Conway held a commanding lead over three others, including Becky Maze, wife of Bill Maze who is currently the 34th District incumbent assemblyman, Tuesday. Conway held a big lead in Tulare County, while Bob Smith ran well in San Bernardino County, which takes up a small portion of the Assembly District.
In other local races, novice politician Pete Vander Poel, just 23, defeated Patrick Isherwood for the county supervisor post to replace Conway, and Allen Ishida easily won re-election, defeating Guy Christian. Phil Cox was unopposed in the District 3 race.
Two local measures on the Tulare County ballot
were also decided.
In Lindsay, it appeared voters were going to turn down the three-quarter
percent sales tax hike. The Lindsay Vital City Services Measure
revenues were not designated for a specific purpose, but proponents
stressed they would help the city to beef up police and fire
services.
In Porterville, voters approved a city charter amendment to make “In God We Trust” the official motto of the city.
Assembly Race
Conway, who is chairman of the board of supervisors, will now face Democrat Desmond Farrelly in the November election, but many believe the real race was for the GOP
nomination since Republicans outnumber Democrats
nearly 2 to 1 in the District. Farrelly was unopposed for the
Democratic nomination.
The Tulare resident easily carried the county with more than
50 percent of the votes cast.
Voter turnout Tuesday was light. It appeared the turnout would be less than 25 percent.
By Rick Elkins
Tulare County - To some people, a vacant lot is not all that appealing, but to the city's Neighborhood Preservation Manager Tim Burns, those vacant lots are a sign of progress.
For Burns, some of those vacant lots mean the city has removed an eyesore and potential threat to public safety.
Burns and his department are in charge of improving the quality of life in town by cleaning up public nuisances such as too many animals, excessive yard sales, substandard housing, pool safety and a myriad of other issues.
“Our primary focus has been on life-safety issues,” said Burns of his department of five, which includes himself, an administrative assistant, two code enforcement officers and a building inspector.
“A lot of times, we see ourselves as a point of contact – a catalyst to get something done,” said Burns, explaining that they are more reactive than proactive simply because of the volume of calls.
“At any given time, we probably have 40-45 homes we marked as unsafe,” said Burns, adding that problem is growing with more and more home foreclosures. He says they have seen homes where families have simply walked away, some with pools that are not being kept up.
Burns said finding unsafe conditions is the easy
part. The hard part is the paperwork to track down the owner
and getting the conditions improved.
Another key function of the department is working with the police
and fire departments on nuisance properties.
“We have no less than 30 nuisance properties we've identified as behavioral problems based on complaints or police calls.”
The city has the Nuisance Assessment Abatement
Team (NAAT) that can track calls to a particular address and
then they identify the property owner. “We feel that the
best opportunity to solve the problem is with the property owner,”
said Burns.
One example was a residence where police were going to constantly.
He said when they tracked it, they found police had responded
to more than 100 calls in a year at the home occupied by identified
gang members. Burns said there were bullet holes in the home
and graffiti that was basically challenging other gangs. Obviously,
he said, residents of the house made it unsafe for everyone
in the neighborhood.
So, code enforcement was brought in and the absentee land owner was contacted.
The problem was soon rectified.
“The police department recognizes we're
a viable part of public safety,” said Burns.
Once a property is declared a “public nuisance,”
the property owner is contacted. “Typically, what happens
is the property owner indicates they were not aware of the problem,”
he said.
The owner is given 30 days to develop a plan of action. If calls continue, the property owner can then be fined and charged for the city's costs in dealing with problems. At the extreme, the city can shut down a house and in some instances, seize the property through the courts. A few years ago, the city seized an eight-unit apartment complex.
However, said Burns, in most instances, the property owner takes their own action. “We've had good results with this.”
Code enforcement and neighborhood preservation have seen more emphasis the past five years. Burns described their function as improving the quality of life, providing community safety and increasing the value of property.
He said the city administration and city council both realized the importance of code enforcement and the department has grown from just one person (Burns) to five in four years.
Before, the code enforcement officer focused mostly on planning issues, “but somewhere the council decided there was more of a need. They wanted to elevate code enforcement to neighborhood preservation about 18 months ago.” And it is not just Visalia. Code enforcement is a growing department in many cities, including Tulare.
Why?
“City councils have become award of the need for someone to work outside of the traditional standards and code enforcement is now recognized as another law enforcement tool,” said Burns.
However, much of what the department does is clean
up neighborhoods by getting property owners to remove trash,
abandoned vehicles and more.
“Lately, our efforts have been focused on the Oval and
Washington School areas. Typically, that's where our substandard
housing is and where most of the complaints come from,”
said Burns.
Burns has been working with the Washington Residents for a Better Community and the Northern Visalia Advisory Committee to clean up blight in those areas. Several dilapidated structures have been removed and many eyesores cleaned up.
Bill Huott, a self-proclaimed neighborhood activist who lives in the Oval area, said all of those who have worked to clean up the neighborhood deserve praise.
“Their value cannot be measured. Community issues always start with little things, like trash, debris, abandoned cars,” said Huott of Burns and his staff. He said the city has done a lot to clear clutter and eliminate trouble spots. “Now this neighborhood is absolutely terrific,” he said.
There are several tools available to Burns' department. One is the Administrative Ticket, which his officers can issue. For a first citation, the fine is $100. A second one within 12 months is $200 and each subsequent fine within a year is $500.
“We issued 400 in the first year,” said Burns of the citations that are for violations of the city municipal code. He said the police department issues about 35 percent of those and the fire department a good number as well, such as for weed abatement and illegal fireworks.
Citations can also be issued for things such as a broken sidewalk, overgrowth that impedes people walking on a sidewalk, trash, even holding more yard sales in a month than the city allows.
Another tool is Cost Recovery. Burns said a few years ago the city collected about $500 a year. Last year, the city collected $200,000.
None of the tools are new. They just needed a department to take advantage of them, said Burns.
As to some success stories, besides the removal of unsafe structures, Burns points to an old restaurant at Houston Avenue and 4th Street. “Our goal is to make it an operational restaurant again. This is a work in progress, but we're close to making it happen.”
He also points to a new house east of the police station on Dinuba Highway. Today, a new home sits when a few years ago it was an old, unsafe home to crime and drugs.
Another house at Giddings off of Houston that Burns said they called the “spider house” because it was so full of cobwebs is today cleaned up and safe to occupy.
During his brief tour, Burns stopped at a house on Demaree. It's a nice house, but the owner has stopped remodeling work and has basically left the fence open to an unsafe and unsightly pool. Burns stopped, placed a notice on the door and sighed, “This is one we'll have to monitor.”
San Joaquin Valley - Westlands Water District has announced to its growers they must ration remaining ag water for the summer months, limiting the Westside district to 240,000 acre feet supply from San Luis Reservoir. That translates to just 0.47 acre feet per acre for farmers to use through August – not enough to irrigate some crops already in the ground. The lower amount compares to about 350,000 acre feet that might be expected to be delivered without restriction, according to a Westlands staff estimate.
“We are down over 100,000 acre feet from where we thought we would be,” says Westlands spokesperson Sarah Woolf. “There is no doubt about growers are telling us they will need to abandon some crops they've already planted.”
Westlands will get the lowest amount of water delivered this year – about 400,000 acre feet in total, than any year before. Woolf told the Voice that restrictions on moving water south of the Delta this year will mean there won't be enough water available to plant a lettuce crop this fall. Westlands is the source for about 95% of the fall lettuce crop in the nation.
700,000 Acre Feet out to Sea
The reduction in water supply amounts to about 700,000 acre feet that have been held back to help endangered species in just January and February that made its way out to sea rather than released to the San Luis Reservoir, says Woolf.
Between pumping restrictions and requirements to keep Shasta dam full to lower water temperatures important to fish, there is a substantial amount of water not available for south of the Delta users.
The news comes after an extremely dry spring in a consecutive dry year along with court ordered Delta Smelt pumping limitations that hampers added storage in San Luis Reservoir that supplies many westside districts. Fears that San Luis Reservoir may be unstable have added to complications since, as an earthen dam, it can be drawn down only two feet a day under Bureau of Reclamation management rules.
State of Emergency?
Congressman Jim Costa and George Radanovich, who attended a meeting in Los Banos with farmers this week, are asking Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to declare a state of emergency.
Costa described the water crisis as a “perfect storm” between the dry water year and added regulations of water deliveries. The Bureau of Reclamation told a crowd of over 400 farmers that an additional 5% cut on water supplies was necessary.
Westlands Water District General Manager Tom Birmingham announced the district would be down about 40% from what they thought they could deliver and the result was “there are farmers in this room who will go out of business because we're not able to deliver water to them.”
More restrictions on pumping south of the Delta could arise as a result of court-ordered protection of another endangered fish – the salmon. Federal Judge Oliver Wanger is expected June 6 to address conditions for operating big federal water projects to protect the Chinook salmon runs. Observers believe this could lead to even stronger management bias at Shasta to help the salmon out, leaving less water for other uses.
Enough Water
“Westlands is just the biggest water district but there are several hundred state and federal contractors who will suffer because of this,” says Visalia water engineer Dennis Keller. “This amounts to a political and regulatory drought in what was an adequate rainfall year,” he says. Despite the dry spring, “there is enough water this year; we just can't move it south of the Delta.”
Woolf says growers were frustrated this week at a public hearing on the issue with the federal Bureau of Reclamation because the agency could not produce specifics on when the water could be delivered – critical to make crop plans.
“This is affecting everyone who gets water south of the Delta,” including the state contractors like Kern County and L.A.'s Metropolitan Water District. Also affected are municipalities like Tracy and districts in the East Bay, she says.
Keller says Westlands and other federal districts south of the Delta were expecting 45% of their contracted amount but now that has been reduced to 40%. Other state contractors south of the Delta had been slated to receive just 35% of contractor water amounts. Now that is in doubt.
Shrinking water supplies are causing other water districts up and down the state to implement some sort of rationing system including East Bay Municipal District that imposed a 30% cutback. The city of Long Beach has rationing and Metropolitan Water District is weighing an alert – a step toward water rationing this month. Also, a new bill in the assembly could force developers to offset water use at their projects. In Kern County water agencies are pumping water out of their groundwater banks to make up for what is not being sent down by aqueduct.
Worse Before Better
Things will get worse before they get better, says Tim Quinn of the Association of California Water Agencies. “It's not going to improve when it rains again until we fix the system that stores and delivers water statewide.” He says the state needed to invest in infrastructure to meet the needs of fish, farmers and urban dwellers.
Quinn says even if the state comes together to agree on fixing the Delta, it's likely water sharing and conservation will have to meet the state need for many years. “We should have a better system but it may be 13 years from now.”
Ceil Howe, owner of Westlake Farms just south of Westlands says, “My understanding is that this year a huge amount of water has gone out to the ocean as a result of pumping restrictions.” Between less supply coming south of the Delta and engineering concerns that limit the release of no more than two vertical feet of water from San Luis Reservoir seem to be combining in less water than expected, he says. Westlake doesn't get Bureau of Reclamation water but a water shortage has prompted him to convert his tomatoes this year to drip irrigation. “You can cut energy and micromanage how the crop develops,” says Howe, saying any crop that is grown in a furrow can be grown with drip.
Lower Tule General Manager Dan Vink says eastside districts are “watching the water situation very closely” because eastside Friant Dam contractors get water from the San Joaquin only if the exchange contractors on the San Joaquin River can get their water from the Delta. “If there isn't enough supply, they can call on San Joaquin river water” that is Friant's supply. “Last year, with pumping restrictions going on longer than we thought they would, we came within two weeks of getting that call,” says Vink.
He calls the statewide water situation “a house of cards.”
Woolf says growers she has spoken with say they will have to abandon their cotton fields followed by tomatoes that are water thirsty. Westlands acreage of processing tomatoes is huge – with some 95,000 acres under crop production in 2007.
The bottom line for many growers is to keep the new trees and vine crops alive during the hottest months of the year rather than try to grow something for the summer considering the gloom and uncertainty.
Keller points out growers who have contracted their tomatoes to be delivered to the cannery will be liable for the delivery even if they have to buy them on the market, having decided not to grow the crop this year.
Because of the dry conditions and regulatory pressure, Westlands has fallowed about 200,000 of its 600,000 acres this year, says Woolf.
Big Drop in Sales Likely to Hurt City Budgets
Tulare County - California's new vehicle market has been suffering for some time due to the housing crunch and mortgage meltdown. Now $4 gas is quickly changing what's selling at our new car lots. Covering the first quarter of 2008 – the good ol' days before $4 gas and $5 diesel – the California New Car Dealers Association reported their first quarter sales were down a whopping 18.6% and even worse in the light truck market where new registrations fell by 25%.
The organization's quarterly report, California Auto Outlook, projects 1.7 million new vehicles will be registered in 2008, down from 1.9 million in 2007 and 2 million in 2006.
But if recent nationwide reports of steep declines in sales in May are any indication – things may be getting worse instead of better as consumers react to $4 gasoline prices.
In the past few days, the Big Three announced slashing of production of large SUVs and pick-ups to adjust to a seemingly new market reality.
At press time, GM announced the closure of four
truck plants that will lay off about 10,000 people. It also
said it would consider selling off its formerly hot Hummer line.
Company President Rick Wagoner was quoted as saying that the
changes brought about by high gas prices amounted to a “permanent
shift” in the market.
Dodge has tried to offset the negative news on gas prices by
offering several of its makes with $2.99 gas guaranteed for
three years.
California car buyers are choosing passenger cars over SUVs and pick-ups with the market share by segment being 56% passenger cars (vs. 52.6% in 2007), 18.1% for pick-ups (vs. 20.6% in 2007) and 25.9% SUVs (vs. 26.8% in 2007), according to data from Experian Automotive.
The report details decreasing market share of domestic car brands of just 35.7% statewide compared to 50% nationwide. Through March 2008, Toyota has a 24.5% market share in California, followed by Honda with a 13.4% market share, both significantly up from the same period in 2007. Third is Ford with 8.3%, down from 10.8% in 2007, Nissan is tied with Chevy for fourth with 6.7%. Chevrolet was 12.5% of all auto sales during the three-month period in 2007, meaning sales of this storied brand have declined by just about half.
The showdown has hurt California more than the rest of the nation where overall sales during the same period are down 7.6%, compared to the 18.6% in California, says the report.
Car Sales Affect Visalia Revenue
Fewer auto sales will mean less taxes paid to cities across the state, including Visalia where the city is bracing for June sales tax numbers that may show less revenue for city services than predicted.
Sales tax predictions for Visalia done some months ago expect a decline in sales tax revenue of about $1.4 million to $21.6 million this fiscal year that ends in June, down from $23 million in June 2007. The decline would be the first in a long run of increases in overall sales tax revenue in Visalia over the past decade. The largest area of declines, says a city report done last month, “are in auto sales and building supplies.”
If this slowdown continues or gets worse, the city may have to adjust its budget. “We're watching this very close,” says City Council Member Greg Collins.
Where's the Buyers?
“There is a strange similarity today to what happened in 1973 and was repeated in 1980,” said Gerald Meyers, former chairman of American Motors Corp. and now business professor at the University of Michigan. “I recall Jeep suddenly going dead in 1973. Dealers said overnight 'We have no traffic,'” quoted the Detroit News last week.
At press time, Edmunds predicted May auto sales nationwide to be down nearly 16% from April 2008 with compact and hybrid sales very strong. Actual sale numbers came out after this paper went to press.
With consumers wanting fuel-efficient cars, dealers are caught in the middle considering they tend to make more on larger fully loaded models of SUVs and muscled out trucks than some subcompacts where the profit margin might be a couple of hundred dollars, says a local dealer.
Makes it hard to keep the lights on.
Sequoia National Park - Sierra Lodge in Three Rivers markets Sequoia National Park to European visitors on the Web with several country flags at the top of its Web site enabling the viewer to read about the hotel and our area in English, German or French. “With the falling dollar, we expect our visitors from French and German countries to be up 10 to 12% this summer,” says Ozzy Abdala, the former owner of the lodge, who still does part-time managerial duties.
Foreign visitors are flocking to the U.S. in part due to the fact the dollar has fallen 10% against the Euro just in the past year, making U.S. sites a bargain basement vacation option for Europeans.
“Ironically, the Europeans aren't alarmed by $4 gas either,” says Tom Marshall who is a volunteer at the Sequoia Foothills Chamber Visitor Center. “The Europeans told us that back in their country gas was $8 a gallon, so this didn't faze them.”
Sequoia National Park may be more famous in Europe than it is in the U.S., considering the number of visitors to the national park each summer. At the park's big lodge, Wuksachi, you are as likely to hear German or Japanese spoken as English.
Ozzy Abdala says he is seeing more visitors from all over Europe, often including Sequoia on a loop trip through the western U.S. that begins in Las Vegas and may include Yosemite, Monterey and San Francisco.
It's just such a visitor that Visalia's Sequoia Shuttle is aimed at, says City Transit Manager Monty Cox. “Most of our marketing goes on the internet to pop up when they do a search for Sequoia Park.”
Cox says this summer they expect a 50% increase in the number of travelers using the shuttle that leaves Visalia four times a day connecting to the park in 16-passenger buses, allowing the visitor to leave their car in Visalia. Already, reservations for the shuttle are double what they were at this point last year.
One Third from Europe
“Roughly a third of our passengers are likely to be from Europe,” guesses Cox. That means more European visitors are likely to stay, eat and shop in Visalia, particularly if they go up and down to the park a number of days.
Visitors to Sequoia are likely to stay multiple days. “There's just too much to see to try to do it in one day,” says Abdala, who says the Kaweah riverside hotel offers help to visitors in four languages planning their trips to California.
“We want to market on our Web site to China next,” says Abdala, considering the fact China-to-U.S. direct flights are expected soon and the number of Chinese visitors with money to spend will likely discover California in the next few years. “They are buying BMWs over there,” he says.
Foreign visitors to the U.S. were up about 8% in 2007, says the U.S. Office of Travel and Tourism, and that number is expected to grow by 25% between 2006 and 2011. Total U.S. foreign visitors were up 10% nationwide in 2007, although L.A. was up as a destination by a lower number – 5% and San Francisco was up 9%. Just over one million visitors flew into San Francisco in 2007.
Foreign Airlines
In Los Angeles, a slew of new foreign airlines have descended on LAX in recent months, taking advantage of the fact that this country and its currency is on sale. Eight carriers have started or announced new service since October 2007 and others are adding flights even as domestic airlines are cutting back. The number of international visitors was up 11% in February at LAX. “It's going to be a very busy summer,” says Frank Clark of LAXTEC – a nonprofit group that reports on airlines that use LAX.
Sequoia itself has been experiencing more visitors with 2007 numbers up by more than 52,000 last year.
“We're heading for a good summer,” says Tom Marshall, observing that the Three Rivers visitor center on Memorial Day weekend had something like 115 people crowding into the modest-size room one day and because the visitors had all registered, Marshall could see most of the visitors were locals coming to the area from between L.A. and Visalia or nearby. “Because of gas prices, people are not making those longer trips this year,” says Marshall. “What's driving the activity up here is the falling dollar for Europeans and gas prices for Californians.”
By far, the busiest months are June, July and August when almost half the year's visitors come. “August is just crazy,” shrugs Abdala.
What's New
June forecast from the Climate Prediction Center calls for cooler than normal temps on the West Coast.
Surge in Democratic registration in California, reports the California Secretary of State. Democrats gained nearly half a million new voters in the state since the last presidential election year – 2004. The new numbers are as of May 19. Democrats now number seven million – nearly 44% of all the state's voters. Meanwhile, the GOP lost registered voters – down about 120,000 to 5.24 million or 32.5%. Declined-to-state jumped nearly 640,000 to 3.1 million or 19.4% of the electorate.
A tornado that hit the eastern portion of Sequoia National Park in July 2004 near Mt. Whitney may have been the highest elevation tornado documented in the U.S., says a scientific study. The severe storm event dropped large hailstorms at the 11,600-foot elevation.
COS has been notified its plans for a new Allied Health/Nursing Building have been approved by the Division of the State Architect. The school is planning a groundbreaking in August.
Gottschalks reported a $5.1 million net loss for the first quarter of 2008. The company said sales for the 13-week fiscal first quarter were down 11.8 percent to $125 million from $141 for the same period a year ago.
JoAnn Stores, that has a large distribution center in Visalia has enjoyed a rise in its stock prices since January when it was below $10 a share. This week the company, which sells fabrics and sewing supplies, has seen a rise in its stock to near $23 a share. Wall Street analysts say as consumers are squeezed more they are returning to sewing by making their own clothes. Plus the idea that busy hands calm the mind in these turbulent times.
Building activity in the city of Visalia dropped in May. For the month, only 57 new home permits were issued and 10 permits for new commercial. Total valuation was $26.7 million, down from $43.8 million in April and just a little more than half of the April 2007 total. So far for the calendar year, building valuation totals $135.7 million compared to $157.4 million at this point last year. The number of new home permits has dropped to 262, compared to 422 last year.
Sierra Bancorp, parent of Bank of the Sierra, announced that the votes from Sierra Bancorp's May 21 Annual Meeting of Shareholders have been tabulated and certified by IVS Associates, Inc., the independent inspector of elections, and that all of the Board of Director's nominees have been re-elected. Directors Morris Tharp, Bob Fields, Linda Scearcy and Jim Holly will serve on the Sierra Bancorp Board until the 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
Gov. Schwarzenegger announced Friday that Orosi High School will receive $600,000 as part of the more than $434 million awarded to schools statewide in grants to construct new schools, modernize existing buildings and make emergency repairs to facilities. Orosi High was the only school in the county to receive any of the funds.
Bank of the Sierra, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sierra Bancorp announced that it has selected PHH Mortgage, a subsidiary of PHH Corporation (NYSE: PHH), as a strategic partner for its mortgage loan origination and servicing business.
Developer Johnny George says he has changed plans for the old Mooney Drive-In property he purchased last year. Instead of an office complex, George says he is planning an 87,000-square-foot boutique store shopping center with what he calls a “Fig Garden” look to it.
Sportsman Warehouse Construction to Begin Soon
Visalia - Sportsman Warehouse, a store serving the outdoor enthusiast, has taken out a building permit for its Visalia store at 3112 N. Dinuba Blvd.
The 61,000-square-foot store will feature everything
for the sportsman and also provide expert advice. The store,
which offers hunting, fishing and camping equipment, currently
has two locations in California - Victorville and Rocklin.
The $3.8 million project is expected to take at least six months
to complete.
Council Member Wants Water Conservation
Visalia - Council Member Greg Collins asked city staff Monday night to come back to the council with renewed efforts to conserve water. He said the city environmental committee needs to come up with some suggestions on “aggressive conservation measures. I think we need to treat water like gasoline. It may be painful, but it is something we have to do.”
Staff said they were already looking into the issue and should come up with a report in the near future.
Visalia, Tulare to Study Ag Mitigation Program
Visalia - A company was hired Monday to begin a study how the cities of Tulare and Visalia can mitigate the loss of farmland. Willdan Financial Services will study how the program will work. Right now, the cities of Visalia and Tulare will share the cost of the $40,000 study, but the cities of Farmersville and Exeter may also join in on the study.
Cities in the county are looking at ways to preserve ag land from urban sprawl by requiring the developers to purchase and preserve ag land for any land they take out of production.
City Purchasing Land Next to Transit Center
Visalia - The City of Visalia is finalizing the purchase of the Razzari property on Center Avenue adjacent to the city's Transit Center.
City officials said they have for some time been eyeing the property for future expansion of the Transit Center.
However, it is unlikely that expansion will take place any time soon so the city will lease the property until it is needed. The property has been home to a used car lot. The same officials said the property will most likely be used as another area for buses to load and unload passengers.
By Rick Elkins
Visalia - Not only has the rising cost of fuel meant an increase in the use of the city transit system, it is also leading to an increase in bicycle sales and bicycle use in the city.
During the month of April, there were 8,302 more riders of the city of Visalia's bus system than in March. The increase is even more significant when compared to last year. In April 2007, 106,720 riders rode the city's buses, while last month, that rose to 125,541, an increase of 17.6 percent.
“That's pretty significant. We've already had 1.25 million riders this year (fiscal year that ends this month),” said Leslie Cavilgia, assistant city manager. The most ridership in one year was 1.5 million.
Another sign of the increased ridership, pointed out Carmen Quevedo, senior administrative analyst for the city transit division, is that applications for first time rider passes are way up. First time users of the buses are offered an introductory offer of $15 for a monthly pass which normally costs $30.
On Friday, the Automobile Club of Southern California
announced that gas prices rose more than 15 cents a gallon
in the week, now averaging above $4 a gallon in most areas.
In Visalia, gasoline runs from a low of about $4.30 a gallon
for regular unleaded, to nearly $4.70 a gallon for premium.
That is, on average, 90 cents a gallon more than a year ago.
The city operates nine fixed bus routes, the city trolley,
dial-a-ride and the Sequoia Shuttle. The buses run 6 a.m.
to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Friday; 9 a.m. until 6:30 p.m.
on Saturdays; and 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Sundays. It costs
$1 for a one-way trip on the bus, while the trolley is free.
Quevedo said ridership on the trolley, which
runs just in the downtown area, is also up. In April, 9,951
riders rode the trolley, up 14.5 percent over last April and
13.5 percent better than last month.
Quevedo said while the numbers are up, they are not a record.
She said the city is hopeful that for the fiscal year that
ends this month that it will be the best year ever.
Bicycle Use Up
“I see a lot of bikes on the buses,”
said Cavilgia, explaining that the city does not track the
number of bicycles that are placed on the bicycle racks of
the buses, but it is considering adding more bike racks at
the transit center because it appears more people are riding
a bike to the center, then hopping on a bus.
“All of sudden, we realize we need another bike rack,”
said Cavilgia of what they have noticed in just the past couple
of weeks.
Byron Almachar, assistant manager with Visalia Cyclery, said in the past few weeks, more and more buyers of bicycles are telling them they are getting a bike to ride to and from work.
Almachar, who rides his bike from Tulare to Visalia every day, said, “We've been noticing a lot more people buying bikes for that (to ride to work) if they live a few miles from work.”
He said their bikes start at $319 and go up in price from there.
SCE Files Plan for Power Line, Foes Set Rallies
Tulare County - Southern California Edison officially filed its plans Friday with the California Public Utilities Commission for its proposed high voltage transmission line, a plan which already has sparked a growing outcry by opponents to the utility company's favored route.
Edison's preferred route for its San Joaquin
Cross Valley Loop Transmission Project travels just south
of Highway 198 and cuts through farmland and the city of Farmersville's
planned industrial park. Edison's filings also cite the two
other routes, Alternative 2 near Elderwood, and Alternative
3, referred to as the Stokes Mountain Route, which is more
rugged and costly but involves only eight property owners.
Edison says Alternative 1 has the least amount of environmental
impact and is the least costly, about $90 million, according
to recently revised estimates.
Route 1 affects about 200 property owners and about 230 parcels
and last Friday, the posting of notices began appearing on
those lands.
At first, SCE estimated Alternate 3, the most
northern route, would cost roughly $30 million more than the
originally estimated $60 million Alternative 1 route. But
Edison officials now say Alternate 3 could cost about $70
million more than the Farmersville-Exeter Route 1. That puts
the Alternate 1 cost at $90 million and the Alternate 3 at
$160 million.
Dana Bullock, SCE project manager, told the Voice this week
construction and retooling cost would account for much higher
costs. She said at least 10 miles of the proposed Alternate
3 would be on land which has not been accessed, providing
many unknowns including but not limited to environmental concerns.
Also Alternate 3 would require a total of 197 towers, 140
being tubular pole and 57 of lattice steel towers, while Alternate
1 would require a total of 122. That would be 108 tubular
and 14 steel lattice, according to Paul Klein, project manager,
media relations. Such factors, Bullock said, could prevent
project completion in time necessary to satisfy the need for
the project.
She denied contentions voiced by foes who claim those new
costs estimates were announced simply to support SCE's case
that Alternate 3 is far too expensive.
Edison says the Cross Valley Loop proposal is needed to increase its capacity to deliver electricity from its hydroelectric facilities in the Sierra to the Rector Substation to serve Tulare County. The new lines will help minimize the likelihood of unanticipated outages in Tulare County, one of the fastest growing regions in the state, according to Les Stark, SCE's vice president of local public affairs.
There was strong opposition to SCE's Alternate 1 when it was first announced more than two years ago, but it faded when it appeared Edison might opt to pick one of the other routes. As they had done earlier, officials in Farmersville and Exeter have opposed Edison's first choice. The City of Visalia, which also originally opposed Alternate 1, again has voiced concerns but has not taken a stand this time around. Tulare County Supervisors postponed a vote on a proposed resolution opposing Alternate 1 until SCE officially filed its documents. That proposed resolution was not on this week's Board agenda.
About two months ago, when Edison officials announced Alternate 1 was the favored plan, opponents formed PACE (Protect Agriculture Communities and the Environment) steering committee which is waging an aggressive anti-route 1 campaign.
Rallies are set for this Saturday in Farmersville and June 12 in Exeter. The Farmersville meeting will be at 6:30 p.m. at the Bethel Spanish Assembly Church and be conducted in both English and Spanish. Participants are asked to bring their SCE account number with them, said George McEwen, PACE chairman.
Renee Miller, Farmersville city manager, said by using their SCE account numbers, opponents will be compensated by the PUC for the cost of consultants. The citizens group already has hired Dr. Lon House, as an “intervener” or consultant who worked with Alternate 1 foes when the issue first surfaced.
The filing with the PUC means the Cross Valley Loop proposal now will be assigned a project proposal index number, opening the door for public comments both pro and con. There is a 30-day period for public comment after which the PUC will schedule what are called scooping sessions, or public hearings to gather comments.
The Exeter meeting will be at 7 p.m. at the Exeter Memorial Building. PACE membership signups will be held at both sessions.
“At this time we don't object to Edison's need for additional lines and to improve its service to Tulare County. We just want them to choose the most logical and least disruptive location which they describe in their brochure as Route 3,” McEwen said.
Racetrack Supporters, Opponents Have Their Say
Tulare - Supporters of the Tulare Motor Sports Complex told the Planning Commission Monday the city has “a once-in-a-life time opportunity” to bolster the economic base of the community. Opponents, on the other hand, argued just as adamantly that “money is not everything.”
The comments came at the second and final hearing
the commission scheduled to gather comments about the draft
environmental impact report the city is circulating on the
90,000-seat racetrack, retail, office and residential project,
which Fresno developer Bud Long and investors want to build
on 711 acres adjacent to the International Agri-Center.
Unlike the first hearing in which only opponents took the
mike, commissioners heard this week from supporters and opponents
in about equal numbers.
Tom Griesbach, a member of the Tulare Industrial
Site Development Foundation, which is facilitating the land
purchases for the developer, was the first speaker.
“The benefits of this project could very favorably affect
tens of thousands of Tulareans in their quality of life and
affect them very favorably,” Griesbach said.
Noting opponents have called into question the
qualifications of the analyst who reported the project would
create 16,340 full-time jobs and $1 billion in revenues, he
said he would like to know what the credentials of this person
are.
He also said he wanted the environmental impact report to
address the diversity of jobs that would be created, the impact
on Tulare's unemployment rate, on tourism, on the city budget
and on poverty.
“I think we [the county] are at 37 percent poverty level and I wonder if the EIR could address any of the socioeconomic impacts this might have to decrease this poverty level,” Griesbach said. “Most of us here are not at the poverty level, but I think we have a responsibility to find this out.”
Attorney Mike Lampe, who is representing project opponents, asked commissioners to look at the Appendix L, which is the Urban Decay Analysis and Economic Impact Report.
He said changes from earlier projections are
not explained and also noted the report says the estimates
regarding the annual number of visitors to the speedway and
drag strip were provided by the developer.
“There's no empirical data to support this,” Lampe
said. “I suggest the community ask the developer for
a little bit more meat on these bones.”
Tulare resident Patty Rocha said the project will create jobs and opportunities for related businesses. “The additional bed tax and sales tax benefits to Tulare could be staggering,” she said.
Gary Schulz, a member of the Tulare Industrial
Site Development Foundation board and former general manager
of the International Agri-Center, called the proposed project
a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity.
He said he has seen projects like this in Las Vegas, Milwaukee
and Kansas that have worked out well for those communities.
Describing himself as a “Tularean in training,” Frank Rimkus, chief executive officer of the Southern California-based Galaxy Theatres, said he and his company support the project.
An informal survey of movie-goers in Monroe,
Wash., and Las Vegas, where his company has theaters, showed
racetracks in those communities are “positive, contributing
factors” to the quality of life in those cities, Rimkus
said.
One of the theaters is very close to a racetrack and “I
can't tell you when someone's doing something on those tracks
and when they're not,” he said.
Several people speaking in opposition took issue with the talk about financial benefits.
Respiratory therapist Leslie Dokken, who said she also suffers from asthma, said air quality is the biggest issue facing the project, given the number of people here who suffer from respiratory disease.
Noting the environmental report estimates each visitor to the speedway track would spend $590 per event, she said, “The project has put a price on my life. My life is worth only $600.”
Rachael Dysart, who spoke at the first hearing and lives near the project, said the EIR does not address the impact on homes. She also maintained the speedway and racetrack would be a drain on the city's fire and police departments, which she maintains are understaffed.
“I think the city council members need to take off their green-tinted glasses and realize money is not everything,” she said.
The tax money generated by the project could
“turn this all around” and provide increased public
safety, argued Pete Eppinga, another Tulare resident who lives
near the proposed site and supports the project.
Other supporters spoke of the need to give kids a place to
go, especially to race their cars in a safe environment.
“There's a lot of illegal drag racing that goes on with
our kids,” Kevin Sisemore of Porterville said. “If
you can save one kid's life by putting this racetrack in,
isn't it worth it?”
Tony Nunes III, who runs his family's 30-year-old dairy near the proposed site, asked that the EIR authors speak with experts at the University of California, Davis, and elsewhere to find out the impact racetrack noise would have on cows.
Planning Director Mark Kielty told the audience written comments about the EIR must be delivered to the city by 5 p.m. June 20. Comments should be mailed to: City of Tulare Planning and Building Department, 411 East Kern Ave., or e-mailed to motorsportsEIR@ci.tulare.ca.us.
Visalia Air Service Again Up for Bid
By Steve Pastis
Visalia - The Department of Transportation (DOT) is once again accepting bids for air service for Visalia Airport, as well as for Merced and Ely, NV. Last year, Great Lakes Airlines was awarded the contract to serve the three cities – by providing flights to and from McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas – but never started that service.
The DOT's action is not a result of the delay in Great Lakes' service to Visalia, however. It is apparently yet another consequence of soaring fuel costs.
And with the deadline for bids set for June 13, so far the only likely bidder is Great Lakes. “Other carriers could also bid,” said Visalia Airport Manager Mario Cifuentez, II. “But there are very few carriers.”
“We will bid on it to reflect today's environment,” said Monica Taylor, director of sales and marketing for Great Lakes, adding that when the company placed its winning bid last year, “fuel was $2 a gallon less.”
Every penny increase in gas prices costs the company $800,000 a year, she estimated.
“Had we started service under the current contract, we would be starting out about $1 million in the hole per year (to serve Visalia, Merced and Ely),” she said. “That's the reason the DOT put it back up for bid.”
“Great Lakes told us, 'Once we start, we will have to refile,'” said Cifuentez, who sent a letter to the DOT requesting that the Visalia, Merced and Ely markets be put up for bid. “Merced submitted the same letter. Ely didn't submit a letter, but they're on board.”
What Great Lakes is looking for is a higher government subsidy to cover the difference between expected revenues and operating costs to serve the three markets. Taylor expects airfares from Visalia Airport to be increased, but that any increases would be done “cautiously.”
“Our competition isn't another airline, it's the highway,” she said.
Air Midwest, a subsidiary of the Mesa Air Group, shut down its service to Visalia Airport on May 31. Great Lakes had not begun local service due to technical problems, and issues of counter space and gate space at McCarran Airport.
Cifuentez and Taylor were both asked how long they expected Visalia to be without air service, but neither would speculate for publication.
“Hopefully, this (bidding) process can be worked out in the same timeframe as the reservation issue in Las Vegas that Great Lakes is dealing with,” Cifuentez said.
Meanwhile, it's almost business as usual, at least for those who work for the airport.
“It doesn't affect airport employment
at all,” Cifuentez said. “Airlines are a very
very small part of our income.”
He explained that the airport's main sources of revenue are
fuel sales, hanger rentals, ground leases and cargo operations.
He estimated that airlines provide about 1 percent of the
airport's income – or approximately $30,000 a year.
The above stories are the property of The Valley Voice Newspaper and may not be reprinted without explicit permission in writing from the publisher.
June 5, 2008
