For the City Council’s decision to hire Public Works Director
Clint Quilter as interim city manager, a hard job made harder by
the city’s fiscal mess.
For the City Council’s decision to hire Public Works Director Clint Quilter as interim city manager, a hard job made harder by the city’s fiscal mess. The Council needed to appoint someone to lead the city until a regular replacement can be found, which will most likely happen after November’s elections. Quilter’s the right choice because he saves the city from spending money on head-hunting and brings institutional knowledge to the table. Quilter agreed to take the job for his current $117,000 salary rather than the $130,000 departing City Manager Dale Shaddox is paid. He has 15 years of experience in Hollister government, including dealing with one of the most damaging incidents in the city’s history – the sewer spill that led to the state-mandated housing moratorium. That crisis management experience will serve him well in the coming months when he will have the unsavory tasks of laying off 36 city employees and plugging a $4 million hole in the budget. We wish him luck.
For the First Annual San Benito Invitational Band Festival Saturday. The San Benito High School Scarlet Regiment Band will bring the competition to the streets by marching through downtown. The shindig is attracting bands from as far away as Vallejo and Stockton to strut their stuff in parade, jazz and concert competitions. The event promises to be a lot of fun, offer good music and be a showcase for the talented youngsters of the community. The downtown parade begins at 10 a.m. then proceeds to SBHS for the rest of the show. Check it out.
For the person who phoned in a phony bomb threat at the San Benito County Courthouse on Monday. An unknown man called in the threat from the Nash Road Mini-mart, and sent courthouse employees into the street for an hour while police searched the building. It’s a childish prank to pull on the hard-working staff and deplorable behavior to frighten so many for no apparent reason. What a stupid thing to do. After the Oklahoma City bombing and Sept. 11, police rightly take such threats very seriously. Let’s hope the police capture the perpetrator and prosecute him to the full extent of the law.
For Mother Nature’s ostentatious heat wave, which scorched San Benito County and nearby areas for a couple of days early this week. We know She’s as impartial as ever, but high 90s in late April is too much sun so early in the year. Here’s to the hope of milder temperatures at least for another few weeks before the summer sun “sweats” in.
For the women of San Benito County who’ve decided the silence surrounding sexual assault has lasted long enough. With a sexual assault occurring on average at a rate of 1.3 every minute across the nation, the embarrassment surrounding these horrific attacks should be put aside in lieu of supporting the victims. We’re fortunate to have organizations like Community Solutions that helps victims deal with these terrible crimes. Awareness is key to overcoming this disturbing trend in our society and last night’s vigil in front of the VFW is a great way to shine light on the shadow of abuse.
For community members who saddled up for last weekend’s Tres Pinos Trail Ride Fund-raiser. The many folks who attended the event showed their support for the small school in a small town, but made a huge difference in the lives of the 130 students there. The event itself was an entertaining mix of horseback riding, feasting and bidding on auction items. Best of all, the participants generated more than $50,000 to help fund important education programs for the money-poor school. That’s what we call class.
For Attorney General Bill Lockyer. He finally inked the deal sending 25 Department of Justice officers to the Hollister Independence Rally on the July 4 weekend. While city officials and rally organizers have been sure the event was a go for a while now, it’s nice to get it in writing. We hope this year’s event is a success, and organizers then get down to the hard work of ensuring it lasts well into the future.
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