Visalia Industrial Park: No Land For Sale

By John Lindt

Visalia - The Visalia Industrial Park is booming. This year almost 1.8 million square feet of new warehouse, processing and manufacturing space has been built—a move that will result in hundreds of jobs to bolster the local economy. But there is a giant hole in the city’s marketing plan to continue this pace to bring in more jobs to the area—a hole big enough to drive several semi trailer trucks through. The simple fact is that there is absolutely no industrial land for sale, over 5 acres in size in the 1600 acre park, according to a draft consultant report done by A. Plescia & Co. for the City of Visalia June 30.

No land for sale? How will the City of Visalia respond to scores of requests from major companies looking at all the advantages a Visalia location in the center of the state might bring? Visalia has a key advantage that attracts a growing number of major companies to our area in both distribution and food processing. Visalia has made the big time in the very competitive world of attracting world-class business. But can it continue? With lower labor, cost of living and housing costs and all the savings that come from being able to serve the California marketplace from our Highway 99 freeway-close city—how have we been so successful?

The answer so far has been that two major companies, The Allen Group and Fresno-based Diversified Development, have been seeking to satisfy the market by offering turn-key industrial buildings ready to move into but only on a lease basis—not for sale.

The consultant report notes that out at the 1600-acre industrial park there are 617 acres that are not developed, including 468 acres greater than 5 acres. As we said, none is for sale. But there are 240 acres for lease and some 160 acres that people are just sitting on or are not available for sale or lease. Besides that, there are 7 large vacant industrial buildings that are available but significantly only for lease.

Nearly Half Want To Buy

What’s wrong with having just land and buildings offered for lease? Nothing. The problem is that according to the consultant report nearly half the projects that come shopping for a new industrial site in Visalia want to own their own property, not rent or lease it. Land that has been for sale in the past has been gobbled up in the past few years.

It has been a long time fear of this reporter that the health and viability of the Visalia Industrial Park will depend on the need for a competitive atmosphere among Visalia landowners and the more of that the better. But the fact is because of long time land tenureships, land holding in the area has been in the hands of a small number of players. With that said, let’s look at what’s going on.

According to the report “there has been an increase in the number of prospects for larger parcel and building development (over 500,000 square feet) with an estimated ten to twelve prospects searching for such large size buildings in the Central Valley over the past year.”

Also the report suggests some 28 percent of prospects looking for manufacturing or distribution space here from 2003 to 2006 need at least 40 acres to accommodate their projects.

In the past year several new developments have come to Visalia including VF Corp, leasing over 1 millionnts have come to Visalia including VF Corp, leasing over 1 million square feet from The Allen Group on nearly 65 acres that should result in about 400 jobs. Also Diversified Development Group (DDG) is building about 972,000 square feet right now on about 58 acres, also on a lease build to suit basis. Once leased out they should generate over 300 jobs. DDG and The Allen Group try to offer buildings on a “spec basis” so that companies looking at the need for short time horizons can move in and set up shop fast. That’s helped to draw plenty of businesses to Visalia that The Allen Group pioneered in this city.

But if half the companies looking at a potential location in the industrial park can not find land for sale they will just head down 99 to the next city and set up shop.

Already Visalia has lost a 200,000 square foot prospect who needs to own their own facility but were told there was no land available, says Lew Ginise of Pearson Realty.

To remedy the situation the city has planned to annex 640 acres north of Riggin on both sides of Plaza into city property to accommodate the need of large users.

The land owned by the Doe and Vargas families is farmland now and has Williamson Act restrictions on it. If annexed and put into service in the near term—a process that will still take years to complete if everything goes right, it would require a 12.5 percent cancellation fee be paid by the property owners. But the fee could be paid and the land made available if the city decided which way to go—an issue that has taken a year to sort out.

At issue is whether the annexed land should carry a regulation on parcel size of 40 acres or larger. That’s the issue on the table and both the Doe and Vargas families say they don’t want to do the annexation if they face restrictions the rest of the industrial park doesn’t face.

The matter got an informal hearing a few weeks ago in front of the Visalia Economic Development Corporation board and invitees. Arguing for the restrictions was Richard Allen of The Allen Group who as we mentioned now is the only game in town for industrial projects right now because rival DDG is now out of space to build new projects in Visalia and there is not industrial land property zoned and ready to go available for purchase.

Arguing against adding restrictions was Lew Ginise of Pearson Realty on behalf of Russ Doe, property owner, Ginise argues that the restrictions are unfair to both the property owners and the city in any case the deal won’t go forward since both property owners will withdraw their request for the annexation. The city’s goal is to increase the likelihood the land will be available for larger square foot users. Although Ginise says his clients agree with the idea to market to the large user, flexibility will accommodate the need, not restrictions. Perhaps there is some middle ground.

Lost Some Business

Visalia Economic Development executive director Glenn Morris agrees “we’ve lost some business because we didn’t have the land” and hopes we can move forward “in the next few months” on a solution. He says the concern from property owners in the industrial park is that “too much inventory will hurt the market” but agrees that “the sellers (Doe and Vargas) are in the driver’s seat” on this issue. “I think we can work it out.”

Some believe a compromise will save the day. If no land comes into the City of Visalia this industrial park will lack large parcels available for purchase. It should be noted that the city took several hundred acres of what could have been light industrial property off the table a few years when they rezoned land east of Shirk to housing. New we have housing coming to our area and not enough industrial land available. But the other end of the spectrum, Oldfield and Pickett & Sons and others have tried to fill a perceived void for parcels for sale on the smaller size from half an acre to 1.8 acre. Butch Oldfield is developing 62 acres into 69 parcels all for sale for buildings of 5,000 feet to 20,000 feet and a few acres for some large buildings.

But it’s on the larger parcel requests where Visalia has succeeded in attracting nationally known companies like JoAnn Fabrics (640,000 square feet and 300 plus jobs) in recent years that has put Visalia on the industrial site locators radar screen. JoAnn Fabrics, by the way, has inventoried land to add another 400,000 square feet they bought and reportedly has plans to do so in the next few years. In the past two years the report details, Visalia has developed over 2.2 million square feet—almost as much as it developed in the previous ten years from 1994 to 2003—2.6 million square feet.

Sometimes a big industry will come to town only when there is buying opportunity. That’s the case of one of last year’s biggest catches—California Dairies who could employ several hundred in the next year when they purchased and are now rehabing the former Frito Lay plant. Food processors are Visalia’s most important industrial prospects and tend to be good employers.

Tulare has the same problem—few large parcels available for sale ready to build on and is working on their general plan update to add hundreds of acres in several locations to accommodate this need. In the past that city set up an industrial site foundation to work with the city to get infrastructure built to attract companies but work primarily with companies that end up owning their own facility, the result has been a very successful industrial formula that potentially could work in Visalia.

The city consultant is expected to file his final report in the next few days recommending what approach the city council might take to sort this out. Then the issue should come to council shortly.

Competition is as American as apple pie and without it, there is the danger Visalia will be the loser. Without competition for land within Visalia we will not be competitive with other Valley cities when vying for the jobs of the future. The city’s industrial park implementation plan calls for a ten year supply of annexed land zoned industrial. The problem is that Visalia’s industrial boom on average saw an addition of a million square feet year for the past few years means a ten year supply requires hundreds of acres of additional land right now. If not at this location—where? The question is—what is the city waiting for?

Author’s note: By way of disclosure, Russell Doe sits on the Valley Voice board of directors but in no way has tried to influence the material for this article.

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Tulare County - The Central Valley orange crop maturing now on the trees is expected to be 27 percent below last year’s crop. USDA released their forecast this past week saying that this year’s crop will be about 66 million cartons down from 91 million cartons last year. The estimate is based on a survey of 557 navel orange groves throughout the state. More than half of those surveyed were in Tulare County—the state’s number one orange producing county.

The survey showed that fruit set on average trees was down to just 280 pieces of fruit per tree in Tulare County—close to a low in the past 20 years. Average diameter for this year’s crop as of September 1 is 2.26 inches—about average for this time of the year. Farmers seek a larger fruit size to improve their returns. The bane of the industry is a large crop with small sizes.

Hurting production in citrus as it has across the crop spectrum was weather related impacts including a wet spring and July’s heat wave that decimated the pomelo crop in Tulare County.

Citrus Research Board president Ted Batkin says the crop size was not unexpected in that citrus appears to have on/off years. “It’s not a disaster but it does call for good crop management,” says Batkin, including the use of Gib to keep what crop we have on the trees. “The good news is that a smaller crop may well mean higher prices to growers.”

Batkin says demand for oranges is good and some of California’s rivals like Florida have seen a smaller crop as well. “Florida is expecting the smallest crop in 20 years,” he says. Citrus for other parts of the world have had their troubles as well.

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Tulare County - Centex Homes will move its operations to the multi story Cigna building on Akers next year as the home builder has completed a lease with Cigna Healthcare for 50,000 square feet. Centex director of forward planning Cliff Ronk confirms the move saying “some 200 employees will be relocating mostly from separate buildings in the Visalia Central Park office complex on Walnut.” He says the move will affect Centex Homes, CTX Mortgage, Commerce Title and Centex Design Center. The companies will be grouped on the north side of the building with a separate entrance, says Ronk offering a better visibility for the company in one of the largest buildings in Visalia. Already construction work has started on the tentative improvements, confirms Cigna division manager Phil Boucher.

Boucher says talks with Centex have been going on for months after the big insurance company realized it had more square footage than it needed in the 150,000 square foot building. At one time they were talking to the county to least space.

Boucher says Cigna has changed its model and with automation they can do the same job they did before with 1000 to 1200 employees now with just 800 on average. He says the company is currently hiring about 100 new employees at Cigna that will take their desks by November 1. Boucher says the company has changed its policy on how many workers telecommute—a practice they encouraged before but now less so. “The key issue related to customer data,” an important consideration he says. “We feel it’s better we keep all the information under lock and key in our building,” he points out. Because the insurance company will have lower employee count below 1000, Cigna and the City of Visalia agreed to change their contract that called for the insurance company to keep its employment above the 1000 threshold in exchange for breaks it got from the city when they moved in. The changes were approved by the city council late last month.

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Tulare County - California will be the first state in the US to require industries, including farmers, to lower greenhouse gas emissions. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger long ago broke ranks with President Bush over this issue adamantly declaring that global warming threats are real and California needs to do something about it.

With the agreement of the Democrats in the legislature a bill mandating the state to cap greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by 2020 will be signed into law. That will require a reduction of about 25 percent of CO2 emissions from cars and trucks, power plants, refineries, industry and cows. Greenhouse gases include CO2 mostly from fossil burning and methane from petroleum systems, landfills, natural sources, swamps and cattle.

A key component of the new law would be to authorize carbon caps and trades for various industries once an inventory of emissions is done. An emission market would allow a business the flexibility of choice between investing in technology that would reduce emissions or buy a credit from elsewhere. Basically you tax the so-called “bad actors” that emit carbon into the atmosphere. As far back as 1897 a scientist predicted carbonic acid released into the arctic region would raise temps 8 to 9 degrees. That was when CO2 in the atmosphere was a third lower than today.

Cleaner Cars Will Help

Sources say about one third of the emissions cut will come from lower tail pipe emission standards already passed into law last year in California - a law being challenged by American car makers. Last week a Fresno judge said he would rule on a request to throw out an automobile industry challenge to the new law set to go into effect on 2009 models of cars sold in the state. Under the legislation, cars and light trucks would cut their exhaust emissions by 25 percent.

The remainder will come from a combination of approaches including switching more of the state’s fuel to biofuel including ethanol. The state ARB is expected to approve a plan to up the percentage of ethanol in California gas tanks to 10 percent from 5.7 percent currently in the next few months. Ethanol releases far fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Likewise a plan to add biofuel to all diesel fuel sales in the state is being considered. The plan would extend the state fuel supply while lowering greenhouse gases. The more gas tanks you fill with ethanol the less CO2 wafts into the air trapping heat. The spread of E-85 stations in California will enable more cars to use 85 percent ethanol fuel.

Pushing solar electricity, Schwarzenegger will try to get more solar energy installed in the state, promote wind power to increase our electricity supply and push more plug-in hybrid cars.

Stumping for the plan Schwarzenegger said last month that the measure “strengthens our economy and cleans our environment.” The governor believes the mandate to require more efficient and renewable sources of power will stimulate innovation in the business sector.

Methane, which is 20 times more potent in trapping heat compared to CO2, will now face new controls.

Significantly for dairymen methane is identified as other greenhouse gases that will be covered but offers no details on how it will be cataloged, monitored or regulated.

“Who is going to pay for the research?” asked Michael Marsh, CEO of Western United Dairymen. He is concerned about how a mandated reduction would effect small and large dairies who have different levels of emissions to comply with what could be costly technology.

But some believe the law could stimulate the use of biomethane to produce power that both sequesters the problem gas and provides a financing mechanism to do it - power or gas sales. Biomethane is a natural gas substitute. It will be up to state regulatory agencies who, by 2008 must limit gas emissions of the largest producers in the state according to the bill, AB32.

California Becoming Third World?

Critics of the whole idea, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute, criticized the legislation with headlines that “California Votes to Join the Third World” points to the high costs businesses in California will have to pay in an era when jobs and whole industries are fleeing California due to high costs.

“This will drive jobs to other states,” they say.

Others say Schwarzenegger’s push of this legislation is strictly symbolic and is a clear political ploy in an election year.

If power companies are mandated to cut their emissions they will simply buy power from out of state—some of who use coal to generate electricity - a fuel source very high in CO2, argue critics.

Even supporters agree that California’s emission reduction will be small on a world-wide basis if other states don’t follow by adopting the same plan. California produces about 10 percent of the U.S. emission of carbon dioxide and 2.5 percent of the world’s CO2. But Senator Diane Feinstein hailed the legislation, pointing to the fact that seven Northeast states in the U.S. are forming a cap and trade emissions plan similar to the one being envisioned by California. Europe has a cap and trade emission program. Schwarzenegger says he believes like other trends in which California leads the way, history suggests other states will follow the plan to curb the greenhouse gases.

Indeed, a carbon trading program will be key to making the plan work, says its author, and the emission trading could go on nationally or even internationally. At least one major oil company with a big presence in California vowed to cooperate with Schwarzenegger’s plan. In a statement released September 4th, BP Oil said they were ready to sign up.

“After speaking with Governor Schwarzenegger, I believe that, through his leadership, a fully functioning market will become an integral part of the system to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” said BP Group Executive John Brown. “Having an emissions market will help California achieve the lowest solutions and spur innovation of new technologies supporting lower greenhouse gas emissions.”

BP annually reports its greenhouse gas emissions and has made significant reductions in those emissions over the years. The company has long advocated the use of emission “cap and trading” programs to achieve emissions reductions and is an active participant in the European Union emissions reduction market.

Whatever comes out of the debate over the costs of cutting emissions, Schwarzenegger has made it clear in several major state reports that the cost of not fighting global warming is higher still.

Plagues and Pestilence

A recent state report from the California Climate Change Center to the California Energy Commission found warmer temps from global warming would likely continue but moderate depending on how much we cut greenhouse emissions in the next few years. Figuring we cut these heat-trapping emissions enough to cut back the warming range to just 3 to 5 degrees F by 2070, California would still suffer a 30 to 60 percent loss in Sierra snowpack, a rise of 6 to 14 inches of sea level, 2 to 2.5 times as many heat waves, a 25 percent increase in smoggy days, up to a 1.5 times increase in critically dry years, up to a 6 percent increase in electricity demand, up to a 14 percent decrease in forest yields and as much as a 35 percent increase in the risk of wildfires. All together, it’s not a pretty picture. If emissions are not controlled the temps could warm on average 8 to 10 degrees and the litany of plagues would be even worse, says the report done by the state agency.

The July heat storm, as it is now being called, that generated several hundred millions in damage to Tulare County crops may be a wake up call to farmers who are watching the global warming debate. The same report suggests continued high emissions will push up demand for water, in turn making water supplies less reliable, raise ozone damage that reduce crop yield, increase pest outbreaks and diseases. Increasing temps will impact fruit development, reduce chill hours for fruit and nuts for example, reduce milk supply, cause increasing quality and pest problems in grapes for example, expand the spreading of ag weeds, increase the pink bollworm spread in cotton for example. At the same time our Sierra snowpack is reduced there will be less summer power production coming from hydro plants sending power costs higher.

Farm industry and all Californian’s can debate how this new cap and trade system will work and the state appears ready to use market mechanisms proven in other parts of the world and the US to clean up emission producing industry and cars by the time it goes into effect in 2012.

Mandating higher efficiency in the power and oil fuel vehicles we use could get us a long way toward reducing these emissions, say experts. An example a German company passed out one free long lasting light bulb to all its customers and it was cheaper than building another power plant. Likewise in fuel efficiency where US customers are now learning the benefit of hybrid and electric cars vs fuel guzzlers that require increasing oil imports from unstable parts of the world. California has recently mandated increased standards for homes and buildings.

Utilities In The Way?

Some say it’s fine of the state to push renewable energy, but some effort has to be made to make sure the big private utilities don’t get in the way. That was the case in Visalia some months ago when a group of farmers led by nut farmer Brian Blain wanted to start a biomass plant next to the City of Visalia’s wastewater treatment plant. The deal fell short when it became clear that utility stand-by costs were so high it made the project uneconomical even though it would have recycled wood waste into electric power.

Europe, where they are leading the way in technology to develop more renewables like wind, solar and even ocean generated power, is moving toward 25 percent reliable on renewable energy vs traditional oil, coal and nuclear supplies. Japan too is moving toward renewables.

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By George Lurie

Visalia - It's a subterranean situation that has been in existence for nearly a century. But earlier this year, a study was commissioned by the City of Visalia to explore the viability of resurfacing historic Mill Creek, which currently flows through concrete culverts buried beneath large sections of downtown Visalia.

The $50,000 feasibility study was approved by the Visalia city council in June and is attached to a parallel project to create a “water feature” at the soon-to-be-developed Civic Center. The second part of the study will provide recommendations to city staff regarding the financial and engineering challenges involved with “daylighting,” and rerouting, sections of Mill Creek and Jennings Ditch between Tipton St. where they are channeled underground all of the way west to Court St.

Results of the study are scheduled to be presented to the Visalia city council later this year.

The decision to bury and divert Mill Creek was made during the early and mid-1900s as Visalia's downtown commercial district was developed.

The effort to resurface it makes sense to many around town. Cool, gurgling H2O; creek side shopping and dining; a tree-lined pedestrian-only river walk ala Berkeley or San Antonio, Texas: It's an idea that many business owners, civic leaders and city residents have already said they are more than willing to support and help fund.

An administrative draft of the feasibility study to create a water feature as part of the new Civic Center is due to be completed this week and then reviewed by city staff. The next proposed study, which has yet to be approved by city council, is expected to look at the feasibility of resurfacing and daylighting Mill Creek.

Both studies are being undertaken by local engineering firm Provost & Pritchard and should shed additional light on the possibilities of reclaiming Visalia's long-buried asset.

“The creek has some obvious social as well as economic value to the community,” said Brian Kempf, director of the Urban Tree Foundation and one of the earliest advocates of resurfacing Mill Creek. Kempf dreams of a place amid commercial hustle and bustle of downtown and the coming Civic Center where people can “get outside and have a picturesque place to take a stroll.”

Dick Moss, who is overseeing the compilation of the feasibility study at Provost & Pritchard, reports: “We're putting the finishing touches on the scope study to help the city understand the fundamental hydraulics and hydrology of Mill Creek and Jennings Ditch. Whatever we do has to be done in conformance with those who own the water rights.”

Moss said that the city goes into its planning phase for the new Civic Center, “Our study will try to provide the building blocks for the architects, who can take our information and adequately design a new water feature for the new Civic Center.”

City Manager Steve Salomon believes that Mill Creek could finally see the light of day as it runs through the downtown commercial district.

“East of Tipton, we're looking at water flow and water acquisition kinds of challenges, how you get water in there and keep it in there in the summer,” said Salomon, another earlier supporter of the proposal to daylight Mill Creek. “The other issue we are facing, as I understand it, is where exactly will the channel flow and what kinds of capacity will it have.”

While admitting there is still much preliminary work to be done, Salomon remains upbeat about the possibility of Visalia developing its own signature river walk.

“This project continues to have some good momentum,” Salomon said, adding that he and the members of the city council are looking forward to reviewing the results gleaned by Provost & Pritchard. “It's going to be very interesting to see what conclusions they come to.”

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By Terry L. Ommen

Visalia - Hidden beneath stores, offices and restaurants in downtown Visalia flows a meandering creek. This old waterway has been buried for almost a century, but we may soon get a peek inside. For some time City of Visalia officials have toyed with the idea of giving us a look into this submerged channel.

No one knows when the creek first appeared on the Valley floor, but it is clear that it was born from the mountain-building activity that created the Sierra Nevada. Water from snow melt carved out the Kaweah River and this important tributary.

Before the white man settled Visalia, the Yokuts Indians lived on the creek bank. They fished, hunted and gathered food on this fertile, swampy land that was located in the midst of a huge oak forest. Explorers and travelers passed through this area and commented on the numerous creeks and streams and as a result, the area became known as Four Creeks Country.

In the fall of 1852 pioneers arrived here, settling on the north side of the creek. The abundance of water and the rich, fertile soil attracted them to the area. As Visalia began to develop, settlers built a bridge over the creek and the road to the bridge became Bridge Street. Shortly thereafter, a grist mill was constructed next to the creek and thus the creek was named. As the town spread out, more bridges were built, wells were dug and buildings were constructed adjacent to the water. Raw sewage was dumped into the waterway as was trash and debris.

About half of the year water flowed freely, pushing the unwanted waste materials westbound out of the city. But when water was scarce the waste material would rot in the dry creek bed. To make matters worse, hot temperatures coupled with the decomposing waste resulted in a lingering wretched odor, not to mention the threat of disease or the mosquito menace. At one time a dam was built upstream and water was released periodically to “flush Mill Creek.” However, too much water also became a problem. During heavy mountain run-off periods, the creek would overflow, flooding the town.

Attempts were made to fix the problems associated with the creek. In 1910, a plan was implemented to build a concrete conduit enclosure around the channel, and work was completed in December of that year. Covered and encased with smooth concrete walls, Mill Creek went underground. Buildings and roads could now be built over it; trash and odor could be controlled as well .Overflowing banks would be diminished as water flowed freely and unobstructed. When completed, the Tulare County Times newspaper predicted, “The creek in the business district will become but a memory.”

Today Mill Creek can be seen near Santa Fe and Main as it slips under downtown and reappears near Floral and Acequia. For the most part, the submerged portion of Mill Creek has become a memory as predicted, but occasionally the forgotten section becomes a topic for discussion. In 1915, for example, part of the concrete lined creek bed was suggested as a public swimming pool, and in the 1950s and 1960s, Mill Creek was mentioned as a possible bomb shelter site. In 1955-56 the downtown portion of Mill Creek became a major topic of discussion once again. Visalia was flooding and workmen were frantically trying to find the cause. Eventually they found that a large log had lodged in the channel plugging it up. Sections were opened and the log was removed.

Over the years Mill Creek has been a source of pride for the community, but it has also been the focus of much ridicule. But whether you loved it or hated it, this creek has played a major role in shaping Visalia, and it looks like there may be more in store for the creek that has spent so much time hidden under the town.

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The US Climate Prediction Center announced September 13 the “return of El Nino” to the U.S. Ocean temps in the Pacific have increased making it likely we will have a winter characterized by El Nino conditions beginning perhaps by the first of the year. El Nino conditions mean the likelihood of a warmer winter and equal chance for a wet winter. The agency reported the strong El Nino condition may be one factor suppressing this year’s hurricane activity in the Caribbean. It typically brings drier conditions to the Pacific Northwest. A strong El Nino can bring strong storms to California.

A large wildfire in Ventura County that started on September 4 is now creating air-pollution problems in the San Joaquin Valley, and could create air-quality concerns as far north as Merced County. Meteorologists from the Valley Air District expect that smoke from the fire will begin working its way further north into the Valley. Due to the fire’s increasing size, combined with winds continuing to come from the south and southwest, the smoke is expected to create poor air quality the next several days in the Valley portion of Kern County, as well as Tulare, Kings, Fresno, Madera and Merced counties.

At their meeting this week, Visalia city councilors, on a 3-2 vote, granted an extension to builders, who now have 60 additional days before they must remove their large but illegal signs that direct prospective buyers to area subdivisions. Councilman Greg Collins and Mayor Jesus Gamboa voted to oppose the extension, which allows builders to ignore a city ordinance and keep their signs posted until Nov. 21. Bemoaning the visual clutter that decorates the neighborhoods around many new subdivisions, a frustrated Collins said: “Only time will tell if Visalia gets cleaned up of these signs.” Two public hearings to review the controversial ordinance will be held in the next month, one before the Visalia Planning Commission and another before the city council.

Decision time for Ag Jobs legislation. Nisei Farmers League president Manuel Cunha says Senate and House discussions could lead to an Ag Jobs bill as part of the immigration bill to be passed by Congress later this year. Others have written it off this session. Farmers are fighting the House plan of passing a border security bill only hoping a Guest Worker plan can still be part of what is passed. “We have a shot at it and the next two weeks will tell,” says Cunha. Look for legislation to be presented to Congress by the end of the month and a vote after the November election, he says.

Big air issue is on the horizon as the Valley Air Board asked the valley air basin to tighten up emissions even more over the next few years to meet the 8 hour standard mandated by EPA. A report of the issue will be released next month with the Air Board making a decision next spring. “I don’t know where we are going to get 400 tons more of Nox and VOCs,” says ag industry leader Manuel Cunha, “particularly when the Air Board has no control over mobile emissions that make up a huge part of the problem.” Farms that Cunha are working with are planning the valley’s first diesel plan that could help cut emissions in the valley by mandating that all diesel be blended with a small portion of biodiesel for example. “We want to grow all the crop to produce it right here, not truck or train them in.”

An ad hoc committee has been appointed to study the feasibility of a joint venture between VUSD and the city to build a year-round swimming facility in town. The task force will determine if we can afford a 50 meter pool to accommodate competitive swimming meets. Right now recreational swimming in Visalia has to happen during a 10 week window during the busy summer season. A year round facility would accommodate both competition and recreational swimming expanding the benefits. Greg Collins and Robert Stephenson are heading up the effort.

Visalia city council is expected to approve a recommendation to hire San Francisco based urban planners EDAW to oversee the master planning of the East Visalia plan including the new Civic Center. The international company has over 1000 employees and specializes in landscape architecture for clients that often seek to bolster their waterways as part of an urban renewal project. Mill Creek is expected to be the centerpiece of the East Visalia project expected to break ground in as little as two years east to Tipton St. EDAW will bring in some local expertise on their team.

Speaking of Mill Creek, the City of Visalia is considering a plan to halt discharging any wastewater into Mill Creek because of tighter Regional Water Quality board rules.

The nation’s top builder D.R. Horton is starting a new project in Tulare - 110 units of condos on the corner of Mooney and Prosperity in Tulare. Building condos for sale will enable the company to offer an entry level product that is less expensive than the typical single family home.

Rita Woodard’s election to the newly consolidated auditor-controller/treasurer-tax collector post continues to be challenged by her opponent in the June race, Ron Medlock. Together with his campaign supporter and fellow accountant Robert Fatica, Medlock argued last week before Tulare County Superior Court Judge Lloyd Hicks that Woodard did not meet the necessary qualifications to run for the auditor-controller portion of the job.

In a related matter, Tulare County Supervisors rejected an invitation from Superior Court to file an “amicus” (friend of the court) brief in the matter.

Following a closed session with county counsel last week, supervisors announced they did feel it would be appropriate for them to do so.

During the 30-minute trial, Hicks told Medlock and Fatica, who appeared without an attorney, that they needed more legal foundation before they could introduce a letter as evidence that Fatica said showed Woodard’s accounting degree came from the unaccredited and now defunct University of Beverly Hills.

Hicks granted the challengers an additional week to put together their case and this Friday at 9 a.m. when the trial reconvenes, Medlock and Fatica will be joined at the plaintiff’s table by prominent Visalia attorney Phil Bourdette of Bourdette & Partners, who’s agreed to volunteer his services to the two accountants in their ongoing legal challenge of Woodard’s nearly two-to-one election victory.

Woodard’s attorney, Hanford-based Jann Kahn declined to comment after last week’s court appearance but was clearly frustrated by the delay.

Woodard has not spoken publicly about the controversy since her election to the county’s top financial post, which comes with an annual salary of $110,869.

What issue has people fuming the most? High gasoline prices. Now just weeks before the election, gas prices have plummeted and some folks smell politics. A California Proposition (87) supporting alternative energy would tax companies and use the anger at oil companies to fuel their campaign. President Bush knows well the impact angry consumers can do on voting day and so do oil companies, cynics say. But others suggest a confluence of factors, no hurricane, peace for the moment between Israel and its neighbors, a decline in most commodity prices and the end of the driving season, have more to do with the decline. Ethanol prices too, have tumbled.

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