Lawsuit Could Stall Packwood Center

Visalia - Packwood Creek shopping center developer Don Orosco better not be counting his Krispi Kremes yet. The famous donut store is just one of many new outlets that wants to come to the new south Mooney shopping center now that the big project was approved last week by the Visalia city council on a 4 to 1 vote.

Three critics of the project raised questions at a public hearing suggesting the potential for a legal challenge to aspects of the development plan and this week the attorney for a rival center, Dick Isham representing the Uhlmann Group, said flatly that he would file a request for judicial review in Tulare County Superior Court within the 30 day window saying that the project's EIR was faulty. "My client said go for it," Isham told the Voice.

"The problem of urban blight that could be caused by the project has not been dealt with," Isham told the city council concerned that empty store fronts elsewhere in town could be the result of approving the 680,000 sq. ft. project. The Uhlmann Group owns the Kmart shopping center looking to fill in 135,000 sq. ft. of currently empty space right now.

Isham, a former City of Visalia attorney, speculated that a legal challenge to the project could tie it up in court for two years. Mr. Orosco is hoping to break ground in July on the first phase of the project - a 340,000 sq. ft. center on the east side of Mooney just past Costco.

Sources say just how long a CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) legal challenge will take to resolve is hard to guess.

A delay of several months is likely however, at minimum.

Isham has argued that the project EIR suggests it might take 2 to 3 years for retail to recover in Visalia after the project was built "there is no real analysis" of that assertion, he says. His pleading is likely to include a request for an injunction on the project until the EIR is reworked. The City of Visalia must defend the impact report.

City attorney Dan Dooley says once a lawsuit is filed the city would be given time to prepare the administrative record of the proceedings and the two sides would offer briefs to a judge staking out their opinions. If the opposition is looking to file an injunction, Dooley says it is likely they would need to post a bond. Then a judge would need to decide if a preliminary injunction is warranted based on whether the judge thought the case would likely succeed if it proceeded. Dooley says such cases can drag on or move quickly depending on what the two parties want. "I'd think it would be in everyone's interest to resolve it," he says.

Monterey developer Don Orosco told the Voice that as a result of developing projects on the coast "lawsuits are just a part of life." He feels that the Packwood EIR they passed over the past 6 months "may be our best protection" suggesting "we dotted all the I's and crossed all the T's." Orosco decries that "environmental blackmail has become prolific in the state" but says in the end there could be negotiations.

Two other interests who raised questions at the public hearing were attorney Richard Harimann who suggested the project didn't meet the city guideline that the population of Visalia had to be over the threshold of 98,700 and Visalia was not that big yet. At the hearing Visalia officials responded that the most recent census figure did not include county islands in Visalia not Goshen - both of which are in the city urban area boundary.

The American Farmland Trust testified at the hearing suggesting the city could and should adopt a farmland mitigation measure as part of the project and that all development beyond the 98,700 population line - buying an acre of farmland to be preserved for every acre he converts. The city has defended not doing that saying the growth policies (the General Plan) already discourages ag land conversion and that such mitigation is not feasible. "We'll be weighing our options" on a challenge, says AFT director Greg Kirkpatrick.

"These other people might be good allies" in the challenge suggest Isham.

Another developer who declined to be identified did not support Orosco's project but is disappointed to see the project challenged on legal grounds now that the community and city council have decided to allow it. "I hate to see that king of thing happen in Visalia."

One knowledgeable source suggests the city would try to get any case thrown out in a summary judgement motion that would take 90 days maximum. But then that could be appealed.

One aspect of a CEQA suit is that the two sides meet in a settlement conference early on to see if issues can be resolved.

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Packwood Project Approved On 4 To 1 Vote

Visalia - The Visalia city council voted 4 to 1 to open regional commercial development south of Packwood Creek - a boundary that the city has held for decades. Monterey developer Don Orosco has worked for nearly 3 years on a plan to build a new shopping center on south Mooney arguing that the city will benefit from new stores, more jobs and more sales tax dollars. Critics had argued that the new center at 680,000 sq. ft. was too big and could mean empty store fronts at other centers on Mooney and around town. But supporters of the project lined up at the microphone when it came time for the public hearing in front of the council April 24th.

Of 39 speakers commenting on the project and the environmental impact report, 25 of them spoke favorably. While both sides had sought to get supporters to the meeting, it appeared clear the pro shopping center advocates had done a better job.

Shrugging off any notion that the new retail center would hurt downtown, Ralph Bookout, a major downtown property owner, spoke first saying the city would get "spillover" of shoppers who visit the new center. Mr. Orosco has announced the first part of the project would include an east side of Mooney center that would include Best Buy and Lowe's. Reps from two retailers spoke in favor echoing the notion - this is the place retail wants to be.

Arguing the other side were critics like Barbara Greaver who said that few new stores would come here - "no new products but a donut," she quipped, because Orosco has announced a Krispi Kream donut store would make the first phase.

Former Visalia mayor Greg Collins said while it appeared the project might bring in retail dollars, the city should look at "the other side of the ledger" in potentially declining sales tax north of the center on Mooney and reduced tax increments as well in the city's redevelopment district that spans Mooney. He suggested putting the project off 3 to 5 years. He said that adding two more major intersections on Mooney won't solve the traffic problems. Instead he said some east/west streets ought to go over Mooney.

The city is counting on the construction of Cameron to provide alternate routes in and out of the center connecting to Stonebrook. On the west side of Mooney the developer would extend Cameron to County Center when that phase begins following the east side center. Tenants of the center include a new Greatland-Target store. A representative of Target spoke in favor.

Other supporters spoke in favor of the project including downtown businessman Stan Simpson, Brad Maaske, Louie Montion and Gene Yunt.

Orosco had scheduled a get-together for supporters at the VP this day and it didn't hurt the turnout. Meanwhile, many of the former city council members who have expressed a lack of support for the project were no-shows.

Later council member Don Landers said he knew personally that former mayors Vivier, Perch, Collins and Gregory were opposed but only Collins had spoken. Former council member Don Sharp was to speak this night before a group of downtown businessmen who had passed a petition around downtown, but early in the day Sharp had been bitten by a dog and was unable to attend.

Clearly Orosco's biggest allies were not some who spoke, but city council staff led by city manager Steve Salomon who have backed this project in an effort to increase the retail sales tax dollar for Visalia - the largest source of our general fund. With Salomon's backing the city planning commission also passed the project on a 5 to 0 vote moving it forward for a decision by the council.

At the end of a long night - voting near 12 midnight - the council said their piece. While noting the doubts about the project, the free market advocates had their day.

Phil Cox pointed out that the loss of Lumberjack and Home Base had nothing to do with the conditions in Visalia and were due to national conditions. He raised the issue one has heard before "I remember that Tulare took some retailers that should have been here." Bob Link chimed in on that theme saying flatly that the project "will otherwise go to Tulare."

Regarding competition in town - "it's good," said the downtown businessman, "look at Mearles - it has survived since 1955 despite lots of new restaurants in town." The message is "provide good service and there always will be a place for you." He cited the jobs benefit, Wendy Rudy agreed suggesting the sales tax dollars will help here to pay for public safety. She said she agreed with ideas like a parking garage instead of a big parking lot "if we could afford it." Surprising many was an affirmative vote by mayor Jesus Gamboa who said "maybe congestion is a good problem" and with adjustments he could support it. "The best way to fight crime is to offer a job." Orosco had suggested that the project could bring in 1000 jobs. "I like this location better than a new development out on 198 or 99," said Gamboa.

The only critic this night was Don Landers who cited a lack of commitment to address the need for more police to serve the new area, the infill issue of hurting existing retail in town and circulation issues including the fact that allowing the project to develop before the infrastructure to handle it is in place. While CalTrans plans to widen Mooney to 6 lanes in the near future, it would be after the first center is already operational. He said that past councils had looked for some new "special" uses in this retail area rather than similar uses, home improvement and electronics - that we already have.

There's no doubt the big project divided the community. The Visalia Chamber of Commerce - not exactly rabble rousers - did a survey of members and under one half could say they supported the project without reservation.

Mr. Orosco told the Voice after the meeting that "I won't let the citizens of Visalia down," hoping to break ground in July on the east side center. "We hope to have Best Buy open by March 1," says Orosco. He says he expects a new Cost Plus store to be part of the east side center as well.

Just how the issue of back fill of retailers who chose to relocate to the center will be handled is somewhat up in the air. The council voted to phase a conditional use on future phases of the project that will depend on how the existing storefronts vacated by tenants who move to the new shopping center are handled. Orosco has suggested he would buy the existing Target building to relocate the tenant and work to back fill with a new tenant.

While some downtown restauranteurs are afraid the new center will hurt Downtown, Orosco says it won't. He has two restaurant pads on the east side. One will be Mimi's Café he says. The other restaurant pad on the east side will likely be taken by Olive Garden or Chili's, two restaurant prospects who have been looking at a 198/Akers location previously but now have put those plans on hold. On the west side of Mooney Orosco had several other pads that could be used for restaurants as well.

In the meantime at least one of the critics of the center appears ready to go to court to slow this project's progress (see other story). But even with this new roadblock it isn't a matter of if the center is built - it is a matter of when and how big? Will this be the new River Park of Visalia heading all the way to Mooney Grove with a couple of million sq. ft.?

A long delay could make it interesting however as rival shopping centers try to pick off some of the prospects they thought were gone.

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$15 Mil Project New COS Library Could Break Ground Late This Year

Visalia - College of the Sequoias got good news in recent weeks - the state had approved most of the $15 million it will take to build a new library-multi media center and construction on the space-age looking multi story building could begin as early as this December.

The new 54,000 sq. ft. building will rise next to the COS tennis court wiping out the current parking lot there. "We found out April 9th," says COS facilities director Eric Mittlestead. He says the monies include $2.14 million in equipment for the new facility.

The good news came from Governor Davis' effort to fund $170 million for state community colleges "economic development" projects this year - projects that colleges have ready to go that could begin construction soon and provide a boost to the local economy. The measure passed the legislature in April and will be signed now by the Governor.

The new library will replace one of the oldest and yet most needed facility on the growing Visalia campus, the old, outdated library, with a state-of-the-art facility with lots of room for books, computers and private study rooms.

Nancy Finney, Learning Resources Director, says the old library built in the early 50s has only 4 electric outlets on its ground floor making it very tough to network computers. "There will be more space for learning, more bookshelf space and room for computer labs and tutorial centers," says Finney. The new building will feature natural lighting that will help the college save money on energy bills, too. "Tutorial classes will be held in the new library," Nancy says, while there is no money in the budget for more books "the savings from not having to string together extension cords will be spent on new books." More library work research and filing is done on campus these days making this component of the new library very important.

Mittlestead says the old library will be converted to both a student union and new location for the college bookstore. The current bookstore site must be cleared to make room for the new Science building in the works.

Another elderly building on campus, the COS gym, could actually get replaced as soon as 2007, says Mittlestead under a hoped for construction plan.

In the works this summer is a $1.8 million retrofit and seismic upgrade of the COS administration building, a class wing attached to meet current earthquake standards. To accomplish this the administration may move part of their office to the former College Cyclery building over on Meadow Lane beginning in June. The college has leased the former bike shop for a year.

The Visalia campus is likely to be a very busy place in the immediate future since expansion plans both in Hanford and Tulare are unlikely to hit the ground until 2009.

The community college ends up with all people 18 and over with or without a high school degree, says college president Dr. Kim Badrkhan. "If you have a pulse and are over 18 you can register here," says Dr. Badrkhan.

One of the college's biggest problems - about half the students entering college can't pass a simple exam testing basic math and English skills. "We're working with the local high schools to try to improve performance," says Dr. Badrkhan. All the more reason why this news that the college will get a first class library is really great news.

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Dooley To Oppose 2002 Farm Bill

Tulare County - Congressman Cal Dooley, the fourth-ranking Democrat on the House Agriculture Committee, announced that he will oppose H.R. 2646, the Farm Security Act of 2002. As a senior Member of the Committee, Dooley served on the House-Senate Conference Committee, which negotiated the bill. The bill is scheduled to be considered by the House of Representatives on Thursday, May 2.

"It is a bill that is not in the long-term interest of U.S. farmers and puts taxpayers on the hook for billions in questionable subsidies," said Dooley. "This farm bill is a major setback to the United States agriculture's future competitiveness in the international marketplace."

Dooley believes that the legislation is fraught with inequities that will tilt the playing field away from San Joaquin Valley farmers and dairymen, while creating unfair advantages for agricultural commodities in other regions of the country.

For example, the bill's dairy provisions will have a detrimental impact on Valley dairymen. The new dairy agreement heavily subsidizes payments to dairymen in the Northeast and upper Midwest, which will cost American taxpayers more than $1.4 billion over the next three years. It will also result in increased production which will drive down prices to California dairy farmers, costing them more than $6 million over three years.

In addition, the bill creates a new subsidy for the $844 million a year peanut industry, in contrast to the non-subsidized $1.6 billion a year almond industry. Under the 2002 farm bill, the peanut industry – which currently operates at no cost to taxpayers – will receive $4 billion in payments. This subsidy will result in lower prices for peanuts, which will drive down prices for Valley nut crops, including almonds, walnuts and pistachios. Dooley predicts a similar result from new payments authorized for small chickpeas, dry peas and lentils, which will result in subsidized competition against California garbanzo farmers.

Valley communities will also be hurt by a 50 percent cut in funding from the House-approved bill for rural development initiatives. The House-approved bill provided $2.15 billion, but the financing opportunities for Valley farmer cooperatives through the Rural Development title, the cut in funds will hurt the ability of rural communities to improve its infrastructure, including improvements to water and wastewater treatment infrastructure.

Dooley also strongly opposes the mandatory country of origin labeling requirement for meat and livestock. "This plan will ultimately increase costs to industry and consumers and will certainly instigate retaliation from Mexico, our largest beef export market," warned Dooley. "It is an unworkable plan made worse by prohibiting cattlemen from providing records to verify where the cattle were born and raised.

Without a producer trace-back system to provide a degree of certainty as to the origin of their livestock, the program is meaningless and cannot work."

Although Dooley is opposing the bill, he fought to include a number of initiatives that will help the Valley. Some of the Dooley initiatives include:

• $1.3 billion in new funding for competitive, peer reviewed research programs. Dooley's leadership ensured that these research activities will be funded at $200 million a year by 2006 – an increase from current funding of $120 million a year. Dooley has been a long-time champion of federal investments in research to provide the new varieties, technologies and management practices that enable Valley farmers to be the most efficient and competitive in the world.

• An increase in funding for the Market Access Program (MAP), a trade enhancing program that helps producers build demand for their products in other countries. Currently funded at $90 million a year, the program will be funded at $200 million by the year 2006. Dooley notes that dollar-for-dollar, federal investments to promote US agriculture in foreign markets provide the highest return and helps give Valley producers of fruits, vegetables, nuts and livestock a fighting chance against highly subsidized competitors.

• The first ever federal funding for a farm-worker training program to enhance farm-worker agricultural skills through advanced technology and value added production. This training initiative is authorized at $10 million a year over the duration of the farm bill.

• A $3 billion increase for the nutrition section over House-passed funding levels. The agreement reinstates benefits for legal immigrant children and disabled individuals without minimum residency requirements. In addition, the section continues the Seniors Farmers Market Nutrition Program, which greatly benefits Valley residents.

• An expansion of financing opportunities for Valley farmer cooperatives. To meet the growing demand for co-op financing, the Dooley provision specifically allows for $100 million in loan guarantees to be made available for cooperatives in non-rural areas that would not otherwise qualify due to population restrictions. Farmer cooperatives in cities such as Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto, Stockton, and Sacramento can now qualify for loan guarantees up to $25 million for financing.

The house is scheduled to vote on the conference report on Thursday, May 2. The Senate is scheduled to consider the conference report next week. The Administration has indicated that President Bush will sign the bill.

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Layoffs Underway At Visalia Cigna Office

Visalia - Layoffs of employees are reported by employees at Cigna's big Visalia call center, Visalia's largest private employer. The center has grown in the past year to 1400 people. Employees say they believe the number offered pink slips today, Thursday, May 2, is over 50 and rising.

Cigna announce May 2 that their first quarter net profit fell 21%, hurt by investment loses. The company health insurance business has not grown to the degree they expected, a Wall Street analyst has said.

Corporate spokesman, Jim Harris, told the Voice this morning that "sixty jobs have been eliminated as part of a restructuring of the company." He said with the layoffs employment at the new facility is still over 1300.

"Visalia is still one of the nine major regional centers in the US that the company is investing in new technology and efficiencies," says Harris. Harris said he could not say which department is experiencing the layoffs.

Two weeks ago the company laid off a crew of 16 at the new office building. The company remains dependent on several very large contracts with Disneyland, Intel - two major contracts for the west coast center here.

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We're Number One
Moooo've Over Fresno...Milk, Cream Helps Tulare
Rise To The Top

Tulare County - Over the past decade Tulare County's crop value has gone up year by year with a pause for the 1990 freeze while neighboring Fresno County has had a more flatline increase (since 1993). One of these days Tulare County - led by the rising value of milk produced here - was bound to take over the number one position. Now we know - or we think - that year was 2001. We hedge our bet because third place Monterey County - king of vegetable production in California - has not yet reported its 2001 findings.

For 2001 Tulare County is reporting a total value of all commodities produced at $3,494,006,600 - nearly $3.5 billion compared to $3.2 billion for Fresno County whose values dropped 1.8% for 2001. Third place Monterey County reported nearly a $2.9 billion mark in 2000 up from $2.44 billion in 1999 - a 23% increase. Another big jump in 2001 could maybe rival the Tulare number.

Monterey Farm Bureau executive director Bob Perkins doesn't think their county will surpass last year's performance. "It was a tough market in 2001 and I don't know how much it is likely to go down from 2000, but I would be very surprised if it went up," he says. Assistant Monterey Ag Commissioner Bob Roach says the 2001 number in fact will be down.

So, Tulare County is the number one farm producing county in the USA - tall bragging rights for us in the year we are celebrating our 150th birthday as a county. "We've begun to work on what will be a potent economic spin in our marketing," says a Tulare County Economic Development Corporation president Paul Saldana. "We're number one sounds pretty good."

The comparative ranking of Fresno and Tulare counties tells the tale of the local farm economy with Fresno big in grapes, cotton and processing tomatoes feeling the pinch of lower commodity prices in all three crops in the past year with a huge decline in grape sales down almost one third in 2001.

Meanwhile Tulare County - the state's largest dairy producing county - saw milk values rise to an astounding $1.15 billion - the first "billion dollar commodity for any county in California," ag commissioner Gary Kunkel told the Tulare County Board of Supervisors this week. The average price of milk rose in 2001 by $2.43 per hundredweight in 2001 ($13.74) and production grew about 11% in a year. That pushed the total dollar value increase by nearly $300 million.

Meanwhile, oranges - the county's number two crop was up nearly $100 million over freeze damaged levels of 2000. Also cattle moved up even as grapes took a dive to the number four position in 2001. Altogether Tulare County's crop report increase just over $425 million from the year before, an all-time record for the county even as Fresno County declined by about $180 million after declining over 4% in 2000 compared to 1999.

Meanwhile, in Kings County crop values were up over 7% the Kings County ag commissioner reported earlier this month. The county reported $952 million in production value also led by a big increase in milk - up more than 23%.

"Although declining revenues have been experienced by many producers in recent years, Tulare County's agricultural diversity continues to be its strength. While individual commodities may struggle from year to year, there always seem to be those that emerge even stronger than before," Kunkel said in a statement.

According to Commissioner Kunkel, Tulare County now has 51 commodities each valued at more than $1 million.

"This is a bittersweet milestone for Tulare County," Board of Supervisors chairman Steve Worthley said, "While we are proud that we are now the number one ag county in the world, we must remember that many of our farmers and ranchers are continuing to struggle with economic hardship."

Supervisor Bill Sanders, whose district includes much of Tulare County's citrus industry, welcomed the report's findings and "validates this Board's commitment to preserve farmland and to maintain that commitment into the future."

Supervisor Connie Conway, who represents many constituents involved in the dairy industry said, "This year's crop reports shows that the dairy industry is the linchpin to our economy. There's no better argument for supporting our dairy farmers than the findings contained in this report."

Supervisor Bill Maze saluted the results of this year's crop report and its significance for Tulare County, "As a plum, grape and citrus grower, I am proud to be a part of making history."

Supervisor Jim Maples, the Board's senior member, has seen many crop reports and echoed his colleagues' pride, "I am extremely pleased by this year's report and the number one ranking has come quicker than we thought." Maples continued, "The crop report is proof that the country, cities, the Farm Bureau, and the ag industry have worked well together in protecting farmland while meeting the needs of continuing growth."

Boosting demand for milk in both Kings and Tulare counties are two huge new cheese plants coming online this spring demanding 6 million gallons of milk daily each. In Lemoore two Leprino plants and in Tulare the new C&P International cheese and whey plant are just getting underway after hundreds of millions have been spent to build or remodel the three facilities. C&P is doing test runs of milk in the plant this week and plans to be in production May 6th.

The multi digit increase in milk production values confirms the economic importance of the dairy industry to California. Consider this simple fact, while the number of dairies in Tulare County is only a few higher than it was in 1990, the value of the milk they produce has gone from about $400 million in one year to $1.1 billion. Adding the value of cattle and calves produced in the county - mostly dairy animals - and feed crops produced here for the dairy industry, the value of the dairy industry rises to about 45% of the entire crop report! That of course doesn't count the value of what you do with the milk after it is produced or the processing, packaging, trucking and storing the milk related commodities that have transformed Tulare County in the past decade.

Even for supporters of the dairy industry, the scary notion is that some 200,000 plus milking cows are waiting in the wings for stalled permits to build new dairies in Tulare County that would add to the 340,000 milking cows we have today - a prospect of future double digit growth in production that could push this county past $3 billion in production in a few years depending on milk prices (down somewhat this year).

Even as the cotton industry shrank, demand for feed crops for all these local animals, increases helping to keep land values from collapsing further. "Our family is not producing cotton this year for the first time in 70 years," says Tipton farmer Ralph Friend who will grow forage crops on about 1000 acres this year.

Declining land values are the dark side for central valley farmers, however. In mid April the California Chapter of American Society of Farm Managers and Rural Appraisers held their annual spring outlook in Visalia and reported declining ag real estate values for the second year in a row. The group reported values dropped $1000 per acre or more on all land with almonds, prunes, grapes and other crops. Olive orchards declined in value from a range of $4000 to $6500 per acre in 2001 compared to $4500 to $6500 per acre in 2000. The year before the same organization suggested central valley orchards, vineyards and row crop prices declined from about $10,000 an acre to just $8000 an acre compared to 1999 prices. The same report suggested a big drop in citrus value in southern Tulare County. Lower property values spell another headache for farmers - trouble getting production loans from lenders.

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