Newsletter: Essential California: El Niño may already be here

Good morning. It is Tuesday, July 21. Do you love hamburgers but wish they came with just a bit more powdered sugar? You’re in luck -- the Orange County Fair is offering up a funnel cake burger. Yummy. Here's what else is happening in the Golden State:

TOP STORIES

El Niño is coming: This weekend’s downpour, which washed out a bridge and left the Southern California region with unusual humidity, is an early sign of the El Niño storm system. Scientists believe this winter’s system could be “monstrously strong” thanks to warming ocean temperatures. But even if the region gets a lot of rain, that’s no guarantee it would end the drought. For it to make a difference, El Niño would have to bring rain and snow to the northern part of the state. Los Angeles Times

Housing investigation: Los Angeles County will pay $2 million to victims of housing discrimination in the Antelope Valley. Four years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice began looking into the treatment of residents, particularly African Americans, living in Section 8 housing. The feds found housing officials and L.A. County sheriff’s deputies subjected black residents to tougher compliance checks than their white counterparts. Los Angeles Times

DROUGHT

Using treated water: California farmers are getting so desperate for water that they’re now turning to wastewater that’s been treated with ultraviolet light. That would make the water clean enough for crops, though not clean enough to drink. But as the city of Modesto looks to increase its use of wastewater, other farmers are concerned that that will leave them with less water downstream. NPR

Big water fine: Last month, officials in Mountain House were scrambling to find a water source after the Byron-Bethany Irrigation District was ordered by state officials told to stop diverting water. Now, state regulators say those diversions continued for two weeks and they want to fine the irrigation district $1.5 million. It’s the first enforcement action of its kind against a senior water rights holder in this drought. Los Angeles Times

L.A. AT LARGE

Church dispute: A judge wants the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to make peace with the Los Angeles Archdiocese. The two sides are locked in a contentious fight over a convent, which the church wants to sell to pop singer Katy Perry. The sisters have proposed their own sale of the hilltop property to restaurateur Dana Hollister. Los Angeles Times

New art exhibits: The Museum of Contemporary Art is partnering with the Underground Museum to bring world class art to African-American and Latino working-class neighborhoods. The first installation is from William Kentridge. His video installation is screening in Arlington Heights. Los Angeles Times

Preserving history: Activists in the Crescenta Valley are trying to preserve a feminist symbol. Rockhaven was a sanitarium opened by nurse Agnes Richards in 1923. Richards was appalled at the treatment of women suffering from mental conditions so she opened Rockhaven as a place where patients would be treated with dignity. Now, supporters want to preserve the 3.5-acre site. LA Weekly

Middle of nowhere: Heavy rains this weekend opened up a pit near Hell … the town, that is. A flash flood washed out a bridge and a pickup truck about 50 miles from Blythe. Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit said the closest structure to the collapse is an abandoned gas station used to shoot post-apocalyptic films. Los Angeles Times

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

High demand: More than half of the new California driver’s licenses issued in the first six months of the year went to people who are in the country illegally. The licenses allow these immigrants to drive legally, after taking a test and obtaining insurance, and prove their California residency. Los Angeles Times

Fight over bike lane: A quarter of UCLA students who bike to campus commute on Westwood Boulevard. To make that route safer, the city of Los Angeles is considering a southbound bike lane, extending from the campus down to the bike path along the Metro Expo Line. But the proposal is opposed by homeowners and the area’s councilman, who says it would create more traffic and take away parking spaces. It’s the latest example of the city’s car culture clashing with pedestrians and cyclists. Los Angeles Times

West Nile fatality: California health officials say the state has had its first West Nile-related fatality of the year. This year has seen an uptick in confirmed cases of the virus, and officials believe the drought may be to blame. “With fewer sources of water for birds and mosquitoes, they're coming into closer contact with humans in their search for water, increasing the chance of transmission.” Los Angeles Times

COURTS AND CRIME

Lawsuit tossed: A sexual harassment claim against Yolo County Sheriff Ed Prieto was thrown out by a federal judge who found some of the claims made by a department employee were unsubstantiated while others fell outside the statute of limitations. Last fall, a harassment case filed by a female corrections officer was also thrown out by a federal judge. Sacramento Bee

BUSINESS

Suing over donation: What is an institution to do when a donor withdraws a promised gift? In the case of St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, it decided to sue the estate of Paula Kent Meehan, creator of Redken hair products. Years after she promised the hospital $5 million, Meehan withdrew the gift. She died last year and now the hospital is testing the legal theory that the promised gift was legally binding, even if it means exposing itself to negative publicity. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Assigning blame: SpaceX founder Elon Musk believes that a part purchased from a sub-contractor is responsible for last month’s disintegration of a rocket. From now on, he said, SpaceX will test every steel strut used on its rockets. Los Angeles Times

Long-awaited apology: A 94-year-old World War II veteran was at the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles this weekend to hear an apology that was 70 years in the making. It came from an executive with Mitsubishi, which used American POWs as slaves in its copper mines. James Murphy attended the ceremony on behalf of the 12,000 American prisoners forced to work for the Japanese government and private companies during the war. Christian Science Monitor

Closing for renovations: The 21st Century is catching up to Richard Nixon’s presidential library. The permanent galleries at the Yorba Linda library will shut down for a yearlong renovation that will bring in more interactive exhibits. Right now, the most interactive part of the library is the Watergate exhibit, where visitors can listen to tapes from the Oval Office. Orange County Register

Kitty custody: Two women in Northern California are locked in a custody dispute over a cat. When David, also known as Whiley, was 2 years old, he ran away from home. He was adopted by a woman who only recently discovered that the cat had a microchip under his skin. The case centers around a California law that says anyone who finds an animal must make a good faith effort to find the original owner. San Francisco Chronicle

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

San Diego will be partly sunny and humid at 78 degrees. Los Angeles will be 82 degrees and partly sunny. In Riverside, it will be partly sunny and 84 degrees. San Francisco can expect some sunshine and 69 degrees.

AND FINALLY

When you reach for a Popsicle on one of these hot summer nights, remember that we can thank a Bay Area man for inventing the cool treat. Frank Epperson was just 11 years old when he mixed soda powder with water and let the concoction freeze overnight.

Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments, complaints and ideas to Alice Walton or Shelby Grad.