Dear Readers,

A critical moment is approaching for Cal Am's desal test well -- and for the entire community's water supply -- as the well nears completion and the water company gets ready to measure its output. Kelly Nix reports.

A major disaster was narrowly averted over the weekend after a bulldozer working on private property punctured a 10-inch high-pressure pipeline that delivers natural gas to Carmel and Carmel Valley. Thankfully, the rupture was repaired before the gas, which leaked for three hours, had a chance to ignite. Mary Schley has the details.

A resident trying to stop homeowners a block away from building a new house suffered a major setback when the coastal commission's staff said his complaints (mostly about noise) weren't even important enough to hear. Mary has that one, too.

Pacific Grove is using a hawk, an owl and a falcon to scare away some of the seagulls fouling downtown. Chris Counts has the rundown.

Carmel High students are making a serious run at a major science prize. Groundbreaking is near for a new veterans cemetery at Fort Ord. The city council approved new restrictions on tasting rooms, while also declining to reopen plans for the remodel of Forest Theater. A firefighter has filed a $1M lawsuit over a chain-reaction crash involving four fire trucks. A meeting to hear concerns about the new roundabout on Highway 68 was "productive," according to a county supervisor. And my editorial recommends a simple step you can take that will do a lot to protect yourself and your family in an emergency.

Thank you for your interest in our newspaper. As always, I am available to respond to your questions, comments or concerns, and to offer advice about how best to read The Pine Cone on your computer, smartphone or iPad.

Please don't forget that you can now access the complete 1915-1919 editions of The Pine Cone on our archive page.

Paul Miller, Publisher
paul@carmelpinecone.com

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