The West Ranch Beacon – News & Commentary for the Santa Clarita Valley

Detectives from the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station COBRA team are investigating an armed robbery which occurred at 8:20 p.m. on Friday, September 18, 2009 at CVS Pharmacy located at 25880 McBean Parkway in Valencia. The male suspect, pictured here, is being sought for questioning only in connection with the robbery.  The suspect entered the CVS Pharmacy and stood in line with merchandise. When he reached the cashier, he lifted his shirt displaying a black handgun and demanded that the cashier put money in a bag. (more…)

The City of Santa Clarita will present the 2009 Festival of the Arts on October 3 – 4 in Old Town Newhall. The exciting two-day festival, sponsored by Lockheed Federal Credit Union, will be held along Main Street between Lyons Avenue and 5th Street and will highlight a spectrum of artistic talent in a variety of mediums, focusing on the process of art. (more…)

(From Science Daily) Plumes of harmful air pollutants can be transported across oceans and continents — from Asia to the United States and from the United States to Europe — and have a negative impact on air quality far from their original sources, says a new report by the National Research Council. (more…)

The City of Santa Clarita invites Newhall Redevelopment Area businesses and property owners to attend informational workshops regarding the Newhall Redevelopment Small Business Grant Program, and Old Town Newhall Building Improvement Grant Program. Workshops will be held to jointly discuss the programs on Thursday, October 15 from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. at William S. Hart Park’s Hart Hall, and again from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Santa Clarita City Hall’s first floor Council Chambers. (more…)

The following is a roundup of political activity going on in Washington and across the nation. It’s courtesy of Scott Wilk, Community Organizer, and Anchor Consulting group. The Beacon will be posting these daily as they become available. (more…)

“When a man takes an interest in a woman’s body she accuses him of only taking an interest in her body, but when he doesn’t take an interest in her body, she accuses him of taking an interest in someone else’s body.” — P.J. O’Rourke & John Hughes

Sometimes, you compose an essay and the repercussions can be so overwhelming one must take long and serious walks in the woods to make sure one is making the right decision. (more…)

(From the Los Angeles Times) Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger endorsed a plan Tuesday to radically alter the way Californians pay taxes, calling on state lawmakers to make dramatic changes before year’s end to take the state off the “roller coaster ride” of boom-and-bust budgets. (more…)

The Domestic Violence Center of the Santa Clarita Valley will be moving to a new location, effective October 5, 2009.  The Center’s new office is located in the Valencia Industrial Center on Avenue Stanford, and is a smaller office than the Center previously occupied. (more…)

(From the Financial Times) A key US committee on Tuesday rejected a push by liberal Democrats to have a government-run healthcare option included in the $856bn centrist bill taking shape in the Senate. (more…)

(From the New York Times) Verified Identity Pass, a company founded by the entrepreneur Steven Brill, offered travelers a tempting proposition: pay up to $199 a year, submit to a fingerprint and iris scan, and skip to the front of interminable airport security lines. (more…)

TimBen Boydston, Executive Director of the Canyon Theatre Guild and community advocate, has entered the race for Santa Clarita City Council. TimBen held a seat on the City Council through most of 2007 and part of 2008 after he was appointed by the Council to fill the vacancy created when Cameron Smyth was elected to the state Assembly. When TimBen accepted the position, he vowed not to run in the 2008 election. That promise was kept, and now TimBen is ready to resume his service.

Deputies from the City of Santa Clarita’s COBRA Team and School Resource Deputies teamed up to arrest a prolific tagger.  The Canyon Country youth is suspected in 52 incidents of graffiti related vandalism totaling $23,000 in damages throughout Canyon Country over a 13 month period -  New school campus cameras and follow up investigation led to the arrest of a Canyon Country youth suspected in connection with 52 incidents of graffiti related vandalism and tagging dating back to August 2008. (more…)

The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a motion by Supervisors Michael D. Antonovich and Gloria Molina to send a 5-signature letter to the City’s Mayor, City Council and the Controller ordering the City to stop taxing businesses located in unincorporated County communities and reimburse those businesses for all revenues previously collected. (more…)

To inform residents in fire-damaged areas on the County’s efforts to reduce the impact of mudslides and erosion damage, Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich has created a multi-agency program (C.A.R.E.) and a toll free number (800-214-4020) to protect life and property in the upcoming rainy months. (more…)

The City of Santa Clarita will host the kick-off for its Community Court diversion program on Wednesday, September 30 at 5 p.m. The event, held at the City Hall’s first floor Council Chambers, is the first day the court will be in session after its summer hiatus. (more…)

(From KHTS Radio) An instructional assistant at Rio Norte Junior High was arrested Friday in Kern County, along with her daughter, for offering sexual favors on the internet. Katherine Silvers and daughter Sarah Sunshine were taken into custody at their home (more…)

(From Science Daily) The Great Depression had a silver lining: During that hard time, U.S. life expectancy actually increased by 6.2 years, according to a University of Michigan study published in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. (more…)

The City of Santa Clarita will begin its Roadway Asphalt Rehabilitation Project on Monday, October 5 along Soledad Canyon Road between Sierra Highway and Sand Canyon Road.  Construction is expected to last through November 2009. (more…)

The following is a roundup of political activity going on in Washington and across the nation. It’s courtesy of Scott Wilk, Community Organizer, and Anchor Consulting group. The Beacon will be posting these daily as they become available. (more…)

During the tumultuous Sixties, when so much history was taking place like sideshows at a state fair, I was admitted to the very newsy civil rights transformation taking place in the Deep South.  Hired by the federal government as a VISTA Volunteer, I was paid less than $50 per week to live and work in the African-American town of Eatonville, Florida.  My job definition – like that of President Obama’s first job when leaving Harvard Law School – was that of “community organizer.” (more…)