HOLLISTER • SAN BENITO COUNTY
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Friday, January 26, 2018
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County weighs energy saving options SOLAR PANELS, NEW LIGHTING CONSIDERED Nicholas Preciado Reporter
Barry Holtzclaw
The San Benito County Board of Supervisors took steps Tuesday to begin new energy conservation measures at county buildings, including potentially constructing solar panels. County leaders listened to a presentation by ENGIE Services US, the North American branch of an international energy company, that reported on the findings of a study conducted on energy usage at county buildings and properties. The project cost is $8,031,922 and is FIELD OF DREAMS San Benito High School District Supt. Shawn Tennenbaum checks out progress on new athletic fields.
➝ County Energy, 10
New school fields taking shape
THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF SAN BENITO COUNTY
JANUARY 26, 2018
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OUT & ABOUT
Reporter
CALENDAR OF EVENTS A section of the Hollister Free Lance
➝ School Construction, 5
said Jim Brumfield, whose 14-acre horse ranch on San Juan Highway is a short walk from the site of the planned bridge. The riverbed crossing will be funded completely with federal money from the Federal Highway Administration's Toll Credit Highway Bridge Program, with construction slated for the spring of 2017. “The key to a better transportation
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An advocacy organization that re college instructors across Califo symbolically walk out of the clas what they call a significant pay d
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quality of higher education for our students,” said Laura Perry, president of Gavilan’s Board of Trustees. “The district’s taxpayers supported these bonds when we needed it, and we’re proud to pass along these savings to them.” In 2015, Gavilan refinanced its 2004 Series C bonds, resulting in $3.5 million in savings. The two refinancings have reduced the payback by
more than $12.6 million. Dale Scott & Company served as the financial advisor to help the district refinance the bonds and take advantage of lower interest rates while shortening the payback period, according to a press release. “This refinancing helps our community take a large step forward in our ongoing efforts to responsibly manage our
make his pizzas. In starting the business, he is also bringing a taste of his family’s home country to his family’s hometown in Hollister. The Felice family is from the Calabria part of Italy and has deep roots in San Benito County as well. With the opening of Forno, meanwhile, Hollister will once again
Due to an interest rate cut on its bond refinancing, Gavilan Joint Community College District has reduced the amount district taxpayers must repay for Measure E funds. Gavilan College
refinanced $27,115,000 of Measure E general obligation bonds (Series A and D) approved by district voters in 2004, decreasing payments by over $9.1 million. The interest rate of the new bonds is lower, down to 2.78 percent from an average of 5.68 percent. “We’re always looking for ways to save taxpayer dollars while continuing to improve the
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San Juan resident: ‘Like our own
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installation; classroom modernization; ADA upgrades; new tennis courts and parking lot; new Career Technical Education building; special education facility upgrade; Nash Road safety measures and closure. Measure U-funded projects include: the new Visual and Performing Arts building, which students began classes at last month; new science lab and classroom building; new robotics building
Cake, anyone?
Baler student-athletes and physical education students to play and practice on a safe, consistent surface all day, every day, rain or shine,” Thatcher added. “This facility will literally be used more than 300 days a year.” While school officials have placed a premium on upgrading athletic facilties to continue Hollister’s storied sports tradition, the two bond measures have touched other parts of campus life as well. Measure G-funded projects include: campuswide HVAC classroom
The San Benito County chapter of the national nonprofit organization Birthday Cakes 4 Free started last spring and group members have been bringing cakes, cupcakes and muffins to low-income seniors and children ever since then. Since the group started in June, its members have delivered about five cakes a month to the Emmaus House, Chamberlain's Children Center and the assisted living facility Whispering Pines Inn. Now they're looking to expand to individual homes in the county. A2
Solar revisions
The company vying to build a 247-megawatt solar farm in Panoche submitted a draft supplemental environmental impact report addressing plans to examine impacts under a revised, reduced proposal. PV2 Energy filed the supplemental draft EIR on Dec. 23. The prior company overseeing the project, Solargen Energy, had an initial EIR approved by the county board in late 2010. A5
SPORTS
Project planned for Y Road
KATIE HELLAND •REPORTER khelland@freelancenews.com
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HOLLISTER
LOWER RATES MEAN SAVINGS TO TAXPAYERS
A $16 million bridge stretching 900 feet across the San Benito River is planned to connect Y Road and San Juan Bautista. But in this rural area, the number of people it will serve is small. “It's like our own bridge to nowhere,”
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About 1,100 studentathletes, which make up more than a third of the student body, compete at the freshman, junior varsity and varsity levels across 26 sports offered at SBHS, according to district staff. The new facility, which will be used by field hockey, soccer, lacrosse, football, baseball, softball and cheerleading—as well as physical education classes during the regular school day—is scheduled to be completed by May 2018. “This facility will allow
Gavilan College reduces cost of bonds Staff Report
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Soph surge
students can look forward to state-of-the-art athletic facilities, as crews recently broke ground on San Benito High School’s new multi-purpose practice facility. The ongoing construction and renovation is funded by two voterapproved bond measures: the $42.5 million Measure
A year ago, Brad Sparrer was the No. 5 player in the lineup on San Benito High’s golf team. But entering the 2015 season—practice starts on Feb. 1—the 5-foot-8, 140pound sophomore will likely be the Haybalers’ No. 1 player. Sparrer’s meteoric rise came the good old-fashioned way: hard work. B1
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Inside this issue: Scenes excepted at Poppy Jasper in April
G, which passed in June 2014, and the $60 million Measure U, approved in November 2016. The athletic facilities will be on par with other top high schools in the state, according to San Benito High School Athletic Director Tod Thatcher. “Last year, we opened our new wrestling and weight room facilities and refurbished Mattson Gym,” Thatcher said. “Now, we are super excited to see ground being moved at the site of our new allsynthetic, multi-purpose practice facility.”
finances,” Gavilan President Kathleen Rose said. The 2004 voterapproved bond measure provided funds to upgrade outdated plumbing and wiring, renovate aging classrooms and libraries, provide access for disabled students, improve campus safety and plan for the future by expanding satellite sites, according to Gavilan staff.
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