Page 1 - Mid Valley Times 9-10-20 E-edition
P. 1
Thursday, September 10, 2020
Vol. 2, No. 11
Wildfires ravage Sierra
50 cents
Tulare County revises CARES Act plan
By George M. Villagrana
Mid Valley Times
Tulare County Board of Su- pervisors received an updated revision on the county's CARES Act plan on Sept. 8.
After the presentation given by County Administrator Offi- cer, Jason Britt, the supervisors approved the plan on a 5-0 vote.
In March of this year, the CARES Act established and ap- propriated $150 billion to the Coronavirus Relief Fund to be used to make payments for spe- cific uses to states and certain local governments (counties and municipal governments) with populations of more than 500,000. Tulare County did not receive initial CRF funding because its population is ap- proximately 466,000. However, within the Governor’s Enacted Budget, the county was allo- cated approximately $48.9 mil- lion in CRF funding from the state’s allocation for COVID-19 expenditures, impacts and ef- fects with respect to the public emergency.
In a meeting in July, the board approved the County of Tulare CARES Act Fund- ing Plan which outlined the county’s use of the CARES Act Funds deemed necessary to re- spond and mitigate effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. A fig- ure of $2.5 million was initially set aside for unforeseen expen- ditures related to the pandemic. Through the revision process, the contingency funds were re- distributed to local government support and community invest- ment initiatives as needed and
See CARESonpageA16
Reedley police unit assists in evacuations
By Juanita Adame
Mid Valley Times
As of midday Sept. 8, the Creek Fire had burned more than 140,000 acres in the Big Creek region — charging west toward the Tollhouse and Au- berry areas while remaining at 0 percent containment.
The fire started sometime in the evening of Sept. 4 and within a matter of 24 hours had spread from 2,000 acres to 30,000 acres, trapping people at the Mammoth Pools, China Peak, and Shaver Lake areas.
More than 50 people were transported via helicopter to safety on the evening of Sept. 6 after a number of hard road clo- sures blocked motorists from
See CREEKFIREonpageA10
Juanita Adame / Mid Valley Times
Reedley Police officer Eddie Luna (in sunglasses) and Kalee Olivas (back to camera) speak with a resident in Auberry telling him to evacuate on Sept. 7. Luna, Olivas and Sgt. Jesus Rivera were some of the RPD police personnel serving evacuation orders to residents during the massive Creek Fire.
Hawks affect Sanger water project
Photo Contributed
In order for the city of Sanger’s Tombstone water connection project to move forward, construc- tion will be coordinated to work around the nesting cycle of local Swainson’s Hawks. The en- dangered bird is native to the area is known to nest between the months of March and August.
Water connection to Tombstone territory must be coordinated around nesting cycle
By Rick Curiel
Mid Valley Times
Sanger’s city council finalized its ap- plication for connecting water to the Tombstone territory at its Sept. 3 meet- ing and also revisited the city’s Measure S grant application.
The city of Sanger submitted an ap- plication for funding through the State Water Board in July to finance the con- nection of city water to the small com- munity south of city limits. Meanwhile, the city has conducted an environmental
See COUNCIL on page A6
Construction work proceeds at Reedley High School
By Jon Earnest
Mid Valley Times
Construction work at Reedley High School is progressing steadily during the five months-plus of COVID-19 disrup- tion, and key portions of the project are expected to be ready whenever students are cleared by the state to return to on- campus learning.
Some of the new features are visible to the public from outside the campus. Along North Avenue, the most notable attraction nearing completion is a new, lengthier student drop-off mode along the south end of campus parallel to North Av- enue. There also is a new visitor parking lot southwest of the administration build- ing, and a new arched entry mode to that portion of campus is taking shape.
Then there are the new buildings. Just
north of the football stadium on the east end of campus, the finishing touches are being put on a new fieldhouse that will include locker and meeting areas for both the Pirates and visiting teams. Next to the main gym is the newly expanded wres- tling room, with a wall removed to open up the area.
In the center of campus, just north of the home economics classroom build- ing and east of the auto shop building, is the new ceramic woodshop classroom building, featuring a new woodshop and instructional areas for arts and crafts/ There also will be a new cafe at the site; a joint effort between the school's spe- cial education department and the Kings Canyon Unified School District's facili- ties team.
See REEDLEY HIGH on page A10
Jon Earnest / Mid Valley Times
A construction worker climbed a ladder to work on wiring at new arts and crafts room in the new ceramics/woodshop building at Reedley High School on Sept. 2.
Classifieds - A11 Directory - A10
Legals - A13-15 Sports - A9 Lifestyle - A7-8 Lights & Sirens - A3 Obituaries - A2-3 Opinion - A4