Angeles and “Nothin’ ...
Squid Fry for Jul 08, 2010
Squid Fry for Jul 08, 2010
BAIT AND SWITCH… Fishermen are still pissy with the Monterey Bay Aquarium and its friends, judging by an e-mail urging Squid to join a boycott of Hewlett-Packard products. “[Aquarium CEO] Julie Packard uses millions to ...
Photo Finish
Ansel Adams show at MMA is an aesthetic – and historic – treasure trove.
There is no way of getting around the work of Ansel Adams in American photography, nor should there be. His reputation stands as steadfast as the iconic rendering of Half Dome in Yosemite, which helped ...
The best of our web exclusives.
Museum Makeover…The Monterey City Council gets a sneak preview of the ongoing remodel at the Monterey Maritime Museum at its July 6 meeting, including plans for the lobby and first floor, and a museum finance ...
On the Down Under
Australian delis, picture-perfect new pastries and cowboy boots.
‘Tis a tongue twister and a seasonal truth: Prime picnic packing places are at a premium come summer. The new Down Under Deli (625-DELI) in the Mid-Valley Shopping Center on Carmel Valley Road deserves to ...
