News

Hollister City Council members Monday are set to consider sending a message to the biker community that officials plan to hold a downtown motorcycle rally for the next 10 years, while city leaders also will weigh starting talks with the Hollister Downtown Association to oversee the event.

HONORS: Raul Mancera: Cadet Raul Mancera, Alpha Co., 9th Reg. from Campbell University (9th Reg. Honor Graduate), graduated from the 2013 Leader Development and Assessment Course at Watkins Field on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Wash.

On Aug. 13, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 130, authored by Assemblymember Luis Alejo (D-Salinas).

Garden Railroad Tour: Garden railroaders in the South Santa Clara Valley and Santa Cruz areas will open their homes from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Visitors are asked to bring a donation of nonperishable food (or cash, checks or gift cards for Nob Hill or Safeway) when they pick up a guide book. Details: (408) 683-4537.

A deputy district attorney said he expects the office to make a formal charging decision Friday relating to accusations a 17-year-old Morgan Hill resident stabbed a Hollister man to death.

Ricardo Ramos spent part of last week on location filming a short film he is hoping will be making the festival circuit in the coming months. Ramos, who attended Rancho San Justo Middle School and graduated from San Benito High School in 1999, said he took a circuitous route to becoming the director of the short film.

The proposed changes in water rates at the Hollister and Sunnyslope Water Districts modify the fixed price, tier price, and tier steps over several of years. This makes forecasting of water bills difficult for the average homeowner.

Construction of the new San Benito County courthouse has been moving at a brisk pace on the lot at the corner of Monterey and Fourth streets. Judge Steven Sanders said last week the court staff members estimate the first proceedings will be held at the new courthouse location by the end of this year or early in 2014.

While Hollister's Relay For Life is over, one little girl who helped start out the cancer survivor's lap on Aug. 3 has one more celebration coming her way.

On a visit to Hollister last week, San Luis Wildlife Refuge Complex manager Kim Forrest talked about current easements and prospects for others under the federal government's proposed California Foothills Legacy voluntary program. Her office currently manages nearly 200 easements - they usually involve the government paying landowners a certain amount per acre to follow certain requirements - for duck-hunting clubs.