LATEST STORIES
How the Fetzer brothers put Mendocino County’s Eagle Peak on the wine map
Masút is the only winery in a 26,260-acre mountain appellation that took a decade to win and a fight with the family’s old company to name.
Fort Bragg hands out 14 Mayor’s Well Done Awards
Nominations came from the public, and the mayor said the city hadn’t given out awards since about 2021.
Caltrans sues companies behind Hopland’s Thatcher Hotel and Stock Farm restaurant and inn
The state wants temporary work space for its sidewalk project, and the companies haven’t taken its offers.
Magnitude 4.0 earthquake strikes north of Lake Pillsbury, felt in Potter Valley
Epicenter about 6 miles from Scott Dam, which state regulators downgraded from “satisfactory” to “fair” in 2023 over earthquake risk.
Your Mendocino: A squirrel on a patch of ice plants
A squirrel dines on ice plant along the coast in Fort Bragg.
Featured Pet: Bones
A shepherd on the street comes in from the cold to be your loyal companion for life.
Mendocino County fentanyl deaths fall as Lake County leads state
State figures show 11 Mendocino County fentanyl deaths in 2025, down from 40 in 2021.
The Mendocino Setlist: October 27-November 1, 2026
Your weekly guide to upcoming music events in Mendocino County.
Fort Bragg City Council hears campaign anger, sets Coastal Trail speed rules
Most public speakers talked about the Nov. 3 council race, and the council also started work on a state-required housing plan.
Salinas man, 40, killed in Highway 101 motorcycle crash near Ukiah
The rider was thrown from his Harley-Davidson and struck by a Kia Sunday night, CHP says.
Mendocino County Planning Commission OKs 74-foot Tibetan temple near Leggett
The retreat center says the top 19 feet is ornament, like a church spire.
Ukiah asks where 1,500 new homes should go
The city will take ideas at a PumpkinFest booth Oct. 17 and 18 and at a workshop Oct. 29.
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FEATURED STORIES
Mendocino County FAIR Plan policyholders face statewide 29% average rate hike
County policyholders already pay more than the state average for the fire insurer of last resort.
Mendocino coast ocean runs high ahead of holiday king tides, forecaster warns
A new UC Davis flood report skipped the Mendocino coast, so we asked where high water reaches roads here.
Are we headed for a pet-ocalypse in Mendocino County?
The county has committed about $41,000 of a $408,000 spay and neuter gift, citing a shortage of veterinarians.
Fort Bragg’s blue whale comes home to the Noyo Headlands
The Noyo Center cut the ribbon Sunday on the Whale House LaBONEatory, where a 73-foot skeleton will be put back together.
Ukiah father and business owner detained 19 months ago for undocumented status
Married to a US citizen, he survives by his art and helping others.
Mendocino’s watchdog for 50 little governments says it has no hammer
LAFCo reviews water, sewer and fire districts on a schedule and fits the rest in ‘as we can.’ The coast hospital district has waited 12 years.
2026 ELECTION
Letter to the Editor: Prop 40 will be coming for you
The legislature can lower the limit without going back to voters. Vote No on 40.
Letter to the Editor: Rogers and Kaczorowski get our vote
Both are focused on voters’ needs, not pandering to corporations or special interests.
What to know about California’s other tax-the-rich measure: Prop. 3
Voters first passed the tax in 2012, then renewed it in 2016. Now, its supporters are asking voters to make it permanent before it expires in 2031.
POLITICS & GOVERNMENT
Opinion: National policy choices aren’t abstract—they impact everyone
Mendocino County residents—and everyone else—pay the price for trade wars and military escalation.
California cities pull the plug on data centers after state regulations don’t scale up fast enough
Despite seven new statewide laws regulating data centers, at least 26 resolutions, moratoriums, or bans on data centers have been passed or proposed in California since June.
No 24-hour ballot drop box in Laytonville, Leggett or Covelo
The county elections chief cites lighting and surveillance rules.
Police & Courts
Thousands of California state workers walk off the job in contract dispute with Newsom
The largest union in California state government held a one-day strike, drawing thousands of workers off the job. It’s pressing Gov. Gavin Newsom for raises and more flexibility to work from home.
Ukiah man convicted of murder in 2022 heat death of 1-year-old
A first jury convicted him of child endangerment in 2025 but split 10-2 on the murder count.
Ukiah man on parole booked after allegedly attacking woman, threatening two with a knife
Sheriff’s deputies say 26-year-old man struck a woman in the face, then returned hours later with a kitchen knife and threatened her and a man who stepped in.
ARTS & CULTURE
The Mendocino Setlist: October 27-November 1, 2026
Your weekly guide to upcoming music events in Mendocino County.
‘What Came West’ author Josh Weil comes to Mendocino’s Gallery Bookshop
Saturday’s meet-the-author event offers a chance to get a signed copy and chat with Weil.
Ukiah Library hosts poet Jack Crimmins Saturday
Crimmins is part of the LOBA Poetry Series. An open mic for teens and adults follows.
Why California rural schools struggle to expand arts education despite Prop. 28 windfall
Prop. 28 is a chance at ‘rebuilding’ the arts in rural districts
FOOD & DRINK
The Golden West Saloon’s wildest story mostly checks out
Fire-insurance maps from 1898 put a saloon, a jail and three brothels on its Fort Bragg block. The oldest bar in Mendocino County, part two.
The oldest bar in Mendocino County?
One bar at a time, one claim at a time, until the county runs out of either.
On Mendocino Ridge, a winemaker says wine’s real problem is trust
“Regenerative,” “sustainable,” “natural” — they’ve been stuck on so many bottles that a shopper has no way to tell which ones mean anything.
COLUMNS & OPINIONS
O’Neill: The interconnection of farms is vital to a CSA—and to a region.
Farming is hard. But the crops are coming in, and the cannabis harvest is one of the best ever.
McNear: Mendocino’s local prohibition prompted the opening of Mendosa’s General Merchandise
Frank Mendosa closed his saloon and opened the grocery on Lansing Street that still carries his name.
O’Neill: Failures are part of farming
`Hotober’ caused aphids and blow-outs with the brassicas. The cannabis loved it.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letter to the Editor: Ukiah’s Palace Hotel has been deemed dangerous since 2002
Two years ago, the city issued an order to either stabilize or demolish the building.
Letter to the Editor: Ukiah City Council race subject to heavy spending
Mailers against the incumbents funded by No on Annexation supporter.
Letter to the Editor: John Haschak supports Eric Hart for District 3 Supervisor
‘Hart truly cares about all of the 3rd District and Mendocino County.’
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Environment & Natural Resources
Prop 45 explained: CEQA overhaul could shift who holds power over building
Prop 45 would set deadlines on environmental reviews and lawsuits for projects like housing, roads and water systems.
KelpFest brings kelp science, art and food to Mendocino Coast
The five-day festival runs Oct. 8-12 in Fort Bragg and Mendocino. It celebrates the coast’s bull kelp forests, most of them lost since 2014, and the people trying to bring them back.
Coast Residents rally against offshore drilling at Big River Beach
Sierra Club members say they’ve been here before and expect to fight it again as federal offshore drilling plans expand.
Potter Valley Project series
PG&E plans November repair of void at Cape Horn Dam in Mendocino County
Federal dam-safety records show a void at the base of the Eel River diversion dam that sends water to Potter Valley and the Russian River.
Opinion: We have a once-in-a-generation chance to own our water future
Working together, we can ensure that our water infrastructure stays in local public hands.
U.S. House of Representatives votes to speed up stalled Lake Mendocino dam study
The Army Corps paused the Coyote Valley Dam study last October for lack of federal money. The bill adds none.
COMMUNITY
Mendocino County’s ghosts, and the people who tell their stories
The Kelley House Museum hosts three Haunted Mendocino Tours this week. Perhaps a woman in a pale nightgown will greet visitors.
A potter’s estate helps Friends of the Fort Bragg Library start $1.5 million annex
Work began Oct. 7 on a building with a meeting room, a teen room and quiet rooms next to the library.
State budget sends $900,000 to Boonville fairgrounds for drinking water fixes
The work helps the fairgrounds connect to a water system the Anderson Valley Community Services District has proposed.
ANIMALS
Featured Pet: Bones
A shepherd on the street comes in from the cold to be your loyal companion for life.
World’s ugliest dog heads to the coast for appearance at Mendocino Botanical Gardens
The Ukiah rescue dog, fresh off a press tour, will greet fans and pose for photos Friday morning in Fort Bragg.
Hopland donkey rescue opens a Texas hospital near auction site
Oscar’s Place had to put sick and healthy donkeys on the same 32-hour trailer. No longer.
Jackson Demonstration State Forest marks Biodiversity Week with guided owl walk
Guided dusk walk on Saturday marks California Biodiversity Week with a search for the forest’s resident owls.
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