Page 1 - Sanger Herald 6-6-19 E-edition

Navo Classic gets really popular
Hoping for a home
page 8A
Graduations and promotions begin
Sports 1B
Lifestyles 3B
WeeklyNewspaper Sanger(FresnoCounty)CA93657 50¢ (taxincluded)
By Fred Hall
Publisher
Mid Valley Publishing
COMMENTARY
Fittingly, on The
Fourth of July, Mid
Valley Publishing's
three community
weekly newspapers
will morph into a
newly designed and
comprehensive news
source for the Central
Valley cities now being served by The Dinuba Sentinel, Reedley Exponent and Sanger Herald.
That first Thursday publication
of The Mid Valley TIMES marks
the genesis of a bright, news packed version of the newspapers which have served this area of the Valley for overacenturyeach. Thenewshole will be equally shared throughout the newpaper. Yournewnewspaper—if you're currently a subscriber to either The Sentinel, Exponent or Herald— willbeTheTimes. Ifyouare currently a subscriber to any of these newspapers, you will automatically receive this edition in a much larger version of your current publication and it will continue throughout your subscriptionperiod. Ifyouarenot currently a subscriber, you will find
it easy and inexpensive to become
one. All the local news, sports and city government reports and regular columns—love them or hate them— willberetained. Allofthatwill continue in this single source.
Increasing pressure on local newspapers to address ever changing readerpreferencesmadeitapparent wehadto modernizegraphicallyand make changes in the way we package and deliver the news--which you have come to expect, direct to your door in a redesigned package.
Mid Valley Publishing will maintain it's current offices in each of these threecommunitiestoprovideeasy access to the services we provide and tomeettheneedsofeachcity. The local individuals, upon whom you rely and trust with reporting your news or event, will remain right where they aretoserveyourneeds. Personnel and ownership remain intact.
When one combines three of anything it means expanded coverage ofthisentiretradearea. There
will be more news, advertising, classifieds, legals and obituaries for your reading. In a larger newspaper. No one understands better than we do that we essentially work for you, our valued reader.
Times have changed and times arecontinuingtochange. The
communities in this area are no longer disparate towns but have become one large community where peopleoftendrivethesmalldistance between them to either work or shop. Entertainment or sports events at your favorite school have become basicallya15minutedrive. Wehad tofacetherealityofservingthe needs of this expanded trade area where the interests are shared among many.
An on-line version will be offered and for all of you who have already signed up, your subscription will continueforthee-paper. Therewill be a newly designed web site that will bemoreuserfriendlyandofferthe convenience of a pay wall, allowing the use of credit cards and various forms of payment.
Continuetoreadandenjoy
your local paper as you currently know it and remember to watch on Independence Day for your enlarged andexcitingnewversionofthat newspaper which will be The Mid Valley TIMES!
Editor'snote: ItistheHerald's policy not to run columns of any kind on the front page. However, we felt the nature this one warranted a special location.
Fred Hall
Council may finally settle rezoning issue
Public hearing conflicts with two 8th grade promotion ceremonies
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
This will be the city coun- cil's second opportunity to finally settle a controversial rezoning issue. The council will hold a public hearing today at 6 p.m. in the commu- nity center, 730 Recreation Ave., before making a deci- sion.
Several residents have complained that the public hearing conflicts with WAMS and Fairmont 8th grade pro- motion ceremonies.
A few things have changed since Jan. 23 when the council first looked at a planning commission recom- mendation and sent it back for a do-over. That was when the commission was admon- ished to reconsider sites to be rezoned and to do a better job of involving the public before bringing another rec- ommendation to the council.
The city has been attempt- ing to comply with a state
housing element law which, in January, required Sanger to find a total of 63 acres spread somewhere within the city limits that could be rezoned for "affordable hous- ing." Thecityfacedthreats fromthestatebecause ithad fallen more than two years behind in compliance with state law. The state, since January, has dropped the zoning requirement from 63 to 54 acres and has allowed the city more time to catch up.
The council will not have an official commission rec- ommendation to consider to- day because of a voting snafu at a May 15 commission meeting. However, a staff recommendation is included in the 370 page agenda on the city website, "www.ci.sanger. ca.us/AgendaCenter".
The reporter can be con- tacted by email at sangerher- ald@gmail.com or by phone at (559) 875-2511.
5,352,267, 39%
Class of 2019
graduation/promotion season ends this week
Proposed new
city budget tops
$47 million
Council sides with nonprofits
By Dick Sheppard
Sanger Herald
The city council approved Measure S grants of $65,000 for SAM Academy and $35,000 for the Boys and Girls Club and decided that up to $100,000 of Measure S money would be available for grants to nonprofits over at least each of the next two fiscal years.
Then with 21 business days remain- ing before the start of the new fiscal year the council got its first look at a staff proposed overall city budget of $47 million with a projected deficit of $3.2 million.
The council at a May 30 special meet- ing approved a Measure S proposed budget and spending plan for the next two fiscal years after bumping up from $75,000 to $100,000 the amount of Mea- sure S dollars available to nonprofits.
Mayor Frank Gonzalez, mayor pro tem Daniel Martinez and councilmem- ber Esmeralda Hurtado voted in favor of the Measure S budget and spend-
June 6 June 6 June 7 June 8 June 8
7 p.m. 7 p.m. 7 p.m. 3 p.m. 6 p.m.
WAMS 8th Grade promotion Tom Flores Stadium
Fairmont 8th Grade promotion Fairmont
Sanger High graduation SaveMart Center
Hallmark 8th Grade promotion Theater
Hallmark graduation Saroyan Theater
Saroyan
ing plan. Humberto Garza voted no and Eli Ontiveros abstained. Garza wanted more Measure S money to go to nonprofits, “I was thinking more like $400,000 ... 25-30 percent [of the total Measure S budget] would be more ap- propriate,” said Garza.
The grants to SAM Academy and Boys and Girls Club were approved on a 4-1 vote. Garza, after once again saying he thought more money should go to nonprofits, voted no.
City staff had initially recommended limiting Measure S grant money avail- able to nonprofits to $50,000 a year with no funding for any nonprofit that had received funding in the past. Both SAM Academy and the Boys and Girls
Club had received previous Measure S grants.
The Measure S oversight committee had recommended making up to $75,000 available each year to nonprofits with gang and drug prevention/intervention programs.
Up to $125,000 had been available to nonprofits over the past few years. Gon- zalez called the new ceiling of $100,000 "A good compromise."
The council’s first look at the city staff's proposed overall budgets for the next two fiscal years came after the Measure S decisions at a workshop where all department heads except police and fire shared and explained
• June 6 - City council affordable housing rezon- ingpublichearing, 6p.m.atthecommunitycenter, 730 Recreation Ave.
• June 12 - Community planning meeting, 6 p.m. at Sanger Veterans Park, corner of Jensen and Indi- anola avenues.
• June 13 - City council budget meeting, 6 p.m. at city hall, 1700 7th St.
• June 19 - Community planning meeting, 6 p.m. at Sanger High School band room, 1045 N. Bethel Ave.
See BUDGET, page 8A Sanger's Primavera Leal Martinez earns
Primavera Leal Martinez
Herald staff report
Hallmark Charter School graduate Primavera Leal Martinez was awarded the University’s top academic honors at Fresno State’s 108th Commencement Saturday, May 18, at the Save Mart Center.
Martinez was chosen from a group of nine Undergraduate Deans’ Medalists and nine Deans’ Graduate Medalists.
Martinez, of Sanger, was selected as the President’s Medalist, the University’s top honor for an undergraduate student. She earned a bachelor’s in English from the Col- lege of Arts and Humanities in three years
with a 3.91 GPA.
Martinez is a debate champion, having
received national recognition with the All- American Debater Award by the Cross- Examination Debate Association. She has also coached bilingual students in the Urban Debate Leagues.
She served as vice president of external affairs for the Associated Students, Inc., was a student representative on the Student Suc- cess Summit committee, a student represen- tative for the College of Arts and Humani- ties, editor in chief of La Voz de Aztlán and a volunteer for Camp Kesem, a free camp for children affected by a parent’s cancer.
Fresno State's highest academic honor
SANGER HERALD: A MID VALLEY PUBLISHING NEWSPAPER • (559) 875-2511 • www.thsangerherald.com
THURSDAY
June 6, 2019
VOL 130 NO. 23
2 sections, 14 pages
CLASSIFIED 5B LEGALS 6, 7B BUSINESS DIRECTORY 8B LIFE STYLES 3B OBITUARIES 2A OPINION 3A SPORTS 1B POLICE LOG 2A WEATHER 6A