Exeter Packaging Co. Looks To The Sun

Downtown Visalia - Just Add Water

Visalia - Visalia was built on the banks of Mill Creek, a tributary of the Kaweah River. While the water supplied the community in early years, it also became a convenient dumping ground. But historian Terry Ommen says the impetus for putting much of the creek underground through Downtown Visalia was when the creek flooded.

In 1909, Visalia mayor Alfred Orr suggested placing “big tubes” into the channel then covering them allowing the water to flow through town with no damage from a flood. At the time, Ommen notes, the Visalia Daily Delta reported that “nearly any proposition to get rid of Mill Creek” had their support. By 1910, a plan was put in place to build a concrete conduit. That conduit is still there from Santa Fe Ave. east to Kaweah Delta hospital.

Now nearly 100 years later, the City of Visalia may be heading on the different course – looking to re-surface or daylight the creek along portions of its run westward. The creek – unpopular with residents 100 years ago – is a key ingredient seen by community leaders as a focal point for building a rejuvenated Visalia starting in east Visalia as part of the new proposed Civic Center.

This week the city took the next step, looking at the five blocks to the west. The city council approved spending $50,000 to look at daylighting the creek between Tipton St. where it heads underground all the way west to Court St. – about half of the route it travels underground.

City manager Steve Salomon says the plan would be to hire an engineering firm to look at the feasibility of the idea that could mean water flows down Main St. or nearby as it does in San Luis Obispo or San Antonio Texas where it’s a centerpiece for new development –- the original Riverwalk district.

Already Mill Creek will be restored from a ditch to a landscaped creek with water year round to the east of Downtown, according to a Visalia city plan that is likely to include a lake just east of the new Civic Center.

The city will work with the local Bicycle, Pedestrian and Waterway Trails Committee to come up with a design for the plan both east of Tipton St. where the creek is largely an open ditch and to the west where it runs underground but could be resurfaced at least to Court St. where it runs below the city parking lot behind Togni Branch.

Resurfacing the creek through five blocks from Tipton to Court is likely expensive, expects Salomon. “But if you don’t start to look at it one day you will never get there even if it takes years.”

Some cities have decided to develop a “hybrid plan” to daylight some of the water flow in a creek but leave the culvert available for large flows that are useful to handle storm water. That’s a possibility here.

What options are there? Starting at Tipton St. the city is working to acquire property on Tipton making it easier – if the city controls the property – to plan an adjacent use that could be designed orienting to a restored creek. As the creek flows west across Center St. there is a chance that Dharma’s Restaurant could enjoy creekside dining just north of the restaurant in front of their new entrance. The creek then opens to the surface for about half a block here before coming to Santa Fe Ave. to begin its underground passage.

Across Santa Fe Ave., the creek runs under the 400 block of Main St. on the north side – a block owned by restauranteur John Vartanian.

Mr. Vartanian has said they are getting closer to develop that block with the likely demo of at least some of the buildings.

Here the city would need to weigh alternate routes the creek could run heading west including the alley behind Lum Lum’s or right on Main St. with the likelihood of narrowing the street to accommodate creek flow down the street. That’s the solution the city of Berkeley decided on at Strawberry Creek over a decade ago and in growing number of communities around the nation. Along the creek there would be room for a walkway. The run of the creek could locate along public or private space.

Along the entire five block area where the creek could be resurfaced there are both development opportunities and at least some preliminary plans underway by property owners or developers to utilize the creek space as part of their development plans. That includes Andy Mangano who would like to build a large project as part of the Razzari building restoration including the possible city abandonment of Garden St. In a word, the creek daylighting could help launch new investment to the eastern edge of the city’s central district.

As the creek moves west there is an opportunity to surface the creek at Garden and Main on open land, through the B of A parking lot and into the large city parking lot behind Togni as mentioned earlier. These are also development opportunities.

Ditch or Creek?

The look of Mill Creek through downtown ranges from an unsightly ditch filled with mattresses and wine bottles to a beautiful, tree-lined creek with high-value homes around it west of downtown. The new Kaweah Delta Support building that overlooks Mill Creek with walkways along it is as nice as there is in Visalia. Young lovers get their picture taken at Mayor’s Park along Mill Creek. What you get out of Mill Creek is what care you pour into it you might say. How important was Mill Creek to Visalia? Before they named it Main St., they named it Mill and the street going across it was Bridge St. (still is).

Several efforts to build pathways and restore landscaping along stretches of Mill Creek have gone forward in recent years, including the trail through the Sierra Vista campus (see picture) – through the efforts of the Urban Tree Foundation and Brian Kempf who is a big advocate of the plan to open the creek.

Likewise, the idea of opening the creek has the support of Visalians from all stripes. What other idea could unite builder Andy Mangano and council member Greg Collins?

Funding mechanisms for the project could include grants for creek restoration available from federal and state agencies, PBID – downtown’s Property Based Improvement District – that would be justified on the fact that the creek would attract business to downtown and sewer and storm water funds the city could utilize because of the aging infrastructure being underground 100 years.

All around Visalia the city is busy building pathways and landscaping neglected waterways, asking subdivision builders to plan and participate in funding for creekside walkways and bike trails.

Extension of the St. Johns clear to Cutler Park may be only a few years off even as the trail will be extended to the new Sports Park several miles to the west. At Packwood Creek development, a new, half-mile trail has been funded as well.

But it’s likely the trail that will draw the visitors and put Visalia on the map someday will be the restoration of most of Mill Creek from the eastern city limits of Visalia into downtown and out to the scenic corridor area – a natural sanctuary through what will be a big city someday.

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Porterville Residents Opposing Hillside Development
NIMBY Lawsuit Continues to Delay Project's Construction

By George Lurie

Porterville - A group of Porterville residents are suing the city of Porterville, hoping to force a developer to modify construction plans for a proposed subdivision on a sloping 67-acre parcel on the east side of town that one city councilman has called “the jewel of the city.”

Porterville Citizens for Responsible Hillside Development (PCFRHD), a loosely knit coalition of homeowners living near the proposed development, are worried that a 230-unit subdivision, to be constructed near Morton Street and Hillcrest Drive, will negatively impact their property values and want the project's developers to dramatically scale down the project.

Appearing in Tulare County Superior Court on May 23, an attorney representing PCFRHD argued that the proposed hillside development violates the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

But the project's developer, San Antonio, Texas-based Contour Development Inc., say their hillside subdivision is consistent with Porterville's General Plan and the Porterville City Council, which also serves as the city's planning commission, agrees and has already green-lighted the project.

But the legal action initiated by PCFRHD, which some characterize as a NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) lawsuit, has delayed the project's progress.

In September 2005, spurred on in part by Contour's project, Porterville adopted an interim hillside development ordinance. The ordinance applies to tentative hillside subdivision and parcel maps and all other “discretionary” actions to be heard by the city council.

The measure was passed just prior to the city council's approval of the Contour project and city planners are now working with a consultant to craft a permanent hillside ordinance.

When attorneys for the citizens' group and developer faced off in Tulare County Superior Court last month to argue before Judge Lloyd Hicks, Contour's attorney argued that the company's proposed subdivision already met the criteria of the city's interim hillside development ordinance.

Even Richard Harriman, the attorney for the citizens' group, admits: “There is going to be a residential project in this location. We're not disputing that.”

What the group is objecting to, says Harriman, is the proposed design and density of the project, which is slated to feature Reynen & Bardis Community-built homes selling for between $250,000 and $350,000.

“The design does not integrate or relate to the hillside,” said Harriman, adding that neighbors living within close proximity to the proposed development believe the subdivision will negatively impact their neighborhood's aesthetic qualities as well as their panoramic views.

“The developers need to work within the contours of the hillside to make the project more aesthetically pleasing,” said Eric Huth, a Porterville homeowner and PCFRHD member who attended last month's Superior Court hearing.

“We want a positive image to go along with the increase in development on the east side of the city,” said Jennifer Lindgren, another PCFRHD member. “We're trying to improve the entire environment for people living out there.”

The project was approved by the Porterville city council on Sept. 6, 2005 following a series of public hearings. But the legal action by the citizens' group has held up the start of construction, even though Contour has floated several settlement offers to PCFRHD.

“No one spoke in opposition to this project at the final public hearing,” said Contour's attorney, Sacramento-based William Abbott. “To some degree, we feel like we have been blind-sided by this suit.”

Contour officials agreed.

“We had hoped to be well under construction by now,” said Bret Baillio, Contour's president, who has made three trips to the Valley in the last six months to try to get his project back on track.

“We're comfortable that this project meets all applicable General Plan standards but have offered several times to scale down the density of our project,” said Baillio. “Nothing seems to make these people happy. It's frustrating.”

Said Contour attorney Abbott: “Every project is going to have at least one or two neighbors who would like to see something different.”

Developers are proposing construction of two to seven homes per acre, with less density on steeper slopes with 10 to 15 percent grades, which comprise about one-third of the development.

As part of the approval process, Contour had to satisfy 47 “conditions of approval” and 22 “mitigation measures” designed to lessen environmental impacts.

But PCFRHD attorney Harriman argued last month that the project's “density and soil erosion impacts are still not consistent with the city's General Plan” which was last rewritten in 1990 by planner and current Visalia City Council member Greg Collins.

Porterville is currently working with a Bay Area consultant to update its General Plan, which could be adopted along with a permanent hillside development ordinance later this year.

As the Valley Voice went to press, Judge Hicks had yet to issue a ruling on the PCFRHD suit, but one of the judge's legal aides said a decision in the controversial case will be announced by the end of this week.

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Supreme Court Backs County in Pay Dispute

Tulare County - A California Supreme Court ruling that Tulare County was right in denying back pay to a former sheriff's deputy who claimed he was dismissed is being hailed as a landmark decision.

The ruling will save hundreds of thousands of dollars for counties and other entities operating under the County Employees Retirement Act of 1937.

In a unanimous decision, the high court found the Fifth Appellate District got it wrong when ruling that the county had dismissed John Stephens and was obligated to pay his back wages.

The May 25 ruling states Tulare County Superior Court Judge Pat O'Hara was correct when he ruled the county had not dismissed the deputy and owned no back pay.

The ruling is being welcomed and praised by counties across the state.

Tulare County Counsel Kathlene Bales-Lange said her office has received a number of communications from other counties including Los Angeles, where officials say they have saved taxpayers an estimated $350,000 as a result of the Tulare County case ruling.

Bales-Lange said the ruling has had an immediate impact on Tulare County including a separate case involving years of back pay for another former employee. That case was stayed pending the Supreme Court ruling in Stephens v. Tulare County. Bales-Lange said that Tulare County and others under the jurisdiction of the 1937 Act faced a “huge degree of liability" before this ruling on the Stephens case, which dates back to1995.

Ron Rezac, chief deputy county counsel, who prepared the petition to the Supreme Court for review as well as the opening and reply briefs in the case, said counties under the 1937 Act jurisdiction “now have clear guidelines for managing disability and accommodation issues.”

Rezac said although the Supreme Court grants a very small percentage of petitions for review, it is important to note that all seven justices voted to accept Tulare County's case.

In its unanimous decision the court said Tulare County had not dismissed deputy Stephens for disability and thus no back pay would be paid. The ruling stated that "dismissal for disability” which under Section 31725 would trigger an obligation for back pay had to be a complete severance of the employment relationship.

In1995 Stephens, a detention specialist III in the Bob Wiley Detention Facility at Sequoia Field, suffered an injury to his right thumb. In 1996 he injured the thumb again and spent time away before returning to “light duty” in accordance with the recommendation of his physician, Dr. John Edwards. In his new position Stephens was assigned to a housing unit control room requiring him to open and close the security doors to the jail for other detention officers by pushing buttons using both hands.

Subsequently Stephens complained his modified light duty was inconsistent with the doctor’s limitation. The doctor then wrote that “the client perform no longer than 15-30 minutes of upper extremity activity at one period of time and then have a break.” But “currently the control room officer job is adhering to this prescription.”

Deputy Stephens later complained to a sergeant that there a was a misunderstanding about the light-duty limitations and he was in pain. Sgt. Sheri Lehner confirmed that after his shift the thumb appeared red and swollen but during a 12-hour shift it was not feasible for him to take a break every 15 minutes.

During a subsequent court trial, Sgt. Lehner testified that Stephens told her not to be “surprised when things start happening when he was rotated from the housing unit control room into the central control room, that he would call his attorney and would “own the county” He made reference to a previous lawsuit which was successful and trial court had informed everyone that reassigning him would be considered a discriminatory act. Stephen boasted of his attorney’s legal prowess and said “this time we’ll sue for money.” That conversation was reported by the sergeant to her superiors.

Stephens was informed by letter that since the department was unable to provide a modified work assignment at that time, until further notice he was not to return to work.

As quoted in the Supreme Court ruling the letter also states “At such time as your condition improves and you are able to return to work with no restrictions, or improves to the point that you are able to return to perform the ‘light duty’ task required in Central Control without further complaint or injury, you will be expected to submit time sheets reflecting ‘off duty/sick/personal.’”

Stephens did not return to work but received full pay from the county for the rest of 1997 until mid-December 1998 in the form of sick pay and personal leave and benefits. He then participated in vocational rehabilitation and was trained as a computer technician. He sought other county positions but was not hired. He worked with various other private employers in part-time job. He later applied to the sheriff’s department for reinstatement but initially was denied and filed a government tort claim seeking payment of retroactive wages. The claim was denied by the county.

Later he was reinstated and returned to work in July 2003, performing the same light-duty tasks as before. He responded to a question about his physical condition that it had not changed from when he last worked there.

The Supreme Court cites Judge O’Hara’s ruling, which states in part: “Mr. Stephens always had a doctor’s release and could have gone back to work if he had informed the County that he was willing and able. At no time did Mr. Stephens advise the County that he considered this a dismissal.”

Said Rezac: "Simply put, the Supreme Court ruled that the Fifth Appellate District got it wrong." Rezac, who prepared the case and the petition for review by the Supreme Court along with the opening argument and reply briefs, called the ruling "immense."

In addition to the county’s own briefs, the California State Association of Counties and the League of California Cities supported the petition for review by the highest court.

The case was argued before the Supreme Court by Crystal Sullivan of the County Counsel’s office.

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Fair Board Narrows CEO Search;
Hiring Decision Could Come at Special Meeting

By George Lurie

Tulare County - Hoping to restore public confidence and get its internal house in order, the Tulare County Fair's Board of Directors will interview finalists for its interim CEO position at a special meeting early next week.

The board must find a replacement for current CEO Candace Patterson, who announced last month that she was taking a six-month “personal” leave.

Patterson has been under fire by the fair board since late last year when nearly $15,000 in gate receipts from the 2005 fair was discovered missing. Tulare police have no new leads in the case and the investigation is now classified as “inactive,” according to Tulare Police Captain Tom Munoz.

Board president Pete Alvitre said this week that “there are two or possibly three finalists” for the interim CEO position. “All three are well known within the fair community,” he added.

Alvitre has already had personal interviews with two of the candidates, both of whom are expected to be interviewed by the full board at the special meeting to be held on June 12.

A third potential candidate, whom Alvitre declined to identify, also has expressed interest in the position and will notify Alvitre no later than the end of this week if he wishes to be included in the June 12 formal interview process.

The two CEO candidates currently scheduled to be interviewed next week are Jim Shasky and Susie Godfrey.

Alvitre said that Shasky has “27 or 28 years” of fair management experience, having run the Los Banos Fair, the Big Fresno Fair and, most recently, the Chowchilla Fair.

A farmer who grows various tree fruit on his ranch in Le Grande, Alvitre characterized Shasky as “a well-seasoned, fair-management veteran. He was recommended to us by Mike Treacy, the director of Fairs and Expositions in Sacramento. He's a great guy, just full of enthusiasm and energy.”

Visalia resident Susie Godfrey, the other finalist for the interim CEO position, will come before the board at the behest of board member Geneva Shannon.

“Susie comes recommended by one of our directors and has lots of fair experience too,” said Alvitre. “She has done promotions and entertainment-type management for the Porterville and Hanford fairs and also has been very active in the Tulare County Fair through various affiliations such as CWA (California Women in Agriculture).”

Godfrey is the proprietor of Visalia-based Vision Marketing and Promotions, Inc.

“(Godfrey) was also recommended by a contact of mine on the Kings County Fair Board,” said Alvitre, who confirmed that both candidates will be interviewed by the full board in closed session.

“Our intention right now is just to interview the candidates,” Alvitre said. “If the board is ready to make a decision (after the closed session) we could announce that at the special meeting. Or we could decide to wait until our next regularly scheduled meeting (on June 21) to release the name of the individual we select.”

Regardless of whether the hiring decision comes next week or the week after, Alvitre is anxious to get an interim CEO on board as quickly as possible. “There's lots of work to be done,” he said. “This year's fair” slated to run from September 13-17 “is just around the corner.

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What's New

The Visalia City Council will get a first look at a new proposed shopping center at Riggin and Dinuba Highway at a council work session June 19. The project plans being proposed by major developer Donohue Schriber include “blend of approaches” and features enough parking to handle the demand of shoppers, while meeting city council expectations to offer a village-type layout, says Dave Mossman of Donohue Schriber. The big center on both sides of Dinuba Highway is expected to be anchored by Home Depot on one side and Target on the other. Industry sources say an Old Navy, TJ Maxx and a Michael’s craft store, along with one of the pet store chains are retailers likely to join the center if approved.

Visalia car dealer Frank Serpa is in a running battle with Volkswagen over the future of the Visalia franchise. Serpa wants to sell the popular German cars but VW has not allowed him to move forward until he gets bigger facilities after earlier saying an existing building would work, he claims. “Some VW dealerships work out of a double wide” claims a miffed Serpa who is awaiting a judge ruling on what will happen next. Meanwhile, VW cars on Serpa’s lot can’t be sold although Serpa has to pay the interest on them just sitting there. “I’m still servicing the VWs for customers, that’s the most important thing” even though VW may want to eliminate the Visalia franchise he fears.

Chapman University is eyeing a considerably larger location in Visalia – just east of the Kmart on Noble – where a new building would be constructed. The school is in a smaller, leased space on Meadow Lane now and has been scouting for a more visible, larger location for the past year.

Nervous time for some Albertsons employees. The company just announced it would close its Hanford warehouse-type store, Monte Mart, in July. This follows news of closure of the Porterville Monte Mart. Valley Voice featured a story about both closures last December. Also this week, the Albertson chain was carved up by two main groups of investors. Supervalu purchased the Southern California division said to be profitable, and a second group led by Cerberus Group bought 661 stores some of them said to be “underperforming” including stores in Northern California. The Tulare Albertsons is in the Southern California division and the relatively new Visalia store is in the Northern California camp. CEO of the Northern California division Robert Miller was quoted this past week as saying the Northern California division is not in good shape. This week they announced closure of 37 Albertsons in Northern California but Visalia store employees say they are not on the closure list.

Ferguson Plumbing Supply has leased 24,000 square feet in the Sierra Business park on Goshen Ave. says broker Doug Burr. The company now has a small operation in East Visalia. “They plan a large walk-in showroom,” says Burr.

Visalia developer Johnny George who is converting the Visalia olive plant on Tulare Ave. to mixed uses, says he is working on a deal with a maker of kitchen cabinets. The new company would employ about 25 people making and shipping the merchandise to home improvement stores. George already has leased 80,000 square feet to A Fundraising who will headquarter their school gifts program out of the former food plant. George is also purchasing four acres south of the plant where EZ Storage Depot is today.

Worker’s comp rate to be cut 10 percent. California’s largest worker’s compensation insurance carrier announced plans to cut rates by an average of 10 percent starting July 1. In making its sixth straight reduction in two years, the quasi-public State Compensation Insurance Fund also extended a program that gives an additional 10 percent rate cut to small businesses with a strong safety record.

Armstrong Property Management just closed a 9.3 million dollar transaction in Tulsa, Oklahoma on behalf of a Visalia investment group. This follows a 14.7 million dollar transaction that closed August 2005. Jim Armstrong has personally sold and brokered over 35 million dollars in real estate transactions over the past year with several additional million dollar transactions in escrow. Armstrong Property Management has been in operation in Visalia for 26 years. The company specializes in the management of common interest developments and the management of several hundred rental units and commercial/office properties, as well as the brokerage of larger apartment complexes. The company is currently a finalist for the Visalia Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year.

Sequoia Valley Products who has a joint venture dairy processing plant in Visalia has gained new contracts with a northwest food company, Greek Gods, making a line of yogurt for the company sold at Trader Joes and Whole Foods. Director of the plant, Russ Poe, says the contract will take about half the production at the Visalia plant. He says the facility on Linwood at the COS farm has the capacity to make 50 million cups of yogurt a year. Poe says about half the production of Greek Gods yogurt will be from organic milk from local suppliers.

COS Ag leader Larry Dutto says the college was notified it got a $500,000 state grant to work with students to grow alternative energy crops and getting to work in the budding renewable fuel industry that is growing in the Central Valley. The program that is expected to start up soon will take two years.

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