Fire Board Member Robert MacIntyre (right) presents an award to Fire Siren President Carol Olsen. Courtesy photo.

MIDDLETOWN – The South Lake County Fire Sirens received an award for their contributions to the fire district at their annual Installation of Officers Luncheon held on Jan. 8.

Robert MacIntyre, who is a fire district board member, presented the award on behalf of the South Lake County Fire Protection District Board of Directors.

The Fire Sirens is a group whose mission is to assist the South Lake County Fire District with funding for life-saving equipment. That means that their contributions directly help people in need.

Over the past five years the Fire Sirens have contributed nearly $40,000 to the fire district. This helped the fire district purchase such things as two-way radios, electronic heart defibrillators, modern backboards and much more.

One fire board member commented: “Our emergency personnel in the community believe this to be a huge benefit to those that live in the south county.”

The Fire Sirens also have a program called “The Vial of Life Project.” The program offers medication forms that people can fold up and store in an empty vial or pill bottle in the refrigerator, along with a bright red sticker for the door to alert emergency responders such as paramedics or firefighters. Fire Siren Babe Velellio manages this worthwhile program.

If you would like more information about the Fire Sirens, or the Vial of Life program, please contact Carol Olsen at 707-987-3405.

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The new Hopland roundabout. Courtesy of the Department of Transportation.

The event was well attended. Speakers included Charles C. Fielder, Caltrans District 1 director; Alan Escarda, Caltrans construction engineer; J. David Colfax, Mendocino County Board of Supervisors; Mark Graves, superintendent of North Bay Construction; and Stan Phernambucq, chief financial officer of Caltrop Corpn.

Also in attendance were representatives from United States Congressman Mike Thompson’s office, Assemblymember Patty Berg’s office, Sen. Pat Wiggins’ office, Mendocino Council of Governments, Mendocino County Transportation Department and Fetzer Vineyards.

This intersection had experienced 11 collisions during a five-year period, which is higher than the statewide average for similar intersections. Most were the result of motorists failing to negotiate the curve at the intersection of Route 175 and Old River Road. Speeding was the primary factor in over half of the collisions. There are a significant amount of left turns from Route 175 onto Old River Road. There is no left-turn pocket, so vehicles that wanted to proceed eastbound on Route 175 were required to wait for left-turning vehicles.

The traditional solution to enhance the safety at an intersection like this one would have been to add left-turn lanes and potentially, traffic signals. However, Caltrans also constructs roundabouts if they are a better solution than a traffic signal.

A roundabout was chosen because it has numerous advantages at this location, which include: a smaller footprint than a signalized intersection with left-turn lanes, so less new right-of-way was required; providing traffic calming, resulting in reduced speeds; requiring less maintenance, lower yearly operational costs, and a longer service life; providing a safe place for large trucks to safely turn around; and enhancing the roundabout with landscaping will create an aesthetic gateway to the community.

For more information on the advantages of roundabouts, and how to navigate them, see www.dot.ca.gov/dist1/d1projects/roundabout.htm.

The Thursday gathering officially marked the roundabout's completion. Courtesy of the Department of Transportation.

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Included are Mendocino County projects that may impact Lake County commuters.

LAKE COUNTY

Highway 20

– A T & T of Walnut Creek has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for utility work at the junction of Route 20/29 beginning Friday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

Highway 175

– P G & E of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for utility work near Putah Creek Bridge on Wednesday, Jan. 16. Work hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

MENDOCINO COUNTY

Highway 20

– A highway widening project from South Harbor Drive to Gravel Pit Road will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays, weather permitting. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – Argonaut Constructors of Santa Rosa.

– A curve realignment project from 0.3 miles east of Three Chop Road to 0.5 miles west of Two Rock Lookout will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control with a temporary signal is in effect 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists should anticipate 15-minute delays. Contractor – North Bay Construction of Petaluma.

– A T & T of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pavement repair from 1.3 to 2.3 miles east of Two Rock Lookout on Wednesday, Jan. 16. Work hours are 7:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– A T & T of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pavement repair from 0.2 to 1.1 miles west of Broaddus Creek Bridge on Tuesday, Jan. 15. Work hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– City of Willits has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pavement repair 0.4 miles west of Willits Cemetery Road on Monday, Jan. 14. Work hours are 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– A T & T of Ukiah has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for pavement repair 0.3 to 0.1 miles west of Willits Cemetery Road on Monday, Jan. 14. Work hours are 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

– A highway rehabilitation project from Road A to Marina Drive will continue. Work hours are 7 p.m. to 1 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 20-minute delays. Contractor – Granite Construction of Ukiah.

Highway 101

– A pavement repair project from 0.1 miles north to 1.5 miles north of Comminsky Station Road will continue. Northbound traffic will be restricted to one lane 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– Roadway repair due to pavement deterioration, from 3.6 miles south of Ridgewood Ranch Road to 1.9 miles south of Ridgewood Ranch Road will continue. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– Laytonville County Water District has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit to move a water line from 0.9 miles south of Harwood Road to 0.5 miles north of Branscomb Road. Work hours are 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., weekdays. Traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction of travel. Motorists may experience minor traffic slowdowns.

– Verizon of Manteca has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit to replace utility poles 0.4 miles north of Spy Rock Road beginning Friday, Jan. 11. Work hours are 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays. Intermittent one-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays.

– Construction of a retaining wall near Confusion Hill will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. Intermittent one-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays. Contractor – MCM Construction of North Highlands.

Highway 162

– Covelo Community Services District has been granted a Caltrans Encroachment Permit for utility work from 0.2 miles east of Grist Creek Bridge to Howard Street. Work hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate 10-minute delays.

Highway 253

– A slide removal project from Anderson Creek Bridge to Singley Cattlepass will continue. Work hours are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., weekdays. One-way traffic control will be in effect. Motorists should anticipate five-minute delays. Contractor – Steve Manning Construction of Redding.

For information pertaining to emergency roadwork or for updates to scheduled roadwork, please contact the California Highway Information Network (CHIN) at 1-800-GAS-ROAD (1-800-427-7623).

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With almost 50 residents in attendance, Wanda Harris endorsed Hillary Clinton, Harold Riley spoke up for John Edwards, Shirley Howland stumped for Dennis Kucinich and Wendy White explained Barack Obama's position.

The monthly meeting was held at the Lucerne Senior Center on Saturday.

If you're interested in more information about the Lake County Democratic Club, visit www.lakecountydemocrats.org.

E-mail Terre Logsdon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

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• After-school and summer programs focused on youth in grades four through eight;

• Parenting and social-skills training for parents;

• Emergency food and shelter, transitional and permanent supportive housing programs; and

• Senior food and mental-health programs.

Applications are available on Jan. 15, with the submission deadline set for Feb. 25.

Please contact Chanda Zirkelbach, vice president of Community Impact, at 707-528-4485, Extension 110 or via e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for more information and to learn how to access our online-application Web site.

There will be an applicant orientation on Feb. 1 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Santa Rosa Transit Department Training Room 103, located at 45 Stony Point Road, Santa Rosa.

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Doors open at 5 p.m., dinner is served at 6 p.m.

Dinner includes pasta, salad, bread, crab, dessert and coffee. The cost is still only $40 per person and includes door prize chances.

All proceeds go to local and international humanitarian projects and programs.

More than 70 great silent and live auction items have been donated so far, including wine and wine tastings, airplane rides, original art and jewelry, live music, overnight accommodations and shows, a time-share in Mexico, ski lift passes and much more.

Auction donations will be received until Jan. 22nd. Sponsorships are also available at $100 or more.

This is a sellout event every year, and pre-paid reservations are available until Jan. 15.

If you are in a group and would like to reserve seats together, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your ticket numbers, names and phone numbers, plus the name of the group.

Tickets are available from any Middletown Rotarian, or can be picked up at Tri-Counties Bank, Westamerica Bank or Neft and Neft Realtors in Middletown. Or, you may make checks payable to RC of Middletown and mail to P.O. Box 981, Middletown CA 95461. Give us the names of the people in your group so we can seat you together.

For more information, tickets, auction donations or sponsorships, call Helen Whitney at 928-9812.

Rotary is a worldwide all-volunteer service organization. “Service Above Self” is its motto.

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