Exploring a Civic Information Hub for Yolo County

By Autumn Labbé-Renault, Executive Director, Davis Media Access

Update October 2024:  DMA has secured seed money from the City of Davis, Yolo Couty Supervisor District 2 Lucas Frerichs, and Yolo County Supervisor District 4 Jim Provenza. We will leverage that to secure the rest of the funding needed to conduct a countywide community information needs assessment. We anticipate both tasks will be carried out this fall and winter.

Also--the poject is now officially called Yolo Local.

DMA to livestream Annual City of Davis Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration on January 20

The City of Davis and the Human Relations Commission invite the public to attend the 31st Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration on Monday, Jan. 20, at the Veterans Memorial Theatre, located at 203 East 14th Street in Davis.

The theme this year is “Economic Justice & the Dream; Building a Fair and Inclusive Economy,” highlighting the ongoing pursuit and significance of economic equity, especially when faced with challenges.

The community is invited to attend this free event and arrive at 10:00 a.m. to explore an art exhibit crafted by local high school students from the Ethnic Studies program. The program will commence at 10:30 a.m., featuring uplifting music and inspiring speakers to honor Dr. King's unwavering commitment to civil rights, economic justice and peace.

Watch this live stream starting on January 20 at 10:15am.

DMA to livestream Annual City of Davis Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration on January 20

Starting at 10:30am on Monday, January 20, DMA will be livestreaming the 30th Annual City of Davis Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration.    Please use this link to view.    Click on "Notify Me" to setup an alert regarding the upcoming stream.

https://youtube.com/live/TeEmHrq5HNQ?feature=share

Davis voters elect Deos to council, approve two tax increases

Davis voters have elected Linda Deos (pictured) to the City Council, re-elected Lea Darrah to the Davis school board, and handily approved two tax measures to pay for city services and the Davis public library.

According to unofficial results available Wednesday morning on the Yolo County elections website:

• Deos won the council’s District 2 seat, the only contested council position this election, with about 52 percent of the vote. Victor Lagunes placed second with 27.3 percent, followed by Dillan Horton with 20.6 percent.

KDRT airs live, local election-night show Nov. 5, 2024

Davis Media Access (DMA) will present a live election-night program from 8-9:30 pm PST on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. The show airs on KDRT 95.7 FM and streams live at kdrt.org. Hosts Don Shor and Autumn Labbe-Renault will conduct short interviews with some of the candidates for local offices, as well some current elected officials. Due to the short length of the show and its individual interviews, hosts will not field call-ins from the public.

Voter Education media available in five languages

Davis Media Access (DMA) is pleased to be part of the Yolo Voter Education Grant, funded by the Walter & Evelyn Hass Fund and Yolo County, and administered through the Yolo Community Foundation. The purpose of the grant is to ensure that voters understand the “days and ways” to vote since all the changes enacted with the Voter Choice Act’s implementation in Yolo County two years ago.

The goal of the grant is to increase local voter understanding of how to vote. This includes changes to when (longer timeframe leading up to the election), where (fewer but centralized voting locations, mobile voting locations), and how (in person, by mail) voters may cast a ballot. The funders are particularly interested in reaching young/Latinx/Asian Pacific Island voters in precincts with historically low turnout.

DMA proposed an innovative project working with our partners in West Sacramento and Woodland. In West Sacramento, we’re partnering with community radio station KYWS to broadcast voter education messaging in five languages: English, Hmong, Punjabi, Russian and Spanish. We’re also airing these on KDRT in Davis, and we’ve made short animated videos that we’ve added to our Election November 2024 Programming. And at Woodland Community College, we’re doing direct outreach to students with bilingual English/Spanish materials. 

 

 

 

Celebrate 20 Years of KDRT on Oct. 18

Davis Media Access (DMA) and Sudwerk Brewing Company are pleased to invite our community to a 20th Anniversary Celebration of KDRT--low-power, high-octane community radio.

The party kicks off at 6 pm on Friday, Oct. 18, outdoors at the Sudwerk Dock and Hop Yard, 2001 2nd St in Davis. KDRT DJ Preacher will kick things off by spinning tunes chosen by KDRT show hosts to showcase the many sounds of KDRT.

At 7 pm, live music launches on the Hop Yard Stage with openers Max and Julian of The Big Poppies, and headliners Cowboys After Dark. Local artist groups will staff tables, and we'll hear some kind words and accolades for our beloved grassroots station, including recognition by Davis Mayor Josh Chapman. The Dock will have beverages and items from a limited menu for sale.

KDRT kicks off 20th anniversary with celebration at Sudwerk on October 18

The community is invited to KDRT's 20th anniversary celebration presented by Davis Media Access and Sudwerk Brewing Co. on Friday, October 18, from 6 pm - 9 pm.  The event takes place outdoors at the Sudwerk Dock and Hop Yard with live music by Cowboys After Dark, and opening with Max and Julian of The Big Poppies. 

Did you hear the one about the eight-year remodel?

By Autumn Labbé-Renault, Executive Director

In 2016, I convinced the board at Davis Media Access (DMA) that we needed a media lab. There was $225,000 in restricted capital funds sitting at the City. They couldn’t touch it, as it was earmarked for community media purposes. We’d never had bandwidth to consider its possible uses, until I proposed it be used to remodel the facility in order to build a media lab that could be used to further serve the community. So I pitched my idea to City Council and staff, and got the money—eight years ago. And then:

• Because the money was passed through the City, it was subject to prevailing wage, meaning that anyone who worked with DMA on this project would also be subject to significantly more paperwork and regulations

• As a result, we were declined many times over by architects unwilling to take that on for what was a relatively small commercial project. In 2018, then-board member Valerie Jones twisted the arm of Bruce Playle at Indigo Hammond+Playle Architects, and he was instrumental in moving the project forward (thank you, Bruce!)

• We then experienced a similar hiccup in hiring a contractor, but in the end signed a contract with Joe at Albertazzi Construction Inc. We were scheduled to start the remodel in April 2020, and you can guess how that went.

• The next couple of years were governed by the pandemic, and influenced by things like supply chain issues, contractor availability, and a 30 percent increase in the cost of materials. In 2022, we were able to regrade, resurface and otherwise make amendments to our parking lot as required by the City.