The consequences of the drought is not just felt by those residents whose wells have gone dry, but also by those small communities that have become a reliable source of water for them. Jack Flores, a resident of an unincorporated community called Village Gardens west of Porterville, approached the Porterville City Council and the Tulare […]
No Matter How You Vote, Crazy Wins OK, it’s official. Those opposed to chickens and mini goats inside Visalia’s city limits are as crazy as those collecting signatures to pass an initiative in favor of making them legal. Here in our office, for expediency’s sake, we refer to each side as pro-goaters or anti-goaters, and both […]
After the Tulare County Agriculture Commissioner got done presenting the county’s record-breaking production numbers, Supervisor Pete Vander Poel summed it up, “in less than 10 years Tulare County has doubled its ag value.” Marilyn Kinoshita, agriculture commissioner, made a point to say during her presentation that, in the face of the states’ worst drought in […]
Depending upon with whom you talk, e-cigarettes are very safe or very dangerous. That debate broke out at the Tulare County Board of Supervisors July 21 meeting with the discussion of an ordinance change on smoking. An e-cigarette is a device run on batteries that lights up at the end to look like a real […]
Separated At Birth In 2004, Visalia City Councilmember Phil Cox declared that he was going to run for Tulare County Supervisor District 3 because, among other things, he was seeking to improve communication between the county and Visalia. Sound familiar? At the end of July, Visalia City Councilmember Amy Shuklian declared that she was going […]
At the July 21 Tulare County Board of Supervisor’s meeting, Papich Asphalt Plant in Goshen received its final approval. A special use permit was approved to allow Papich to make and sell asphalt and rock products. An appeal of the permit, submitted by Houston Wells, president of Glen Wells Construction Firm, was denied, and the […]
The City of Visalia is in the beginning stages of forming a Ground Water Sustainability Agency (GSA) with the City of Tulare and Tulare Irrigation District (TID). The first stage includes forming a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) to set the groundwork for the three entities to join together in a GSA. The Visalia City council […]
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors (BOS) was briefed at their July 28 meeting on the new Animal Control Ordinance. The new ordinance has to go through a second reading on August 11 before it becomes final. The proposed changes, voted 5-0 in favor by the board, affect only residents in unincorporated areas of the […]
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to form a Joint Powers Authority (JPA) to ensure the Valley gets the funds to build Temperance Flat Dam. In November of last year, a $7.5 billion water bond was approved to repair the state’s aging water infrastructure. Of that money, $2.7 billion was allocated toward building […]
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, […]