Yokohl Valley Could Get New Town
J.G. Boswell Subsidiary Meets with Exeter Area Residents

Exeter - Everybody has heard of the J.G. Boswell Co. - the nation’s largest cotton grower dubbed “King of Kings” in a recent newspaper piece. While the Los Angeles based company has a huge farming operation in Kings County, it’s also one of Tulare County’s largest private land owners largely in the foothills east of Exeter.

The centerpiece of those holdings is the sprawling Boston Ranch headquartered on Yokohl Valley Rd. not far from the upscale hilltop subdivision of Badger Hill.

Now comes word that the Boswell Company is exploring the development of part of the 36,000 acre Boston Ranch as the site of a master-planned community or a fully incorporated town with housing, schools, parks, stores and police and fire services in Yokohl Valley just a few miles east of Highway 198.

If it comes as a shock to you that a farming firm might get into the housing business, understand that for J.G. Boswell developing a large master-planned community is old hat to this company who as far back as the 1960s along with Del Webb pioneered the retirement community of Sun City in Arizona and later by themselves - Eastlake in San Diego County.

Planning for the massive Eastlake development near San Diego began in 1979 but the first resident did not move in until 1986. They were up to 1000 homes by 1995 on the way to the ultimate plan of building some 8900 dwelling units and a population of 22,000 on the site of the former cattle ranch. Full of parks, walking trails, lakes and golf courses, the place has been popular as a retirement community for some and a commuting town for others in close proximity to San Diego.

A subsidiary of the Boswell Co. - it was the president of Eastlake Bill Ostrem who visited Exeter in recent weeks spreading the word to at least a few people that a development near Exeter was being considered.

Ostrem told the Voice this week that they had a friendly response in Exeter where they met with some chamber members there.

“We want to come back to talk to more people.”

Ostrem calls the Boston Ranch setting “breathtaking scenery” with its snowy mountain backdrops.

The company hired Nichols Research with offices in Fresno to carry out some focus group studies to test the waters - what would be the reaction of the local Exeter community to a master-planned community - what would be the impacts?

Ostrem says focus groups with local residents have “generated just a bunch of comments” that the company plans to digest. “We’ve got marketing and environmental consultants pouring over data. Early in the new year we expect to meet with the Boswell board to lay out what the opportunities and constraints are.”

Consultant to the company Diane Gaynor who hired the firm to do the focus groups, says don’t assume Boswell will move forward on a big project. “They could decide not to go forward - keep it as a cattle ranch or just build some townhouses and a golf course,” she says.

Yokohl Valley is a pristine valley used to run cattle, popular with bike riders and known as habitat for the California condor. The valley last surfaced in the news when a proposal was made to use some of it as a storage reservoir.

Boswell would clearly have water rights to develop a community in the area and has some history in working with conservation groups on setting aside some lands as off-limits to development, to be kept natural - that could surface in tandem with this development plan.

The questions will be raised - what will be the impact on Yokohl Creek and endangered species in the Yokohl Valley? What will be the impact on the surrounding communities?

Gaynor says she saw in the comments from business leaders in the area “some very strong feelings on quality of life issues.”

“This place is very revered,” notes the consultant. “We want to make sure people could speak freely,” says Gaynor with the sessions run by a moderator with no Boswell company people in the room. Gaynor noted that Boswell people have been open “fully disclosing who we are in conversations.”

“We don’t have any secrets” on what plans are. “People were asked what the problems are in Tulare County and how this project could potentially meet some of those problems.”

If the project develops the way Eastlake has been planned, Boswell would do the planning, put in the infrastructure and facilities and then sell off the land to area builders in phases that could last decades as the community is built out.

Newly elected supervisor for the district Allen Ishida says his stance has been to discourage rural development. But he says the only possible way the project could fly is if the development mitigated all impacts by incorporating into a town and “taking care of all its needed services,” police, fire, for example.

He says he envisions traffic impacts and the need for massive road work in the valley and signalized intersections at the entrance to the project on 198. Maybe the sizable clout of Boswell can get the 198 freeway expanded beyond Exeter to the east. The guy that made it go as far as Exeter was an Exeter politician, Howard Way.

The proposal to build homes in rural Tulare County comes as the county has experienced an unprecedented housing boom with Visalia expected to top its 1000 new homes built last year with perhaps 1200 in 2004. Meanwhile, housing values all over the county have skyrocketed and subdivision prices are reaching $100,000 an acre - double what it was just two years ago.

Real estate has been the hot business in recent years - clearly bigger than farming in terms of profitability and price appreciation.

The potential project comes along not coincidently just as the county is considering a new General Plan update in coming weeks that could set policy on rural development projects.

The county is well known for its Rural Valley Lands Plan that limits development in unincorporated areas seeking to protect prime ag land as its top goal. But the plan covers land below 600 ft. elevation - lower than Yokohl. This is cattle land not used to grow crops. What protection does grazing land have?

The last project Boswell proposed in the central valley you might remember was some dairies in the lakebed area a few years ago - a plan that was attacked by an environmental group, Center for Race, Poverty and the Environment that ended up taking on the whole central valley dairy industry even after Boswell backed out of all but one of the dairies.

Boswell insiders fear the company remains a big target for anyone who comes out of the woodwork to oppose their plans. On the other hand, the research group who questioned the local focus group asked them what they thought of the Boswell name when it came up. Many in the Exeter area like the Gill and Boswell names and associate them with the strong values of local cattle ranching.

Clearly Boston Ranch is going to divide long time residents from Three Rivers down to Lindsay. Some don’t want to see growth or a big change in the rural lifestyle of the area.

Consultant Gaynor notes that if the Boswell board decides to move forward, a full EIR would be done with public input.

This isn’t the first time Boswell has considered a Tulare County foothill residential project teaming up Boise Cascade in the late 70s on some Boswell land as well as the Wells Ranch. The project ran into high interest rates and a slow down in the economy and didn’t get off the ground. It was this same slowdown that hurt Gills’ Badger Hill project that they ended up losing to a bank. For years lots stayed empty on top of the hill. Today it’s boom times in California housing - tomorrow - who knows.

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Visalia - The year was 1872 and Visalia’s leadership had good reason to worry. The coming of a new railway marching down the central valley that would connect to the coastal urban areas of California was about to bypass Visalia for the wide open spaces of the westside of the valley.

There the rail company could get right-of-way easily and establish a straight line route that would cut costs and boost their profits by founding their own towns like Tulare and Goshen.

No matter that Visalia was a town to be reckoned with, with a population in 1870 of 1000 souls, and that the leaders here were clamoring for a rail stop.

Planned from afar, the Southern Pacific Railroad had their route picked out and without a large subsidy from Visalia the company, who had a land grant from Congress, was not about to change their mind. They picked an alignment that ran 6 miles west of Visalia ignoring the wishes of the locals.

The book History of Tulare County describes the reaction of local leaders to a decision that could make permanent the isolation of this community from trade, commerce and markets. “Great consternation at impending disaster descended upon the property holders of the county seat and the dream of many years that real prosperity would come to them through the advent of the railroad, with the resultant direct communication with the rest of the world, vanished in utter despair. Many considered that Visalia was doomed and that the only means of saving it was by removing the courthouse, all buildings and everything else that could be moved, to some point on the railroad.”

But wiser heads prevailed and Visalia with some help from the town of Stockton, built their own routes to connect to the main line - later to be bought by Southern Pacific.

Fast Forward to 200 mph

Fast forward to November 2004 - just a few days ago. Visalia’s leadership is worried again. The staff of the High Speed Rail Authority at this month’s meeting of the statewide board, proposed the 200 mph bullet train alignment should pass well west of Visalia and not even stop between Bakersfield and Fresno despite a strong lobbying effort by Visalia and even support from Kings County officials. The argument was that it would be easier - the staff suggested - avoiding the population centers of the east side of the valley building along the BNSF route that the Amtrak train now runs on out by Corcoran and Tulare Lake.

While the Visalia contingent in 1872 had to accept the decision of the Bay Area’s Big Four, the 2004 Visalia contingent this month held out a glimmer of hope that this public body would consider an alternate plan favored by Tulare County to run the high speed rail up 99 on the Union Pacific route with a train stop near the Visalia airport.

Led by mayor Bob Link and city manager Steve Salomon, Visalia had been quietly lobbying several of the members of the board in recent weeks pointing out that under the proposal the high speed train would stop in the towns of Merced, Modesto and Stockton north of Fresno but staff seemed “not to be looking” at the south valley - a 120 mile leg run without a stop, noted Link.

That in turn would force Tulare County residents to travel to Fresno to access the rail system leaving this area “underserved” argued city council member Jesus Gamboa at the board meeting. The board heard population projections that show that there could be close to 1 million people in Tulare and Kings counties by 2030 - a population that exceeds San Francisco.

“This thing isn’t going to be built tomorrow,” says city manager Steve Salomon, with the route not likely to be running until 2020. “If there is not a station in the general area people in the future will view this as a mistake.”

As to arguments that the high speed system needs to avoid stopping to make its destination connections - the LA to Bay Area route - Salomon points out that many trains that run daily won’t stop at a Visalia station but that some will, allowing business people, travelers and light freight to access the Tulare County area - home to Sequoia National Park.

Being sold as a way to clean up the valley air why wouldn’t you put a station that could be accessed by people here or the 3 million people who visit the national parks here each year today, argue local supporters?

Visalia is seeking a mass transit connection to parks that could connect to the rail system.

With few of the 8 member board familiar with Visalia, Salomon feared our arguments might not convince the majority.

But after the city’s presentation to the board November 10, three of the members voted to support the staff recommendations on all the routes except the Bakersfield to Fresno portion led by a valley representative Fran Florez of Shafter and board president Joseph Petrillo with the agreement Visalia would get a reprieve until the meeting to convince the board.

That gives Visalia until December 15 when the board meets to finalize their route selections to come up with a plan demonstrating the UP route with a Tulare County stop is a better choice.

Game Plan

Despite staff arguments that the High Speed Train running on the BNSF route would be $590 - 800 million less than the UP alignment, the cost factor is not the biggest obstacle.

The real pressure is coming from Highway 99 towns in Fresno County including Kingsburg, Selma and Fowler who don’t want the trains racing through the heart of their towns with no benefit.

In a preliminary analysis a few years ago, the UP route had been favored in a consultant report over BNSF primarily because it would serve the most people. The Union Pacific alignment does go through more urban areas offering more difficult construction issues and conflict problems. But no one questioned that in other urban areas of California where the trains will pass through because the plain fact is that the train needs to serve those urban areas including the heart of LA.

But the city of Visalia will now propose a plan to run the Highway 99 route just west of those Fresno County towns. Locals are supporting the same idea near the city of Tulare where a western bypass has been proposed to avoid flying through Downtown Tulare.

Complicating the game plans is strong opposition against one option that had been considered, a route through virgin ag land - already rejected by the Authority board.

So the Visalia proposal will have to hug the city limits west of those towns providing an edge to set off the urban limits from ag land reasons city manager Steve Salomon.

The city may even hire an engineer to do a proposed right-of-way alternative to present to those city councils looking to get buy-in from them on the plan to be submitted to the Authority Board December 15.

Fresno advocates must understand Tulare County’s desire to land a station stop considering Fresno is demanding the train stop in their downtown and wouldn’t take kindly to a plan for a Firebaugh station instead or even not stopping just to insure travelers get to LA or SF a little quicker.

The small Fresno County towns are wanting the rail route be dug in a trench to minimize impacts through their towns or travel on a raised platform to avoid conflict with traffic. With some buy-in from these towns and another vote or two on the Authority Board, Visalia may yet have a high speed station in our future.

But first the voters of the state will have to authorize a bond measure to help pay for it in the November 2006 election.

Airport Connection

Visalia has tentatively planned the station to be at Caldwell and 99 on city owned land across the freeway from the airport. One theory is that as urban areas near big airports in California become even more congested, it will be easier for airlines flying across the country to land in a place like Visalia with direct access to high speed rail system connected to either the Bay Area or LA in as little as an hour.

Historian Annie Mitchell pointed out that in 1869 Visalia business people helped to promote a bond measure that passed the legislature that would have financed a route through Visalia. But it was vetoed by the governor because local legislators were both cattlemen who did not favor additional transportation. After all, cattle can walk to market.

She also recounts how the Visalia to Goshen route was run for years on a shoe string until it was bought out.

“Some may recall that at times the station agent had to run the ‘whole works.’ He would fire up the engine, run back and close up the depot, take the train out, throttle the engine outside the city limits, run through the train and collect the tickets, and then race back to the engine in time to make a dignified stop in Goshen. This road operated until 1897 when it was sold to the Southern Pacific.”

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Visalia - The Visalia city council may look to a former city council member or someone with similar experience to take the remainder of Phil Cox’s term on the city council in January once Mr. Cox takes his seat at the Board of Supervisors.

Council advised staff this week, with Mr. Cox not participating, that they would prefer to appoint a person to the remainder of Cox’s term - November 2005 - rather than hold a special election to fill the seat. The high cost of a special election was cited as reason enough.

Candidates must submit letters of interest for the post by December 10 to be considered for the appointment. Council would make the appointment January 10.

Although they didn’t mention any names at this week’s meeting, council member Kirkpatrick did suggest he would like to appoint a former council member and Jesus Gamboa sent word he would like someone who would agree not to run for the position next November. Don Landers said he would prefer no restrictions on the appointment, but agreed an experienced hand would be beneficial.

Names being batted around privately include former council members Don Sharp, Jim Harbottle, Peter Carey and former planning commissioner Victor Perez who says he is interested.

With the departure of Cox, the 5th seat on the council is often a tie breaker on some key land use and development issues making the choice of the appointment more than interesting for city watchers.

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Visalia - The board of Kaweah Delta Hospital will hear a proposal November 23 to replace their aging gas fired cogeneration power plant with a much larger turbine cogeneration facility that could power the hospital through years of its planned expansion.

Hospital architect Mike Williams says a new central power station will be needed to power up the north expansion that will break ground next spring. He said that recently the older plant, in place for several decades, had suffered lots of down time for repairs costing the district money because they had to hook back up to the grid. The hospital had planned a new non-cogen power unit inside the north expansion. Not building this unit would save space at the new hospital tower plus allow the use of $8 million to be redistributed to a central power unit with cogeneration capability.

But now with the old plant in the skids, the hospital may look to the new turbine cogeneration units that can be added in modular units as needed in coming years to provide both the electricity, steam and heat that cogeneration can offer. The current plant is a cogeneration unit with the heat being used to heat and cool the main building, steam being used to sterilize instruments and power used for lighting.

Compared to a relatively small size today at under 2 megawatts, the new units could provide 12 mw of power at a site likely next to the current cogen on Watson. Consultants Mazzetti & Associates are advising the health care district.

Williams says with the old plant “at the end of its useful life” and the benefit of cogeneration that runs 24/7, the hospital is leaning toward the new units. The power from the plant could be on line at the end of 2007 when the north expansion is ready to open.

The new units would be natural gas fired, but far more efficient and cleaner than the huge engines in place today. More companies with large and steady power needs are installing their own power units - a practice called distributed generation that allows them to remain connected to the grid in an emergency but provides everyday power for their needs as well as offering up power for the grid.

Parking

In related north expansion news, Williams says the hospital is negotiating to purchase the old Shell station as well as the adjacent restaurant site on the south side of 198 as part of their plan to provide enough parking for the hospital expansion. He also says that demolition of several KD buildings in the path of the north expansion as well as future parking lot space will begin in April. The new 5 story support service building will be ready for occupancy in March allowing employee in the way of expansion to relocate before the bulldozers arrive. The former cancer care building will be demolished then, now that the hospital has opened a new cancer care center next to the Lifestyle Center.

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By Aaron Collins

Pixley - Due to years of toxic pesticide dumping onto open ground and runways at the Pixley Airport (Harmon Field) by various crop dusting firms, DDT and Toxiphene-poisoned asphalt and soil now lie beneath temporarily-placed protective tarps.

Chain link, padlocks and warnings now deter people and animals from entering the hazardous Tulare County-owned property southwest of this rural town of 2,500. A toxic pit has been capped and leaky gas tanks removed.

The fence gets a mandated once-a-month inspection to ensure that no breach has been made which would allow unsuspecting Pixley children or the curious to enter the off-limits facility.

Well over 15 years after the scope of the environmental devastation was first known, the County is still left holding the bag. And cleanup efforts have not even begun.

In his annual report to County Supervisors, Tulare County Health & Human Services Administrator Ron Probasco mentioned only briefly and generically the County efforts to remedy the site, referring only to “the two cleanup sites” without elaboration.

According to Jim Waters, Environmental Quality Coordinator for the County’s Health Department, the Remedial Action Plan drafted several years ago is currently undergoing a revision. The revised plan will likely reflect higher cleanup costs than those figures first estimated in the early 90s. Waters says no deadline exists for the project’s completion – either the revised plan or the cleanup itself.

The pesticide dumping (from the 50s through the early 90s) resulted in a total shutdown of the facility when the last tenants vacated in the early 90s. Now an anticipated $5.5 million cleanup is expected, cost for which are to from funds set aside by the County.

At a time when firefighters may lose their jobs, such funds would no doubt come in handy considering current County fiscal woes. But according to Assistant County Administrative Officer Kristin Bennett, the funds are “in trust” and therefore encumbered. That means they can’t be used for anything other than their intended purpose.

So if the money is available to cleanup the Pixley Airport, what’s taking so long?

According to County officials, a number of factors appear to be the cause. Lack of concern from Pixley citizens, bureaucratic requirements and sluggishness by the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA), and other competing concerns have put the remediation effort on the slow track (the toxic mess is not on the agenda for this Tuesday’s Supervisors meeting; agenda items include approval of the proposed World War II mural, among others).

Other reasons may include test results which show that, so far, the tarps covering the area have stopped any percolation of contaminants to ground water below, and that the temporary prevention efforts to stop any airborn particles have been successful.

Additionally, the County has sought more lax cleanup standards in order to reduce costs to rehabilitate the site for future use. By restating the site’s remediation classification from residential to industrial/commercial specifications, 70 parts per million of contaminants would be allowed to remain in the ground instead of the more demanding reduction of toxins to 1ppm that any future residential use would mandate.

Beginning in the late 80s, the County undertook temporary remedial efforts even as crop dusters still flew out over county agriculture fields from the now-defunct poisoned airfield. But even then, Love Canal in the 70s and a number of other environmental disasters were high-profile in the media, making such negligent pesticide handling a shock to many.

According to Waters, determining who dumped the chemicals -- and when -- is very difficult. “The County bought the airport sometime around 1950. And with these chemicals, they stay in the ground and are toxic for so long that we’re not sure which firms were actually dumping [the pesticides illegally].”

So who should pay for the multi-million dollar mess caused by these negligent private crop dusting companies – most now out of business -- that leased hangar space from the County? Does the County have any legal recourse to recoup cleanup costs? Are existing firms behaving responsibly? Stay tuned.

Times and some attitudes may have changed since, but for insight into attitudes that once prevailed regarding pesticide use, farmer Frank Dierker – whose daughter had breast cancer and underwent a double-mastectomy – says this about typical pesticide practices:

“The chemicals we used on the farms we knew nothing about and had no supervision about their danger. The spittle bug on the hay you sprayed with a chemical. The flies in the barn you sprayed with DDT. There were no restrictions and no guidance. If a little would work, you put on more.” Dierker added, “The airplanes flew the cornfields with Toxiphene and other related chemicals. We handled chemicals of all kinds on the farm that were used in the production of corn, soybeans, hay and cattle.”

Given the vastness of the fields in the largest agriculture-producing county in the US, local residents can hope that area pesticide applicators – who often work in some anonymity, amidst the expansive and remote rows of numerous crops whose yields are improved with pesticide use – have learned a lesson from the devastation of Harmon Field.

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Tulare - The new Tulare Galaxy theater just opened in recent weeks, has apparently spurred a development plan just north of the Tulare outlet mall where the theater is located.

Property owner William Martin has submitted plans to develop about 25 acres into 9 parcels and a remainder he hopes he can sell next to the outlet mall. Martin, who helped bring the outlet mall to town a decade ago, has retained his old plum orchard acreage adjacent the site.

With construction of the community investor financed movie theater, demand has grown strong enough to parcel off that acreage, says Martin. “This is definitely demand driven,” says Martin whose tentative parcel map will be heard by the city November 23.

Martin says the development will call for 8 parcels along the freeway three of which are already under contract and three that are being negotiated for. Retailer Boot Barn will be building in a 1 acre lot (#2) next to what will likely be a national chain restaurant near the movie theater (#1). Another restaurant is taking pad number three and a retailer is negotiating for pad 4, he says.

Martin says he is negotiating with Horizon for purchase of 8 acres, part of 16 acres available for development because Horizon would prefer to phase any expansion with the outlet mall. All together he has enough room to add another 130,000 sf a size that would double the square footage at the outlet mall.

Martin says because demand for parking is going to be so great during the holidays a plan is being worked on to put down gravel on some of his land to accommodate the needs for parking by both the theater and mall in coming weeks.

Martin says he expects once the city approves the tentative parcel maps, he can open and close escrow on sales allowing development to move forward. Boot Barn and next door restaurant could be open by this coming summer, he expects.

Martin says if Horizon is not interested in the 16 remaining acres, others are. He says down by the storm basin along 99 “believe it or not another brand new hotel” is interested. Tulare has a slew of hotels at the Prosperity offramp area already. A top priority for the community has been to find a restaurant to go with the movie theater, says chamber official Bob Reynolds. Apparently Martin’s plan accomplishes that.

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Visalia - Blue Scope Steel, based in Melbourne Australia, purchased US based Butler Manufacturing in April - a company with a plant in Visalia that makes pre-engineered steel buildings.

The Visalia plant had 160 employees.

The purchase has set in motion a major expansion in Visalia, says Tom Gilligan, general manager of a new division of the company now headquartered here.

"The entire Butler business has been reorganized into five profit centers," says Gilligan, who recently relocated to Visalia from Kansas City. The purchase ups Visalia's importance and will mean the number of workers assigned to Visalia after the new year will increase to over 200, he says. That includes highly skilled engineers and upper management positions, notes Gilligan.

The Visalia plant served customers up and down the West coast clear to the Rockies.

"This is not short term," says Gilligan noting that site work on the big Doe Ave. yard will help create more room for an expected expansion of facilities here. The company had a plant here since 1973.

Gilligan says demand for product is strong with the biggest problem in the past year just getting enough steel in a very competitive market. He says having a steel company as its parent has made the difference. Pre-engineered systems are used in industrial buildings but lately the company is making buildings for big box and retail centers as the cost advantage of pre-engineered buildings generates new business in other sectors.

Butler supplies the steel for the Valley Steel company here.

Gilligan says the price of steel has doubled in the past year and yet demand is strong for the company's products. "I'd say the future is bright in the construction industry here."

Blue Scope may have found buying assets of a US based company tempting in part because the value of the Australian currency vs the US dollar has moved so dramatically. The US dollar has lost about half of its value related to the Australian dollar since 2002. That makes it attractive for the Australian company to use their currency to buy US assets at 50 cents on the dollar. In this past year an Australian firm purchased a large shopping center portfolio in the US including the Sequoia Mall in Visalia.

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From citrus to nuts - milk to meat - raisins to cotton, central valley farmers are reporting profits for a change.

Boosted by a weaker dollar that makes our exports cheaper to buyers overseas - California farmers who export their product are getting a competitive advantage they didn't see before. That in turn is hurting rival importers who have to pay more in their currencies to sell olives or clementine oranges here.

Nationwide there appears to be a positive trend as well with USDA announcing in recent weeks that net cash income this year should top $77.5 billion - up $9 billion from the year before - a rise of 25%.

Farmers cash receipts are projected to be $233 billion - $22 billion higher than 2003. But $16 billion of that increase is from livestock sales - meat that has skyrocketed in demand and price despite the BSE scare. Local cattlemen have reason to celebrate with prices up 25% from 2002. Dairymen too, are happier getting nearly a 25% boost from a year ago as well.

Higher returns for the farmers was part of the strategy of the Bush administration seeking to gain crucial vote in Midwest states this fall.

If some commodities are seeing higher prices, farmers are needing it just to pay the gasoline and diesel bill and workers compensation statements. Fuel prices are up more than 60% compared to a year ago.

But if there is good news there is trouble brewing too, says farm advocate Manuel Cunha of Nisei Farmers League. "How can you say things are great when 1000 of my small farmers here are in such financial trouble and imports of food are running higher than our ag exports."

Cunha is referring to a tough year suffered by smaller fruit growers in Fresno and Tulare counties this summer after several bad years in stone fruit. Farmers say big grocery chain stores are not passing low prices paid to farmers on to consumers holding back sales that are squeezing the fruit growers. "The chains just don't care," says Cunha. He expects many of those 1000 farmers to go out of business.

Regarding ag imports vs exports, the USDA reported November 12 that the US has a $9.6 billion trade surplus despite showing a deficit in some months like August. Imports of olives and vegetable oils rose more than 40% during the fiscal year that ends October 1.

Since 1996 US ag imports have climbed 62% while ag exports are up just 4%. Other countries are exporting big time including soybeans, beef, hogs and wheat taking away export markets from US farmers.

In August USDA reported food coming into this country outpaced food going out by $156 million. For the whole fiscal year, USDA said imports were up 15% compared to exports up just 11%.

For the fiscal year USDA says imports of red meat was up 37%, poultry meat up 38% and dairy products up 25%.

Imports of food is flowing into the US as Americans can get produce and items once thought as seasonal year round.

Cunha says the increase in imported food is bad news for the future of US producers and blames large supermarket chains and retailers like Walmart for buying much of their food from foreign farmers. Today 20% of the beef used by McDonalds in the US restaurant come from foreign cattle. Imports of foreign wine have surged as well.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently announced October imports vs export prices showed that ag exports over the past year have declined in price by 1.3%.

Cunha fears the demise of US farm economy if the big chains get their product from its cheapest source without regards of the domestic farm economy. He says there is danger to dependence on foreign food and that the US consumer should worry about the threat of disaster or terrorism is real.

While the cheap dollar is now at a 5 year low vs the Euro and a 12 year low vs the Canadian dollar, that could change as interest rates rise in the US.

The phased lifting of tariffs on Mexican fruit and vegetable exports to the United States as mandated by the North American Free Trade Agreement induced growers in Mexico to ship more of their produce across the US border. Mexico is now the source of 27 percent of US fruit imports and 38 percent of vegetable imports.

Overall a big jump in import shares of fresh fruit went from 9% in 1985 to 23% in 2001. Fruit juice is now 32% imported and tomatoes are now 36% imported. The US now imports 60% of the olives the US consumes - bad news for the top olive producing county in the nation. It may surprise you that in 1980 just 18% of the nation's apple juice was imported compared to 63% in 2001.

Facing an even bigger increase in imported food, California growers are gearing up to oppose President Bush's Free Trade Zone in the Americas. Orange growers are joining the chorus of complaints who suggest the plan amounts to "NAFTA on steroids" referring to the North American Free Trade Act already blamed for the loss of jobs in the US. The new Free Trade Zone would allow the free movement of goods and products between Latin America and the US but farmers here fear we will be swamped by cheaper goods seeking the world's largest market in the US.

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Crime Watch The Visalia police department has updated its crime stats through October 2004 and the news is not good. Crime continues to be ahead of last year in many categories including robbery, burglary and aggravated assault. Total crimes through October number near 3700 - higher than all of last year when the town recorded 3453 crimes. Homicides in Visalia number 5 through October compared to 9 for all of 2003. Crimes against persons for 2003 were 789 compared to 832 through October 2004. On the plus side, calls for service actually dropped in October by 1% after several months of 4% and 5% increases compared to the same month a year ago. Visalia has experienced a rash of shootings and robberies including stolen cars at this past week's Cow Hide game reminding everyone this remains a dangerous place.

Grant would fund handicapped-friendly children's playground. The City of Visalia expects to be funded $250,000 on its grant application to fund a universally accessible playground at Rec Park. The playground allow handicapped kids to play independently with their peers and includes safety surfacing and specialized play equipment. There is no such playground in Tulare or Kings counties. The playground is part of a city effort to upgrade the park where construction of a new gym is underway.

The board of the Tulare County Certified Farmers Market appears split on an offer by the city to relocate their Saturday market from the Sears parking lot on Mooney to Downtown Visalia. The offer is to relocate the popular market along Church St. - north and south of Main - as well as part of the parking lot behind Bank of the Sierra where part would be used by vendors and the remainder for parking. General manager Mary Herndon says the board has discussed the matter but the issue remains "up in the air right now." The market doesn't need to leave tomorrow although there are long term plans to develop Sequoia mall in the works that makes it likely there is no future at the Mooney site long term.

Visalia's two new substations will cost more than expected - quite a bit more - but will save big time on utility costs estimated to be as high as 50%. Consultant on the project told the council this week that the heavy straw bale wall of the substation will insulate the station while natural lights will be sufficient from skylights and solar tubes to leave the electric lights off most of the time. The new station will be open in 2006 - on the northside at NE 3rd and one at Cameron on the southside near the Packwood center. Budget for the two stations has almost doubled to $6.9 million based on information requested by the department and an expectation that sales tax receipts will be enough from Measure T to fund the project.

Solar rooftop on the airport. Visalia has applied for a grant through SCE to cover 50% of the cost of installing solar panels atop the city owned private airport building and lounge. It will be the first city building to be equipped with solar panels to make electricity.

Sources say Orthopaedics Associates is looking downtown for an alternate location to build a 25,000 sq. ft. medical office now that the city appears to oppose their plan to build out on Plaza Dr. and 198. The company needs a square block to accommodate a two story building. The Orthopaedic's Plaza Dr. and 198 plan is on the city agenda for November 29. City manager Steve Salomon personally wrote the staff report opposing a change of zone seeking medical offices to locate in the core area of town.

The announced merger of Sears and Kmart this week has some wondering what the effect will be on Visalia and other towns where there are both Sears and Kmart outlets. Both entities will continue to operate separate stores nationally but the combination could potentially lead to consolidation - i.e. one of the stores could close. Kmart leases and Sears owns their own property in Visalia.

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