Community

With a great deal of interest I read, “Primary ballot includes county offices.” It seems as though our Registrar of Voters has mounted a decent defense because he is under attack by some with accusations of “a rigged system.”   Our looming March 5 election has...

Call for artists The San Benito County Arts Council this week announced a call for artists for their upcoming fall exhibition, “Soul Searching: An Exploration of Portrait Art.” The exhibition aims to showcase the diverse and dynamic portrait works by local and regional artists, across...

I’m pleased to announce that due to my consistently vocal advocacy, the county is moving forward on plans to repave the segment of San Juan Highway that runs along Anzar High School.  This long overdue project could start as early as this summer, but the...

The Community Foundation for San Benito County has awarded a $10,000 grant to Visit San Benito County to support its mission to draw more visitors to the county. The grant will be used to form a Tourism Improvement District (TID) for San Benito County. The...

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office said Jan. 16 that he would veto any bill with an outright ban on youth tackle football. “My Administration will work with the Legislature and the bill’s author to strengthen safety in youth football—while ensuring parents have the freedom to...

The Central California Alliance for Health last week announced its collaboration with Serving Communities Health Information Organization (SCHIO), one of the oldest and most advanced multi-stakeholder health information exchanges (HIEs) in the country.  The partnership will help Alliance Medi-Cal members and providers in five counties,...

The number of reported hate crimes in California decreased slightly from 2022 to 2023, but those against Jewish, Muslim and LGBTQ+ people rose over the same period, according to the annual hate crime report from California Attorney General Rob Bonta.  The number of hate crimes...

The California State Assembly Select Committee on Fentanyl, Opioid Addiction and Overdose Prevention on Aug. 12 during an informational hearing discussed the urgency of combating the rise in overdose deaths among youth in recent years primarily due to ingesting fentanyl.  Between 2019 and 2021, drug...

People convicted of distributing fentanyl will face stiffer criminal penalties in the coming year under a new law shaped by rising overdose deaths. The law increases the penalty for selling or distributing more than one kilogram of fentanyl by an automatic addition of three years...

The Hollister High School Winter Percussion Ensemble took their talents to the stage earlier this month.  The youth band, led by Director Michael Tabrizi, performed March 16 at Gavilan College for the annual Bach To Blues concert at the college’s theater at the main campus...