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DAILYREPUBLIC.COM | Well said. Well read.
Homeless population rises by 7%, HUD says Todd R. Hansen
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Alora Perrin walks at the HvH Specialty Growers flower farm in Suisun Valley, Thursday.
Spring is here again
FAIRFIELD — More than a half-million U.S. residents were homeless in 2020, 39% of whom were unsheltered, according to the annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress. The report published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development noted that the largest segment of the homeless population
is under 25 years old, and disproportionately nonwhite when compared to the overall population. “On a single night in 2020, roughly 580,000 people were experiencing homelessness in the United States. Six in 10 (61%) were staying in sheltered locations – emergency shelters or transitional housing programs – and nearly four in 10 (39%) See Homeless, Page A8
Beauty blooms at HvH Specialty Growers Amy Maginnis-Honey
AMAGINNIS@DAILYREPUBLIC.NET
SUISUN VALLEY — You can tiptoe around the tulips, chill with the Icelandic poppies and get acquainted with anemone at HvH Specialty Growers. The business takes its name from owners and proprietors Lisa Haas and Ron vanHuuksloot, who have been bringing blooms to life for a few years in the Suisun Valley. They rented property from Larry Balestra and grew their flowers there. They were able to secure 10 acres last July as a permanent location and have continued to grow, add beauty and serve the community. HvH sent flowers in early March to the Sacramento National Cemetery, where they were placed alongside the headstones. Healthy flowers and greenery are designed and hand-tied into bouquets to honor fallen and former military heroes. Families can choose to publicly honor the heroic stories, sacrifices and memories of lost loved ones in their special section devoted to service members. Apprentice farm manager Alora Perrin, who grew up in Fairfield and Suisun City, is enrolled in the Apprentice Farm Manager program through the Center for Land-Based Learning and will complete the program in 2022. She previously worked for Green
Robinson Kuntz/Daily Republic file photo (2020)
A man sleeps on the sidewalk on West Texas Street while holding an umbrella, Nov. 17, 2020.
Tulips grow at the HvH Specialty Growers flower farm in Suisun Valley. Valley Florist. “Her program is important to us,” Haas said. “It’s being part of the community and giving back.” Field associate Armando Jaimes, a Fairfield native, and Perrin oversee the daily operation. Their tasks can range from planting to running the tractor to chasing off critters who nibble at the flowers to putting up shade structures. It’s a year-round operation, with late winter and early spring flowers finishing their seasons. Sunflowers, and other flowers that love the heat, are next, Perrin said. As she walks around the acreage that’s planted, Perrin stops to show off the varieties, pull some weeds
and even deal with a field mouse. Dealing with the critter is on her to-do list. Perrin contacted another specialty flower grower. Their suggestion: Plant a decoy garden. She points out the rare, beautiful Italian ranunculus, which resembles a delicate rose with many layers. The flower, when open, resembles a pile of whipped cream atop an ice cream sundae. There’s a bevy of different daffodils and colorful tulips, some with scalloped edges. “Lisa is always looking for new varieties,” Perrin said. Haas can name them all with a quick glance. She has studied the See Growers, Page A8
State to allow 3-foot spacing in classrooms Los Angeles Times LOS ANGELES — Students in California are now allowed to sit 3 feet apart in classrooms – instead of 4 or 6 feet – in guidelines state officials issued Saturday, a major change in policy that will exert pressure on local officials for a faster and more complete reopening of campuses that have been closed for over a year in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Local education leaders will have the final say –
and Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Austin Beutner said Sunday that L.A. schools would stick with the 6-foot rule. Still, the ground has shifted rapidly since the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday announced its endorsement of a 3-foot rule for elementary schools. The agency also OK’d 3-foot desk spacing on campuses with older students, but there are See Spacing, Page A8
Navy awards $21.9M for Travis construction project Facility part of work to prepare for KC-46A Daily Republic Staff
U.S. Air Force file photo (2020)
A KC-46A Pegasus assigned to McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas sits on the flight line at Travis Air Force Base, July 11, 2020. The pending arrival of the KC-46 Pegasus at Travis has sparked the construction of new facilities, including a newly awarded $21.9 million contract to build a new regional maintenance training facility. INDEX Classifieds ��������������������������������������B5 Columns ����������������������������������������� A6 Comics ������������������������������������� A7, B3 Crossword ��������������������������������A6, B4
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TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE — Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Southwest awarded Soltek Pacific Construction Co. a $21.9 million contract March 15 in San Diego to construct a regional maintenance training facility at Travis Air Force Base. Work is expected to be completed by spring 2023. Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Southwest is the contracting activity. “We are glad to be part of the effort to support the home-basing of the KC-46A Pegasus, the
Air Force’s next generation of aerial refueling tanker, at Travis Air Force Base,” said Cmdr. Dan Stokes, Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Southwest assistant operations officer. “This maintenance training facility is a key component of the support for the new tanker and one of many facilities projects underway at Travis in support of the new aircraft.” The work to be performed by San Diego-based Soltek Pacific Construction Co. provides construction of a 33,361-square-foot regional maintenance training facility that supports the home basing of the new KC-46A aerial
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refueling tanker at Travis. Soltek is part of Solpac Construction Inc. The facility will provide specialized, hands-on training of maintenance personnel to enhance learning, facilitate the development of skills and permit the practice of proper procedures necessary for the maintenance of integrated systems of the KC-46A aircraft. Travis is a West Coast site to bed down the KC-46A. The base in Fairfield is scheduled to receive its first KC-46A in August 2023 and to receive 24 by
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