Another California cop is shot and killed, Amy Travis takes over as head of CASA and Brian Dignan resigns as athletic director at Garces Memorial High School

Friday, January 11, 2018

 Welcome to Bakersfield Observed. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special to live. Send your tips to rsbeene@yahoo.com.

 * ... OPEN SEASON ON COPS: Another cop has been shot and killed, this time a 22-year-old

rookie in Davis who seems to have been killed execution style. Authorities said Natalie Corona was investigating a traffic accident when someone calmly walked up to her and shot her. The suspect, who later shot and killed himself, lived just a few blocks from the accident scene.

 * ... CASA: Amy Travis has been appointed the new executive director of the Court Appointed Special Advocartes (CASA), replacing longtime director Colleen McGauley who recently retired. Travis worked under McGauley for years before leaving to work at OneLegacy, but was lured back after McGauley decided to retire.

 * ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "My dogs don’t understand why I have to leave the house everyday, and quite frankly, neither do I."

 * ... BRIAN DIGNAN: Brian Dignan has resigned as athletic director of Garces Memorial High School, but will stay on as head men's basketball coach. In a Facebook post, Dignan said he wanted to spend more time with his family and noted that Gino Lacava would replace him as AD. Dignan previously spent a decade as an assistant basketball coach at CSUB and he also coached at Bakersfield Christian High School. Meanwhile Dignan's wife, former TV weather person Melissa Dignan, has also taken on a new job with Environmental Safety Solutions. Congrats to them both.

 * ... HEATHER LAGANELLI: One of the pioneers of the locally sourced farm to table movement, Heather Laganelli, has purchased the building that houses her downtown restaurant, Locale Farm to Table. Laganelli tries to use food and meat products produced no father than 100 miles from Bakersfield, and her creative culinary touch has created a strong and loyal following. Her restaurant is located across from the downtown Post Office in the old Vincent's Cyclery Building. She also purchased an adjacent building that once housed a silversmith and a cobbler, and she plans to convert that into a "to go" restaurant sometime later this year. (Pictured is one of Heather's desert creations)

 * ... CRUELTY: By now we have all heard about the woman who was shamed for riding a 
Bird scooter and dragging along a dog. The story recently appeared in London and the post has gone viral on social media. If you missed it, here is the original post: "While riding bikes downtown on A and 20th street, we watched this awesome human being riding one of the Bird Scooter’s at about 15 MPH dragging this poor dog behind her by a leash. The dog was on its side and we watched it being drug at least 100 yards and there’s no telling how long she had been dragging it for before we saw her. You can see that its paws are all completely bloody. I was unable to get a good picture of the poor dogs side. Sat on the phone with BPD while following her all the way back to an apartment on 24th St. She had the nerve to tell us that “shit happens, just like with kids”! Ummm yeah I don’t drag my kids down the street by a leash. If only she would have been a guy! She told me that she was going to call the cops on me for harassment and threatened me but she sure didn’t open the door and have something to say when the police went knocking on the door. I hope to see you again girly! Feel free to share this post. " Since then police have interviewed the woman and said the dog has been treated and will fully recover. Stay tuned to see if charges are filed.

 * ... MEMORIES: I found this on the Kern County History Fans Facebook page, with this caption: "The first constructed building on the now BHS (Kern County High School) campus was in 1885 and it was called the Commercial Building. The building stood where current Elm Grove is with several of the original 1895 driveway palm trees still standing."

Monday's Bakersfield Observed: Taft landmarks appear in a Super Bowl ad, a chat with former Centennial and USC great Cody Kessler, a new salad joint opens up downtown combat veteran Chad Garcia to appear on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM

Monday, February 5, 2018

Welcome to Bakersfield Observed, now online only. Our mission is to celebrate life in Kern County by focusing on newsmakers and events and the local characters who make this such a special place. We value your feedback. Email your news and notes to rsbeene@yahoo.com. 

 * ... TAFT: If you spotted a few familiar scenes during the Super Bowl commercials, you were not
alone. It turns out Toyota filmed its commercial in Taft, and it included scenes of the iconic Oasis bar and restaurant, the First Baptist Church and the historic Fox theater.

* ... MOVING UP: Jimmy Phillips, who spent 10 years at Adventist Health Bakersfield/San Joaquin Community Hospital, has been promoted to the group's Regional Director of Marketing for Adventist Health's Southern California Region. Said Phillips: "My responsibilities will be to oversee all marketing activities for our hospitals in Glendale, East LA and Simi Valley, along with our clinics throughout the Greater LA area. Even though I'll be saying goodbye to Adventist Health in Bakersfield, Natalie and I will continue to make our home here (and I will get to know the Grapevine really well). Thanks to all our family and friends for the support over the years. It means more than you know. "

 * ... DIGNAN: And congratulations to Brian Dignan who has been named athletic director at Garces Memorial High School. He previously served as the school's head men's basketball coach.

* ... CODY KESSLER: I chatted with Cody Kessler the other day to catch up with the Centennial and USC grad who is now a quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. He was home here in Bakersfield, headed to the Super Bowl and then on to Newport Beach for off season training. Kessler is hopeful to win the starting job after seeing little action last year. He says he is fit and ready to help turn the Browns around. And ... his favorite place to eat when he comes home? Salty's BBQ he told me.

 * ... HEALTHY EATING: I have wondered for a long time why Bakersfield doesn't have more restaurants devoted to healthy salads. Well, one just opened downtown on 19th and Eye Streets called "Tossit" and it features make it yourself salads for under $10. The owner, Gabby Gonzalez, told me they hope to capitalize on the healthy eating trend without sacrificing quality. Check it out. Tossit is on Eye Street in the same building that houses Metro Galleries and Jin Sushi.

 * ... FOODIE: Speaking of healthy eating, our local Eureka burger will start selling the new, leaner, grass and carrot fed Santa Carota beef burger this Thursday. The beef is from a local cattle ranching family and is leaner and moister than the more fatty versions found around town.

* ... SPOTTED ON TWITTER: "I found a horse’s head in my bed this morning, and that’s when I knew things were getting serious with my overdue balance at Comcast."

 * ... OLD PHOTO: Check this photo out from the Facebook page Kern County of Old: "Buck Owens' Buckmobile N Chester Ave and RR tracks Oildale about 1975. Photo courtesy of Thomas Bethune (thanks Tom)."

 * ... TUNE IN: On Tuesday this week, I will be chatting with combat veteran Chad Garcia on a wide range of veterans issues- from PTSD, to suicide to adjusting to life after years in a combat zone. Garcia is a former producer for the recently fired Jaz McKay radio host and was at the center of his dismissal, and his personal story is reflective of the challenges that many veterans face. Garcia will appear Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. on KERN NewsTalk 96.1 FM.

More dark clouds for our commercial real estate market and wedding bells for local weather anchor

* ... OFFICE SPACE: Economists have been warning for months that the commercial real estate market is flirting with a meltdown, and now comes word that the national office vacancy rate is showing new signs of stress. According to the Wall Street Journal, office buildings across the country lost 1.8 billion square feet of occupied space in the second quarter, "pushing the national office vacancy rate to 17.4 percent, the highest level since 1993." Locally the commercial market is under great stress, and you don't have to do much more than drive around town to spot the alarming number of  vacant buildings. This seems particularly acute in the Northwest where brand new strip centers sit empty. One local businessman who owns part of a Northwest shopping center told me this weekend he was current on his payments but out of compliance with his loan covenants, and now his banker is demanding a higher monthly payment. "I told them I'd be better off declaring bankruptcy and then renting my space back at a lower cost, or looking for a smaller space. Is that what they want? Another empty building?"

* ... WEIGHT LOSS: You may have seen the new NBC series "Losing It with Jillian" featuring celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels living with folks who need to lose weight. She made her mark on "The Biggest Loser" and is now has her own series, playing off our national guilt about obesity. It turns out a local woman, Ruth May, was featured a few episodes back. Ruth works at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital and reportedly lost 75 pounds in just two months. Memorial marketing manager Michelle Willow said Terrio Therapy and Fitness is now assisting Ruth and her family as part of the Five Ton Challenge, which is Terrio's citywide weight loss program sponsored by Memorial Hospital.

 * ... ENGAGED: Nice to hear that Melissa Vreeman, the morning weather anchor over at KERO 23, is engaged to be married to Brian Dignan, assistant men's basketball coach at Cal State Bakersfield. Melissa told me they have been dating for almost a year and a half and hope to wed sometime in April 2011. Brian served both as a player and a coach at Cuesta College and Brigham Young University and has been with the Runners since for nine seasons. Melissa was born in Washington State but grew up in Southern California. She joined KERO TV in January 2008.

 * ... SPOTTED: Long holiday weekends in Bakersfield never fail to result in trashed parks, and this year  was no different. Fourth of July revelers left our parks full of trash, bottles, cans, wrappers and remnants of fireworks littering the sidewalks and the bike trail. Doesn't anyone pick up after themselves anymore?

 * ... BAKO OLD TIMER: Self described old timer Don Kurtz sent me his own list of Bakersfieldisms: "How about Tiny's Diner downtown, or Clarks Broiler at Union and Monterey? Or the hamburger grill across from Jefferson Park at Beale Avenue? Or the Foster's Freeze at Niles and Union or Blue Jays Ice Cream Parlor on Bernard Street across from Longfellow School. This is just a start of really bringing back good memories of East Bakersfield and a little bit of downtown."

 * ... BAKERSFIELDISM:  You know you're a Bakersfield old timer if you "remember what used to be where Sinaloa is now. (Flor d' Italia)