January
The first snow of the year in Downieville.
Downieville experienced the first snowfall of winter on January 2. Gold Lake Road was closed for the season.
Columnist Lenny Ackerman tried to explain his life-long coffee shop addiction, recalled his youthful basketball experiences after attending a college basketball game in Florida nearly 70 years later, considered the importance of citizenship and elections for his immigrant mother, and shared a letter written by an old friend to him about visiting China.
After a nine-month hiatus, school bus service returned to Sierra City.
In advance of election season coming up in the March primary, candidates for filling the vacant Superior Court Judge position, Jason LaChance and David Garner, began running campaign ads in The Mountain Messenger. Meanwhile, proponents of Measures A & B, proposals designed to fund paramedic services to the western slope of Sierra County, also started publishing ads here. The candidates also participated in a well-attended citizen’s forum at theDownieville Community Hall to explain their qualifications and answer questions posed by voters.
John Perez, owner of JADAA’s, serves breakfast burritos at his newly reopened restaurant.
To the delight of his many devoted patrons, John Perez re-opened his diner, JADAA’s, in Downieville’s historic Craycroft Building.
February
Esteemed local historian Corey Peterman completed his 15-part account of what he learned while visiting the Italian towns and villages of his ancestors, people who became pioneers in Sierra County in the 19th century.
A contract for remodeling Downieville’s Community Hall was awarded to McCuen Construction.
The Wells Fargo ATM in Downieville, out of commission starting in late January, became operational again after nearly three weeks.
A track defect caused a Union Pacific train derailment near Blairsden and, as a result, more than 1,000 tons of coal spilled into the Feather River.
The annual Poetry Out Loud contest saw students from Loyalton High School — Isaac Andaluz and Sienna Larrucea — take first and second place respectively. Abigail Sainsbury of Downieville High placed third and, later in the month, went on to win the 2024 Lions Club Speakers Contest.
The US Forest Service announced the allocation of an additional $16 million in funding for the 275,000-acre North Yuba Landscape Resilience Project.
McCuen Construction starts work on the Downieville Community Hall.
Construction work began on the Downieville Community Hall Remodeling Project just before the National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning.
March
A severe winter storm delays the Great Yuba Pass Chili Cookoff.
The month began with more than seven feet of new snow arriving at Yuba Pass and the postponement of the 30th annual Chili Cook-off there. Andy White of Loyalton reigned supreme with his “Lizard Country” chili the following week.
In the primary election held on March 5, by almost a 2-1 margin, voters opted for Jason LaChance over David Garner in the race for Superior Court Judge in Sierra County.Meanwhile, William Abramson edged out Wayne Yates, Jr. by only 36 votes out of the 4,636 votes cast in the race for Superior Court Judge in Plumas County. Meanwhile, both parcel tax Measure A and Measure B for the funding of paramedic services easily passed by more than the required two-thirds margin. On the other hand, citizens of Plumas County soundly rejected the imposition of a three-quarter of one percent increase in sales tax to support the County’s Sheriff’s Office.
Perfect weather graced the Longboard World Championships in Johnsville.
The Plumas Ski Club’s annual Longboard Historic Revival Series World Championship races in Johnsville were won by Gina (“Hot knife through butter”) Luciano and Adam (“The Interloper”) Henriques.
Alan Teague of Sierra City, one of five applicants vying to fill the Sierra County Planning Commission vacancy caused by the retirement of Commissioner Janet Baldridge, was selected for the job by the Board of Supervisors.
To be continued.