Today's Headlines

Making 152 commute tougher

Fresno Bee. Valley commuters told ‘nothing’ of CA dam project’s freeway impacts.
Synopsis: Columnist Marek Warszawski writes about the thousands of commuters who go from Los Banos, Gustine and Newman over Pacheco Pass into San Jose each day – rated one of the worst commutes in the nation. It will get even worse in about two years when work begins to elevate Sisk Dam at San Luis Reservoir by 10 feet. To facilitate the trucks and equipment needed, 152 has to be altered to handle heavy equipment and additional traffic. Plus, they’ll need to build a berm to keep water off the roadway when the reservoir is at capacity. All that requires closing 2 of the 3 lanes in each direction from the Forebay to Dinosaur Point. Workl begins in 2027 and could take 2 years. Among those quoted is city councilwoman Deborah Lewis, who is the first to alert the community. Marek wonders why this has been kept under wraps. So does Deborah.

UC Merced really is in Merced

Merced Focus. UC Merced now official part of the city of Merced.
Synopsis: The process to annex the entire 1,140-acre campus into the city is now complete. Eventually, the city will have to change its voting precincts to include the campus, but not before the Nov. 5 election. Students can still cast their ballots for president and the US Congress, just not city council. While UCM will keep its police, fire service will come from the city.  

Big Pig mistreated humans

Farms.com. Hormel Foods, Rochelle Foods and Quality Pork Processors pay $13.5M for wage-fixing.
Synopsis: Three giant pork producers admitted they held secret meetings to suppress wages of workers. The agreement with the feds involved “two dozen other processors” as well, but they’ll be fined separately.
MAD Take: These three companies are all significant contributors to the National Pork Producers Council, which has been fighting CA’s Prop 12 for three years. As part of that fight, they got John Duarte to co-sponsor the EATS Act, which he is pushing to become part of the Farm Bill. It would kill CA’s initiative process when it comes to setting rules for food production. Now we find out that it’s not just pigs these guys mistreat by keeping them in gestation crates, it’s their employees, too. Since gestation crates doesn’t bother John Duarte, I’m wondering if the collusion to suppress wages does either.  

Maternity wards disappearing

Cal Matters. They delivered 5,600 babies; they blame CA rules for putting them out of business.
Synopsis: The Best Start Birth Center in San Diego opened 30 years ago, but now – like 50 other maternity wards across the state over the past 5 years – the BSBC is out of business. Best Start relied on midwives to deliver babies. The Navy, Best Start’s biggest contractor, now requires registered nurses for that duty, and they must be paid more money. Only 6 of the state’s 32 remaining birth centers meet the state’s stringent requirements. This is tough in places like Santa Rosa, where the birth center AND the local hospital have closed within the past 2 years. Even Sacramento – which had 2 birth centers – will soon have none. One official calls CA’s bureaucracy “the Great Wall of China … a horrible barrier.”
MAD Note: When the Madera Community Hospital reopens, its maternity ward won’t.

Trepidation over youth home

Turlock Journal. Sheriff, police chief voice concerns over Hope Forward campus expansion.
Synopsis: Aspiranet’s troubled youth home will expand with 40,000 square feet with new facilities on its 11-acre site at the edge of Turlock. Sheriff Jeff Dirkse and Turlock police chief Jason Hedden are worried. The current facility gets more calls for assistance than any other location in Stanislaus County -- by a factor of 10. “I’m not in opposition to this project,” said Dirkse. But “My concern is public-safety risk that this facility has historically posed to our county.” At times, the facility eats up a third of the Sheriff’s staffing. Vito Chiesa is equally concerned but equally aware of the need. He’s cautiously optimistic over new lock-down procedures and infrastructure.

School news in Modesto, Merced

Modesto Bee. Modesto NAACP tutoring program improves Black student performance.
Synopsis: The Tutoring & Mentoring Program, which started 3 years ago in response to COVID-19, has been a success. Interim NAACP president Khani Gustafson is grateful to Modesto City Schools for its support in confronting the lowest test scores in the district. The NAACP partnered with LearningQuest and Stanislaus Literacy Centers to set up programs at Fremont and Franklin elementaries and Roosevelt JHS. About 50 kids have participated; all have improved scores and classroom grades. Most appear to enjoy coming to school now, too.

ABC30. Stone Ridge Christian expands campus to include elementary school, adds football field.
Synopsis: Going back to school at SRC is different this year, mainly because the big kids will be joined by the littles as the campus moves its Pre-K through 5^th grade program onto the Ward Road campus. Board president Renae DeJager said the entire plan came together in 72 days. The football team had played at Castle Airport, but now is also on campus in a new stadium.

Dog attacks double in 10 years

SF Standard. As dog attacks rise, SF struggles to hold owners accountable.
Synopsis: Reporter Jennifer Wardsworth writes: “Dogs in the US are biting, mauling and even killing more than ever.” The CDC says canine attacks have doubled in 10 years, resulting in 49,000 ER visits in 2022. The numbers have jumped 70% in CA since 2005. Victims are often other dog owners. One nurse was out $12,000 in medical expenses after she tried to save her pit bull from an off-leash Rottweiler. It’s a big deal in a city with more dogs than children and the second-highest concentration of dogs in the nation. One SF official said that many of these “pets” are unsuited to city life. Cane Corsos, pit bulls, Rottweilers and Akitas go crazy in confined spaces. Meanwhile, more city parks are outlawing dogs.

Football season starts … ends

Sacramento Bee. Season over: Two Elk Grove schools pull plug on football; low roster numbers.
Synopsis: Due to a lack of players, the football teams at Valley High and Florin High have been disbanded. Why is that important in our Valley? It means Merced High will start the season 1-1, after its loss to Patterson. The Bears were scheduled to play Florin next Friday.

Merced Sun Star. Atwater High’s new weapon shines in debut, catching 2 TD passes in win.
Synopsis: Sylas Austin is 6-foot-5 and fast. He caught 6 balls for 153 yards in his first varsity game.

Merced Sun Star. Patterson handles former league rival Merced in 2024 season opener.
Synopsis: Rob Cozart’s team won 39-21 on Friday night.

Merced Sun Star. Football Roundup: El Capitan delivers dominant win in debut of first-year coach.
Synopsis: Xavier Ramirez’s career-opening game was a 52-0 win in Sparks, Nev. He played Hug High School. “It was great to come all this way and come home safely and healthy.” … Gregori 47, Buhach Colony 12 … Dos Palos 30, Los Banos 7 in the Westside War … Chowchilla 33, Firebaugh 7 … Yosemite 42, Mariposa 40 … Calaveras 27, Stone Ridge Christian 7 … Davis 19, Hilmar 14 … Delhi 28, Esparto 0 … Orestimba 56, Gustine 12.

Fresno Bee’s Esparza has new job

Fresno Bee. Juan Esparza Loera, veteran journalist, named opinion editor of Fresno Bee.
Synopsis: Six months after Tad Weber retired, the Fresno Bee finally has an opinion editor. He’ll have help from Tad, who will resume his work part-time. Juan started his McClatchy career in Modesto serving as business editor following his stint as head of The Newspaper Guild unit.
MAD Take: Good luck, Juan. Now, what about Modesto? Merced?

He exposed Kesterson: RIP

GV Wire. Fresno journalist Lloyd Carter, who exposed Kesterson environmental disaster, dies at 76.
Synopsis: He wrote about the massive die-off and birth defects being found in birds at Kesterson back in 1984 and later traced it back to runoff from Westlands Water District. He became a lawyer so he could further prosecute the case. Though the refuge closed in 1985, its cleanup remains a contentious and costly issue. Carter was born in Fresno and was a contemporary of famed editorial writer Jim Boren. He was also a frequent caller to reporters who covered water.