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KHTS Looks Back At The Top News Stories Of 2013

This has been quite a year.

The KHTS AM-1220 news team focuses exclusively on issues and concerns in the Santa Clarita Valley, and there’s been no shortage of items to cover.


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While the year’s news cycle seemed to be punctuated by two fatal crashes–one that claimed the life of a young woman named Sarah Alarid and another that claimed the life of CEO Roger Rodas and movie star Paul Walker–there was certainly a lot more than tragedy in the Santa Clarita Valley.

The fight to keep Santa Clarita from becoming a mining town for the next 75 to 100  years hit a major milestone, with a bill that would prevent Cemex from opening a sand and gravel mine making it to Senate subcommittee.

Local officials who went to Washington to testify in front of senators touted the hearing as a major achievement in the more than 15-year fight against the mine.

The Santa Clarita Valley also saw the Powerhouse Fire sweep through Bouquet Canyon, the Dodgers make a playoff push and another event that drew thousands, the Traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall.

Another political, and potentially court-related hot-button issue is the California Voting Rights Act lawsuit — three local agencies, the city of Santa Clarita, the Sulphur Springs School District and the Santa Clarita Community College District, were all hit with suits alleging their elections violated the law, disenfranchising minority voters. This will likely be a developing story for 2014, as well.

There was also a measure of controversy in the school board, with the Saugus Union School District moving to oust Stephen Winkler. Links and posts to these stories can be found on Twitter and the blogosphere with the hashtag #SaugusWinkler.

Saugus Union and other local school district also engaged in a dispute with charter school Einstein Academy, which seems to be resolved, for now, with the school opening a kindergarten to eighth-grade school on an Acton-Agua Dulce School District site.

There was also the horrific Boston Marathon bombing, which impacted several Santa Clarita Valley runners who were near the site of the tragic attack where three were killed and hundreds more injured.

The community rallied around the Laspisa family of Laguna Niguel after their 19-year-old son Bryce went missing in Castaic on Aug. 30 after his car crashed near Castaic Lake on his way home from Chico. Bryce Laspisa is still missing.

And, lest anyone forget, the roundabout in Newhall.

While little on the road escapes the attention of a community chock full of commuters, there has been much ado about the traffic circle, while city Manager Ken Striplin expects it to be completed, sans art, in six weeks — and hopefully, for residents to become accustomed shortly thereafter.

With that in mind, the national, regional and the hyperlocal, the KHTS AM-1220 news team will be taking a look back over the next week to look at the year in review, and encapsulate our top stories.

Check back Tuesday to see which stories had the highest amount of interests from Santa Clarita Valley residents.

Related Article: Sarah Alarid’s Body Identified Days After Her Disappearance

Related Article: Paul Walker And Roger Rodas Memorial Car Meet Sunday

Related Article: Santa Clarita Mining Could Be Issue For 50 Years If Cemex Bill Fails

Related Article: Missing Hikers Are Clear Of Powerhouse Fire; 1,000 Acres Burned

Related Article: Traveling Vietnam Memorial Wall Photos Honoring The Fallen Soldiers

Related Article: Santa Clarita Responds To Civil Rights Discrimination Suit

Related Article: Saugus Union School Board Votes 4-1 To Vacate Winkler’s Seat

Related Article: Santa Clarita Halts Construction Of Einstein Academy At Rye Canyon

Related Article: Santa Clarita Pastor Discusses Boston Marathon ‘Chaos’ From Finish Line

Related Article: UPDATED: Missing Teen’s Car Is Found Overturned In Castaic

Related Article: Santa Clarita Sends Staff To Drawing Board On Newhall Roundabout Art


Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.


 

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KHTS Looks Back At The Top News Stories Of 2013

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About Perry Smith

Perry Smith is a print and broadcast journalist who has won several awards for his focused, hyperlocal community coverage in several different regions of the country. In addition to five years of experience covering the Santa Clarita Valley, Smith, a San Fernando Valley native, has worked in newspapers and news websites in Los Angeles, the Northwest, the Central Valley and the South, before coming to KHTS in 2012. To contact Smith, email him at Perry@hometownstation.com.