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50 States

News from around our 50 States

From staff and wire reports
A cafe offers cultural enlightenment in Minnesota, kids get a head start on the new year in Delaware, and more
  • Anniston
    Federal officials are putting a fish whose habitat is threatened by development in Southern states on the endangered species list. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is adding the trispot darter fish to the list. The trispot darter can be found in the Coosa River watershed in northern Alabama, northern Georgia and southeastern Tennessee. Development along the Coosa River threatens the fish’s water quality due to storm water runoff, Al.com reports. The fish was believed to be extinct in Alabama for more than 50 years until it was discovered in Little Canoe Creek in 2008, according to the Center for Biological Diversity. Placement on the endangered species list makes it illegal for the freshwater fish to be caught or sold.
  • Anchorage
    Winter tourism is growing in Alaska. The state known as a popular summer destination has increasingly attracted visitors in the colder months for the past decade. The Anchorage Daily News reports visitor volume grew 33 percent for the fall and winter season in the past 10 years. Winter business has been up for the Alaska Railroad in the past few years. Spokeswoman Meghan Clemens says ridership on winter passenger trains grew 33 percent between the winter of 2015-2016 and the following year. The railroad has added more train service to accommodate the larger numbers. The railroad’s vice president of marketing, Dale Wade, says visitors from Asia are one factor for the upswing.
  • Tucson
    A team of University of Arizona researchers is getting a $2 million military grant for its work on bone regrowth technology. The Arizona Daily Star reports the five-year grant comes from the Department of Defense with the hope that it could eventually benefit wounded soldiers. John Szivek is leading the study of regenerating missing bone through a combination of adult stem cells and 3D printing. The biomedical engineer and professor of orthopedic surgery says the typical solution for bone-shattering injuries is to use a support rod and a cadaver bone. But the cadaver bone inevitably cracks and breaks within a couple of years. The team has so far tested its methods only on sheep.
  • Little Rock
    An unusually rainy year for most counties in the state has left roadways marked with potholes. Eric Petty, manager of Little Rock’s operations division, tells The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that 2018 was the city’s sixth-rainiest year on record. Petty says water can weaken asphalt by seeping into or bubbling up underneath the material. He says potholes can damage vehicles by blowing out tires or knocking vehicles out of alignment. Petty says Little Rock saw more than 2,800 potholes in 2018 that cost the city more than $380,000 in labor, equipment and materials. Arkansas Department of Transportation spokesman Danny Straessle says the agency’s 10 districts each receive between $18 million and $20 million for road repair.
  • Joshua Tree National Park
    The park’s gates have remained open despite the partial federal government shutdown, and crowds of visitors have been rolling in without having to pay $30 per vehicle. Joshua Tree National Park’s visitor center and restrooms are closed, and services including trash collection have been disrupted. But the Los Angeles Times reports rangers are still patrolling the 1,235-square-mile desert park, which has seen winter visitation soar in recent years. Ranger Dylan Moe says it’s a little disorderly, but rangers haven’t seen any blatant disregard for law and order. Joshua Tree sprawls over parts of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts northeast of Palm Springs.
  • Denver

    The Budweiser Clydesdales were on hand to welcome full-strength beer hitting the shelves of Colorado grocery stores. Eight of the famous mascot horses visited the Colorado Capitol on Monday afternoon to celebrate the state’s largest liquor code changes since prohibition. Previously, Budweiser’s Clydesdales delivered beer to President Franklin D. Roosevelt to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition in 1933. The Clydesdales were stabled at the Fort Collins Anheuser-Busch brewery last month for the facility’s annual brewery lights celebration. The Clydesdale are scheduled to return to Fort Collins on Jan. 9-20.

  • New London
    The U.S. Coast Guard Academy’s ability to serve cadets returning from winter break will be affected by the forced furlough of administrative staff and other nonessential civilians as part of the partial government shutdown, the school says. About 160 of the academy’s 260 government-funded nonessential employees have been furloughed, with students set to return Sunday. There will be a week of orientation and training before classes begin for the spring semester. Coast Guard workers received paychecks Monday. But because the Coast Guard is part of the Department of Homeland Security and not funded as other branches of the military, workers are not scheduled to receive another check during the shutdown.
  • Wilmington

    Sreenidhi Amaravathi scooped a pile of confetti off the floor and threw it up in the air, letting it fall over her 3-year-old son Deven’s head. The toddler waved his hands in the air and giggled as his dad, Dilip, snapped a photo. “Happy New Year!” parents and children shouted gleefully at the Delaware Children’s Museum on Monday. The nonprofit once again held its New Year’s Rockin’ Noon, a New Year’s Eve countdown held during the day so children can participate. The event is so popular, marketing manager Joe Valenti says, that the museum decided for the first time this year to reload the confetti launchers and do another countdown at 2 p.m. “New Year’s Eve is always such a fun event that kids hear about, wish they could partake in,” he says.

  • Washington
    The Metro system in the nation’s capital is ringing in 2019 with some weekend shutdowns, WUSA-TV reports. The transit agency will shut down parts of the blue and yellow lines on two weekends this month. On Jan. 12-13, no trains will run from Reagan National to L’Enfant Plaza and Arlington Cemetery. And Jan. 26-27, there will be no trains south of Braddock Road, affecting both the blue and yellow lines in Virginia.
  • Cape Coral

    Workers at the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife were wrapping up their Thanksgiving Day potluck when they met their newest patient. An officer with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission brought in an adult male bald eagle found dragging his wing near the Yellow Fever Creek Preserve in northeast Cape Coral. He had scrapes on his feet, and he looked thin. His diagnosis was a fractured right coracoid bone, which is similar to a collarbone in humans. The damage to his feet was a possible sign of a fight with another eagle, but veterinarians speculate he may have been hit by a car. But after about a month of rehabilitation at the clinic, known as CROW, the eagle flexed his recovered wing Sunday as he took flight around his home.

  • Atlanta
    Former President Jimmy Carter, former first lady Rosalynn Carter and dozens of members of their family attended worship service at the church where Martin Luther King Jr. once preached. News outlets report more than 40 members of the Carter family joined the congregation for the last Sunday morning service of the year at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church. The Rev. Raphael Warnock says it was an honor to host the 94-year-old former president of the United States. Jimmy Carter says he was happy to be back at Ebenezer, which he called a “mother church” for Baptists. He says his grandson Jason Carter and his family are members at Ebenezer.
  • Wailuku
    A steep trail to the Kalaupapa leprosy settlement has been closed indefinitely after a landslide took out a bridge along one of the switchbacks. Kalaupapa National Historical Park Acting Superintendent Rhonda Loh tells The Maui News the trail is closed while officials figure out how to repair it. She says the U.S. Park Service is short-staffed because of the federal government shutdown, so officials will examine the damage when the shutdown is over. The 3-mile trail zigzags down the steep cliffside in a series of 26 switchbacks. It provides the only land access to the isolated peninsula on Molokai’s north coast. Hikers, mule riders, and federal and state employees use the trail to access Kalaupapa. A postal service worker discovered the bridge damage on Christmas Day.
  • Lava Hot Springs
    The housing market in southeastern Idaho is booming, with home prices soaring. Nowhere is this more true than in Lava Hot Springs, where houses are being bought up before they’re even listed, sometimes for well above asking price. Second homes are a hot commodity here. There aren’t many houses to begin with, and because of the town’s layout, it’s hard to build new ones. Plus, most of the people moving into town really only want vacation homes. One local real estate agent said 8 out of 10 people who ask her about buying a home in this tourist town are looking for second homes. And most of those people are also looking to rent out their homes when they’re not around to recoup some of the costs of the mortgage.
  • Urbana
    It seems like a place you’d go to invest in great art, not view it. As part of a new initiative to showcase local art, more than 30 pieces now hang upstairs in the public spaces of Busey Wealth Management’s corporate headquarters in downtown Urbana. There’s an oil-on-canvas piece by local artist Brian J. Sullivan, whose “Reflections in a Red ’57 Chevy” painting emphasizes the iconic chrome of that classic car. There’s a hammered copper ear of corn, and metal twisted into a tree, and a vividly colorful metal piece by Greg Stallmeyer, an automotive paint specialist who uses that talent to create art. And then there’s Eric Nash’s three-panel painting across an entire wall – a massive collection of tiny dots that together form a spectacular illustration of Champaign-Urbana’s nighttime horizon, which Nash titled “Jewel of the Prairie.”
  • Lawrence
    This Indianapolis suburb is hoping to boost its profile and attract new visitors with a cultural district promoting the arts and the area’s military history. The Indianapolis Business Journal reports that Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded the city of Lawrence and the nonprofit Arts for Lawrence $5.85 million to build the Fort Harrison Cultural Campus. It’s expected to include new performance and visual-arts spaces, interactive play areas and a history-focused app. Lawrence encompasses the U.S. Army’s former Fort Benjamin Harrison. After the base closed in 1995, the state acquired 1,700 acres to create Fort Harrison State Park. Mayor Steve Collier says the park and its golf course already attract visitors who stay in the park’s inn and other lodging. He says the cultural campus will give visitors more to do.
  • Des Moines

    The Varsity Theatre – Des Moines’ beloved one-screen movie theater that opened on Christmas Day in 1938 – hosted its final screenings Sunday. The theater’s entrance overflowed with patrons for the 1:30 p.m. showing, many chatting among friends about how sad they were to see it go. Theater owner Denise Mahon, above left, announced in a November Facebook post that she would retire after Sunday’s screenings and undergoing a knee replacement. “After observing Thanksgiving, I thought this would be an appropriate time to thank you for your loyal patronage of the Varsity throughout the years,” she wrote in the post. “My father took pride in showing movies ‘that make you think,’ and I have tried to emulate that since his death in 2009.”

  • Baldwin City
    A minister from a private Christian university in Kansas has been selected for a two-month deployment as a chaplain at a research center in Antarctica. Baker University campus minister Kevin Hopkins was heading out Wednesday for the assignment at McMurdo Station, The Lawrence Journal-World reports. The base houses about 1,000 National Science Foundation researchers, as well as military personnel who maintain the facility. Hopkins says he’ll conduct Sunday morning services, worksite ministry and counseling at the Chapel of the Snows. He’ll also visit the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, which has about 40 researchers in the summer.
  • Louisville

    Billions of gallons of water soaked the city in 2018, making it the wettest year on record in Louisville. Shortly after 9 a.m. Monday, rain gauges at Louisville International Airport passed the 0.7-inch mark, putting the city at 68.05 inches for the year, the National Weather Service said. With thunderstorms still brewing, 2018 dripped past 2011’s high-water mark of 68.02 inches. NWS meteorologist Ron Steve credited the record levels of precipitation Louisville experienced to February and September. The record 10.47 inches the city saw in February led to flooding not seen since 1997. And in September, Louisville received 10.91 inches of rain, also a record, according to the NWS.

  • Lake Charles
    A boating club has organized a private-public partnership to put up channel markers along a bayou where water often hides cypress stumps and knees. Ben Garber of the Lake Charles Sail and Power Squadron says that because Contraband Bayou isn’t used for commerce, the Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers can’t install markers. He tells The American Press his group spent about a year surveying the bayou. Darrell Walker of Blue Star Marine tells KPLC-TV that the stumps have damaged a lot of boats. He tells the Associated Press the company donated $9,800 in crew time and crane boat use for installation. The markers along one side of the channel are red. Those on the other side are green. Below each is a metal “no wake zone” sign.
  • Somerville
    Lights, camera, scat. That’s the premise of a potential new reality series featuring a woman who is locally famous for making creations out of moose droppings. The Portland Press Herald reports Mary Winchenbach and her wife, Deb Nicholls, are in discussions with TNT about bringing their brand of poop art to cable television. Winchenbach is known in Maine as “the Moose Turd Lady,” while Nicholls has remained a quiet partner in their business, Tirdy Works. Winchenbach calls the positive reception of her work “overwhelming” and “humbling.” She has been working with moose scat for years and makes everything from clocks to ornaments.
  • Baltimore
    Since 1950, Baltimore has dropped from America’s sixth most populous city to the country’s 30th largest. And there’s no end in sight to the population drain. Baltimore has led all U.S. cities in population loss for the past two years running. Its 16,000 abandoned properties are symbols of this city’s enduring social divide. Housing researchers say some 20,000 other properties are unoccupied and pose a risk of becoming crumbling shells in the future. Government officials are now focused on stabilizing and revitalizing neighborhoods that can grow. A major part of the solution is ramped-up demolition to increase odds of redevelopment.
  • Boston
    Federal fishing managers are holding the line on the quota for an important commercial species of crab that is fished off the East Coast. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the quota for Atlantic deep-sea red crab will be about 3.9 million pounds, which is the same it has been since 2011. The crabs are fished using traps, and the fishery mostly takes place off southern New England and the Mid-Atlantic Bight, which stretches to North Carolina. The crabs are used for fresh-picked meat and frozen legs. The quota takes effect March 1.
  • Lansing
    Attention Yoopers: That guy pumping gas might be Rick Snyder. The outgoing governor released a brief video Sunday about his plans after leaving state government. He says he and wife Sue plan to take an Upper Peninsula “whirlwind waterfall” tour at some point in 2019. Snyder says most people know about Tahquamenon Falls, above, in the eastern Upper Peninsula. He also mentioned Bond Falls, Angel Falls and Canyon Falls. He says he owes his wife “some vacations” and “another honeymoon period” after eight years as governor. Snyder, who enjoys calling himself a nerd, says he’ll use an Excel spreadsheet to plan the waterfall trip. He left office Tuesday.
  • St. Cloud

    There’s a new coffee shop in town, where a cup o’ joe will cost you just $1.50. Nori Cafe & Creamery hosted its grand opening Saturday. Husband-and-wife duo Muhsin Abdulkadir and Farhiya Iman, both 29, manage the family-owned cafe. Abdulkadir was born in Somalia and raised in Yemen before moving to St. Cloud. He said the cafe’s name, “nori,” comes from an Arabic word for “light.” Iman said the idea sparked when she and Abdulkadir noticed St. Cloud’s changing demographics and saw a need for a common meeting ground for people of all backgrounds. Iman, who is also a social worker, was especially interested in creating a welcoming space where customers could feel comfortable asking questions about her family’s culture, religion and more.

  • Olive Branch
    A man says he ordered his wife a $2,000 diamond bracelet for Christmas and was shocked to see 48 of the bracelets when he opened the box. WATN-TV reports Olive Branch Alderman Dale Dickerson ordered the bracelet from a company called Jewelry Unlimited, based in Atlanta. When Dickerson received his shipment, there were dozens of bracelets in the box but no paperwork. Dickerson called the company after catching his breath. He says the manager sounded panicked, but Dickerson sent the extra bracelets back. The manager thanked him for his honesty, and the company sent a pair of diamond earrings as a thank-you for returning the goods.
  • Springfield

    A year after Greene County began using trailers to house inmates amid jail overcrowding, more than 100 men are being held in the trailers, and officials in other areas of the country are eyeing the program. But some legal experts argue that the program has raised major red flags and caution that the crowded conditions could be considered inhumane. Greene County heralded the program as the first of its kind when it launched about a year ago. County officials said it was a temporary, cost-effective solution to jail overcrowding. The operation currently includes six trailers surrounded by a chain-link fence. Sheriff Jim Arnott acknowledges the setup isn’t ideal and says that he wants more space in a permanent facility but that the facility is by no means inhumane.

  • Helena
    The sharp scrape of steel on ice cut through a rare windless December morning at the Silos on Canyon Ferry Reservoir as a quartet of skaters moved briskly across the smooth, frozen surface, with the outline of Mount Baldy in the background. “It’s so graceful, and the possibilities are endless,” Dale Livezey said, skating backward. “When the ice is smooth like this, it’s the closest thing to flying on the ground.” Several years ago Livezey and some “wild ice” skating enthusiasts started an online group to network and share their passion. About five years ago, the group moved to Facebook under the name “MT icebuds,” which has grown to include a sizable network of photos and videos, ice reports, and invitations to come out and skate.
  • Lincoln
    Even as construction continues on four new fire stations, city officials are beginning to plan for two more stations. The Lincoln Journal Star reports officials are in the preliminary stages of planning for the stations in an effort to keep land acquisition costs as low as possible. Fire Chief Micheal Despain says the cost of buying land can be six times as high if the property is needed immediately. He says the city can predict its population growth, so it makes sense to buy land early. So far, the city hasn’t committed money to land purchases and is focused on replacing aging fire rigs and completing work on four stations under construction.
  • Reno

    First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes a certificate in a blockchain carriage. Well, a digital block, to be more exact. At least that’s how the classic song has played out in Washoe County for the better part of 2018 as it started using blockchain technology – a nigh tamper-proof digital ledger for securing information – to create digital versions of its marriage certificates for hundreds of couples. The initiative officially came out of its pilot phase in June, according to the county, allowing anyone who ties the knot in the area to view and send a secure digital version of their marriage certificate via their home computer or even their smartphone. The success is causing the county to look at ways it could use blockchain technology with other records.

  • Hanover
    Construction is getting underway on a $200 million project to integrate engineering, computer science and entrepreneurship at Dartmouth College. The project, funded through gifts to the Ivy League college, includes a new building on the west end of campus to be shared by the Thayer School of Engineering, the Department of Computer Science and the Magnuson Center for Entrepreneurship. Construction is beginning in January with a three-level parking garage that will sit below the building. The building is expected to open to students in the fall of 2021. Dartmouth says the project will lead to the doubling of the engineering school’s faculty and a 50 percent increase in the computer science faculty.
  • Prospect Park

    Most people his age are just figuring out how to handle their personal finances. Intashan Chowdhury has to reconcile a $6.5 million municipal budget. Chowdhury, 22, the borough’s new administrator, is believed to be one of the youngest town managers in New Jersey history, if not the youngest, and the first of Bengali descent. Chowdhury, a Paterson native whose parents emigrated from Bangladesh, holds a bachelor’s degree in public administration from the Newark campus of Rutgers. He is on course to receive a master’s in the same discipline in the spring. He has interned for U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, state Assemblyman Raj Mukherji and other high-ranking elected officials.

  • Albuquerque
    The University of New Mexico is offering a new course that’s generating a lot of buzz on campus – a class on cannabis and communication. Associate professor Tamar Ginossar tells Albuquerque television station KOB-TV it’s a topic that brings up a lot of enthusiasm. Ginossar says there has been global change in terms of the legalization of marijuana, so it’s an exciting time to learn about it from the communication perspective. UNM is one of several schools in the U.S. with a cannabis course. In the class, the students will learn about marijuana and the role it plays in the media. They will also hear from a biology professor about efforts to work on regulations for marijuana and how he has been prevented from doing research.
  • Bethel
    Finding a place to stay for this year’s 50th anniversary Woodstock concert may not be a groovy experience for anyone hoping to score a room near the venue. The Times Herald-Record of Middletown reports that many motels, bed and breakfasts, and Airbnb rentals are already sold out in Sullivan County, a rural area 85 miles northwest of New York City. The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, a concert venue built on the original Woodstock site in the town of Bethel, announced last week that it will host the golden anniversary event Aug. 16-18. Most motels and other lodging options closest to the concert venue have been booked solid for some time now.
  • Raleigh
    The fatal mauling of a zoo intern by a lion that escaped from a locked pen illustrates the need for state regulators to crack down on unaccredited exhibitors of dangerous animals, animal welfare advocates say. Alexandra Black, 22, was attacked Sunday while cleaning an animal enclosure with other staff members. It was at least the 10th instance of an escape or attack by an animal at a privately run North Carolina wildlife facility since 1997, according to the Humane Society. Officials said the lion somehow escaped from a nearby pen and killed the recent college graduate just two weeks after she started working at the Conservators Center near Burlington. Before deputies fired on the lion, killing it, officials made several attempts to tranquilize it or hold it at bay with fire hoses, the Caswell County Sheriff’s Office said.
  • Bismarck
    A Grand Forks lawmaker wants to charge owners of electric and hybrid vehicles an annual fee to help offset lost motor fuel taxes that fund road improvements. Republican state Sen. Curt Kreun says all vehicles contribute to wear and tear on North Dakota roads, and drivers of electric and hybrid vehicles should pay their fair share. North Dakota is among 30 states that don’t levy a fee for owners of electric vehicles. Eight states charge annual fees for drivers of hybrid vehicles. Kreun’s proposed legislation would charge owners of electric vehicles $248 annually. Hybrid vehicle owners would pay $71 a year. The fees wouldn’t raise much money at first: State Transportation data show there are only 3,850 hybrids and 141 electric vehicles registered in the state.
  • Toledo
    Just the thought of a bed bug infestation is enough to make you start scratching and tossing out furniture. So a researcher at Ohio State University has come up with a new app that has tips on spotting bed bugs and getting rid of them. It also has information for travelers and on how to stop an infestation. Entomologist Susan Jones, above, says bed bugs can be tricky to identify because they’re nocturnal and really good at hiding. She also says they’re hard to eliminate and recommends hiring a professional. Jones says she developed the new app because there’s a lot of misinformation out there about bed bugs. The app works on Android and iOS devices and can be found by searching “bed bug field guide.”
  • Oklahoma City
    The state’s overall health ranking fell among U.S. states in 2018, though it did see an uptick in infant health. The Oklahoman reported the state ranked 47th in overall health in 2018, down from 43rd in 2017, according to the America’s Health Rankings annual report. The findings indicated that Oklahoma residents continued to do worse compared to those in other states on measures of health behavior and outcomes. Fewer infants were born too small or died before reaching their first birthday in the past year, though the ranking increase was small: Oklahoma moved up from 47th in 2017 to 43rd in 2018 in infant deaths.
  • Salem

    Marijuana could take the next step toward joining pinot noir, craft beer and hazelnuts on Oregon’s list of famous exports, under a proposal likely to go before state lawmakers in the new year. The Craft Cannabis Alliance, a business association led by founder and executive director Adam Smith, is working with legislators to let Oregon start exporting pot to other legal-weed states by 2021. Among them is Sen. Floyd Prozanski, D-Eugene, who said he also plans to reintroduce provisions from Senate Bill 1042, a similar proposal that died in the statehouse in 2017. This comes as the state’s legal weed industry has faced plummeting prices over the past year due to demand not keeping up with supply, experts say.

  • Philadelphia
    One of the city’s classic diners is ending its overnight shift, reflecting changes in the way people eat and socialize. The Penrose Diner went to a 6 a.m.-to-midnight schedule starting Monday. The eatery has featured 24-hour service for the past 50 years. An owner tells The Philadelphia Inquirer that younger people drive less frequently when they go out to clubs and don’t want to take two trips on a car service late at night to stop for food. Food delivery services also have cut into in-person traffic at diners, and convenience stores such as WaWa offer late-night alternatives. Few full-time, 24-hour diners remain in Philadelphia, though some are open 24 hours on weekends.
  • Pawtucket
    The city is adopting traffic cameras to crack down on speeding. Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien says the city north of Providence has hired Gatso-USA to add the cameras at intersections and near schools. The Democrat says the city is embracing new technology to address problem speeding in school zones because police department resources are limited. The company will bear all costs for cameras, signs and other equipment. Providence’s traffic camera system has been in place for over a decade and generates millions of dollars in city revenue. But after Providence added cameras near schools, the number of speeding tickets issued skyrocketed, prompting a class-action lawsuit the city recently settled.
  • Columbia
    State wildlife officials are recommending people use their old, live Christmas trees to help animals. The state Department of Natural Resources says old trees can be used for erosion control or as cover for small animals like quails and rabbits. The agency also has a program that takes old trees and sinks them in lakes to become artificial reefs for fish. Wildlife agents say they have a tree drop-off area in Berkeley County that should be used instead of just dumping trees into public lakes. The agency says that depending on how a live tree is harvested, it could be replanted. But wildlife agents say many varieties of live Christmas trees struggle to survive through hot and humid South Carolina summers.
  • Sioux Falls

    In the vast world of dogs – big dogs, little dogs, guard dogs, lap dogs – there’s almost certainly a breed whose temperament and mannerisms suit the lifestyle of any person or family. The two most popular breeds in Sioux Falls in 2018 exemplify that diversity: On one end, there’s a perennial favorite, a bigger dog known for its hunting prowess. On the other end of the dogdom spectrum, there’s a friendly, low-maintenance small dog. They are the Labrador retriever and the Shih Tzu. The Lab reigns across the city as the most popular dog, according to a review of Sioux Falls city pet licensing data. There were 555 Labs licensed in 2018. The Shih Tzu came in second, with 205. The breeds share a common personality trait: Both are family-friendly and social.

  • Franklin

    When the first “BreakFEST” was held at the Factory this past June, it may have seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. A chance to see a half-dozen fan-favorite “pop-punk” bands, starting at 8 a.m. on a Sunday morning? Yet the opportunity is returning. After a successful inaugural year, “BreakFEST” will return to the Factory on June 2. New Found Glory will once again headline – guitarist and Franklin resident Chad Gilbert is the brains behind the event – and will be joined by Real Friends, Mae, Hawthorne Heights, The Early November, Microwave, Jetty Bones, Love You Later, Dollskin and H.A.R.D. To bring in the breakfast, Five Daughters Bakery, Frothy Monkey and Mojo’s Tacos are among the local spots who’ll have goods for sale.

  • Fort Worth
    A 27-mile rail system extending from downtown Fort Worth to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is scheduled to launch Saturday. TEXRail trains, operated by the Trinity Metro transit agency, will make nine stops along the route, including in the suburbs of North Richland Hills and Grapevine. The Dallas Morning News reports that $336 million in transit-oriented development has occurred so far as part of the project. Trinity Metro, in an effort to jump-start ridership, will not charge fares in January. Come Feb. 1, a one-way ticket will cost $2.50. The full one-way trip will take 52 minutes, and the line is expected to draw 8,000 daily riders by the end of 2019.
  • Salt Lake City
    A woman who helped kidnap Elizabeth Smart is living several blocks from a Salt Lake City elementary school following her release from prison in September, according to Utah’s sex-offender registry. Wanda Barzee, 73, is listed in the registry as living in an apartment near Parkview Elementary School after her initial placement in a halfway house. She was released on parole much earlier than anticipated, despite her refusal to cooperate with mental health professionals while incarcerated. Smart, now 31, has become a child safety advocate and is married with three young children. She said in a statement that people with a history of child abuse and sexual violence such as Barzee shouldn’t be allowed to live close to schools.
  • Montpelier
    The state is hoping to attract new residents and boost its population and workforce by paying some to relocate. The state is accepting applications for the program, which pays people who work remotely for an out-of-state company to move to Vermont. The state will pay those new residents up to $10,000 over two years. The grants will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis with $500,000 allocated for the program. Among the expenses that can be covered are relocation costs and computer software and hardware. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Vermont has the nation’s third-highest median age, 42.7 years, and the state’s population is flat or slightly shrinking.
  • Charlottesville
    Officials in this city that endured a deadly white nationalist rally in 2017 say people are cursing police officers, and it’s thinning the department’s ranks. Charlottesville Police Chief RaShall Brackney told The Daily Progress that the climate has been toxic since before the Unite the Right rally. Brackney says video shows people cursing officers and calling them names. Brackney says it’s a top reason officers are quitting in large numbers. The department is down nearly two dozen officers, and vacancies are getting harder to fill. Other reasons include pay, officers’ inability to take home patrol cars, and what Brackney called “vocal and biased” civilian review board members.
  • Yakima
    A homeless encampment has returned to its former location after temporarily relocating. The Yakima Herald-Republic reports the operators of Camp Hope are required to move the encampment every six months so it can be deemed a temporary camp as part of a deal with the city. About 30 residents live at the camp run by Transform Yakima Together, a faith-based group. Executive director Andy Ferguson says residents returned to the military-style tents Dec. 22. Ferguson says permanent electrical services been installed, and sewer and water services are expected soon. Residents had relocated for two weeks, staying at the parking lot of the Union Gospel Mission.
  • Charleston
    State health officials say flu cases are on the rise. Lauren Spadafora, the flu coordinator for the state Department of Health and Human Resources, told the Charleston Gazette-Mail there has been a steady increase in positive flu tests across the state. She says there were 15-20 positive tests per week in late November. In late December, the numbers were about 120 per week. Kanawha-Charleston Health Department spokesman John Law said flu cases there have been “sporadic” so far. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said that flu activity is up across the country. Spadafora said it’s not clear whether West Virginia has reached the peak of its flu season, and she said it’s not too late to get immunized.
  • Dodgeville
    Residents in a rural county are split over a plan to build a solar farm that would include more than 1 million solar panels. The Wisconsin State Journal reports that the Badger Hollow Solar Farm proposed by Invenergy would cover 2,700 acres in Iowa County and could power more than 70,000 homes. The project is seeking a permit from the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Farmer Ken Wunderlin, above, says he agreed to have part of the solar farm on his land because it’s a good financial move. He says it’s also a chance to get involved in a more environmentally friendly source of energy. But farmer Richard Jinkins says he’s worried the farm will destroy the area’s scenic beauty, take up valuable farmland and cause the county’s population to drop.
  • Jackson
    Officials will allow a metal music festival to take place again east of Grand Teton National Park. The Jackson Hole News and Guide reports the Teton County administrator granted a special event permit last week for the Fire in the Mountains festival scheduled for July 13-14 at Heart Six Ranch in Moran. The county has imposed conditions, including prohibiting on-site camping, limiting amplified noise, and requiring consultation with the state Game and Fish Department to protect wildlife. Organizers are planning to cap attendance at 950 people. The 2018 event was limited to 400 people. Teton County sheriff’s Sgt. Todd Stanyon says the 2018 festival had a “very peaceful crowd.”