Highlights and lowlights of the week’s news

HIT » As anyone who has watched a Butte County Board of Supervisors meeting knows, Supervisor Debra Lucero is never shy about asking questions. Her curiosity was spot-on recently regarding local coronavirus numbers, and we are all better-informed today as a result.

Like many of us, she had been asking for more information from the Butte County Department of Health about outbreaks. Where were they occurring, who were they affecting, what’s the age, gender and ethnicity?

All of those elements are important to know to keep Butte County residents informed. We’ve asked those same questions, but the health department wasn’t budging. It refused to release the information which was vital for the region, and we’ve dinged the agency on it several times.

Well, Lucero did what we couldn’t do, getting many more details about the coronavirus victims and sharing it with the public — and we commend her for it. Reading that Hispanics were among the most prevalent victims was definitely enlightening, and certainly helps pave the way for deeper steps for prevention.

We hope Lucero’s success marks a new chapter in Butte County’s Health Department’s sharing of information the public has a right to know. The more information the public has, the better it can protect itself.

MISS » Well, the Chapman and Mulberry neighborhoods in south Chico are finally part of the city. All we have to say is why did it take so long?

If you wanted to, you could say it dates back to the 1870s, as John Bidwell and Augustus Chapman did not get along. There’s a story about a big fire, and a water rights deal and it’s all quite twisted.

But 1990 is probably the best place to start. The city at that point had about 40,000 residents. There were 80,000 people in Chico, but the city had a history of not annexing residential neighborhoods.

The city started an aggressive annexation program at that point, and by 2010, there were 86,000 residents in the city limits. The annexations had slowed at that point, and lo and behold, Chapman and Mulberry had been left out. Those neighborhoods were completely surrounded by the city, but they’d been skipped.

That was fine with some of the residents in the area, who thought less government was better government. And the city didn’t argue, because they were poor neighborhoods, likely to cost more to serve than they would generate in tax revenue.

But it was ridiculous. A sheriff’s deputy had to drive through the city to respond to a 9-1-1 call. Same for a county public works crew fixing potholes.

Finally, groundwater nitrate contamination — which ignores political boundaries — and mixed signals on the sewer hookups necessary to solve the problem created a situation so entangled the Local Agency Formation Commission got involved.

In 2015, LAFCO ordered the city to annex the neighborhoods. The city talked the commission into giving it five years because … well, just because.

July 1, the stalling ended and the neighborhoods were annexed, like they should have been 30 years ago.

HIT » Kudos to the city of Oroville for making sure critical city facilities have power when PG&E turns off the power next, and the time after that, and the time after that, etc.

The police and fire station, city hall and the corporation yard will all have alternative energy sources when those power outages to reduce wildfire threats occur.

It seems curious that such a step needs to be taken in the

21st century, but there’s no denying the power will be shut off.

The $300,000 cost of the precaution will be paid from a state grant.

MISS » Not that anyone ever understands arson, but the strangest cases erupted over the past few weeks, and both involved women.

Both were seen at the scene of two wildfires, and one was trying to steal firefighters’ personal possessions behind a vehicle.

There have been a number of other suspect wildfires in the Oroville area that seem likely to be arson cases as well.

It didn’t take long for the authorities to put out the fires, as well as capture the suspects in the first two incidents. That was in part to early detection and wary eyes.

As wildfire season swings around, residents around Butte County become more anxious about the potential for fire. That’s good, if it makes them take extra precautions, but living in fear is never good. The more watchful we are, the more likely suspects will be caught.

The success rate in apprehending and communicating information about arsonists is rising, and congratulations are in order to firefighters and law enforcement in this battle.

Hits & Misses are compiled by the editorial board.