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Kathrina Welborn holds her torch high as the Statue of Liberty and her sister Calissa is dressed in patriotic red, white and blue at the 2007 Fourth of July Kiwanis Kiddie Parade. Participants will gather for costume judging at 9:15 a.m. Friday on C Street between First and Second streets, then march a couple of blocks to Central Park, where refreshments will be served and awards presented in the sycamore grove. (Sue Cockrell/Enterprise file photo)

Davis will celebrate Independence Day on Friday with an
old-fashioned community party that stretches from dawn
till past dusk.'I am so excited for Fourth of July this
year,' said Daniela Loyola, a Davis resident of nearly
21 years. 'I love all the events that go on during the
day. It is a day where everyone comes together and enjoys
all the events that our town has put together.'

The Fourth of July gets an early start with the
traditional Little League pancake breakfast, an
all-you-can-eat feast from 7 to 10 a.m. at the Veterans'
Memorial Center, 203 E. 14th St. Breakfast is free for
Little League players in uniform, and for everyone else it
costs $3 at the door.

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A.J. Plant’s Colonial Revival house at 221 First St. was restored by Sierra Railroad Company. (Wayne Tilcock/Enterprise photo)

2008 Historic Preservation Awards honor efforts to keep beauty of past:

A.J. Plant’s Colonial Revival house at 221 First St. was restored by Sierra Railroad Company. (Wayne Tilcock/Enterprise photo) As a part of its renewed program of Historic Preservation Awards, and in honor of National Historic Preservation Month, the city of Davis Historical Resources Management Commission presented the 2008 Historical Preservation Awards to three recipients during a meeting earlier this month. They are:

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June 19th, 2008

Don Guthrie

Here’s a great way to take a street tour and get a fairly detailed view of any street & property in Davis; and elsewhere for that matter… Google launched this service last summer, but after several revisions that had to be made for privacy, it is fully up and running for all of Davis. Go to http://maps.google.com and have fun….

June Nishikawa of Davis received a commendation from the consul general of Japan at a May 27 ceremony in San Francisco. She was honored for her lifelong dedication and service to the welfare of students from Japan and members of Japanese companies, as well as her commitment to nurturing close ties and friendly relations between Japan and California.

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UC Davis students in 2006 painted a mural depicting larger-than-life-size insects in the A Street bridge tunnel in the Arboretum as part of the Art-Science Fusion Program. (Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo)

Over the years, Davis has become a vibrant gallery of public art, from the whimsical to the beautiful.

More than 40 pieces - murals, sculptures and other installations - can be found around the city. They adorn plazas and parks and brighten the space inside buildings. Many more pieces dot the landscape at UC Davis.

The city of Davis has made public art a priority with its Art in Public Places Program. Since 1973, the city has set aside 1 percent of its Capital Improvement Project funding to purchase art that enhances the community’s environment. The Civic Arts Commission selects pieces in a wide variety of styles to add to the city’s public art collection.

In 2004, the Davis Art Association created a Gallery Guide and Public Art Walking Tour pamphlet. The colorful brochure includes a map and description of artwork around town. It’s available at city

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What makes a city friendly? We looked for certain standards like safety, diversity, pedestrian and bike friendliness, as well as the presence of parks and public spaces. Then we looked for something unique, like a place that always has big, fun public events or someplace with a lot of farmers markets. Most importantly, we talked to brokers to get their personal stories of friendliness. (Did you know that people in Nashville will strike up a conversation with you while waiting at a red light?) And finally, we took a look at statistics that help make a place friendly, such as enough hotel rooms to welcome visitors, enough bars to have a robust happy hour, enough tourists willing to visit and, of course, budget-friendly home prices.

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By Jim Downing - jdowning@sacbee.com

Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D1

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Sam Roberts, a biofuels company consultant, checks out a display for diesel-engine maker Bosch at the Sacramento Convention Center. Randall Benton / rbenton@sacbee.com

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For Jim Ogden, finding “green” materials for state building projects used to mean custom orders for sustainably harvested wood and costly chemical-emissions tests on ceiling tiles.

But as green-building standards have matured and government mandates have taken hold, building green now means little extra hassle and, often, no extra cost.

“It’s gotten a lot easier,” said Ogden, a former California Department of General Services project manager turned green-building consultant. “The manufacturing sector has really stepped up to the plate.”

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WASHINGTON - Rates on 30-year mortgages jumped this week to the highest level since mid-March as investors began to worry about what the Federal Reserve will do to combat growing inflation pressures.Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, reported Thursday that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.08 percent this week. That was up from 5.98 percent last week.

It was the highest level for 30-year mortgages in 11 weeks, since they averaged 6.13 percent the week of March 16.  Analysts attributed the increase to rising concerns in financial markets about what the Fed might do to battle increased inflation pressures. Financial markets this week pushed the yield on 10-year Treasury bonds above 4 percent for the first time in five months.

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