Archive By Author - Jim Holt
New homes sought in Acton
One plucky developer is trying to push through red tape to build 16 homes in Acton near 38 homes that are in foreclosure.
Agency not waiting for a drought
New home construction is slow, but local water officials are pressing forward with six work projects that require changes to pipelines, treatment plants and pumping stations in anticipation of a massive increase in demand for water over the next 20 years.
On Election Day, all this man wants is your vote
Yeah, it's funny - until someone loses an election. Funny, that is, for local presidential candidate Stephen Thomas, who actually seems to make sense on issues that don't involve flatulence, infomercials and "noogies." "If elected, I promise to do absolutely nothing," he said. Thomas, a 38-year-old married Valencia man with a 9-year-old daughter, is running for president, and he is on the campaign trail drumming up support. He urges anyone swayed by his promise to ...
Trade group questions source of river salt
A trade group is challenging Measure S on November's ballot, saying water softener manufacturers are made a scapegoat for other agencies that dump salt into the Santa Clara River.
Political signs take a beating
Republican or Democrat, residents of the Santa Clarita Valley are waking up to destruction or elimination of their political lawn signs, and they're united in their anger.
Project never teed off
A woman in a plush white bathrobe leisurely looks over her balcony at beautiful rolling green hills and a professionally designed golf course called Los Valles.
One valley, one water supplier, official says
Tenth story in "The Big Picture," The Signal's series on plans for growth in the Santa Clarita Valley. Today we look at water, and why some officials think one agency should handle the SCV's water supplies. Click here for the rest of the stories.
Exec: Las Lomas not dead yet
Officials for the Las Lomas project believe they can resurrect the moribund 5,500-home development despite a stop-work order, a failed lawsuit, a president's resignation and two cities' resistance.
Alleged BB gunmen collared
Two alleged BB-gun snipers facing felony charges, including assault with a deadly weapon, used a laser scope and a BB gun that looks like a fully automatic AR-15 assault rifle, according to deputies with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff's Station.
Jailhouse talk forbidden
VAN NUYS - A Superior Court judge Friday ordered former high school teacher Kevin Lamont Thomas, accused of performing lewd acts with teenage girls, to stop communicating with his alleged victims from jail.
As the clouds lift, attention turns to frosty plants
Many rain-soaked and shivering Santa Clarita Valley residents thawing out from Wednesday's snowstorm turned their attention to plants and trees exposed to freezing temperatures.
Saugus man killed in crash
Rubin Villalobos, 41, of Saugus was killed at 5:50 a.m. after his 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee hit a patch of black ice and rolled over the southbound San Fernando Road offramp onto Highway 14, said Officer John Lutz of the California Highway Patrol.
UPDATED Traffic & Weather: I-5, 14 now open
UPDATED 4 p.m. Thursday: Both Interstate 5 and Highway 14 are now open in both directions, according to Caltrans. UPDATED 12:45 p.m. Thursday: The I-5 is now open to northbound travelers. Traffic is moving freely through the cities of Santa Clarita and Valencia, said CHP Public Information Officer John Lutz. Highway 14 is closed to southbound traffic from 6.6 miles south of Palmdale at Soledad Canyon to the Highway 138 junction due to snow. ...
Bankruptcy plan would liquidate properties
A plan filed in a bankruptcy court could lead to the sale of several high-profile SCV properties. Barclays Bank proposed a liquidation plan to turn all assets owned by LandSource Communities Development LLC into cash to pay its biggest creditors, a U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware heard this week.
Castaic High site picked
The long-awaited Castaic high school will be built near the Sterling Gateway industrial complex, Castaic Area Town Council members heard Wednesday night.
Articles By Author - Jim Holt
Deputy accused of beating 19-year-old inmate
A Saugus man who works as a deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has been charged with assaulting a 19-year-old inmate in the back seat of a patrol car almost two years ago, according to the Los AngelesCounty District Attorney's office.
20-year-old Valencia woman arraigned on felony count
A 20-year-old Valencia woman was arraigned this week on a felony charge of hit and run causing injury or death following a collision with a bicyclist at a Newhall intersection last month, a District Attorney's spokeswoman said.
No injuries reported in two morning crashes on Highway 14
Crown Valley Road in Acton was a busy place this morning with traffic collisions reported on both the north and southbound lanes of Highway 14, emergency response officials said.
UPDATE: Newhall: Young woman talked down from freeway bridge
Quick-responding California Highway Patrol officers talked a young woman down from a freeway bridge Wednesday as she threatened to jump, a CHP spokesman said.
UPDATE: Sanitation district board OKs $334,000 ‘outreach’ contract
WHITTIER - Santa Clarita Valley Sanitation District directors agreed Wednesday to pay $334,000 on public outreach as the district prepares to release a plan to reduce chloride in the Santa Clara River.
UPDATE: At least 4 injured in Highway 14 collision
Four people were hurt, including a mother and her 9-year-old son, in a multi-vehicle crash on the southbound Highway 14 freeway near Via Princessa on Tuesday.
Outreach on chloride in river could cost $334K
Santa Clarita Valley Sanitation District directors are due to decide today whether to spend $334,000 on public outreach as the district prepares to release a plan for ridding the Santa Clara River of chloride.
Acton: Girl on slow recovery following devastating car crash
On Nov. 21 last year, Laurel Slothower of Acton received the phone call that every parent dreads.
UPDATE: Saugus Brush fire held to 4 acres despite high winds
Winds approaching hurricane force whipped flames through brush in Saugus on Monday, prompting swift reaction from firefighters who halted the blaze after it blackened more than four acres in Bouquet Canyon.
UPDATE: Powerball arrives in California
Tickets for the Powerball lottery went on sale in California for the first time Monday, and the new game was a big hit with one Castaic cashier selling the tickets.
Big winds may cause damage
Property damage due to high wind is expected in the Santa Clarita Valley today as two intense wind systems collide, a weather specialist said.
3 arrested in local Wal-Marts
Three people arrested recently for crimes allegedly committed at local Wal-Mart stores are expected to appear separately in court this month, charged with offenses including burglary, embezzlement and trespassing.
Pitchess East graduates first EBI class
Five dozen inmates at the Pitchess Detention Center proudly took the jail's podium Thursday as the east facility's first graduating class from the Sheriff Department's newly launched Education Based Incarceration program.
Valencia: Stuck in an elevator
Two College of the Canyons students spent their lunch hour in an elevator Thursday after the car got stuck, college officials said.
UPDATE: Valencia: Sheriff’s deputies chase, capture suspected vandal
A suspected graffiti vandal was detained at gunpoint today after a brief foot chase in Valencia, a sheriff's spokesman said.
