Groups Spread Holiday Cheer to 500 Needy Families

Holiday Cheer

About 500 needy San Diego families will receive holiday food and toys Friday from the San Diego and Imperial Counties Labor Council and the United Way of San Diego.

Turkeys, food bags, toys and bikes -- donated by workers and their unions -- will go to families in which parents have lost jobs or are underemployed. The distribution begins at 8 a.m. in the parking lot of Qualcomm Stadium.

The unemployment rate in San Diego County was 9.2 percent in November, meaning 145,500 people out of a workforce of around 1.6 million, according to the state Economic Development Department.

Additionally, many economists believe the true number of unemployed people is higher since people who have given up looking for jobs are not counted in the official statistics.

Brown Appoints Local Anesthesiologist

A UC San Diego anesthesiologist was appointed to the Medical Board of California Thursday by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Dr. Michael Bishop, 61, is the director of anesthesia for same-day surgery at the UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest. Prior to joining UCSD, he was in private practice, beginning in 1992.

The Medical Board of California licenses doctors, provides public records on physicians and investigates complaints.

The position requires state Senate confirmation. The San Diego resident, who is registered decline-to-state, would receive compensation of $100 per diem if confirmed.

Watching the Dam Construction

A web-based camera system will allow the public to watch the progress of a $450 million construction project to raise the height of the San Vicente Dam, the San Diego County Water Authority announced Thursday.

The dam's height will go from 200 feet to 337 feet, making it the largest roller-compacted concrete dam raise in the world, according to the SDCWA. The project will more than double the capacity of the San Vicente Reservoir, allowing it to hold an additional 150,000 acre-feet of water.

The camera system compresses weeks of construction work into brief time- lapse videos and also posts two high-resolutions photographs every 30 minutes, Water Authority spokesman Jason Foster said.

It can be viewed at sdcwa.org/san-vicente-dam-raise.

"The value of this camera technology is that it helps the Water Authority document the historic record of this major construction project, while at the same time allowing members of the public to view its progress online," board Chairman Michael T. Hogan said.

"This dam raise will help protect the region's economy, job base and quality of life by increasing the amount of water available for use within the county," Hogan said.

Once the project is complete and the reservoir is refilled, the dam will be re-opened for recreational use, projected sometime between 2014 and 2017, depending on rainfall and supply and demand of water, according to Foster.

-City News Service