Highlights, lowlights from the week’s news

HIT » As we approach the threeyear anniversary of the Camp Fire, could anything be more inspiring than seeing the words “Paradise” and “new housing” in the same sentence?

Wednesday’s story by Riley Blake about the completion of the Community Housing Improvement Program’s Paradise Community Village was a big helping of great news at a time all of our communities are starved for it.

The original village was completed in 2013 only to be destroyed by the fire five years later. Of 250 applications, more than 150 came from survivors of the Camp Fire, showing that ridge residents really do remain eager to move “home.” And the units are affordable; tenants can pay as little as $308 for a one-bedroom apartment.

The road back to Paradise will be taken one step at a time. For many former residents, this was a huge one.

MISS » Speaking of roads, it’s time for yet another reminder of how people are expected to drive on them.

Say … “showing respect for your life as well as that of others?”

Regardless of how many people are killed in wrecks, or how many traffic accidents we see up and down highways 99 and 32, some people just never seem to get the message. And beyond that, there always seems to be a new generation of reckless drivers that can’t wait to prove they aren’t any more deserving of the privilege of driving on our roads than a few of those who came before them.

Here are a couple of good hints for those drivers who wish to prolong their lives by a few years:

First, don’t tailgate. It doesn’t make you appear big or intimidating to the person in front of you; it just makes you out to be an inconsiderate, dangerous driver.

Second, and most important: If you’re trying to pass over double-yellow lines on either 99 or 32 on your way to

(or home from) Chico, don’t. You will literally save no time at all doing this, because we’ll bet right around the time you finally hit the first traffic light, you’ll be stopped right next to one of the cars you passed for no reason whatsoever.

Yet daily, cars are having to take evasive action to dodge reckless drivers who can’t tell the difference between a twolane road and a freeway.

Slow down. If you’re worried about being late, try leaving earlier next time. It works every time it’s tried — unlike unsafe passing.

HIT » A good number of Chico residents have found a new place to hang out, and it’s called … Orland.

Once a town with too many empty downtown storefronts that Chicoans raced through on their way to I5, Orland has a lot going for it these days.

The K&M Thai Noodle House is just the most recent example of the kind of restaurant that has helped lead to a downtown revitalization for Orland. Stop in at Farwood or The Hive any late afternoon or early evening and you’re bound to see some of your neighbors there too. (And if you love bee-friendly gift items … stop by The Hive. You’ll thank us.)

Orland has embraced its moniker as the “Queen Bee City” and it’s no wonder it’s created quite a buzz among small towns all over the north state. It’s worth checking out — and it’s a model other cities and businesses should emulate.

All of our towns have a special history and as Orland has shown, that can also be a great way to build for the future.

MISS » So, the ill-fated recall attempt has come and gone, and those who hate Gavin Newsom are stuck with him as governor. If only it were that simple. It’s safe to say this failed recall attempt — and, to be clear, it never had much of a chance of succeeding — has done nothing but embolden our governor. And that cannot possibly be a good thing for the north state or conservatives anywhere in California.

Think he felt comfortable pushing a far-left agenda before? Winning a recall election with two-thirds of the vote isn’t likely to slow him down now.

As noted many times, we’re not exactly big fans of Newsom, but we weren’t fans of the attempted recall either. It was a waste of almost $300 million and if it has any impact on the future of our state at all, it’ll be the exact opposite of what recall supporters were hoping for.

All they did was take a weakened governor, and made him strong again.