This story of a plane-crash turned survivor story will end up being trotted out, eventually, as a reason why activities at the Tracy Municipal Airport should be shut down.
The argument will go something like this: In the interest of public safety — namely the safety of the people who will one day call the close-to-the-airport Ellis subdivision home — flights should be canceled or rerouted. Activity at the airport should be slowly decreased lest another freak crash happen over homes.
If the argument takes, the fledgling businesses at the airport will fold, and one of our city's economic success stories will shrivel.
Please, please, please, let me be wrong.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Refreshing news for downtown Tracy
Thank you David Helm — we've been waiting for this drink a long time.
Helm's announcement that he will open an alehouse on the corner of Central Avenue and 10th Street — with a full offering of both macro- and micro-brews, complete with a pub-style menu — is just what I'd hoped to hear since Scrapbook Memories abandoned the JC Penney's building.
That space is spoken for now by Corral Hollow Realty, but the location one block to the east hardly matters. Downtown needs more places where you can grab a brew after work or sip on suds before a show at the Grand Theatre. (The Grate Plate is fine, but a change of pace is nice, too.)
And the relaxed, family-friendly atmosphere Helm seems to be shooting for is just the type of business that could be a downtown draw.
Hopefully, the building's air conditioner issues will work out soon. I can't wait to belly up to the newest bar in town.
Helm's announcement that he will open an alehouse on the corner of Central Avenue and 10th Street — with a full offering of both macro- and micro-brews, complete with a pub-style menu — is just what I'd hoped to hear since Scrapbook Memories abandoned the JC Penney's building.
That space is spoken for now by Corral Hollow Realty, but the location one block to the east hardly matters. Downtown needs more places where you can grab a brew after work or sip on suds before a show at the Grand Theatre. (The Grate Plate is fine, but a change of pace is nice, too.)
And the relaxed, family-friendly atmosphere Helm seems to be shooting for is just the type of business that could be a downtown draw.
Hopefully, the building's air conditioner issues will work out soon. I can't wait to belly up to the newest bar in town.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
A strange new Delta definition
This report from a local TV news outlet (and others like it) could be one of the reasons many seem confused about the plight of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
The sub-headline:
Water is now flowing into the San Joaquin Delta. On Wednesday, at two water stations in Tracy, pumps were turned on.
To clarify, the pumps that were turned on take water out of the Delta, sending it into aqueducts that feed Parts Previously Unwatered. This means there is less water in the Delta, not more.
It seems this outfit sees the Delta-Mendota Canal and California Aqueduct as an integral part of the endangered Delta instead of unnatural siphons.
The sub-headline:
Water is now flowing into the San Joaquin Delta. On Wednesday, at two water stations in Tracy, pumps were turned on.
To clarify, the pumps that were turned on take water out of the Delta, sending it into aqueducts that feed Parts Previously Unwatered. This means there is less water in the Delta, not more.
It seems this outfit sees the Delta-Mendota Canal and California Aqueduct as an integral part of the endangered Delta instead of unnatural siphons.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Republicans for McNerney?
Last week, Jennifer Wadsworth reported that despite there being two GOP challengers to Rep. Jerry McNerney in the 2010 congressional race, a pair of local Republicans had already come out in support of the Democrat from Pleasanton.
Their names? San Joaquin County Supervisors Steve Bestolarides and Larry Rhustaller.
No word on how would-be congressmen Brad Goehring and Jon Del Arroz took the news.
Their names? San Joaquin County Supervisors Steve Bestolarides and Larry Rhustaller.
No word on how would-be congressmen Brad Goehring and Jon Del Arroz took the news.
PR for water wars
Dozens of signs dot Interstate 5 next to fallow fields and dying orchards that read: "Congress created dust bowl."
It's part of a campaign by farmers to get the federal government to ease Endangered Species Act restrictions and let more water flow to Central Valley ag outfits, many of which are struggling during a stretch of dry years. The proof is on display if you drive down the 5 to Los Angeles and back.
Picking on Congress for the fallow fields is easy — but it doesn't acknowledge that the root cause of these restrictions is the fact that California has overtaxed the Delta estuary to the point of near collapse.
More thoughts on this in the coming days...
It's part of a campaign by farmers to get the federal government to ease Endangered Species Act restrictions and let more water flow to Central Valley ag outfits, many of which are struggling during a stretch of dry years. The proof is on display if you drive down the 5 to Los Angeles and back.
Picking on Congress for the fallow fields is easy — but it doesn't acknowledge that the root cause of these restrictions is the fact that California has overtaxed the Delta estuary to the point of near collapse.
More thoughts on this in the coming days...
Friday, June 26, 2009
The letter that didn't make it
Running the Voice show for Cheri Matthews the past couple weeks, I've been getting bombarded with Letters to the Editor. Here's one clever entry that might not make it to the paper, but still deserves to be published somewhere:
Buy one, get one free;
What will the government do for me?
Is this the way of society?
Goodbye freedom and liberty.
~ Deborah Vergara, Tracy
Rhythmic, catchy, and downright cryptic.
I love it.
Buy one, get one free;
What will the government do for me?
Is this the way of society?
Goodbye freedom and liberty.
~ Deborah Vergara, Tracy
Rhythmic, catchy, and downright cryptic.
I love it.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Paramedic fee, station move roots found in archives
Checking through the Second Thoughts archives, I stumbled across a May 17, 2008, column titled "Prepare to pay, or prepare for pain," that detailed how the Tracy Fire Department was stretched to its limit and failing to meet response time standards.
Lo and behold, a year after that report, plans are in motion to move two fire stations to improve response times and charge a fee for fire department paramedic services.
These two policies, especially the station relocation, have their roots in documented shortcomings of the past.
And, for the record, I'm no fan of the paramedic fees. The value of your life should not be dependent on the thickness of your wallet.
But, as my most recent column also tried to point out, it's worth understanding some of the reasons why city and fire officials have enacted the policy.
Lo and behold, a year after that report, plans are in motion to move two fire stations to improve response times and charge a fee for fire department paramedic services.
These two policies, especially the station relocation, have their roots in documented shortcomings of the past.
And, for the record, I'm no fan of the paramedic fees. The value of your life should not be dependent on the thickness of your wallet.
But, as my most recent column also tried to point out, it's worth understanding some of the reasons why city and fire officials have enacted the policy.
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