A city of nearly 30,000 people in the Mojave Desert successfully lobbied the California Legislature this week to help put it on the radar of Southern California travelers, even though it went against Caltrans’ recommendations.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a Senate bill into effect on Monday that carves out a rare exception for the city of Ridgecrest in Kern County. Although it’s near the popular state Route 395, Ridgecrest is about 7 miles from the highway and hidden from travelers.
SB 990, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove of Bakersfield, helps close the gap by allowing business logo signs to be placed on Route 395 encouraging drivers to visit Ridgecrest and support its economy…