Santa Clarita Valley

A proposal to open the first Hebrew language charter school in the state will be considered Wednesday by school trustees in the Santa Clarita Valley, some of whom have raised concerns that the institution would violate separation of church and state. Backers of the proposed school, to be called the Albert Einstein Academy for Letters, Arts and Sciences, say such worries are unfounded and that the campus would not have a religious base and would not have a relationship with a synagogue.

WASHINGTON and LOS ANGELES - It's not a TV political drama but it could be. Call it "The McKeons. " It's set in the sunny, suburban and largely conservative Santa Clarita Valley and stars Republican Rep. Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, former co-owner of a chain of western wear stores turned powerful congressional committee chairman. His wife, Patricia, long by his side during campaigns, has launched her own bid for political office at age 69. Though it's unusual to have a husband and wife on the same ballot, the race has another odd twist: Patricia McKeon's chief rival in the June state Assembly primary is a former staffer to her husband, Scott Wilk.

Halloween trickery in the form of an ill-conceived suggestion by Mayor Tom Bradley to site a maximum-security prison in the heart of the Saugus residential community is not only ludicrous but also defies all premise of sound judgment and planning expertise. It also reeks of political manipulation to gain undeserved attention for the 1988 gubernatorial race against Gov. Deukmejian. I might think that the idea was generated by an ill-advised aide, except that it follows too swiftly on the heels of the governor's stinging criticism which pinpointed the mayor's leadership weakness and inability to solve L.A. city's massive waste, homeless and crime problems.

Los Angeles County supervisors Tuesday approved plans for the second phase of a controversial development near Six Flags Magic Mountain in the Santa Clarita Valley. The Mission Village segment of the Newhall Ranch project will contain nearly 4,000 housing units, an elementary school, 580 acres of open space and three preserves designed to protect a rare species of flowers. Newhall Ranch was first approved by supervisors in 2003 after nearly seven years of debate but has been mired in legal challenges and debate since.

For the fourth straight year, the Santa Clarita Valley was the fastest-growing region in Los Angeles County, narrowly outpacing the rapidly growing Antelope Valley in 1988, according to a new report. Between 1980 and 1988, the Santa Clarita Valley's population jumped from 79,015 residents to 132,700--an increase of 68%, the Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning said. The population of the Antelope Valley rose from 70,400 residents to 177,500. That translates to a 65.

Northlake, a proposed planned community of 3,623 houses on more than 1,300 acres near Castaic Lake in the Santa Clarita Valley, moved a step forward Wednesday when the Los Angeles County Regional Planning Commission recommended that the developer's Specific Plan and zoning changes be submitted to the Board of Supervisors.

A fire blackened 50 acres of brush next to the Golden State Freeway south of Newhall Wednesday, and at least seven smaller fires erupted at the same time in the Santa Clarita Valley, the Los Angeles County Fire Department reported. None of the blazes, which all started about 5:30 p.m., caused injuries or any damage to structures, officials said. The smaller fires each burned less than an acre of grass and were quickly put out, Firefighter Joe Almazan said.

A construction worker was killed Thursday after being run over by a grading machine at a Santa Clarita Valley housing development, authorities said. The 36-year-old Palmdale man suffered head, leg and abdominal injuries when he was hit at 7:45 a.m., said Inspector Ed Martinez of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. He was airlifted to Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Keith Richman, a three-term Republican state assemblyman who fought for pension reform and was a leader in the San Fernando Valley secession movement, has died. He was 56. Richman died of brain cancer Friday at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, said his brother Craig. A physician, Richman was elected in 2000 to the California Assembly, representing the 38th District, which includes the Santa Clarita Valley, Simi Valley and northeast San Fernando Valley. He could serve only six years because of term limits.

Reports that illicit drug users may be targeting the trash at senior living facilities in search of discarded prescription-drug vials have sparked concern among a group of Santa Clarita Valley senior citizens, doctors and pharmacists. "We don't know to what degree it is happening, but it's probably happening a great deal," said Gene Dorio, a Santa Clarita physician whose patients are primarily senior citizens. "It's a potential loophole … a potential way to go under the radar and get illicit medication."

A proposal to open the first Hebrew-language charter school in the state was handed a major setback when school trustees in the Santa Clarita Valley deadlocked over the project's approval -- blocking its progress. Several trustees for the William S. Hart Union High School District said they worried that the school would be a religious academy and might lack ethnic diversity. Supporters of the proposed Albert Einstein Academy for Letters, Arts and Sciences said they would appeal to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

A proposal to open the first Hebrew language charter school in the state will be considered Wednesday by school trustees in the Santa Clarita Valley, some of whom have raised concerns that the institution would violate separation of church and state. Backers of the proposed school, to be called the Albert Einstein Academy for Letters, Arts and Sciences, say such worries are unfounded and that the campus would not have a religious base and would not have a relationship with a synagogue.

A Santa Clarita councilman's shout-out at a recent anti-illegal immigration rally that he is a "proud racist" has ignited an angry war of words in a suburban community over whether the longtime civic leader is a hatemonger who should be driven from office or a patriot unafraid to speak out for fellow Americans. Bob Kellar, a veteran councilman and two-time mayor, said his words have been taken out of context, but he declined to offer an apology at a City Council meeting Tuesday night.

Of all the high school basketball players in Southern California, Trevor Wiseman of Santa Clarita Golden Valley might be the most extraordinary. Asked if he's ever had a player like him, Coach Chris Printz said, "I've never seen one." He's a 6-foot-8 point guard so versatile and athletic that he feels comfortable anywhere on the court, and on Tuesday night he put on a show to remember. Wiseman scored 28 points and had nine assists, six rebounds, four steals and a blocked shot in Golden Valley's 75-68 Foothill League victory over Valencia.

The Walt Disney Co. said Wednesday that it would build a 56-acre production facility in northern Los Angeles County, casting a ray of light on an otherwise gloomy film economy that has hemorrhaged thousands of jobs in the last decade. The Burbank company said the proposed Disney/ABC Studios at the Ranch would occupy a corner of the Golden Oak Ranch, a sprawling 890-acre parcel off California 14 that has been the setting of such classic films as "Old Yeller." Plans call for 12 soundstages, production offices, a commissary and other facilities that could be used for film, television, commercial and new media projects.

For $100, you could fund a shopping spree at the 99 Cents Only store or host a feast catered by your favorite fast-food eatery's dollar menu. Or you could buy a house -- maybe. The Santa Clarita Valley Rotary Club, a chapter of Rotary International, is hosting an online raffle of a house of the winner's choice valued up to $600,000, with an included reserve of $400,000 for closing costs and taxes on the sale, said Maureen Micklich, a spokeswoman for Samuel Dixon Family Health Centers Inc., which is a beneficiary of the contest.