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Articles from the February 28, 2012 edition


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  • County Lobbyists' Contracts to be Opened for Bids

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - Riverside County's three state lobbyists will have to compete to keep their contracts with the county, the Board of Supervisors decided today. At the urging of Supervisor Jeff Stone, the board voted 4-0 -- with Supervisor Marion Ashley absent -- to open up bidding on the contracts in the fall. Cline & Duplissea, Michael Y. Corbett & Associates and Nielson, Merksamer, Parrinello, Gross & Leoni -- all based in Sacramento -- sought to have their contracts with the county renewed at a total cost of $395,526. Stone...

  • Chicago cold-case murder suspect arrested in Hemet

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - A Chicago cold-case murder suspect was arrested in Hemet and remained jailed today awaiting a transfer back to Illinois to stand trial. Giovanni Spiller, 65, was arrested at a Hemet residence Feb. 21 after investigators in Chicago received a tip about his whereabouts, Los Angeles- based FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said. Spiller, who is wanted in the Nov. 29, 1996, fatal shooting of 53-year-old Roberto Castillo outside a Chicago pool hall, had been a fugitive since 1997. Spiller was being held without bail at... Full story

  • Caltrans Director: Bad Decisions By Underlings Caused Massive Jam

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - The 20-mile traffic jam on Interstate 10 that affected tens of thousands of motorists two weekends ago was the result of bad judgment on the part of Caltrans road supervisors who are now facing disciplinary action, the agency's regional director told the Board of Supervisors today. ''This didn't have to happen. Unfortunately, the procedures and policies we have in the organization to prevent this kind of thing were not followed,'' Caltrans District 8 Director Ray Wolfe told the board during a presentation at the o...

  • Board Approves Installation of Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - Drivers of electric vehicles will have three new locations in Riverside and one in Murrieta to charge up, thanks to a decision by the Board of Supervisors today to permit the installation of charging stations on county property. The board voted 4-0 -- with Supervisor Marion Ashley absent -- to participate in the ChargePoint America Program, which provides EV charging facilities paid for entirely with federal tax dollars under the Obama administration's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. According to county Ec...

  • Frigid winter storm drenches area for second day, more frost and mountain snow

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    SAN DIEGO - A frigid winter storm drenched and frosted the San Diego area for a second day today, delivering more heavy rain and mountain snow before moving out of the area in the late morning. The blustery atmospheric system, which moved in Monday, brought more than an inch of rain to some inland communities and at least a foot of frozen white flakes to some of the county's highest elevations, according to the National Weather Service. By noon, the eastward-departing clouds had dropped 1.14 inches of precipitation in...

  • Supervisor Urges Reconsideration of 'Hub Jail'

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - Riverside County supervisors today discussed moving the controversial proposed ''hub jail'' west of Palm Springs back up the priority list of future county projects, but one supervisor doubted the idea would get very far because of its prohibitive costs. Supervisor Jeff Stone broached the prospect of resurrecting the Riverside County Regional Detention Center project after hearing a presentation by Chief Probation Officer Alan Crogan, who outlined the impact of Assembly Bill 109, the Public Safety Realignment... Full story

  • Home prices fall 5.4 percent in San Diego County in 2011

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    SAN DIEGO (Wire Service) - San Diego's home prices fell 0.7 percent between November and December (2011), according to the Standard & Poor's Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released Feb. 28. In 2011 as a whole, prices fell 5.4 percent in San Diego, according to S&P. Of the 20 large housing markets around the country tracked by the organization, only four performed worse than San Diego last year. However, the region has one of the highest appreciation rates over the life of the index. The Case-Shiller Index took the average...

  • S.D. County economic indicator up in January; highest since June 2008; rising gas prices could have negative impact

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    SAN DIEGO (Wire Service) - The monthly University of San Diego Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate's Index of Leading Economic Indicators for San Diego County, released today, rose 0.9 percent in January to 118.1, its highest mark since June 2008. It's the third increase in a row, and the biggest improvement since a one percent uptick last April, USD business professor Alan Gin said. The jump was led by sharp increases in consumer confidence, initial claims for unemployment insurance, and local stock prices, according to Gi...

  • Premier Service Bank to merge with First California Bank

    Updated Feb 28, 2012

    RIVERSIDE - Riverside-based Premier Service Bank will merge into First California Bank, which is headquartered in Westlake Village, under a definitive agreement announced today. Officials with First California Financial Group Inc., the holding company of First California Bank, and Premier Service Bank said the deal is expected to close during the third quarter, subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals and other customary closing conditions. ''The transaction provides the opportunity to expand First California Bank's...