WE MEET MISS YUCCA VALLEY CONTESTANT DANIELLE HARRINGTON The annual Miss Yucca Valley Pageant, organized by the Yucca Valley Noon Rotary Club, is this Saturday night at the Thunder Dome in Yucca Valley. Today, managing editor Tami Roleff introduces us to contestant Danielle Harrington... My prominent lady is Sheri Wysocki. She's a nurse practitioner and I've learned a lot from her. But mainly, just how important it is to love people and love your job. What have you learned from your…

JOSHUA BASIN WATER DISTRICT APPLIES TAXES TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES At last night's meeting of the Joshua Basin Water District the Board voted to comply with state law by applying its property tax to four local government agencies which bought land after 1996. That law requires the water district annually charge Hi-Desert Medical Center $30, Morongo Basin Transit Authority $450, and Twentynine Palms Water District $1,400 for land they purchased within Joshua Basin boundaries after 1996.…

MAJOR CUTS AT MORONGO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT, LAYOFFS, COMBINING SCHOOLS, BUS CUTS Reacting to even more cuts to education from the state, the Morongo Unified School District announced yesterday it was taking severe actions. On top of an immediate million dollar cut for transportation, $2.4 million for next year, the state announced yet another 3.2 million will be cut from the local districts' General Fund if the governor's tax proposals don't pass. According to a press release…

A TENSE HI-DESERT WATER BOARD MEETING LAST NIGHT The Hi-Desert Water District's Board of Directors meeting was tense and hostile last night over one item on the agenda. Derwood Andrews reports on what caused the brouhaha... The atmosphere was tense at last nights Hi-Desert Water District meeting. The item on the agenda that seemed to spark the interest, was a request from staff to see if any Board member wanted to attend a two hour dinner up in Sacramento, a State legislative reception for…

YUCCA VALLEY MAN HELD AFTER SEVERE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INCIDENT A Yucca Valley man was arrested early Tuesday morning after smashing windows of his mother's house and attacking his girlfriend. According to a Sheriff's report, Ralph Chapman, 42, called his mother shortly after 1 Tuesday morning to ask for a ride. When she refused to come pick him up, he told her he was going to come to her house and vandalize her car. His mother called for help about 1:20 to say Chapman was inside her…

EMOTIONAL TESTIMONY AT MORONGO VALLEY COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT BOARD MEETING The Morongo Valley Community Services District Board of Directors met for the first time last night since Manager Meg Foley was fired in January. A large and sometimes emotional crowd showed up for their three minutes of public comment. Reporter Mike Lipsitz was there and files this report… Last night's meeting of the Morongo Valley Community Services District was a do-over of January's meeting which was…

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS AND SCORES The Yucca Valley High School Junior Varsity Trojan Wrestling team participated in its second-to-last competition Tuesday evening in Beaumont. Winning matches on the night were Josh Goddard, Destynie Candelaria, Gavin Rompf, Caleb Norman, Reymundo Zepeda, and Anthony Barela. The JV and Varsity wrestling teams take to the mat for the last time this regular season this Saturday at the De Anza League Individual Finals at 10:00 a.m. at Shadow Hills High School. For the…

REGISTRATION BEGINS FRIDAY FOR "KING OF THE HAMMERS" Tickets for the biggest local off-road event of the year go on sale Friday. Reporter Lenore Roberts says tickets for King of the Hammers will be available at Means Dry Lake... Do you like 4-wheelers, dirt, and a lot of fun? You can get all of that at the annual Griffin King of the Hammers event. Registration begins February 3 at the Means Dry Lake in Johnson Valley, and events will run through the 10th with an awards ceremony on the…

TWENTYNINE PALMS LITTLE LEAGUE LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS Twentynine Palms Little League needs volunteers--managers, coaches, umpires, and concessions help. An informational coach's meeting will be held from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, February 2 at the Community Center. All coaches will be given information for our highly anticipated coach's clinic, as well as equipment issue, and practice schedules. All parents interested in joining a coaching staff or managing their child's team, are…

HI-DESERT WATER DISTRICT BOARD LOOKS AT TRAVEL, RATES, AND STRATEGIC PLAN The Hi-Desert Water District Board meets tonight. Reporter Derwood Andrews says travel, a rate study, and strategic planning are all on the agenda... At the regular meeting of the Hi-Desert Water District tonight at 6 p.m., the items include a request for Director travel to Sacramento for the Inland Empire State Legislative Reception in March. Water Rate Study Session number two, and the Strategic Plan Format Revision.