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California nudist community 'on edge' after 'nightmare' double murder; next-door neighbor arrested

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California nudist community 'on edge' after 'nightmare' double murder; next-door neighbor arrested

Members of a nudist resort outside of Los Angeles said their once idyllic community has dissolved into a “nightmare” after the neighbor of a California couple was charged in their murder.

“It’s a nightmare,” Tony Wiley, 69, told People. “You hear stuff like this on the news, but you never imagine in a lifetime that it would be one of your friends, and in such a bizarre way.”

Laurie Riffel, 69, told the outlet residents feel “on guard” following the double murder.

“There’s a dark cloud over us,” she said. “There’s just a feeling of being on guard all the time, an apprehension of not being safe here.”

CALIFORNIA NUDIST RESORT NEIGHBOR CHARGED WITH MURDER AFTER COUPLE DISAPPEARS

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The feeling of uneasiness came after the Redlands Police Department announced the arrest of 62-year-old Michael Sparks Aug. 30 in the death of Stephanie and Daniel Menard at the Olive Dell Ranch in Colton. He was later charged with two counts of murder.

The Menards were last seen Aug. 24, police say.  (Redlands Police Department)

In a press conference following the discovery of the Menards’ remains, City of Redlands spokesperson Carl Baker said Sparks was found hiding underneath his home Thursday night after not responding to police for several hours.

He had been hiding inside a 5-foot deep concrete space under the home, which forced officers to remove the front wall of the house, police said.

Baker said the suspect attempted to commit suicide when police first discovered him hiding.

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“He did have a rifle, and he did attempt to kill himself when police discovered him, but the rifle misfired,” Baker said. 

The next morning, a cadaver dog was used to search for the couple’s bodies at Sparks’ home. Baker said “the dog did alert, indicating the presence of a body somewhere underneath the house.”

Michael Royce Sparks, 62, was charged with two counts of murder. (Redlands Police Department)

Members of the clothing-optional community told People tensions between the Menards and Sparks reached a breaking point over the pruning of a tree that shaded their properties.

“I’ve talked to them, and I know they had an issue about a tree getting cut because of branches going over to the Menards’ place,” Tony Garrett, 63, told People. “But I can’t say that’s all of it. I can’t say it’s just one thing.”

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“When I first got here, he was telling me which neighbors he liked, which neighbors he could do without, and then he pointed in their direction. He goes, ‘And I hate those f—ers,’” Tammie Wilkerson, 61, told People. 

“I’m like, ‘Dang, Sparky, that’s a little rough.’ And that’s when he told me the tree thing. I was thinking it’s a lot to hate somebody. There may be other reasons. I don’t know. Only he knows.

“I don’t know if that’s what caused this or if he just snapped one day. I really don’t know.”

The Redlands Police Department says the Menards’ dog, Cuddles, has not been found. (Redlands Police Department)

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Residents remembered the couple for their warm personalities. 

“They had a great little home for the two of them and their dog,” the couple’s friend, Michelle Ann Archambault Reese, told People. “They had a beautiful outside patio area to kick back at. They were just somebody you wanted a hug from. They were just wonderful people.”

Neighbors said Sparks appeared to be more of a loner.

 

“You’d see him once in a while, but mostly he liked his hot tub,” said Garrett. “He wasn’t a bad guy. He was no different than the other residents. Just a little more quiet, a little more reserved.”

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“He said he hated the ‘textile world’ and that he had always been a nudist from as long as he could remember,” Wilkerson told the outlet.



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Wyoming

Fort Caspar Museum exhibit features Wyoming Navy

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Fort Caspar Museum exhibit features Wyoming Navy


CASPER, Wyo. — The Fort Caspar Museum is displaying a new exhibit featuring U.S. Navy ships named after the state of Wyoming through Aug. 8.

The exhibit, called “The Wyoming Navy,” is part of the celebration for the nation’s semi-sesquicentennial.

“Focusing on Wyoming’s influence on our U.S. Navy ships is a great way to celebrate our nation’s semi-sesquicentennial,” Museum Supervisor Steve Gainer said.

Museum staff and a Casper College intern researched ships named for Wyoming people, cities, counties and rivers.

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The display includes 26 panels with photos and histories of 40 ships, ranging from tugboats to a nuclear-powered submarine.

The panels show where the ships were built, their crew sizes, their weapons and their missions during peace and war.

The museum is located at 4001 Fort Caspar Road.

The building is open daily from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the fort grounds are open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Admission is free for children under 6 years old and $5 for adults ages 19 to 61.

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People can get more information by calling 307-235-8462 or visiting fortcasparwyoming.com.

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San Francisco, CA

Beloved Chit Chat Cafe at closed Pacifica Municipal Pier demolished

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Beloved Chit Chat Cafe at closed Pacifica Municipal Pier demolished



Demolition of a beloved café at the closed Pacifica Municipal Pier began on Tuesday after being red-tagged last week.

Heavy equipment began tearing into the Chit Chat Café at about 11 a.m. The café, a local favorite at the base of the pier since the 1990s, was shut down when cracks were observed forming in the pier’s concrete last week. 

The pier has been closed at times during strong winter storms and heavy waves, but the cause of the current structural damage has is still being assessed by structural engineers. 

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Heavy machinery tears into the Chit Chat Cafe at the base of the Pacifica Municipal Pier, June 9, 2026.

KPIX


Owners of the café said the demolition began before they were allowed to go in and retrieve any of their equipment or belongings, and the community is rallying to help them with an online fundraiser.

On Monday night the Pacifica City Council extended an emergency declaration over the pier’s condition, which has worsened from cracks in the concrete to a large chasm. It is not yet know whether the pier itself, built in 1973, will be repaired or demolished and rebuilt.

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In December 2023, the pier was closed after high tides and large waves damaged it. The pier reopened weeks later after undergoing nearly $20 million in repairs. 



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Denver, CO

Trammell Crow, PCCP secure Denver area’s largest industrial lease in years

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Trammell Crow, PCCP secure Denver area’s largest industrial lease in years


Trammell Crow Company and PCCP inked a massive lease deal for a suburban Denver industrial complex that just began construction. 

The development giants landed an undisclosed tenant for a full building at Crossroads 25, a 76-acre industrial complex in Thornton set to encompass roughly 1.1 million square feet once complete, the Denver Business Journal reported. 

At nearly 410,000 square feet, the deal marks the largest industrial lease in the Denver area since 2024. 

Trammell Crow and PCCP purchased the land, at the northeast corner of Interstate 25 and E-470, from an affiliate of Omaha, Nebraska-based Noddle Companies for $18.9 million. Noddle purchased it in 2020 as part of a nearly 200-acre land acquisition for $19.5 million. 

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The development will eventually span 1.1 million square feet of industrial space. The first phase consists of 828,000 square feet across four buildings. The recent lease brings the four-building phase one to 49 percent leased.

CBRE’s Tyler Carner represented Noddle in the land sale. 

The Denver metro’s industrial market had a direct vacancy rate of 9.3 percent in the first quarter, according to JLL. More than 4 million square feet was under construction, and absorption was negative after hefty completions last year.

The first four buildings in Crossroads 25 are expected to be delivered in the third quarter of next year. The complex is projected to be fully complete in 2030. 

The previous industrial lease record in the Denver metro area was held by Georgia-based third-party logistics company BroadRange Logistics, which signed a long-term lease for more than 1.1 million square feet at the 76 Commerce Center industrial complex in Brighton. That property’s landlord, Hyde Development, filed suit against BroadRange last week, claiming the logistics firm defaulted on its leases, and Hyde is seeking more than $32 million in damages. 

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Chris Malone Méndez

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Blackstone Mortgage Trust buys Denver offices at discount for $34M

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