At the December 5 Tulare County Board of Supervisors meeting Chairman Steve Worthley handed over the gavel to Supervisor Mike Ennis. In his short farewell speech he outlined some of the highlights of 2015. Worthley emphasized the financial health of the county in that property tax assessments went up by $1.5 billion and the county […]
At the December 21 Visalia City Council work session, a 5-0 vote was tallied by the council in favor of an incentive package to convince Nordstrom to locate an E-Center in Visalia’s Industrial Park. Visalia is competing with Fresno and another location out of state, possibly in Nevada. The E-Center, or fulfillment center, would service […]
The City of Hanford owns its municipal water delivery system. During its December 15 meeting, the Hanford city council voted 3-2 in favor of raising Hanford’s water rates over a period of four years. Mayor Justin Mendes and Councilmembers David Ayers and Russ Curry voted in favor, while Councilmembers Gary Pannett and Francisco Ramirez voted […]
After hearing from the US Department of Fish and Wildlife, Tulare County Animal Control (TCAC) and the Visalia Feral Cat Coalition, the Parks Advisory Committee (PAC) decided to support the Trap Neuter and Release (TNR) Program. The committee, which advises on all 10 Tulare County Parks, met December 8 at the Government Plaza building. Because […]
All around Tulare County, the yellow buildings of Dollar General stores have been popping up recently. And with good reason–they are profitable here. But, more importantly to the local residents, they provide a service as well as offer job opportunities, said Michael Washam, assistant director of the county’s Economic Development and Planning Resource Management Agency. […]
The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 killed a lot of small hospitals. As its name implies, the law was intended to balance the federal budget by 2002, reducing spending by $160 billion in the process. To achieve its self-imposed fiscal goal, which was forgotten after 9/11, Congress cut $119 billion in health care spending over […]
Recent developments involving Porterville, Tulare County and California’s Office of Emergency Services have left the future of a new well drilled near city limits in question. What seemed to be a breakdown in communication had caused a sudden halt to the joint venture that could provide a permanent solution for some South Valley residents whose […]
Kings County Sheriff Dave Robinson believes building a bigger jail can lead to fewer people ending up behind bars, and the county and state are going to spend $21 million to find out if he’s right. When the US Supreme Court ruled in 2011, that intense overcrowding and a wide lack of health services in […]
Tensions ran high at the December 1 Hanford City Council meeting as it was standing-room-only in anticipation of a new mayor and vice-mayor being voted into office. According to the city charter a reorganization of the council needs to take place every year at the first meeting in December. After some spirited public comments, and […]
Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux was elected in June of 2014, but questions about his campaign finance statements still linger. Marsh Carter, a Tulare County Sheriff lieutenant, filed a complaint with the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) in August of this year. Carter’s complaint is the latest in a series of complaints about Boudreaux’ financial […]