Sanger Herald 3-28-19 E-edition

Sanger debates immigration
Looking for a home
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Lifestyles 2B
Sports 1B
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Groundbreaking for first phase of Sanger Veterans Memorial Park
Mike Nemeth/Sanger Herald
City councilmembers ceremonially break ground for the first phase of the Sanger Veterans Memorial Park. L-R, mayor pro tem Daniel Martinez, mayor Frank Gonzalez and councilmem- bers Esmeralda Hurtado and Eli Ontiveros.
WeeklyNewspaper
State zoning
requirements
are not that
big a deal for
nearby cities
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
If you were among the 200 or so who attended the planning commis- sion workshop on March 14 in the community center you may have come away with the impression that most cities in California are facing the same problems as Sanger when it comes to complying with state ordered rezoning for affordable housing.
Maybe some are.
But not the nearby cities of Reed- ley and Dinuba.
The State of California has told the City of Sanger that it must be able to accommodate 956 affordable housing units. "They’re saying that our obligation is to ensure that those units can get built," Sanger's senior plannerDavidBreletictold the workshop audience. To accommodate that many housing units Sanger is being required by the state to rezone almost 63 acres inside the city limits for high density housing.
How many acres do Reedley and Dinuba have to rezone to comply with the state's "housing element" law.
None.
Not a single acre, according to the city managers of those nearby com- munities.
Why not?
Because Reedley and Dinuba took care of it "years ago," Reedley city manager Nicole Zieba and Dinuba city manager Luis Patlan told the Herald.
The Herald asked Zieba and Pat- lan to comment because Reedley and Dinuba are about the same size as Sanger and because the Herald has sister newspapers in each town, the Reedley Exponent and the Dinuba Sentinel.
Their emailed comments might come as much of a surprise to those who attended the Sanger planning commission workshop as they did to the Herald.
Zieba said by email, "Reedley did all of this zoning several years ago. We are very conscientious about get- ting out early on issues, making sure our public is thoroughly aware of what we are doing, holding as many meetings as we need to, etc.
"I’m not exactly sure what to tell you, in terms of why the uproar in SangerandnotReedley. Wehave had several affordable, multi-family projects constructed in our City over the last few years, and there are a few more mapped and ready to be built. Generally,wehavebeenvery successful in having these things come before Council and residents and have them understand that 'affordable' housing is required by the State, but that 'affordable' does not mean a poorly constructed, crime-riddled,uglyproject. Infact,I STRONGLY believe that good design and proper management (clearly delineated in a property management agreement between the property ownerandtheCity)keepsmulti-fam- ily projects looking good, crime-free, and providing an important housing niche that is needed in most of our rural communities.
"If you have time, I would love to have you come to Reedley and
See ZONING, page 6A
SANGER HERALD: A MID VALLEY PUBLISHING NEWSPAPER • (559) 875-2511 • www.thsangerherald.com
Sanger(FresnoCounty)CA93657
Susan Joneson honored
Dick Sheppard/Sanger Herald
Susan Joneson received a standing ovation during a brief retirement ceremony at the March 26 school board meeting. Board president Pete Filippi described Joneson, who has been assistant to the superintendent for the past 20 years, as "The glue that held the district together during the 'tough' years." Joneson will have been with the school district for 29 years when she officially retires on March 29. She is being replaced by Jennifer Smith.
Also honored by the school board
L-R, Dennis Wiechmann, Valeria Villagomez and Liliana Gomez. Why they were hon- ored and more photos of a night of recognitions at the school board meeting on page 7A.
Quiet council meeting ends with charge of Brown Act violation
By Mike Nemeth
Sanger Herald
Regina Uribes remem- bered getting together a de- cade ago with a group inter- ested in forming a veterans memorial park in Sanger and talking about the layout and how to get it accomplished.
On March 20, city leaders and veterans groups of- ficially broke ground on the project at the corner of In- dianola and Jensen avenues. Completion is set for June, at least preliminarily.
Uribes, a member of the park advisory committee, joined a group of dignitaries that included U.S. Rep. TJ Cox to mark the beginning
of construction. "I feel like I got my dream," she said. "We knew it would take time. It's finally coming to fruition. It's wonderful to be at this point."
Gabi Nodhal, who has released the album "Hoy Lo Hare," performed the Na- tional Anthem. And JD Ben- nett, chairman of the Sanger Veterans Network, led the prayer in which he called for blessing the park and those soldiers who return from
deployment and those who don't.
Sanger Mayor Frank Gonzalez, also a veteran, expressed an opinion many shared. "Yes, this is really happening," he said. "It's been in the hearts and minds of Sanger for a long time now. But myself, the council and staff. We put together a plan.
"Veterans put their lives on the line for America, and now we get to honor them."
The concept for the park dates back more than a de- cade. Gonzalez said he knows there was skepticism, but that supporters were able to pull together initial funding.
He wanted to recognize the advisory committee, who in addition to Uribes, includes Paul Rodriguez, Bo Brown, Robert Lopez, Frank Guerra, John Cerda, Isabel Murillo, Tony Gonzalez, JD Bennett and James Pineda.
"The shovel hit the ground," Brown said after chrome plated shovels were used to ceremoniously turn the dirt. "Finally!"
Mayor pro-tem Daniel
See VETERANS, page 6A
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
An otherwise subdued March 21 city council meeting that dealt primarily with routine matters ended with councilmem- ber Eli Ontiveros handing city attorney Hilda Cantu Montoy copies of memos about Brown Act requirements and say- ing he wanted it noted on the record that the City had committed a Brown Act violation.
The violation, said Ontiveros, had to do with the City's failure to post a timely notice on its website about the cancel- lation of a regularly scheduled March 5 Measure S Citizens Oversight Committee meeting.
Thecouncilheardcomplaintsat
its March 7 meeting from people who showed up for the oversight meeting only to find that it had been cancelled.
One of the memos Ontiveros shared withMontoypointedoutthatas ofJan.1, 2019 the Brown Act required posting no- tices of regular meetings on city websites 72 hours in advance of the meetings.
guarantee the public’s right to attend and participate in meetings of local legislative bodies, and as a response to growing con- cerns about local government officials’ practice of holding secret meetings that were not in compliance with advance public notice requirements.
Coincidentally the Herald received an email notice on Wednesday shortly before 9:30 a.m. that the regularly scheduled April 2 Citizens Oversight Committee meeting has been rescheduled to 6 p.m. on April 15.
However, by press time, the Herald could not find the notice on the City web- site.
Also at the March 21 meeting the coun- cil:
• heard a quarterly report from Mid Valley Disposal;
• approved a budget amendment to move the police department security fencingprojectforward;and,
• agreed to award a contract for reha- bilitation of a water well to Valley Pump and Dairy Systems Inc.
• March 28 - Planning commission meeting, 6 p.m., city hall, 1700 7th St.
THURSDAY
MARCH 28, 2019
VOL 130 NO. 13
2 sections, 14 pages
CLASSIFIED 5B LEGALS 6,7B BUSINESS DIRECTORY 8B LIFE STYLES 2B OBITUARIES 2A OPINION 3A SPORTS 1B POLICE LOG 2A WEATHER 6A
More spring weather ahead? Get out the sunscreen!
See the forecast on page 6A
The Brown Act or “Open Meeting Law” is officially known as the Ralph M. Brown Act. It was enacted in 1953 to
• April 4 - City council meeting, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.
The reporter can be contacted by email at sangerherald@gmail.com or by phone at the Herald at (559) 875-2511.
• April 15 - Rescheduled Measure S Oversight meeting, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.