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WHS grad extinguishes wildland fires Features, Page 1
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Volume 140, Number 13 — Locally-owned since 1884
Winters, Yolo County, California, Wednesday, April 26, 2023
The hometown paper of Ramon Roybal
ANNUAL YOUTH DAY PANCAKE BREAKFAST
Sponsored By Rotary Club of Winters Community Foundation Benefits Community Services Projects, Winters Senior Foundation, and Winters Fire Department Volunteers
Saturday, April 29, 2023 • 7am - 9:30am WINTERS COMMUNITY CENTER $15 Adults • $10 Children under 10
Free for children under 6 or who don’t eat very much
One-way traffic opens on Hwy 128 By Crystal Apilado Editor-in-Chief One-way traffic control for State Highway 128 was opened to motorists on Saturday afternoon as Caltrans continued to make repairs to the damaged roadway. Dennis Keaton, Public Information Office, Caltrans District 3, confirmed Caltrans is utilizing temporary traffic signals to control the one-way traffic to signal which direction on the lane motorists can use. A K-rail is preventing motorists from driving down the other lane under construction. Multiple storm systems caused the saturated soil to slip from underneath the roadway in the early morning of Saturday,
City Council approves grant to explore cannabis business licensing program By Jacob Hoffman Express staff writer
Courtesy photo
Caltrans set up a temporary traffic signal on State Highway 128 to control one-way traffic during repairs. April 1. The road was initially closed in both eastbound and westbound directions in different locations from Pleasant Valley Road to the Solano County line. Caltrans notified the city of Winters that the erosion damage was more extensive than they initially thought.
Caltrans announced the following work updates for the area: • The Postmile 2.24 washout: On Saturday, temporary sheet piles, temporary lighting signals, and a K-rail were installed. Caltrans also paved and stiped the area for
See UPDATE, Page 3
During its April 18 meeting, the Winters City Council approved grant funding to explore commercial cannabis and discussed efforts to update the city’s General Plan. Senior Planner Kirk Skierski presented on the Local Jurisdiction Retail Access Grant, a grant from a state department that is offering funds to local governments in support of the development of local cannabis retailer licenses. Providing some
background, Skierski explained that “the California Department of Cannabis Control announced (the) availability of grant funding for local governments” which was “developed as an access grant to provide funding… for development and implementation of a local cannabis retailer licensing program.” The funding is based on population, and Skierski says that Winters would be eligible for $115,000 in phase One of the program, and Phase 2 offers “an additional
$75,000 per number of retail licenses local government has issued.” Skierski notes that cannabis has been listed as a priority among past city councils, and that city staff has noticed growing issues in it, telling the council that “it is staff’s opinion that applying for the grant would put the city in the best position to further explore allowing and regulating cannabis-based businesses.” However, Skierski also acknowledged that exploring does
See GRANT, Page 3
Winters councilman could face felony weapon charges By Lauren Keene McNaughton Media
EXPRESS
Yolo County prosecutors are seeking to file felony charges against a Winters city councilmember, accusing him of unlawfully possessing two assault rifles. Richard Thomas Casavecchia initially faced a misdemeanor
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charge of possessing an unserialized firearm, which police reported finding in his vehicle during an April 2 traffic stop, the Winters Express previously reported. Casavecchia, 39, pleaded not guilty to that count at his April 5 arraignment hearing in Yolo Superior Court. On Friday, the Yolo County District Attorney’s Office filed a motion to amend the initial complaint, with accompanying documents that
say officers found the assault rifles in Casavecchia’s home during the course of a domestic-violence investigation. Casavecchia’s attorney, Michael J. Wise of Sacramento, could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon. He previously told the Winters Express that his client “continues to cooperate with law enforcement, and we will address the merits of the misdemeanor matter in court.”
See CHARGES, Page 3
Index Features ........................ B-1
We at he r Rain
High
Low
Apr. 19
.00
65˚
41˚
Apr. 20
.00
65˚
42˚
Apr. 21
.00
75˚
51˚
Apr. 22
.00
82˚
60˚
Eventos hispanos ....... A-2
Apr. 23
.00
84˚
54˚
Apr. 24
.00
85˚
49˚
Opinion ......................... B-3
Apr. 25
.00
82˚
52˚
Real Estate ................... B-2
Rain for week: 0.00 in. Season’s total: 36.99 in. Last sn. to date: 18.29 in.
Community .................. A-2
Sports ........................... B-5
Winters rainfall season began 7/1/22. Weather readings are taken at 9 a.m. daily by local weatherman Joe Bristow.
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Express staff writer They say if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. If this is the case, Winters Fire Department Fire Captain Art Mendoza managed to clock in zero hours of work in his 33-year firefighting career. Now that he’s recently retired, he reflects on not so much a body of work, but over three decades of passion, devotion and sacrifice dedicated to protect-
ing his community. A career in firefighting called Mendoza back when he was just a 15-year-old freshman at Winters High School. He joined the Winters FD cadet program, trained with the volunteer firefighters and fell in love with all firefighting encompassed. That’s when Mendoza decided to aim his career crosshairs at the fire service and never looked back. “I just fell in love with it, and during that
process, I made it a point to do really well in school. My senior year, I went to Solano Community College so I could graduate faster. From there, I was still nothing but love with the fire service,” explained Mendoza. “I started volunteering at the fire station, and in that time I got married, had kids and some years I was more active than others. Finally, in 2003, I got hired full-time
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Mendoza retires after 33 years of fire service to Winters By Aaron Geerts
Date
Classifieds ................... B-4
Crystal Apilado/Winters Express
Aaron and Art Mendoza at the 2022 Public Safety Awards celebration event.
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See MENDOZA, Page 3
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