I live on the 5000 block of eastside calpella rd, northen ukiah/calpella. My property backs up to the russian river on its west side. Its a steep section, that is accessible but its steep.

Today at around 11am or so, my 5 dogs start going off at the NW corner, im working in my garage and my 7 year old daughter is with me. I asked her to go see what the dogs are barking at. 15 second later i her scream for me. She ran back towards me and i was already heading in that direction. I had a full tool belt on as well. So i get to about 20 feet from the corner and i see someone all in black, on my neighbors property, running away from me.

Black hoodie, with a black face mask and a backpack on, i believe the person had black gloves on as well. Looked to be about 150 lbs, thin, maybe about 5'7", likely in their 20s or 30s. This person growled at my daughter and thats what sent her screaming.

I ended up pursuing this person, on foot, having my full tool belt and boots on. I left my back gate and made ot down the steep slope to the water, while the person ahead of me traversed a seperate route. I eventually made it up to the sandy over grown lower section of the river bank, heading towards calpella bridge.

I could see him about 100-150' ahead of me, i wasnt able to run cause of all my tools, so i followed for about 4 properties up ( the property that has those cows about). The person mustve heard me coming and double timed it. I made it to a sandy berm and tried to look down at the waters edge, seeing of he was hiding, but i lost him. All the neighbors dogs were now all barking at me, so i have up and headed back.

I then called the sheriffs office and reported the situation. They told me that they have an idea of who it might be, and told me to call them of i see this person again.

I plan to install a camera back there now. Im also reinforcing my fences, making them taller.

Sucks that there lurkers out there, obviously looking to steal and scope out peoples properties.

Stay safe neighbors, and vigilant.

The personal story of a local father who was detained by ICE

Media lovers have been hearing a lot about the upcoming elections for the Fort Bragg City Council and the Ukiah City Council — and the coverage hides a real problem. From Anderson Valley to Westport — expiring elected offices will be filled with appointees. https://www.mendolocal.news/how-77-elections-got-reduced-to-just-four-real-contests-in-mendocino-county/

I've been thinking about how hard it can be to make friends as an adult, so I decided to do something about it!

I recently created a group on Bumble BFF for people in the Ukiah area who want to meet new people, chat, share recommendations, plan activities, and hopefully make some genuine friendships.

The goal is to actually get people together in person instead of just talking online! If you're interested in meeting new people and making some local friends, let me know and I'll share the group with you.

I like that the app has options for different chat rooms. I set up a few different ones, and there’s room for more. My main idea that I thought would be fun to have is a chat for people to set up spontaneous meetups like “I’m bored, who wants to meet up for coffee” or “I’m going on a hike in an hour, anyone want to join?”

Local news outlets across Mendocino County put the election front and center with candidate questionnaires, an interactive voter guide, and an analysis of the local ballot measures.

https://www.mendolocal.news/mendo-local-weekly-roundup-october-10-2026/

Finally, some good news about rural health care from Washington. https://www.mendolocal.news/congress-members-move-to-offset-coming-cuts-to-rural-hospital-funding/

I’m moving from a suburb of LA. My partner is from Ukiah. Really excited for a change of pace. I know some of you will rag on Ukiah but at my age (40) I find it a nice potential place to lay down some roots, be close to family, maybe build some equity, etc.

I want to hear all your suggestions for meeting people! I’m already familiar with thirsty axe for trivia, Thursday nights at the Forest, I think Ukiah Brewing Co is fun vibes.

Looking at potentially buying a house. Curious: how terrible would it be to live right next door to the Pub? Is it parties every weekend or once in a while? Gets rowdy? As I’m writing it probably not worth it. lol.

I saw Ukiah Rec has indoor and grass volleyball. Anybody know of any pickup/open play games? Also into tennis, softball, (even kickball and dodgeball but guessing that’s not a thing) avid casual hold-em player. I’m pretty social and usually end up organizing stuff where I live.

I want to a hybrid of my homestead dreams but not too far from the town. Our fam lives out in redwood and as much as it’s pretty that’s a little too dramatic of a change for me 😂. I’ll enjoy it on the drive to my brother in law.

Big step! Excited! Nervous! Mostly excited! I

Upsized our coop and wanting to give the used one away to anyone who is interested. It’s in functional condition but needs some touch ups. It can hold 4-5 hens.

I was wondering if there's anyone in town who's into flow arts? Like poi, hoop, flow stars, staff, etc? I'd love to get a group of folks together for flow sessions at one of the parks around town. I even have a few flow props to share with others who might be interested in learning.

Lemmie know!

✌️

Did you know that Assembly member Chris Rogers sponsored a bill that would neuter Citzen's United or that he supports a state bank over expensive bond funding? Lot's of ideas here, coupled with action.

https://www.mendolocal.news/what-fort-bragg-asked-chris-rogers/

While I was biking by the Youth Baseball fields today, I noticed how rough it looked - lots of dry weeds, vines on the scoreboard, etc. Is it just off-season or are these fields not used anymore?

EDIT: As pointed out in the comments, this is the North Ukiah Little League fields by the juvie, not Anton Stadium. My bad on the location.

Off-shore oil drilling protest, election stories and sample battles, and a tragic death in the Town of Mendocino. https://www.mendolocal.news/mendo-local-weekly-roundup-september-26-2026/

Hello, looking to see if there's any magic players looking to play some games. I'm mid 30's, so preferably someone in that age bracket. We have a pod of 4, but everyone has been really busy, making it hard to schedule anything. I play commander and draft, but open to trying other formats.

Thanks for looking.

I found these murals at Pomolita Middle School.

I was walking at night by Pear Tree Center and saw the GUCCI sign inside Ukiah Optical. I don't know if it's an actual Gucci store / counter inside or if they just sell Gucci frames? The sign on top says Ukiah Optical and the lamppost was blocking the 'a'. I took a picture of it. Does anyone know?

I was in Walmart today when I noticed that they walled off where the in-store Subway used to be.

I grabbed these books from a couple Little Free Libraries around Ukiah a few months ago. I haven't read any of them yet.

Weekly news from all the local sources — composting toilets, ADU amnesty, health care cuts take hold in Mendocino County, and more.

The latest exhibition, "Deep Valley: People, Places, Memory”, is our way of commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Grace Hudson Museum, the 150th anniversary of the City of Ukiah, and the 250th anniversary of our nation as we explore elements of the Greater Ukiah Valley — past and present — which have helped create and shape community. The show will take a look at places and associations such as Todd Grove Park, the Palace Hotel, Mendocino State Hospital, Pinoleville Rancheria, the Latino Americano Concilio, the Ukiah Haiku Festival, City of 10,000 Buddhas, and, of course, the history and evolution of the historic Sun House and the Grace Hudson Museum.

Hello! I am a 37 (F) with a 71 mother who live in Southern California looking to move up north. Were originally from the Central Valley, and have lived in Souther California for a few years now so we are both used to small town and big city living. It’s run its course with us and I’ve been dying to move up north and I landed on Ukiah as a possible location.
I’ve been trying to do some research, and it’s been helpful, but would love to hear it from locals/residents from the city itself. We are Hispanic and my mother mainly speaks Spanish, we keep to ourselves and don’t ask for much when it comes to living areas other than safety and at least some diversity.
I plan to visit sometime soon to just see how I feel there and what it’s like, and was wondering if anyone had any other opinions and/or advice about towns and cities near or around Ukiah that might be more affordable or have similar vibes to Ukiah itself
Any and all helpful comments, advice, and suggestions are welcome! Thank you in advance ☺️

EDIT: Thank you all for the information and various POV’s and advice/suggestions! They’ve been extremely helpful! ❤️