Dispatch - Week of August 3
Mojave National Preserve road update, Yucca Valley reviews two new business applications, and Awe Bar hosts disco night
Hello from California’s high desert, where we’ve gotten a fair bit of monsoonal moisture over the last week. It looks like we still have a few more days of higher-than-average humidity and storm potential before we’re through the worst of it, so stay dry!
And now, onto this week’s news:
In local news:
All roads in Mojave National Preserve — including Kelbaker, Cima, Essex, and Morning Star Roads — are currently closed due to flash flood damage.
National Park staff do not yet have an estimated timeline as to when the roads will reopen as some of the damage was substantial and more storms are expected later this week.
For now, the I-15 is your best bet to get into Vegas.
The Yucca Valley Town Council last week reviewed permits for future businesses in town, including a Dutch Bros and Chipotle.
Dutch Bros applied for a permit for a drive-through coffee shop with two drive-through lanes at 57154 Twentynine Palms Highway.
Chipotle applied for a conditional use permit for new construction of a building in the Vons parking lot that also includes a drive-through lane.
It was cooler in Yucca Valley than Seattle and Portland last weekend, as a heat dome is currently moving over the northern part of the country.
The city of Twentynine Palms voted to move forward with a wastewater treatment facility and is seeking further grant money for the project.
The project is part of the city’s mandate to move the entire city to a sewer system over the next 10 years.
Three Yucca Valley Town Council seats are up for election in November and the nomination period for the district seats is open until Aug. 19.
Districts One, Three, and Five are up for election. Mayor Schooler from District One, Merl Abel from District Three, and Rick Dennison from District Five have announced their intention to seek re-election
You can register to vote and find election information at https://www.sbcountyelections.com/
The Morongo Basin Healthcare District’s Community Health Center in Yucca Valley is providing back-to-school immunizations next Tuesday, Aug. 9, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Wellness Clinic at 57019 Yucca Trail, Suite D.
School-age children are required to be vaccinated against Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis (Tdap), Diphtheria, Tetanus and Pertussis (DTaP), Hepatitis B, Polio, Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR), and Varicella (Chickenpox).
Appointments are required by calling 760-365-9305.
Awe Bar hosted its first live show last week and is planning a disco show this weekend to celebrate its entry into the live music scene.
Awe Bar is located at 56193 Twentynine Palms Highway in Yucca Valley.
You can purchase tickets to this weekend’s show via its Instagram page.
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors is considering an increase in tax regulations as well as limits on their own terms and pay in response to an ongoing legal battle over Measure K, which was approved by voters in 2020.
If the Board approves the county charter changes on Aug. 9, residents will be able to vote on them in November.
The Joshua Tree Philharmonic symphony orchestra will hold an open house and organizational meeting on Monday, Aug. 15, at 6pm for all returning musicians as well as new musicians interested in joining the orchestra.
The Aug. 15 organizational meeting will be held at the Hi-Desert Cultural Center’s state-of-the-art Yucca Valley Visual & Performing Arts Center located at 58325 Twentynine Palms Highway in Yucca Valley.
All rehearsals and performances will be held at the Cultural Center’s Palmer Performance Hall and Blak Box Theater located in downtown Joshua Tree.
If you or someone you know may be interested in joining the Joshua Tree Philharmonic and would like more information, send an email to info@jtarts.org or call 760-366-3777.
The city of Twentynine Palms and Reach Out Morongo Basin closed the Twentynine Palms Senior Center through Aug. 5, with a tentative reopening set for 9 a.m. Monday Aug. 8, due to an ongoing COVID-19 outbreak.
In state news:
Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in response to the growing monkeypox outbreaks statewide.
The declaration frees up funds to support vaccination and community relief efforts.
The McKinney Fire in far northern California is the state’s largest wildfire of the year.
The death toll rose to four as of Wednesday morning. More than 100 homes, sheds, and buildings have burned since the fire erupted last Friday.
Roughly 56,000 acres have burned and thousands are under mandatory evacuation orders.
Insurance company Geico closed all of its California locations and laid off roughly 100 employees.
California leads the nation in electric vehicle adoption, a new report found.
In other news:
Legendary basketball star Bill Russell died on Sunday at age 88.
In another major loss for the sports world, iconic former Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully died on Tuesday at age 94.
Pupdate of the week: We’ve had a case of the zoomies every morning this week. I blame the cooler temperatures and Alice’s unyielding optimistic attitude.
Trail tip of the week: A timely tip this week to make sure to check local, state, and national park websites before heading out on a hike during monsoon season. Some areas may be experiencing rockfall or dangerous flooding and could be closed as a result.
Show of the week: Do you need a guilty pleasure, low-stakes TV show to get you through the last few weeks of summer? May I recommend Claim to Fame, an absolutely ridiculous show hosted by two Jonas brothers that forces relatives of famous people to not talk about said famous relative? It is high-quality low-quality reality television and I spend way too much energy trying to guess the relatives of each contestant myself. So far, I’ve guessed correctly twice. Careful when you search about the show on the internet because there are spoilers galore!
That’s it for this week! I hope you are staying cool and dry, but take advantage of these nice mornings to get outside.
- Megan