KVMR News

The neighborhood follows the GO, or Get Out Plan which is available online for anyone who wants to develop their own custom wildfire evacuation plan.

Local farmer and cannabis advocate Wade Laughter passed away on Wednesday June 4th, 2025. Wade sat down with Daniel Fink in 2024 for this interview which originally aired on KVMR's The Good Herb Report, with hosts Christopher Redlocks and Maggie Philipsborn.  

The Honey Hills Fest takes place June 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th at multiple venues throughout Nevada City and Grass Valley. Learn more on Instagram: @TheHoneyHillsFest.In cannabis news, local cannabis researcher, mentor, educator, advocate and CBD pioneer Wade Laughter passed away on Wednesday, June 4th. 

The NCSO say they've eradicated 8,964 cannabis plants and 92 lbs. of processed cannabis since May. Two people have been arrested and 10 firearms have been seized from three different properties.

On Monday the National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for the northern Sacramento Valley. KVMR's Lydia Thomas explains what that means. 

KVMR's Lydia Thomas attended the 5th annual raising of the rainbow flag in Nevada City and shared this report.

This week Lydia Thomas brings us along as the local Nevada County branch of Meals on Wheels delivers meals to seniors. Lydia investigates how the program works and if it will be impacted by federal budget cuts. Money Matters host Marc Cuniberti returns with a brand new commentary on tariffs and who will bear the brunt of cost increases.Sherrie Cunningham talks with Henry Diltz, the famed photographer who's work documented the 60s and 70s rock music scene including Woodstock and Laurel Canyon. To close it all out, an essay by Nevada City poet Molly Fisk.

Music photographer Henry Diltz's pictures of popular musicians of the sixties and seventies defined the musical landscape of that time. Now he brings his show Behind the Lens to Grass Valley. Sherrie Cunningham spoke to Diltz while he set up for his Friday evening show.

The arrest is connected to an incident that caused a campus-wide lockdown at Nevada Union.

KVMR's Lydia Thomas rode along with a volunteer Meals on Wheels volunteer to learn how it works and to meet some of the locals who depend on the the service. 

First responders continue to search for 50-year-old Rebecca Heinowitz, of Barrytown, New York, who went missing in the South Yuba River on Saturday, May 24th.

Local first responders had a busy weekend. Lydia Thomas shares details about two particular incidents. 

Houseless people in Nevada County — where the threat of wildfire is very high — live in cars and in the woods during fire season. KVMR News correspondent April Glaser spoke with Tom Durkin of Sierra Roots, as well as guests at a weekly free lunch for unhoused people in Pioneer Park, to learn what's being done to help the county's fast-growing houseless population survive a wildfire.

The California Civil Rights Department launched the first-of-its-kind statewide pilot program during National Small Business Week earlier this month. KVMR's Lydia Thomas talked with The Onyx Theatre's general manager to learn more. 

Examples of the equipment the NCSO uses will be on display and Sheriff's Office personnel will be available for questions from the public. Larger equipment, like the county's Lenco Armored Vehicles built Bearcat will be on display in the parking lot. You can read the NCSO's Military Equipment Use Annual Report on the Sheriff's website. 

On May 19th, demolition of the 24 year old Condon Skatepark began, paving the way for a new park. But it didn't happen quietly or without fanfare. A group of skate locals, morose over the destruction of what they view as the better park, gathered to partake in a collective mourning for the place many call home. KVMR's Kelley Rees shared this report from the scene.

Due to a major computer software update, our local NOAA Weather Radio Station -- transmitting from Wolf Mountain at 162.400 MHz -- will be off air. This includes NWS initiated EAS capabilities. Two other transmitters, South Fork Mountain in Redding and Fair Play in El Dorado County, will also be affected. The update is expected to be complete by the afternoon on Wednesday May 21st. 

Kelley Rees looks into Nevada City Farmers Market's recent halt on EBT SNAP usage, how the federal program got its start and why it's currently making national headlines. Information on the NC Farmers Market provided via email from Nevada City Farmers Market Managers Stuart Coben & Samantha Villella.

Established by a special resolution passed by the California Legislature in 1998, Juror Appreciation Week recognizes citizens who make the right of "trail by jury" possible. Sherrie Cunningham, one of KVMR's news reporters, spoke to Laila Waheed, Nevada County's Court Executive Officer to learn all about it.

Skaters of all ages showed up to Tuesday night's Grass Valley City Council meeting hoping to convince the council to halt the demolition of the Condon Skatepark. KVMR's Lydia Thomas shared this report. 

Anyone with information about the shooting can contact the Nevada County Sheriff's Office Major Crimes Unit at 530-265-1471 or through the Sheriff's Crime Tip Form on the Nevada County website.The Grass Valley Skatepark Coalition's proposal to save the existing park can be read on change.org.  

According to the Nevada County Sheriff's Office, Tiffany and Jason Ramos are credited with acting quickly to save a dog from drowning. A second unidentified couple with climbing experience is credited with saving the first couple.  

On this week's Friday Evening News Magazine CAL FIRE Unit Chief Brian Estes speaks to KVMR News Director Cláudio Mendonça about what Nevada County residents can expect as the temperatures begin to rise. KVMR News Correspondent Lydia Thomas talks to author Barbe Chambliss. The Mediator and psychotherapist will speak about women peacemakers at a League of Women Voters event in downtown Nevada City this Saturday.  Money Matters host Marc Cuniberti returns with a brand new commentary on the polarizing subject of annuities. And to close it all out, an essay by Nevada City poet Molly Fisk in her ongoing Observations from a Working Poet series.

Dr. Barbe Chambliss, author of Women Peacemakers and What We Can Learn from Them will visit the Seven Stars Gallery in Nevada City on Saturday, May 10th, to discuss peacemaking on an individual and community level. Lydia Thomas recently spoke with Barbe and shared this interview.

58% of Californians have already upgraded their IDs, but what happens next for those how haven't? KVMR's Sherrie Cunningham visited both an airport and a DMV to answer that question.

KVMR's April Glaser takes a close look at a PG&E bill, line by line, to help listeners understand what each charge means. 

Chief Estes spoke with KVMR News' Cláudio Mendonça at CAL FIRE NEU's annual Type I Fire Crew Certification Exercise on April 29th.

Various crews including the California Conservation Corps Placer Center, the Washington Ridge Fire Crew Camp, and the California National Guard Task Force Rattlesnake Crew 23, met a week ago to certify for the season. While there, KVMR's Cláudio Mendonça spoke with Brian Estes, fire chief for the CAL FIRE Nevada Yuba Placer Unit.

A Nevada City woman and an Auburn man were arrested on multiple charges following a pretrial release search.

California's AB 1038 would allow bear hunting with the use of dogs, a practice outlawed in 2013.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month and our local library is marking the occasion by organizing an event highlighting all the mental health resources available locally. KVMR News Correspondent Kelley Rees spoke with Brittany Blake, the Adult Programming Coordinator at the Grass Valley library to get the details. 

If you are interested in learning more you can reach out by email at fullcirclecommunitygarden@gmail.com

The new skate park will require the demolition of the old park, something that many local skaters think is a bad move. 

Caltrans announced several lane closures along multiple locations on State Route 20 and Interstate 80. Closures near SR-20 are part of the Yuba Pass Separation Overhead Bridge Project. 

KVMR's annual Celtic festival is fast approaching, and in the spirit of all things Celtic music, we've got the scoop on the festival headliner, Fiddler Natalie McMaster, who was raised and still resides in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Cy Musiker and Joyce Miller spoke with McMaster for their public affairs show Curtain Call. KVMR News correspondent, Lydia Thomas edited part their interview and shares it with us now. For more from Natalie McMaster, remember to tune into Curtain Call with hosts Cy and Joyce next Friday, May 2nd at 6:30 p.m.

This week hear how a retired Federal Reserve economist keeps up with the current state of the US economy before KVMR News Correspondent Sherrie Cunningham brings us a look at how psychedelics are being used by researchers at the University of California, Davis, to treat a variety of brain conditions. We hear from KVMR Celtic Festival headliner, world-renowned fiddle player Natalie MacMaster, and poet Molly Fisk dictates how drama plays out through the daily observations of small town life.

KVMR public affairs correspondent April Glaser sits down to interview Liz Pelly, author of a new book and hard-hitting investigation into Spotify entitled Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify & The Cost of the Perfect Playlist. Joining the conversation as well is local composer Alexis Alrich.Spotify pays artists fractions of pennies per stream. But Liz Pelly's book goes even deeper to reveal how Spotify has quietly worked to remove bands and artists from its most popular playlists and replaced them with fake or ghost content commissioned for cheaper than paying actual artists. What happens when we think we're listening to a band, but it's actually just content made by a company to keep us streaming for longer?Many thanks to Alexis Alrich for providing her original composition for this story, "Bell and Drum Tower," recorded in 2020 by the Janacek Philharmonic. Learn more about Alexis' work at her website.More information on Liz Pelly's book can be found at her publisher's website here. 

UC Davis researchers recently announced the development of a new neuroplasticity-promoting drug closely related to LSD that harnesses the psychedelic's therapeutic power with reduced hallucinogenic potential.KVMR's Sherrie Cunningham spoke to Dr. David E. Olson, director of the Institute for Psychedelics and Neurotherapeutics at UC Davis to learn more. 

NCSO deputies discovered the body of 63-year-old Patrick McCaffree buried on a Grass Valley property while conducting a welfare check. 

Demonstrators expressed frustration about Kiley's unwillingness to meet with his constituents in person.  

County staff is looking into amending an existing Recreational Vehicles ordinance in order to allow people to live in RVs semi-permanently or permanently. County staff also plans to organize four public meetings this year to gather input from the community. You can learn more about the Alternative Housing Work Plan and sign-up for email updates at nevadacountyca.gov/alternativehousing.

Pope Francis, who became the head of the Catholic Church in 2013, died yesterday. KVMR's Lydia Thomas shared this report.

Posting on the agency's official social media pages, Cal Fire NEU says they responded to a call from California State Parks on Sunday afternoon to aid with a near drowning after two people were flushed through a class III rapid known as Flip Flop. 

On this week's Friday Evening News Magazine, we've got news about a new opponent for Kevin Kiley's Congressional District 3 seat. Then we discuss this year's Nevada County Reads program and upcoming author event with county Adult Services Librarian Ian Boalt and author Jeff Vandermeer. Marc Cuniberti explores the “Warren Buffet Indicator” when trying to decipher the state of the markets. And Nevada City poet Molly Fisk drops by for her ongoing Observations from a Working Poet series.

KVMR's Kelley Rees and Nevada County Adult Services Librarian Ian Boalt discuss this year's Nevada County Reads program and upcoming author event with Annihilation author Jeff Vandermeer.

It may not be the only solution, but Nevada City believes making biochar could be one way to safely reduce the local fuel load. Learn more on the city's website.

Cynthia Levesque and Abby Richards have organized a place where local queer youth can go to that isn't home, school or work. 

That's what the thousands of people who gathered in Folsom to Hear AOC and Bernie Sanders speak saw when they looked up. A small plane circled the event numerous times pulling a banner with the phrase written in large red letters. 

Thousands gathered on the Folsom Lake College athletic track in Folsom, Calif. to hear Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders speak on Tuesday, April 15th. --00:00: Jane Kim - State Director of the California Working Families Party.08:24: Lorena Gonzalez - President of the California Federation of Labor Unions.16:51: Everett Kelley - National President of the American Federation of Government Employees.26:54: Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 14th district.56:07: Bernie Sanders - United States Senator from Vermont.

The two elected officials are coming to Northern California after a talk in Bakersfield as part of Sanders' “Fighting Oligarchy Tour” which began in February.

The Monte Vista Pavement Rehabilitation Project is expected to be completed by summer 2028.