GOOD NEWS. REAL NEWS. HOMETOWN NEWS.
SINCE 1889 Making Communities Better Through Print.™ VOL. CXXXII, NO. IV
THURSDAY, JULY 15, 2021
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EVENT
EDUCATION
PRJUSD Board Vote Down Study Session to Discuss Critical Race Theory
Main Street Olive and Lavender Festival Huge Success
By CAMILLE DeVAUL camille@pasoroblespress.com
as weak. Chick lit was too cheesy. Fantasy was, too, well, unrealistic. Crime thrillers were too graphic. I decided to write novels that I would like to read—suspenseful stories with strong female characters,” Dallas explained. Dallas recommends her books to “anyone who wants to read an intriguing thriller that’s free of graphic violence and erotica.” Dallas is simultaneously writing books two and three of the Chenille trilogy, and in January, she published a novella titled “Death is Personal,” an ebook that has landed a spot on Amazon’s Top 2,000 Two-Hour Reads.
PASO ROBLES — For the first time in over a year, the Paso Robles City Council meeting was held in person after the COVID-19 government restrictions were lifted. From now on, the public is welcome to attend the meetings in person or continue to participate virtually from home. A resident requested Item 12: Award of Contract to Repair and Resurface Centennial Park Tennis Court to be removed for a separate discussion. Staff recommended the Council to award a contract for Centennial Tennis Court Repair and Resurfacing to Trueline Construction & Surfacing, Inc. in the amount of $55,520. According to Freda Berman, Maintenance Superintendent, in April 2021, staff noted that the surfacing on the courts was bubbling, and rebar began to show in certain areas, specifically courts three and four. As a result, the use of the courts has been determined to be unsafe, thus closing the courts until resurfacing could be completed. The bid also includes adding pickleball shadow lines on the tennis courts. Councilman Hamon questioned staff if it is necessary to fully renovate the courts or if it is possible to simply repair the most affected areas. Berman informed Hamon that fully resurfacing the courts will be the best long-term fix. Many residents were present to voice their support for adding pickleball shadow lines. There appeared to be some animosity between pickleball and tennis players. Pickleball players are requesting approval of pickleball shadow lines to give them more courts. With a 5-0 vote, Council approved the contract and recommended that the local Pickleball club present a proposal to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee (PRAC) about adding shadow lines for pickleball to one tennis court at Centennial Park and bring a recommendation from the PRAC back for Council consideration in August. Next, a public hearing was held for the 2020 Urban Water Manage-
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By CAMILLE DeVAUL camille@pasoroblespress.com
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EVENT
Paso Robles City Council Holds InPerson Meeting After over a year, the public is now welcome to attend in person
Board of Trustees receive legal guidance on meeting etiquette
PASO ROBLES — The Paso Robles Joint Unified School District met for a regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, Jul. 13. To start the meeting, Roman Muñoz, Attorney with Lozano Smith, provided legal guidance for Public Comment during meetings, including English to Spanish translation, board responses to public comment, prioritizing members of Paso Robles community during public comment, and virtual call-in comments. In previous meetings, the public has complained about the inaccurate English to Spanish translation. To address the issue, Board President Chris Arend suggested the only way to get the best word-to-word translation is for the Board to speak about one sentence at a time for the translator. Superintendent Curt Dubost read a statement before beginning Public Comment. Below is Dubost’s typed statement for the meeting: “We are in a politically charged moment. As a result, some of the rhetoric at recent board meetings has become extreme. Name-calling and images of lynchings have appeared in local media and flyers. This must stop. Those of us in the schools as well as in the general community must show our children how adults can engage in civil discourse and develop consensus and compromise or at least arrive at decisions after all sides have been given a fair hearing. I am giving a fair warning. We expect members of the public to conduct themselves in a respectful manner. Any speaker or attendee who repeatedly speaks out of turn is profane, or substantially disrupts the conduct of the Board’s business, or who uses this opportunity to make personal attacks on staff may have their public comment time cut off. Complaint forms and the formal process are available at the back of the room for that purpose.
CITY
Paso Robles Main Street Executive Director Norma Moye (right) and her committee welcome guest who attended the Olive and Lavender Festival on Saturday. Photo by Hayley Mattson
Despite the 113 degree heat, hundreds attend combined event By HAYLEY MATTSON hayley@pasoroblespress.com
PASO ROBLES — On Saturday, Jul. 10, the Paso Robles Downtown Main Street Association pulled off their first event after
the COVID-19 shutdowns, and it was a huge success! As with many other non-profits gearing up to make up for lost time and fundraising efforts, the organizing committee pulled off a combined event and set the tone for the community moving forward. “Combining the Paso Robles Olive Festival and the Central Coast Lavender Festival just made sense,” said Norma Moye, Execu-
tive Director of Main Street. “We had over 70 vendors sign up for the event!” Main Street’s focus and priority were on the safety and wellbeing of the community, attendees, sponsors, and volunteers. Therefore, the committee made certain that booths were spaced out and limited when setting up the event. On the day of the event, Paso Robles hit 113 degrees, and the county was issued a heat warning
advisory that was in place starting Friday, Jul. 9 through Monday, Jul. 12. However, that did not stop the attendees from coming. With hundreds of people coming and going throughout the day, the event proved to be a success. The day started with Yoga with Mary Uebersax, followed by the Blessing of the Festival by Father CONTINUED ON PAGE A15
NOVEL
Sally Dallas: Death is Personal
North County, meet your hometown cozy mystery author By PATRICK PATTON patrick@pasoroblespress.com
PASO ROBLES — The first chapter of any novel is vital. It usually depicts the main character as feeling perfectly content in her comfort zone, though it’s all a set-up for the inciting incident—that moment when circumstances beyond the character’s control launch her into a brand new adventure she never saw coming. It’s a call to adventure that initially shakes her world but ultimately challenges her perspective on life and pushes her to live out her true potential. Enter Sally Dallas circa 2007—Vice President at a large, international bank, happily married, proud mother of three grown sons. That’s when the stage 3 cancer diagnosis came from out of nowhere and shook her whole world. “Thanks to aggressive treatment, I’m in long-term remission,” Dallas said. “As anyone who has experienced a life-threatening event will tell you, it changes your perspective on everything. You appreciate the simple things in life and realize your time is limited.” Two years post-diagnosis, in 2009, just when Dallas was beginning to feel healthy again, the banking industry was in upheaval, and the bank laid her off. For the first time in thirty years, Dallas found herself with time on her hands. “I’m talking about a WINDFALL of time,” Dallas said. “It was fabulous. I thought, ‘I’m going to do what I want. I’m going to write,
EDUCATION
Deceptions of Chenille is the debut novel by Paso Robles Cozy Mystery Author Sally Dallas. Contributed photo
start my own consulting business, and travel.’ Thanks to my supportive husband, I have done exactly that. Fast forward ten years—my husband is now retired, I have four grandchildren, time to write, time to travel, and consider myself the most blessed person on the planet.” Sally Dallas is the pen name of Paso Robles resident Sally Coons, who spent three years writing her first published novel, Deceptions of Chenille, which debuted in February of 2020. Dallas describes it as “a clean romantic suspense novel and white-collar crime thriller.” “It was difficult to find a genre in which I felt immersed. Romance portrayed women
COUNTY
AGRICULTURE
WEATHER
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ADAM ERON WELCH CDC UPDATES GUIDANCE Meet the artist and watch him work in as schools will be safely opened for a live painting event | A3 full in-person instruction | A4
SLO BOARD OF DIRECTORS proclaim local emergency due to ongoing drought | A5
THE GREAT CANNABIS DEBATE Part 2 of this editorial special, from the view of a Cannabis farmer | A13
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