The Grass Valley Union

Negotiations to sell Grass Valley Group reportedly stalled By Liz Kellar Staff writer French media technology group Thomson is struggling to agree to terms for the sale of its Grass Valley facility to U.S. investment fund Platinum Equity, French daily La Tribune has reported. The French paper said the fund and the group were at odds on the level of financing required to fund the restructuring of ... Full Story »

Lumber Association elects Pardini The Union Staff Jeff Pardini, co-owner of Hills Flat Lumber Co., was elected to the board of directors of the Lumber Association of California & Nevada during the trade group's annual meeting Oct. 22-23, in San Diego. LACN is the region's oldest and largest lumber and building trade association, with 470 member firms in 14 states and Canadian provinces. The ... Full Story »

Oriental rug exhibit Staff Writer The Union Staff The Magic Carpet in Nevada City will be hosting an exhibit, lecture and slideshow entitled "Expressions Through Symbols in Oriental Rugs" at 7 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14. The event will explore the images and symbols woven into ancient rugs and their relation to cultural values. Admission is free, and the exhibit will be held at the Magic Carpet ... Full Story »

Ortiz promoted to bank branch manager Staff Writer The Union Staff Kim Ortiz, a member of the Nevada County Chamber of Commerce, has been named manager for Wells Fargo's Penn Valley branch on 17446 Penn Valley Drive. Ortiz joined Wells Fargo in 2000 as a clearing transit operator in Fremont before becoming a personal banker in Grass Valley, where she was promoted to assistant store manager. Full Story »

Meet your Merchant: Kris Holland Photography Staff Writer What goods or services do you offer? I love being a photographer and am constantly shooting a variety of subjects. I have a diverse photographic background, but my focus is wedding photography, as well as portraits and commercial photography. What makes you different from other photographers? My style. I strive to make great photos that ... Full Story »

Wet weather possible through Thursday By Dave Moller Senior Staff Writer Two systems moving into Nevada County could produce wet weather tonight through Thursday, with the chances for precipitation greater Wednesday and Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Sacramento. The systems are expected to bring some rain to the lower Sierra, with snow at 6,000 feet and above. Because of ... Full Story »

Nevada County People: Benefit set for family of Harmony Ridge man By Trina Kleist Staff Writer A benefit dance party, silent auction and buffet will be held Saturday for the late Harmony Ridge resident Neal Clay. Clay worked for historic preservationist LaVonne Mullin for 15 years, and got to know the tenants in Mullin's many historic buildings in Nevada City and Grass Valley. When he learned he ... Full Story »

Grass Valley to move forward with Slide Ravine infrastructure upgrades By Liz Kellar Staff writer An ambitious plan to upgrade the infrastructure of the Slide Ravine area just north of downtown is expected to be approved by the Grass Valley City Council at its meeting tonight. The area, which includes Bernice Drive, Carol Drive and Doris Drive, has extremely narrow streets that cause a fire ... Full Story »

Police blotter: Nov. 10, 2009 Staff Writer Grass Valley Police Department Sunday 10:09 a.m. - A man from Le Duc Street reported property worth more than $400 had been taken from a vehicle. 4:53 p.m. - A caller from a business in the 200 block of East Main Street reported a man who lived behind the business kept calling and harassing employees, complaining about noise and saying he was going to ... Full Story »

Governor signs $11B water bond measure Associated Press Framed by a shrinking mountain reservoir in Fresno County, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a far-reaching water bond Monday intended to rebuild California's crumbling water system and fund new dams to save up the precious resource for dry years. Yet at a time when several Western states are preparing to tear down dams rather than build ... Full Story »

Tour of California: Colfax route more certain than Grass Valley By Michelle Rindels Staff Writer The bike route for May's Amgen Tour of California will almost certainly run through Colfax and Auburn after starting in Nevada City, although its route through other cities, including Grass Valley, remains undecided. The exact route will not be determined until mid-January, but cyclists will most ... Full Story »

Coalition scores grant to improve sidewalks Staff Writer Just a year after they started tackling barriers encountered while strolling, biking, or wheelchairing along Grass Valley's sidewalks, residents in apartments along Sutton Way, working with county heath officials and leaders of nonprofit organizations, have landed $800,000 to improve sidewalks in their neighborhood and along West Main ... Full Story »

Grass Valley to move forward with upgrading Slide Ravine area By Liz Kellar Staff writer An ambitious plan to upgrade the infrastructure of the Slide Ravine area just north of downtown is expected to be approved by the Grass Valley City Council at its meeting Tuesday night. The area, which includes Bernice Drive, Carol Drive and Doris Drive, has extremely narrow streets that cause a fire danger ... Full Story »

McClintock votes against health care bill By Dave Moller Senior Staff Writer Fearing high costs and rationing of care, Rep. Tom McClintock, (R-Elk Grove) voted against the U.S. House version of the health care reform bill Saturday, which is now endangered in the Senate over abortion. With two other health care reform bills already in the U.S. Senate, there are many possibilities on what, if any ... Full Story »

Brawl involved broken beer bottles The Union staff At 12:03 a.m. Monday, a caller from a business in the 100 block of Broad Street reported a physical fight with broken beer bottles being used. One man left the scene with a head injury and could not be located. For more from the police blotter, read Tuesday's The Union. Full Story »

A push to thin forests to curb wildfires By Dave Moller Senior Staff Writer The Nevada County supervisors will be asked Tuesday to send a letter to Rep. Tom McClintock asking him to continue to push a bill to thin California's forests to protect them from runaway wildfire. The county has 218,000 acres of federal land that are "at least 10 times as dense as their historic structure, choked with ... Full Story »

Change your mind By Machen MacDonald Special to The Union My daughter just turned 5 years old and, to honor her 5th birthday, I finished 5th in my age group in the Run Through the Colors 5K event. Enough about me; back to my daughter. In starting only her fifth year on this big blue marble, she amazed me with her wisdom last night as it relates to how the mind works. If you follow my column, you ... Full Story »

Phillips earns rug cleaning certification Michelle Phillips, owner of The Union Staff Michelle Phillips, owner of Select Floor Care in Grass Valley, recently completed the course and examination to become a certified rug cleaning technician through the Institute Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification program. Phillips is the only certified rug cleaning technician in Nevada County. To ... Full Story »

New business: Oxygen hits The Spot By Angela Diaz Staff Writer The Spot Oxygen Bar offers much more than a place to simply ... and literally ... catch your breath. It's "for the whole well-being," said general manager Erica Robison, who runs the business at the bottom of Nevada City's Broad Street. Opened by Jeff Cherry last month, The Spot also offers a coffee and espresso bar. The foyer ... Full Story »

Readers' Corner: Nov. 9, 2009 Staff Writer Thanksgiving meal Gold County Calvary Chapel will be hosting its annual Free Community Thanksgiving Dinner from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 26, at the Nevada City Veterans Hall on 415 N. Pine St. The free community event provides food for those in need, and expects a large turnout this year. Donations and volunteers are greatly appreciated ... Full Story »

War veterans honored at appreciation lunch By Laura Lavelle If you have ever wondered about state-of-the-art video games, log on to CallofDuty.com for a clip of the soon-to-be-released "Modern Warfare 2." This latest version is due out tomorrow - one day before Veterans Day. The graphics in this game are as realistic as they come, and the theme is a worldwide conflict that takes players from ... Full Story »

Training today to detect, treat substance abuse The Union staff Experts in treating substance abuse will conduct a day-long workshop to help medical professionals better screen for substance abuse, do brief interventions and refer patients for treatment. Skills learned in the workshop can be used for patients who abuse drugs or alcohol and who are in trauma centers, emergency rooms and primary ... Full Story »

Police Blotter: Nov. 9, 2009 Staff Writer Grass Valley Police Department Friday 8:06 a.m. - A caller on Park Avenue reported juveniles were loitering in the area and harassing people. 8:57 a.m. - A caller reported a panhandler in front of a store. Police made contact with the person. 9:35 a.m. - Police arrested a man at North Church Street and Richardson and booked him on suspicion of public ... Full Story »

Curb-jumping driver was just trying to pick up his dog The Union Staff Friday, 12:17 p.m. - A caller from the 400 block of Colfax Avenue reported a driver in a Ford Taurus was swerving on the road and hit the curb several times. Grass Valley police contacted the driver, who said he was attempting to retrieve his loose dog. For more local police reports, see Monday's edition of The Union. Full Story »

Police Blotter: Nov. 7, 2009 Staff Writer Grass Valley Police Department Thursday 7:33 a.m. - A caller from Colfax Avenue and South Auburn Street reported a man was wearing black sweats that had been cut out and "showing his private areas." He said his pants had been cut due to a medical aid call and he was given a ride to get new clothing. 7:43 a.m. - A caller from the 400 block of Henderson ... Full Story »