Before settling in to hear from representatives of local agencies pulling for the construction of the California High-Speed Rail (HSR) project, the Hanford City Council got an earful of local opinion on the matter from both sides. The HSR project includes a 27-mile stretch through Kings County and has met with some vocal resistance locally, […]
Six months ago, SeaPort Airlines started daily service from Visalia to Sacramento and Burbank. The results have been very good with many flights full or near capacity. Some locals have actually had trouble getting tickets for their preferred flights. “It’s an interesting problem to have,” said Mario Cifuentez, Visalia airport manager. SeaPort flies four flights […]
Every year the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) conducts a public opinion survey to gage how Visalians feel about their city. This year’s survey was conducted in April and results have recently been made available. The Citizens Advisory Committee uses an all-volunteer force to collect the approximately 300 responses. According to Eric Frost, deputy city manager, […]
Advocates for the Urban Farmers for Food Freedom (UFFF) filed their paperwork with the City of Visalia clerk’s office on July 6. Called the Family Food Freedom Act, the initiative will put to a vote if Visalians want to allow small farm animals in residential areas. The measure would allow up to 6 chickens and […]
With a refreshing of the Visalia Convention Center and upcoming remodeling of two major local hotels, coupled with the potential building of a new hotels in town, the Visalia Convention and Visitor’s Bureau could not be happier. A non-profit agency, “we are tasked with bringing tourism and conventions to the city,” said Suzanne Blanco, tourism […]
After it failed to reach agreement at its July 7 meeting, a divided Hanford City Council will have to take a second look at how the city will honor its agreement with developers to split future sales tax income from the upcoming Costco. The city initially agreed to reduce developer and impact fees to the […]
The Lindsay City Council may have held its shortest meeting ever when it met to discuss appointing an interim city manager on July 6. After a brief pause to take public comments at the afternoon special meeting held at the Community Development Conference Room — there were none — the council adjourned for an executive […]
Part two in the series of “who filled in Mussel Slough” was projected to be the City of Hanford’s response to the running controversy. When the Valley Voice reached out to Darlene Mata, Community Development Director, she politely said, “the city has no comment.” Several hypotheses surround the question of who ordered the back hoe […]
The Urban Farmers for Food Freedom (UFFF) has finalized their initiative and will be submitting their paperwork to the City of Visalia next week. The Food Freedom initiative states that a maximum of 12 food-producing animals will be allowed per residence. Those 12 animals could be composed of no more than eight fowl and four […]
The political disquiet continues to deepen in Lindsay, with residents now asking for a Grand Jury investigation of city council action in the wake of the resignation of city manager and public safety chief Rich Wilkinson in June. The current upset began in August of 2014, when fired Lindsay police lieutenant Bryan Clower filed a […]