SACRAMENTO
An informal homeless camp in downtown Sacramento goes to the Sacramento County Superior Court after an elderly man who lives next to the “Safe Ground” camp asks for a restraining order that would kick people off the land, arguing that his physical and mental have been affected. One judge recused himself from the case after declaring himself partial to the cause of the attorney that owns the land and opened it to the homeless camp. (More here.)
JACKSONVILLE
Two September events in Jacksonville, a community fundraiser September 19 and a bike/walk festival Septemer 26, are set to raise money and awareness for the cause of infant mortality, which is higher in Jacksonville than anywhere else in Florida. (More here.)
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TUCSON
Tuscon Electric announces it will but power from two yet-to-be-built solar energy systems, providing enough power to fuel 6,000 area homes. Both systems are set to be completed by 2012. State approval is still needed for the deal; since solar power is still much more expensive as natural gas power, the utility plans to recoup its costs from customers. (More here.)
HOUSTON
In “No Zoning: Artists Engage Houston,” an exhibition at the Contemporary Arts Museum, local artists “engage” the city of Houston, addressing its lack of land-use and zoning ordinances that make for a unique blend of residential, commercial, and industrial areas. The exhibit will feature the work of Mary Ellen Carroll, who is reconfiguring an abandoned tract house in the southwestern Sharpstown neighborhood, and Rick Lowe, who celebrates residents of the Third Ward in billboards. (More here.)
CHICAGO
After plans for massive retail development were scuttled by the recession, a group of locals worked to restore a 19-acre patch of wetland and prairie that runs north of Irving Park Road and west of Oak Park Avenue. Volunteers have spent months cutting back invasive plants and introducing native grasses and flowers to the area, home to coyotes, birds and other creatures. A public dedication of the park, which is also home to a 1.5-mile nature trail, will happen Saturday. (More here.)