Town Monument

by Danielle Alexich | Posted December 11, 2025
Bidwell Mansion before the fire on Dec. 11, 2024. Photo courtesy of California State Parks.

On the first anniversary of the fire that destroyed the iconic Bidwell Mansion, we’re posting a poem written and contributed by local poet Danielle Alexich.

Sleep-drunk, we hear sirens from bed
and at dawn check our phones.
I stride the neighborhood avenue
to find Bidwell Mansion,
Victorian landmark,
yesterday pink,
now charred and smoldering,
grieving itself,
collapsed into a Dalian dream.
Light seeps through majestic trees.

Locals line the sidewalk.
Girl Scout alumni who toured
ornate, eerie rooms
with a blind and brilliant docent.
Old-timers holding hands.
Unwitting parents whose kids
cut class to smoke weed on the veranda.
Amid the rubble, steps survive,
once slick from generations
of events, spontaneous picnics,
first kisses, erased footprints
of those who were conquered. read more

On the cop beat in 2025

Sunny interviews writer Dave Waddell
by ChicoSol staff | Posted December 10, 2025

In this interview by podcaster Sunny, writer Dave Waddell talks about the stories he’s contributed to ChicoSol during the past year and his fight for public records. Waddell is writing a book about Butte County law enforcement. Sunny’s interview will be broadcast at 7 p.m. Dec. 11 as part of KZFR’s weekly news show. Correction to interview comment: Former Chico Police Chief Michael Dunbaugh wrote the memo referred to in this interview in 2015, not in 2025 as was inadvertently stated.

Where to put the tiny homes for four elderly women?

Search still on for a willing church partner
by Yucheng Tang | Posted December 9, 2025
Withuhn and other community members built the tiny homes that are ready for placement. Photo courtesy of Charles Withuhn.

The tiny home project that would house four elderly women on a church parking lot faces new challenges, including the loss of the church that, it was hoped, would provide space.

City Light Church had expressed interest in supporting the project by allowing the placement of four tiny homes on its parking lot, said Charles Withuhn, president of the North State Shelter Team (NSST) that has lobbied for the program.

But the church’s Rev. Steve Cox has indicated to NSST there are “risks we can’t move past.”

The Chico City Council approved NSST’s tiny home project for church parking lots on a split vote at its Oct. 8 meeting.

ChicoSol was unable to obtain a comment from a church representative before publication explaining why it reconsidered its involvement. But a parishioner who attended City Light’s Dec. 7 service said that although many congregants have concerns, she would like to see the project proceed because “Christians need to help and influence people.” read more

Central Valley farmworkers confront rising hunger

Immigration crackdown and fewer jobs spell trouble for families
by Agustin Duran/ACoM | Posted December 2, 2025
Families wait for a monthly food delivery from Valley Voices. Photo courtesy of Valley Voices

Teresa was anxious as she waited for Valley Voices, the non-profit behind a monthly food distribution network that reaches hundreds of farmworker families in the Central Valley, providing groceries and other staples to those who don’t have enough to eat.

For area farmworkers the decline in available work adds to the growing sense of unease, as prices for daily staples continue to climb and as the Trump Administration doubles down on its immigration enforcement policies.

“A lot of people have been affected,” noted Valley Voices Executive Director Ruth López. “There are already some that have left the country because they don’t want to see their family divided,” she said, referring to those who “self-deport” for fear of being detained by federal agents. read more

Butte County needs a Public Defender Office

Attorney Ron Reed: A Public Defender Office would save taxpayer money
by Ronald Reed | Posted December 1, 2025
Public Defender Ron Reed. Photo by Yucheng Tang.

Attorney Ron Reed has worked as a public defender in Butte County since 1986. This guest commentary was extracted, with Reed’s permission, from a report he prepared and mailed to about 150 interested parties.

In 1989, a group of 10 local lawyers formed a consortium in Butte County to handle indigent defense. They operated independently, kept private practices, and renewed contracts every three years as caseloads grew. Today, 18 attorneys each receive $14,000 per month to cover a share of indigent defense.

Since then, Butte County has relied on this consortium-based, flat-fee contract system to provide constitutionally-mandated defense services.

But research across California demonstrates that flat-fee systems lead to excessive caseloads, lack of oversight, and worse outcomes for clients and taxpayers alike. By contrast, a Public Defender (PD) Office offers accountable, professional representation with access to resources and grant funding. read more

White nationalist speech becomes mainstream, say researchers

In the North State, nationalist ideology has a history of impact
by Natalie Hanson | Posted November 24, 2025
Chico State English instructor Anna Moore says elected leaders should speak out about what immigrant communities are facing. Photo courtesy of Jason Halley at Chico State.

White nationalist rhetoric has become common in U.S. mainstream politics – and some educators point out that it also has a long history of prevalence in the North State.

Chico State University professor Shawn Schwaller said such language is now common in this “extreme political climate,” and its use has been increasing since 2016. Extremist language often affects, in particular, marginalized communities.

“When you hear Trump and his cronies talk about immigration, they sound a lot like the nativist supporters of the State of Jefferson movement in the North State, who have sought for years to break a portion of Northern California off from the rest of the state to create a white ethno state,” Schwaller said. read more