THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF SAN BENITO COUNTY
San Benito Magazine inside this issue
UT & ABO R OF NDA CALE TS EVEN
A supplement to the Hollister Free Lance | March 30, 2018
OUT
Sassy Trio
Folksy Sisters Sing at the Aromas Grange
SEEKER’S VISION P8 | BLACK DIAMOND MINES P12 | MEALY BUGS P16
San Benito Magazine INSIDE THIS ISSUE
THIS WEEK: Poppy Jasper screens Luis Valdez’s ‘Ceasar’s Last Fast’
HOLLISTER • SAN BENITO COUNTY
A New SV Media publication
Friday, March 30, 2018
sanbenito.com • Vol. 145, No. 13 • $1
Dabo case returns to police for next steps HOOPER KEEPS CASE OPEN, AFTER REPORT FROM SPECIAL FORENSIC ACCOUNTANT By Barry Holtzclaw Managing Editor
Robert Eliason
Hollister police this week revealed they have reopened their criminal investigation of MitchelI Dabo in connection with his actions as trustee for the Matulich Charitable Trust. “When there is a development, I am sure the District Attorney will advise,” he said. “For now we don’t want to jeopardize the investigation.” “The investigation was forwarded back to our investigations bureau from the District Attorney’s Office,” said Police Chief David Westrick. “I cannot comment on the details of that because I do not wish to jeopardize the integrity of the investigation.” Westrick’s investigators had closed their investigation in early January and forwarded evidence and their findings to San Benito County District Attorney Candice Hooper. The main evidence at the time was a thick binder of documents that was presented at the Superior Court trial of a lawsuit filed by the San Benito County Charitable Foundation against Dabo. The judge in that civil case in November ruled that the evidence supported the foundation’s claims that Dabo violated state probate laws when he transferred more than
HIDDEN Forrest Movrich explores masks Sunday, March 25 at a booth during the weekend-long San Juan Spring Arts and Crafts Festival.
Skies clear for crafts
SAN JUAN ARTS AND CRAFTS FEST DRAWS CROWD FOR FOOD, FUN By Debra Eskinazi
HOLLISTER CA. PERMIT #48
****ECRWSS**** Residential Customer
tax revenue. The city also hopes to retain consumers who often leave the county to do their shopping. "We have leakage from people buying online and who shop in places like San Jose and Gilroy," Wyatt said. "The city gets a portion of the online sales, but those need to be collected by the state Board of Equalization." The new construction may also be an indicator that investors increasingly
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
of its U.S. stores— two new tenants in Hollister are expected to be TJ Maxx and Ross, companies that specialize in discounted, overstock items. Both have shown the ability to be resilient in combatting the growing rate of online sales. Collecting sales taxes for online sales has been an ongoing challenge for cities, and with the inclusion of new brick-andmortar retail, Hollister hopes to attract a more consistent stream of sales
TURN TO PIZZA • A8
retail facilities will also help to keep sales tax revenue local. "It’s a good trend that retailers are coming here—that means that we are negating leakage online," said San Benito County Business Council Executive Director Kristina Chavez Wyatt. While big-box retail stores have struggled to stay afloat in recent years—such as the announcement by Toys "R" Us of its bankruptcy and decision to close all
Cake, anyone?
The San Benito County Robert Eliason 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
San Juan resident
At a meeting of the Hollister City Council earliier this month, the council approved some of the final details regarding a new 130,000-squarefoot near Highway 25 and McCray Street. The
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developer, Hawkins Corporations Commercial Developments, an Idaho-based developer, may break ground on Hollister Farms by late spring. In what may indicate a larger overall trend of attracting new retail business to Hollister, city officials and business leaders believe the Hawkins Corp. decision to build in Hollister shows that investors are becoming more and more confident in the health of the city's economy. The inclusion of new
Project planned for Y Road
KATIE HELLAND •REPORTER khelland@freelancenews.com
HOLLISTER
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,”
POPULATION GROWTH ATTRACTS NEW RETAIL STORES TO HOLLISTER Reporter
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HOT GRILL Jackson Mansmith readies succulent tri-tips for hungry crowds Sunday, March 25 in downtown San Juan Bautista.
New shopping center fuels optimism
Bryce Stoepfel
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SPORTS
Crowds braved the rains Saturday and Sunday, March 24 and 25 to attend this year’s San Juan Spring Arts and Crafts Festival in downtown San Juan Bautista.
Soph surge
PAID
Magazine and Features Editor
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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The two-day event, held along Third Street, boasted more than 150 arts and craft exhibitors, a kids corner and live music for the public. Despite the grey clouds and intermittently overcast skies, festival-goers were lively and entertained themselves with pony rides, garden decorations, arts and crafts, and an abundance of faire-time foods during the festival.
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