Arts Council debuts first Pop-Up Market
The San Benito County Arts Council invites the community to a Pop-Up Market at The Art Depot in downtown Hollister on Feb. 11, from noon to 4pm.
The market will feature original artworks, art prints, wall décor, handcrafted resin gifts and more. The Art Depot is located at 35 Fifth St., Suite D in the historic train depot.
Additionally, while at the Depot, guests can tour the space’s current art show, “Elemental,” which showcases works created by local artists who also teach in the San Benito County Arts Council’s Arts in Education Programs. Artwork in the show includes original paintings, mixed media, sculptural pieces, digital illustrations, and more and examines the connections between the teaching artists’ personal work and the creative ideas they share with local students.
“Elemental” participating artists include Venecia Prudencio, Nicole Maican, Allison Barnes, Sylas Jumper, Danae Parra, Clay Peer, Stephanie Skow, Louise Roy, Rebecca Pearson and Heidi Jumper.
The art exhibition can also be viewed during open Art Depot gallery hours on Saturdays through Feb. 18 from noon to 4pm. Contact he***@sa***********.org to make other arrangements for viewing.
These events are free, and all ages are welcome.
For information, visit sanbenitoarts.org or call 831.636.2787.
TK/K registration opens
The Hollister School District will register children for Transitional Kindergarten and Kindergarten from Feb. 27 through March 3.
If your child is 5 years old by Sept. 1, they are eligible to register for Kindergarten. If they turn 5 after Sept. 1, they are eligible for Transitional Kindergarten options.
For the 2023-24 school year through 2025-26, the ratio of adults to children is now set at 1:10. For the 2023-24 year, the child must turn 5 between Sept. 2 and April 2. For 2024-25, they must turn 5 between Sept. 2 and June 2. For 2025-26, they must turn 4 by Sept. 1.
Families are encouraged to contact their neighborhood schools for registration and more information.
Hollister High students named to Honor Band
Fifteen student musicians from Hollister High School have been named to the CMEA Central Coast Section High School Honor Band. The honorees are Lauren Agredano, flute; Avery Cua, alto saxophone; Mateo Dozal, percussion; Brandon Gatson, tenor saxophone; Leeza Gatson, bass clarinet; Isaias Leon-Jimenez, trumpet; Sabrina Lim, flute; Taylor Madrid, oboe; Tristan Molina, baritone; Yuvia Padilla, trumpet; Danika Perez, mallets; Jared Provencio, baritone saxophone; Eduardo Rosas, tuba; Sarah Stopper, alto saxophone; and Dylan Freitas, b flat clarinet and concertmaster.
“As representatives of Hollister High’s Scarlet Regiment and under the direction of Music Director, Joey Fortino, each of these proud Hollister high schoolers went through a rigorous audition process to claim their seat in this most prestigious musical ensemble,” says a press release. “Students were auditioned from areas encompassing Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and San Luis Obispo counties. It is quite the honor to be selected from such a vast number of auditionees.”
The auditions and months of practice culminated in a final grand performance this past weekend at Cabrillo College in Aptos.
Highway 25 will close for construction Feb. 10-13
Crews from Union Pacific Railroad will be making repairs to their tracks at two locations on Highway 25 in San Benito County, and the construction will result in road closures and traffic delays.
This work by the Union Pacific Railroad will result in a four-day, 24/7 closure of Highway 25 between Shore Road and U.S. 101, from 9am Feb. 10 to 4pm Feb. 13, according to a press release from Caltrans. Detours will be available.
Travelers on Highway 25 traveling north from Hollister will be directed to turn right on Shore Road and then turn left on Frazier Lake Road before taking Highway 152 west to rejoin U.S. 101 at the Tenth Street ramps, says the press release.
Travelers on southbound US 101 will be directed to take the exit for Highway 152 east, then turn right on Frazier Lake Road, and another right on Shore Road before rejoining Highway 25.
Message and directional signs will be in place to alert travelers of this closure, Caltrans said.
Travelers can expect delays of 20 minutes, and are asked to allow for extra time during their commute through the area.
Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans District 5 Social Media platforms: Twitter at: @CaltransD5, Facebook at: Caltrans Central Coast (District 5) and Instagram at: Caltrans_D5.
Rebates for electric vehicles
Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) last week announced the launch of its Pre-Owned Electric Vehicle (EV) Rebate Program, providing qualified residential customers up to $4,000 when purchasing or leasing a pre-owned EV. The program aims to distribute more than $78 million to promote the adoption of EVs and make EV ownership more affordable for all customers, says a press release from PG&E.
Current PG&E electric customers may qualify to receive a $1,000 or $4,000 rebate, based on household income, when purchasing or leasing an eligible pre-owned all-electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid EV. To take advantage of the offer, interested customers must successfully submit a rebate application within 180 days of the date of purchase or lease. The application is found online at https://evrebates.pge.com/how-to-apply.
“This new rebate program addresses the continued growth of the pre-owned EV market with a focus on making EVs more affordable for all customers throughout our service area. Affordability can be a barrier to EV adoption, and this program will help offset costs for our customers who want to explore pre-owned EV ownership,” said Aaron August, PG&E Vice President, Utility Partnerships and Innovation.
The Pre-Owned EV Rebate Program is funded by the California Air Resources Board’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), an initiative designed to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. PG&E earns LCFS credits for supplying low-carbon fuel in the form of electricity, and re-distributes funds generated from the sale of those credits through customer programs. The Pre-Owned EV Rebate Program has no impact on customer rates.
The rebate program is being implemented in partnership with the Center for Sustainable Energy.
PG&E offers a variety of tools, rebates and resources to help educate customers and encourage EV adoption. Customers can check out PG&E’s EV Savings Calculator, an online resource to browse vehicles, discover incentives, locate charging stations and more. The calculator is found online at https://ev.pge.com/.
Nearly 500,000 EVs have been sold in PG&E’s service area, representing one in seven EVs in the country, says the press release. As part of the 2030 targets outlined in PG&E’s Climate Strategy Report released last year, the company is preparing the grid to quickly and safely power at least 3 million EVs—or about 12,000 GWh of EV-related electric load. PG&E is also working to enable 2 million of those EVs to participate in vehicle-grid integration applications, allowing EVs to be a cornerstone of both electric reliability and climate resilience for PG&E customers broadly.
Bill would remove statute of limitations for crimes against children
Two California legislators introduced a bill Monday that would end the civil statute of limitations for childhood sexual abuse and remove barriers for survivors seeking justice.
Assemblywoman Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, and state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, introduced Assembly Bill 452,which would enable child abuse survivors to come forward whenever they are ready to confront their traumatic experiences.
AB 452, or the Justice for Survivors Act, would remove the deadline for survivors reporting their abuse. Currently, those who allege they are sexually assaulted as a minor can only seek justice in court up until their 40th birthday.
The bill builds upon the Eliminating Limits to Justice for Child Sex Abuse Victims Act signed in 2022, which removes the statute of limitations for people filing claims in federal courts.
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