Joint Strike Fighter Team Visits Base
LNAS Spokesman Set to Retire

Lemoore - Naval Air Station Public Information Officer Dennis McGrath has seen the base grow in his 27 years on the job and that growth could continue if the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program comes to Lemoore in the near future.
McGrath is set to retire July 3 and was on hand a few weeks ago when a large Navy team visited the base to make a recommendation to the brass on where to house the new Navy fighter wing. “They wanted to see the hanger space and other facilities to see how much existing space we have,” says McGrath who expects the Navy version of the F-35 to be operational in 2012.

“We're the last in line after the Air Force and Marines” to get the new planes. The plane's Marine version went through a successful test flight earlier this month, setting the stage for full production by Lockheed Martin.
McGrath says he has no clue if Lemoore will be selected to base the aircraft and supply the personnel who will fly and maintain them.

Locals have waited for the Navy to make an announcement about the Joint Strike Fighter's west coast home base for years after the plane's development in 2001.

McGrath has seen the base grow during his tenure with a number of conflicts and wars that have included LNAS over those years. When he first arrived, the base was still at about 5,000 active personnel from 1999 to 2003 and with the arrival of the Super Hornets, the base grew to 7,200 as four new fleet squadrons were brought here. Today, add in the civilian population, visitors and contractors and Navy families, and you have 10,000 to 12,000 people on the base every day.

Commissioned in 1961, the base is the Navy's newest air station and largest master jet air station. It is the home of the Pacific Strike Fighter Wing and home of the Hornet and Super Hornet fighter.

The base is considered attractive to the Navy because of the lack of urban encroachment nearby and the valley-wide open space and proximity to both the Pacific and desert areas where training takes place.

McGrath says over those years, he has seen a wholesale replacement and remodeling of facilities at the base – which continues today with the opening of the new tower in coming weeks that will provide the efficiency and safety for landings and takeoffs at the busy base. “They are moving in in July but it won't be completely operational until August when we retire the old flight tower.”

McGrath says some old buildings on the base will be demolished in part because they are energy hogs and new construction makes sense. Such is the case with the old hospital that he calls an “energy trap.” To save water, the base is replacing green lawns with rocks and zeroscape landscaping. “Our goal is to save 4% on water use every year.” The base has installed no-water urinals as well.

McGrath says once he retires, he plans to continue to live in Lemoore with his wife, write poetry and finish his “theological sound science fiction novel.”

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Mooney Project Worries
Caltrans, Chamber Work to Ease Concerns

By Steve Pastis

Visalia - With the jackhammering set to begin along Mooney Boulevard in Visalia on July 7 many local merchants have been worried about how the project would affect their businesses.

Caltrans plans to expand two miles of State Route 63 – Mooney Boulevard in the City of Visalia – from a four-lane to a six-lane divided highway. Dual left-turn lanes and exclusive right-turn lanes will be added at Caldwell, Tulare, Orchard and Beech avenues. At the same time, the city will upgrade Whitendale and Walnut avenues, as well as construct 20 bus turnouts.

The construction had been scheduled to end in December 2009, based on Caltrans' estimate of 240 rain-free workdays required to complete the project in six sections. This could be shortened by 100 days, however, according to Caltrans Public Affairs Officer Tami Conrado.

“They are trying to work that out with the contractor,” she said. “Caltrans resident engineers are weighing the possibility of doing some of the phases simultaneously. They have not worked all of this out yet. They're weighing the effects on traffic and any safety issues.”

Even with a shortened schedule, the project is a major one and still has the perceived potential to disrupt businesses along Mooney. The Visalia Chamber of Commerce has set up a Coffee Klatch Committee to make sure that all Mooney Boulevard merchants – as well as all who shop, dine or otherwise patronize their businesses – have all the information they need to resolve their concerns about the construction.

In addition to scheduling its work at night – 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. (10 p.m. to 6 a.m. during the holidays) – Caltrans has been working with merchants by participating in the Coffee Klatch meetings and meeting directly with them to answer their questions and solve their problems.

As a result, there are Mooney business owners who are ready for the project to begin.
“We're looking forward to it,” said Scott Rothe, manager of Red Carpet Car Wash at 1411 S. Mooney Blvd. “The construction may be difficult, but it's insignificant in terms of widening the street.”

Rothe has been actively participating in the process, working with the chamber and with Caltrans.
“We were involved early on with Caltrans,” he said, adding that dust generated from the project was his major concern. He was asked if more dust on cars in the area might increase his business.

“The other side of the coin is that it's hard to clean a car if dust is blowing,” he responded. “But it's my feeling that they will do a really good job of keeping the dust down.”

“I'm happy they're doing something on that street,” said James Kirk, general manager of Ryan's Place Restaurant at 3103 S. Mooney Blvd. “I think in the long term, it will be a net benefit.

“Mooney Boulevard is terrible to get up and down,” he added. “I know there are people who avoid Mooney Boulevard during certain times. The holidays are the worst. It takes 20 to 30 minutes to move two or three blocks down the road.”

Kirk, who admitted he was “not informed enough about the project yet,” said things would be OK “as long as the traffic is flowing normally during business hours.” He said that his district manager would attend meetings about the second phase of the project to, among other things, “find out how much they're cutting back into our front yard.”
He hopes that during the construction, people will continue driving on Mooney Boulevard.

“If they start heading down Demaree, there's a lot of other businesses there,” he said.

“I see it as nothing but a plus,” said Butch Ruddy, owner of Ruddy's Appliances at 1411 S. Mooney Blvd. “I think that Caltrans has addressed everybody's concerns and has made an effort to get this done the right way.”

Ruddy, who became involved in the chamber “to see that Mooney Boulevard gets the recognition it deserves,” has been a key player in the Coffee Klatch. He suggested the formation of the group.

“We used to have a Mooney Blvd. organization years ago,” he said.

The current Coffee Klatch has been productive for Ruddy.

“At the last meeting, we had a good representation from Caltrans,” he said. “They were very receptive to our concerns. They said that every attempt would be made so that all businesses would have some access during their business hours.

“I was concerned about parking,” he added. “What I asked for I'm apparently going to get.”
Being in the first phase is good because “we don't have to worry about the cement drying,” according to Ruddy. “The downside is that we'll be the learning curve.

“I think I can deal with it,” he said, adding that he remembers the last widening of Mooney Boulevard, from one lane in each direction to two lanes on each side.

Darlene Mayfield of the Visalia Chamber of Commerce remembers the past also.
“Mooney Boulevard was known as 'the Miracle Mile' in the old days, and this project will bring back the beautiful charm of the boulevard,” she said.

Mayfield helped start the Coffee Klatch to improve communication and awareness, “so that consumers can go to places in a timely manner.” She explained that the lines of communications established by the Coffee Klatch can help businesses find answers to questions like “Why don't I have hot water?” or “Is my driveway going to be closed for Christmas?”

“We're happy to find a solution that works for everyone,” said Caltrans Senior Transportation Engineer Victor Shaw. “Listening to business concerns and getting feedback will enable us to address these concerns.”

“Our biggest concern revolved around the hours,” said Merrie Ann Millar, general manager of Visalia Mall. “The (Coffee Klatch) meeting and Caltrans meeting with us have been extremely helpful and eased a lot of concerns.”
Millar plans to do a window display with maps and updates about the project “somewhere near customer service” in the mall. “We are going to do some signage to help customers in and out of the parking lots,” she added.
“We're going to keep as much access to the businesses as possible,” said Conrado, who said that Caltrans will attend Coffee Klatch meetings “as requested.”

“If we're invited, we will definitely be there,” she said.

The next meeting of the Coffee Klatch Committee is scheduled for 8 a.m. Thursday, July 10 in the Mangano Community Room of the Visalia Chamber of Commerce, 220 N. Santa Fe St. (at Oak).

For construction schedules, updates, lane closures and commuter alerts, call the Caltrans toll-free project information hotline at 866-740-9230 or visit the chamber's homepage at www.visaliachamber.org.

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VAM Returns Oct. 3-5

By Steve Pastis

This year's Visalia All Music (VAM) Festival will be held in Downtown Visalia Oct. 3-5, according to Aaron Gomes, who was named VAM coordinator on Monday by Downtown Visalians.

Terri Palomo of Downtown Visalians will assist in scheduling the bands that will perform outdoors. She has been coordinating the bands that play on Main Street on Friday nights.

This year's festival will kickoff with a band playing at the Farmer's Market on Thursday night. Friday will feature Blues, Brews and Barbecue.

“Saturday will be the biggest band day,” Gomes said, adding that there will be live music at The Cellar Door, the Fox Theatre, Café 210 and other venues to be announced. “We're looking at five street bands and probably another five-to-seven bands in paid venues.”

The Tulare County Symphony has scheduled a concert at the Fox Theatre on Saturday, Oct. 4. Gomes is hoping to publicize that event as part of this year's VAM Festival.
“The goal of VAM is to really represent all genres,” he said. “It's a musical aspect that we haven't incorporated in the past.”

Sunday will feature “large bands,” according to Gomes, who is working to include a popular local Latin rock band.
Gomes was selected as this year's VAM coordinator because of his experience and reputation as a promoter. He handled the budgeting and coordinating of the bands at The Cellar Door during last year's VAM Festival and noted that, “We did well financially. The two nights were completely sold out.”

“We met with him and discussed things and felt he could work within the parameters,” said Vernon Barr, president of Downtown Visalians, who said that the budget was a main parameter.

“In terms of Downtown Visalians, we're willing to put some money into it, but we're not underwriting the thing,” Barr said. “We will provide financial support.”

Barr estimated that support as between $5,000 and $7,500. Last year, the first VAM Festival resulted in a cost to Downtown Visalians of more than $51,000.

“We're not talking about a four-day event this year,” he said. “It's going to be scaled back from what it was.”
There will be other changes also. VAM attendees will not have to wear a bracelet this year to show that they have paid to attend all events. Each venue will handle its own admission charges.

“We want it to be free to the public,” Barr said. “Individual venues may charge as they coattail on this.”
“VAM is going to be an umbrella (for venues) to do what they want to do,” Gomes said, “but we'll be helping advertise and coordinate their music events.

“This year, the tone is 'We've got to make this work financially, but we can't sacrifice the caliber of entertainment,'” he said.

“It's sort of my lot in life to coordinate this,” said Gomes, who promotes local concerts under his business name, Sound & Vision. “I want to see VAM work. I don't want to see it disappear. Concerts are such an integral part of the community and people's lives.

“We do not make a ton of money doing these events,” he added. “It's more of a labor of love this year than a chance for financial gain. From the Sound & Vision perspective, we are interested in having this play out to get people to come out for concerts in the long run.”

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Real Estate Woes
Big Builders Exiting – Title Companies Closing – New Start for Veteran Realtor

Three of Tulare County's big national homebuilders are exiting the local market, leaving real estate development to the handful of builders who have been here prior to the real estate bubble years of 2005-2007.

So far this year, Beazer Homes, D.R. Horton and Pacific Union Homes have all indicated they will leave the Tulare County marketplace, including Visalia, once their current projects are completed. Beazer's Monte Montemagni told the Voice it “will not move forward” on its large masterplan community at Walnut and Lovers Lane called Quail River – a new home subdivision of some 200 units – leaving a subdivision of weed-filled curbs and gutters with a fence around it.
Likewise, D.R. Horton has informed the city of Visalia it plans to no longer build homes in town after its current project is built out, says city chief building official Dennis Lehman. Earlier this year, Pacific Union Homes sold off the remainder of its subdivisions and is no longer building homes here.

Another troubled builder, Reynen and Bardis, is no longer active here and has half-built homes that may soon be auctioned off by the lender.

Visalia Stewart Title Closing

Signs of more woes in the real estate market is the news that Stewart Title will close its Visalia office on Whitendale at the end of June, confirms Kings/Tulare County manager Cathy Maxwell. “We will keep our Porterville and Hanford offices open,” says Maxwell. The Visalia office, once busy with 20 employees, is today down to about 10. Technology and the general real estate downturn have caused a slowdown in business, she says.
Indeed, there may be fewer players in this business with the ability to do escrow work from a centralized location. That's particularly true with foreclosed homes where escrows are often handled out of the area, says realtor Brad Maaske.

“Lots of these big banks sign contracts for services nationwide,” agrees Dennis Lehman. “Local offices are more for the convenience of local customers.” But realistically, papers can be signed electronically from long distances.
One industry source suggested we may have lost about 50% of the escrow professionals in the business during the real estate downturn.

Deb Perry, president of the California Escrow Association, says offices involved with REO properties, lender-owned, are very busy while others are not. “Because of the downsizing of the industry in the past year, there are fewer people doing more work in some cases.”

McMillin Homes is expected to make a change in its escrow business – currently in-house with an announcement expected later this week. Also, Fireside Bank at 3100 S. Mooney in Visalia has closed its doors as part of a 19-branch closure abandoned a few months ago tied to the subprime problems. A bail bonds company has leased its former Visalia space.

First American in Tulare Closing?

Not commenting at press time is First American Title over reports from the realtors that the company plans to close its Tulare office at 99 Tower Square. The Tulare manager said it would comment at a later time. If proven out, Tulare would be left with only Chicago Title with an office in town after the closure earlier of Financial Title.

New Franchise

The upheaval in the local real estate market has meant new alliances in the past year including the rapid rise of the Keller Williams real estate franchise here. Now another veteran realtor, Teymour Farhang, is starting a new real estate firm – Prudential California Realty at 1410 S. Mooney – the former location of Avidian Real Estate. Farhang, a broker here for nearly 30 years, says the new firm will start with a handful of people and grow from there.
Despite the gloom, there are indications the pace of home sales is good here with several real estate firms reporting busy May sales, although at low prices. May's median sales price was about $190,000. At least one new home subdivision has just broken ground – Cotton Tail Hollow in Goshen being built by Smee Homes with a starting price of $159,000 for a 1,000-square-foot home and $204,900 for a 1,900-square-foot option.
One cloud hanging over FHA buyers – the majority of the buyers in Tulare County – is a rule change set to begin as of July 14 tightening the rules for buyers.

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Sequoia National Forest Observing Centennial

By Rick Elkins

On July 1, 1908, Sequoia National Forest was formed and today it covers more than 1 million acres and is home to more than 35 groves of Giant Sequoias.

On July 1, 2008, the forest, which spans from northern Fresno County into Kern County, will mark its centennial with an open house from 8 a.m. until noon at the forest headquarters, 1839 S. Newcomb St. in Porterville.

“It was one of several forests established in 1908,” noted Tina Terrell, Sequoia National Forest Supervisor, the 20th person to hold that position. She said the forest was part of a much larger forest reserve but in 1908, President Teddy Roosevelt broke the 6-million-acre reserve into several forests, the Inyo, Kern, Mono, Sierra, Stanislaus and the Sequoia. “They broke those up because they were big chunks of reserves, into national forests,” said Terrell.
According to a timeline done by the forest service, the federal Division of Forestry was established in 1881 and the Creative Act of 1891 set aside forest reserves. The Sierra Forest Reserve was established in 1893.

Sequoia National Forest's first supervisor was E.A. Sherman and the original forest covered 2.9 million acres. Today, it covers 1.2 million acres and is one of 19 forests in California.

The original mission of the forest is to provide a substantial supply of timber and a substantial water flow, said Terrell. She said in those early years, access was limited to roads for resources, mainly timber, so there were not as many opportunities for recreation as there are today.

In 1911, a couple of things occurred as to how the forest service fought fires, said Terrell. She said some catastrophic fires occurred that year claiming many lives and from then on the forest service had a policy to suppress fires whenever possible.

Some other significant dates in the history of the forest:
- 1909: First fire lookout established at Globe Rock.
- 1910: Kern National Forest splits off from SNF. It is put back in SNF in 1915.
- 1916: National Park Service established, officially making Sequoia and Grant Grove national parks. Those were established in 1890.
- 1931: Forest supervisor office set up in Porterville.
- 1940s: Congress creates Kings Canyon National Park.
- 1962: Great Western Divide Highway completed.
- 1963-64: Dome Land Wild Area established, followed by the Wilderness Act.
- 1978: Mineral King Valley transferred into Sequoia National Park.
- 1984: Golden Trout Wilderness established.
- 1990: Mediated settlement announced; timber harvesting greatly reduced.
- 2000: President Bill Clinton designates 329,000 acres as Giant Sequoia National Monument.
- 2002: McNally Fire burns record 151,000 acres, becoming the largest fire on the forest ever.

Del Penguilly, Tule District Ranger from 1976 to 2005, said the forest focus has changed over the years from supplying timber to almost no timber cutting at all. He said in the late 1960s, the forest was producing nearly 100 million board-feet of timber a year. “That was determined by how much you could grow year,” said Penguilly, adding, “Sequoia by far was not of the biggest suppliers of timber.”

Terrell said today the mission to supply timber and an amble water supply is the same, but there is more of a focus on recreation and fire suppression.

“We're trying to find out how to manage that,” she said of the logging. “On the monument, we're taking a different look. Most people recognize the forest for its recreational aspects. The national forest is a land for many uses. In some areas, it could include the removal of trees, to manage fire and to leave it untouched. It is to be used by current and future generations,” said Terrell.

She added that they estimate the forest has 1 million visits a year. An exact amount cannot be calculated because there is no fee to get into the forest. The forest offers 1,000 miles of abandoned roads and 850 miles of trails. The Pacific Crest Scenic Trail, which stretches from Canada to Mexico, crosses the SNF for 78 miles.
Cultural and Wildlife History

Terrell said the forest has a “huge cultural and social history.” She said it has been home to many Indian tribes who traversed the land years before white settlers came to the forest. Yokuts, Kawaiisu, Tuatulabal and Mono Indians all utilized portions of the forest. The Tule Indian Reservations covers a portion of the forest today.
The forest is also home to 339 species of vertebrates, 60 of which are game species. The California condor used to be found in the forest and the Golden Trout Wilderness is named for the fish that is only found in that area.
The Kern, Tule and Kings rivers all flow through the forest.

Giant Sequoias

The most famous aspect of the forest is the Giant Sequoia groves that dot the western slope of the forest – 39 groves in all.

“We do have the oldest and tallest trees in the world,” said Terrell. The trees can tower 270 feet high and reach 30 feet in diameter.

President Clinton's designation set aside 327,000 acres. “The land can be protected for its historical value. It set it aside for the protection for its uniqueness and the Giant Sequoias. It is an area where we have the unique opportunity for the presentation of the Giant Sequoias.”

Penguilly says the monument designation has not kept to its promise. “When the monument was created, it was promised recreation would make up for timber losses. That's never come to pass,” he said, pointing out that the lack of funds means no budget to create more recreational opportunities.

The fight over the monument continues, but the Sequoias continue to be a huge attraction. The Trail of a Hundred Giants, where Clinton came to sign his proclamation, is one of the most visited areas of the forest.

Sequoia groves can also be found in Mountain Home State Demonstration Forest, which is surrounded by SNF. Also in the forest is the popular Balch Park, a county park with campsites and a pond for fishing. And the Needles is one of the most popular rock climbing areas in California.

Despite the controversies over logging and other uses on the forest, SNF remains a popular place with “many natural and primitive areas with different aspects of accessibility,” said Terrell.

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Visalia Protests Power Line Choice
City Wants More Information on Alternate 4

By Rick Elkins

The city of Visalia is seeking an explanation why Southern California Edison discounted a fourth alternative to its plan to run high-voltage power lines into Tulare County.

Monday night, the city council approved sending a letter to the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) protesting the selected route for the 220-kilovolt power line into Visalia. In that letter, the city notes that questions posed to SCE regarding the controversial transmission lines have gone unanswered to date and the city is asking SCE officials to join the city to publicly discuss the proposal.

Edison submitted its plans for the transmission lines to the PUC in May with the preferred route for the lines drawing protests from many in the county. A group calling itself, PACE (Protect Agriculture, Communities, Environment) has organized to fight the proposed route that takes the power lines from south of Lake Kaweah east into Visalia along a line that runs just south of Highway 198. The lines go over acres of farmland (mainly orchards) and a planned industrial park in the city of Farmersville. That city and Exeter have gone on record against the preferred route.
SCE says the line is needed to provide more electricity to the growing Tulare County region and the Visalia City Council agreed.

“Staff proposes that the Mayor send a letter supporting the need for the project, while at the same time identifying that a lack of specific information has kept the City from fully assessing the alternatives,” the staff report to the council stated.

Issues the Visalia staff identified are:
· Visual impacts of the taller towers (120-to-160-foot poles)
· Impact of the lines on future development
· Impact of lines on property values
· Economic impacts
· Effects on tourism if lines within view of Highway 198
· Noise impacts
· Powerline easements
· Cost estimates and their impact on rate payers
· More details on Alternative 4

“In reviewing SCE's application materials, staff has also noted that a fourth transmission line route alternative was also considered by SCE but dropped due to apparent impedance from the long line distance from Big Creek transmission facility,” noted the staff report.

“This route would appear to have the least impact on current residents and developed areas and would seemingly avoid many of the controversial impacts.”

Dana Bullock, SCE project manager, said Alternative 4 was discounted early because of where it connects to the main power lines. She said SCE has Alternative 1 as the preferred route, with Alternatives 2 and 3 up for consideration as well. Those two are not ranked by SCE by preference.

Bullock emailed the explanation SCE had for eliminating Alternative 4.

“Alternative 4 is the least effective at meeting the project objectives of increasing transmission line capacity between SCE's Big Creek Hydroelectric Project in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the existing Rector Substation, and minimizing the need to reduce Big Creek Hydroelectric Project generation under transmission line outage conditions.”
Basically, she said Alternative 4 “doesn't do what it is suppose to do” because it is too far south.

Bullock said Tuesday she had a call into the city to set up a meeting to answer any questions the city council might have, adding, “I think we've provided all the information except for specific locations of the towers. However, she said specific locations of towers cannot be provided, only proposed locations, until the final engineering is done.
“We'll definitely sit down with the city and discuss everything,” she said.

When SCE Regional Manager Bill DeLain updated the Visalia Council in April on the power company's plans, he said he would get back with the council on several issues. “We want to get that information sooner than later,” said Mayor Jesus Gamboa in closing the discussion in April.

The PUC is expected take about a year to make its decision with the project slated for completion in mid-2011. However, the public comment period closes on July 8, although Bullock said the PUC will hold hearings in the county on the proposal. She said those hearings will be held in the near future.

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Second Front Page

What's New

Standard & Poor's upgraded the bond rating for the City of Visalia to A-plus from A. “In the short term, our bonds already out there become more valuable. In the long term, it means when we borrow money, we will be able to borrow it at a lower rate,” said City Manager Steve Salomon. He added the rating reflects the city's strong financial performance and standing.

No big surprise here. Fewer motorists are choosing to pump high octane gasoline. In 1997, premium gas was 16% of the nationwide fuel market. But today it has dropped to just 8%, says the U.S. Energy Information Service. Most stations have three choices at the pump island, but regular gas is the choice of up to 97% at many stations. The decline in premium use is bad news for station owners who profit from the higher priced fuel.

What's one of the most frequent queries to the new Tulare Ag Commission pest control expert? “We get lots of calls from residents worried about billions of tiny bugs that build up in former ag areas like subdivision vacant lots. These are the very abundant false cinch bug, says biologist Dennis Haines, who adds in hot dry weather the tiny critters look for moisture. “There's not much people can do about them,” admits Haines, who says at worst they are a big nuisance. “I've seen people put towels under the door to keep them out.”

Tulare and Kings counties each had a May unemployment rate of 9.5 percent, an increase over April and over May of last year. In Tulare County, the state reported 19,200 were seeking work in May. In Kings County, that number was 5,700. Those employed numbered 182,900 in Tulare and 54,300 in Kings. Visalia had an unemployment rate of 5.8 percent, Tulare 8 percent, Porterville 8.7, Hanford 8.3 and Lemoore 8 percent.

Breck Electric of Tulare will relocate to Goshen in August says the company's owner, Breck Altaffer. The company has leased the former Visalia Electric facility on Highway 99 gaining it about double the space it has in Tulare, says Breck. The firm offers motor rewind service and other electrical and refrigeration service to industry, commercial and agricultural businesses. Bill Whitlatch leased the space to the company.

Tad Edwards is planning on constructing a two-story office building at 500 Chinowth St. in Visalia. Fred Scott of Scott and Associates said the building does not have tenants yet, but will offer 8,240 square feet of space.

Rick Stacey, 56, of Visalia, has been appointed to the California Exposition and State Fair board of directors. Since 1985, he has worked for the Visalia Citrus Packing Group, where he currently serves as vice president of finance and administration and chief financial officer. He currently serves as treasurer for the Visalia Fruit Exchange and is a member of the Western Growers Association board of directors and the labor committee of California Citrus Mutual. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no salary. Stacey is a Republican.

Perine & Dicken Professional Fiduciaries and Conservators announced that partners Ronald Dicken, Patricia Dicken and Karen Steele were recently licensed as California Licensed Professional Fiduciaries and Certified National Guardians. State legislation recently formed the State Bureau of Professional Fiduciaries which now requires licensure of private fiduciaries for management of trusts, conservatorships and estates. Perine & Dicken in Visalia is the oldest firm in the area and currently the only licensed professional fiduciaries in the Central Valley.

Visalia City Council members voted to allocate $167,330 to 19 nonprofit organizations in the 2008-09 budget year that begins July 1. The vote affirmed a recommendation by the city's Citizens Advisory Committee which reviewed the grant applications. The dollar amount is the same as this year, when 16 groups received the city's help. This year, 26 organizations applied for grants, seeking a total of more than $500,000.

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Top of the News

City Plans Miles of City Street Work

The Visalia City Council Monday night approved spending $1.2 million this summer for 43 cap seal projects throughout the city. And, the bid came in under the estimate, allowing the city to do all 43 projects rather than 41 in the original bid.

Streets will be given a rubberized membrane layer with a slurry seal overcoat that is designed to add about 10 years to the life of the street. All streets destined for the work are listed as being in “poor condition.”

More Restaurants Closed in Visalia

Dicicco's Italian Restaurant closed its Visalia Mall location last month joining several other restaurants shutting their doors.

Others that have closed include Perko's in front of Kmart earlier this year and Bakers Square in front of the Sequoia Mall.

Sequoia Fire Affecting Pacific Crest Trail

A forest fire that has been burning in the South Sierra Wilderness in Sequoia National Forest has forced closure to parts of the Pacific Crest Trail that dissects SNF.

The fire began May 31 and because it is in a wilderness area and not threatening structures, it has been moderately suppressed. However, as of Tuesday there were 450 personnel on the fire using five helicopters and 19 engines. Those numbers have increased as the fire moved into Inyo County.

While that fire is not impacting air quality in the Valley, numerous fires in Mariposa County and the Indians Wildland Fire 14 miles west of King City, are sending smoke into the Valley, prompting a health advisory from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.

Visalia Council OK's $161 Million Budget

Visalia city council approved a “lean” $161million budget Monday night with a wait and see attitude on how the economy and the state budget plays out before making any more adjustments.

Councilman Greg Collins had indicated a desire to switch $325,000 of state vehicle license fee revenues to pay down debt, but council agreed it was better to wait for six months to make any adjustments to the budget that is based on falling revenues.

The city is projecting falling revenues from sales taxes and property taxes.

The city was able to come up with the $274,000 to construct Miki Sister City Park this year, but will still have to dip into the city's reserves for $300,000. Eric Frost, city Administrative Services director, said he was confident that there could be enough savings to cover that $300,000.

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