City News

According a survey released this month by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) titled “Californians & higher education,” Californians have a high opinion of the state’s higher education but are concerned about the impact of the budget deficit. The survey said that all three branches of California’s higher education system enjoy high approval rates. Fifty-one percent of respondents rated community colleges “good” and 15 percent said “excellent.” California State University received 52 percent “good” and 10 percent “excellent.” For the University of California, 50 percent said “good” and 15 percent excellent.

Low income senior citizens, the blind and disabled will not be receiving their annual check for homeowner or renter assistance in the mail this year. Due to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s decision to eliminate funding for the Homeowner and Renter Assistance programs in the state budget for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, 2008 claims cannot be paid by the Franchise Tax Board.

The city of Davis is currently discussing possible options for the renovation of Fifth Street between A and L streets. The four-lane corridor currently serves several modes of transportation, including bikes, pedestrians, automobiles and delivery trucks. Many community members have complained about bike safety – there are no bike lanes – and traffic and pedestrian flow problems.

Fecal fury An individual was in the process of picking up the feces after his dog defecated on a lawn on D Street when people came out of the residence and started screaming at him and threatening him.

The City of Davis took a step forward in its quest to lower greenhouse gas emissions in the city on Tuesday night.TheDavisCity Council unanimously approved a resolution establishing emissions reduction targets for the city and community through2050.The reductions will be gradual,with a target of cutting emissions to1990levels by2010and a target of complete carbon neutrality by2050.

English can be a tough language to learn,but the federal government hopes to make it easier with a free website intended to improve access to language instruction for immigrants. The website,usalearns.org,is a free and easily accessible resource available to anyone seeking basic English language instruction.Sponsored by the U.S.Department of Education,it meets one of President George W.Bush’s immigration reform pledges from2007.

California’s community colleges might be just a little less accessible to students in the very near future. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a$332.2million mid-year budget cut to all California community colleges as part of abudget cut package he announced two weeks ago.This newly proposed reduction,along with a$290million cut enacted earlier this year,brings the total to a potential$622.2million cut fromCalifornia community colleges.

Biking around Davis,many students may not be affected by gasoline prices,but those driving and running businesses aroundCalifornia are. Gas pricesin Californiahavetumbled from an all-time high of$4.59in June to an average of$2.37currently,according to the California Energy Commission.Though the economy is taking a toll on businesses,the drop in gas prices has been a silver lining for some.

The Davis City Council will meettonightat6:30p.m.in the Community Chambers at23Russell Blvd. The following are descriptions of selected agenda items the council will discuss at the meeting.To view the entire agenda and associated staff reports,visit cityofdavis.org.

THURSDAY Get your bike out of the gutter A bike was found in a drainage ditch onMace Boulevard.

Yolo County Probation’s juvenile program lost nearly$1million in funding this year due to state budget cuts,a development that has probation officials worried about public safety. The cuts will have a serious impact on juvenile offenders,said chief probation officer Don Meyer. “That’s about38percent of our budget,” Meyer said.

Environmental consciousness was the theme of the2008Regional Green Summit in Woodland onSaturday. The summit was held at the Woodland Community and Senior Center and lasted all day.It featured over40panelist speakers on topics ranging from environmental justice to water quality.Several of the panelists and moderators were members of UC Davis research units.