As 2016 ends, we look back on some of the top stories of the year.
Environmentalists had cheers and jeers for news affecting the Morongo Basin in 2016. After California Senator Dianne Feinstein tried unsuccessfully to pass a bill to establish three new national monuments in the California deserts, President Obama signed an executive order in February designating the Sand to Snow, Mojave Trails, and Castle Mountains National Monuments. The three new monuments cover 1.8 million acres, and will provide wildlife corridors and historic areas. The Sand-to-Snow National Monument includes 24 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, and Big Morongo Canyon Preserve in Morongo Valley and will serve as a link between Joshua Tree National Park and the San Bernardino National Forest.
Environmentalists were not so happy about the county approval of the NextEra solar project, which is slated for the old Joshua Tree airport. After two years of fighting the county’s approval of the project, residents turned their sights on the Joshua Basin Water District Board of Directors, hoping the water district would refuse to provide water to the 115-acre solar farm. Despite the company’s threats to dig its own well if it didn’t get the will-serve letter, the board was able to delay the project only a few months.
Opinions were also mixed on two other projects in Joshua Tree. The Joshua Tree Retreat Center held two concerts on its grounds this fall. Many people were upset about the noise from the concerts and about the grading the center did to provide parking for thousands of concert-goers, while others welcomed the visitors—and their spending—to the Hi Desert.
News that the county plans to build a mental health facility in Joshua Tree was welcomed by many people, but there were also many complaints about the location chosen for the 10-bed center. Instead of building the facility near the hospital on WhiteFeather Road, the new mental health facility will be built on nearly three acres on the south side of the highway between Torres Avenue and Sunny Vista Road. A construction contract is expected to be awarded in February.
And many people were outraged when they heard that British singer Beth Orton had spray-painted a Joshua tree and cholla cactus while filming a music video on Noah Purifoy’s property in Joshua Tree this spring. The video, released online in May, shows Beth Orton painting the Joshua tree and cactus red, orange, blue, and green. Orton later apologized and agreed to work with the Mojave Desert Land Trust to educate others about the desert.
Tomorrow, we’ll continue with more of our top stories from 2016.
A LOOK BACK AT 2016 IN THE NEWS, PART 2 OF 4
