hundred chill didn't stop santa from showing up at the roman angels car club's toy drive to google at more than fifty classic cars and hand out candy canes club president ron cherry said sunday is very cold this year cherry said your feet were cold next year zayn is going to wear a pair of those battery powered hunting socks the turnout at the sixteenth annual toy drive saturday was not as large as had been previous in previous years because of the cold and partly due to sagging economy the giving was down a little this year cherry said we've always had a good support from the community and we had good support this year but i really feel the economy is scaring people into many areas it's too bad however entire groups such as the local cover scouts in a local porch club made a trip to the p g and e parking lot on taylor ville road and mcknight way to donate and visit with santa people donated cd players gift certificates toy cars and dolls they also featured on free hot dogs popcorn coffee and hot cocoa one point organizers ran out of hot dogs and had to get more was a twenty foot trailer for the tories was not overflowing like it was in former years it was nearly full of goodness several hundred dollars in cash donations were also collected for the salvation army salvation army will distribute the toys to local children later this month santa was very impressed with all the kids cherry said he really had fun with them and that's really what it's all about and the story from roseville the union representing twenty five thousand safeway grocery workers in grass valley in northern california canceled a strike vote sunday after the region's largest grocery store chain and its employees tentatively agreed to a new contract that means both safeway stories and grass valley will remain open with the roughly two hundred union member employees according to neil street store manager bob carney it's a positive thing carney said this morning there is a tentative agreement day agreement must still be ratified by the union members the agreement reached sunday between the united food and commercial workers and the pleasant ten based grocer covers retail clerks and deli workers at about three hundred stores according to separate statements released by the union and safeway the pacific details of the new four year accord were not revealed though the union said it had achieved its goals  increasing wages improving health benefits and pension protections safeway store employees had been working under a contract extension that expired saturday the story from incline village was thursday's snow pack at four percent of average in lake tahoe two feet lower than last year in this time the calendar year two thousand and seven isn't running to be the second driest went there for the weather records however weatherin this year is always a wild ride we've we're definitely way down here december got zero precipitation which would really be amazing and awful this is be the second driest year in seventy years said jim ashby climatologist with the western regional climate center and reno's desert research institute the driest year was nine hundred seventy six with nine point thirty four inches of precipitation recorded at lake talos only outlet to truckee river in host city right now fourteen point seventy one inches for has been recorded in tahoe city for the year long term average is thirty two point six inches of precipitation but as weather watches warn you never know in th four years point is it could happen it could be a monster month that should be said his cohort at the western regional climate center in term director kelly redmond however says it's not likely the types of patterns we are in is not conducti bringing moisture to the sea or could have fooled me i think it's raining today strongly nina is sending meister noise of california or spinning it inland towards arizona in years redmond said the farther south one goes the drier it gets the guts of winter is december january and february he said the national oceanic onic and atmospheric administration released its three months forecast for the western united states an event or fifteen showing southern california as drier than normal with our about thirty three percent drier than normal it's not looking good at the moment there are no strong systems moving into jolt us out of the doldrums the start to the water year which begins october first has helped by storms in october but november has been seventeen percent of average precipitation october contributed to a little more than its share in november is falling down on the job and may get a license its license revoked we're getting rid of it we're trying to get into semper redmayne joked he said northern nevada and california residents should be more worried about the lack of snow packed and precipitation because that is drinking water for next summer as we said there's no doubt we're in a drought federal water master gary stone said the reservoirs in the truckee river water system are lower than normal except for stampede and the lake tahoe will continue to drop of no storms  in sight lake tahoe is two point sixty eight feet lower than last year it is time yet to serious reputation for unpredictable could bode well with nina there is a strong tendency to be wet or dry but the only thing we can say is a little bit more certainly is that there is a somewhat higher chance of major events but most of the big floods in the sierra are from one inas four out of the top five floods have been and a century ago truckies hilltop area was the outdoor wonder sports capital of the western united states visitors could walk from the train depot and take one of the country's first mechanized road toes then sled to bargain or ski down the hill or they could enjoy the outpoint scenery and watch the best years of the day take flight office ski jump overlooking the town and recent decades time has caught up with a certain of sheds cabins and shops on the site that have become did dilapidated an era earlier era now an ambitious multiple use development proposed for the hilltop area is moving into the final phases of regulatory view after nearly seven years of planning the town of truckee little hold public workshop on the project sitting atop the hill just south of downtown the hilltop project covers fifty seven acres own five different parties the hilltop master plan and visions a mix of commercial residential and a gene uses this is really important part of downtown and one of the last areas in downtown where development potential so we've got to make sure it done right said jamie lee chan's an assistant town planner a future applications for hilltop will require a public airing because this is a highly visible site and there is a lot of concern over what is going to happen the proponents have made no major changes to the project since it last came before the public in september two thousand  chance added one of the project's private planners described the changes as minor alterations to tie up loose ends in general there were quite a few minor changes to bring it into compliance and match up the zoning said dale cr o planning and engineering hilltop has gone through an environmental impact report instead the town required a less stringent medicated negative declaration there was no environmental impact report for a couple of reasons the impacts of the project were reviewed in an e i r for the downtown specific plan this is a sub project of that plan and because of the e i r is only necessary if there are potentially significant impacts which based on our study we found none well jan said however the town called for more extensive traffic study late chance said neighbors of the proposed development question the safety and intersections of ponderosa  drive it previous meetings and the chance said the town gave the junction exter scrutiny he said because the steep grade at the intersection was the main safety concern staff will look at ways to make the intersection more level the entrance to cottonwood will also be moved east craig said and may also include a roundabout after the public meeting tonight held up will go before planning commissions on december eighteenth and bar and major problems would then go to town council for final approval early next week next year jan said at that point individual projects like the co housing project could come forward the jan said speaking of shared ownership residential properties cra said one of the property owners fits in cooke communities may be the first to come forward with the project their property is mainly for some attached housing before any construction can begin however infrastructure must be in place my guess is that at the earliest construction could begin in spring or summer of two thousand and nine the chance ad and there you have it for today's local news welcome back venezuelan president hugo chavez has been handed a narrow loss in a calm a virtual referendum on dozens of proposed changes to the constitution chavez had backed sixty nine measures including eliminating presidential term limits creating forms a firm decision that we made if the government of the united states tried once again to intervene or tried to diss by the government david we would not send any more oil to the united states last week to venezuela new government said it would had obtained secret site cia documents planning to destabilization campaign ahead of the referendum and in russian president vladimir putin's political party has won a sweeping victory and parliamentary elections with more than sixty percent of the vote opposition parties are calling foul alleged widespread fraud the communist party says it will challenge the results based on some one thousand and the latest violations the washington post is reporting the cia has used his red guard as a jordanian spy agency as for prisoners captured abroad least a dozen non jordanian and nationals have been held and interrogated at the general intelligence department over the past seven years the jordanian spies center was used to hide prisoners before they were sent to guantanamo bay or secret prisons around the world jordanian officials have said are said to have carried out interrogations despite widespread allegations of torture a report from the u n special investigator recently concluded torture is routine at that center it missed in total impunity for torture and treatment countrywide business from going to animal bay and military judges barred defense attorneys for a twenty one year old canadian prisoner from revealing the identity of the prosecution's witness testifying against him m r m laid coderre is likely to be the first one time a prisoner to go to trial u s been in u s custody since he was fifteen years old could hours military appoint a defense attorney lieutenant commander william coober said instead of a presumption of innocence and of a public trial we start with a presumption of guilt with the secret trial in environmental news strongly has ratified the kyoto protocol pledging to meet global target on reducing emissions of greenhouse gases it was the first official move for the new prime minister kevin rudd coming right after he was sworn in and rudd's party beat the bush administration back prime minister john howard last week us trillions signature leaves the us as the only industrialized nation not to have ratified kyoto rudd was appointed the former lead singer for midnight oil peter garrett to the environmental ministry men night hall was long hours spoken ban for its progressive use use of dust really ratification has met with applause at the opening of the global environment summit in bali thousands of government officials and environmental campaigners are gathered there for talk people who had died of the disease in south africa nelson mandela staged a fundraiser an awareness concert attended by some fifty thousand people he also said tonight we want to urge all of you to make a personal commitment to stop the spread of this disease together we have the power to change the cause of destiny yes big and vicious plans are needed to deal with the pedantic government health officials in this country are now estimating the number of americans infected with hiv each year is fifty percent higher than previously thought the centers of disease control and prevention says there are at up to sixty thousand and factions each year up from forty thousand figures seen over the last decade in israel the supreme court has okayed an ongoing cutoff of fuel supplies to the gaza strip the cuts have been imposed since october and what israel calls a response to palestinian rocket attacks on nearby israeli towns palestinians aid groups have condemned the movie as a violation of international humanitarian law on sunday gaza's local fuel authorities refused to delivered from israel that was just one fourth of its needs it's already said except in such low supplies we have been amounting to endorsing collective and punishment most gas stations in gaza are reportedly close hospital patients are at risk is fuel supplies for generators run low several patients have died in recent weeks awaiting israel's approval for leaving g urgent medical care palestinian bus driver in the bill regime said israel is deliberately targeting gaza's innocents he also said i believe that all of this is a conspiracy against palestinians we do not want to be a victim of israel i came to buy fuel and there isn't any how are we going to live i'm a bus driver and it is the only thing i see is still going on today income is stop what are we going to do israelis are also preparing to cut g but the supreme court has ordered the delay pending a challenge for several human rights groups meanwhile at the u n the bush administration has pulled a diplomatic about face on a resolution endorsing last week's israeli palestinian agreement and apple us on friday the u s withdrew the measure just one day after introducing it to the security council israel u s officials say they had privately objected to the white house over concerns it could have granted the united nations a role in future negotiations then apple is agreement effectively removed involvement of the un european union and russia if we're serious the u s is the sole judge and operator of implementing the road map and are further unions top humanitarian officials warning of an ongoing crisis under secretary general for humanitarian affairs john holmes says he saw a mixed picture in a four day vis he also has said the picture is very mixed in different parts of daraa for there may be areas of death for where the situation is improving there are other areas of daraa for were there have been recent violence where the situation may be less good and that's the point i was making and also the point i was making is that when we asked the i d p whether it was safe for them to return most of them and this includes the ones i saw yesterday saying no it is not safe for us to return so that also is very important part of the discussion and the bush administration has asserted it has the right to kidnap foreign nationals wanted to for crimes in the united states in a statement to the court of appeal in london a senior u s government your merican law allows for the kidnapping of british citizens a statement was made in an extradition case of a british entrepreneur wanted in the u s for tax evasion and bank for up on capitol hill democratic lawmakers have reached a deal that would raise fuel economy standards in cars automakers will have to raise field supply efficiency by forty percent thirty five miles gallon by the year two thousand and twenty the current average is twenty seven point per gallon target and the new york times is reporting business groups are intensive abhi in large one to beat the clock on the bush administration's departure in just over a year lobbyist say they hope to lock in policies and deals of what they expected to be less business friendly administration when president bush leaves office lobbyists are pushing for new rules in health safety labor and economy business groups want to weaken regulations granting workers time off for family needs and medical problems electrical power companies are pushing for rolling back pollution control requirements lobbyists are also point money into democratic coffers in attempts to build new ties  in new york a new study says children exposed to the world trade center does hold a higher risk of developing respiratory problems health department figures show dest exposed children twice as likely to develop asthma as their peers more than fifteen hundred children have to total track develop a new or worsening respiratory that's right it's time for the police blotter and pictures in a blotter not from these actual events but used for visual aid only grass valley police department on friday nine fifty a m call from the store you want to block a west mcknight way reported two men with long black jackets shoplift they reported a person using fake twenty dollar bill forty to the person on security camera was available to police police would follow up two fifty p m call from morgan ranch requested expert police patrol for speeders during a high school lunch hour traffic traffic ten nineteen p m a call from one hundred block of doors drive reported the s u v was stuck in a culvert tow truck was called on saturday at twelve o two a m police were checking bars and arrested a twenty seven year old man on suspicion of public drunkenness and resisting a police officer police also arrested a twenty two year old man on suspicion of public drunkenness in violation of probation so that he better not drink in a bar twelve fifty one am police arrested a fifty seven year old hughes road man cypr straining order and the dispute over the vehicle was not a criminal issue police advised the man to contact the court regarding the vehicle six twelve p m a car reported a hit and run accident a highway overpass and empire street there was no injuries in older silver s u v fled the incident police took a report for hit and run six forty one p m a call from a store on a seven hundred block of taylorsville road reported a tall man was talking loudly on the cell phone walking around the store and making inappropriate comments regarding sexual activity police told the forty eight year old man to leave an did well that's it for the blogger did it now for our lovely weather mostly cloudy was slightly warmer temperatures highs in the mid sixty's southwest and ten to fifteen mph tomorrow will be mostly cloudy with a chance of showers highs in the lord sixty's another chance of rain by thursday night through friday highs will drop in the fifty's and to the end of the week thanks a lot for watching