Our first Red Phone caller, a Hollister man, asked the Crimson
Crusader if the city or the county could build a sidewalk along
Valley View Road between Union Road and Sunset Drive. Our caller
said he sees children and adults riding bikes, jogging and pushing
strollers up and down the street all the time. He worried that
without a sidewalk, these pedestrians could be at risk of being hit
by passing motorists.
Our first Red Phone caller, a Hollister man, asked the Crimson Crusader if the city or the county could build a sidewalk along Valley View Road between Union Road and Sunset Drive. Our caller said he sees children and adults riding bikes, jogging and pushing strollers up and down the street all the time. He worried that without a sidewalk, these pedestrians could be at risk of being hit by passing motorists.
The Crimson Crusader picked up the phone and dialed up Hollister City Engineer David Rubcic to see what could be done. Rubcic said the city had budgeted funds for just such a project with hopes for getting reimbursed for the work by the county, which is responsible for the area in question. Rubcic said the county didn’t have funds to do the work and so the city won’t be building a sidewalk there. The Crimson Crusader wasn’t able to contact County Public Works Director Jerry Lo on Thursday, but will follow up on this issue soon.
Where’s the coverage?
Our next Red Phone call came from a Hollister woman who wanted to know why the Free Lance has not published any articles about “chemtrails.” Chemtrails, for those not in the know about this sort of thing, are unnatural vapor trails in the sky that allegedly contain chemicals.
Our caller believes these so-called chemtrails are the result of planes dumping unknown substances in the sky. We have heard conspiracy theorists express the same view on late-night radio talk shows. Our caller said she has spotted such chemtrails over the skies of Hollister and blames them for a variety of ills, from allergies to asthma.
Sorry, dearest caller, the Crimson Crusader doesn’t investigate conspiracy theories, UFOs or Elvis sightings. Our hero is content to help local residents solve everyday problems. Best give a call to “Unsolved Mysteries” or late-night talk radio host Art Bell.
Red Phone on Hold
You might recall the Crimson Crusader’s gentlemanly wager with San Benito County Supervisor Anthony Botelho over when construction would commence on the Highway 25 bypass project. The Crimson Crusader volunteered to spend 10 hours cleaning up trash and debris along the bypass upon its completion if construction started on or before May 1. Botelho took the opposite side of this friendly wager and volunteered to spend 10 hours cleaning up trash if the May 1 start date was missed.
COG recently put the project out to bid and it appears the Crusader could lose this bet. That being said, our hero refuses to throw in the towel until the first shovel hits the ground and construction starts.
