Page 2 - Reedley Exponent 10-4-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent A2 Thursday, October 4, 2018
Reedley City Council District 4 candidates Q&A
Bob Frisch
Memorial
Ride & Walk
on Oct. 27
Contributed
El Rio Reyes Conserva- tion Trust, in conjunction with the Reedley College Mule Club, invite the com- munities of Reedley and Sanger — as well as all those who love the Kings River — to attend the an- nual Bob Frisch Memorial Ride & Walk on Saturday, Oct. 27.
Proceeds from the an- nual event go to benefit the Reedley College mule and horse club activities and the mission of El Rio Reyes’ to conserve the riv- er and its lands for future generations.
Join the El Rio Reyes trust and friends for a horseback ride and nature walk along the Kings Riv- er and tour of the Reedley College Farm. During the ride enjoy a unique poker game and have the chance to win cash and prizes. All riders and walkers will en- joy lunch together at the conclusion of the tours.
The engaging nature walk will feature a biologist- led tour of the Kings River habitat along the Reedley College campus. Attendees can view native plant spe- cies and learn about the history of the landscape around the river. The walk is family friendly.
The trust again will have its silent auction, fea- turing a number of unique items. A special attraction is a painting of the Kings River landscape created exclusively for the event. All attendees will be en- tered to win a hand-craft- ed bench by Kent Kinney made out of a fallen tree on Reedley College campus.
Bob Frisch was a teach- er at Reedley College and mule show judge when he founded the El Rio Reyes Conservation Trust. Frisch had a passion to conserve the Kings River habitat and to develop opportuni- ties for equestrians and the public that would connect them with the treasure of the Kings River and its lands.
El Rio Reyes is a local non-profit committed to en- suring landowners have the tools they need to conserve their farms and ranches. The trust’s fundraising ef- forts help in the mainte- nance and stewardship of the Kings River agricultur- al and riparian lands.
Ride tickets are $50 apiece, and riders must be 12 years or older and bring their own saddle horse. Walk tickets are $30 per person while children un- der 12 years can join the walk for $15.
Check-in will begin at 9 a.m. and the ride and walk- ing tours will start prompt- ly at 10 a.m.
The public is encour- aged to purchase tickets early because they go up in price after Monday, Oct. 22. For more information or to buy tickets, go online to elrioreyestrust.org.
Candidate: Ray Soleno (incumbent; has served 32 years including six as mayor).
Age: 78
Occupation: Barber for 53 years, owns the Golden Edge Barber Shop.
Candidate: Lee Ky (challenger).
Age: 52
Occupation: Managed Doughnuts to Go for eight years after moving back to Reedley to help run family business. Served as a Special Education instructional aide for Resource Special- ist Program students in the Clovis Unified School District. Family: Proud mother to a 15-year-old son. Her own mother is retired.
Background/Education: Bachelor’s degree from National University and Master’s degree in rehabilitation counseling from Fresno State. Employed by a nonprofit agency for more than eight years.
Family: Married for 53 years to wife, Ida. Has a son and daughter and six grandchildren.
Background: Served on the Reedley Parks and Recreation Commission for four years. Worked with local youth for 38 years in various capacities as a coach, president of Reedley Little League, president of Reedley Babe Ruth and as district commissioner/assistant state commissioner of Little League.
Ray Soleno
Lee Ky
Staff Report
There will be one Reedley City Council seat up for grabs in the Tuesday, Nov. 6, general election.
The race is in Council Dis- trict 4, where incumbent Ray Soleno is being challenged by Lee Ky. One other council member, Mary Fast in District 2, is unopposed and will be appointed to a new four-year term in January.
The Exponent asked can- didates Soleno and Ky five questions about the race and key issues. Here are their an- swers:
What motivated you to run for City Council?
Soleno: I have always been very proud of our city and love being involved in seeing the city grow. I have worked with several city managers in the past, and I am most proud of working with Nicole Zieba. I believe Nicole and I have a great working relationship and she has put together a staff that works diligently for the bet- terment of Reedley.
There are several projects in the works within the city, and I would love the oppor-
tunity to work with the City Council, the city manager and her staff to see them to completion.
Ky: As an active commu- nity member, I feel I am able to contribute full-time for helping improve our commu- nity. This is an opportunity of a lifetime to see this beauti- ful city operate from the in- side out.
What are your thoughts on the city’s homeless situ- ation?
Soleno: The homeless sit- uation in our city has been a great concern of mine. It was a small problem a few years back, but has escalated to be- ing a big problem. The home- less have caused a big litter- ing problem on the outskirts of town and many items they have in their possession bring into question how they were acquired.
As police have had to deal with the homeless camping on our Rails to Trail and in other public places, they have to be extremely cautious as the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that “No Camping” city ordinances are cruel and inhumane punishment.
The state has made it
clear that we cannot move the homeless out of public places if they are just sleeping and not “camping.” There now is a bill that would require devel- opers of affordable housing to set aside 25 percent of units for the homeless that would include optional support ser- vices. This is an ongoing is- sue that will not be solved overnight.
Ky: There is no complete answer to solve the homeless issue due to the variety of difficulties in life. There are many programs in the com- munity with a focus on addic- tion, employment and mental health issues that an individu- al is able to utilize.
I will reach out to our community and have an actual conversation.
How do you feel about Reedley’s business climate, particularly with the chal- lenges facing downtown? What ideas would you pro- pose?
Soleno: I believe the busi- ness climate is slowly improv- ing, but there still is a great deal of work to do. The city needs to work hand in hand with the Greater Reedley Chamber of Commerce and the Reedley Downtown As- sociation to brainstorm new ideas to draw business to the downtown area.
It has been a challenge to draw new businesses to Reed- ley as some private property owners aren’t always willing to sell their property for new development.
Ky: From what I see, the challenges that we have with downtown is the parking ac-
cessibility. Patrons do not want to park in the back-alley parking lots. There isn’t any sustainable business due to the fact many buildings are old and outdated.
Many owners are not lo- cal and it is very difficult to communicate with them because they live in the Bay Area or out of state. I have personal experience dealing with business difficulties, along with testifying in front of the U.S. Senate regarding the frivolous abuse of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) law against busi- nesses.
Perhaps we need a round- table with our local business owners for their ideas on how to improve our downtown. Also, we should reach out to the surrounding cities to see how they recruit businesses to their downtown.
What are your thoughts on efforts to reduce/limit crime in Reedley? Is gang activity a concern with you?
Soleno: I believe the City Council should give its full support to the Reedley Police Department in their efforts to reduce the crime activity within the city.
Gang activity continues to grow and is a deep concern of mine. I support the Neighbor- hood Watch program and be- lieve it can assist the police in drawing attention to problems in certain neighborhoods, allow- ing the police to do their job.
Ky: Many of our children have a breakdown in family support systems because their parents are working or have
substance abuse issues. Chil- dren will reach out to other people for comfort and atten- tion.
If our community has sup- port groups for our youth — in an environment for them to feel safe and be able to ex- press their difficulties in life — our children would stop craving attention from their peers that are involved in a negative lifestyle. Perhaps our youth will have a better outlook for the future.
One child, and all our chil- dren, are worth all of our ef- forts.
If elected, what is your primary goal for the City Council and Reedley to achieve in the next four years?
Soleno: There are sev- eral goals I would like to see achieved. If elected, one of my primary goals would be to see improvements in our city streets. Many of our streets are in great need of repair, and I would like to see those improvements to make our streets safer.
Another goal would be see- ing the city working together with the Reedley Friends of the Library to raise funds to see the construction of a brand new 15,000-square-foot library. I also would want to see staff working for grants to improve the Reedley Sports Park and bring it to its full po- tential.
Reedley and the city of Mendota are partnering with CalStart and received a $1 million grant to purchase the nation’s first all-electric air- craft to establish an ultra-low cost pilot training program. Eventually, the training pro- gram will develop young pilots and a skilled vocation for flying in partnership with the Reedley College aeronau- tics program.
Finally, our city manager and her staff are working on scheduling a Town Hall Series. I would like to see that take place, to receive input from out citizens on ways they see to improve and make our city a better place to live.
Ky: My primary goal as a City Council member would be to support our police, fire, ambulance, community activi- ties for all ages, and business- es for their services. I will have an actual conversation with our community leaders, so we can continue moving our city forward with its great history and have a cleaner and safer community.
Another goal I have is to reach out to our diverse youth leaders from all lifestyles and have an actual conversation with them. I want to seek out their ideas on how to better our community, because they are the future.
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Obituaries
Reuben Goertzen
Reedley native Reuben Goertzen of Carlsbad died Sept. 26. He was 85.
Mr. Goertzen worked for the missile and space division for Lockheed Corp. testing satellites for the military.
He is survived by his wife, two sons and one brother.
A graveside service will be at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 8, at Reedley Cem- etery. A memorial service will follow at 10 a.m. Mon- day, Oct. 8, at Palm Village Retirement Community.
Edwardo Guzman
Edwardo Jose Guzman of Sanger died Sept. 22 in Fresno. He was 75.
Mr. Guzman was a truck driver.
He is survived by his wife, five sons, one brother, three sisters, 25 grandchil- dren and 18 great-grand- children.
Services will be at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, at Re- deemer’s Church in Reed- ley. A luncheon will follow at the church. A private family burial will be Satur- day, Oct. 13 at Smith Moun-
tain Cemetery in Dinuba.
Leslie Salwasser
Leslie Salwasser of Reedley died Sept. 24 at his residence. He was 89.
Mr. Salwasser was an industrialist, serving as vice president of the Sal- wasser Manufacturing Co. in Reedley.
He is survived by his wife, two sons, one daugh- ter, one brother and one granddaughter.
A graveside service was held on Oct. 1 at the Reedley Cemetery.
Sylvia Vasquez
Former Reedley resi- dent Sylvia Vasquez died May 18 at her residence in Tucson, Ariz.
Mrs. Vasquez was a homemaker.
She is survived by her husband, three daughters, three sisters, eight grand- children, 12 great-grand- children and one great- great-grandchild.
A Rosary will be at 9:30 a.m. followed by a Mass at 10 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 12, at the old St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Reedley.
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