Good morning. It’s Monday, Jan. 30.
- Several days of frigid temperatures to start the week.
- Three standout California homes now on the market.
- And a mischievous red panda escapes San Diego Zoo.
Statewide
1.
The Interior Department had asked California and six other states that rely on water from the shrinking Colorado River to devise a plan to collectively cut back by Tuesday. With the states unexpected to reach a deal, Washington is now preparing to unilaterally impose water cuts for 40 million people. “The crisis over the Colorado River is the latest example of how climate change is overwhelming the foundations of American life — not only physical infrastructure, like dams and reservoirs, but also the legal underpinnings that have made those systems work,” the New York Times wrote.
The Imperial Valley receives the single largest share of Colorado River water. Farmers there are worried their fields could turn to dust. L.A. Times
2.
California has more than 100 gun laws — the most of any state. Gun rights proponents say recent mass shootings demonstrate that California’s strategy has failed. Gun safety groups say they show the state hasn’t gone far enough. Democratic lawmakers are now fast-tracking a number of proposals. They include new taxes on ammunition and guns, a measure to make the possession of an unregistered “ghost” gun a felony, and a bill to let people suffering a mental health crisis put their own names on a “do not sell” list. N.Y. Times
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3.
Forecasts called for frigid temperatures across much of the state between Sunday and Thursday, hitting their nadir on Tuesday. Predicted lows that day: low 40s along the coast from Los Angeles to San Diego, mid 20s in the San Joaquin Valley County, low 30s in the Bay Area, high 20s in the Sacramento Valley, and single digits in the Sierra. Officials warned that a storm tracking into Southern California could drop inches of snow at lower elevations such as the Grapevine, catching motorists off guard. Accuweather | Mercury News
4.
Here are three standout California homes now on the market — in the city, country, and desert:
- In the early 1960s, the architect John Lautner designed a teardrop-shaped home suspended 60 feet above a canyon along Mulholland Drive, pictured above. It’s now considered one of Los Angeles’ most significant midcentury modern homes. Asking price: $16 million. Wall Street Journal | Architectural Digest
- A Frank Lloyd Wright is for sale in an unlikely location: the San Joaquin Valley. Built in 1961, the Fawcett Farm has seven bedrooms and floor-to-ceiling windows on 76 acres of agricultural land in Los Banos, outside of Merced. Yours for $4.25 million. Dwell | design boom
- The famed Joshua Tree rental known as the Invisible House is a favorite among influencers. It’s also an internet celebrity in its own right, with 33,000 followers. The mirrored exterior was designed to dissolve the home into the surrounding desert. Asking: $18 million. Architectural Digest | Desert Sun
Northern California
5.
David DePape, the man accused of attacking Paul Pelosi, called the KTVU newsroom from the San Francisco jail on Friday and told a reporter he regretted only that he didn’t hurt more people. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get more of them,” the QAnon acolyte said. “It’s my own fault. No one else is to blame. I should have come better prepared.” The chilling message came hours after the authorities released graphic body-cam video of DePape swinging a hammer at Pelosi’s head. KTVU | Washington Post
6.
Many of the Silicon Valley companies that have announced layoffs in recent months have something in common: They’ve been raking in profits. Some have tens of billions or hundreds of billions of dollars in reserve. Asked what’s going on, Jeffrey Pfeffer, a Stanford business professor, offered a succinct answer: social contagion. “These companies are all making money,” he said. “They are doing it because other companies are doing it.” The Verge | The Atlantic
7.
California treats and reuses roughly 18% of the wastewater it produces. In Healdsburg, the figure is more than 50%. The program has kept the wine country city looking verdant even as drought forced deep cuts in water use since 2020. Its success has been credited in part to Healdsburg residents, who have embraced wastewater for irrigating gardens and vineyards. A free wastewater delivery service had to be curtailed because it was so popular. Grist
8.
Hidden just off Highway 101 in far northern California is one of the West Coast’s most glorious overlooks. Located within Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, the perch of Crescent Beach Overlook is reached beyond the shadows of towering redwoods at the terminus of a cliff-hugging road, where a brilliant seascape opens up. The view has been likened to those of Point Reyes National Seashore, but in a setting so isolated that the elk often outnumber the people. SFGATE | Outdoor Project
Southern California
9.
California’s sixth mass shooting in two weeks left three people dead in the upscale Beverly Crest neighborhood of Los Angeles Saturday morning. Law enforcement sources said the victims — all women in their 20s and 30s — were shot at about about 2:30 a.m. inside a vehicle during a house party along a quiet cul-de-sac. Four others were wounded. Investigators provided no information on a suspect. L.A. Times | San Gabriel Valley Tribune
10.
Browse the Coachella Valley community of Palm Desert on Google Maps and you’ll notice that it’s essentially all golf courses. About 120 courses across the desert valley account for 18% of the region’s water use, drawing heavily from the depleted Colorado River. Under pressure to cut back on wasteful water use, local officials have declined, opting instead to use less water to replenish the region’s depleted underground aquifer. L.A. Times
11.
The City of Alhambra honored Brandon Tsay with a medal of courage during a ceremony on Sunday. Tsay was working in the ticket office of Lai Lai Ballroom & Studio in Alhambra, which his family owns, when gunman Huu Can Tran barged in after his deadly rampage on Jan. 21 in Monterey Park. Tsay, 26, lunged at Tran, wrestling his gun away. After the ceremony Sunday, Tsay stood for photos with people who wanted to thank him. The line stretched more than 50 people long. L.A. Times | CNN
12.
A 2-year-old red panda named Adira escaped her enclosure at the San Diego Zoo early Sunday. Zoo officials said the panda, a cinnamon-red species known for expert aerial acrobatics, scaled a tree and hopped to another beyond her habitat. It took hours to coax her down. Zoo officials said they planned to trim the trees. CBS8
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The California Sun is written by Mike McPhate, a former California correspondent for the New York Times.
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