Questions over the selection process for the Visalia Unified School District’s (VUSD) next superintendent seem to have brewed a minor civil war among members of the city’s education community. After dismissing former Superintendent Dr. Todd Oto in May, the VUSD’s Board of Trustees is now poised to select his replacement. However, a group of 30 […]
After much anticipation, the first of three recently approved cannabis storefronts is finally open in Farmersville, and business is booming. By the time Token Farms opened its doors, a line of hundreds of eager customers already stretched off the property and past neighboring businesses. “It’s great. It’s a huge line,” said Token’s owner Jennifer Mendonca. […]
A design oversight at Tulare County’s newest jail may be putting the civil rights of prisoners detained there in jeopardy. The problem, say defense attorneys, is a lack of interview rooms at the newly-opened South County Detention Center (SCDC) and the video conferencing system the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO) has chosen as a substitute. […]
The City of Lindsay is looking for a new top administrator. Zigler Retires With the city finally standing on firmer financial ground, City Manager Bill Zigler decided it was time to hang up his spurs. Zigler, a 21-year veteran of the US Navy, started as a self-described “gray-haired intern” in the city’s Planning and […]
The mother of a 9-year-old boy says the Visalia Unified School District (VUSD) isn’t doing enough to protect her son after he was attacked by bullies. Kelly Aguirre, whose son is a third-grader at Cottonwood Creek Elementary, says the boy was attacked by three other students while at recess on September 19, and the response […]
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors spent less than an hour discussing its $1.38 billion budget for 2019-20 before giving it unanimous approval at its September 10 meeting, and the union representing the majority of county-employed workers says that’s not good enough. “They’re purporting to set the county budget with very little input,” said Courtney […]
The Visalia of 2030 will look much like the Visalia we know today, and that’s a good thing say those responsible for shaping the city’s future. “I envision the city looking a lot like it does,” said Andrew Chamberlain, a former senior planner at Visalia City Hall. Chamberlain–who after 33 years with the city now […]
Tulare City Councilman Carlton Jones is at the center of yet another controversy involving the Tulare Police Department. In a statement issued to local media by Jones on August 25, Jones describes an alleged confrontation between himself and TPD officer Lt. Jarod Boatman. Boatman, according to Jones’ statement, later filed a “criminal police report” in […]
United by their shock and sadness at the recent spate of mass shootings, members of various religious communities gathered in Visalia over the weekend for the Interfaith Peace Vigil to End Gun Violence. The event was held Sunday evening, August 11, at Memorial Park in Visalia. High on the list of attendees’ priorities was limiting […]
The president of Tulare’s Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has resigned following a dispute over how to treat dangerous contamination of Tulare’s drinking water. Jim Pennington–who joined the BPU in 2016 and was the sole board member remaining after a purge of the five-member commission in 2017–says he chose to resign following a contentious meeting […]